Plastic box or box element, in particular for a compact disc

Details Plastic box or box element, in particular for a compact disc Plastic box or box element, in particular for a compact disc

1997-07-25

2000-02-29

Foster, Jim

Receptacles

Closures

Pivotable,

2063081, B65D 2514, B65D 8557

Patent

active

060298480

DESCRIPTION:

BRIEF SUMMARY
The present invention relates to a box or a box element, made up of at least two elements, themselves made of molded plastics material and hinged to each other via at least one hinge.
For a box, the two elements can be the bottom and the cover of the box.
The invention is designed for a flat box that is to receive a magnetic or optical medium for high density recording, and more specifically a compact disk (a digital audio disk).
Nevertheless, the invention is applicable to other types of box, capable of containing various articles.
Conventional boxes for compact disks essentially comprise two elements, namely a bottom and a cover, which elements are hinged to each other about a hinge. Both elements are made of rigid transparent plastics material that is injected-molded. The material is generally clear polystyrene.
One of the elements carries two lateral studs which engage in openings provided in the other element, thus forming a pair of stub axles in axial alignment to make up the hinge.
A paper label is inserted inside each box element and can be seen from the outside because the element is transparent, the label carrying information concerning the contents of the disk.
Generally, the cover element label is slid over the inside face of the cover wall and is held therein by lateral tabs: the label is sometimes replaced by, or associated with, a removable booklet.
The disk is held in place in a molded tray of plastics material clipped in the bottom element, with the label being sandwiched between the tray and the bottom wall. The intermediate tray includes a central disk-retaining member made up of radially-deformable resilient fingers which engage in the central opening of the disk; this retaining member is commonly referred to as a "rosette" or a "thimble".
Generally, the bottom label has two marginal flaps folded over at right angles that are placed against the inside faces of the sides of the bottom element. Information is provided on these folded-over flaps to be visible through the sides of the box when the box is stored in such a manner as to be visible edge-on.
That kind of box is relatively expensive.
The three elements making it up (bottom, cover, and intermediate tray) are manufactured separately by injection-molding, and they are subsequently assembled together. In addition to the assembly operation, there is the operation of putting the labels into place.
Another drawback of known boxes is the fragility of the lugs carrying the lateral studs constituting the hinge, and giving rise to rejects on assembly and breakages in use.
Document GB-A-2 154 550 describes a disk-carrying box having a bottom, cover, and spine made by molding a single element made of polypropylene. The bottom and the cover are hinged relative to the spine by lines of weakness obtained by scoring the material.
Also known, from document GB-A-2 185 710, is a box made by injection-molding talc-filled polypropylene. The box is provided with a label constituted by a sheet, likewise made of polypropylene, which is integrated in the box by overmolding during the injection process. The bottom and the cover of that box are formed as a single piece, and they are connected together by a hinge-forming zone of weakness; the polypropylene sheet covers the hinge zone in order to provide it with mechanical reinforcement.
In that known device, the label does not constitute the hinge, and it does not replace the hinge, it merely serves to reinforce it.
A major drawback of the known devices is that the coponent material of the box needs to be a non-breaking flexible material since it needs to act as a hinge and must therefore withstand repeated flexing.
That is why a first object of the invention is to eliminate those various drawbacks by proposing a box structure of the above-mentioned type which, while still being competitive in price, possesses a hinge that is particularly robust and long-lasting.
Another object of the invention is to make it possible to use rigid and brittle materials, in particular clear polystyrene which has remarkable qua

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patent: 5544741 (1996-08-01), Fantone et al.
patent: 5588526 (1996-12-01), Fantone et al.

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