Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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CARTON AND CARTON BLANK WITH REINFORCED HANDLE STRUCTURE
Background of the Invention
The present invention relates to a carton for containing a plurality of
similar articles, such as
bottles and a means for retaining the bottles within the carton and in
particular to a means of
accessing the articles.
to Cartons for encasing multiple articles are useful for enabling consumers to
obtain and
transport a desired quantity of individual articles such as soft drinks or
other beverages. Such
cartons need to be strong enough to support multiple articles, especially if
the articles are
bottles. It is also desirable for such cartons to be easy to handle and
portable.
It often desirable for the articles contained within the carton to be
displayed and also for the
carton to have large areas which can be printed with advertising graphics. It
is also often
desirable for the articles to be easily accessible and it is also preferable
for the articles to be
secured in place within the carton, especially if the articles are fragile,
for example glass
bottles. It is however undesirable for articles to be accessed too easily, for
example, before
2o being purchased.
It is also desirable to have a carton which after the contents of the articles
have been
consumed can be used to return the empty articles to a recycling point.
The present invention seeks to provide a means for displaying the articles or
a portion of the
articles in combination with an access means for removal of the articles where
the access
means leaves the carton with sufficient integrity for replacement of articles
for the purpose of
returning to a recycling point.
3o Summary of the Invention
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According to a first aspect of the invention, in a carton of the type
comprising an open top
container and a separate top closure, the carton having at least one
reinforced handle
structure, the arrangement being such that the or each reinforced handle
structure is of
multi-ply construction, wherein at least one ply is provided by the open top
container and
at least one further ply is provided by the top closure.
Preferably the open top container comprises side walls, the ply of the
reinforced handle
structure provided by the open top container being struck from one of said
side walls and
a further ply of the reinforced handle structure is provided by a handle panel
hingedly
connected to the top closure.
Additionally the handle panel hingedly connected to the top closure may be
secured in
flat face contact with an inner face of the ply of the reinforced handle
structure struck
from one of said side walls. A further ply of the reinforced handle structure
may be
provided by the top closure hingedly connected to a handle panel.
Preferably the further ply of the reinforced handle structure is secured in
flat face contact
with an outer face of the ply struck from one of said side walls.
2o According to a second aspect of the invention, a carton of the type
comprising an open
top container and a separate top closure, wherein at least one of the walls of
the open top
container has a top flap folded to extend downwardly into the open top
container, wherein
the top closure comprises an engaging tab for engaging the top flap such that
the
engaging tab is disposed in face contacting relationship between the one wall
and the top
flap, the arrangement being such that the top closure is locked in a recessed
position
below the top of the open top container.
According to a third aspect of the invention, a two-part blank for forming a
carton of the
type comprising an open top container having a top closure wherein a first
blank is
3o erected to form the open top container and a second blank is erected to
form the top
closure, the set up carton having at least one reinforced handle structure,
the arrangement
being such that the or each reinforced handle structure is of multi-ply
construction,
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wherein at least one ply is provided by the open top container and at least
one further ply
is provided by the top closure.
Preferably the first-blank comprises side walls, the at least one ply of the
reinforced
handle structure provided in the set up carton by the open top container being
struck from
one of said side walls.
Additionally the second blank may comprise at least one handle panel for
forming in a
setup carton the at least one ply of the reinforced handle structure provided
by the top
l0 closure.
