WO2018002033A1

WO2018002033A1 - Container with embossed cover member

Info

Publication number: WO2018002033A1
Application number: PCT/EP2017/065822
Authority: WO
Inventors: Timothee CAILLEAUX
Original assignee: Philip Morris Products S.A.
Priority date: 2016-06-30
Filing date: 2017-06-27
Publication date: 2018-01-04

Abstract

A container for consumer goods comprises a package of consumer goods, the package being formed from a laminar blank and comprising an access opening through which consumer goods can be removed. The container further comprises a sealing cover member movable between a closed position, wherein the sealing cover member seals the access opening, and an open position, wherein the sealing cover member is lifted to reveal the access opening. The sealing cover member of the package comprises a plurality of crease lines extending transversely across the sealing cover member.

Description

CONTAINER WITH EMBOSSED COVER MEMBER

The present invention relates to a container for consumer goods comprising a redosable adhesive label. In particular, the container of the present invention finds application as a container for elongate consumer good items, such as smoking articles.

Smoking articles are typically packaged in rigid hinge-lid containers. The bundle of smoking articles housed in the box is commonly wrapped in an inner liner, or package, of metallised paper, metal foil or other flexible sheet material. A sealed condition of the inner package is appreciated by consumers as proof that the goods inside the package are preserved in their original state at least until the first opening of the container.

Containers are known, for example from WO-A-2008/142540, wherein smoking articles are enclosed in an inner package with an extraction opening removably closed by a cover flap that is releasably affixed to the inner package using non-dry adhesive applied to the underside of the cover flap. This makes the inner package resealable. A portion of the cover flap is glued permanently and non-removably to an inner surface of the front wall of the lid so that opening and closing of the lid results in the simultaneous opening and closing of the cover flap and the extraction opening can be revealed and covered repeatedly.

In such containers, it is desirable that, when the lid is moved into the open position, the redosable cover flap form an S-shape, that is, a shape that has the form of a curve with one inflexion point. This is because, by virtue of this geometry, the redosable cover flap is automatically resealed to the inner package when the lid is moved back from this open position to the closed position. In addition, this has been found to ensure that, when the lid is moved from the closed position into the open position, the redosable cover flap can be smoothly peeled off the surface of the inner package, such that the occurrence of damages to the inner package during use is desirably limited.

This may, however, be more difficult to achieve when the access opening is delimited by cut lines in the inner package defining a cover portion to which the redosable cover flap is affixed, and even more so when the inner package is formed from a thicker or stiffer laminar material. This is because the stiffness of the material from which the inner package is formed may, to an extent, impact the pliability of the redosable cover flap. Under such conditions, the redosable cover flap may not assume the desired shape and so peeling the redosable cover flap off the inner package may become less smooth. Further, during opening and closing, the material forming the inner package may be subjected to a bending load that may undesirably deform the inner package.

Thus, a need persists in improving containerfeatures and functions with a view to enhancing usability and reliability. Therefore, it would be desirable to provide a resealable container for consumer goods that further reduces the occurrence of damages to the inner package by ensuring a smooth opening and closing mechanism. Further, it would be desirable to provide a resealable container for consumer goods that allows the resistance to opening to be finely tuned, such that different options may be presented to the consumer.

According to an aspect of the present invention there is provided a container for consumer goods comprising: a package of consumer goods, the package being formed from a laminar blank and comprising an access opening through which consumer goods can be removed; and a sealing cover member movable between a closed position, wherein the sealing cover member seals the access opening, and an open position, wherein the sealing cover member is lifted to reveal the access opening; wherein the sealing cover member of the package comprises a plurality of crease lines extending transversely across the sealing cover member. The crease lines extend across the whole width of the sealing cover member. A distance between adjacent crease lines is from about 0.2 millimetres to about 3 millimetres. Further, a width of the crease lines is from about 0.1 millimetres to about 1 millimetre.

