Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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PUNCH AND PEEL PACK
FOR DISPENSING MEDICANTS
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a tamper evident, senior friendly and child
resistant
package of the type operable by means of a combination punch out and with a
delamination
feature tear strip.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Blister packs are well known in the art and are widely used to package
individual
items such as different forms of medication including tablets, capsules and
the like. In
addition, the packaging of a small amount of liquid in an individual blister
is known.
Usually, the item or product is accessed through the rear of the blister pack
which is
provided with a tear strip.
As aforementioned, there are three different properties which any packaging
ideally
possesses. The first is that the package should be tamper evident such that
there will be
provided a clear indication when the package has been subject to tampering. A
second
feature is that the package be child resistant. As aforementioned, such
packages are
frequently used for medication and it is inherently desirable that one
prevents young children
from accessing the contents of the blister pack.
However, in making such packaging child resistant, it is also important that
the
package still be readily openable by those taking the medication. Since the
most frequent
users of medication are seniors, one must take into account the limits of
their ability when
they are suffering from various physical problems.
A conventional blister package usually comprises a laminate of a blister layer
having
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article receiving pockets formed therein and with the article receiving
pockets being covered
by a foil backing layer. This foil backing layer is usually a form of an
aluminum foil which
is rupturable to permit access to the product in the blister pocket. While
such a package is
inherently tamper evident unless the whole foil layer is replaced, it is not
very child resistant
and indeed can prove attractive to some children.
To overcome this, there has been suggestions in the art, such as shown in U.S.
Patent
4,537,312 to Intini, to include such certain child resistant features. In the
arrangement of
Intini, there is provided a blister package having a front layer and outer
back layer which are
sized larger than the conventional package and sealed to one another around
their periphery
and through apertures in the laminate. Unexposed tabs are provided at the
edges of the back
layers and which tabs are connected to tear strips in the back layer, each of
which overlays
the foil covering a blister pocket. The periphery of the top data layer has
diecut, perforated
ovals centered above each of the cavities. To expose the lead area of the
unexposed back
layer tab, one must push on the diecut, perforated oval. The push actions will
expose the
lead area of the tab sufficiently for one to be able to take hold of the now
exposed tab. On
removing the tear strips in the back layer, there will be left a layer or
stratum of paperboard
which overlays the foil to thereby reinforce it and make it more difficult for
the child to
access the product in the blister pocket.
A further feature which must always be considered in designing such products
is the
ability to efficiently manufacture the package at a reasonable cost. It is
also highly desirable
that the results be reproductible. This child resistant push tab feature was
also invented for
the purpose of adding electronic printed circuitry to the packaging. When
electronic
circuitry is bent, the circuitry can break and render the circuitry useless.
This concept allows
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one to open the packaging without having to bend the packaging and keep the
circuitry alive
for the life of the package.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is an object of the present invention to provide blister pack packaging
which is
tamper evident, senior friendly, child resistant and capable of adding
electronic circuitry.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide blister pack
packaging which
is easy to manufacture and overcomes some of the deficiencies of the prior art
packaging.
According to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a child
resistant
and senior friendly tamper evident package, the package comprising a blister
sheet having at
least one blister pocket projecting from a front side thereof, a diecut,
perforated, pushable
oval which can be easily separated from the data layer, a rupturable foil
layer sealed to a
back side of the blister sheet to form a continuous cover over the blister
pocket, the foil layer
having a thickness and being formed of a material which can be ruptured to
provide access
to the pocket, a reinforcing layer of a paperboard material, the reinforcing
layer having a
first side with at least portions thereof adhered to the foil layer, at least
some of the adhered
portions in registry with the blister pockets, the paperboard layer having at
least one line of
weakening extending from the first side into the board, at least one line of
weakening being
located in a portion overlying the blister packet, at least one line of
weakening extending
into said board for only a portion of the thickness of the board, and a tear
strip formed in
said reinforcing layer, the tear strip being associated with the blister
pocket such that the
reinforcing layer will delaminate when the tear strip is pulled.
In one embodiment of the invention, the delamination of the paperboard and the
ability to eject the product fromt he pocket is controlled by providing a line
of weakening
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formed in the paperboard on the face line adjacent to the foil. This line of
weakening
permits the product to be dispensed from the blister pocket with less effort
than would
otherwise be the case. At the same time, the line of weakening is not evident
to a child since
it does not extend through that portion of the paperboard which remains
covering the blister
pocket.
In a further aspect of the present invention, the tear strip is interconnected
to an
unexposed tab and which unexposed tab is designed to be pushed through by
pushing on the
diecut, perforated oval overlaying the lead area of the back layer pull tab to
pull the
paperboard material from the back of the foil. In this respect, the paperboard
is only
adhered to the foil, which has 15 lbs of tissue laminated to the foil about
the periphery of the
blister pocket.
After removal of the paperboard material, the foil may be removed by pushing
the
foil in the area of the depression formed in the blister layer. This prevents
removal of the
foil with less effort than would otherwise be the case.
The contents in the blister pocket are conventionally tablets or capsules or
the like.
The materials utilized in the present invention are well known in the art.
Thus, the
blister layer may be formed with a number of blister pockets projecting from a
front side
thereof, each designed to receive a unit dosage of a pharmaceutical product or
indeed, some
other product. The sheet may comprise a normally rectangular continuous
blister sheet of
flexible clear material which cannot be easily torn or ruptured. Typically,
such a film would
be a vinyl thermoplastic film having a thickness in excess of 10 mil.
