KR20000069076A - Improved package for compressible products and method for producing same - Google Patents

Abstract

According to the invention, the product may be retained in a continuous sleeve integrally formed or bonded to itself to form a cylindrical sleeve in a storage or tensionless state. The article may be inserted into the interior of the sleeve after it is formed or held in the sleeve during its formation. The sleeve surrounds the product in at least one plane through the product and the package, and forms a continuous path defining an axial direction perpendicular to the plane and a circumferential direction around the product in the plane. The one or more axially extending pleats are integrally formed of a material comprising the cylindrical wall of the sleeve, so that the circumference of the cylindrical sleeve is reduced. By reducing the circumference of the cylinder, the inner volume of the sleeve and thus the finished package is reduced, thereby applying a compressive force to the product in the package. The compressive force may be imparted in a single direction, such as by moving the panels of the package transversely inward, or may be imparted in more than one direction by multiple compression steps or by a constant reduction of the circumference resulting from constant inward product compression. have. If the panel is approximately equal to the finished width of the pleat, the distance traveled by the panel is approximately equal to the finished width of the pleat and the reduction in circumference is the sum of the widths of the finished pleat or the finished pleat for the same sized pleat It is almost equal to twice the width of. If a single pleat is formed to uniformly reduce the circumference of the sleeve, the reduction of the circumference is approximately equal to the finished width of the pleat. Multiple pleats are the product of reduction of the circumference.

Description

Package for compressible products and manufacturing method thereof {IMPROVED PACKAGE FOR COMPRESSIBLE PRODUCTS AND METHOD FOR PRODUCING SAME}

In cases where the finished product is transported from the manufacturing site to the point of sale or to an intermediate storage facility, it is desirable to enclose a large number of products in a larger, more durable package. This not only keeps the product in the salable state necessary, but also minimizes the number of individual items to be handled, and generally forms more uniformly shaped items for lamination and handling.

For many years, the form of such packages has been in the form of conventional, often rectangular, rigid or semi-rigid packages formed of corrugated or non-corrugated cardboard with dimensions suitable for encapsulating a predetermined number of end products. In other products that need to prevent dirt and physical damage, "light" flexible packaging materials, such as polymer films and paper of various thicknesses, have been used in similar forms. While these packages have proved effective in protecting finished products during transportation and storage, they are generally inefficient in the space and materials needed to transport and store compressible products with significant empty volumes therein.

In an effort to overcome this drawback, various methods have been invented to apply a compressive force to a compressible product prior to placing the product in a package, thereby keeping the product under tension until the package is opened. While conventional packaging methods can be improved, these methods are complex to compress the product (s) and to keep the product compressed while inserting the product into a preformed package or while the package is secured around the product. Mechanisms were often needed. Moreover, in many situations, some compression is lost due to the volume occupied by the compression device being emptied when the mechanism is removed from the package.

Another method of packaging a compressed product is to combine the package manufacturing process with the compression process such that a package seal is formed while external compressive forces are applied to the product and surrounding the package part. This approach approaches the compression loss problem described above in connection with the product compression apparatus in a package, but the problem of forming a suitable package seal and joint under tension still remains.

Therefore, it was desirable to provide a package suitable for efficiently packaging and transporting compressible products. In addition, there is a need to provide a package that is easy to open, economical in construction, and durable in use.