As used herein, the terms "front", "back", "upper", "lower", "top", "bottom" and "side", refer to the relative positions of portions of containers according to the invention and components thereof when the container is in an upright position with the lid of the outer housing in the closed position and the hinge line at the back of the container. When describing containers according to the present invention, these terms are used irrespective of the orientation of the container being described. The back wall of the hinge lid container housing is the wall comprising the hinge line. The access opening of the package is arranged in an upper portion of the package, such that the access opening extends at least partly across a top wall of the package. Where the whole of the access opening is formed in the top wall of the package, the front edge of the access opening is in a front portion of the top wall of the package. Where the access opening extends across the top wall and the front wall of the package, the front edge of the access opening is also the lower edge of the access opening and is located in a upper portion of the front wall of the package.

The term "longitudinal" refers to a direction from bottom to top or vice versa. The term "transverse" refers to a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction.

The term "inner surface" is used throughout the specification to refer to the surface of a component of the assembled container that is facing towards the interior of the container, for example towards the consumer goods, when the container is in the closed position. Likewise, the term "outer surface" is used throughout the specification to refer to the surface of a component of the container that is facing towards the exterior of the container. For example, the reclosable adhesive label comprises an outer surface that, in some embodiments, is facing the outer hinge lid housing of the container and an inner surface that is facing the inside of the package and the consumer goods. It should be noted that the inside or outside surface is not necessarily equivalent to a certain side of a blank used in assembly of the container. Depending on how the blank is folded around the consumer goods, areas that are on the same side of the container can either face towards the inside or towards the outside of the container.

The term "hinge line" refers to a line about which the lid may be pivoted in order to open the container. A hinge line may be, for example, a fold line or a score line in the panel forming the back wall of the container.

The term "line of weakness" is used herein to refer to a line along the laminar blank forming the package that has been mechanically deformed, for example by creasing, scoring, ablation, perforation or pre-cutting, such that a portion of the laminar blank at least partially delimited by the line of weakness can be easily partially separated from the remainder of the laminar blank, whilst remaining attached to the remainder of the laminar blank during use. By way of example, the lines of weakness may delimit the package portion of the sealing cover member on three sides, such that a rectangular flap is formed that can be partially separated from the remainder of the laminar blank. Thus, one such rectangular flap becomes free to pivot about a hinge line connecting the ends of the side lines of weakness. It will be understood that the package portion of the sealing cover member may be of different shapes and sizes.

The term "crease line" is used herein to refer to a line along the laminar blank forming the package that has been mechanically deformed, for example by mechanical pressing or rolling, to form a line of weakness in the blank about which the blank can easily bend. In particular, a crease line is a line of weakness that is formed without removing material.

For example, a crease line may be formed by purely compressing one surface of the laminar blank, such that a groove is formed in the blank and the thickness of the blank is reduced along the groove, whilst the opposite surface of the laminar blank is substantially not deformed. One such crease line is illustrated in Figure 1. In more detail, Figure 1 shows how one such crease line 300 can be formed with the use of a creasing knife 302 in a laminar blank 304 lying on a flat support member 306. The creasing knife is operated to apply a compressive load onto the laminar blank 304. The depth of one such crease line will always be less than 100 percent of the thickness of the blank.

Alternatively, a crease line may be formed by compressing one surface of the laminar blank, such that a groove is formed in the blank and the thickness of the blank is reduced along the groove, the laminar blank being deformed across its whole thickness, such that a ridge is effectively formed on the opposite surface of the blank. One such crease line is illustrated in Figure 2. In more detail, Figure 2 shows how one such crease line 400 can be formed, by means of a creasing knife 402, in a laminar blank 404 lying on a support member 406 defining a creasing channel 408. The creasing knife 402 is operated to deform the laminar blank 404 into the creasing channel 408. The depth of one such crease line may also be equal or greater than the thickness of the blank. The term "width of a crease line" is used to describe the dimension of a crease line as measured transversely to the longitudinal direction of the crease line.

