TERTIARY CARTON WITH EXTERNAL POCKET

CARTON TERTIAIRE AVEC POCHE EXTERNE

English Abstract

Disclosed is a tertiary
carton having an exposed external
pocket. The tertiary carton is
comprised of upper (26) and lower (24)
right side panels and a left side panel
(22) wherein the side panels include
various side closure flaps
(28,29,30,31), a rear panel (16), at
least one bottom closure panel (20), a
top panel (12) including a top tuck flap
(14), and a front panel (18). The upper
and lower right side panels are offset
from one another to create an external
pocket exposing the interior of the
tertiary carton such that a secondary
carton can be held in place in the external
pocket with a portion of the secondary
carton visibly exposed.

French Abstract

L'invention porte sur un carton tertiaire comportant une poche externe exposée. Le carton tertiaire est constitué par des panneaux latéraux droits supérieur (26) et inférieur (24) et un panneau latéral gauche (22), les panneaux latéraux comprenant différents rabats de fermeture latéraux (28, 29, 30, 31), un panneau arrière (16), au moins un panneau de fermeture inférieur (20), un panneau supérieur (12) comprenant un rabat repliable supérieur (14), et un panneau avant (18). Les panneaux latéraux droits supérieur et inférieur sont décalés entre eux de façon à créer une poche externe exposant l'intérieur du carton tertiaire, de telle sorte qu'un carton secondaire peut être maintenu en place dans la poche externe avec une partie du carton secondaire exposée de façon visible.

Claims

Claims:
1. A tertiary carton having an exposed external pocket comprising:
a box comprised of:
side panels including upper and lower right side panels and a left side panel
wherein the left side panel includes upper and lower left side closure flaps,
the lower
right side panel includes a lower right side closure flap, and the upper right
side panel
includes an upper right side closure flap;
a rear panel;
at least one bottom closure panel;
a top panel including a top tuck flap; and
a front panel;
wherein the upper and lower right side panels are offset from one
another to create an external pocket exposing the interior of the tertiary
carton
such that a secondary carton can be held in place in the external pocket with
a
portion of the secondary carton visibly exposed.
2. The tertiary carton of claim 1 further comprising a rear panel reinforcing
flap that
covers the portion of the rear panel that is exposed by the smaller front
panel.
3. The tertiary carton of claim 1 wherein the rear panel further comprises a
glue flap for
securing the body of the carton together upon assembly.
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4. The tertiary carton of claim 1 wherein the side, rear, top, and front
panels and flaps are
comprised of paperboard material.
5. The dispenser of claim 1 wherein the box is assembled from a paperboard
blank of the
side, rear, top, and front panels and flaps.
6. The dispenser of claim 1 wherein the side, rear, top, and front panels and
flaps are
comprised of a polymer material.
7. The dispenser of claim 1 wherein the side, rear, top, and front panels and
flaps are
comprised of cardboard material.
8. The dispenser of claim 1 wherein the side, rear, top, and front panels and
flaps are
comprised of metallic material.
9. The dispenser of claim 1 wherein side, rear, top, and front panels and
flaps are
comprised of any combination of paperboard, cardboard, polymer, and metallic
material.
10. A blank for forming a tertiary carton having an exposed external pocket
comprising:
side panels including upper and lower right side panels and a left side panel
wherein the left side panel includes upper and lower left side closure flaps,
the lower
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right side panel includes a lower right side closure flap, and the upper right
side panel
includes an upper right side closure flap;
a rear panel;
at least one bottom closure panel;
a top panel including a top tuck flap; and
a front panel;
wherein, when assembled, the upper and lower right side panels are
offset from one another to create an external pocket exposing the interior of
the tertiary carton such that a secondary carton can be held in place in the
external
pocket with a portion of the secondary carton visibly exposed.
11. The blank of claim 10 further comprising a rear panel reinforcing flap
that covers the
portion of the rear panel that is exposed by the smaller front panel.
12. The blank of claim 10 wherein the rear panel further comprises a glue flap
for securing
the body of the carton together upon assembly.
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Description