Summary of the Invention

According to the invention, the product may be retained in a continuous sleeve integrally formed or bonded to itself to form a cylindrical sleeve in a storage or tensionless state. The article may be inserted into the interior of the sleeve after it is formed or held in the sleeve during its formation. The sleeve surrounds the product in at least one plane through the product and the package, and forms a continuous path defining an axial direction perpendicular to the plane and a circumferential direction around the product in the plane. The one or more axially extending pleats are integrally formed of a material comprising the cylindrical wall of the sleeve, so that the circumference of the cylindrical sleeve is reduced. By reducing the circumference of the cylinder, the inner volume of the sleeve and thus the finished package is reduced, thereby applying a compressive force to the product in the package. The compressive force may be imparted in a single direction, such as by moving the panels of the package transversely inward, or may be imparted in more than one direction by multiple compression steps or by a constant reduction of the circumference resulting from constant inward product compression. have. If the panel is approximately equal to the finished width of the pleat, the distance traveled by the panel is approximately equal to the finished width of the pleat and the reduction in circumference is the sum of the widths of the finished pleat or the finished pleat for the same sized pleat It is almost equal to twice the width of. If a single pleat is formed to uniformly reduce the circumference of the sleeve, the reduction of the circumference is approximately equal to the finished width of the pleat. Multiple pleats are the product of reduction of the circumference.

The present invention relates to a package that can be used to package and transport a compressible product efficiently. The invention also relates to a method of manufacturing such a package.

While this specification includes the claims particularly pointed out and specifically clarified the subject matter of the invention, the invention can be better understood from the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. Like reference numerals in the drawings indicate like elements.

1 is a perspective view of a package in a fully assembled state as a package according to the present invention;

2 is a plan view of a blank suitable for forming a package such as the package of FIG.

3 is a plan view of the blank of FIG. 2 after initial folding, with an adhesive application region shown therein;

4 is a plan view of a flat sleeve made from the blank of FIG. 2, FIG.

5 is a perspective view of the sleeve of FIG. 4 after being rectangular to deform into the package of FIG. 1, FIG.

6A-6E are cross-sectional views of the sleeve of FIG. 5 taken along line 6-6 of FIG. 5, showing a sequence of steps of applying compression to a product in a package according to the method according to the present invention;

7 is a perspective view similar to that of FIG. 5 after the product and package compression process is complete;

8 is a perspective view of the package of FIG. 1 with the top raised and open;

9 is a perspective view of another embodiment of a package according to the present invention;

10 is a plan view of a blank suitable for forming a package such as that shown in FIG.

FIG. 11 is a perspective view of the sleeve formed with the blank of FIG. 10 after being rectangular to deform into the package of FIG. 9 and after the product compression process of the present invention is completed;

12 is a perspective view of another embodiment of a package according to the present invention;

13 is a perspective view of a sleeve suitable for forming a package such as that of FIG. 12 after the package and product compression process is complete;

14 is a perspective view of another embodiment of a package according to the present invention;

15 is a perspective view of the package of FIG. 14 in the product compression stage of package formation.

1 shows a package 10 constructed in accordance with the invention. The illustrated package illustrates a preferred embodiment according to the present invention and includes a generally rectangular parallelepiped formed from a rigid or substantially rigid material. The package according to the invention can be constructed in many different shapes and by many different construction techniques, but the presently preferred method is "blank" in order to minimize the disposal of materials and to minimize the need to handle many different individual parts during package assembly. single piece of material known as " blank ".

FIG. 2 is a plan view of an integral blank 20 of package material suitable for forming a package such as the package 10 shown in FIG. 1. As shown in FIG. 2, the blank 20 comprises five main panels 24, 26, 28, 30 and transverse notches 34, 36, 38, 40, 91, 93, 81, 83. Four pleat sides 92, 94, 82, 84 connected in series with one another. The five main panels include a front outer panel 24, a top panel 26, a back panel 28, a bottom panel 30 and a front inner panel 32 from top to bottom. The transverse boundaries of each of these panels 24, 26, 28, 30 and 32 are defined by axial notches 42 and 44. The axial notches 42 and 44 also function to connect each panel 24, 26, 28, 30, 32 to the end flaps 46-55 at each transverse edge.

