AU2016356733A1 - Partition for bottles or other elongate articles - Google Patents

Abstract

A partition for bottles or other elongate articles, the partition being erected from a sheet of material divided into a series of parallel elongate sections separated by fold lines by folding the sheet, the sections, when folded, defining adjacent parts of a partition for adjacent articles laid in the lengthwise direction of the sections, the partition comprising: a tab extending from a longitudinal edge of one of the sections; and a slot at or adjacent to a longitudinal edge of another of the sections, wherein when the sheet is folded along the fold lines to erect the partition, adjacent sections are disposed substantially perpendicular one to the other and a free end portion of the tab engages in the slot.

Description

PARTITION FOR BOTTLES OR OTHER ELONGATE ARTICLES FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a partition for bottles or other elongate articles. More particularly, but not exclusively, the invention relates to a partition for separating items in a container. For example, the present invention relates to a partition for minimising physical contact and rubbing between articles which can lead to breakage, surface scuffing and excessive lateral movement in transport.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Previously proposed partitions for bottles or other articles have generally been complicated and expensive to form and/or time consuming to assemble for use. It is desirable to form a partition which can be manufactured easily and quickly using a minimum number of processing operations with minimal wastage, and which can be formed from a single sheet which can be securely stacked so as to be transportable safely. It is also desirable to provide a partition which can be quickly and easily erected at the point of use by unskilled operators, and one that can at least substantially maintain its form once erected to facilitate packing.

Examples of the invention seek to solve, or at least ameliorate, one or more disadvantages of previous partitions for bottles or other elongate articles.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

According to the present invention, there is provided a partition for bottles or other elongate articles, the partition being erected from a sheet of material divided into a series of parallel elongate sections separated by fold lines by folding the sheet, the sections, when folded, defining adjacent parts of a partition for adjacent articles laid in the lengthwise direction of the sections, the partition comprising: a tab extending from a longitudinal edge of one of the sections; and a slot at or adjacent to a longitudinal edge of another of the sections, wherein when the sheet is folded along the fold lines to erect the partition, adjacent sections are disposed substantially perpendicular one to the other and a free end portion of the tab engages in the slot.

According to preferred embodiments, engaging the tab in the slot maintains the partition in the erected state.

Preferably, each fold line is formed of alternating segments of through cuts and perforations, wherein the cut segments are offset from the perforated segments to substantially maintain a folded state after folding. The offset may be approximately half the thickness of the material used.

According to preferred embodiments, the tab is formed by a slot or cut-out formed in the sheet. Preferably, the tab is formed with shoulders for engaging the sheet adjacent the receptacle. Preferably, the tab is formed with a pointed tip.

According to preferred embodiments, the partition is formed of corrugated fibreboard. In other embodiments, the partition may be formed of corrugated plastic sheets, carton board, solid fibre board or thin wall polypropylene sheet such as Corflute. Preferably, flutes of the fibreboard extend across the sheet generally perpendicular to the lengthwise direction of the sections.

According to another aspect of the present invention there is provided a blank for forming a partition of the above described type.

According to another aspect of the present invention there is provided a method of partitioning a container, comprising the steps of providing a blank of the above described type and folding the blank to bring the tab into engagement with the receptacle thereby forming the partition.

According to another aspect of the present invention there is provided a method of forming a blank of the above described type.

According to preferred embodiments, the blank is formed from a sheet from which a plurality of blanks can be trimmed. Preferably, the blank(s) is formed in a single pass of a manufacturing operation.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Preferred embodiments of the invention will be further described, by way of non-limiting example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

Figure 1 is a plan view of a plurality of blanks for forming prior art partitions; Figure 2 is a plan view of a blank for forming a partition of one embodiment of the invention;

Figure 3 is another plan view of the blank, providing a close view of fold lines; Figure 4 is perspective view of a partition formed from the blank; and Figure 5 is a plan view of a plurality of blanks arranged on a sheet.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

With reference to Figure 2, there is shown a partition 10 according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention. The partition 10 is configured for use with bottles or other elongate articles.

The partition 10 is erected from a sheet of material divided into a series of parallel elongate sections 12 separated by fold lines 14. The partition 10 is formed by folding the sheet. The sections 12, when folded, define adjacent parts of a partition for adjacent articles laid in the lengthwise direction of the sections 12. In this regard, in use the partition 10 is erected and placed in a container, such as a cardboard wine box for example, so that individual compartments are defined in which the bottles can be received. In some embodiments, the partition 10 is inserted into the container before the articles, though in other embodiments the articles are inserted before the partition. One such example is wine bottles where the shoulders of the bottles easily facilitate insertion of the partition.

