BLISTER PACK AND BACKER FOR PACKAGING A TOOTHBRUSH AND METHOD FOR MAKING THE SAME

EMBALLAGE COQUE ET SUPPORT POUR BROSSE A DENTS ET METHODE DE FABRICATION

English Abstract

The present invention concerns a blister pack assembly for an article
including a blister
pack for receiving the article; and a backer having a top surface and a bottom
surface,
the backer being provided with printed material only on its top surface, so
that when the
backer is sealed to the blister pack. the seal will not be affected by the
presence of ink
on the bottom surface. In order to provide a better appearance. the backer is
preferably
made of clear plastic. A first layer of ink is applied to the top surface, so
that the ink,
representing promotional material and other information, is visible through
the clear
plastic in the direction of the bottom surface of the backer. A second layer
of ink is then
applied over the first layer of ink. so that the first layer of ink is hidden
from view when
looking at the top surface of the backer. A third layer of ink, representing
promotional
material and other information is then applied to the second layer of ink, the
third layer
of ink being visible (and of course readable) only when looking at the top
surface of the
backer through the blister pack. Consequently, when the seal is made, no ink
is present
at the junction between tile periphery of the bottom surface of the backer,
permitting a
clean seal between the backer and the blister pack. It should also be noted
that since ink
is not present on the bottom surface of the backer, the promotional material
and other
information visible on the bottom surface of the packer can cover the full
area of the
backer. The present invention also concerns a method for making a blister pack
and
backer for packaging an article.

Claims

5
CLAIMS
A backer for use with a blister pack assembly, said backer having an inside
surface and an outside surface, said backer being made of a transparent
material,
said backer being provided with a first layer of ink on said outside surface
representing indicia visible from said inside surface, and a third layer of
ink
representing indicia visible from said outside surface.
2. A backer according to claim 1, wherein said backer further includes a
second
layer of ink, said second layer of ink being located between said first and
third
layers of ink, for visually insulating said first and third layers of ink.
3. A backer according to claim 1, wherein said first layer of ink includes a
plurality
of layers of ink of different colors.
4. A backer according to claim 1, wherein said third layer of ink includes a
plurality
of layers ink of different colors.
5. A packaging assembly for packaging an article comprising:
a blister pack for receiving said article, said blister pack being made of a
transparent material, said blister pack having an edge;
a backer having an inside surface and an outside surface, said backer being
adapted to be joined to said blister pack at said edge through a seal on said
inside
surface, said backer being provided with a first layer of ink on said outside
surface representing indicia visible from said inside surface, and a third
layer of
ink representing indicia visible from said outside surface.
6. A packaging assembly according to claim 5, wherein said backer further
includes
a second layer of ink, said second layer of ink being located between said
first
and third layers of ink, for visually insulating said first and third layers
of ink.

6
7. A packaging assembly according to claim 5, wherein said first layer of ink
includes a plurality of layers of ink of different colors.
8. A packaging assembly according to claim 5, wherein said third layer of ink
includes a plurality of layers of ink of different colors.
9. A packaging assembly according to claim 5, wherein said article is a
toothbrush.
10. A packaging assembly according to claim 5, wherein said seal is an RF
seal.
11. A method for printing a backer for use with a blister pack, said method
including
the steps of:
a) providing a transparent backer having an inside surface and an outside
surface;
b) applying a first layer of ink to said outside surface, said first layer of
ink
representing indicia visible from said inside surface; and
c) applying a third layer of ink to said outside surface, said third layer of
ink
representing indicia visible from said outside surface.
12. A method according to claim 11, wherein said method further comprises the
step
b1) applying a second layer of ink to said first layer of ink.

Description

CA 02332675 2001-O1-29
BLISTER PACK AND BACKER FOR PACKAGING A TOOTHBRUSH AND
METHOD FOR MAKING THE SAME
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a blister pack and backer for a toothbrush.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART
Toothbrushes, an important tool in the maintenance of oral hygiene, are
packaged, generally, either in a sealed cardboard box, or in a blister pack.
The blister
pack includes a backing which sealed to the blister pack, usually by way of an
RF seal.
The blister pack is usually made of clear plastic, and the backer, having a
top and bottom
surfaces, is printed on each side with promotional and other information.
One of the problems associated with such a blister pack packaging is that the
bottom surface of the backer (which contacts the blister pack and is sealed),
is printed.
Because of variations in the tolerance of the printing, it is possible that
ink will be
present at the periphery of the bottom surface of the backer where the seal is
made. The
presence of ink in this region is such that the resulting seal is imperfect
(which is a
considerable disadvantage due to the nature of the use of a toothbrush) which
means the
container is opened, which is unhygienic, and may also result in ink smearing.
It should also be noted that manufacturers have attempted to obviate this
problem by reducing the area on which the ink may be present by leaving a
border
approximately 1/16" in width on the periphery of the bottom surface of the
backer.
However, this is not an acceptable solution, since the tolerance in the
assembling of the
backer and the blister pack is larger than the border, and may also result in
smearing if
the alignment is off.
These problems result in a lack of confidence by the users since a user will
not
purchase a badly sealed toothbrush package which results in a sloppy
appearance.

