Classifications

• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
  • B65D—CONTAINERS FOR STORAGE OR TRANSPORT OF ARTICLES OR MATERIALS, e.g. BAGS, BARRELS, BOTTLES, BOXES, CANS, CARTONS, CRATES, DRUMS, JARS, TANKS, HOPPERS, FORWARDING CONTAINERS; ACCESSORIES, CLOSURES, OR FITTINGS THEREFOR; PACKAGING ELEMENTS; PACKAGES
  • B65D85/00—Containers, packaging elements or packages, specially adapted for particular articles or materials
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
  • B65D—CONTAINERS FOR STORAGE OR TRANSPORT OF ARTICLES OR MATERIALS, e.g. BAGS, BARRELS, BOTTLES, BOXES, CANS, CARTONS, CRATES, DRUMS, JARS, TANKS, HOPPERS, FORWARDING CONTAINERS; ACCESSORIES, CLOSURES, OR FITTINGS THEREFOR; PACKAGING ELEMENTS; PACKAGES
  • B65D2585/00—Containers, packaging elements or packages specially adapted for particular articles or materials
  • B65D2585/54—Containers, packaging elements or packages specially adapted for particular articles or materials for articles of special shape not otherwise provided for
  • B65D2585/545—Contact lenses

Definitions

• This invention relates to packaging for contact lenses, in particular for packaging to support delivery direct from manufacturer to customer.
• the invention further relates to processes for the supply of contact lenses for trial and ongoing use.
• the trial lenses are often provided by the lens manufacturer to the optician free of charge, and are often made available in 'not for resale' packs on the condition that they are provided on a free of charge basis for trials purposes only.
• the trial lenses would be exactly the same as the commercial lenses, which would be dispensed after a successful trial period, the latter will be, most probably, from a completely different batch or "lot", albeit from the same manufacturer.
• the commercial lenses may vary slightly in precise prescription (for example, the lens power) and/or precise fit, due to slight batch-to-batch variation expected in even the most advanced manufacturing processes.
• the trial lenses may be from a batch that has had the power allocated by being 'rounded up' whilst the lenses dispensed for regular use may have had the power reading 'rounded down'.
• contact lens solutions are now sold by supermarkets in all major countries and there is a trend for the contact lenses themselves to be marketed by pharmacies, the user simply selecting lenses of their desired prescription (lens power) from a display rack.
• pharmacies pharmacies
• the supply of contact lenses does not require any form of consultation or examination by an optician or pharmacy-type dispensers, and can be readily sold by mail order, or other such direct-supply means.
• the Internet also means that, even in countries where strict regulation requires the direct involvement by an ophthalmologist to issue the prescription and then an optician to sell the lenses in accordance with the ophthalmologist's written prescription, users can and do, once in possession of their prescription, simply purchase from an overseas supplier, for example via the Internet.
• Embodiments of the invention provide a direct purchaser of lenses 1) a means for trialling lenses without having to commit to purchasing large quantities, and 2) a way of maintaining quality and prescription between trial lenses and bulk, commercial quantities of the lenses. These embodiments also allow the supplier of such lenses to 1) track lens batch numbers as efficiently as possible, 2) return lenses to stock without the fear of tampering, and 3) supply the bulk and trial lenses in a single transaction, using a single manufacturing process.
• the invention provides a method of supplying contact lenses to a wearer, wherein a bulk quantity of lenses and a trial quantity of lenses of the same prescription as the bulk lenses are supplied simultaneously, the bulk lenses being packaged with a tamper- evident seal while the trial lenses are accessible for use without breaking said seal.
• Said bulk quantity of lenses may represent two or three months' supply (for example, between 60 and 100 daily lenses). For three months' supply, the quantity of bulk lenses may range from 88 to 96 lenses.
• the trial quantity of lenses may comprise fewer than ten lenses, and preferably four or five lenses.
• the trial lenses may be supplied in a package attached to the outside of the sealed package of the bulk lenses.
• the sealed package for the bulk lenses may have an integral externally accessible pocket for holding the trial lenses.
• packaging for the trial lenses and the bulk lenses may be supplied within a single outer envelope. Any of these unified package designs simplifies handling and shipping for the manufacturer and/or anyone else in the supply chain. It also saves on distribution and packaging costs, and minimises the opportunities for mistakes to arise.
• Packaged lenses are generally provided with identification information, such as prescription, batch numbers and date of manufacture.
• identification information of the trial and bulk lenses is visible before the seal on the bulk lens package is broken.
• the bulk lens package may in particular have an aperture through which details of the contents can be seen without breaking the seal on the bulk lens package. This allows the user to verify their prescription before breaking the seals and allows anyone handling the lenses to readily recognise the prescription.
• the trial lenses and bulk lenses are preferably sourced from the same manufacturing batch or 'lot'.
• the user can be assured that the lenses in the bulk pack will have the same prescription and comfort as the lenses they have trialled, when opening the bulk pack.
• This addresses a problem in the more traditional methods of trialling lenses, described already above.
• a further advantage to the manufacturer is that they only have to trace one set of information for quality control purposes, rather than separately for a trial pack and a bulk pack.
• the lenses may be provided in one or more sheets, each sheet comprising a plurality of cavities each holding at least one lens and being sealed by a sealing foil.
• the cavities may be blisters integrally formed in a single sheet of formable material. They may be individually sealed or sealed by a common single sealing foil. Alternatively, the or each sheet may comprise a plurality of individually formed single- cavity blisters attached to a common single sealing foil.
