GB2177684A

GB2177684A - Tray for stacking packages

Info

Publication number: GB2177684A
Application number: GB08518068A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Harry Chance
Original assignee: Lin Pac Mouldings Ltd
Current assignee: Linpac Mouldings Ltd
Priority date: 1985-07-17
Filing date: 1985-07-17
Publication date: 1987-01-28
Also published as: GB2177684B; EP0210009A2; GB8518068D0; IE58546B1; IE861903L; EP0210009A3

Abstract

A packaging tray A primarily for gable-top containers 7 has a rectangular base 1 with a flat upper surface 2 and an underside with projections 5 forming parallel channels 6 within which the tops of the containers 7 carried on the upper surface of an underlying similar tray B are received in complementary manner. Wall parts 8 extend upwardly from edges of the base 1 to retain the containers on the base and opposed wall parts 13, 14 extend downwardly from edges of the base 1 to overlie the ends of the channels 6 to retain the tops of the containers 7 from sliding through the channels. Two trays can be stacked when empty by the lower edges 16 of the walls 13, 14 of the upper tray standing on the upper edges 17 of the walls 8 of the lower tray. <IMAGE>

Description

1 1 GB 2 177 684 A 1

SPECIFICATION

A packaging tray Technical field and background art

This invention relates to a packaging tray and is parti cularly concerned with such trays as are used forthe transportation and storage of load bearing packages (such as cartons of milk, soft drinkorthe lime) where by several similartrays loaded with the packages can be stacked as a vertical column with the trays in spaced relationship so that each uppertray is mounted and supported on the packages carried by the immediately underlying tray. Trays of the kind described are commonly employed for carrying so called "gable-top" containers or packages and it has hitherto been proposed, for example in G.B. Patent Specification No. 2,079, 256B, for such traysto havea base partwith a substantially flat uppersurface on which the packages are to stand and an undersurface which is profiled to provide substantially parallel channels with a cross section corresponding to the shape of thetops of the packages which areto be carried. The profiled under surface of thetray is in tended to permitthe trayto be located on and sup ported bythetops of packages carried by a similar underlying tray and, in the case of gable-top contain ers, with the apical form of the respective package tops being received in th respective channels. It is an object of the present invention to provide a packaging tray of the kind discussed above and bywhich a vertical stackof several similartrays with packages can be formed with a stable configuration.

Statement of invention andadvantages

According to the present invention there is pro vided a packaging tray having a base part with a substantially flat upper surface on which packages are to stand and an underside surface which is pro filed to form substantially parallel channels having a cross section substantially corresponding to the shape of the tops of the packages which are intended to be carried on the upper surface; first wall parts extending upwardlyfrom the periphery of the base partfor retaining packages on the upper surface thereof and second wall parts extending downwardly from the periphery of the base part at least partiallyto overlie open ends of the channels adjacentthereto for restraining packages received in those channels in a stacked configuration.

Bythetray of the present invention it is envisaged that packages such asthe aforementioned gable-top containers will be located on the upper surface of the base partwith the packages similarly orientated in substantially parallel rows and sothatthese packages are restrained from sliding off the upper surface by the upwardly extending first wall parts. With the pack ages loaded on a first tray, a second similartray can 125 be mounted on the tops of the packages of the first traywith those tops received in the channels which are preferably of substantially complementary shape to the tops; in this stacking configuration the two trayswill be vertically spaced so thatthe uppertray is 130 borne by the load bearing facility provided by the packages on the lower tray. The second wall parts extend downwardly from the periphery of the u pper tray a nd overl le the open ends of the cha n nels adja- cent thereto, prefera bly to an extent less tha n the f u 11 depth of those cha nnels, so that the tops of the packages are restrained by the second wa 11 parts f rom sliding along the channels and thereby a sta ble vertical stack of similarly loaded trays can be formed.

Preferably the second wall pa rts a re formed as extensions of the f i rst wal 1 parts. It is also preferred that the lower peripheral edge of the second wal 1 parts directly underlie at least part of the upper peripheral edge of the f irst wall parts so that several similartrays when empty can be stacked vertical ly by the lower edges of the second wall parts standing on the upper edges of the firstwall parts. In this latter arrangement and wherethe second wall parts have a height less than the depth of the channels, the under surface of the base part atthe ends of the channels adjacentto the second wall parts can betaperedto be received smoothly and closelywithin the confines of thefirst wall parts of the immediately underlying tray and thesetapered edges may abutthe innerfaces ofthe firstwall parts of the immediately underlying trayto stabilise the stack of empty trays. Alternatively, or in addition, the second wall parts may have associated therewith locating flanges orwebs which are intended to co-operate with the first wall parts of a similar underlying trayto provide stability between the empty trays in forming a vertical stack,By interconnecting these locating flanges orwebs between the second wall parts and the under surface of thetray it is possibleto improvethe rigidity and load bearing characteristics of thesecond wall parts.

