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EP1926670A1 - Carton and carton blank - Google Patents

Carton and carton blank

Info

Publication number
EP1926670A1
EP1926670A1 EP06814201A EP06814201A EP1926670A1 EP 1926670 A1 EP1926670 A1 EP 1926670A1 EP 06814201 A EP06814201 A EP 06814201A EP 06814201 A EP06814201 A EP 06814201A EP 1926670 A1 EP1926670 A1 EP 1926670A1
Authority
EP
European Patent Office
Prior art keywords
carton
wall panel
base
top wall
side wall
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Granted
Application number
EP06814201A
Other languages
German (de)
French (fr)
Other versions
EP1926670B1 (en
Inventor
Jean-Michel Auclair
Garrett K Schemmel
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
WestRock Packaging Systems LLC
Original Assignee
Meadwestvaco Packaging Systems LLC
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by Meadwestvaco Packaging Systems LLC filed Critical Meadwestvaco Packaging Systems LLC
Publication of EP1926670A1 publication Critical patent/EP1926670A1/en
Application granted granted Critical
Publication of EP1926670B1 publication Critical patent/EP1926670B1/en
Not-in-force legal-status Critical Current
Anticipated expiration legal-status Critical

Links

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
    • B65D71/00—Bundles of articles held together by packaging elements for convenience of storage or transport, e.g. portable segregating carrier for plural receptacles such as beer cans or pop bottles; Bales of material
    • B65D71/06—Packaging elements holding or encircling completely or almost completely the bundle of articles, e.g. wrappers
    • B65D71/12—Packaging elements holding or encircling completely or almost completely the bundle of articles, e.g. wrappers the packaging elements, e.g. wrappers being formed by folding a single blank
    • B65D71/14—Packaging elements holding or encircling completely or almost completely the bundle of articles, e.g. wrappers the packaging elements, e.g. wrappers being formed by folding a single blank having the shape of a tube, without, or not being characterised by, end walls
    • B65D71/28—Packaging elements holding or encircling completely or almost completely the bundle of articles, e.g. wrappers the packaging elements, e.g. wrappers being formed by folding a single blank having the shape of a tube, without, or not being characterised by, end walls characterised by the handles
    • B65D71/30—Packaging elements holding or encircling completely or almost completely the bundle of articles, e.g. wrappers the packaging elements, e.g. wrappers being formed by folding a single blank having the shape of a tube, without, or not being characterised by, end walls characterised by the handles unitary, i.e. integral with the tubular packaging elements
    • 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
    • B65D2571/00—Bundles of articles held together by packaging elements for convenience of storage or transport, e.g. portable segregating carrier for plural receptacles such as beer cans, pop bottles; Bales of material
    • B65D2571/00123—Bundling wrappers or trays
    • B65D2571/00129—Wrapper locking means
    • B65D2571/00135—Wrapper locking means integral with the wrapper
    • B65D2571/00141—Wrapper locking means integral with the wrapper glued
    • 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
    • B65D2571/00—Bundles of articles held together by packaging elements for convenience of storage or transport, e.g. portable segregating carrier for plural receptacles such as beer cans, pop bottles; Bales of material
    • B65D2571/00123—Bundling wrappers or trays
    • B65D2571/00246—Locating elements for the contents
    • B65D2571/00253—Locating elements for the contents integral with the wrapper
    • B65D2571/00277—Slits or openings formed along a fold line
    • 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
    • B65D2571/00—Bundles of articles held together by packaging elements for convenience of storage or transport, e.g. portable segregating carrier for plural receptacles such as beer cans, pop bottles; Bales of material
    • B65D2571/00123—Bundling wrappers or trays
    • B65D2571/00432—Handles or suspending means
    • B65D2571/00456—Handles or suspending means integral with the wrapper
    • B65D2571/00469—Straps made between two handholes
    • 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
    • B65D2571/00—Bundles of articles held together by packaging elements for convenience of storage or transport, e.g. portable segregating carrier for plural receptacles such as beer cans, pop bottles; Bales of material
    • B65D2571/00123—Bundling wrappers or trays
    • B65D2571/00432—Handles or suspending means
    • B65D2571/00518—Handles or suspending means with reinforcements
    • B65D2571/0053—Handles or suspending means with reinforcements attached
    • 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
    • B65D2571/00—Bundles of articles held together by packaging elements for convenience of storage or transport, e.g. portable segregating carrier for plural receptacles such as beer cans, pop bottles; Bales of material
    • B65D2571/00123—Bundling wrappers or trays
    • B65D2571/00432—Handles or suspending means
    • B65D2571/00537—Handles or suspending means with stress relieving means
    • B65D2571/00543—Handles or suspending means with stress relieving means consisting of cut-outs, slits, or the like
    • 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
    • B65D2571/00—Bundles of articles held together by packaging elements for convenience of storage or transport, e.g. portable segregating carrier for plural receptacles such as beer cans, pop bottles; Bales of material
    • B65D2571/00123—Bundling wrappers or trays
    • B65D2571/00648—Elements used to form the wrapper
    • B65D2571/00654—Blanks
    • B65D2571/0066—Blanks formed from one single sheet
    • 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
    • B65D2571/00—Bundles of articles held together by packaging elements for convenience of storage or transport, e.g. portable segregating carrier for plural receptacles such as beer cans, pop bottles; Bales of material
    • B65D2571/00123—Bundling wrappers or trays
    • B65D2571/00709—Shape of the formed wrapper, i.e. shape of each formed element if the wrapper is made from more than one element
    • B65D2571/00716—Shape of the formed wrapper, i.e. shape of each formed element if the wrapper is made from more than one element tubular without end walls
    • 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
    • B65D2571/00—Bundles of articles held together by packaging elements for convenience of storage or transport, e.g. portable segregating carrier for plural receptacles such as beer cans, pop bottles; Bales of material
    • B65D2571/00123—Bundling wrappers or trays
    • B65D2571/00833—Other details of wrappers
    • B65D2571/00858—Devices for locating the wrapped bundle in a container, e.g. in a bottle crate

