Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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Pack for Tobacco Industry Products
Field
The present invention relates to a pack, particularly but not exclusively a
pack for tobacco
industry products, such as cigarettes.
Background
A hinged-lid cigarette pack has a base that receives a wrapped bundle of and a
hollow lid that
is hingedly attached to a rear wall of the base so that in the closed position
the lid covers an
end of the cigarettes and in the open position the ends of the cigarettes are
exposed to allow a
consumer to remove them from the pack. An inner frame is positioned in the
base such that it
protrudes from the end of the base and surrounds the sides of the cigarettes.
Summary
According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a pack
comprising: a base
and a lid, the base having an opening and the lid being arranged so that the
lid can slide
between a closed position where the lid covers the opening and an intermediate
position
where the lid can pivot into an open position to uncover the opening; wherein
the base is
arranged to receive a plurality of tobacco industry products having a length
less than a length
of the pack, such that a void is formed between a wall of the lid and said
tobacco industry
products received in the base in the closed position; wherein a lifting member
is arranged to
move at least one of said tobacco industry products towards the opening when
the lid slides
from the closed position to the intermediate position; and, wherein the
lifting member
comprises a tab arranged to cooperate with a slot defined within the base.
In accordance with embodiments of the invention, there is provided a pack
comprising: a base
and a lid, the base having an opening and the lid being arranged so that the
lid can slide
between a closed position where the lid covers the opening and an intermediate
position
where the lid can pivot into an open position to uncover the opening; wherein
the base is
arranged to receive a plurality of tobacco industry products having a length
less than a length
of the pack, such that a void is formed between a wall of the lid and said
tobacco industry
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products received in the base in the closed position; and wherein a lifting
member is arranged
to move at least one of said tobacco industry products towards the opening
when the lid slides
from the closed position to the intermediate position.
In some embodiments, the base may further comprise an inner frame that defines
the opening
and being arranged such that in the closed position the lid covers the inner
frame and the
opening, and in the intermediate position the lid can pivot over the inner
frame to uncover the
opening.
In some embodiments, the lifting member may be configured to move said at
least one
tobacco industry product such that an end of that tobacco industry product is
substantially
level with the opening when the lid is in the intermediate position.
In some embodiments, the lifting member may be disposed in the base between a
wall of the
base and said at least one tobacco industry products.
In some embodiments, the at least one tobacco industry product may be provided
in a
wrapper, and said wrapper may be attached to the lifting member. The wrapper
may be
attached to the lifting member using an adhesive.
Alternatively, the lifting member may comprise a protrusion that engages said
at least one
tobacco industry product.
The lifting member may comprise a tab arranged to cooperate with a slot
defined within the
base.
In some embodiments, the tab and slot may be configured to limit the sliding
movement of the
lid relative to the base.
In some embodiments, the slot may be defined between the inner frame and a
wall of the base.
In some embodiments, the lid and the base may be arranged such that the lid
must be slid to at
least the intermediate position to enable the lid to pivot open.
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In some embodiments, at said intermediate position, an end of said at least
one tobacco
industry product may be substantially level with the opening.
In some embodiments, the lifting member may be configured to move all of said
at least one
tobacco industry product as the lid is slid relative to the base.
In some embodiments, a plurality of tobacco industry products may be provided
in the pack.
In some embodiments, the tobacco industry products may be smoking articles,
for example
cigarettes.
In some embodiments, the void may extend along at least 5% of a length of the
pack.
In some embodiments, there is also provided a set of blanks for making the
pack described
above, the set of blanks comprising a first part for forming said base, a
second part for
forming said lid, and a third part for forming said lifting member.
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In some embodiments, the second and third parts of the set of blanks may be
integral.
In some embodiments, the set of blanks may further comprise a fourth portion
for
forming the inner frame.
Brief Description of the Drawings
Embodiments of the invention will now be described, by way of example only,
with
kr reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:
FIG.1 shows a pack of tobacco industry products, with the lid in a closed
position;
FIG. 2a shows a schematic cross-section of the pack of FIG. 1 in the closed
position;
FIG. 2b shows a schematic cross-section of the pack of FIG. 1 in the open
position;
FIG. 3 shows the pack of FIGS. iand 2, with the lid in an intermediate
position;
FIG. 4 shows the pack of FIGS. ito 3, with the lid in an open position;
FIG. 5 shows the pack of FIGS. ito 3, with the lid in an alternative open
position;
FIG. 6 shows the pack of FIGS. ito 4 without the wrapped bundle of tobacco
industry
products;
FIG. 7 shows the base of the pack of FIGS. ito 6;
FIG. 8 shows the lid and lifting member of the pack of FIGS. Ito 6;
FIG. 9 shows a schematic cross-section of a pack having an alternative lifting
member;
and,
FIGS. ma and lob show blanks for the inner frame, and the lid and lifting
member
respectively.
