Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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.S~TNF WRAP PAC~5
Background of the Invention
Generally, consumer product packages such as cartons or
bottles are shipped from the manufacturer to the retailer in
a shipping case. In some situations the shipping case is
specially designed so that a portion may be readily removed
to facilitate display of the product in the case. Certain
shipping cases even permit viewing of the product without
removal of a portion of the shipping case.
It is important that a shipping case provide adequate
protection to the packages so that the product is not
damaged in transit. Particularly important is that the
shipping case have adequate compressive strength so that
when cases are loaded one on top of another the weight of
the upper case is supported by the lower case without any
damage to the packages in the cases.
A further problem attendant to the design of modern shipping
cases is the desire for reduction of resource used in the
fabrication of the case. Not only does this reduce the cost
of the case, but it m;n'm;zes the amount of waste material
which must be disposed of when the mission of the case has
been fulfilled. However, it is not an easy task to meet the
dual goals of providing significant source reduction and at
the same time affording adequate protection to the packages
housed within the case.
A number of different types of cases and other shipping
packages are known in the literature. Richardson, U.S.
Patent No. 3,918,584 is directed to a shipping case for
fragile product-filled cartons made from a rectangular
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sleeve of corrugated fiberboard having open ends and having
the corrugation running between the open ends. A plurality
of cartons are stacked in rectangular configuration in the
sleeve and occupy the entire volume of the sleeve with
exposed carton faces forming a substantial planer surface at
both ends of the sleeve. Heat shrinkable transparent film
in the form of a band is disposed around the open ends of
the fiberboard sleeve and at least two opposite walls of the
sleeve and is shrunk. The sleeve and carton are contained
together as an integral unit providing a shipping case
without end flaps.
In Richardson, the vertical compressive or end strength is
said to be unexpectedly superior to that of conventional
filled cases, thereby enabling, if desired, the use of lower
weight packing materials with attendant cost savings.
Moreover, the lack of flaps in the Richardson construction
is said to minimize fatigue or damage since it is said
virtually to be impossible to maintain the case in a square
configuration as the flaps are being glued closed. The
visibility of the cartons through the transparent overwrap
is said to make less likely damaging or cutting of the
cartons when the case is open.
Lehms, U.S. Patent No. 4,828,110 is directed to a unitized
package of a plurality of generally cylindrical containers
such as cans or bottles. The unitized package comprises
several independent integral container cells of equal size
held together to one another by a resilient film ribbon
under tension. The film ribbon may be oriented
polypropylene. Optionally, each container cell may be
circumscribed by a band, such as plastic strips 28, 30 and
32. The resilient film ribbon of Lehms is in contact with
the containers about the periphery of the package along a
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major portion, i.e. more than 50~ of the cylindrical body
portion length dimension.
Ryan et al., U.S. Patent No. 3,878,943 is directed to a
rectangular shipping package comprising a carton having at
least five sides enclosed within a shrunken packaging film.
Oglesbee, U.S. Patent No. 3,693,788 is directed to a package
designed to pack and distribute articles such as glass
tumblers, having an inner paperboard sleeve and an outer
envelope such as a shrink film envelope. The sleeve has one
or more flexible curved article gripping panels formed by
the use of curved scorelines.
Heaney, U.S. Patent No. 3,990,576 is directed to an
arrangement for packaging glass doors and the like for
shipment and handling. The bundle of glass doors is wrapped
in a packing strip, which is cinched to a pallet and covered
with a transparent film, preferably by heat shrinking a
clear plastic envelope therearound.
Brown, U.S. Patent No. RE.27,212 is directed to package
constructions having open ended receptacle means filled with
product containers arranged in rows and disposed in a heat
shrunk film-like member holding the receptacle means and
product containers tightly together. A plurality of
receptacle means can be disposed in stacked relation within
the heat shrunk tubular film-like member.
Coons, U.S. Patent No. 3,416,288 is directed to a method of
shrink packaging utilizing a self-erecting pallet.
Begnaud et al., U.S. Patent No. 3,589,510 is directed to a
package comprising a tray having four vertical sides and a
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bottom, contents in the tray and a shroud extending over the
contents.
Clarkson, U.S. Patent No. 4,730,730 is directed to a tray
for supporting a plurality of bottles and a band around the
perimeter of the bottles. A shrink wrap is placed around
the bottles, band and tray.
Ganz, U.S. Patent No. 3,756,397 discloses a single wrap of a
single sheet of continuous shrinkable plastic material to
constitute virtually the entire package for a cluster of
plural, like containers such as bottles. The sheet
circumferentially envelopes the cluster with the ends of the
sheet overlapping at the alignment of one of the
longitudinal ends of the clustered containers.
Shelton, U.S. Patent No. 4,177,895 is directed a package
comprising a multi-cell container prepared from a partially
corrugated first material having peaks and flutes, a
polymeric film encompassing the outermost peripheral surface
of said container and a cover for said container and which
cover is prepared from at least a partially corrugated
second material having peaks and flutes.