Definitions

  • the invention relates to a carton for accommodating one or more articles, for example bottles, which carton is provided with a handle structure to assist a user in carrying the carton and articles.
  • the invention also provides a blank for forming such a carton.
  • GB 2,234,495 there comprises a handle structure applied to a "fully enclosed" carton.
  • the handle is formed from a strip struck from one of the panels and is bowed in a central region and is stabilised by an aperture in an upper flap overlying the top panel.
  • This handle arrangement cannot be applied to a "wraparound" style of carton, as the carton is formed around a plurality of articles during the loading process in a packaging machine.
  • GB-A-1 240 549 and US-A-4 582 199 both disclose cartons in which handle portions are provided in their top wall panels defined by apertures in the top wall. There is no disclosure or suggestion of providing reinforcement in the form of a reinforcing strip in either of these prior documents although such is disclosed in US-A-3 794 239.
  • the reinforcing strips are extended into the side walls but not into the bottom panel of the carton.
  • the nature of the reinforcing strip thus provided is beneficial because it provides an interrupted reinforcing strip which is applied between the handle apertures of each top handle, so that a minimum amount of reinforcing material is required to achieve a maximum reinforcing effect. This is particularly useful in the wraparound carton of the present invention; during production of the blanks, the reinforcing strip can readily be cut and applied in a line running through the centre of the carton.
  • a wraparound style of carton typically comprises a top panel, opposed side panels and a base structure which is formed from the opposed end panels of a carton blank.
  • the carton will possess a single ply top panel
  • a problem associated with the prior art is how to retain the integrity of such handles which are subject to significant strains when being used on a carton for carrying many more multiple articles.
  • the present invention and its preferred embodiments seek to overcome or at least mitigate the problems of the prior art.
  • a carton for packaging a plurality of articles for example bottles, comprises a top, opposed side walls and a base, wherein the top wall is a multi-ply panels arrangement comprising a pair of openings which between them define a handle portion to allow a user to lift and carry the carton and wherein the multi-ply panels of the top wall are each provided with a reinforcing strip which are in overlapping relationship to reinforce the multi-ply part of the handle portion, characterized in that each reinforcing strip is secured to the handle portion of a top wall panel and extends into and is further secured to that adjacent side wall, but stops short of reinforcing the panel which provides the base of the carton.
  • the or each reinforcing strip is attached to the surface of the carton that provides the inner surface of the multi-ply panels.
  • the carton may further comprise a slit in planar alignment with the or each reinforcing strip, which slit extends between a side wall and the base, thereby to distribute the stresses across a larger area of the carton when lifted and carried.
  • a second slit extends between the opposing side wall and base.
  • the carton may comprise a slit in planar alignment with the or each reinforcing strip, which slit extends across the hinged connection connecting the second side wall panel and the base.
  • a second slit is provided which extends across the hinged connection connecting the first side wall panel and the base.
  • FIGURE 1 is a plan view of a blank for forming a carton according to a first embodiment of the invention
  • FIGURE 2 is a perspective view of a carton formed in a set-up and loaded condition formed from a blank shown in FIGURE 1.
  • the blank and carton are formed from paper board or other foldable sheet material, for example plastics or the like, in which there has been added cut and fold lines.
  • the cartons are used to hold one or more articles, for example bottles and to dispense such a product.
  • a unitary blank is used to make a single carton, it is envisaged that two or more blanks may be employed, for example to provide the handle means, described in more detail below.
  • FIGURE 1 a blank 10 comprising a plurality of panels for forming a carton with a handle arrangement.