CA 02332675 2001-O1-29
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SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is an object of the invention to provide a blister pack assembly, including
a
backer, which does not contain ink on its bottom surface, thereby permitting a
perfect
seal.
In accordance with the invention, this object is achieved with a blister pack
assembly for an article including:
a blister pack for receiving the article;
a backer having a top surface and a bottom surface, the backer being provided
with printed material only on its top surface, so that when the backer is
sealed to the
blister pack, the seal will not be affected by the presence of ink on the
bottom surface.
In order to provide a better appearance, the backer is made of clear plastic.
A
first layer of ink is applied to the top surface, so that the ink,
representing promotional
material and other information, is visible through the clear plastic in the
direction of the
bottom surface of the backer. A second layer of ink is then applied over the
first layer
of ink, so that the first layer of ink is hidden from view when looking at the
top surface
of the backer. A third layer of ink, representing promotional material and
other
information is then applied to the second layer of ink, the third layer of ink
being visible
(and of course readable) only when looking at the top surface of the backer
through the
blister pack.
Consequently, when the seal is made, no ink is present at the junction between
the periphery of the bottom surface of the backer, permitting a clean seal
between the
backer and the blister pack. It should also be noted that since ink is not
present on the
bottom surface of the backer, the promotional material and other information
visible on
the bottom surface of the packer can cover the full area of the backer.
The present invention also concerns a method for making a blister pack and
backer for packaging an article.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The present invention and its advantages will be more easily understood after

CA 02332675 2001-O1-29
3
reading the following non-restrictive description of preferred embodiments
thereof,
made with reference to the following drawings:
Fig. 1 is a perspective representation of a blister pack assembly according to
the
invention; and
Fig. 2 is a side view of the blister pack assembly according to the present
invention, showing each layer of printing.
DESCRIPTION OF A PREFERRED EMBODIMENT OF THE INVENTION
Referring now to Fig. l, there is shown a blister pack assembly 1 for
packaging
an article (not shown) according to the present invention. Although the
following
description will focus on such a blister pack assembly for packaging a
toothbrush, it
should be understood that the present invention is equally applicable to any
other type
of article to be package in a blister pack assembly.
The blister pack assembly 1 includes a blister pack 3 having an edge 5 and a
backer 7, the backer having an inside surface 9 and an outside surface 11.
Once the
toothbrush is inserted in the blister pack 3, the inside surface 9 of the
backer 7 is joined
to the edge 5 of the blister pack 3 and the resulting assembly is sealed,
usually by way
of an RF seal.
The invention lies in the construction of the backer 7. The backer is made of
a
sheet of transparent or translucent plastic. The outside surface 11 thereof is
printed with
a first layer of ink 13, representing the information destined to be visible
through the
transparent plastic. A second layer of ink 15 is applied to the first layer of
ink 13, in
order to visually insulate the first layer 13 from the second layer 15. The
second layer
15 acts as an opaque base for a third layer of ink 17, which represents
printed
information destined to be viewed through the blister pack 3, in the direction
of the top
surface 9 of the backer 7.
It should be understood however that the second layer of ink 15 can be
omitted.
It should further be understood that the first layer and the third layer are
also meant to
include a plurality of layers, and that the terms first layer and third layer
represent the
full image to be viewed.

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Accordingly, when the backer 7 is sealed to the blister pack 3, the inside
surface
9 of the backer 7 does not have any ink thereon which would, if the tolerances
are off,
interfere with the seal. Furthermore, since there is no ink present on the
inside surface
9, the area available for printing is greater, permitting more information to
be printed on
the backer by being able to use the full area thereof.
Although expressions such as "inside" and "outside" have been used in the
present description, it should be apparent that the present invention lies in
inking the
surface of the backer which is opposite to the surface receiving the seal.
Although the present invention has been explained hereinabove by way of a
preferred embodiment thereof, it should be pointed out that any modifications
to this
preferred embodiment within the scope of the present description is not deemed
to alter
or change the nature and scope of the present invention.

Representative Drawing