The partition 10 includes a tab 16 and a slot 18. The tab 16 extends from a longitudinal edge of one of the sections 12. In the illustrated embodiment, the tab 16 extends from a longitudinal edge of a section which is adjacent a side edge of the sheet. The slot 18 is formed at or adjacent to a longitudinal edge of another of the sections. In the illustrated embodiment, the slot 18 extends from a longitudinal edge of a section which is adjacent to an opposite side edge of the sheet. Although the tab 16 and the slot 18 are formed at a longitudinal edge of respective sections, they may be formed at a more central location within the section, i.e. away from the longitudinal edge. Also, although the tab 16 and slot 18 are shown as being generally centrally disposed in relation to a length of the longitudinal edge of each respective section, they may also be offset and positioned to optimise the surface contact of the articles being separated. In one example, the position of the tab 16 and slot 18 may be one third of the length of the sheet toward a top or bottom edge of the sheet. Also, multiple tab/slot pairs may also be provided. These pairs may be evenly spaced along the longitudinal edge, or alternatively they may be irregularly spaced, depending on the particular application and the nature of the articles to be separated.

In use the partition 10 is erected by folding the sheet along the fold lines 14. Once folded, adjacent sections 12 are disposed substantially perpendicular one to the other and a free end portion of the tab 16 engages in the slot 18. Preferably, engaging the tab 16 in the slot 18 maintains the partition 10 in the erected state. In one form, the slot 18 is narrow so as to create friction between the tab 16 and the slot 18 to retain the tab 16 in the slot 18. In another form, the tab 16 may be formed with a feature, such as for example a rebate, edge, lip or undercut, configured to form an interlocking engagement once the tab 16 is received in the slot 18.

To assist in the partition 10 maintaining its form once folded, each fold line 14 can be formed of alternating segments of through cuts 20 and creases in the form of perforations 22, with the cut segments 20 being offset from the perforated segments 22 to form hinged slots which substantially maintain a folded state after folding. The alternating nature of the cuts and perforations may be varied as required for a particular application, though it will be appreciated that each cut segment will be followed by a perforated segment and vice versa. In a preferred form, the offset amount between the cuts 20 and the perforations 22 is approximately half the thickness of the material used, this the actual amount will vary depending on the size of the corrugated flute. In examples of thin material such as carton board, there is unlikely to be any offset. By forming the fold lines 14 in this way, the cut segments 20 are required to push through the sheet due to the folding occurring at an offset location, providing some resistance against the sheet returning to a flat state after folding. Also, once the partition 10 has been folded, an edge of the cut segments 22 can abut an adjacent section of the sheet, thereby bracing the comer while forming a hinge. In embodiments formed of relatively thin material, such as solid fibre board, a hinge would not be formed.

As illustrated in Figure 3, cut sections 20 are generally linear with angled end portions 21 that extend toward perforations 22. The angled end portions 21 may be formed at an angle to the cut sections 20 and perforations 22 in the range 30 to 60 degrees for example, though in other examples they may also be approximately 90 degrees. In one form, to simplify tooling manufacture a cutting knife configured for forming the end portions 21 is extended to a length of at least 5mm so that the angled end portions start at the perforations 22 and extend past the generally linear portion, as shown in the close detail of Figure 3 (though not present in the remaining views).

In a preferred form, the tab 16 is formed by a cut-out formed in the sheet. Although the tab 16 could alternatively be formed with a slot, forming the tab 16 by a cut-out reduces the chances of an edge of the tab 16 catching on the sheet when pushing out of the sheet, resulting in a malformed partition. Instead, by forming the tab 16 by a cut-out, the tab 16 can be guaranteed to form cleanly during erection. To assist with removing material removed by forming the cut-out, the tab 16 is preferably formed with a pointed tip.

The tab 16 may be formed with shoulders 24 on sides thereof near a tip of the tab 16 for engaging the sheet adjacent the slot 18. In such embodiments, the width of a portion of the tab 16 that extends through the slot 18 may be of a size corresponding to that of the slot 18, with the shoulders 24 extending further than this width so that the shoulders abut the sheet to provide lateral bracing to the partition.