The end flaps associated with the front inner panel 32 and the back panel 28 are the main flaps 54, 55 and 50, 51. Preferably, the main panels 50, 51, 54, 55 have a lateral dimension substantially the same as the axial dimension of the top panel 26, more preferably the dimensions of the final end wall of the package 10. And have substantially the same overall dimensions. End flaps associated with bottom panel 30 are secondary flaps 52, 53. The secondary flaps 52, 53 are somewhat smaller in lateral dimension than the primary flaps 50, 51, 54, 55. The end flaps associated with the top panel 26 are hereinafter referred to as ears 48, 49. The transverse dimensions of the ears 48, 49 are substantially smaller than the dimensions of the main flaps 50, 51, 54, 55.

The end flaps associated with the front outer panel 24 are hereinafter referred to as extension panels 46 and 47. In the present embodiment, these extension panels 46 and 47 have substantially the same transverse dimensions as the main flaps 50, 51, 54, 55. The extension panels 46, 47, to which the front outer panel 24 is coupled, have transverse tear strips 56 extending across them. The tear strip 56 is two transverse parallel lines that cut 50% to the outer side of the front outer panel 24 and the extension panels 46 and 47. 50% cut refers to a continuous cut that extends from the surface of the material to a downward depth that is half the thickness of the material. A 50% cut ensures a clean tear at the surface to maintain a relatively satisfactory appearance, especially when the package 10 is printed, but depending on the particular application, other means of providing a weak line such as perforation may be used. . An optional reinforcement tape (not shown) may be attached to the inner side of the tear strip 56 to help prevent the tear strip 56 from breaking into pieces when removed from the package 10. Preferably, one end of the tear strip extends beyond the axial edge of the extension panel 47 to provide a tab that facilitates grasping the tear strip 56 to initiate the opening process.

An adhesive flap 59 comprising a proximal locking portion 58 and a distal attachment portion 64 is connected to the lower transverse edge of the front inner panel 32 via a cut notch 60. The cut notch 60 is deep enough to facilitate the bending of the proximal locking portion 58 about this indentation, but the proximal locking portion 58 is the front inner panel 32 during repeated normal operation of the package 10. It is preferred that the cut not be deep enough to separate from the. In addition, the cut notches 60, which are partially cut instead of full cuts, can prevent leakage or contamination of package contents prior to opening.

The proximal locking portion 58 is connected to the distal attachment portion 64 along a weak line of full length, the distal attachment portion 64 comprising a remotely spaced land region 65. The pair of tabs 62, 63 are located along the lower transverse edge of the proximal locking portion 58 opposite the pair of engagement cuts 66, 67 along the upper transverse edge of the distal attachment portion 64. . The engagement between the tabs 62 and 63 and the cutouts 66 and 67 allows the package to be repeatedly opened and engaged as described below.

The distal attachment portion 64 includes an open tab 68 along its lower transverse edge. After the tear strip 56 is removed, the open tab 68 helps to provide the user with convenient means for opening the package 10 as described below.

As briefly described above, the blank 20 comprises a number of small panels known as pleated sides. The pleat sides are arranged in pairs and are defined from adjacent panels by parallel weak triangular lines (notches, perforations, folds, etc.), each pair of pleat sides forming a pleat. In the blank 20 shown in FIG. 2, the pleats 80 include pleated sides 82, 84 defined by transverse notches 40, 81, 83, while the pleats 90 Pleated sides 92, 94 defined by transverse notches 38, 91, 93. Thus, the pleats 80, 90 are preformed before the package is assembled, as the notch defining the pleat side may form an inherently weaker area of the blank where bending may occur. The importance and function of the pleats 80, 90 in the package according to the invention will be understood in the description below.