CA 02725033 2010-11-19
WO 2010/002726 PCT/US2009/048809
TERTIARY CARTON WITH EXTERNAL POCKET
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0001] Disclosed is a tertiary carton having an exposed external pocket. The
tertiary carton is
comprised of upper and lower right side panels and a left side panel wherein
the side panels
include various side closure flaps, a rear panel, at least one bottom closure
panel, a top panel
including a top tuck flap, and a front panel. The upper and lower right side
panels are offset
from one another to create an external pocket exposing the interior of the
tertiary carton such
that a secondary carton can be held in place in the external pocket with a
portion of the
secondary carton visibly exposed.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0002] Figure 1 is a schematic drawing of a blank that can be formed into a
tertiary carton
having an external pocket.
[0003] Figure 2 is a first isometric view of the tertiary carton illustrating
the external pocket.
[0004] Figure 3 is a front view of the tertiary carton having an external
pocket.
[0005] Figure 4 is a top view of the tertiary carton having an external
pocket.
[0006] Figure 5 is a side view of the tertiary carton having an external
pocket.
[0007] Figure 6 is a second isometric view of the tertiary carton illustrating
a separate
container seated within the external pocket.
[0008] Figure 7 is a second isometric view of the tertiary carton illustrating
a plurality of
separate containers seated within the tertiary carton.
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DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION
[0009] Embodiments of the invention disclose a tertiary carton having an
external pocket. The
apparatus is called a tertiary carton because it is designed to hold a
plurality of secondary
cartons each one containing primary contents. The tertiary carton is generally
a box
constructed from a pre-cut and shaped paperboard blank. Once constructed, the
tertiary
carton can be loaded with a plurality of secondary cartons such that one of
the secondary
cartons is partially exposed via the external pocket. This permits easy
viewing of the label of
the secondary carton without having to open the tertiary carton and remove a
secondary
carton for inspection.
[0010] The tertiary carton is shown as being made from a foldable paperboard
pre-cut blank.
However, the dispenser may be constructed of other materials including, but
not limited to,
cardboard, polymer, metal, etc., or combinations thereof.
[0011] Figure 1 is a schematic drawing of a blank that can be formed into a
tertiary carton
having an external pocket. The blank 10 is generally comprised of a series of
foldable panels
that comprise the front, rear, sides, top, bottom, and an external pocket of
the tertiary carton.
Viewing the illustrated blank 10 of Figure 1, there is shown a top panel 12
having a top tuck
flap 14 extending therefrom. A rear panel 16 includes an attached glue flap
32. To secure the
carton in place upon assembly, an adhesive can be applied to the glue flap 32
which is then
pressed against the left side panel such that the tertiary carton is held in
place. It should be
noted that the placement and orientation of the glue flap 32 may be altered
without affecting
the scope of the invention. The glue flap 32 may be attached to one or more of
the other
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SUBSTITUTE SHEET (RULE 26)

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panels rather than the rear panel. Rear panel 16 is separated from a front
panel 18 by a lower
right side panel 24. The lower right side panel includes a lower right side
closure flap 31. A left
side panel 22 shares a perimeter edge with the front panel 18. The left side
panel further
includes a lower left side closure flap 29 and an upper left side closure flap
28. There are also a
pair of bottom closure panels 20. An external pocket is comprised of an upper
right side panel
26 having an upper right side closure flap 30. The upper right side panel 26
is offset from the
lower right side panel 24 upon assembly to create the external pocket. A rear
panel reinforcing
flap 34 is also included to re-inforce the exposed portion of the rear panel
16 upon assembly
of the tertiary carton.
[0012] Figure 2 is a first isometric view of an assembled tertiary carton
illustrating the external
pocket 37. The blank 10 has been folded along the various crease lines to form
the tertiary
carton. The front panel 18 is generally L-shaped wherein there is a
rectangular cut-out section
in the upper right corner of the front panel 18. The blank has been generally
folded such that
the front 18 and rear 16 panels are separated by left 22 and right 24, 26 side
panels. The two
bottom closure panels (not shown) 20 have been folded inward and have been
secured with
the lower right and left side closure flaps 31, 29 respectively (not shown).
The top panel 12 has
been folded over and secures the tertiary carton when the top tuck flap 14 is
tucked into the
interior of the tertiary carton and secured with the upper right and left side
closure flaps 30,
28 respectively. The rear panel reinforcing flap 34 has been folded over to
cover the rear panel
16 area left exposed by the external pocket cut out area of the front panel
18. The upper right
side panel 26 is connected to the rear panel reinforcing flap 34 along a
common perimeter
edge. The external pocket 37 is essentially an opening into the interior of
the tertiary carton
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SUBSTITUTE SHEET (RULE 26)