Brief Description of the Drawings
Exemplary embodiments of the invention will now be described, by way of
example only,
with reference to the accompanying drawings in which;
Figure 1A illustrates a first part of a blank for forming a carton according
to a first
embodiment of the invention;
2o Figure 1B illustrates a second part of a blank for forming a carton
according to a first
embodiment of the invention;
Figure 1C is a perspective view from the front, side and top of a carton
constructed from the
blanks of Figs. 1A and 1B;
Figure 2A illustrates a first part of a blank for forming a carton according
to a second
embodiment of the invention;
Figure 2B illustrates a second part of a blank for forming a carton according
to a second
3o embodiment of the invention;
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Figure 2C is a perspective view from the front and side of a carton
constructed from the
blanks of Figs. 2A and 2B;
Figure 3A illustrates a first part of a blank for forming a carton according
to a third
embodiment of the invention;
Figure 3B illustrates a second part of a blank for forming a carton according
to a third
embodiment of the invention;
1o Figure 3C is a perspective view from the front and side of a carton
constructed from the
blanks of Figs. 3A and 3B;
Figure 3D is a top view of the carton of Fig. 3C., showing the removal of a
bottle from the
carton;
Figure 4A illustrates a first part of a blank for forming a carton according
to a fourth
embodiment of the invention;
Figure 4B illustrates a second part of a blank for forming a carton according
to a fourth
2o embodiment of the invention;
Figure SA illustrates a first part of a blank for forming a carton according
to a fifth
embodiment of the invention;
Figure SB illustrates a second part of a blank for forming a carton according
to a fifth
embodiment of the invention;
Figure SC is a perspective view from the front and side of a carton
constructed from the
blanks of Figs. 5A and SB;
Figure SD is a top view of the carton of Fig. SC., showing the removal of a
bottle from the
carton;
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Figure 6A illustrates a first part of a blank for forming a carton according
to a sixth
embodiment of the invention;
Figure 6B illustrates a second part of a blank for forming a carton according
to a sixth
embodiment of the invention;
Figure 6C is a top view of a carton constructed from the blanks of Figs. 6A
and 6B;
to Figure 7A illustrates a first part of a blank for forming a carton
according to a seventh
embodiment of the invention;
Figure 7B illustrates a second part of a blank for forming a carton according
to a seventh
embodiment of the invention;
Figure 7C is a perspective view from the front and side of a carton
constructed from the
blanks of Figs. 7A and 7B;
Figure 8A illustrates a first part of a blank for forming a carton according
to an eighth
2o embodiment of the invention;
Figure 8B illustrates a second part of a blank for forming a carton according
to an eighth
embodiment of the invention;
Figure 8C illustrates a first step in the folding process of the blank shown
in Fig. 8B;
Figure 8D illustrates a first step in the folding process of the blank shown
in Fig. 8A;
Figure 8E illustrates a step in the erection of a carton formed from the
blanks of Figs. 8A and
8B;
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Figure 8F is a perspective view from the front and top of a carton constructed
from the blanks
of Figs. 8A and 8B;
Figure 9A illustrates a first part of a blank for forming a carton according
to a ninth
embodiment of the invention;
Figure 9B illustrates a second part of a blank for forming a carton according
to an ninth
embodiment of the invention;
1o Figure 9C is a perspective view from the front and side of a carton
constructed from the
blanks of Figs. 9A and 9B;
Detailed Description of the Preferred Embodiments
Figs. 1A and 1B, show a first and second part of a two-part blank respectively
for forming a
carton 30, made from paperboard or similar foldable sheet material. It is
envisaged that a
unitary blank could be used instead, without departing from the scope of the
invention. In the
first embodiment of the invention two blanks 10 and 20, of Figs. 1A & 1B are
formed into a
tubular crate and a cover respectively. The cover is inserted into the tubular
crate to form the
2o carton 30 of the first embodiment, which is shown in Fig. 1C.
In the embodiments to be described it will be recognised that minor variations
to the
invention could be made for example a crash bottom of the type known in the
art, could be
employed without departing from the scope of the invention. The invention is
designed to
receive similar articles, such as bottles, but it is envisaged that the
present invention could be
used to contain other articles, without departing from the scope of the
invention.
Turning to Figure 1A, the blank 10 comprises a first side wall 12, a front
panel 14, a second
side wall 16 and a back panel 18, hingedly connected one to the next in series
along fold lines
42, 44, 46 and 48 respectively. Handle apertures 54 are struck from the front
and back panels
14, 18. Finger gripping tabs 58 protrude inward from the upper edges of the
handle apertures
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54. The finger gripping tabs enable the erected carton to be easily grasped
and lifted by the
handle apertures 54.
The blank further comprises bottom end flaps 72 and 74 hingedly connected to
each of the
first and second side walls 12, 16 along fold lines 62 and to each of the
front and back panels
14, 18, along fold lines 64. The bottom end flaps 72, 74 provide a bottom end
closure means
when the blank is erected into a carton. It is envisaged that other bottom end
closure means
could be used without departing from the scope of the invention.
1o Top end flaps 76 are also provided and are hingedly connected to the first
and second side
walls 12, 16, opposite the end flaps 72. The top end flaps 76 can provide
reinforcement to the
first and second side walls 12, 16 when the blank is erected into the carton
30. The blank 10
also comprises a glue flap 88 which is hingedly connected to the back panel
18, along fold
line 48.