The term "depth of a crease line" is used to describe the dimension of a crease line as measured in a direction perpendicular to the plane of laminar blank from which the cover portion is formed. In practice, it corresponds to the maximum depth of the groove formed by creasing the laminar blank.

The expression "distance between adjacent ablation lines" is used to describe the width of the portion laminar blank separating two adjacent crease lines. Such distance is construed as being measured along a direction substantially perpendicular to the crease lines and between the respective symmetry axes of the crease lines.

In general, the redosable adhesive label and the package portion of the sealing cover member may extend over the top wall of the package only, or over both top and front walls of the package. When describing a label or elements of the redosable label or of the package portion of the sealing cover member, reference is generally made to the label or the package portion in a flat state.

A resealable container in accordance with the present invention comprises a package of consumer goods, the package being formed from a laminar blank and comprising an access opening through which consumer goods can be removed. Further, the container comprises a sealing cover member that is movable - for example, pivotable - between a closed position, wherein the sealing cover member seals the access opening, and an open position, wherein the sealing cover member is lifted to reveal the opening and allow the consumer to access the goods within the package. In contrast to existing resealable containers, the sealing cover member comprises a plurality of crease lines extending transversely across the sealing cover member. In particular, the crease lines extend transversely across the whole width of the sealing cover member.

The crease lines in the sealing cover member of the package increase the pliability of the material from which the sealing cover member is formed. As will be explained in more detail below, this can be the same laminar blank material from which the package is formed or the labelling material of which a redosable adhesive label affixed to the package is made.

This is advantageous in that the sealing cover member can thus more easily bend during opening and closing. In particular, the crease lines may increase the inherent flexibility of the sealing cover member, and the effect may be particularly significant especially in those embodiments where the sealing cover member comprises a package portion partly separable from the package and a redosable adhesive label affixed to the package portion, since crease lines in the package portion help the package portion bend along with the overlying redosable label. Without wishing to be bound to theory, it is understood that crease lines in the package portion have the advantageous effect of locally making the laminar blank material from which the package is formed substantially at least as flexible as the material of which the reclosable label is made, such that the cover flap and the label can effectively bend as one.

In different embodiments of containers according to the invention, crease lines may be formed in the reclosable adhesive label, in the package portion, or in both. Regardless of their specific arrangement in the sealing cover member, the crease lines enhance the inherent flexibility of the sealing cover member. This is advantageous in that it is easier for the consumer to gradually detach the sealing cover member from the package and expose the access opening without causing any significant deformation or any damage to the package. Further, in embodiments where the package is received in a hinge lid container and an end of the reclosable adhesive label of the sealing cover member is affixed to a surface of the lid, such that movement of the lid between respective open and closed positions causes a corresponding movement of the sealing cover member between open and closed position, the crease lines in the sealing cover member advantageously make it possible for the sealing cover member to desirably assume an S-shape when the lid is brought into the open position.

Further, as will be explained in more detail below, by varying certain features of the crease lines, such as depth, width or mutual distance, it is possible to impart different levels of pliability to different portions of the sealing cover member. Accordingly, it is advantageously possible to tune the resistance to opening offered by sealing cover member and even more finely tune the curvature of the sealing cover member when the sealing cover member is in the open position. Thus containers in accordance with the present invention may additionally have a distinctive impact on the consumer, for example in terms of greater or lesser resistance to opening depending on the opening angle or the opening speed or both.

In its most general terms, a resealable container in accordance with the present invention comprises a package of consumer goods, the package being formed from a laminar blank and comprising an access opening through which consumer goods can be removed; and a sealing cover member movable between a closed position, wherein the sealing cover member seals the access opening, and an open position, wherein the sealing cover member is lifted to reveal the access opening. The sealing cover member of the package comprises a plurality of crease lines extending transversely across the sealing cover member.

