Crayon container

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10993516-B2
Application number	US-201916270994-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Feb 8, 2019
Priority date	Feb 9, 2018
Publication date	May 4, 2021
Grant date	May 4, 2021

Abstract

A writing utensil container formed from a single plastic mold, including a container front panel, a front bottom component, a container back panel, a back bottom component, and a container lid component. A bottom integral hinge component may pivotally couple the back bottom component and the front bottom component, allowing the container front and back panels to pivot toward and away from each other. A lid integral hinge component may pivotally couple to the container back panel with the container lid component for opening and closing thereof. The container front and back panels may have coupling mechanisms that selectively engage with each other to prevent pivoting about the bottom integral hinge component to retain crayon boxes between the container front and back panels. A front closure feature of the front panel may selectively engage with a lid closure feature for selectively retaining the container lid component in a closed position.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A writing utensil container formed from a single plastic mold comprising:
a container front panel and front bottom component, wherein the container front panel comprises at least one front coupling mechanism and at least one front closure feature;
two opposing front side panels integral with the container front panel and the front bottom component, wherein the front coupling mechanism is associated with at least one of the front side panels based on at least one of protruding from, having an indentation formed with, and having an aperture formed into at least one of the front side panels;
a container back panel and back bottom component, said front bottom component hingedly coupled directly to the back bottom component, wherein the container back panel comprises at least one back coupling mechanism located to selectively engage with the at least one front coupling mechanism;
two opposing back side panels integral with the container back panel and the back bottom component, wherein the back coupling mechanism is one or more of an indention and an aperture formed into, protruding into, or protruding from at least one of the back side panels; and
a container lid component hingedly coupled to the container back panel, wherein the container lid component comprises at least one lid closure feature, said at least one lid closure feature configured to removably couple to the at least one front closure feature.

2. The writing utensil container of claim 1 , further comprising an integral hinge component formed by a foldable segment of molded material extending between the front bottom component and the back bottom component, such that the container front panel and the front bottom component are pivotal away from the container back panel and back bottom component into a loading configuration for loading at least one writing utensil box or sleeve therein and are pivotal toward the container back panel and back bottom component into a retaining configuration for retaining the at least one writing utensil box or sleeve loaded therein between the container front panel and the container back panel.

3. The writing utensil container of claim 2 , wherein, in the retaining configuration, the front coupling mechanism and the back coupling mechanism align and engage with each other preventing pivoting of the container front panel with respect to the container back panel about the integral hinge component, wherein when the front coupling mechanism and the back coupling mechanism are selectively disengaged from being interlocked with each other, at least one of the container front panel and the container back panel is operable to pivot away from each other from the retaining configuration to the loading configuration.

4. The writing utensil container of claim 1 , further comprising an integral hinge component hingedly coupling the container lid component to the container back panel, wherein the integral hinge component is formed by a foldable segment of molded material extending between the container back panel and the container lid, such that the container lid is pivotal about the integral hinge component toward the container front panel into a closed position and is pivotal away from the container front panel into an open position.

5. The writing utensil container of claim 4 , wherein, in the closed position, the front closure feature engages with the lid closure feature, retaining the container lid in the closed configuration until the front closure feature is disengaged from the lid closure feature.

6. The writing utensil container of claim 5 , wherein at least one of the front closure feature and the lid closure feature is a protrusion and wherein at least one of the front closure feature and the lid closure feature is at least one of an indentation or an aperture formed in at least one of the container lid component and the container front panel.

7. The writing utensil container of claim 1 , wherein at least one of the container back panel and the container front panel has an access aperture formed there through for external access therethrough to a sharpener integral with at least one of a writing utensil box and a writing utensil sleeve to be loaded into the writing utensil container.

8. The writing utensil container of claim 1 , further comprising at least one of an indentation and a protrusion formed into or extending outward from the container back panel and at least one of a protrusion and an indention associated with the container lid and aligned such that the at least one of the indention and the protrusion of the container back panel is selectively engagable with the at least one of the protrusion and the indention of the container lid and when the lid is in an open position.

9. The writing utensil container of claim 1 , wherein the opposing front side panels and the opposing back side panels cooperatively form an angled top edge when mating in a retaining configuration for retaining at least one writing utensil box or sleeve loaded therein between the container front panel and the container back panel.

10. The writing utensil container device of claim 1 , further comprising a crayon wrapper removal tool protruding from the container front panel, the container back panel, or the container lid.

11. The writing utensil container of claim 1 , further comprising at least one of a crayon wrapper removal tool holder and a crayon wrapper removal tool protruding from at least one of one or more of the front side panels or one or more of the back side panels.

12. The writing utensil container of claim 1 , further comprising at least two elevating protrusion extending outward from at least one of the front bottom component and the back bottom component for supporting the writing utensil container in an upright orientation when the at least one front coupling mechanism is engaged with the at least one back coupling mechanism.

13. The writing utensil container of claim 12 , wherein the elevating protrusions include a front set of elevating protrusions extending from the front bottom component and back set of elevating protrusions extending from the back bottom component, wherein the front and back sets of elevating protrusions are offset from each other such that when in the loading configuration, the front set and back set of elevating protrusions are offset from one another in a vertical orientation.

14. A writing utensil container kit comprising:
a plastic container formed from a single plastic mold comprising:
a container front panel and front bottom component, wherein the container front panel comprises at least one front coupling mechanism and at least one front closure feature,
a container back panel and back bottom component, said front bottom component hingedly coupled directly to the container back bottom component, wherein the container back panel comprises at least one back coupling mechanism located to selectively engage with the at least one front coupling mechanism, and
a container lid component hingedly coupled to the container back panel, wherein the container lid component comprises at least one lid closure feature, said at least one lid closure feature configured to removably couple to the at least one front closure feature,
wherein the container front panel, container front bottom component, container back panel, and container back panel component are molded from the single plastic mold having a seamless molded structure between each panel and each component, and further wherein the container front panel, container from bottom component, container back panel, and container back panel component are configured to create an

Assignees

• Crayola Llc

Inventors

• Pineiro Luis Rodrigo
• Rau Thomas R
• Monzo Anthony P

Classifications

• A45C11/34 Primary

  Pencil boxes; Pencil etuis or the like · CPC title

• B43K19/00

  Non-propelling pencils; Styles; Crayons; Chalks (batik pencils, cord-line chalkers B44D3/00; writing-core compositions for pencils, crayon compositions, chalk compositions C09D13/00) · CPC title

• B43L23/08

  in which the pencils or leads are sharpened mainly by rotational movement against cutting blades (B43L23/02 takes precedence) · CPC title

• A45C13/005

  Hinges · CPC title

• B43K31/00

  Writing implement receptacles functioning as, or combined with, writing implements (other writing implement receptacles A45C11/34, A45C11/36) · CPC title