To assemble the package 10, the blank 20 of FIG. 2 is first folded and glued to form the sleeve shown in FIG. 4. Initially, the adhesive flap 59 is folded downward 180 ° as a monolithic body about the transverse cut notch 60 and lies toward the outer side of the front inner panel 32. An adhesive is then applied to the end attachment portion 64. The blank is then folded 180 ° about the transverse notch 40 separating the front inner panel 32 from the bottom panel 30 so that the front inner panel is bottom panel 30 and back panel 28. Place on the lower part of. An adhesive is then applied to the front outer panel 24 at two positions indicated by the reference numeral 74. The result of this step is shown in FIG. The blank is then folded 180 ° about a transverse notch 36 separating the top panel 26 from the back panel 28 so that the flap 59 and the inner panel (to which the front outer panel 24 is bonded) 32). Thus, the distal attachment portion 64 of the adhesive flap 59 is attached to the inner side of the front outer panel 24 on the tear strip 56. In addition, the front outer panel 24 and the extension panels 46 and 47 are bonded to the front inner panel 32 and the main flaps 54 and 55 coupled thereto under the tear strip 56. The finished sleeve is shown in FIG. The pleats 80 remain substantially planar in shape and in the same plane as the front panel 24, while the pleats 90 are substantially planar and in the same plane as the back panel 28 but behind the front panel 24. It is hidden from view.

According to the invention, as shown in FIG. 5, the sleeve is rectangular, with each of the five main panels 24, 26, 28, 30 being substantially perpendicular to their main panel. Thus, the sleeve forms a continuous cylindrical tubular structure with two open ends. As can be appreciated, the term "cylindrical" refers to a hollow, elongated geometric structure with oval, triangular, quadrilateral and polygonal cross sections as well as circular cross sections. As shown in FIG. 5, a coordinate system may be defined to identify the direction and plane in the package / product situation. As shown in FIG. 5, the X direction extends in a direction parallel to the inside of the sleeve, and the Y and Z directions are perpendicular to the X direction. Thus, the plane parallel to the Y-Z plane (section taken through the sleeve in section line 6-6) indicates that the sleeve forms a continuous path around the product within the package in the plane. Thus, such continuous strips can be used to define the peripheral length of this continuous path surrounding the product irrespective of the circumference of the sleeve or in other words the cross-sectional shape of the sleeve.

6A-6E are cross-sectional views of the sleeve of FIG. 5 taken along line 6-6 of FIG. In FIG. 5, the product is omitted in the interior of the package 10, and the product is shown inside the package / sleeve of FIGS. 6A-6E to illustrate performing the product and package compression after packaging. In addition, while open features can be installed so that the product can be dispensed through the top of the package by opening the top panel 26, in many cases the package is supported from below and the compressive force from above is an important consideration of the installation. As such, in Figures 6A-6E the package 10 is shown in an inverted position for the compression process.

In FIG. 6A, the interior of the package 10 is filled with five representative products 99, although a large number of products can be used therein. For this illustration, the five products and the package 10 are sized such that the entire internal volume of the package 10 is occupied by the product 99. The product may be formed and positioned in a preferably rectangular sleeve, or optionally the sleeve may be assembled around the product or products. In FIG. 6A the product is under minimal compression, low compression or no compression so that the package material is under minimum tension, storage or no tension. Thus, the package 10 can be filled in any suitable way to be subjected to frictional forces or to prevent compression on the product.

FIG. 6B shows the sleeve after applying force F to bottom panel 30 between preformed pleats 80, 90 via a plunger, shoe, guide or other suitable method known in the art. The pleats 80, 90 have begun to deviate from their initial orientation parallel to the front inner panel 32 and back panel 28. The front inner panel 32, back panel 28 and top panel 26 are supported and held in their initial direction by a suitable support, guide, template, etc., so that the bottom panel 30 is relative to the top panel 26. To move inward. As can be seen by comparing FIG. 6A with FIG. 6B, the internal volume of the package 10 is reduced in proportion to the volume formed by the bottom panel 30 moving in parallel when moving inward of the center of the package. To start. As the bottom panel 30 moves inward, the circumference of the sleeve also decreases. In addition, since the front inner panel 32, the back panel 28 and the top panel 26 are suppressed, the product 99 is a proportional part of the volume reduction of the package 10 (assuming the product is compressed equally). Similarly begins to be compressed.

