Special receptacle or package – For plate or sheet – Fragile or sensitive
Patent
1999-01-07
2000-09-12
Foster, Jim
Special receptacle or package
For plate or sheet
Fragile or sensitive
206497, 22911714, B65D 85671
Patent
active
061164216
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to a carrier for a package of box-like items. In an example application of the invention to be described herein, the carrier is for a package of boxes containing rolls of photographic film. However, the described example application is not to be understood as limiting on the invention because it is applicable to packages of any box-like items. The invention also relates to a carrier and a package of box-like items in combination.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Lay or casual photography is very popular and relatively cheap, pocket size, compact and fully automatic cameras are readily available to tourists and others to facilitate such photography. In this environment, individuals are tending to buy increased stocks of film for such cameras in a single purchase, for example, up to about 20 boxes of film may be purchased at the one time. To meet this demand, photographic film suppliers are now supplying their boxes of film in packages containing a reasonably large number, say 8, 12 or 20, of the boxes.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention seeks to provide a convenient choice to customers for carriage of such a package of boxes or of box-like items.
According to the invention there is provided a carrier for a package of box-like items including: the lower portion includes means for releasably engaging the package of box-like items.
Preferably the lower portion of the carrier is for fitting around a top section of the package.
Terms such as "upper", "lower", "top section" or the like in this specification are to be construed with reference to the carrier in a normal use orientation. However, it is to be understood that the carrier can have other orientations, and thus, the terms in question are not to be applied to limit the scope of this disclosure to any particular orientation for the invention.
Preferably, the means for releasably engaging the package of box-like items includes tabs for insertion between facing surfaces of the box-like items in the package.
In a particularly preferred embodiment of the invention, the carrier is formed from a relatively stiffly flexible material, such as a cardboard blank, which is folded to effectively simultaneously both form the carrier and assemble it with the package of box-like items. During this folding operation, the tabs are inserted between facing surfaces of the package of box-like items and the lower portion is fitted around the package to form a surround. Preferably, a tab extends from the lower end of each of two opposite sides of the surround, and the surround is formed by inserting at least one tab of another form, that is a connection tab, on the blank into a complimentary slit in the blank. Preferably, the lower surround portion of the carrier is a firm fit around the package such that the tab and slit connection for the surround will be more tightly held together by the pressure between the package and the surround.
Preferably, the lower portion of the carrier includes a depending section for obscuring a surface, or part thereof, of the package of box-like items. This feature ensures that printed information such as, for example, a bar code or the like outer facing surface of the box-like items can be obscured. When purchasing a package combined with the carrier, this feature ensures there is no danger that a bar code relevant to only one of the box-like items will be scanned to give a price or other indication for the one item only and not the package.
The invention also includes a carrier as described above in combination with a package of box-like items. Preferably, the box-like items are surrounded by a shrink-wrap to form the package and the shrink wrap does not cover the package adjacent the facing surfaces of the box-like items between which the tabs are received. Thus, the shrink wrap does not have to be pierced to insert the tabs into the package.
The invention also includes a blank of cardboard or like material for folding to form the carrier.
An embodiment of the invention will now be de
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Eastman Kodak Company
Foster Jim
Parulski Susan L.
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