FR2577519A1 - Convertible cardboard package - Google Patents

Abstract

This package is of the type constituted by a tray comprising a bottom delimited by four side walls 3, 4 and by a closing device constituted for example by an American case, an over-fitting cover, a half American case or a cover comprising flaps allowing it to be glued to the side walls of the tray. According to the invention, two opposite side walls 3 of the tray each comprise, over a part of their height, starting from their upper edge, and over all or part of their width, a flap 12 connected in a detachable manner to the latter over at least its two vertical edges. Application to the manufacture of a tray comprising two side walls which are higher than the other two.

Description

Packaging convertible into cardboard
The present invention relates to a packaging convertible into cardboard.

 There are currently on the market certain packages which allow the packaging and shipping of a batch of products which are heterogeneous by their nature, or by their different dimensions from one product to another.

 A package which may be suitable for such an application comprises a tray of which two opposite side walls are higher than the other two.

 The products which have different heights depending on their nature are packaged on a maximum height lower than that of the highest walls of the tray and are held in the bottom thereof by a shrinkable plastic film, fixed on the bottom and / or on the sides of the tray or passing under the bottom of the latter.

 This tray is then placed inside an American box, by lateral or vertical casing, or closed by a cover of the "bell" type, by an American half-box, or even by a cap of shape complementary to that of the opening that the tray has, with fixing of the flaps of the cap on the side walls thereof.

 Such packaging is described in particular in French patents 81 02 057 and 82 15 390 in the name of the Applicant.

 It should be noted that all packaging of this type is intended for a very specific use which is the shipment of objects in thermosplastic film.

 It should be noted that in practice, before the formation of heterogeneous batches of products, the products are packaged at the end of manufacture in the form of homogeneous batches in trays the entire edges of which have the same height, in order to transport them to a shipping station where heterogeneous batches are produced, this shipping station being integrated into the company that manufactures the products or external to it and located at a wholesaler for example.

 During this first packaging, the trays are closed by a bell-type cover or an American half-box type cover.

 It is therefore advisable to carry out two successive packages of the same products in two different types of packaging, each of which is intended for a very precise use. This results in an increase in shipping costs as well as an increase in packaging stocks which a product manufacturer must have.

 The present invention aims to remedy these drawbacks.

 To this end, in the packaging that it relates to, of the type constituted by a tray comprising a bottom delimited by four walls of the tera, and by a closure device constituted for example by an American box, a bell cover, a American half-body, or a cover comprising flaps allowing it to be bonded to the side walls of the tray, two opposite side walls of the tray each have, over part of their height, from their upper edge, and on all or part of their width, a flap detachably linked thereto on at least its two vertical edges.

 The tray in question can be obtained according to various known solutions, for example comprising a bottom in one piece, connected on its four edges to the four side walls with grooving lines between the bottom and each side wall, or comprising four side walls integral two by two and each comprising an extension, the extensions of the four side walls forming, after assembly, the bottom of the tray.

 Advantageously, the width of each flap formed in a side wall is less than the width of this side wall, and the flap is centered on said side wall.

 This solution is advantageous because ensuring at the four angles of the tray the formation of four permanent dihedrons which ensure good resistance to compression thereof.

 According to another possibility, each flap occupies the entire width of the side wall in which it is formed.

 According to a first embodiment, each flap is connected to the side wall of the container, in which it is formed, and on its three connecting edges with the side wall, by precut lines.

 After mounting this tray, manually or mechanically, depending on the particular structure of the tray and according to the conditions of use thereof, the tray has four side walls of the same height allowing product packaging on any its height, before closing by a cover constituted for example by a bell cover or by an American half-box.

 Products packaged in such packaging can be shipped directly to the customer or be intended to be repackaged in the form of heterogeneous lots. In this last case. after unloading. of the products, the user just has to tear off the two arnoibie flaps of the tray to transform it into a tray with "raised edges", allowing the packaging of a batch of heterogeneous products, kept pressed against its bottom by a shrink or stretch plastic film. This tray is then closed in a known manner with a view to the dispatch of the products by a cover constituted by a last American box or by a cap of shape generally complementary to that of the opening of the tray, and fixed to the side walls. of it by gluing flaps.

 According to another embodiment of this packaging, each flap is connected to the side wall in which it is formed, on the one hand, detachably at its two vertical edges, by means of precut lines or slots interrupted retention points and, on the other hand, at its lower edge by a crease line.

 Advantageous. in the latter case, each flap comprises a series of horizontal and equidistant creasing lines or the like, formed over its entire height.

 The crease lines can be replaced by slots each having retention points.

 This structure does not allow total uprooting of the flaps. but their tilting from the desired height, at the level of the rowing line being at the corresponding height.

Each flap can either be folded towards Itmtereur to reinforce a side wall and a part of the bottom of the tray, or folded over ie the batch of packaged products. This last solution is
Interesting when the packaged products have a constant height over the entire surface of the bottom, which is the case for example when packaging books or the like.

In any case, the invention will be clearly understood with the aid of the description which follows. with reference to the appended schematic drawing showing, by way of nonlimiting examples, several embodiments of this packaging
Figure I is a flat view of a blank from which is made a first tray
Figure 2 is a perspective view of a second container, in the unzipped position and filled with identical products
Figure 3 is a perspective view before closing of a package comprising the tray of Figure 2 filled with a batch of products
x heterogeneous
Figure 4 is a flat view of the blank from which is formed another container of this packaging;
Figure 5 is a perspective view of the tray of Figure 4, mounted
Figure 6 is a perspective view of a package comprising the tray of Figure 6 after packaging of the products and before fitting the cover
Figure 7 is a longitudinal sectional view of this tray after packaging of the products
Figure 8 is a longitudinal sectional view of the same tray after packaging of several products of different heights.