Detailed Description
FIG. 1 shows a pack 1 of tobacco industry products, in particular a pack of
smoking
articles, in this example cigarettes.
As shown, the packi has a base 2 and a lid 3 which form a parallelepiped pack
1. The
base 2 comprises a front wall 4 and a rear wall 5 that are spaced by opposing
side walls
6, 7 arid a bottom wall 8. The end of the base 2 which is opposite the bottom
wall 8 is an
open end 9, and in FIG. i is covered by the lid 3.
The lid 3 comprises a front wall 10 and a rear wall ii that are spaced by
opposing side
walls 12, 13 and a top wall 14. The end of the lid 3 which is opposite the top
wall 14 is an
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open end 15 and covers the open end 9 of the base 2, as shown in FIG. 1.
Therefore,
when the lid 3 is in the closed position the pack 1 has an overall
parallelepiped shape.
Also shown in FIG. 1, the closure line formed between the open ends 9, 15 of
the base 2
and the lid is angled with respect to the top wall 14 and the bottom wall 8,
so that the
front wall 10 of the lid 3 is longer than the rear wall 11 of the lid 3,
whereas the rear wall
5 of the base 2 is longer than the front wall 4 of the base 2.
A collation of cigarettes is received within the pack 1, particularly received
within the
./o base 2 and covered by the lid 3. The collation of cigarettes may be
wrapped to form a
wrapped bundle (16, see FIGS. 2a to 5).
FIG. 2a shows a schematic cross-section of the pack 1 of FIG. 1, showing the
base 2 and
the lid 3, as well as a wrapped bundle of cigarettes 16 received within the
pack.
As shown in FIG. 2a, the pack 1 is further provided with an inner frame 18
that extends
from the base 2 into the lid 3. The inner frame 18, more clearly shown in FIG.
4, has a
protruding end 19 which defines an opening into the base 2.
The inner frame comprises a front wall 28 and opposing side walls 29,30 that
are
received within the base 2, against the inside faces of the front wall 4 and
opposing
sides walls 6, 7, respectively, of the base 2.
The inner frame 18 further comprises a cut-out 34 in the front wall 28 to
allow a user to
grasp the cigarettes when the pack 1 is open.
Therefore, the base 2 comprises a box part (formed of walls 4 to 8, see FIG.
1) and an
inner frame 18, which is covered by the lid 3 when the lid 3 is in the closed
position.
In the closed position, the inner frame 18 extends from the base 2 towards the
top wall
14 of the lid 3 so that the protruding end 19 of the inner frame 18 is close
to, or even
abutting, the top wall 14 of the lid 3.
Referring again to FIG. 2a, the wrapped bundle 16 has a length that is less
than a length
of the pack 1, so that a void 201s formed in the lid 3 when the lid 3 is in
the closed
position.
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In particular, the cigarettes within the wrapped bundle 16 are shorter than
the pack 1.
Therefore, the void 20 is formed between an end 21 of the wrapped bundle 16
(ends of
the cigarettes) and the top wall 14 of the lid 3.
Different cigarettes have different lengths. For example, some smoking
articles have a
length of between 8o millimetres and 90 millimetres, while others have a
length of
between 60 millimetres and loo millimetres. Some smoking articles have a
length of
between approximately 6o millimetres and approximately 75 millimetres.
Equally, different packs have different lengths. For example, the pack may
have a
length of between 65 millimetres and no millimetres.
Therefore, the void 20 within the pack I may comprise between 5% and 30% of
the
/5 length of the pack ¨the distance between the top wall 14 of the lid 4
and the bottom
wall 8 of the base 2 when the lid 3 is closed.
Therefore, the length of the pack 1 may be at least 5% longer than the length
of the
wrapped bundle 16, such that a void 20 is formed in the lid 3 when the lid 3
is in the
closed position. In other words, the length of the wrapped bundle 16 is at
most 95% of
the length of the pack 1.
Therefore, when the lid 3 is in the closed position, the void 20 comprises at
least 5% of
the length of the pack i. For example, the void 20 may comprise between 5% and
30%
of the length of the pack 1, or between 5% and 20%, or more preferably between
10%
and 20% of the length of the pack 1.