Preferably, the sealing cover member comprises a reclosable adhesive label extending beyond the periphery of the access opening of the package. The reclosable adhesive label is permanently affixed to the package by a permanent adhesive provided on a back hinge area of the inner surface of the reclosable adhesive label. This advantageously ensures a solid and stable bond between the reclosable adhesive label and the package, and a strong hinge is effectively provided for the reclosable adhesive label to pivot and be lifted off the package whilst remaining securely connected to the package at all times. In addition, the reclosable adhesive label is at least partly releasably affixed to the package by a resealable adhesive provided on a second area of the inner surface of the reclosable adhesive label extending at least about a front edge of the access opening. This allows the reclosable adhesive label to be detached and reattached to the package repeatedly, whilst also re-sealing the access opening every time that the reclosable adhesive label is moved back into the closed position.

In some preferred embodiments, the package comprises lines of weakness partly delimiting a package portion of the sealing cover member such that the package portion of the sealing cover member is partly separable from the remainder of the package to form the access opening. The reclosable adhesive label is permanently affixed to the package portion of the sealing cover member by a permanent adhesive provided on a first area of the inner surface of the reclosable adhesive label extending over at least part of the package portion of the sealing cover member. A stable bond is thus advantageously formed between the reclosable adhesive label and the package portion, such that these two components of the sealing cover member can move effectively as one.

The crease lines may be formed in any component of the sealing cover member. In some embodiments, the crease lines are formed in the reclosable adhesive label. As an alternative, the crease lines are formed in the package portion of the sealing cover member. As a further alternative, the crease lines may be formed in both the reclosable adhesive label and the package portion of the sealing cover portion.

It should be noted that, in some embodiments, the reclosable adhesive label may comprise at least a bottom layer and a top layer. The bottom layer comprises an opening or cut-out portion and is permanently affixed to the package with the opening or cut-out portion in alignment with the access opening of the package. The top layer is permanently affixed to the bottom layer by permanent adhesive provided over a back hinge portion, and at least partly releasably affixed to the bottom layer by a resealable adhesive provided on an area extending at least about a periphery of the bottom layer opening or cut-out portion. In such embodiments, the crease lines may be formed in the top layer of the reclosable adhesive label. As an alternative, the crease lines may be formed in the bottom layer of the reclosable adhesive label, or in both the top and bottom layers of the reclosable adhesive label.

In some embodiments, the crease lines may be formed on the inner surface of the reclosable adhesive label. As an alternative, the crease lines may be formed on an outer surface of the reclosable adhesive label.

In some embodiments, the crease lines may be formed on the inner surface of the package portion of the sealing cover member. As an alternative, the crease lines may be formed on an outer surface of the package portion of the sealing cover member. This not only enhances the pliability of the laminar material from which the package portion of the sealing cover member is formed, but may also impart a desirable preliminary curvature on the package portion. A plurality of crease lines means, for example, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 , 10, 1 1 , 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21 , 22, 23, 24, 25,, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30 or more crease lines.

More preferably, the crease lines in the plurality of crease lines are substantially parallel to one another.

A distance between adjacent crease lines is at least about 0.2 millimetres and less than about 3 millimetres. More preferably, the distance between adjacent crease lines is at least about 0.5 millimetres. In addition, or as an alternative, the distance between adjacent crease lines is preferably less than about 2.5 millimetres.

A width of the crease lines is at least about 0.1 millimetres and less than about 1 millimetre. More preferably, the width of the crease lines is at least about 0.2 millimetres. In addition, or as an alternative, the width of the crease lines is preferably less than about 0.8 millimetres.

Preferably, a depth of the crease lines in the plurality of crease lines is at least about 50 percent of a thickness of the laminar blank or of the redosable adhesive label. More preferably, a depth of the crease lines is at least about 100 percent of the thickness of the laminar blank or of the redosable adhesive label.

