WO2006051271A1

WO2006051271A1 - Lighter holder

Info

Publication number: WO2006051271A1
Application number: PCT/GB2005/004273
Authority: WO
Inventors: William James Mackay Downing
Original assignee: William James Mackay Downing
Priority date: 2004-11-09
Filing date: 2005-11-07
Publication date: 2006-05-18
Also published as: GB0424709D0

Abstract

A pouch/holder for attaching to a carton or other type of container. The pouch/holder can be assembled from a flat piece of material (1) that forms the pouch/holder part and a plurality of flaps and/or serrated flaps (2 and 3) for insertion into the apertures or cavities on the side and/or top and bottom of a carton or other types of container (4). The pouch/holder device and its insertion flaps can be released from one carton for re-use on another. Retention within the pouch/holder can be further aided by folding the internal section (28) towards the section (24) but to act as a spring to hold any object within the pouch/holder area.

Description

DESCRIPTION SELF-ASSEMBLY POUCH/HOLDER FOR ATTACHING TO A CONTAINER

Field of the Invention

An embodiment of the present invention refers to a device which can hold a cigarette lighter, book/box of matches or other ignition device and is attachable to a cigarette pack or the like but is detachable and reusable. Another embodiment could be of a different size and shape to hold documents to a carton or other type of container. For the purposes of simplification, this description is based on the embodiment of a device to hold a cigarette lighter or similar for attaching to a cigarette pack or the like, though there are further applications for this invention.

Background of the Invention

Many tobacco smokers like to have a packet of cigarettes and a lighter on hand at all times (or a packet of cigars and lighter etc.). It happens, however, that a smoker is often frustrated to discover that the lighter has been mislaid and cannot be located. The present invention provides a lighter holder that can be attached to a packet of cigarettes or the like so that the lighter and packet of cigarettes or the like form a single unit. The smoker should be assured that the lighter and cigarettes will be found together as the lighter can be operated whilst in the lighter holder and is not separated from the packet of cigarettes or the like.

There have been various attempts to combine a lighter holder with a packet of cigarettes or the like. These attempts fall into three main categories. 1. Inventions that enclose both cigarettes and a lighter within the same casing or two elastic loops or similar that wrap around each of the items. 2. Lighter receptacles that attach at the side of a packet of cigarettes or the like by means of a strip that is inserted into the bottom or top folds, or flanges that grab the side of a packet. 3. Lighter receptacles that attach at the side or front of a packet of cigarettes with clips that slide within the packet of cigarettes or the like just below where the lid meets the main body of the packet. All of these inventions may be pre-formed at the manufacture stage; this makes them expensive and are often complicated and bulky items. This present invention can be manufactured as a flat and pre-creased device which is simple to fold and assemble by the user thus keeping the costs of production to a minimum and overcoming the aforementioned disadvantages. A further advantage of the present invention could be that it can be assembled with either flat face of the pre-cut form on the outside similar to a reversible item of clothing.

WILLIAM DOWNING Summary of the Invention

To simplify the explanation, some drawings accompany the present report to represent, for illustrative and not limitative purposes, an example of production of a lighter holder for cigarette packets or the like.

In the drawings:-

Fig 1 is an outline of the lighter holder in flat form with pre-creases indicated by dashed lines.

Fig 2 is a three-quarters front perspective of the assembled lighter holder according to the invention.

Fig 3 is a three-quarters rear perspective of the assembled lighter holder according to the invention.

Fig 4 is a pictorial illustration showing the present invention assembled and attached by means of flaps (12) and (14) to a packet of cigarettes. Fig 5 is an outline of Fig 1 showing an alternative construction for fitment to a soft packet of cigarettes.

Fig 6 is a pictorial illustration of Fig 5 showing an alternative construction of the device assembled and attached to a soft packet of cigarettes. The elements marked with numbers in the drawings correspond to the parts mentioned below.

The device described and indicated comprises:

- the assembled sleeve (10); - a flap (12) for insertion into a packet of cigarettes or the like;

- flap (12) also has a crease (34);

- a flap (14) for insertion into a packet of cigarettes or the like;

- flap (14) is split into two elements, a section (30) that is the bottom of the sleeve (10) that stops the lighter sliding all the way through the sleeve (10) and a section (32) that is designed to prevent the flap (14) from slipping out from its position within a packet of cigarettes or the like;

- two flaps (16) that during assembly are tucked through the two apertures (26) and have additional cuts (36); - a back panel section (18);

- a side panel section (20);

- a front panel section (22);

- a side panel section (24);

- two apertures (26) as mentioned above; - a flap (28) that tucks inside the sleeve on assembly to form the two apertures (26);

- all creases are indicated by a dashed line and are either vertical or horizontal except (34) which is located on flap (12) and is at an angle to match that found on the side of a packet of cigarettes or the like; - a flap (38) as an alternative to flap (12). The size of the lighter holder and its dimensions are variable as there are variations on the sizes of cigarette packets or the like depending on brand and country.

100 The device shown in Fig 1 could be obtained from stamping out the shape

(and creased) in plastic, metal, card or other suitable material and requires no additional treatments (e.g. glue, lamination etc.)