Turning to the construction of the tubular crate from blank 10, a series of
sequential folding
and gluing operations are required, which preferably can be performed in a
straight line
machine, so that the crate and/or blank 10 are not required to be rotated or
inverted to
complete the construction. The folding process is not limited to that
described below and can
be altered according to particular manufacturing requirements.
The first stage is to apply glue to the outside edge of glue flap 88 and then
fold it 180° about
fold line 48 so that it lies in flat face contacting relation with the inside
face of back panel 18.
The front panel 14 is then folded about fold line 44 to lie flat on top of the
inside face of
second side panel 16. This causes the first side panel 12 to come into flat
face contacting
relation with the back panel 18 and the glued outer edge of glue flap 88, so
that the first side
panel 12 becomes stuck to the glue flap 88, thus connecting the first side
panel 12 and back
panel 18. The blank 10 can then be erected into a tubular structure and using
a similar series
of folding and gluing steps, the bottom end flaps 72, 74 can be secured to
form a bottom end
closure means.
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In this embodiment of the invention the top end flaps 76 are glued and folded,
inward of the
crate, 180° about fold lines 66 to provide reinforcement to the top
edges of the first and
second side panels 12, 16. In other embodiments of the invention, the top end
flaps 76 may be
hingedly connected to panels of the second blank 20.
A second blank 20 is shown in Figure 1B, which can be formed into a cover for
the tubular
crate formed from the blank 10 of Figure 1A. The blank 20 comprises a main
panel 22,
which is, on either side, hingedly connected to inner handle panels 24 along
fold lines 32.
Handle apertures 54 are struck from the inner handle panels 24 and finger
gripping tabs 58
to protrude inward from the upper edges of the handle apertures 54. The inner
handle panels 24
are hingedly connected, along folded lines 34, to outer handle panels 26,
which have finger
gripping tabs 58 integrally formed at their edges. The outer handle panels 26
are recessed and
formed such that they compliment the shape of the handle apertures 54 struck
from both the
inner handle panels 24 and those struck from the front and back panels 14, 18.
Cover end
flaps 28 are hingedly comlected to the main panel 22 along fold lines 38 and
can provide
structural rigidity as well as aesthetic appeal to the carton 30, when
assembled.
The main panel 22 further comprises apertures 56 for receiving the similarly
configured
articles and each aperture is connected to at least one other aperture by a
frangible connection
or nick 37. In this first embodiment the apertures 56 are arranged in two rows
and each
aperture 56 is connected to at least one other aperture 56 in the same row by
a frangible
connection or nick 37. In other embodiments of the invention the arrangement
of the
apertures 56 or frangible connections or nicks 37 may differ from that
described in the first
embodiment of the invention. It is envisaged that many arrangements could be
used without
departing from the scope of the invention.
Once the tubular crate has been loaded with six bottles, in a 3 x 2
arrangement, the blank 20
is folded to form a cover. The inner handle panels 24 and cover flaps 28 are
folded upward,
out of the plane of main panel 22, 90° about fold lines 32 and 38. In
this way a
3o complimentary insert is formed which can flt inside the tubular crate. Glue
may then be
applied to the outer faces of the inner handle panels 24, cover end flaps 28
and outer handle
panels 26. The folded blank 20 is then inserted into the loaded carton so that
the apertures 56
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of the main panel 22 are brought into registry with the bottle necks. The
inner handle panels
24 and cover flaps 28 may then be secured by use of glue to the inside faces
of the front and
back panels 14, 18 and to the inside faces of the first and second side walls
12, 16 as shown
in Fig. 1C. The outer handle panels 26 are then folded about fold lines 34 and
glued to the
outside face of the front and back panels 14, 18 of the tubular crate. In this
way the structural
integrity of the tubular carton is improved, particularly of the handle
structure, which in this
embodiment of the invention, is reinforced to form a 3 ply handle structure.
The carton formed from the blanks 10 and 20 is shown in Figure 1C. It can be
seen that the
to bottles are secured within the carton, once the cover made from blank 20
has been secured
inside the tubular crate. Access to the bottles is gained by separating the
frangible
connections or nicks 37, this may be achieved simply by pulling on a bottle
contained within
the carton 30. In this way each bottle can be accessed individually, whilst
the structural
integrity of the carton 30 is maintained. Bottles not removed are held in
position by the
i5 apertures 56 in the cover. Therefore the carton provides an adaptable
carrying container, the
structural integrity of which is not destroyed when the bottles are accessed.