As shown in Figures 2a and 2b, the pack 1 also comprises a lifting member 17
that
extends from the lid and into the base 2.
Also shown in FIGS. 2a and 2h, a hinge 22 is formed in the lifting member 17,
about
which the lid 3 can pivot when it has been moved to the intermediate position,
as
explained in more detail hereinafter.
In the closed position shown in FIGS. 1 and 2a, the lid 3 is positioned over
the inner
frame 18, which prevents the lid 3 from being opened. The lid 3, hinge 22 and
inner
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frame 18 are arranged such that when the lid 3 is in the closed position the
inner frame
18 prevents the lid 3 from pivoting into the open position.
As shown in FIGS. 2b, 3 and 4, the lid 3 and lifting member 17 can be moved
relative to
the base 2 to move the lid 3 away from the base 2 and the inner frame 18, so
that the lid
3 can freely pivot about the hinge 22 into the open position shown in FIGS. 2b
and 4.
The lid 3 slides away from the base 2 and once the lid 3 reaches an
intermediate
position it is able to clear the inner frame 18 and pivot about the hinge 22
into the open
position shown in FIGS. 2b and 4, providing access to the wrapped bundle 16.
In the
position shown in FIG. 3, the lid 3 is in an intermediate position in which it
can be
pivoted to uncover the wrapped bundle 16.
Referring to FIGS. 2a and 2b, the lifting member 17 depends from the rear wall
ii of the
lid 3 and extends into the base 2, between the rear wall 5 of the base 2 and
the wrapped
bundle 16. The lifting member 17 is planar and is positioned against the rear
wall 5,
within the base 2. Therefore, the lifting member 17 occupies minimal space
within the
pack 1. The lifting member 17 may be formed as an extension to the rear wall
ii of the
lid 3, or may be a separate component that is attached the rear wall ii of the
lid 3.
As shown in FIGS. 2a and 2h, the hinge 22 is formed at the boundary between
the lid 3
and the lifting member 17. The hinge 22 may be formed in the lifting member 17
or in
the lid 3. The hinge 22 may be a fold line in the material that extends from
the lid 3 to
form the lifting member 17.
Referring to FIGS. 2a to 4, the wrapped bundle 16 is attached to the lifting
member 17
so that, when the lid 3 and lifting member 17 are moved away from the base 2,
the
wrapped bundle 16 moves towards the protruding end 19 of the inner frame 18.
Once the lid 3 reaches the intermediate position in which it can pivot to the
open
position shown in FIGS. 2h and 4 (i.e. once it is able to pivot over the inner
frame 18),
the end 21 of the wrapped bundle 16 is approximately level with the protruding
end 19
of the inner frame 18. Therefore, when the pack 1 is open, a consumer can
access the
wrapped bundle 16 to extract cigarettes.
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Alternatively, the pack may be configured such that, in the open position, the
end 21 of
the wrapped bundle 16 may be below the protruding end 19 of the inner frame
18.
As shown in FIG. 5, in an alternative embodiment the lid 3 and lifting member
(17, see
FIG. 2a) may be arranged such that in the open position the wrapped bundle 16
protrudes above the protruding end 19 of the inner frame 18. In this case, the
end 21 of
the wrapped bundle 16 may be more easily accessed by the consumer.
As shown in FIG. 6, the lifting member 17 extends from the lid 3 into the base
2 along
the rear wall 5 of the base 2. The lifting member 17 is planar and is attached
to the lid 3
via the hinge 22.
As explained with reference to FIGS. 6 to 8, the lifting member 17 comprises
tabs 23
that extend into slots 24 formed in the inner frame 18 and/or in the base 2 to
secure the
/5 lifting member 17 to the base 2, while facilitating and limiting the
sliding movement of
the lifting member 17 relative to the base 2.
In particular, as shown in FIG. 7, the inner frame 18 comprises rear panels 25
that
extend partially across the rear wall 5 of the base 2 and cut-outs 26 are
formed in the
inner frame 18 to receive the tabs 23 that extend from the lifting member 17.
FIG. 8 shows the lifting member 17 and lid 3, with the lifting member 17
having a
planar body portion 27 and tabs 23 extending from opposing side edges of the
planar
body 27.
As shown in FIG. 6, when the pack 1 is assembled the lifting member 17 is
positioned
inside the base 2 and on the inside of the rear panels 25 of the inner frame
18. The tabs
23 extend through the cut-outs 26 in the inner frame 18 so that the tabs 23
are
positioned in the slots 24, between the inner frame 18 and the opposing side
walls 6, 7
of the base 2.
