WO2013041116A1

WO2013041116A1 - System comprising a transport box and/or sales box for footwear and a bag

Info

Publication number: WO2013041116A1
Application number: PCT/EP2011/004769
Authority: WO
Inventors: Benjamin Braun; Matthias Vogel; Gerhard Albrecht; Stuart Boyd Graham GALBRAITH
Original assignee: Puma SE
Priority date: 2011-09-23
Filing date: 2011-09-23
Publication date: 2013-03-28

Abstract

The invention relates to a system (1) comprising a transport box and/or sales box (2) for footwear, especially for athletic shoes, and a bag (3) made of a resilient material. To provide a stackable system which has less weight, which requires less material and which is more environmentally and consumer friendly the invention proposes that the box (2) has a receiving space (4) for the footwear which is at least partially delimited by a base panel (5) and four walls (6, 7, 8, 9) extending from the base panel (5), wherein at least one wall (6) has an aperture (10), wherein the four walls (6, 7, 8, 9) form an opening (11) at the upper side of the box (2), wherein at least two of the walls (6, 7, 8, 9) have an extending portion (12, 13), which forms a carrier plate, which extends along the whole width and/or length of the box (2), wherein the bag (3) has a receiving space for receiving the box (2), wherein the bag (3) has a handle (14) for carrying the bag (3) and wherein the box (2) and the bag (3) are designed to allow the handle (14) to be led through the aperture (10) in one of the walls (6) when the box (2) is in the bag (3).

Description

System comprising a Transport Box and/or Sales

Box for Footwear and a Bag

The invention relates to a system comprising a transport box and/or sales box for footwear, especially for athletic shoes, and a bag made of a resilient material.

For transportation and sales presentation specifically footwear must be packed in suitable containers. Shoe boxes made from carton are well known in the art.

Furthermore, it is known from US 7,581 ,643 B2 to use bags for packing a pair of sports shoes which in turn are then packed into containers for transport and sales presentation.

Normally, a tradeoff must be done between an optimized transport container for the sport shoes to allow cost efficient logistics at one hand and an attractive appearance of the container when the shoes are presented during sales at the other hand.

Other aspects of a transport system for footwear are the space which is required for transport and for presenting the footwear in the shop. Also, the required amount of material for producing the system is an issue. Furthermore, it is a drawback of existing systems for transport and for the sales of footwear that the systems are not sufficiently environmental and consumer friendly.

Beneficially, a sales box for footwear is open at the top side, i. e. is has an opening. This allows to show the footwear in an easy and well appearing manner. Detrimentally, stacking of several sales boxes one above the other is problematic, if shoe boxes of slightly different sizes are to be stacked. A smaller box can penetrate into the opening of a bigger box below.

Thus, it is the object of the invention to propose a system comprising a transport box and/or sales box for footwear and a bag according to the kind mentioned above which allows an efficient handling and transport of the footwear and which is also suitable to present the footwear in a pleasant way. The system should be producible in a cost efficient way and should have less weight, which requires less material and which is more environmentally and consumer friendly than pre-known systems. Furthermore, measures should be proposed to ensure proper stacking of several boxes even in the case that the boxes do not have the same size.

The solution of this object comes up with a system comprising a transport box and/or sales box for footwear, especially for athletic shoes, and a bag made of a resilient material, wherein the box has a receiving space for the footwear which is at least partially delimited by a base panel and four walls extending from the base panel, wherein at least one wall has an aperture, wherein the four walls form an opening at the upper side of the box, wherein at least two of the walls have an extending portion, which forms a carrier plate, which extends along the whole width and/or length of the box, wherein the bag has a receiving space for receiving the box, wherein the bag has a handle for carrying the bag and wherein the box and the bag are designed to allow the handle to be led through the aperture in one of the walls when the box is in the bag.

Beneficially, boxes of slightly different sizes can securely be stacked one above the other in spite of the fact that most of the surface of the box is open, i. e. has the mentioned opening. This is allowed by the carrier plates which serve as a secure bearing area for the upper box which is placed above a lower box.

Preferably, the aperture is arranged in the middle of the wall. It can have a circular or oval or rectangular shape seen in a direction perpendicular to the wall.

A specific embodiment of the invention proposes that a slot is arranged in the wall which extends from the aperture to an end of the wall which is remote from the base panel. Preferably, the carrier plates have a perpendicular which is oriented in a vertical direction during the use of the box as a sales box, i. e. if the box is placed with the footwear in it on a floor or a rack the perpendicular onto the plane of the carrier plates is oriented in vertical direction. Usually, the area of the opening is at least 80 %, preferably 90 %, of the vertical projection area of the box; thus, the box is mostly open at its top side.