The rupturable film sealed to the back side of the blister sheet is also well
known in
the art and may be selected from many known materials. Typically, such
rupturable foils are
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of aluminum material having a thickness in the range of 1 mil with 15 lbs of
tissue paper
laminated to the foil and which may be joined to the blister sheet by
conventional adhesives
such as heat seal or coatings well known in the art.
In those applications wherein a paper layer is utilized, it again may use a
heat sealable
adhesive and comprise paper having a weight of between 13 pounds to 17 pounds.
The reinforcing layer is preferably a paper product such as paperboard. The
tear
strips in the paperboard layer may be defined by parallel lines of
perforations or slits in the
outwardly facing side to thereby form longitudinal tear lines which define the
tear strip. At
one end of the strip, there may be a tab which is not sealed to the foil/paper
layer.
In those applications wherein only unsupport foil is utilized, the foil
overlaying the
cavity containing the product is sealed to the tab. In this preferred
embodiment of the
present invention,, the line of weakening defining the tab may extend into the
paperboard for
a depth of preferably between 10 and 40% of the thickness of the paperboard
and more
preferably, approximately 30% of the thickness.
Where the tab joins the tear strip, there is preferably a cut from the inner
facing side
of the paperboard which extends between 60 and 90% of the thickness of the
paperboard.
In the above described embodiment, there is also provided a line of weakening
which
is cut into the paperboard from the inner side thereof at the position where
the capsule will
be ejected from the blister pocket. This line of weakening assists in
dispensing of the
product and may extend into the paperboard for a distance of between 10 and
40% of the
thickness thereof.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
Having thus generally described the invention, reference will be made to the
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accompanying drawings illustrating embodiments thereof, in which:
Figure 1 is an exploded view illustrating the various components of a package
according to one embodiment of the present invention;
Figure 2 is a cross-sectional view along the lines 2-2 of Figure 1 when the
package is
assembled;
Figure 3 is a view similar to Figure 2 illustrating partial opening of the
package by
delamination of the tear strip;
Figure 4 is a view similar to Figures 2 and 3 illustrating the final step in
the
dispensing of the capsule from the package; and
Figure 5 is a perspective view illustrating the first step of Figure 3 in
opening the
package.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
Referring to the drawings in a greater detail and by reference characters
thereto, there
is illustrated in Figure 1 an exploded view of a first embodiment of the
present invention. In
this embodiment, there is provided a blister layer 10 which has a plurality of
blister pockets
12 formed therein in a conventional manner.
Designed to be placed on top of a blister layer 10 is a data layer 14. Data
layer 14
that may carry pertinent information has cut-outs to receive the blister
pockets and 14 diecut,
perforated ovals 11 thereon. To this end, data layer 14 is generally of a
paperboard material.
Secured to the underside of blister layer 10 is a rupturable foil layer 16.
Such
rupturable foil layers are well known in the art.
A paperboard reinforcing layer 18 is secured to rupturable foil layer 16 by
means of a
conventional adhesive 17. Paperboard layer 18 has a first side which lies
adjacent to
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rupturable foil layer 16 and a second exteriorly facing side.
As is known in the art, tear strips 24 are formed in paperboard layer 18 as
described
in greater detail herein below. Tear strips 24 each individually overly one of
the blister
pockets 12 and are defined by a traditional line of weakening.
Associated with each tear strip 24 is a tab 26. Tabs 26 are sealed to foil
layer 16 and,
as may be seen in Figures 2 to 4, each tab 26 is defined by a slit 28 which
extends
completely through paperboard layer 18. However, at the point where tab 26
meets tear strip
24, there is provided a further slit 32 extending from first side 20 and
extending for a depth
of approximately 70% of the thickness of the paperboard layer 18.
There is also provided a slit 30 at the distal end of tear strip 24. A partial
cut 32, as
may be seen in Figures 2 through 4, extends through first side 20 of
paperboard layer 18.
However, partial cut 32 extends to a depth substantially less than that of
slit 32 for reasons
which will become apparent hereinbelow. Typically, partial cut 30 may extend
into
paperboard layer a distance approximately equal to 30% of the thickness of
paperboard
layer 18.
In order to provide access to capsule 40 which is contained in blister pocket
12, tab
26 is lifted as indicated by arrow 38 in Figure 3. As the continued lifting
motion is applied,
an upper approximately 30% of paperboard layer 18 will tend to delaminate. The
extent of
the delamination can be controlled by the depth of slit 32.
After removing approximately 30% of paperboard layer 18, there will remain 70%
of
the paperboard layer. However, where partial cut 32 is located, there will be
only 40% of
the paperboard layer thus permitting easier exit of capsule 40 when pressure
is applied to
blister pockets 12 indicated by arrow 42.
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Thus, by providing ovals 11 which are defined by a line of weakening on layer
14,
one is able to push through ovals 11 which overlie tabs 26 and are located
adjacent the edge
of blister layer 10. When pushing through, one is then permitted access to tab
26 without
the bending or folding of the pack.
In an alternative embodiment, one may be provided direct access to the
rupturable
foil layer 16 without using the arrangement described above with respect to
paperboard
layer 18. This will permit an easier opening of the pack though will provide
slightly less
security.
It will be understood that the above described embodiments are for purposes of
illustration only and changes and modifications may be made thereto without
departing from
the spirit and scope of the invention.
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