  • the blank 10 comprises in series an outer top wall panel 12, a first side wall panel 14, a panel 16, a second side wall panel 18, and an inner top wall panel 20 hingedly connected one to the next in series along fold lines 22, 24, 26 and 28 respectively.
  • the side wall panels 14 and 18 are formed into a two-part structure with the provision of a fold line 29 and 32 respectively, positioned intermediate the upper and lower ends of the side wall panels.
  • the access structure comprises a tear strip formed from frangible fold lines 34 and 35 and a tab 36 formed in the first and second side wall panels 14 and 18.
  • the articles may be supported in the cartons by one or more apertures 46 and 48 formed in the side walls and lower base structures, as is well-known in the art.
  • the base structure also comprises a series of apertures 50 for receiving and retaining support posts in a crate, to retain the carton in a crate.
  • the handle structure there comprises a pair of flaps 38 for forming hand openings struck from outer top wall panel and hingedly connected thereto along fold lines 39, thereby defining a first handle portion 54 intermediate the flaps 38.
  • a second handle portion 56 is formed in the inner top wall panel 20 by a second pair of inner flaps 40 struck from inner top wall panel.
  • the flaps 40 provide a second pair of openings, in use, and are hingedly connected to the inner top wall panel along fold lines 41.
  • the inner flaps 40 are provided with a plurality of score lines (not shown), to allow the flaps 40 to flex around the articles contained in the carton.
  • FIGURE 1 there further comprises a first reinforcing strip 42 applied to the handle portion 54 by glue or other suitable securing means.
  • the strip 42 extends into and is secured to side panel 14.
  • a second reinforcing strip 44 applied to the second handle portion 54 and extends into the second side wall panel and is secured thereto by glue or other suitable means known in the art.
  • the aperture is used to distribute stress concentration which passes through to the base panel from the handle across a larger area of the carton.
  • the folding and gluing operations can be performed in one or more straight line machines, so that the carton does not require to be rotated or inverted to complete its construction.
  • the following process is not limited to that described below and can be altered according to particular manufacturing requirements.
  • the carton is constructed by wrapping the blank 10 around an array of articles that are placed on the base wall panel 16, by known methods.
  • the side wall panels 14 and 16 are folded out of alignment with the base wall panel 16 and the articles located in the apertures 46 and 48.
  • 12 bottles are packaged in a 2x6 arrangement.
  • the multi-ply top wall is constructed, by folding the inner top wall panel 20 inwardly along fold line 28, and folding outer top wall panel 12 inwardly along fold line 22 to overlie the inner top wall panel to be secured thereto by glue or other suitable securing means.
  • the flaps 38 and 40 are aligned to define a multi-ply handle portion 54/56.
  • the reinforcing strips 42 and 44 are aligned to support and reinforce the handle portion 54/56, thereby to improve the integrity of the handle.
  • the flaps 38 and 40 are folded inwardly to provide openings for a users hand or fingers to enable the carton to be carried.
  • the shape of the handle structure is not limited to that described above and can be altered according to particular size and shape of the carton to be manufactured.
  • the present invention and its preferred embodiment relate to an arrangement for providing a handle structure in a wrap around carton.
  • the invention can be applied to a wide variety of cartons and is not limited to those of the wrap around type herein before described and can be used for numerous applications.
  • directional references such as “top”, “base”, “side”, “inner”, and “outer” do not limit the respective panels to such orientation, but merely serve to distinguish these panels from one another.
  • hinged connection Any reference to a hinged connection should not be construed as necessarily referring to a single fold line only: indeed it is envisaged that the hinged connection can be formed from one or more of the following, a score line, a frangible line or a fold line without departing from the scope of invention.