The carrier plates have preferably a width between 15 mm and 60 mm, specifically preferred between 20 mm and 40 mm. This allows a comfortably access to the receiving space from the top side of the box but ensures stackability even in the case that boxes of different size (for shoes of different size) are to be stacked. The box is preferably made of a flat panel element, wherein the walls are formed by bending parts of the flat panel element out of the plane of the flat panel element and wherein the base panel is a part of the flat panel element. The carrier plate can then be formed by two parts of the panel element which are bent over relatively to another to form a section of the box by being arranged one upon the other. Also, one part of the carrier plate can have at least one protrusion - preferably two or three protrusions - which is arranged for clamping or fixing the part relatively to the wall at which the carrier plate is arranged. The flat panel element can be a part which is punched out of a flat base material.

At least one of the walls can be made of two or three wall parts which are formed by the flat panel element and which are folded together against each other.

Preferably, two of the walls have flaps forming carrier elements for the carrier plates arranged at the other walls. By this design the carrier plates are supported by the flaps and thus by the adjacent walls on which the flaps are arranged.

At least two walls, preferably all walls can extend to the base panel under an angle between 80° and 89°, especially between 82° and 86°. By this design the stackability of the boxes can be further improved. According to a preferred embodiment of the invention the box has a conical shape in a top plan view. A specifically preferred solution has a width at a front side of the box which is between 102 % and 106 % of the width at a rear side of the box. By doing so it is possible to facilitate the insertion of the box into the bag but to make sure that the bag duly envelopes the box at its front end when the box is fully inserted into the bag. Also, it is possible to manufacture the bag to a corresponding conical receiving space. Another embodiment of the invention suggests that the bag has a conical receiving space which corresponds to the conical shape of the box.

The box consists preferably of a paperboard or cardboard. Corrugated cardboard made of recycled cellulose fibers and recycled paper is preferred for an increased environmental friendliness. An environmental benefit can be obtained by the fact that the material is re-usable after purchase for other purposes.

Thus, the present invention relates to the field of transport containers and carriers for footwear, and more particularly, to transport containers and carriers that provide less bulk, material and are more environmentally and consumer friendly. The transport container of the present invention includes a shell (i. e. the box) having four side walls surrounding a base such that it allows for the easy assembly, placement and removal of products such as, for example, a pair of shoes.

The transport container or shell further includes at least one open section that is designed to accommodate footwear housed within the transport container. The back and front walls are generally double or triple walls bisected by a living hinge, although single wall construction is contemplated. The back and front walls provide area sized to accommodate labels and other indicia placement, and include corner sections that may be eased to exclude acute corners that could snag upon the footwear carrier bag. The transport container further includes one or more hinged portions, for example, a living hinge that facilitates the manufacture, transport and stacking of the transport containers. The shape and design of the transport containers within the present invention allow storage of such by stacking when the transport container is in open or in used position. More specifically, in an open position and by way of the one or more living hinges, the walls of the transport containers are angled in such a manner to allow angled stackability. By way of example, the vertical walls of the transport containers may be angled toward the center by several degrees, e. g. 6 degrees. Having the vertical walls fold in toward the center in this manner strengthens the shell as well as reduces the opening at the top. Such design provides for preventing stacked shells in addition to the mentioned carrier plates from falling into each other and pushes up against the product within the shell to thereby increase friction upon the product and reduce any likelihood of the product shifting or falling out of the shell.

The front and back walls of the shell includes at least one cutout portion, e. g. finger pull, to aid in assembly and disassembly of the shell. In a preferred embodiment, the back and/or front walls include a slotted portion for receiving the handle of locking portion of the footwear carrier bag. The cutout portion aids in the locking and unlocking of the bag to the shell when the entire transport carrier is assembled. When the handle of the bag containing the footwear is locked in place using the cutout (aperture), such arrangement provides for securing the footwear and keeping the footwear clean from debris or dust during shipping, stocking or layout at a store. It is contemplated that the finger hole cutout (aperture) may be located in an area that is not obstructed by the bag so as to aid in the locking and unlocking of the bag to the shell. The transport container may further include features such as holes, appendages, channels and the like for accommodating the bay, labels and manipulation by a user. For example, when the footwear is placed into the box, the footwear is placed in a manner that aligns the laced portions of the footwear against the handle. This arrangement aid in aligning the handle in a substantially vertical direction with respect to the base for use as a handle by a user.