Assembly can be quick and very simple. The elements (28), (24), (22), (20) 105 and (18) can be folded along their connecting creases to form a sleeve (10), flaps (16) can then be slotted through apertures (26). A further embodiment could be that the elements (28), (24), (22), (20) and (18) may not be creased as individual sections but act as a single surface to create a cylinder that is open at both ends. Perhaps to assist holding the shape of the sleeve (10) the 110 flaps (16) could be slightly wider than the apertures (26) and furthermore the flaps (16) could have small additional cuts (36) at their left and right sides along their creases so that when they are pushed through the apertures (26) they could lock into place.

115 Flap (12) can be folded back away from the sleeve (10) so that it may lie flush to the back panel (18).

Flap (14) can be folded at right angles under the sleeve (10) so that the section (30) may become the base of the sleeve (10) and the section (32) may be 120 protruding backwards and perpendicular to the back panel (18).

Flap (12) can then be inserted down the side and within a packet of cigarettes or the like. Flap (12) could be angled in such a way as to part the two pieces of card or material that forms a packet of cigarettes or the like and are sometimes 125 found to be glued together.

Section (32) of flap (14) could then be inserted within the base fold structure of a packet of cigarettes or the like. Section (32) may be in a shape as shown to help retention within a base fold structure or adapted to improve the retention.

130

With the flaps (12) and (14) in place the holder is firmly attached to the packet of cigarettes or the like and a lighter contained within it can be held securely; maybe immediately available at any time and does not need to be removed from the sleeve for ignition.

135

If a lighter is too narrow to be held securely flap (28) can be folded a further 90° and due to its elasticity acts as a spring to help retain the lighter.

Whilst the lighter holder is securely in place and the lighter held firmly within, it 140 is still easy and simple to withdraw the lighter from the lighter holder should it need to be refilled or replaced and similarly the lighter holder can be removed from the packet of cigarettes or the like and attached to a different packet.

An alternative embodiment of the present invention illustrated in Fig 5 and Fig 145 6 shows how a slight change to the configuration of flap (12) into flap (38) produces a lighter holder that can be used on a soft packet of cigarettes. It will be understood by those who practice the invention and by one skilled in the art, that various modifications and improvements may be made without departing from the spirit of the invention and that Fig 5 is only one example of 150 a modification.

Either surface of the present invention in Fig 1 or Fig 5 may be provided with decorative design or texture and the like. A decorative design or texture may be selected to provide an appealing visual impression. Also, either of the two

155 surfaces may be provided with enhanced gripping qualities to reduce slippage of the flaps (12), (14) and (38) from their relative positions within a packet of cigarettes or the like or of the lighter held within the sleeve (10). The application of an aesthetic or friction enhancing treatment to either of the surfaces in Fig 1 or Fig 5 may be applied in any combination.

160

The invention, within its speciality, may be realized in other ways which differ in detail from that indicated as an example in the preceding description and which will be similarly covered by the protection requested. It may therefore be constructed in any shape or size and with the most appropriate materials,

165 since all this is included in the spirit of the claims.

Indeed, the Law of Patents in force establishes that alterations of shape, dimensions, proportions and materials of an already patented object cannot be patented, demonstrating the legislator's criterion that, once an idea that may 170 give rise to industrial or practical production is patented, no-one may use it as a basis to present it as their own new idea under the pretext of having introduced slight modifications.

Claims

1 A device that is a pouch/holder with a plurality of flaps for insertion into apertures or cavities on the side and/or top and bottom of a carton or other type of container;

2 A device as claimed in Claim 1 which can be assembled from one piece of flat material; 3 A device as claimed in Claim 1 which can be releasable and re¬ usable from its attachment to a container

4 A device as claimed in Claim 1 with a plurality of flaps that are shaped with a rounded end for insertion into an aperture or cavity that is unhindered or a different embodiment of the flaps that are an angled triangular point with the point possibly offset to one side for insertion into an aperture or cavity that is hindered by glue or the like to ease the aperture or cavity apart; 5 A device as claimed in Claim 1 with serrations on one or both sides of the flaps as detailed in Claim 4 to aid retention within a carton or other type of container's apertures or cavities;

6 A device as claimed in Claim 1 with one of the flaps detailed in Claim 4 being folded across the bottom of the pouch/holder section to act also as one of the sides or parts forming the pouch/holder;

7 A device as claimed in Claim 1 where the flaps as claimed in Claims 4, 5 and 6 for insertion into the carton or other type of container are creased at the same angle as their corresponding insertion point on the carton or other type of container;

8 A device as claimed in Claim 1 where there are a plurality of assembly flaps which are shaped for easy insertion into their corresponding holes but are tapered at their join and are slightly larger than their corresponding holes immediately preceding the taper to aid retention once assembled;

9 A releasable and re-usable device as claimed in Claim 1 where an internal section can be further folded to create a spring effect to aid retention of any object or objects that are inserted within the pouch/holder;

10 A releasable and re-usable device as claimed in Claim 1 which is produced in a variety of shapes and sizes depending on its application (cigarette lighter holder, document holder etc.) and on the carton or container to which it will be attached; A pouch/holder device substantially as herein described and illustrated in the accompanying descriptions and diagrams.