• each sheet may hold between twelve and twenty lenses, depending upon the configuration of the sheet. For example sixteen lenses in a sheet of four by four lenses, or fifteen in a sheet of five lenses by three lenses).
• the sheet may further comprise weakened zones between rows of lenses that allow strips of lenses to be snapped off the sheet by the application of a bending moment to the sheet, or for being torn off.
• the manufacturer may remove a row or column of lenses from a sheet, package the rest of the sheet with the bulk quantity of lenses and use the detached lenses as the trial quantity.
• the trial lenses may comprise a strip of blisters separated from a sheet of the same type as are contained within the bulk pack. Either method allows processing of the trial lenses to be identical to that of the bulk lenses, right up to the last packaging stage.
• the method may further comprise the step of a wearer returning the bulk lenses within the unopened sealed package, after wearing one or more of the trial lenses.
• the method may comprise a preliminary step of taking an order from a wearer without the intermediary of an ophthalmic practitioner, the lenses being of a prescription specified by the wearer, said package being supplied direct to the wearer.
• the method may comprise a preliminary step of taking an order from an ophthalmic practitioner, the lenses being of a prescription specified by the ophthalmic practitioner, said package being delivered directly to the wearer for trial and use.
• Trial lenses may be omitted when supplying the same wearer subsequently, or may be included every time lenses are supplied.
• the invention further provides a contact lens package, said package containing a bulk quantity of lenses and a trial quantity of lenses of the same prescription as the bulk lenses, the bulk lenses being packaged with a tamper-evident seal while the trial lenses are accessible for use without breaking said seal.
• the package may be used in performing the supply methods according to the invention as set forth above.
• the package may have any of the optional and advantageous features described above in relation to the method.
• Figs, la and lb are a plan and side elevation view respectively of a "Foil", or sheet, of sixteen contact lenses, each in its own sterile 'blister' pack;
• Fig. 2 is a side elevation view of a stack of six such sheets of 96 lenses, typically sufficient for just over three months daily wear;
• Figs. 3 a and 3b are plan views of a strip of four lenses that has been separated from one of the sheets, and how it appears in a trial pack of lenses, respectively;
• Fig. 4 illustrates a shipping pack containing a bulk pack of lenses for each eye, and respective trial packs
• Figs. 5 to 7 illustrate alternative forms of package
• Fig. 8 illustrates different processes for the supply of lenses to wearers, using the packs of Figs 4 to 7.
• An Internet, mail order purchase or other direct purchase scheme is most commonly used for obtaining a three month supply of lenses, typically described as 90 lenses made to the prescription (power) for the right eye and 90 lenses made to the prescription for the left eye.
• the 90 lenses are generally provided on flat sheets or 'foils' of, say, 15 individually packed lenses (the actual lenses being in sterile plastic 'blisters').
• Figures la and lb are a plan and side elevation view respectively of a sheet 100 of 16 contact lenses of one prescription (that is, for one eye), each lens in its own sterile cavity or 'blister' 110 sealed by a common foil 112.
• the foil 112 covering each individual blister 110 containing a lens is printed prominently at 120 with the power (prescription) of the lenses within (in this example, -6.50 dioptres).
• Manufacturers retain lot or batch numbers for the product made, such batch numbers being a reference to the precise date and method of manufacture employed for that particular batch.
• the batch number is also printed over each number at 122, although the skilled person will appreciate that other methods of identification or tagging could be used to provide traceability.
• Other textual information can be applied as shown, together with any desired branding. These are not relevant to the invention presently described.
• the foil 112 incorporates zones 130 between rows of lenses which are weakened (for example, by perforation), allowing strips of lenses to be snapped off the sheet (still with sealing foil intact) by the application of a bending moment to the foil 112, or for being torn off.
• Figure 2 shows a cross-sectional view of a bulk quantity 200 of lenses comprising a stack of six of the sheets 100 totalling 96 lenses, sufficient for just over 3 months daily wear. These sheets are contained within a box 210 provided with a tamper-evident seal 212. Six such sheets 100 provide a supply slightly exceeding the 90 lenses typically supplied. A manufacturer's "lot", or batch, would consist of several thousand contact lenses all produced under identical conditions, therefore the stacks of 96 lenses will consist of 96 identical lenses sourced from a single batch. A window 220 is provided in the box so that the power markings 120, batch numbers 122 etc can be seen without breaking the seal 212. The skilled person will appreciate that the 4 x 4 configuration of blisters on each sheet is not essential, and that other formats would suffice, such as 5 x 3 blisters per sheet.
• Figs. 3 a and 3b are plan views of a strip 300 of four blisters each containing a lens, that has been separated from one of the sheets 100, and how it appears in a trial pack 310 of lenses, respectively.
• the trial pack in this illustration comprises a simple paper envelope, which may be printed with instructions for use.
• the trial lenses are identical to the bulk quantities by being sourced from the same manufacturing batch (and indicated as such).
• the trial pack 310 is attached to, or incorporated with, the bulk pack 210 of lenses, as will be illustrated below.
• the trial pack of lenses may also have its own tamper-evident seal 320, to further demonstrate integrity of the package to the user.
• each bulk pack 210 each bulk quantity 200 as six full sheets (96 in total), and source the trial strip of four lenses from another sheet, albeit from the same batch.