This enables the
carton to be reused for the convenient returning of the empty bottles. In this
embodiment of
the invention, when all bottles are removed, no material from the cover formed
from blank 20
is actually removed from the carton 30.
It can be appreciated that various changes may be made within the scope of the
present
invention, for example, the size and shape of the panels and apertures may be
adjusted to
accommodate articles of differing size or shape. Figs. 2A - 9C illustrate
further embodiments
of the present invention, which will now be described by way of example only
and to
illustrate some of the changes that can be made, whilst keeping within the
scope of the
present invention. In subsequent figures similar reference numerals have been
used to denote
like features, the reference numerals in the second embodiment of the
invention are increased
by '200' to show that they represent features of the second embodiment. Since
other
embodiments have features common to the first embodiment herein before
described, only
differences in subsequent embodiments will be highlighted.
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Shown in Figs. 2A, 2B and 2C is a second embodiment of the present invention
wherein a
tubular crate formed from a blank 210 is fitted with a cover formed from the
blank 220 as in
the first embodiment. In the second embodiment of the invention handle
apertures 254 are
struck from the first and second side walls 12, 16 and the top end flaps 76
are hingedly
connected to the front and back panels 14, 18 instead of the arrangement of
the first
embodiment.
The second embodiment differs from the first in that the cover contains 12
apertures 256 for
securing a uniform array of 12 bottles in a 3 x 4 arrangement within the
carton. Access to the
to bottles is provided by severing the frangible connections or nicks 237,
which again connect
each aperture 256 in a row to at least one other aperture 256 of the same row.
Additional
frangible connections or nicks 237 are provided from some of the apertures 256
and the edges
of the main panel 222. In this way access to the bottles neighbouring the
carton 230 front and
back panels 14, 18 is gained more readily. The structural integrity of the
carton 230 remains
after the bottles have been accessed and the cover formed from blank 220
remains
substantially intact. The carton 230 can be used to recycle the bottles.
A third embodiment of the present invention is shown in Figs. 3A, 3B, 3C and
3D. The
carton 330 formed from the blanks 310 and 320 is not rectangular as in the
previous
embodiments. The blank 310 contains additional corner panels 390 hingedly
attached to each
of the first and second side walls 312, 316, and to each of the front and back
panels 314, 318,
along fold lines 342a/342b, 344a/344b, 346a/346b and 348a/348b. The tubular
carton erected
from the blank 310 is octagonal for the purpose of providing additional
protection to the
bottles contained within the carton 330. The additional corner panels 390
protect the bottles
which are positioned at the corners of the bottle arrangement. The cover for
the tubular
carton, erected from the blank 320, contains tabs 392 hingedly attached to the
main panel 322
specifically adapted so that the shape of the complimentary cover fits
securely into the
tubular crate formed from the blank 310. The tabs 392 are folded similarly to
the inner handle
panels 324 and cover end flaps 328.
A fourth embodiment of the present invention is shown in Figs. 4A and 4B. In
this
embodiment the front panel 414, back panel 418 and one of the end flaps 474
are provided
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with additional fold lines 480, 482, 484, which can be used to fold the
assembled crate
formed from blank 410 into a flat position. This enables the blank to be pre-
glued to form the
crate, yet provides a structure that can be folded into a flat condition, to
facilitate in the
storage and transportation prior to the crate being loaded with articles.
The construction of the crate from blank 410 is similar to that herein before
described. The
glue flap 488 is used to secure first side panel 412 to back panel 418 to form
a tubular crate.
A composite bottom wall is formed by securing the two end flaps 472 to each
other. This may
be achieved by use of adhesive or other means known in the art. The fold lines
480, 482, 484
l0 axe aligned such that the tubular crate formed from the blank 410 can be
folded flat.
A fifth embodiment of the present invention is shown in Figs. 5A, SB, SC and
SD. The blank
520 for forming the cover is similar to that of the previous embodiments, but
is designed to
facilitate a different arrangement of bottles or other similar articles. In
this embodiment the
articles loaded into the tubular crate, formed from the blank 510, are
arranged in three rows;
of four, three and four articles respectively. The apertures 556 of the centre
row of three are
offset with respect to the apertures 556 of the adjacent rows. This
configuration of articles or
bottles provides recesses at opposed ends of the carton adjacent the front and
back panels
514, 518. The recesses provide space inside the crate for a consumer's hands
when the handle
2o apertures 554, which are struck from the front and back panels 514, 518,
are being used to lift
the crate.