The transport container is designed such that it is lighter and requires less material than a prior art cardboard shoe box. The transport container can be fabricated of pulp, molded fiber, recycled paper or more rigid lightweight components such as plastic. The transport container is preferably durable and reusable by a retailer or consumer and enables a retailer to stack or place the containers in a secure manner. Shipping of footwear, for example, would not require the use of prior art shoe boxes and would thus be less expensive and more ecologically friendly. Once purchased by a consumer, the shell is so designed to aid in its disassembly to make it easier for the consumer to dispose of properly and/or recycle. Also, in the case that the shell remains in the store it can be easier disassembled by the shop staff. To that end, each of the back and/or front walls may include an additional cutout for use as a finger pull to aid in disassembly. It is also contemplated that the cutout used for locking the bag handle may be used as the finger pull to disassembly the shell. The footwear carrier system of the present invention eliminates the need for additional shopping bags or cartons at the distributor, wholesale, retail or end user level. As the footwear carrier does away with the sole box type carriers, it is up to 40 % to 85 % lighter than the existing prior art shoe box. This reduction in weight produces great environmental and/or cost savings.

The footwear carrier bag is an open bag closed at one end. The bag may include a looped handle along one side of the open end that mates with an opening situated on an opposed side of the open end of the bag. The bag is so designed to surround and lock (via the handle and opening) around the shell and/or footwear contained therein. The locking occurs by inserting the handle of the bag into the cutout of the shell (aperture of the box). Once locked, the bag handle serves as a carrying handle for the shell and footwear. To open the transport container and access the footwear, a user would unlock the bag handle from the cutout along the back or front wall of the shell and pull off the bag while holding or restraining the shell. Accordingly, to close the transport container, a user would slide the bag over an end (back or front wall) of the shell, pull the bag over the shell, and lock the bag handle through the cutout of the shell. The bag and shell containing the footwear prevents the footwear from being chafed or rubbing together and preserves them in a new state for the ultimate end user.

The footwear carrier bag of the present invention is manufactured of lightweight material, such as, for example, soft structured Tyvek, spunbonded polypropylene or natural fibers such as cotton. Preferably, the material is generally water and durst restistant.

The transport container and footwear carrier bag of the present invention may be used with footwear such as running and walking shoes; however, it is contemplated that apparel and other consumer merchandise can be substituted for the footwear discussed herein.

The material for the bag is a resilient material. This includes the possibility that the material of the bag can have a certain stiffness.

If an aperture is arranged in the front wall of the box only this supports the transport of a single box with the thumb. It is possible to ship the footwear without the boxes in the bag and to deliver the boxes in an un-assembled state.

In the drawing embodiments of the invention are shown. Fig. 1 shows a perspective view of a system comprising a transport box for footwear and a bag made of a resilient material, shows a perspective view of box of the system according to Fig. 1 , Fig. 3 shows a view onto a flat panel element made form paperboard from which the box is assembled,

Fig. 4 shows the front view of two boxes stacked one upon the other, Fig. 5 shows a perspective view of the system during pulling out the transport box from the bag,

Fig. 6 shows the system comprising the box and the bag during carriage, Fig. 7 and

Fig. 8 show a perspective view of the bag in different stages of inserting the handle of the bag into an opening and Fig. 9 shows the bag with a pair of shoes in it during carriage.

In Fig. 1 a system 1 comprising a transport box and/or sales box 2 for footwear, especially for athletic shoes, and a bag 3 made of a resilient material is shown. The bag 3 has a single handle 14. One of the face sides of the box 2, i. e. the wall 6 in the depicted embodiment, has an aperture 10 of circular shape. As can be seen the handle 14 of the bag 3 - what will become apparent later on in more detail - is feed through the aperture 10 until the position is reached as shown in Fig. 1. Also other arrangements of the handle 14 can be taken into consideration what depends on the aesthetical aspects how to present the system to a customer.

A label or tag 19 is fixed, e. g. glued, at the face side of the wall 6. As can be seen thus the label 19 is visible when the footwear is stored in the box 2 with the bag 3 around it.

As Fig. 1 shows the system schematically only it should be noted that of course modification of the details of the box 2 and the bag 3 can be contemplated. Specifically, the rounded corners at the upper side of the box 2 can also be sharp (as depicted in Fig. 2).