In FIG. 6C, the bottom panel 30 has reached its movement limit so that the bottom panel 30 is now substantially the same as the bottom edge of the front inner panel 32 and the back panel 28. The internal volume of the package 10 was reduced by the same amount as the occupied area of the bottom panel (moved distance multiplied by the area), and the circumference of the sleeve was reduced by twice the distance traveled by the floor panel. Thus, product 99 is compressed to a proportional portion of this volume reduction. In this condition, the pleats 80, 90 are completely formed, and each of the pleat sides 82, 84, 92, 94 is substantially in contact with each other. For each pleat, the outer notches of each of the three sets of notches that define the preformed pleats are also substantially in contact with each other leaving each of the three sets of center notches that form the vertices of the pleats.

FIG. 6D shows the pleats 80, 90 as the pleats 80, 90 begin to move inward toward each other on the bottom panel 30. Since the pleats 80, 90 are integrally formed as part of the sleeve and are thus attached to the lower ends of the front inner panel 32 and the back panel 28, the pleats are moved inward to form the bottom panel 30. When extended on the part, the pleats act to prevent the bottom panel 30 from moving back outward from the top panel 26 due to product re-expansion when the applied compressive force F is removed. Optionally, the pleats 80, 90 can be rotated outwards from each other and downwards on the front and back panels, further performing a similar locking function to restrain the bottom panel.

In FIG. 6E, the pleats are fully bent inward on the bottom panel 30 and secured to the bottom panel 30 by any suitable means known in the art, such as adhesives, tapes, staples, and the like. The pleat sides may be secured to each other continuously along their length or in separate positions, or alternatively or additionally, the pleat apex 81, 91 may be secured to the bottom panel 30. Thus, the pleats 80, 90 prevent the pivot from the bottom panel 30 and the bottom panel 30 from being released to the inner position. Thus, the product 99 remains compressed due to the permanently reduced internal volume of the package 10 and the permanently reduced circumference of the sleeve.

According to the invention, the product can be held in a continuous sleeve which is integrally formed or bonded to itself to form a cylindrical sleeve in storage or tensionless state. The product may be inserted into the interior of the sleeve after formation, or may be contained within the sleeve during its formation. The sleeve defines a continuous path, the continuous path surrounding the product (s) in at least one plane through the product and the package, defining a axial direction perpendicular to the plane and the circumferential direction around the product (s) in the plane. One or more axially extending pleats are formed integrally with the material comprising the cylindrical walls of the sleeve, thereby reducing the circumference of the cylindrical sleeve. By reducing the circumference of the cylinder, the inner volume of the sleeve and thus the volume of the finished package is reduced, thereby applying a compressive force to the product in the package. Compression forces may be applied in a single direction by moving the panels of the package inward as shown in FIGS. 6A-6E, or may be applied to uniform circumferential reduction by multiple compression steps and by constant inwardly oriented product compression. The compressive force may be applied in more than one direction. If the panel is moved inward to form two parallel pleats, the distance the panel is moved is approximately equal to the final width of the pleat, and the reduction in circumference is equal to the sum of the widths of the final pleat, or for pleats of the same size Is approximately equal to twice the width of the final pleat. If a single pleat is formed to uniformly reduce the circumference of the sleeve, the reduction of the circumference is approximately equal to the final width of the pleat. Multiple pleats multiply the decrease of the circumference.

After compression is applied to the package and its contents according to FIGS. 6A-6E, the sleeve is sealed at each end to completely surround the product sequentially or simultaneously. In order to fold and seal one end, the secondary flap 52 associated with the bottom panel 30 is first folded at 90 ° about a position perpendicular to the bottom panel 30 about the axial notch 42. The main flap 50 associated with the back panel 28 is folded 90 ° about the axial notch 42 and preferably attached to the end flap 52 associated with the bottom panel 30. Next, the main flap 54 coupled with the front inner panel 32 and the extension panel 46 coupled with the front outer panel 24 attached thereto are folded 90 ° about the axial notch 42. And to the outer side of the main flap 50 of the back panel 28. Finally, the ears 48 associated with the top panel 26 are folded 90 ° and glued to the outside of the front outer panel 24 and the extension panel 46. Next, folding and sealing operations at the other end are performed in the same manner as described above.