In some embodiments, a distance between adjacent crease lines formed over a first region of the surface of the sealing cover member differs from a distance between adjacent crease lines formed over a second region of the surface of the sealing cover portion. In addition, or as an alternative, a depth of the crease lines formed over a first region of the surface of the sealing cover member differs from a depth of the crease lines formed over a second region of the surface of the sealing cover member. In some embodiments, crease lines formed over a first region of the surface of the sealing cover member and crease lines formed over a second region of the surface of the sealing cover member may even extend in respective, different directions.

In general, providing crease lines characterised by different depth, width, mutual distance or orientation in different regions of the surface of the sealing cover member will cause different sections of the sealing cover member to have a slightly different pliability and, accordingly, to respond differently to a bending load. Thus, for example, it is possible to provide a container such that the redosable adhesive label and the underlying package portion of the sealing cover member present a progressively smaller resistance as the redosable adhesive label is moved from the closed position to the open position. Accordingly, it can be particularly easy to peel the redosable label off the package to access the goods within the package. Conversely, it is also possible to provide a container such that the package portion and the redosable adhesive label present a greater resistance once the redosable adhesive label has been moved from the closed position to partly reveal the access opening. This may give the consumer the perception that it is very easy to begin to detach the label from the package to access the goods, whilst at the same time a desirable balance is struck between the ease of opening the container and the need to provide a certain adhesion between the sealing cover member and the package for sealing and resealing purposes.

A package in accordance with the invention as set out above may be received within a hinge lid container comprising a box and a lid, the lid being hinged to the box along a hinge line extending across a back wall of the hinge lid container. In some preferred embodiments an end of the reclosable adhesive label of the sealing cover member is permanently affixed to an inner surface of the lid, such that upon opening the lid the sealing cover member is moved from the closed position towards the open position to at least partly expose the access opening.

Being able to adjust parameters such as width, depth and mutual distance of the crease lines may be particularly advantageous in such embodiments, since the consumer needs to be able to rely on the peeling force applied on the sealing cover member via the lid to access the goods within the container. Accordingly, being able to peel the reclosable adhesive label from the surface of the package in a smooth and controlled fashion, as afforded by the present invention, is highly desirable.

Preferably, the package is formed of metal foil or metallised paper. The package material may be formed as a laminate of a metallised polyethylene film, and a liner material. The liner material may be a supercalendered glassine paper. In addition, the package material may be provided with a print-receptive top coating.

The hinge lid container may be formed from a blank of any suitable material or combination of materials, including, but not limited to, cardboard, paperboard, plastic, metal, or combinations thereof. Preferably, the blank is a laminar cardboard blank having a weight of between about 100 grams per square metre and about 350 grams per square metre.

The hinge-lid container may optionally comprise an outer wrapper, which is preferably a transparent polymeric film of, for example, high or low density polyethylene, polypropylene, oriented polypropylene, polyvinylidene chloride, cellulose film, or combinations thereof and the outer wrapper is applied in a conventional manner. The outer wrapper may include a tear tape. In addition, the outer wrapper may be printed with images, consumer information or other data.

Suitable materials for the reclosable adhesive label will be known to the skilled person. Examples include thermoplastic materials such as polypropylene, polyethylene terephthalate, polyethylene.

The package, as well as the outer hinge lid container, is preferably a rectangular parallelepiped comprising two wider walls spaced apart by two narrower walls.

Hinge lid containers according to the invention may be in the shape of a rectangular parallelepiped, with right-angled longitudinal and right-angled transverse edges. Alternatively, the hinge lid container may comprise one or more rounded longitudinal edges, rounded transverse edges, bevelled longitudinal edges or bevelled transverse edges, or combinations thereof. For example, the hinge lid outer container may comprise, without limitation: - One or two longitudinal rounded edges on the front wall, and/or one or two longitudinal rounded or bevelled edges on the back wall.

- One or two transverse rounded edges on the front wall, and/or one or two transverse rounded or bevelled edges on the back wall.

- One longitudinal rounded edge and one longitudinal bevelled edge on the front wall, and/or one transverse rounded edge and one transverse bevelled edge on the back wall.