The base partwill usually be of a rectantularconfiguration with the channels extending parallel to a first pair of parallel edges of the base part sothatthe packages are intended to be loaded on to the upper surface in rows parallel to thefirst pair of edges. Preferablythe first wall parts extend upwardlyfrom the four edges of the base part; it is also preferredthat the second wall parts extend downwardly solelyfrom the second pair of parallel edges of the base partto overlie the open ends of the channels adjacentto those second wall parts - this latter arrangement facilitates handling of the tray, particularly when several emptytrays are stacked as previously discussed, since the underside surface of the base part can be grasped beneath the firstwall parts which extend along thefirst pair of parallel side edges.

Preferably the tray is constructed as a one piece moulding in plastics material and with the channels being formed by projections in the underside surface.

These latter projections will usually be hollowto provide cavities that open through apertures in the upper surface of the base part and accordinglythe projections may be provided with ventilation and drainage holes.

Drawings One embodiment of a packaging tray constructed in accordance with the present invention will now be described, byway of example only, with referenceto the accompanying illustrative drawings in which:

2 GB 2 177 684 A 2 Figure l is a perspective view of two similar packaging trays stacked asavertical column andwith packages inthe underlying tray, the trays being shown partially cutaway to illustrate the engagement 5 ofthetopsofthe packages with the channels onthe uppertray, and Figure2 is a sectional view of parts of thetwotrays shown in Figure 1 and illustratesthe vertical stacking of those trayswhen empty.

Detailed description of drawings

Each packaging tray is formed as a one piece injection moulding in plastics and has a rectangular base 1 with a flat upper surface 2. Formed in the base 1 is a symmetrically disposed array of apertures 3 which open to cavities 4 of hollow projections 5 that extend downwardly on the underside surface of the base 1. The projections 5 form on the underside of the tray an array of parallel channels 6 which correspond in shape to the shape of the tops of packages 7 which are intendeed to be loaded onto the surface 2. In the present example the packages 7 are in the form of gable-top cartons as are commonly used for milk, soft drink and the like, and accordingly the channels 6 have a substantially apical cross section with each channel being formed from several pairs of opposed projections 5. It will however be appreciated that the channels 6 can have any desired cross sectional shape in accordance with the shape of the tops of the particular packages which are to be carried on the tray. Of thetwo trays A and B shown, the cartons 7 are loaded to stand on the surface 2 of the lowertray B so thatthey are similarly orientated and disposed in parallel rows with the ridges of their gable tops para- llel to the channels 6. Forthe purpose of retaining the containers on the surface 2, the rectangular base 1 is provided with a substantially continuous peripheral upstanding side wall 8. This side wall 8 also provides a convenient guide for locating the cartons in their rows parallel to a first pair of opposed side edges 9 and 10 of the base 1. The channels 6 extend parallel to the edgtes 9 and 10 and, as shown in Figure 1,thetray A is stacked vertically above the tray B so thatthe gable tops of the cartons 7 are received within the complementary channels 6 and the tray A is supported through the cartons 7 in spaced relationship above the tray B. Extending downwardly from the second pair of parallel side edges 11 and 12 of the base 1 are opposed walls 13 and 14 respectively which are conveniently formed as extensions of the upperwalls 8. Thewalls 13 and 14 have a height less than that of the projections 5 and accordingly partly overlie the open ends of the channels 6which are located adjacentto those walls 13 and 14. The walls 13 and 14thus serve as abutments to restrain the cartons 7 from sliding longitudinallythrough the channels 6. Bythis latter arrangement a stable vertical or column stack of similartrays loaded with cartons 7 can be formed where- bythe cartons on each tray are restrained from displacement off thattray bythe peripheral wall 8 and a traywhich is supported on the tops of cartons in an immediately underlying tray is restrained from displacement off those cartons firstly bythe abutment of the walls 13 and 14 with the cartons in the channels at the respective ends of the rows and secondly bythe retaining effect of the gabled carton tops between the opposed pairs of projections 5.

To facilitate air circulation and drainage, the sides and bottom of the respective projections 5 are provided with vent holes 15.