In order to access the bottles of the present embodiment the main panel 522
comprises
frangible connections or nicks 537 which connect each of the apertures 556 of
the central row
to at least two apertures 556 in each of the other two rows, as shown in Fig,
SC. Additional
frangible connections or nicks 537 are also provided between the apertures 556
which are
closest to the first and second side walls 512, 516, and the first and second
side walls 512,
516 of the carton 530. Similarly to the first embodiment access to the bottles
is gained by
separating the nicks 537 around a bottle, as shown in Fig SD. In this way each
bottle can be
3o accessed individually, whilst the structural integrity of the carton is
maintained.
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Yet a further embodiment is shown in Figs. 6A, 6B and 6C. The carton erected
from the
blanks 610 and 620 of the sixth embodiment is shown in Fig. 6C. In this
embodiment twelve
bottles are arranged in two rows of six. Frangible connections or nicks 637
connect apertures
656 of one row to at least one aperture 656 of the adj acent row in such a way
that some of the
nicks 637, provided in the main panel 622, intersect. Separation of the nicks
can be readily
achieved in this embodiment by applying force at the point where the nicks 637
intersect. Tn
this embodiment the nicks 637 also extend between the apertures adjacent the
front and back
panels 614, 618 and the front and back panels 614, 618 themselves.
1o A seventh embodiment is shown in Figs. 7A, 7B and 7C. The blank 710 for
forming the
tubular crate is shown in Fig. 7A. The first and second side walls 712, 714
are also provided
with handle apertures 754, so that the erected carton as shown in Fig. 7C has
four reinforced
handle structures, which improves the versatility of the carton 730.
In the seventh embodiment of the present invention the blank 720 for forming
the cover is
provided with inner handle panels 724 and outer handle panels 726 on each of
the sides of the
main panel 722 rather than only on two sides as in the first embodiment. The
cover is secured
to the crate, formed from the blank 710, in a similar way as in the first
embodiment; each of
the inner handle panels 724 are folded upward, out of the plane of main panel
722 to form the
2o complimentary insert. This fits inside the loaded tubular crate. Glue or
other securing means
known in the art may then be applied to the outer faces of the inner handle
panels 724 and
outer handle panels 726. The folded blank 720 may then be inserted into the
loaded carton so
that the apertures 754 of the main panel 722 are brought into registry with
the necks of the
bottles. The inner handle panels 724 are then secured to the inside faces of
each of the front
and back panels 714, 718 and the first and second side walls 712, 716 as shown
in Figure 7C.
The outer handle panels 726 can then be folded and glued to the outside faces
of each of the
front and back panels 714, 718 and the first and second side walls 712, 716 of
the tubular
crate.
3o An eighth embodiment of the invention is shown in Figs. 8A - 8F. In this
embodiment of the
invention the carton 830 is designed to receive twelve bottles, in four rows
of three, where the
end most rows are hidden from view beneath raised cover flaps 828b. The main
panel 822 is
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provided with six apertures 856 in two rows of three to display the remaining
six bottles.
Frangible connections or nicks 837 connect each of the apertures 856 to at
least one other
aperture 856.
As in other embodiments of the invention handle panels 854 are struck from the
first and
second side walls 12, 16 and top end flaps 876 are provided, hingedly
connected to the front
and back panels. In this embodiment however the top end flaps 876 are not
secured in flat
face contact with the front and back panels 14, 18 and are secured to the
cover of blank 820
when the blanks 810, 820 are erected into a carton 830. The blank 820 is
provided with cover
1o end flaps 828a and 828b on either side of the main panel 822. To erect the
carton the inner
and outer handle panels 824, 826 and cover end flaps 828a and 828b are folded
upward out of
the plane of the main panel 822 as shown in Fig. 8C. The tubular crate of Fig.