- One or two transverse rounded or bevelled edges on the front wall and one or two longitudinal rounded or bevelled edges on the front wall.

- Two longitudinal rounded or bevelled edges on a first side wall or two transverse rounded or bevelled edges on the second side wall.

Containers according to the invention find particular application as containers for elongate smoking articles such as, for example, cigarettes, cigars or cigarillos. It will be appreciated that through appropriate choices of the dimensions thereof, containers according to the invention may be designed for different numbers of conventional size, king size, super-king size, slim or super- slim cigarettes. Alternatively, other consumer goods may be housed inside the container.

Through an appropriate choice of the dimensions, containers according to the invention may be designed to hold different total numbers of smoking articles, or different arrangements of smoking articles. For example, through an appropriate choice of the dimensions, containers according to the invention may be designed to hold a total of between ten and thirty smoking articles. The smoking articles may be arranged in different collations, depending on the total number of smoking articles.

The invention will now be further described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

Figure 1 is a schematic sectional view of an embodiment of a crease line in a container in accordance with the present invention;

Figure 2 is a schematic sectional view of another embodiment of a crease line in a container in accordance with the present invention;

Figure 3 is a perspective view of a container in accordance with the present invention;

Figure 4 is a top view of the package cover portion of the sealing cover member of the container of Figure 1 ; and

Figure 5 is a top view of the inner surface of the reclosable adhesive label for use in another embodiment of a container in accordance with the present invention.

Figure 3 shows a container 10 in accordance with the present invention. The container 10 comprises an outer hinge lid housing 12 which is a rectangular parallelepiped and includes a box 14 and a lid 16. The lid 16 is hinged about a hinge line extending across a back wall of the housing 12 and is pivotable between an open position (shown in Figure 3) and a closed position. Further, the container 10 comprises a package 18 of smoking articles 20 housed in the box 14. The package 18 comprises an access opening 22 extending across the top wall and the front wall of the package 18. The smoking 20 articles contained in the package 18 can be removed through the access opening 22 when the lid 16 is in the open position.

The package 18 comprises a sealing cover member 24 movable between a closed position, wherein the sealing cover member 24 seals the access opening 22, and an open position, wherein the sealing cover member 24 is lifted to reveal the access opening 22.

In more detail, the sealing cover member 24 comprises a reclosable adhesive label 26 extending beyond the periphery of the access opening 22 of the package. The reclosable adhesive label 26 is permanently affixed to the package 18 by a permanent adhesive provided on a back hinge area of the inner surface of the reclosable adhesive label. Further, the reclosable adhesive label 26 is at least partly releasably affixed to the package 18 by a resealable adhesive provided on a second area 28 of the inner surface of the reclosable adhesive label extending at least about a front edge of the access opening 22.

In addition, the package 18 comprises lines of weakness 30 partly delimiting a package portion 32 of the sealing cover member 24, such that the package portion 32 of the sealing cover member 24 is partly separable from the remainder of the package 18 to form the access opening 22. The reclosable adhesive label 24 is permanently affixed to the package portion 32 by a permanent adhesive provided on a first area of the inner surface of the reclosable adhesive label extending over at least part of the package portion 32.

The sealing cover member 24 comprises a plurality of crease lines 300 extending transversely across the sealing cover member 24. In more detail, in the embodiment illustrated in Figure 3, the crease lines 300 are formed on the inner surface of the package portion 32 and, as illustrated in greater detail in Figure 4, extend across the whole width of the package portion 32.

The crease lines 300 are all parallel to one another. A distance between adjacent crease lines 300 is of about 1 millimetre. A width of the crease lines 300 is of about 0.5 millimetres. A depth of the crease lines 300 is of about 30 percent of the thickness of the laminar blank from which the package 18 is formed.