As previously mentioned, the walls 13 and 14 may be regarded as extensions of the upperwall 8 and the lower edges 16 of the walls 13 and 14 are located to vertically underlie the upper edges 17 of the wall part 8 with which they are respectively co-extensive. By this arrangement several similar trays can be column stacked when empty and similarly orientated in the manner shown in Figure 2 whereby each of the upper trays in the column is supported by the lower edges 16 of its walls 13 and 14 standing on the upper edges 17 of the walls 8 on the immediately underlying tray. It will be seen from Figure 2 that in this empty stack arrangementthe projections 5 extend downwardlyto be located partlywithin the enclosureformed bythe upperwall 8 of the immediately underlying tray. Outerwalls of the projections 5which are located parallel and adjacentto the edges 9 and 10 are received closelywithin thewall 8 of the underlying trayto restrain relative displacement between thetwotrays in a direction normal to the rows of channels 6. Extending between and interconnecting the lowerwalls 13 and 14 and the ends of the projections 5which are adjacentthereto arewebs orflanges 18 (see Figure 2) which reinforcethe rigidity of the sidewalls 13 and 14. In addition, thewebs orflanges 18 are extended belowthe walls 13 and 14and aretapered as shown at 19 in Figure 2 so thattheywill be received closely within the enclosureformed bythe side wall 8 of the immediately underlying tray above the edges 11 and 12 of thattray so that the abutment of the webs or flanges 18 of the uppertray with the wall 8 of the lowertray restrains the two trays from relative displacement in a direction parallel to the channels 6.

The tapering 19 of the webs orflanges 18 provides a convenient lead-in for stacking onetray on top of another empty tray.

It will be noted thatthe downwardly extending wall parts 13 and 14 are restricted to the extent of the opposed edges 11 and 12. This permits the underside of the base 1 to be accessible beneath the opposed edges 9 and 10 and provides a convenient positinn at which the tray can be grasped and lifted from a stack (especially from a stack of empty trays). If required the projections 5 adjacentto and atthe mid-part length of the edges 9 and 10 can be rebated as indicated at 20to provide enlarged and opposed areas or regions on the underside of the base atwhich thetray can be grasped to facilitate lifting and stacking.

Claims

1. A packaging tray having abase partwith a substantiallyflat upper surface on which packages are to stand and an underside surface which is profiled to form substantially parallel channels having a cross section substantially corresponding to the shape of the tops of the packages which are intended to be carried on the upper surface; first wall parts extending upwardlyfrom the periphery of the base 3 GB 2 177 684 A 3 j 10 1 I! partfor retaining packages onthe uppersurface thereof and second wall parts extending downwardly from the periphery of the base part at least partiallyto overlie open ends of the channels adjacentthereto for restraining packages received in those channelsfrom sliding through the channels in a stacked configuration.

2. Atray as claimed in claim 1 in which lower edge parts of the second wall parts underlie upper edge parts of the first wall parts whereby two similartrays can be vertically stacked when empty with the lower edge parts of the uppertray supported on the upper edge parts of the lowertray.

3. Atray as claimed in either claim 1 orclaim 2 in which the channels are formed by downwardly extending projections on the underside of the base part.

4. A tray as claimed in anyone of the preceding claims in which the second wall parts have a height lessthan the depth of the channels.

5. A tray as claimed in claim 4 when appendant to claim 2 in which the projections are arranged so that with said two stacked and empty trays the projections of the uppertray are partly received closely between firstwall parts of the lower tray whereby abutment between said projections and said firstwall parts restrains relative displacement between thetwo trays.

6. Atray as claimed in anyone of the preceding claims in which flanges orwebs are provided be- tween and interconnect the second wall parts and the underside of the tray for reinforcing those wall parts.

7. A tray as claimed in claim 6 when appendantto claim 3 in which the webs orflanges interconnect between the second wall parts and the projections adjacent to those wall parts.

8. Atray as claimed in either claim 6 or claim 7 when appendantto claim 2 in which the flanges or webs are arranged so thatwith said two stacked and empty trays, the flanges or webs of the uppertray are received closely between first wall parts of the lower tray whereby abutment between said flanges or webs and first wall parts restrains relative displacement between the two trays.

9. A tray as claimed in claim 8 in which the flanges or webs are tapered to provide a lead-in between the first wall parts of the lowertray.

10. A tray as claimed in anyone of the preceding claims in which the base part is substantially rectangular and the channels extend as an array substantial- ly parallel to a first pair of parallel side edges of the base part.

11. Atray as claimed in claim 10 in which thefirst wall parts extend upwardly from the four side edges of the base part.

12. Atrayas claimed in eitherclaim 10 orclaim 11 in which the second wall parts extend downwardly solely from the second pair of parallel side edges of the base part.

13. A tray as claimed in claim 12 when appendant to claim 3 in which the projections adjacent to said first pair of parallel side edges of the base part are rebated to provide opposed regions on the underside of the base part at which the tray can be grasped beneath said side edges.

14. Atray as claimed in anyone of the preceding claims and formed as a one piece moulding plastics.

15. Atray as claimed in claim 14 when appendant to claim 3 in which the projections are hollow and form cavities which open through apertures into the upper surface of the base part.

16. Atray as claimed in claim 15 in which the hollow projections are provided with ventillation or drainage holes.

17. A packaging tray substantially as herein de- scribed with reference to the accompanying illustrativedrawings.

Printed for Her Majesty's Stationery Office by Croydon Printing Company (UK) Ltd, 12/86, D8817356. Published byThe Patent Office, 25 Southampton Buildings, London WC2A 1AY, from which copies may be obtained.