8D is erected
via a similar operation of folding and gluing steps, although the top end
flaps 876 are not
secured to the front and back panels 14, 18. The cover of Fig. 8C is brought
into registry with
the loaded carton of 8D so that the inner and outer handle panels 824, 826 are
secured to the
carton as described in other embodiments. The cover end flaps 828a and 828b
are folded as
shown in Fig. 8E with the cover end flaps 828b being secured by adhesive of
other known
means, to the top end flaps 876. In this way two rectangular covers are
provided which shield
the endmost bottles contained within the carton 830 from view as shown in Fig.
8F. The
2o cover end flaps 828b also provide an area which enables the cartons 830 of
the eighth
embodiment to be stacked more readily on top of each other.
A ninth embodiment is shown in Figs. 9A-9C. The blank 910 for forming the
tubular crate is
shown in Fig. 9A. The blank 910 comprises first and second side panels, 912,
916 front and
back panels 914, 918 and corner panels 990 hingedly connected one to another
in series along
fold lines 942a, 942b, 944a, 944b, 946a, 946b, 948a and 948b respectively. A
glue flap 988 is
provided to secure the back panel 918 to the first side wall 912, in this
embodiment a recess
is provided toward the top end of the glue flap 988. Handle apertures 954 are
struck from the
first and second side walls 912, 916 and are provided with finger gripping
tabs 958. Top end
flaps 976 are hingedly attached to each of the front, back and corner panels
914, 918 and 990,
to provide reinforcement of the top edges of the front, back and corner panels
914, 918 and
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990, when the blank 910 is erected into a tubular crate. A similar series of
folding and gluing
operations as in earlier embodiments are used to erect the tubular crate.
A blank 920 is shown in Fig. 9B. The blank 920 is erected into a cover to be
inserted into the
tubular crate in order to form the carton 930 as shown in Fig. 9C. In this
embodiment of the
invention inner and outer handle panels 924, 926 are hingedly attached to the
main panel 922
along with cover end flaps 928. In this embodiment of the invention the main
panel 922 is
provided with twelve apertures 956, arranged in four rows of three, each for
receiving a
portion of a bottle. After loading the tubular crate with bottles the cover
formed from blank
920 is brought into registry with the bottle necks. Inner handle panels 924,
cover end flaps
928 and tabs 992 can then be secured to inside faces of the first and second
side panels, 912,
916, front and back panels 914, 918 and corner panels 990. The outer handle
panels 926 can
be secured to outer faces of the first and second side walls 912, 916. In this
way a three layer
reinforced handle structure is formed in opposing ends of the carton 930, one
of the layers
being provided by the first and second side walls 912, 916 and two of the
layers being
provided by the inner and outer handle panels 924
In a similar way as in other embodiments of the invention, access to the
bottles contained
within the closed carton 930 is achieved by separating frangible connections
or nicks 937. In
2o this embodiment the frangible connections or nicks 937 do not extend in
notional straight
lines between the apertures 956 but are arranged as a series of partial
concentric rings around
the apertures 956. Nicks 937 following the notional line of one concentric
ring are offset from
nicks 937 provided in adjacent concentric rings. In this way each aperture 956
shares a
frangible connection with at least one adjacent aperture 956, sufficient
separation of which
can be achieved by removing a bottle from the carton 930. In this embodiment
of the
invention the main panel 922 may remain substantially integral to the carton
930 upon
removal of all bottles contained within the carton 930. The frangible
connections or nicks
937 are arranged such that upon removal of the bottles from the carton 930,
material which
forms the main panel 922 may remain within the carton 930.
It is envisaged that the features of the various embodiments herein described
could be
combined without departing from the scope of the present invention. For
example the cover
CA 02563292 2006-10-06
WO 2005/100174 PCT/US2005/012131
-15-
formed from blank 520 of the fifth embodiment could be sized to fit the
tubular crate formed
from blank 410 of the fourth embodiment.
In other embodiments of the invention the apertures formed within the top
panel may not be
circular and may also be provided with additional tabs protruding into the
aperture, to aid
retention of the bottle necks or other articles contained within the carton.
It will be recognised that as used herein, directional references such as
"top", "bottom",
"front" "back" "end" "side" "inner" "outer" "upper" and "lower" do not limit
the
> > > > > >
to respective panels to such orientation, but merely serve to distinguish
these panels from one
another. Any reference to hinged connection should not be construed as
necessarily referring
to a single fold line only; indeed it is envisaged that hinged connection can
be formed from
one or more of the following, a score line, a frangible line or a fold line
without departing
from the scope of the invention.
20
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