At this point, the package 10 is completely enclosed and in the shape shown in FIG. 1. As shown in FIG. 1, the package 10 is an enclosure formed by various panels and flaps. These panels and flaps are the corresponding walls of the package 10. Top panel 26, bottom panel 30 and back panel 28 are top wall 26, bottom wall 30 and back wall 28, respectively. The front wall 70 consists of a front inner panel 32 and a front outer panel 24. The end wall 72 consists of the remaining flaps, panels and ears. The top wall 26 faces the bottom wall 30, the front wall 32 corresponds to the back wall 28, and the end walls face each other. The pleats 80 and 90 are parallel with the front and back panels, respectively, and lie along the transverse edge of the bottom panel 30.

To open the package 10 to access the product therein, the consumer or user grips the tab of the tear strip 56 and pulls the tear strip 56 away from the package 10. Removing the tear strip 56 exposes the open tab 68 to the user. At this point, the tear strip can be treated in a certain way. The user grips the open tab 68 and pulls the open tab upwards. This allows the front outer panel 24 and associated extension panels 46, 47 on top of the tear strip 56 and the top including the upper wall 26, the ears 48, 49, and the distal attachment portion 64. Separate from the rest of the package 20. The top is now three freely rotating side lids. When the lid is rotated about a transverse notch 36 joining the top wall 26 to the back wall 28, the proximal locking portion 58 of the adhesive flap 59 is from the distal attachment portion 64. Are separated. Rotating the lid to the open position along this notch 36 allows access to the contents of the package 10. Moreover, in this preferred shape, since the compressive force exerted on the product is imparted in a direction perpendicular to the plane of the lid, opening the lid decompresses the product so that the product can be easily taken out of the package.

The proximal locking portion 58 is pulled upward about the cut notch 60 when the lid is rotated. After dispensing the required contents of the package, the package 10 may be closed by rotating the lid back to the closed position. When the lid is rotated back to the closed position, the tabs 62 and 63 of the proximal locking portion 58 engage the cutouts 66 and 67 of the distal attachment portion 64. When fully closed, the proximal locking portion 58 and the distal attachment portion 64 hold the lid together in a closed position until forced up. Separation and engagement of the proximal locking portion 58 and the distal attachment portion 64 through opening and closing of the package lid may be repeated until the contents of the package 10 are empty.

Of course, other details relating to the manufacture and operation of a package of the type shown in FIGS. 1 to 8 that are less relevant to the product compression features of the present invention are disclosed in Ruehl et al., Issued November 10, 1992. 5,161,734, which is incorporated herein by reference. Other packages of similar structure and operation are disclosed in detail in US Pat. Nos. 4,949,899, 5,154,343, 5,236,123, 5,265,799, 5,314,114, 5,366,141, 5,439,133, 5,505,374 and 5,151,996. have.

The term "product" as used herein is to be understood to include cubic individual compressible products as well as individual compressible packages surrounding liquid, powder, granules, particles or individual forms of compressible products or products. In products of "loose" form, such as liquid and particulate matter, suitable means for holding the product during the compression process should be used to prevent product loss. Thus, a package according to the invention is particularly suitable for holding a number of products which can carry a single individual product, but which can be a package or a carrier of its own individual product unit.

Particularly advantageous products in the application of the invention include products which are compressible, ie whose volume and circumference can be reduced when an external compressive force is applied. Such products include products that are elastically compressible, ie, that can be substantially returned to their original volume and external dimensions when an external force is released. These various products include disposable diapers, feminine physiological products, adult incontinence products, paper and tissue products such as paper towels, toilet tissues, facial tissues, wipes, and a wide variety of other products.