Landscapes

  • Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
  • Cartons (AREA)

Abstract

A carton and blank (10) for forming a carton for packaging a plurality of articles-, for example bottles, comprising a top (12,20), opposed side walls (14,18) and a base (16), wherein the top wall is a multi-ply arrangement. The top wall further comprises a pair of openings (38,40) defining a handle portion (54,56) to allow a user to lift and carry the carton. A reinforcing strip (42,44) is connected to the handle portion and is disposed to support and reinforce the handle portion.

Description

CARTON AND THE CARTON BLANK
The invention relates to a carton for accommodating one or more articles, for example bottles, which carton is provided with a handle structure to assist a user in carrying the carton and articles. The invention also provides a blank for forming such a carton.
Background of the Invention
It is known to provide handles on cartons to aid carrying such cartons. For example, in GB 2,234,495 there comprises a handle structure applied to a "fully enclosed" carton. The handle is formed from a strip struck from one of the panels and is bowed in a central region and is stabilised by an aperture in an upper flap overlying the top panel.
This handle arrangement cannot be applied to a "wraparound" style of carton, as the carton is formed around a plurality of articles during the loading process in a packaging machine.
GB-A-1 240 549 and US-A-4 582 199 both disclose cartons in which handle portions are provided in their top wall panels defined by apertures in the top wall. There is no disclosure or suggestion of providing reinforcement in the form of a reinforcing strip in either of these prior documents although such is disclosed in US-A-3 794 239.
However, in the present invention the reinforcing strips are extended into the side walls but not into the bottom panel of the carton. The nature of the reinforcing strip thus provided is beneficial because it provides an interrupted reinforcing strip which is applied between the handle apertures of each top handle, so that a minimum amount of reinforcing material is required to achieve a maximum reinforcing effect. This is particularly useful in the wraparound carton of the present invention; during production of the blanks, the reinforcing strip can readily be cut and applied in a line running through the centre of the carton.
A wraparound style of carton typically comprises a top panel, opposed side panels and a base structure which is formed from the opposed end panels of a carton blank. Thus, the carton will possess a single ply top panel
It is known to provide one or more apertures in a top panel of a wraparound carton, to allow a user to grip such a carton. However, such cartons are typically made to accommodate relatively few items, say, for example, six bottles.
A problem associated with the prior art is how to retain the integrity of such handles which are subject to significant strains when being used on a carton for carrying many more multiple articles.
The present invention and its preferred embodiments seek to overcome or at least mitigate the problems of the prior art.
Summary of the Invention
One aspect of the invention provides a carton for packaging a plurality of articles, for example bottles, comprises a top, opposed side walls and a base, wherein the top wall is a multi-ply panels arrangement comprising a pair of openings which between them define a handle portion to allow a user to lift and carry the carton and wherein the multi-ply panels of the top wall are each provided with a reinforcing strip which are in overlapping relationship to reinforce the multi-ply part of the handle portion, characterized in that each reinforcing strip is secured to the handle portion of a top wall panel and extends into and is further secured to that adjacent side wall, but stops short of reinforcing the panel which provides the base of the carton.
Preferably, the or each reinforcing strip is attached to the surface of the carton that provides the inner surface of the multi-ply panels.
According to a feature of this aspect of the invention, the carton may further comprise a slit in planar alignment with the or each reinforcing strip, which slit extends between a side wall and the base, thereby to distribute the stresses across a larger area of the carton when lifted and carried. Preferably, a second slit extends between the opposing side wall and base.
Another aspect of the invention provides a blank for forming a carton for packaging a plurality of articles, for example bottles, comprising a plurality of panels hinged together,, said panels comprising in series, an outer top wall panel, a first side wall panel, a base panel, a second side wall panel and an inner top wall panel, the inner and outer top wall panels each comprise a pair of openings adapted to be aligned in use to define a handle portion to allow a user to lift and carry the carton, wherein the handle portion is provided with reinforcing strips such that each top wall panel in the region of the handle portion is reinforced by a reinforcing strip, characterized in that the reinforcing strip is secured to the inner top wall panel intermediate the openings and extends into and is further secured to the adjacent side wall panel, but stops short of reinforcing the panels which provide the base of the carton.
According to a feature of this aspect of the invention, the carton may comprise a slit in planar alignment with the or each reinforcing strip, which slit extends across the hinged connection connecting the second side wall panel and the base. Preferably, a second slit is provided which extends across the hinged connection connecting the first side wall panel and the base.
Brief Description of the Drawings
Exemplary embodiments of the invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:
FIGURE 1 is a plan view of a blank for forming a carton according to a first embodiment of the invention;