Summary of the Invention
The present invention is directed to a packaged product for
shipping, which comprises individual containers, for example
of a consumer product. The individual containers are packed
together to form a container mass having a periphery and the
carrier wall is disposed along that periphery. The carrier
wall includes two edges which are spaced from each other and
do not overlap, whereby to leave uncovered by the carrier
wall a portion of the periphery of the container mass.
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The product containers and container wall are shrink wrapped
together so as to form a unitary packaged product. The
shrink wrap helps keep the individual containers in place
whereas the container wall provides compressive, topload
strength and protects the containers on several sides of the
periphery to minimize substantially the likelihood that the
containers will be damaged in transit. At the same time,
however, the spacing of the two free ends of the carrier
wall from each other permits at least a portion of the
container or containers along the periphery to be viewed
from outside the package. Moreover, in a preferred
embodiment, the top and the bottom edges of the container
wall are unattached, so the top and bottom of the container
are open and may be viewed freely through the shrink
wrapping.
Preferably, the containers occupy the entire volume inside
the carrier wall whereby to minimize the likelihood of
damage to any of the containers. In its preferred form, the
containers of the invention are cartons and the carrier wall
takes the form of a plurality of panels which are not curved
and which snugly accommodate the containers within.
It is preferred that the portions of the carrier wall which
are adjacent the periphery of the container faces be
coextensive with those faces. That is, it is preferred that
the height of the carrier wall be approximately the same as
(perhaps slightly larger than) the height of the periphery
of the container mass.
For a more complete understanding of the above and other
features and advantages of the invention, reference should
be made to the following detailed description of preferred
embodiments and to the accompanying drawings.
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Brief Description of the Drawinqs
Fig. 1 is a top plan view of a blank which may be used to
fabricate the carrier wall of the invention.
Fig. 2 is a perspective view of the package of the
invention.
Detailed Description of the Invention
The package of the invention 10 comprises individual
containers such as cartons 12. Cartons 12 are packed
together to form a container mass. The container mass is
surrounded on its periphery by carrier wall 14 which is
preferably made of a corrugated paperboard material. The
periphery may comprise, for example, a side of the container
mass, as shown.
Carrier wall 14 comprises panels 16, 18, 20, 22 and 24.
Edges 26 of panel 24 and 28 of panel 16 do not meet and do
not overlap whereby to leave a portion of the periphery of
the container mass 30 uncovered so that the product may be
viewed externally of the package. In addition, it is
preferred that the top edge 32 and the bottom edge 34 of the
carrier wall be free from attachments. Thus, both the top
and the bottom of the package are open and can be viewed
~rom without the package.
The package including individual containers is wrapped in
shrink wrap 36 which preferably envelopes at least 60~ of
the surface area package especially at least 85~.
The heat shrinkable material may comprise any of the
uniaxially or biaxially oriented polymeric films which upon
application of heat are shrunk to a decreased surface area.
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Suitable films include oriented polyolefinic films such as
polyethylene, polypropylene, polyisopropylethylene and
polyisobutylethylene. Other films which may be useful are
polyvinyl chloride, polyethylene terepthalate, polyethylene-
2,6-napthalate, polyhexamethylene adipamide, as well as
polymers of alpha mono-olefinically unsaturated hydrocarbons
having polymer producing unsaturation such as in butene,
vinyl acetate, methylacrylate, 2-ethyl hexyl acrylate,
isoprene, butadiene acrylamide, ethylacrylate, N-methyl-n-
vinyl acetamide, etc. Many other films may be successfullyemployed as well. Polyolefin, preferably biaxially oriented
polyethylene, is preferred.
It can be seen that the carrier wall protects containers 12
along the side of the container mass while leaving the top
and the bottom (not shown) free for observation by a
consumer or others. Likewise, a portion of the periphery
may be seen where the edges 26, 28 do not overlap, at 31.
Moreover, as seen in Fig. 2, the flutes of the corrugated
paperboard are disposed vertically so as to improve the
ability of the carton to withstand forces imposed above and
below. This is especially important where cartons are
stacked one upon the other and the carrier wall provides the
containers with further protection in this respect.
It is preferred that the package of the invention contain
cartons housing fabric softener sheets; however the package
may be useful for other types of consumer products
containers such as bottles. Consumer products for which the
container may be used include powdered laundry detergent,
liquid laundry detergent, liquid fabric softeners, powdered
automatic dishwashing detergent, hand dishwashing bottles,
just to name a few.
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It is preferred that the containers occupy approximately 98-
100~ of the internal volume of the carrier wall. This
permits the package to provide the optimum protection to the
containers.
The bottom perspective view of the package 10 will resemble
the top perspective view seen in Fig. 2
It is preferred that the containers not extend above the
height of the carrier wall to optimize protection for the
containers. Indeed it is preferred that the top and bottom
of the carrier wall be level with or just slightly above the
tops and bottoms of the containers. The package of the
invention permits adequate support and protection for the
containers without the addition of further features. That
is the carrier wall as described and the shrink wrap is all
that is necessary to both support and protect the
containers.
It should be understood, of course, that the specific forms
of the invention herein illustrated and described are
intended to be representative only as certain changes may be
made therein without departing from the clear teachings of
the disclosure. Accordingly, reference should be made to
the following appended claims in determining the full scope
of the invention.