In Fig. 2 the box 2 - without the bag 3 - is shown. The box 2 has a base panel 5 being arranged horizontally during normal use of the box as a sales box in a shop. From the base panel 5 four walls 6, 7, 8, and 9 extend substantially vertically. So, a receiving space 4 is created. Most of the upper side of the box is open, i. e. an opening 1 1 allows an easy access to the receiving space 4 of the box 2. The opening 1 1 is only delimited by two carrier plates 12 and 13 which are formed as extending portions of the front wall 6 and the rear wall 8. The carrier plates 12, 13 form bearing surfaces for a further box which is put onto the depicted box 2. The perpendicular N onto the carrier plates 12, 13 is directed in vertical direction V during usual use of the box 2 as a sales box. The carrier plates 12, 13 extend along the whole extension of the walls 6 and 8 respectively and have a width B of about 30 mm. In Fig. 3 a panel element 15 is shown which is punched out of a flat paper board material. The shown panel element 15 is then folded to the box 2 as shown in Fig. 2.

The face walls 6 and 8 of the box 2 consist of in total three layers, i. e. three parts of the wall 6', 6", and 6"' and 8', 8", and 8'" respectively are laid upon the other to obtain a stable design. With respect to the parts 6', 6", and 6'" is can be seen that the three apertures 10 align in the mounted state of the box. With respect to the carrier plates 12 and 13 it can be seen that the same are composited by two parts 12' and 12" and 13' and 13" respectively which are folded against each other. The folds are shown with reference numerals 21 and 22. The parts 12" and 13" of the carrier plates have (in the depicted embodiment three) protrusions 16 at the distal end of the parts. When the parts 12', 12" and 13', 13 " respectively are folded during assembly of the box 2 the protrusions come into contact with pressure zones 23 at the upper end of walls 6 and 8 respectively. Thus, a firm hold of the carrier plates 12, 13 is established by clamping of the parts 12" and 13" against the walls 6 and 8 respectively. A further assurance for keeping the parts 12", 13" in position is established by corresponding cuttings 24 in the wall parts 6" and 6"' and 8" and 8"' respectively. In the mounted state of the box the protrusions 16 reach through those cuttings 24 and thus a form fit connection is established.

To ensure a stable arrangement of the carrier plates 12, 13 in the mounted state of the box the walls 7 and 9 have flaps 17 and 18 which are folded relatively to the walls 7, 9 by 90°. Then, the flaps 17, 18 form a bearing support for the carrier plates 12, 13 (see also Fig. 2, reference numerals 17 and 18 referring to the flaps shown with dotted lines).

A further preferred feature of the box 2 is denoted by the width W_F at the front side of the box 2 and the width W_R at the rear side of the box 2 as shown in Fig. 3. The width W_F is slightly bigger than the width WR. Preferably, the width W_F is between 102 % and 104 % of the width W_R. This facilitates the handling of the system in the case that a box 2 has to be pushed horizontally between two adjacent boxes being arranged laterally. Thus, the basic shape of the box 2 in a top plan view is slightly conical.

So, the box 2 has a high stiffness which is specifically beneficial when a number of boxes 2 are stacked one upon the other. This is depicted for two boxes 2 in Fig 4. Here, a further design detail becomes apparent. The walls 7 and 9 are not extending perpendicular to the base panel 5 but with a small angle γ (see Fig. 4) against the perpendicular direction of the base panel 5. I. e. the angle β between the plane of the base panel 5 and the plane of the walls 7, 9 is a bit below 90°, specifically between 82° and 86°, so that the angle γ is between 4° and 8°. An angle β of 84° is preferred. Again, in Fig. 4 rounded corners of the boxes 2 specifically at their upper side are depicted. Those corners can of course be also sharp as shown in Fig. 2.

The box 2 can easily be pulled out of the bag 3 by means of the aperture 10 as shown in Fig. 5.

Fig. 6 shows the carriages of the system with the box 2 and the bag 3 by means of the handle 14 of the bag 3. It is also possible to carry the footwear without the box 2 only with the bag 3 as shown in Fig. 7, 8 and 9. In Fig. 7 and 8 it is shown in two subsequent steps how the handle 14 is fed through a cutout 20 to close the bag 3 when the shoes are in it. The handle 14 is arranged at one side of the bag opening. In Fig. 7 the bag 3 is open and the shoes are easily put in or pulled out. According to Fig. 8 the handle 14 is then pulled through and the opening of the bag 3 is cinched closed.