The package can be configured with all necessary dimensions depending on the particular product or products to be held therein. In particular, the size of the package can vary as needed to fit the size of the product and the size of the overall package shape required. The portion of the package that provides strength to the package can be modified to provide the necessary properties depending on the ultimate stack height and other variables as well as the weight of the product to be retained therein.

Thus, the present invention is not limited to the package as shown in FIGS. 1 to 8. 9 to 15 will be described hereinafter for describing other types of packages within the scope of the present invention.

FIG. 9 illustrates a package 110 configured similarly to the package 10 of FIG. 1 but without the flip-top reclosable open features of the packages of FIGS. 1 to 8. Thus, the package 110 of FIG. 9 resembles a conventional corrugated cardboard, where the four sides are connected to each other continuously to form a sleeve, and the end panel is formed from four inwardly folded overlapping flaps. 10 illustrates a blank 120 suitable for forming a package 110. The panels, flaps, pleats, etc. of FIGS. 9 and 10 are formed similarly to the opposite parts of FIGS. 1-8, but omitting the flip-top opening feature allows the former inner front panel 32 to form a sleeve to form a sleeve. Reduced by tabs 32 bonded to the lower inner edge of 28. In addition, the flaps shown have the advantage of being shortened to save material, and each pair of flaps overlaps another flap pair and abuts to form an end panel. FIG. 11 is a perspective view similar to FIG. 7 showing a blank 120 formed of a sleeve after the product compression process of FIGS. 6A-6E has been performed. The package 110 can be opened in any suitable way, such as by using a sharp instrument applied externally, tearing the package material, or opening one or more flaps in all required directions. However, opening the package aligned with the direction of product compression as described above has the advantage that the tension of the product can be more easily removed.

12 shows a package 210 similar to the package 10 but formed of a flexible packaging material such as, for example, a polymer film or kraft paper. Thus, the package is not made of preformed "blanks" but instead of a length of laminated material. Additionally, because the material is formable / deformable and flexible, the pleats may optionally be preformed or formed into sheet material during product compression. FIG. 13 shows a sleeve formed of sheet material as an intermediate step of forming the package 210 of FIG. 12 after product compression has been made and the pleats 80, 90 have been formed and secured. A sleeve of the type shown in FIG. 13 is made of a single rectangular material portion without preformed flaps, ears, tabs, pleats, etc. to take the general form of an open cylindrical tube of the required cross section. Thus, the package is assembled, folded and wound around the product, taking on the general shape of the product. The material is then pleated, reducing the circumference of the sleeve around the product in at least one plane and imparting a compressive force thereto. Since the material is flexible, the pleats are folded into the end flaps 201 and 202 of FIG. 12 without great difficulty, and the end flaps are secured to each other to complete the closure means of the package.

14 shows another package 310 in accordance with the present invention. The package 310 holds a number of products 99 that are compressed in the X direction in the X-Y plane during its final assembly. The package 14 also has an optional handle 301 on one side thereof, which handle is integral with the package. The package 310 is formed of an integral single sheet material and is formed around the product as described above. Optionally, the package 310 is initially formed as a preformed bag that is all sides but surrounds one side 302, for example, and the product can be inserted through the one side. Next, the side 302 is sealed so that the product includes the X-Y and X-Z planes but is completely closed under low or minimal compression. To impart product compression, the external force F may be exerted on the side 302 in the X direction via the plunger or other means known in the art while the rest of the package is held down. The cross section through the package in the X-Y or X-Z plane has a pleat structure similar to that shown in the above figures, but in this situation the pleats are essentially annular (nonlinear). The pleats 300 are then flattened and secured to the end 302 as shown in FIG. 14 to permanently secure the product in a compressed state.