The tabs 23 are able to slide in the slots 24, between the inner frame 18 and
the side
walls 6, 7 of the base 2 to the extent that the cut-outs 26 extend along the
inner frame
18. Therefore, the size and position of the cut-outs 26 relative to the tabs
23 will define
the extent of sliding movement of the lid 3 and lifting member 17, and also
prevent the
lid 3 and lifting member 17 from coming detached from the base 2.
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In the examples described with reference in FIGS. 1 to 8, the wrapped bundle
16 is
formed from a sheet material which is wrapped around a collation of cigarettes
or other
tobacco industry products. The wrapped bundle 16 is then attached to the
lifting
member -17 so that the wrapped bundle 16 is lifted towards the protruding end
19 of the
inner frame 18 as the lid 3 is moved into the open position.
The cigarettes within the wrapped bundle 16 may be arranged in rows, for
example in
three rows: 7-6-7; making twenty cigarettes in total. In this way, the ends of
the
cigarettes are aligned and the wrapped bundle has a substantially cuboid
shape.
The wrapped bundle i6may be attached to the lifting member 17 by attaching the
sheet
material to the lifting member 17, for example using adhesive.
Alternatively, as shown in FIG. 9, the lifting member 17 may comprise a
protrusion 31
that extends from the lifting member 17 and engages the wrapped bundle 16. For
example, the protrusion 31 may extend below the wrapped bundle 16 and support
the
underneath of the wrapped bundle 16, so that moving the lifting member 17
towards the
intermediate position will lift the wrapped bundle 16 towards the protruding
end 19 of
the inner frame 18.
The protrusion 31 and/or the lifting member 17 may be attached to the wrapped
bundle
16, for example by adhesive. Alternatively, the protrusion 3 1 may have
sufficient
rigidity to support the wrapped bundle 16 without having to be attached to the
wrapped
bundle t6.
In another example, the collation of cigarettes is not wrapped in a sheet
material, and
instead the cigarettes are received directly within the base 2. In this case,
the lifting
member 17 may comprise a protrusion 31 similar to that shown in FIG. 9, which
extends from the lifting member 1.7 and engages the bottom of the cigarettes,
so that
moving the lifting member 17 towards the intermediate position will lift the
cigarettes
towards the protruding end 19 of the inner frame 18. In this example, the
protrusion 31
may engage all of the cigarettes, or only one or some of the cigarettes. For
example, the
lifting member 17 and protrusion 31 may only lift one row of cigarettes, or it
may lift a
single cigarette or a group of cigarettes, depending on the size and position
of the
protrusion 31.
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In another example, the base 2 may contain two or more separate wrapped
bundles of
cigarettes, and the lifting member 17 may be adapted to lift one or more of
these
wrapped bundles. For example, the base 2 may contain two wrapped bundles, one
of
which is attached to the lifting member 17 and the other of which is not.
Therefore, on
opening the pack 1, one wrapped bundle is moved towards the protruding end 19
of the
inner frame 18 and the other wrapped bundle is not.
If the cigarettes are provided in a wrapped bundle 16 formed from a sheet
material, as
described above, then the wrapped bundle 16 may be closed on at least one
face. For
example, if the sheet material is adhered to the lifting member 17 then the
bottom face
of the wrapped bundle 16 may be a closed face, such that it does not come open
as the
wrapped bundle 16 is lifted, which would prevent the cigarettes from coming
out of the
wrapped bundle 16.
A closed face can be formed in the wrapped bundle 16 by forming that face from
a
continuous part of the sheet material, or by attaching flaps of the sheet
material to each
other on this face.
For example, the sheet material can be wrapped around the cigarettes to form
the
wrapped bundle 16 in such a way that the folded parts of the sheet material
are not
positioned on the bottom face of the wrapped bundle 16. In another example,
the folded
flaps of sheet material can be attached together, for example by adhesive,
heat sealing
or other means of attachment. In either example, that side or end of the
wrapped
bundle 16 prevents the cigarettes from falling out of the wrapped bundle 16
when the
wrapped bundle 16 is lifted within the pack 1.
The various embodiments of the packs described herein are advantageous as they
allow
cigarettes to be packaged in a pack which is longer than the cigarettes
themselves.
Therefore, various length cigarettes can be packaged in a pack having a common
size,
meaning that the manufacturing, distribution and sales networks and equipment
need
not accommodate so many different size packs.
