EP1901963B1

EP1901963B1 - Packing case of corrugated cardboard for protecting objects , with space for accessories above

Info

Publication number: EP1901963B1
Application number: EP05769446A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Franco Goretti
Original assignee: ASSOGRAPH ITALIA Srl
Current assignee: ASSOGRAPH ITALIA Srl
Priority date: 2005-07-08
Filing date: 2005-07-20
Publication date: 2010-03-10
Anticipated expiration: 2025-07-20
Also published as: WO2007007358A1; ATE460345T1; DE602005019921D1; EP1901963A1; ITMI20051291A1; US20100116706A1

Abstract

Packing case (10) of corrugated cardboard comprising, by extension of the two pairs of opposing walls, volumetric protective spacers (12, 14) for the object packed with its accessories, and closure bands (30, 31), a lower internal structure (90) with accommodation for the object to be packed and an upper internal structure (132) accommodating the two volumetric spacers so determining a greater degree of protection in the upper part of the case.

Description

Field of application

The invention concerns a packaging means made of corrugated cardboard, and more particularly to a packing case of corrugated cardboard for protecting objects in general with space for accessories above according to the preamble of claim 1.

Present state of the art

It is well known how difficulties arise over transporting heavy objects and their accessories which, though bulky, are also fragile, partly because such packages are often repeatedly overturned and are liable to receive shocks from practically all directions during the transport process.
United States patent number 5,871,147 A (inventors Smith et al ) discloses a parallelepiped box of corrugated cardboard according to the preamble of claim 1. It includes a plurality of outer panels collectively bounding an accommodation space for accommodating at least one item. At least some of the outer panels have integrally formed inner panels and distancing flaps for holding the item accommodated at a distance from the respective outer panel. The inner panels are .distanced from their respective outer panels by folding an associated closing panel or distancing flap with respect to the outer panel. The box is additionally protected from forces directed against the top and bottom panels by giving the top and bottom walls of the box a double panel construction substantially by folding a closing panel as said above.
The double panel box disclosed in the cited US patent encompasses a lot of variants accounting for goods of various shapes. Nevertheless, the protection of the accessories accommodated separately by the goods seems not particularly pursued. Furthermore, protection of articles with cilyndrical or truncated-cone shapes is not evident.

Purpose of the invention

The present invention fill these gaps of the cited prior art and at the same time affording satisfactory protection for the packaged objects against external blows from all sides, even if the case becomes completely overturned, as will be explained hereinafter.

Summary of the invention

Subject of the invention is a packing case, substantially parallelepiped in shape, designed to protect packaged objects, according to claim 1.
The lengthwise extension of the two pairs of opposing walls of the case creates, by forming substantially rectangular bands and by bending back the extension of the first pair of walls, two protective volumes, here called spacers, for the packaged object and its accessories, the lengthwise extension of the second pair of walls, also creating bands to close the case at the top.
The bands that form the spacers comprise three rectangular strips joined by bending creases:

a first strip joined to the walls of the case is made to lie perpendicular to said walls;
a second strip is made to lie parallel to said walls;
a third strip, substantially the same size as the first, is made to bend back inside the spacer and lie perpendicular to said walls.

In the centre of the bending crease between the first and second spacer strips, are slits, perpendicular to the crease, sufficiently wide to receive tongues, made at the ends of the closing bands, and can be inserted in the slits when slight pressure is applied.
The closing bands comprise two substantially rectangular strips joined by bending creases.
The first rectangular strip is joined to the walls of the case and is formed above the spacers, its width being substantially half the width of the case.
Close to one end of the second strip is an arched slit into which will be fitted a vessel constituting one of the accessories of the packaged object.
The case comprises a lower structure and an upper structure.
The lower structure presents a rectangular base of a size corresponding to the internal dimensions of the case, and two lateral bodies of a substantially square or rectangular cross section, formed by bending back at about 90° the ends of the base around five parallel bending creases in such a way as to create five substantially rectangular strips.
The terminal strips become superimposed and held in place by a dovetail joint.
The ends of the third strips, parallel to the first strips, are bent inside at 90° to give better resistance to shocks received at the sides.
The width of the fifth set of strips is greater than that of the first strips; in this way the base of the lower structure remains raised above the bottom of the case thus creating yet another protective volume.
In the centre of the second strip, substantially parallel to the bottom of the structure, curved recesses are made to receive the ends of the body to be protected, in this case the Braun coffee maker.
The upper structure is formed of corrugated cardboard bent in the shape of a "U" on the longitudinal edges so creating a double wall along the longitudinal sides of the case.
The third strip of the spacers, perpendicular to the walls of the case, matches with the base of said upper structure.
The second strip of one of the bands for spacers, set at about 90° to the base of the upper structure, presents a curved recess the radius of which is such that the curve substantially fits around the edge of a receptacle-type accessory for the Braun coffee maker.
The invention offers evident advantages.
The box-shaped means obtainable with the parts described, protects the packaged object by creating several protective volumes all round the object.
The lateral volumes at the ends of the lower structure are formed at about 90° in relation to the spacers.
The packaged object is therefore protected by the bottom of the box, by the base of the lower structure, by the lateral volumes created by the lower structure, by the base of the upper structure and by the upper spacers perpendicular to the lateral volumes created by the lower structure.
This means that the bottom of the case is exceptionally strong, formed as it is by superimposing the partially overlapping bands with the rectangular and trapezoidal bands, and with the two triangular bands.
The packaged objects and their accessories are therefore protected by several volumes able to absorb even violent shocks received from any direction, using simple and inexpensive means quick and easy to assemble.
By employing low cost materials needing very little labour, delicate objects can be effectively protected from whatever harm might be caused during storage and transport.