While not limited to what has been described and specifically disclosed herein, for all packages according to the invention, the pleats may be secured as described, but may optionally extend outwardly from the package to the left so that the pleat sides are sufficiently secured to each other. The outer edges of the pleat material, such as the fold lines 40 and 83 of FIG. 2, can be fixed together to maintain the pleat shape, thereby reducing the circumference of the package. Additionally, the pleat shape and configuration may be used to provide portions of the pleat to be separated from each other or from the package, or may be used as part of a package opening process such that the pleats may provide all or part of the open features of the package. . The opening feature may allow opening the package in the product compression direction or in another direction.

Product compression may be imparted in a single direction, in multiple directions simultaneously or via subsequent unidirectional compression, or uniformly inwardly around the product circumference through uniform reduction of the circumference rather than parallel translation. All such methods of product compression are within the scope of the present invention.

The package according to the invention can be made from a wide variety of other suitable materials including, but not limited to, paper, cardboard (cardboard and non-corrugated cardboard), wood, metal and plastic (including polymer films). For reasons of strength and economy, presently preferred materials for packages according to the invention are non-corrugated cardboard for rigid packages and polymer films for flexible packages.

Suitable means for securing the various seams and flaps of such a package as well as for securing the volume reduction pleats in the assembled state are tapes, staples and adhesives, and hot melt adhesives are currently preferred.

Although specific embodiments of the present invention have been illustrated and described above, those skilled in the art may make various changes without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. Accordingly, the appended claims cover all modifications falling within the scope of the present invention.

Claims (10)

A package suitable for enclosing and holding one or more compressible products, the package having a continuous or circular or quadrilateral cross section forming a continuous path surrounding the product in at least one plane therethrough and at least one plane therethrough. Wherein said sleeve comprises a cylindrical sleeve, said sleeve defining an axial direction orthogonal to said plane and a circumferential direction in said plane, The package comprises at least one axially extending pleat, preferably a pair of axially extending pleats, formed integrally within the sleeve, the pleat extending substantially over the length of the sleeve. doing package. The method of claim 1, The pair of pleats are substantially parallel to each other and extend substantially over the length of the sleeve package. The method according to claim 1 or 2, Said sleeve is made of a rigid or flexible material package. Deformable with two side edges suitable for forming a package suitable for encapsulating and retaining one or more compressible products and having two end edges suitable for being secured to each other to form a sleeve, and two end edges in the middle of the side edges. A blank comprising a sheet of material, The blank comprises at least one preformed pleat formed monolithically into the sheet, the pleat comprising two pleat sides defined by three parallel weak lines. Blank. The method of claim 4, wherein The blank comprises two parallel preformed pleats, each of the pleats comprising two pleat sides defined by three parallel weak lines. Blank. The method according to claim 4 or 5, The sheet comprises a rigid material, preferably characterized in comprising cardboard or cardboard Blank. The method according to claim 4 or 5, The sheet is characterized in that it comprises a flexible material, preferably a polymeric film material. Blank. In a method of packaging a compressed product, (1) providing a sheet material having two side edges and two end edges between the side edges; (2) forming the sheet material into a continuous cylindrical sleeve by joining the side edges together to form a continuous path, the sleeve having an axial direction through it and a circumference measured in a plane perpendicular to the axial direction The forming step, (3) introducing a product into the sleeve; ④ reducing the circumference of the sleeve to impart compression to the article by forming at least one axially extending pleat on the sleeve, preferably by forming two axially extending pleats To; The pleat is preformed with the sheet material prior to the step of reducing the circumference Product packaging method. The method of claim 8, The pleat is formed by applying a force on the sleeve between the pleats to press inwardly a portion of the sleeve therebetween Product packaging method. The method according to claim 8 or 9, Said step of forming said sheet material into said sleeve and said step of introducing said product into said sleeve are achieved simultaneously by forming said sleeve around said product. Product packaging method.