• This approach may be commercially advantageous for when a bulk pack 210 is returned un-tampered, and the manufacturer wishes to return all six, complete sheets to stock, without having to discard an incomplete sheet. The choice may depend on whether trial packs are supplied with all bulk packs, or only those for customers with a new prescription.
• Fig. 4 illustrates a complete package comprising a rigid outer envelope in the form of a shipping box 400 containing two bulk packs of lenses, one per eye, and two trial packs 310, one per eye.
• a large flap 402 that covers both packs is shown in its opened state, revealing both bulk packs 210, each with its own window 220 for viewing the prescription and other identification legends 120, 122.
• Space is also provided for an L/R indicator 404 to be applied to the pack to remind the wearer which set of lenses is for the left eye and which is for the right eye (the prescription will generally be different for each eye).
• the manufacturer may elect to provide a further tamper-evident seal to maintain the complete shipping pack in its closed state.
• flap 402 provides a convenient surface for written or pictographic instructions for the wearer. These can of course be placed on the individual packs 210 and/or separate leaflets. The two sets of 96 lenses in total per eye can then be onward despatched to the end user.
• the flap 402 includes a window 406 for mailing address details to be seen by postal services when printed on a delivery note (not shown) inside the package.
• This delivery note also can contain prescription information, lot numbers, billing information, instructions for re-ordering branding of the optometrist etc..
• a label can of course be provided on the outside of the box. In that case, however, the packer must take care that the details on the label match the details and contents provided inside.
• the user can conduct a simple short trial for each eye before breaking the bulk pack tamper seal 212 and opening the bulk pack 210 of lenses. If the wearing of the trial lenses 300 contained in the trial pack 410 suggests some unsatisfactory feature to the user (for example discomfort or incorrect prescription) the person can be offered the chance to return the bulk pack 210 unopened for full or partial credit.
• the provision of such a trial quantity also has the beneficial psychological effect of emphasising to the user the need to conduct an evaluation of the lenses, and an easy to return pack 210 discourages the user from persisting with the use of the product which may not be fully satisfactory.
• a prepaid return label or envelope (not shown) can be provided if desired.
• Figure 5 illustrates a further embodiment of the bulk and trial lens packaging concept, in which one strip of four trial lenses 500 projects outside a sealed bulk pack 510 whilst still remaining attached to its foil.
• the user snaps or tears off the projecting strip of lenses without breaking the seal 515 on the bulk pack, and uses these four lenses as trial lenses, the remaining lenses remaining tamper-evident sealed until the results of the trial are known.
• Tamper-evident sealing of the trial lenses 500 that project from the package 510 is provided by the foil-sealing inherently provided with the packaging of contact lenses in "blister packs".
• the skilled person will appreciate that different configurations of the sheet may result in different quantities of trial lenses (for example 3 or 5) projecting from the bulk pack.
• This embodiment still provides simple identification 520 of the lenses (such as prescription, batch number and date of manufacture), providing the advantages mentioned above, and without the need for providing a window 220 in the package.
• two such packs selected according to the prescription for each eye of the wearer, can be combined in a single shipping pack such as that shown in Fig. 4.
• Fig. 6 illustrates an alternative shipping pack comprising a simple padded envelope 600 in which each trial pack 310 is simply glued to a side panel (or any panel) of the corresponding bulk pack 110. Again, the seal 112 on the bulk pack remains intact while the trial lenses are used.
• An address window or mailing label 602 is provided on the outer envelope, as described above with reference to Figure 4.
• Fig 7 illustrates another possibility, in which the bulk pack box 700 is formed to include a pocket into which the trial pack 310 can be slotted. This may help avoid damage to the trial packs in transit, and may eliminate the need for an envelope around the trial strip. Of course, the box 700 may be more complex to manufacture, and thus more costly, than box 210 of Fig. 2.
• Fig. 8 illustrates some of the supply processes enabled by use of the packs described above.
• Parties to the first process are the manufacturer or other provider P and wearer A.
• Wearer A knows his or her own prescription and uses the provider's website or other channel to place an order 802 for packs of the prescription appropriate to each eye.
• Payment is made by credit card or the like.
• Provider P despatches a pack 804 by mail or courier, containing bulk packs of the correct prescription, together with associated trial packs.
• Pack 804 may have the form shown in Fig. 4 or Fig. 6, for example.
• wearer A sets up a standing order for the supply of further packs 806, 808, at pre-arranged intervals corresponding to the number of lenses in each pack. It is a matter to be determined by the provider whether every pack after the first pack contains a trial pack, or only the first pack for a given customer/prescription.
• wearer B first visits 820 an ophthalmologist or similar intermediary O, for example in a high street store, to establish his/her prescription and suitability for daily lenses.
• the intermediary O places the order 822 with provider P.
• the first pack of lenses 824, with trial lenses included is shipped to wearer B.
• wearer B tries the trial lenses for a few days, before breaking the seal on either bulk pack.
• Payment may be made at least initially to the intermediary in this case, or payment details may be passed to the provider P. Again, there is the option to set up a standing order, which may be managed by the intermediary if they prefer, or directly by the provider.
• the wearer can return 826 the bulk packs to the provider unopened using the package and return label included.
• a refund of payment can be provided, because the label will allow identification of the original order.
• Notification can be passed automatically to the intermediary to arrange for appropriate follow-up contact.