Short description of the figures

Characteristics and purposes of the invention will be made still clearer by the following example of its execution illustrated by diagrammatically drawn figures.

Fig. 1 The packing case of corrugated cardboard designed specially for the Braun coffee maker, with bands for creating horizontal spacers and other bands for closing the case, perspective.
Fig. 2 Lower structure for the packing case, perspective.
Fig. 3 Lower structure placed on the bottom of the packing case, perspective
Fig. 4 The coffee maker fitted inside the lower structure, perspective.
Fig. 5 The upper structure for accessories, perspective.
Fig. 6 The upper structure in Fig. 5, inside the case, above the coffee maker, perspective.
Fig. 7 The case after creation of horizontal spacers by closing the bands concerned, and after placing a coffee-maker accessory between the spacers, perspective.
Fig. 8 The case when closed with one closing band, perspective.
Fig. 9 The case when completely closed, perspective.

Detailed description of a preferred embodiment of the invention

The corrugated cardboard case 10 (Figure 1) comprises the pair of bands 12 and 14 for creating horizontal spacers, with bending creases 16, 18, 20 forming the initial strip 22 and terminal strip 24 and comprises, perpendicular to the first pair, a pair of closure bands 30 and 31, with bending creases 32, 36 and terminal strip 34.
Visible at the ends of said strip 34 are the tongues 38 made by cuts 40, with the curved inlet 42 in the centre.
In a central position along the bending creases 18, the spacer-forming bands 12 and 14 present perpendicular slits 26 into which the tongues 38, made in the closing bands 30 and 31, are fitted when the case is being closed.
The bottom of the case 10 is formed by superimposing the ends of the following bands:

longitudinal rectangular band 44 with bending crease 46 and a pair of terminal tongues 48;
longitudinal trapezoidal band 50, opposite the first band, with bending crease 52 and terminal tongue 54;
pair of lateral triangular bands 56 with bending creases 58 and terminal tongues 60.

The bottom of the case is assembled by superimposing the tongue 54 on the trapezoidal band 50 over the rectangular band 44 between the lateral tongues 48, and by superimposing the ends of the lateral triangular bands 56 on said trapezoidal band 50, by passing them under the lateral tongues 48 on the rectangular band 44.
The packing case presents walls 70, 72, 74, 76.
Visible in walls 70 and 74 are openings 80 in which a person's hands can be inserted to lift out the case.
The lower structure 90 (Figure 2) is placed in the bottom of the case, said structure having a rectangular base 92 and two lateral bodies 94 and 96 of a substantially rectangular cross section, formed by repeatedly bending over at 90° the ends of the base 92 .
For the sake of simplicity, even numbers 100, 102, 104, 106, 108 are used to indicate the sides of said lateral bodies 94 and 96.
Sides 108 are placed over sides 100.
Sides 104 are shorter than sides 108 to allow the ends 110 to be bent over and fixed in place by a tongue 112 that fits into a rectangular slit 114 made in the opposite side 108 the position of which is indicated by a graphic break 116 on the first side 100 of the body 96.
The opposite sides 100 and 108 are fixed in place by the dovetail joint 118.
The upper sides 102 of bodies 94 and 96 present substantially central cavities 120, 122 with a semicircular bottom.
The lower structure 90 is created in the bottom of the case 10 as seen in Figure 3.
Figure 4, Plate 3, shows the position of the coffee maker 124.
Bodies 126, 128 projecting from the substantially cylindrical coffee maker body 124, fit into the curved recesses 120, 122 created in the centre of the lateral bodies 94 and 96 of the lower structure 90 (Figure 3) described above.
Figure 5 illustrates the upper structure 132 comprising a base 134 with two substantially identical sides longitudinal 136, 138.
In the base 134 of said structure are holes 140, 142, 144 into which will fit the projecting ends of the coffee maker 124, such as the head 126 (Figure 6).
Said upper structure 132 is placed inside the case 10 on top of the coffee maker 124, as also seen in Figure 6.
Figure 7 shows the case 10 with the spacer-forming bands 12 and 14 folded back inside the case to coincide with the inner upper structure 132.
The receptacle-shaped part 150, constituting an accessory for the coffee maker 124, is placed between the two spacers 12 and 14.
The upper end of said part 150 fits inside the arched slit 28 made in the spacer 12.
To close the case it is sufficient to fold over the closure bands 30 and 31.
Figure 8 shows how the band 30 is closed by pressing the tongues 38, created by the cuts 40 made in the end of the closure bands 30 and 31, inside the slits 26 of the spacers 12, 14.
Figure 9 shows how the second closure band 31 is also folded over after which the box will be completely shut.