Packs that are larger (longer) than the cigarettes they contain may be
advantageous
because they provide additional external surface area on which to provide
information,
such as printed information.
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Moreover, as the cigarettes are shorter than the pack, lifting the cigarettes
into the
opening in the end of the inner frame makes it easier for a user to grasp the
shorter
cigarettes to extract them from the pack.
FIGS. loa and lob show blanks for forming the inner frame 18, and the lid 3
and lifting
member 17, respectively. In these FIGS., dotted lines represent fold lines,
which may be
weakened, for example by scoring, and solid lines represent cut lines.
FIG. loa shows the blank from which the inner frame 18 of the pack 1 is made.
The
blank comprises the front wall 28, the opposing side walls 29,30 and the rear
panels 25
of the inner frame i8. Also shown, the blank comprises the slots 24 that
receive the tabs
(23, see FIG. 4) on the lifting member (17, see FIG. 4).
Also shown in FIG. loa, the front wall 28 of the inner frame 18 is provided
with a cut-
out 34 that allows a user to grasp the cigarettes when the lid 3 is in the
open position.
FIG. lob shows a blank for forming the lid 3 and lifting member 17 described
above. In
this example the lid 3 and lifting member 17 are formed from the same blank,
but it will
be appreciated that they may be formed from two separate blanks and the
attached
together.
As shown in FIG. lob, the lid part of the blank has the rear wall 11, top wall
14, front
wall 10, and opposing side walls 12, 13 of the lid 3, being connected by fold
lines as
appropriate. The opposing side wall 12, 13 are formed by attaching together
the flaps
12a, 12b and flaps 13a, 13b respectively. Lid flaps 32 are folded within the
lid 3. The lid
end flap 33 is folded back against the inside of the front wall 10 of the lid
3 to give a
smooth (i.e. not cut) front edge of the lid 3.
Also shown in FIG. lob, the blank includes the lifting member 17 which is
attached to
the rear wall ii of the lid 3 via the hinge 22, which in this case is a fold
line formed in
the blank. The above described tabs 23 protrude from opposing sides of the
lifting
member 17, and, as previously described, engage the slots 24 shown in FIG. boa
when
the pack is assembled.
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It will also be appreciated that, although the specific embodiments described
above
relate to a pack for cigarettes, the pack is also suitable for other tobacco
industry
products, particularly but not exclusively elongate tobacco industry products.
Alternatively, the wrapped bundle may contain any type of tobacco industry
product,
whether or not it is elongate and rigid like a cigarette.
A tobacco industry product refers to any item made in, or sold by the tobacco
industry,
typically including a) cigarettes, cigarillos, cigars, tobacco for pipes or
for roll-your-own
cigarettes, (whether based on tobacco, tobacco derivatives, expanded tobacco,
ro reconstituted tobacco or tobacco substitutes); b) non-smoking products
incorporating
tobacco, tobacco derivatives, expanded tobacco, reconstituted tobacco or
tobacco
substitutes such as snuff, snu s, hard tobacco, and heat-not-burn products;
and c) other
nicotine-delivery systems such as inhalers, aerosol generation devices
including e-
cigarettes, lozenges and gum. This list is not intended to be exclusive, but
merely
illustrates a range of products which are made and sold in the tobacco
industry.
As used herein, the term "smoking article" includes smokeable products such as
cigarettes, cigars and cigarillos whether based on tobacco, tobacco
derivatives,
expanded tobacco, reconstituted tobacco or tobacco substitutes and also heat-
not-burn
products and other nicotine delivery product such as aerosol generation
devices
including e-cigarettes. The smoking article may be provided with a filter for
the gaseous
flow drawn by the, smoker.
In order to address various issues and advance the art, the entirety of this
disclosure
shows by way of illustration various embodiments in which the claimed
invention(s)
may be practiced and provide for superior pack for tobacco industry products.
The
advantages and features of the disclosure are of a representative sample of
embodiments only, and are not exhaustive and/or exclusive. They are presented
only to
assist in understanding and teach the claimed features. It is to be understood
that
3o advantages, embodiments, examples, functions, features, structures,
and/or other
aspects of the disclosure are not to be considered limitations on the
disclosure as
defined by the claims or limitations on equivalents to the claims, and that
other
embodiments may be utilised and modifications may be made without departing
from
the scope of the disclosure. Various embodiments may suitably comprise,
consist of, or consist essentially of, various combinations of the disclosed
elements,
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components, features, parts, steps, means, etc. In addition, the disclosure
includes
other inventions not presently claimed, but which may be claimed in future.