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• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
• Packages (AREA)
• Packaging Frangible Articles (AREA)
• Eyeglasses (AREA)

Priority Applications (6)

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Related Child Applications (1)

Publications (1)

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Family Applications (1)

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Cited By (2)

Families Citing this family (18)

Citations (5)

• 2003
  • 2003-11-29 GB GBGB0327786.0A patent/GB0327786D0/en not_active Ceased
• 2004
  • 2004-11-26 AU AU2004295155A patent/AU2004295155A1/en not_active Abandoned
  • 2004-11-26 CA CA002546489A patent/CA2546489A1/en not_active Abandoned
  • 2004-11-26 EP EP04798685A patent/EP1697233B1/en not_active Expired - Lifetime
  • 2004-11-26 WO PCT/GB2004/004989 patent/WO2005054084A1/en not_active Ceased
  • 2004-11-26 AT AT04798685T patent/ATE399724T1/de not_active IP Right Cessation
  • 2004-11-26 JP JP2006540614A patent/JP2007512191A/ja not_active Withdrawn
  • 2004-11-26 DE DE602004014810T patent/DE602004014810D1/de not_active Expired - Fee Related
  • 2004-11-29 TW TW093136764A patent/TW200533980A/zh unknown
• 2006
  • 2006-05-25 US US11/440,361 patent/US20060260957A1/en not_active Abandoned

Patent Citations (5)

Non-Patent Citations (1)

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