In the described embodiments, the partition is formed of corrugated fibreboard, though it will be appreciated that other materials may be used. For example, in other forms the partition 10 may be formed of solid fibre board, carton board, corrugated plastic sheets or thin wall polypropylene sheet such as Corflute. When using a corrugated material, flutes of the material extend across the sheet generally perpendicular to the lengthwise direction of the sections 12, thereby providing sufficient rigidity to the tab 18 and fold lines to allow assembly of the partition. Advantageously, the partition 10 can provide lateral support to a container in which the partition 10 is received.

Partition 10 will be supplied as a blank that can be, when required to be used, brought into an erected state by folding. In one form, the partition 10 is erected manually by a person, though in other forms folding may be automated. By providing the partition 10 as a blank, it can be efficiently transported in large quantities to a location of use. As the partition 10 can be formed from a blank formed of a single sheet of material, many blanks can be efficiently and safely stacked, without forming an unstable stack, as has been a problem with other previously proposed partitions formed of multiple sheets.

In use, the blank is formed by a rotary cutting process in which a rotating drum contacts a sheet to form the blank. Advantageously, owing to the configuration of the blank, it may be formed in a single pass of a manufacturing operation. Another advantage is that the only wastage is that from forming the slot to make the tab 16, which is comparatively minor when compared to some previously proposed partitions, such as that illustrated in Figure 1. Preferably, the blank is formed from a sheet from which a plurality of blanks can be trimmed simultaneously, thereby increasing the speed at which blanks may be formed.

The described embodiments provide a method of partitioning a container, comprising the steps of providing a blank of the above described type, and folding the blank to bring the tab 16 into engagement with the slot 18, thereby forming the partition 10. It will be appreciated that the partition 10 allows for the separation of 3 bottles or like containers and that if additional bottles are to be separated in the container then additional like partitions can be used, such as 2 partitions for 6 bottles, 3 partitions for 9 bottles and 4 partitions for 12 bottles. Owing to the configuration of the partition 10, two like partitions can be used in the same box to separate 12 bottles, while providing lateral and longitudinal support.

The embodiments have been described by way of example only and modifications are possible within the scope of the invention disclosed. For example, the partition 10 may also be configured for use with articles that are not elongate.

Claims (16)

1. A partition for bottles or other elongate articles, the partition being erected from a sheet of material divided into a series of parallel elongate sections separated by fold lines by folding the sheet, the sections, when folded, defining adjacent parts of a partition for adjacent articles laid in the lengthwise direction of the sections, the partition comprising: a tab extending from a longitudinal edge of one of the sections; and a slot at or adjacent to a longitudinal edge of another of the sections, wherein when the sheet is folded along the fold lines to erect the partition, adjacent sections are disposed substantially perpendicular one to the other and a free end portion of the tab engages in the slot.

2. A partition according to claim 1, wherein engaging the tab in the slot maintains the partition in the erected state.

3. A partition according to claim 1 or claim 2, wherein each fold line is formed of alternating segments of through cuts and perforations, wherein the cut segments are offset from the perforated segments to substantially maintain a folded state after folding.

4. A partition according to claim 3, wherein the offset is approximately half the thickness of the material used.

5. A partition according to any preceding claim, wherein the tab is formed by a slot or cut-out formed in the sheet.

6. A partition according to any preceding claim, wherein the tab is formed with shoulders for engaging the sheet adjacent the slot.

7. A partition according to any preceding claim, wherein the tab is formed with a pointed tip.

8. A partition according to any preceding claim, formed of corrugated fibreboard.

9. A partition according to claim 8, wherein flutes of the fibreboard extend across the sheet generally perpendicular to the lengthwise direction of the sections.

10. A partition according to any preceding claim, wherein the tab and slot are offset in the lengthwise direction of the articles.

11. A partition according to any preceding claim, comprising at least one further tab and slot pair.

12. A blank for forming a partition according to any preceding claim.

13. A method of partitioning a container, comprising the steps of: providing a blank according to claim 12 and folding the blank to bring the tab into engagement with the slot thereby forming the partition.

14. A method of forming a blank according to claim 12.

15. A method according to claim 14, wherein the blank is formed from a sheet from which a plurality of blanks can be trimmed.

16. A method according to claim 14 or claim 15, wherein the blank(s) is formed in a single pass of a manufacturing operation.