Package, article carrier and blank therfor

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12434872-B2
Application number	US-202017620692-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jun 15, 2020
Priority date	Jun 21, 2019
Publication date	Oct 7, 2025
Grant date	Oct 7, 2025

Abstract

Aspects of the disclosure relate to a package, an article carrier for packaging a plurality of articles, and a blank ( 10 ) for forming the article carrier. The article carrier comprises a plurality of panels ( 12,14,16,18,20,22,24 ) forming a tubular structure for surrounding at least one article. The article carrier comprises an article retention device for engaging a recess of at least one article to prevent or inhibit dislodgement or unintentional egress of the article from at least one of opposite open ends of the tubular structure. The article retention device comprises an engaging tab ( 40,42 ) hingedly connected to one of the plurality of panels, which may be a base panel. The point of contact between the engaging tab and an inside surface of a recess in the bottom of the article is farthermost from the adjacent end edge of a respective one of a pair of bottom lap panels.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A package comprising a group of articles and an article carrier, each of the articles of the group having a cylindrical portion and a bottom chime, the cylindrical portion having a first diameter, the bottom chime having a chime diameter less than the first diameter, the bottom chime defining a recess at a bottom of the each of the articles, the article carrier comprising a plurality of panels, including a base panel, forming a tubular structure surrounding the group of articles and an article retention structure in engagement with the recess of an endmost one of the articles of the group to prevent or inhibit egress of the endmost one of the articles from at least one of opposite open ends of the tubular structure, the article retention structure comprising an engaging tab hingedly connected to the base panel, wherein the engaging tab is arranged to engage an inside surface of the recess of the endmost one of the articles such that a part of the bottom chime of the endmost one of the articles extends outwardly beyond an adjacent end edge of the base panel wherein the engaging tab is disposed to engage the inside surface of the recess at a point farthermost from the adjacent end edge of the base panel.

2. A package according to claim 1 wherein the engaging tab is formed entirely from the base panel.

3. A package according to claim 1 wherein the tubular structure defines a tubular axis of the carrier, and wherein the engaging tab is hingedly connected to the base panel along a tab fold line parallel to the tubular axis.

4. A package according to claim 3 wherein the plurality of panels further comprises a first panel hingedly connected to the base panel along a first fold line which is parallel to the tubular axis, wherein the engaging tab is folded about the tab fold line to extend away from the first fold line such that the engaging tab engages the recess.

5. A package according to claim 3 wherein the tab fold line has a length that is greater than or equal to half of the chime diameter.

6. A package according to claim 1 wherein the point and the adjacent edge of the base panel are disposed a distance apart from each other, the distance being less than the chime diameter.

7. An article carrier for packaging at least one article each having a recess in a bottom wall, the article carrier comprising a plurality of panels, including a base panel, forming a tubular structure for surrounding at least one article and an article retention structure for engaging the recess of one of the at least one article to prevent or inhibit egress of the article from at least one of opposite open ends of the tubular structure, the article retention structure comprising an engaging tab hingedly connected to the base panel, wherein the engaging tab is arranged to contact an inside surface of the recess in the bottom wall of the article at a point farthermost from an adjacent end edge of the base panel of the article carrier.

8. An article carrier according to claim 7 wherein the point and the adjacent edge of the base panel are disposed a distance apart from each other, the distance being less than a diameter of the recess in the bottom wall of the at least one article.

9. An article carrier according to claim 7 wherein the base panel is formed from a pair of bottom lap panels.

10. An article carrier according to claim 7 wherein the engaging tab is hingedly connected to the base panel by a fold line.

11. An article carrier according to claim 10 wherein the fold line of the engaging tab is arranged to terminate at a position on a bottom chime of an article which is farthermost from the adjacent end edge of the base panel.

12. An article carrier according to claim 10 wherein the fold line is arranged to pass through the center of the recess in the bottom wall of the article.

13. An article carrier according to claim 10 wherein the fold line is arranged to intersect with a cylindrical axis of the article.

14. An article carrier according to claim 10 wherein the fold line has a length that is greater than or equal to half of a diameter of a bottom chime of the at least one article.

15. An article carrier according to claim 10 wherein the fold line has a length that is greater than or equal to half of a diameter of the recess in the bottom wall of the article.

16. An article carrier according to claim 10 wherein the fold line is: parallel to a tubular axis of the carrier, or oriented longitudinally of the carrier, or both parallel to a tubular axis of the carrier and oriented longitudinally of the carrier.

17. An article carrier according to claim 10 wherein a width of the engaging tab is greater than a distance between the fold line and an adjacently disposed machine access opening.

18. An article carrier according to claim 10 wherein the fold line intersects with a notional line oriented transversely of the carrier and that passes through at least one of: (i) an inner end of an adjacent machine access opening, and (ii) an outer end of an adjacent male locking tab or female locking tab.

19. A package comprising a group of articles and an article carrier, the article carrier comprising a plurality of panels, including a base panel, forming a tubular structure surrounding the group of articles and an article retention structure in engagement with the recess of an endmost one of the articles of the group to prevent or inhibit egress of the endmost one of the articles from at least one of opposite open ends of the tubular structure, the article retention structure comprising an engaging tab hingedly connected to the base panel, wherein the engaging tab is arranged to engage an inside surface of the recess of the endmost one of the articles such that a part of the bottom chime of the endmost one of the articles extends outwardly beyond an adjacent end edge of the base panel wherein the engaging tab is disposed adjacent to an opening, wherein the engaging tab is configured to extend away from the opening in a blank form, and wherein the engaging tab is configured to extend towards the opening when folded inwardly in a carrier form.

20. The package according to claim 19 wherein the engaging tab is hingedly connected to the base panel by a fold line and a width of the engaging tab is greater than a distance between the fold line and the opening.

Assignees

• Westrock Packaging Systems Llc

Inventors

• Merzeau Julien D
• Bonnain Jean-Christophe
• Davaillon Emmanuel

Classifications

• B65B43/10

  by folding the material · CPC title

• B65B41/02

  Feeding sheets or wrapper blanks · CPC title

• B65B21/24

  Enclosing bottles in wrappers · CPC title

• B65D2571/00765

  the end walls being retained in closed position by their own rigidity · CPC title

• B65D2571/00549

  consisting of fold lines · CPC title