Figure 5 illustrates another sealing cover member 124 for use in another embodiment of a container in accordance with the present invention. The sealing cover member 124 comprises a reclosable adhesive label 126, which is meant to be affixed to the package by means of permanent adhesive provided on a back hinge area 150. A plurality of crease lines 300 are formed on the inner surface of the reclosable adhesive label 126 and extend across the whole width of the label 126. In a first region 152 of the inner surface of the reclosable adhesive label 126, a distance between adjacent crease lines 300 is of about 0.5 millimetres, whereas in a second region 154 of the inner surface of the reclosable adhesive 126 the distance between adjacent crease lines 300 is about 1 millimetre. In a third region 156 of the inner surface of the reclosable adhesive label 126, the distance between adjacent crease lines is about 2 millimetres.

Claims

1 . A container for consumer goods comprising:

a package of consumer goods, the package being formed from a laminar blank and comprising an access opening through which consumer goods can be removed; and

a sealing cover member movable between a closed position, wherein the sealing cover member seals the access opening, and an open position, wherein the sealing cover member is lifted to reveal the access opening;

wherein the sealing cover member of the package comprises a plurality of crease lines extending transversely across the whole width of the sealing cover member;

wherein a distance between adjacent crease lines is from about 0.

2 millimetres to about 3 millimetres and a width of the crease lines is from about 0.1 millimetres to about 1 millimetre.

A container according to claim 1 , wherein the sealing cover member comprises a reclosable adhesive label extending beyond the periphery of the access opening of the package, wherein the reclosable adhesive label is permanently affixed to the package by a permanent adhesive provided on a back hinge area of the inner surface of the reclosable adhesive label; the reclosable adhesive label being further at least partly releasably affixed to the package by a resealable adhesive provided on a second area of the inner surface of the reclosable adhesive label extending at least about a front edge of the access opening.

3. A container according to claim 2, wherein the package comprises lines of weakness partly delimiting a package portion of the sealing cover member such that the package portion of the sealing cover member is partly separable from the remainder of the package to form the access opening; the reclosable adhesive label being permanently affixed to the package portion of the sealing cover member by a permanent adhesive provided on a first area of the inner surface of the reclosable adhesive label extending over at least part of the package portion of the sealing cover member.

4. A container according to claim 2 or 3, wherein the crease lines are formed on a surface of the reclosable adhesive label. A container according to claim 3 or 4, wherein the crease lines are formed on a surface of the package portion of the sealing cover member.

A container according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the crease lines are substantially parallel to one another.

A container according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein a depth of the crease lines is at least about 50 percent of a thickness of the laminar blank or of the reclosable adhesive label.

A container according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein a depth of the crease lines is at least about 100 percent of the thickness of the laminar blank or of the reclosable adhesive label.

A container according to any one of claims 6 to 8, wherein a distance between adjacent crease lines formed over a first region of the surface of the sealing cover member differs from a distance between adjacent crease lines formed over a second region of the surface of the sealing cover member.

A container according to any one of claims 6 to 9, wherein a depth of the crease lines formed over a first region of the surface of the sealing cover member differs from a depth of the crease lines formed over a second area of the surface of the sealing cover member.

A container according to claim 1 wherein the surface of the sealing cover member comprises a first region comprising a first plurality of crease lines substantially parallel to one another and a second region comprising a second plurality of crease lines parallel to one another; and wherein at least one of a depth, width, distance between adjacent crease lines and orientation of the first plurality of crease lines differs from a corresponding one of a depth, width, distance between adjacent crease lines and orientation of the second plurality of crease lines.

A hinge lid container for consumer goods, comprising:

a box;

a lid hinged to the box along a hinge line extending across a back wall of the container; and a resealable container according to any one of claims 2 to 10 within the box, wherein an end of the reclosable adhesive label of the sealing cover member is permanently affixed to an inner surface of the lid, such that upon opening the lid the sealing cover member is moved from the closed position towards the open position to at least partly expose the access opening.

A container according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the consumer goods are smoking articles.