 The blank, shown in Figure I, is intended to form a tray that can be mounted manually or mechanically.

This blank comprises a bottom (2) of rectangular shape including, at its four edges, four extensions, identical two by two, intended to form, respectively, the two side walls (3) corresponding to the length and the two walls side (4) corresponding to the width. Each extension is separated from the bottom by a crease line (5) allowing it to tilt 90 relative to the bottom.

The two large side walls (3) are each extended laterally by two flaps (6). Each flap (6) comprises a tab (7) capable, after shaping the tray, of being folded over a small side wall (4), at a recess (8) that includes it , inside the tray and is locked therein by penetration of a stud (9) which it has inside a slot (10) formed in the bottom (2) of the tray .

 In each large side wall is formed, from the upper edge thereof, a flap (12) of width less than the width of said wall. Each flap is retained on the wall considered, on three sides, by a pre-cut line (13).

 2 shows a tray (14) similar to that whose blank is shown in Figure 1, and in which the same elements are designated by the same references as above, but which requires mechanical assembly.

 This tray is filled with a batch of identical articles (15), for example for their transfer to a final packaging station.

 This tray can be closed by a cover of the American half-body type (II), comprising at each of its angles a slot (IIa) extending from its open end, with grooving lines (1 lb ) parallel to the cover, connecting the bottoms of the slots (IIa).

 3 shows a package consisting of the tray (14) of Figure 2, whose flaps (12) have been torn off, and which is filled with a batch of heterogeneous products (15) kept pressed against the bottom of the tray by a heat-shrinkable film (16) passing under the bottom of the tray. This package can be closed by a cover of the "cap" type (17) comprising a central part (18) covering the open part, and flaps (19) coming to stick against the highest side walls of the tray. it being specified that other closing methods such as bell covers or American half-cases could be implemented.

 FIG. 4 represents a flat view of a blank intended to form a mechanically mounted tray. This blank has the same general structure as that shown in FIG. 1, and the same elements are designated by the same references as above.

 In this new tray, each flap (12) is connected to the side wall in which it is formed, on the one hand, by a crease line (20) at its lower edge and, on the other hand, by two precut lines (22) along its two vertical edges.

 In addition, each flap (12) comprises two series of horizontal and equidistant slots (23), formed over the entire height of the flap.

 From a practical point of view, after assembly, the tray has four side walls of the same height and is in the form shown in Figure 5. Products can be packaged over the entire height of the tray which can be closed by a ccover type bell or by an American half-body.

 It is possible, after tearing the precuts (22), to fold the flaps (12).

 In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, in which books (24) are packaged in the bottom of the tray, the flaps (12) are folded over the books, thus ensuring their protection, before placing the heat-shrinkable film (16), or one or more retaining links.

 As can be seen from the drawings, the tray has excellent resistance to compression, given the presence of dihedrons in its four angles.

 As in the previous case, this packaging can be closed by a cover of the "cap" type (17).

 FIG. 8 represents another possibility of using this tray in the case of the packaging of heterogeneous products (15). In this case, the flaps (12) are folded towards the inside of the tray, reinforcing the side walls and part of the bottom thereof, and the products are held against the bottom of the tray, in known manner, by the heat-shrinkable film (16).

 As is clear from the above, the invention brings a great improvement to the existing technique by providing a packaging of simple structure, which can be easily transformed to allow a plurality of uses each well suited to particular conditions of packaging of products.

 It goes without saying that the invention is not limited to the sole embodiments of this packaging, described above by way of examples; on the contrary, it embraces all variants of it.

 Thus in particular that each flap could extend over a different width, that the means of folding and / or retaining each flap could be different, that the bottom of the packaging could be square, or that the walls in which the flaps are formed are of width less than that of the other walls, without departing from the scope of the invention.

Claims (6)

 1- Packaging convertible into cardboard, of the type consisting of a tray comprising a bottom delimited by four side walls (3, 4) and by a closure device constituted for example by an American box, a bell cover, an American half-box, or a cap comprising flaps allowing it to be bonded to the side walls of the tray, characterized in that two opposite side walls (3) of the tray each have, over part of their height, from their upper edge, and on all or part of their width, a flap (12) detachably linked thereto on at least its two vertical edges.  2- Packaging according to claim 1, characterized in that the width of each flap (12) formed in a side wall (3) is less than the width of this side wall, and the flap is centered on said side wall.  3- Packaging according to claim I, characterized in that the width of each flap (12) is equal to the width dc the side wall (3) in which it is formed.  4- Packaging according to any one of claims I to 3, characterized in that each flap (12) is connected to the side wall (3) of the tray, in which it is formed, and on its three connecting edges with the side wall, by precut lines (13).  5- Packaging according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that each flap (12) is connected to the side wall (3) in which it is formed, on the one hand, detachably at its two vertical edges, by means of pre-cut lianas (22) or slots interrupted by retention points and, on the other hand at its lower edge by a crease line (20).  6. Packaging according to claim 5, characterized in that each flap (12) comprises a series of horizontal or equidistant raking lines or sections (23), formed over its entire height.