FIGURE 2 is a perspective view of a carton formed in a set-up and loaded condition formed from a blank shown in FIGURE 1.
Detailed Description of the Preferred Embodiment
Referring to the drawings there is shown a carton blank for forming a carton.
The blank and carton are formed from paper board or other foldable sheet material, for example plastics or the like, in which there has been added cut and fold lines. The cartons are used to hold one or more articles, for example bottles and to dispense such a product. Whilst in the illustrated embodiment, a unitary blank is used to make a single carton, it is envisaged that two or more blanks may be employed, for example to provide the handle means, described in more detail below. Referring now to FIGURE 1 , there is shown a blank 10 comprising a plurality of panels for forming a carton with a handle arrangement. In the first embodiment the blank 10 comprises in series an outer top wall panel 12, a first side wall panel 14, a panel 16, a second side wall panel 18, and an inner top wall panel 20 hingedly connected one to the next in series along fold lines 22, 24, 26 and 28 respectively.
In one class of embodiments the side wall panels 14 and 18 are formed into a two-part structure with the provision of a fold line 29 and 32 respectively, positioned intermediate the upper and lower ends of the side wall panels. In some embodiments, there further comprises an access structure to gain access to articles retained within the carton. In the embodiment illustrated in FIGURE 1 , the access structure comprises a tear strip formed from frangible fold lines 34 and 35 and a tab 36 formed in the first and second side wall panels 14 and 18.
The articles may be supported in the cartons by one or more apertures 46 and 48 formed in the side walls and lower base structures, as is well-known in the art. In this embodiment the base structure also comprises a series of apertures 50 for receiving and retaining support posts in a crate, to retain the carton in a crate.
Turning to the handle structure, there comprises a pair of flaps 38 for forming hand openings struck from outer top wall panel and hingedly connected thereto along fold lines 39, thereby defining a first handle portion 54 intermediate the flaps 38. A second handle portion 56 is formed in the inner top wall panel 20 by a second pair of inner flaps 40 struck from inner top wall panel. The flaps 40 provide a second pair of openings, in use, and are hingedly connected to the inner top wall panel along fold lines 41. Preferably the inner flaps 40 are provided with a plurality of score lines (not shown), to allow the flaps 40 to flex around the articles contained in the carton.
In the embodiment of FIGURE 1 , there further comprises a first reinforcing strip 42 applied to the handle portion 54 by glue or other suitable securing means. The strip 42 extends into and is secured to side panel 14. Similarly, there comprises a second reinforcing strip 44 applied to the second handle portion 54 and extends into the second side wall panel and is secured thereto by glue or other suitable means known in the art.
In one class of embodiments, there further comprises a slit 52 applied across the fold line 24 and, preferably, fold line 26 and base wall panel 16. In use, the aperture is used to distribute stress concentration which passes through to the base panel from the handle across a larger area of the carton.
In order to construct the carton, reference is made to the carton illustrated in the FIGURE 2 of the drawings. The folding and gluing operations can be performed in one or more straight line machines, so that the carton does not require to be rotated or inverted to complete its construction. The following process is not limited to that described below and can be altered according to particular manufacturing requirements.
Referring to Figure 2, the carton is constructed by wrapping the blank 10 around an array of articles that are placed on the base wall panel 16, by known methods. The side wall panels 14 and 16 are folded out of alignment with the base wall panel 16 and the articles located in the apertures 46 and 48. In the illustrated embodiment, 12 bottles are packaged in a 2x6 arrangement. The multi-ply top wall is constructed, by folding the inner top wall panel 20 inwardly along fold line 28, and folding outer top wall panel 12 inwardly along fold line 22 to overlie the inner top wall panel to be secured thereto by glue or other suitable securing means.
The flaps 38 and 40 are aligned to define a multi-ply handle portion 54/56. The reinforcing strips 42 and 44 are aligned to support and reinforce the handle portion 54/56, thereby to improve the integrity of the handle.
In use, the flaps 38 and 40 are folded inwardly to provide openings for a users hand or fingers to enable the carton to be carried.
It is envisaged that the shape of the handle structure is not limited to that described above and can be altered according to particular size and shape of the carton to be manufactured.
The present invention and its preferred embodiment relate to an arrangement for providing a handle structure in a wrap around carton. However, it is anticipated that the invention can be applied to a wide variety of cartons and is not limited to those of the wrap around type herein before described and can be used for numerous applications. It will be recognised that as used herein directional references such as "top", "base", "side", "inner", and "outer" do not limit the respective panels to such orientation, but merely serve to distinguish these panels from one another. Any reference to a hinged connection should not be construed as necessarily referring to a single fold line only: indeed it is envisaged that the hinged connection can be formed from one or more of the following, a score line, a frangible line or a fold line without departing from the scope of invention.