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that has been formed by the offset right side panels 24, 26. This external
pocket is designed to
contain one of a plurality of secondary cartons that are housed by the
tertiary carton such that
a portion of the secondary carton is exposed so that its labeling is visible.
[0013] Figure 3 is a front view of an assembled tertiary carton having an
external pocket. In
this view, the top panel 12 is shown up with the top tuck flap 14 also shown.
The left 28 and
right 30 upper side closure flaps are also shown. The main part of the
tertiary carton includes
the front panel 18 and the rear panel reinforcing member 34 which covers and
reinforces the
expose section of the rear panel 16 (not shown).
[0014] Figure 4 is a top view of an assembled tertiary carton having an
external pocket. In this
view, the top panel 12 extends about % the length of the tertiary carton. The
remaining % is
the external pocket. Looking straight down, each of the bottom closure panels
20 are visible
along with the lower right side closure flap 31 that helps secure the bottom
of the tertiary
carton when assembled.
[0015] Figure 5 is a right side view of an assembled tertiary carton having an
external pocket.
In this view, the tertiary carton is shown from the right side. This is the
side having the
external pocket. It should be noted that the external pocket can be located on
either the right
or left side of the tertiary carton by simply utilizing a mirror image of the
blank 10. The
location and orientation of the external pocket should not be considered
limiting to the
invention. The lower right side panel 24 rises approximately 2/3 of the way up
the tertiary
carton. The upper right side panel 26 is then visible the rest of the way up.
A side view of the
rear panel reinforcing flap 34 is shown abutted up against a portion of the
rear panel 16 (not
shown). This view also shows the upper right side closure flap 30 as well as
the top panel 12
and top tuck flap 14.
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[0016] Figure 6 is a second isometric view of an assembled tertiary carton
illustrating a
separate container seated within the external pocket. This figure is
essentially the same as
Figure 2 but with a secondary carton 40 shown housed within the external
pocket 37 of the
tertiary carton. A portion of the secondary carton is exposed. This allows for
some of the
labeling on the secondary carton to be visible while contained within the
tertiary carton. Thus,
a pharmacist, for example, can easily determine the secondary carton contents.
It also
provides a means for removing the secondary carton from the tertiary carton
without having
to remove the top tuck flap 14 and lift the top panel 12.
[0017] Figure 7 is a second isometric view of an assembled tertiary carton
illustrating a
plurality of separate containers seated within the tertiary carton. This
figure illustrates how a
plurality of secondary cartons 40 can be housed within the tertiary carton. A
portion of a first
secondary carton 40 remains exposed as described in Figure 6 while the
remaining secondary
cartons are securely stored within the tertiary carton.
[0018] Suitably, the package may, for example, be used to store
pharmaceuticals preparations
requiring repeat periodic dosage regimens. As used herein, the term
"pharmaceutical
preparation" is intended to include prescribed or over the counter drugs or
supplements,
vitamins or other medicaments, or any other materials suitable for containment
in a package
of foil/paperboard or plastic construction.
[0019] It is believed that the present invention includes many other
embodiments that may
not be herein described in detail, but would nonetheless be appreciated by
those skilled in the
art from the disclosures made. Accordingly, this disclosure should not be read
as being limited
only to the foregoing examples or only to the designated preferred
embodiments.
SUBSTITUTE SHEET (RULE 26)

Representative Drawing