Claims

Packing case (10), substantially parallelepiped, made of corrugated cardboard for protecting objects in general (124) and their accessories (150), comprising:
- first extensions of a first pair of opposing side walls (70, 74) of the case (10) formed by rectangular bands (22, 24) repeatedly bent at 90° over themselves to delimit protective volumes, here called spacers (12, 14);

- second extensions of a second pair of opposing side walls (72, 76) of the case (10) formed by substantially rectangular closure bands (30, 31) bent at 90°;
characterized in that further comprising:

- a substantially rectangular upper structure (132) to be placed over the packed object (124), whose greater sides (136, 138) are bent at 90° for accommodating said spacers (12, 14) and the accessories (150) for the packaged object;

- a substantially rectangular lower structure (90, 92, 94, 96) that, when its longitudinal sides (100, 102, 104, 106, 108) are bent back onto themselves, can accommodate the packaged object, and

- each of said first extension with spacer-forming bands (12, 14) comprises three rectangular strips joined by bending creases (16, 18, 20),

- a first strip (22) joined to the walls (70, 74) of the case (10), laying parallel to a base (134) of the upper structure (132);

- a second strip laying perpendicular to the base (134) of the upper structure (132);

- a third strip (24) with the same size as the first strip (22), matching with the base (134) of the upper structure (132).
The packing case of claim 1, characterized in that each of said first extensions (12, 14) with spacer-forming bands includes a slit (26) cut out centrally in the bending crease (18) between the first (22) and second strip, orthogonally to said crease and sufficiently wide to receive, when slightly pressed, a tongue (38) formed at the ends of the closure bands (30, 31).
The packing case of claim 2, characterized in that each closure band (30, 31) comprises two substantially rectangular strips (30, 34; 31, 34) joined by a bending crease (36),
- a first strip (30, 31) joined to the walls (76, 72) of the case (10) and intended to lie above the spacers (12, 14), of a width substantially half the width of the case, and

- a second strip (34) including tongues (38) at the ends of a width substantially corresponding to the length of said slits (26), and an arched slit (28) for insertion of said accessories (150) placed substantially in the centre of said second strip (34).
The packing case of claim 1, characterized in that further includes a lower structure (90) which presents a rectangular base (92) and two lateral bodies (94, 96) with square or rectangular cross section, each of these bodies is constituted by:
- five adjacent rectangular strips (100, 102, 104, 106, 108) at an end of said base (92), bent at 90° to each other around five parallel bending creases, with terminal strips (108) superimposed to the initial strips (100) and secured;

- the ends of the third strips (104) being bent back inside at 90° for greater resistance to lateral shocks;

- the width of the fifth strip (108) being greater than the width of the first strip (100) in order to create, together with the bottom of the packing case (10), a further protective volume;

- curved recesses (120, 122) are cut out centrally in the second strip (102) for accommodating the ends of the body to be protected (124).
The packing case of any claim from 1 to 4, characterized in that the upper structure (132) is made of corrugated cardboard bent in the shape of a "U" on its longitudinal edges (136, 138), the dimensions of said edges substantially corresponding to the distance between the packed object (124) and an upper end of the case (10), so creating a double wall along the longitudinal sides of said case.
The packing case of claim 3, characterized in that the radius of said arched slit (28) substantially corresponds to the edge of a receptacle-shaped accessory (150).