Claims

1. A carton for packaging a plurality of articles, for example bottles, comprises a top, opposed side walls and a base, wherein the top wall is a multi-ply panels arrangement comprising a pair of openings which between them define a handle portion to allow a user to lift and carry the carton and wherein the multi-ply panels of the top wall are each provided with a reinforcing strip which are in overlapping relationship to reinforce the multi-ply part of the handle portion, characterized in that each reinforcing strip is secured to the handle portion of a top wall panel and extends into and is further secured to the adjacent side wall, but stops short of reinforcing the panel which provides the base of the carton.
2. A carton as claimed in claim 1 wherein the or each reinforcing strip is attached to the surface of the carton that provides the inner surface of the multi-ply panels.
3. A carton as claimed in claim 1 or claim 2 further comprising a slit in planar alignment with the or each reinforcing strip, which slit extends between a side wall and the base, thereby to distribute the stresses across a larger area of the carton when lifted and carried.
4. A carton as claimed in claim 3 further comprising a second slit extending between the opposing side wall and base.
5. A blank for forming a carton for packaging a plurality of articles, for example bottles, comprising a plurality of panels hinged together, said panels comprising in series, an outer top wall panel, a first side wall panel, a base panel, a second side wall panel and an inner top wall panel, the inner and outer top wall panels each comprise a pair of openings adapted to be aligned in use to define a handle portion to allow a user to lift and carry the carton, wherein the handle portion is provided with reinforcing strips such that each top wall panel in the region of the handle portion is reinforced by a reinforcing strip, characterized in that the reinforcing strip is secured to the inner top wall panel intermediate the openings and extends into and is further secured to the adjacent side wall panel, but stops short of reinforcing the panels which provide the base of the carton.
6. A blank as claimed in claim 5 further comprising a slit in planar alignment with the or each reinforcing strip, which slit extends across the hinged connection connecting the second side wall panel and the base.
7. A blank as claimed in claim 6 further comprising a second slit, which slit extends across the hinged connection connecting the first side wall panel and the base.
EP06814201A 2005-09-02 2006-09-05 Carton and carton blank Not-in-force EP1926670B1 (en)

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
GBGB0517888.4A GB0517888D0 (en) 2005-09-02 2005-09-02 Carton and carton blank
PCT/US2006/034646 WO2007028168A1 (en) 2005-09-02 2006-09-05 Carton and the carton blank

Publications (2)

Publication Number Publication Date
EP1926670A1 true EP1926670A1 (en) 2008-06-04
EP1926670B1 EP1926670B1 (en) 2009-05-27

Family

ID=35220754

Family Applications (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
EP06814201A Not-in-force EP1926670B1 (en) 2005-09-02 2006-09-05 Carton and carton blank

Country Status (7)

Country Link
EP (1) EP1926670B1 (en)
AT (1) ATE432229T1 (en)
DE (1) DE602006007018D1 (en)
ES (1) ES2328173T3 (en)
GB (1) GB0517888D0 (en)
RU (1) RU2008112681A (en)
WO (1) WO2007028168A1 (en)

Family Cites Families (5)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
GB2186550B (en) * 1986-09-17 1990-05-23 St Regis Packaging Ltd Improvements in packaging
US5595292A (en) * 1995-01-04 1997-01-21 The Mead Corporation Carton having shock-absorbing carrying handle and package formed therefrom
US6536656B2 (en) * 2000-07-13 2003-03-25 The Mead Corporation Carton and a handle therefor
DE20206756U1 (en) * 2002-04-27 2002-08-14 A & R Carton Gmbh bottle carrier
FI119629B (en) * 2003-10-06 2009-01-30 Takon Kotelotehdas Oy Bärförpackning

Non-Patent Citations (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Title
See references of WO2007028168A1 *

Also Published As

Publication number Publication date
DE602006007018D1 (en) 2009-07-09
ES2328173T3 (en) 2009-11-10
WO2007028168A1 (en) 2007-03-08
EP1926670B1 (en) 2009-05-27
RU2008112681A (en) 2009-10-10
ATE432229T1 (en) 2009-06-15
GB0517888D0 (en) 2005-10-12

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