A special application of the system 1 according to the invention is to lead the handle 14 of the bag 3 from the outer side of the wall 6 through the aperture 10 to the inner of the box 2 when the box 2 is in the bag 3. This allows a good protection against dust during storage of the shoes with the system, i. e. in this case the box 2 is better sealed to the environment. Also a barcode of the label 19 is then better accessible. Reference Numerals:

1 System

2 Transport box / sales box

3 Bag

4 Receiving space

5 Base panel

6 Wall

6' Part of the wall

6" Part of the wall

6"' Part of the wall

7 Wall

8 Wall

8' Part of the wall

8" Part of the wall

8"' Part of the wall

9 Wall

10 Aperture

1 1 Opening

12 Extending portion / carrier

12' Part of the carrier plate

12" Part of the carrier plate

13 Extending portion / carrier

13' Part of the carrier plate

13" Part of the carrier plate

14 Handle

15 Panel element Protrusion

Flap

18 Flap

19 Label / Tag

20 Cutout

21 Fold

22 Fold

23 Pressure zone

24 Cutting

N Perpendicular V Vertical direction B Width

W_F Width at front side W_R Width at rear side

P Angle

Y Angle

Claims

Patent Claims:

1. System (1) comprising a transport box and/or sales box (2) for footwear, especially for athletic shoes, and a bag (3) made of a resilient material, wherein the box (2) has a receiving space (4) for the footwear which is at least partially delimited by a base panel (5) and four walls (6, 7, 8, 9) extending from the base panel (5), wherein at least one wall (6) has an aperture (10), wherein the four walls (6, 7, 8, 9) form an opening (11) at the upper side of the box (2), wherein at least two of the walls (6, 7, 8, 9) have an extending portion (12, 13), which forms a carrier plate, which extends along the whole width and/or length of the box (2), wherein the bag (3) has a receiving space for receiving the box (2), wherein the bag (3) has a handle (14) for carrying the bag (3) and wherein the box (2) and the bag (3) are designed to allow the handle (14) to be led through the aperture (10) in one of the walls (6) when the box (2) is in the bag (3).

2. System according to claim 1 , characterized in that the aperture (10) is arranged in the middle of the wall (6).

3. System according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the aperture (10) has a circular or oval or rectangular shape seen in a direction perpendicular to the wall (6).

4. System according to one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that a slot is arranged in the wall (6) which extends from the aperture (10) to an end of the wall (6) which is remote from the base panel (5).

5. System according to one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the carrier plates (12, 13) have a perpendicular (N) which is oriented in a vertical direction (V) during the use of the box (2) as a sales box.

6. System according to one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that the area of the opening (1 1) is at least 80 %, preferably 90 %, of the vertical projection area of the box (2).

7. System according to one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that the carrier plates (12, 13) have a width (B) between 15 mm and 60 mm, preferably between 20 mm and 40 mm.

8. System according to one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that the box (2) is made of a flat panel element (15), wherein the walls (6, 7, 8, 9) are formed by bending parts of the flat panel element (15) out of the plane of the flat panel element (15) and wherein the base panel (5) is a part of the flat panel element (15).

9. System according to claim 8, characterized in that the carrier plate (12, 13) is formed by two parts (12', 12"; 13', 13") of the panel element (15) which are bent over relatively to another to form a section of the box (2) by being arranged one upon the other.

10. System according to claim 9, characterized in that one part (12", 13") of the carrier plate (12, 13) has at least one protrusion (16) which is arranged for clamping or fixing the part (12", 13") relatively to the wall (6, 8) at which the carrier plate (12, 13) is arranged.

1 1. System according to one of claims 8 to 10, characterized in that the flat panel element (15) is a part which is punched out of a flat base material.

12. System according to one of claims 8 to 1 1, characterized in that at least one of the walls (6, 8) is made of two or three wall parts (6', 6", 6'", 8', 8", 8'") which are formed by the flat panel element (15) and which are folded together against each other.

13. System according to one of claims 8 to 12, characterized in that two of the walls (7, 9) have flaps (17, 18) forming carrier elements for the carrier plates (12, 13) arranged at the other walls (6, 7).

14. System according to one of claims 1 to 13, characterized in that at least two walls, preferably all walls (6, 7, 8, 9) extend to the base panel (5) under an angle (β) between 80° and 89°, especially between 82° and 86°.

15. System according to one of claims 1 to 14, characterized in that the box (2) has a conical shape in a top plan view, wherein the width (W_F) at a front side of the box (2) is preferably between 102 % and 106 % of the width (WR) at a rear side of the box (2).

16. System according to claim 15, characterized in that the bag (3) has a conical receiving space which corresponds to the conical shape of the box (2).