GB2584679A

GB2584679A - Collection box

Info

Publication number: GB2584679A
Application number: GB1908295.7A
Authority: GB
Inventors: green Trevor; Nichol Lucy
Original assignee: Reedbut Group Ltd
Current assignee: Reedbut Group Ltd
Priority date: 2019-06-11
Filing date: 2019-06-11
Publication date: 2020-12-16
Anticipated expiration: 2039-06-11
Also published as: GB201908295D0; GB2584679B

Abstract

A blank 10 for forming a box, the blank comprising a row of side panels P1, each connected to an adjacent side panel by a line of weakness L1, a plurality of bottom panels P2, each connected to a respective side panel P1 by a line of weakness L2, a plurality of top panels P3, each connected to a respective side panel P1 by a line of weakness L3, at least one of the top panels P3 being provided with a slot 14, an internal panel P4 connected to a side panel P1 at one end of the row of side panels by a line of weakness L4, the internal panel divided by two lines of weakness L5, two handle panels P5, each located on a respective side panel P1 and connected to the side panel by a line of weakness L6, and a tear strip 16 located along the row of side panels.

Description

DESCRIPTION

COLLECTION BOX

This invention relates to a blank for forming a box, a sleeve formed from the blank and a box formed from the blank or from the sleeve.

Charities and many similar organisations often collect money from the general public using collection boxes. These collection boxes are usually made of plastic and have a lid with a slot in. The lid can be secured to the remainder of the box and the slot is used for money to be placed inside the collection box. Since the lid is secured, once money has been placed by a member of the public into the collection box the money cannot be removed without the lid being opened. This provides a secure way in which to collect money without the fear on the part of the person giving the money that the money in the collection box can be easily removed.

The main problem with such collection boxes is that they are almost always made out of plastic. Owing to increasing environmental concerns there is a growing movement amongst the general public that the amount of plastic that is being used unnecessarily must be reduced, particularly in the case of so-called single use plastics and/or plastics containers and packaging that can be (or cannot easily be) recycled. In the case of collection boxes, since the sole purpose of collection boxes is to solicit donations from the general public, it is vitally important that there is nothing about the collection box that would put off any person from donating to the good cause being supported by the collection box.

It is therefore an object of the invention to improve upon the known art. According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a blank for forming a box, the blank comprising a row of side panels, each side panel connected to an adjacent side panel by a line of weakness, a plurality of bottom panels, each bottom panel connected to a respective side panel by a line of weakness, a plurality of top panels, each top panel connected to a respective side panel by a line of weakness, at least one of the top panels being provided with a slot, an internal panel connected to a side panel at one end of the row of side panels by a line of weakness, the internal panel divided by two lines of weakness, two handle panels, each handle panel located on a respective side panel and connected to the respective side panel by a respective line of weakness, and a tear strip located along the row of side panels.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided io a sleeve formed from the blank of the first aspect of the invention, wherein the sleeve is formed by folding in the internal panel so that the internal panel is in contact with the adjacent side panel, folding the blank along one of the lines of weakness that connect two adjacent side panels and gluing the internal panel to a side panel at an outer edge of that side panel.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a box formed from the blank of the first aspect of the invention or from the sleeve of the second aspect of the invention.

Owing to the invention, it is possible to provide a box that can be used as a collection box, which can also be made entirely from recyclable materials 21) such as cardboard. The box can be made from the blank, either directly from the blank or first by being formed into a sleeve, and can be used as a collection box that is both easy to handle from the point of view of the collector and can also collect money in a secure fashion in the interior of the box. The internal panel of the blank, when the box is assembled, forms an internal compartment within the box that retains the money within the collection box, while still allowing handles to be formed that do not interfere with the internal compartment. The entire box can be made from recyclable material such as cardboard.

Preferably, the row of side panels comprises a row of four side panels, 30 each side panel connected to a respective bottom panel on one side and connected to a respective top panel on an opposite side. The preferred construction of the box from the blank is a four sided rectangular cross-section box, and this is achieved with the blank being provided with a row of four side panels, which are either rectangular or substantially rectangular. Each side panel has a bottom panel connected on one side and a top panel connected on the opposite side. The top panels are not connected to each other in the preferred embodiment of the blank, they are separated from each other by cuts in the blank, making them ready to be folded when the final box is constructed from the blank (or sleeve). The same applies to the bottom panels.

Ideally, each top panel is provided with a slot. With every top panel being provided with a slot, then the top panels can be sized so that all of the top panels will cover the top of the box formed from the blank, when those top panels are folded in to form the top of the box. The slots in each of the top panels can be sized and located so that when the top panels are folded in the slots in each top panel will align. This provides the strongest top to the resulting box formed from the blank while ensuring that there is access to the interior of the box for money being received through the slots in the top panels of the box.

Advantageously, the blank further comprises an additional panel connected to the internal panel along a line of weakness that is parallel to the lines of weakness that connect the side panels to the bottom panels and the additional panel is of a rectangular shape with one corner removed, the line of weakness that connects the additional panel (P6) to the internal panel defining the removed corner. The provision of an additional panel attached to the internal panel creates an additional bottom panel when the blank is folded into the final box which strengthens the box and improves the formation of the internal compartment inside the box.

Preferably, the two handle panels are located on two side panels located at the opposite end of the row of side panels to the internal panel and each handle panel is formed by a respective cut along the remainder of the outline of the respective handle panel not defined by the line of weakness that connects the handle panel to the side panel. The two handle panels are located in the row of side panels so that when the collection box is formed from the blank, the holes made by the handles in the side panels do not enter the internal compartment. The internal compartment is separated from the space made by the formation of the handles by the internal panel.

Ideally, the blank further comprises a tape covered glue strip running across one or more of the bottom panels and a tape covered glue strip running across one or more of the top panels. The tape covered glue strips are designed to add further security and strength to the collection box formed from the blank as they allow the end assembler of the box to remove the tape when the box is being formed and glue down the top and bottom panels when the top and bottom of the box is being constructed. In a preferred embodiment of to the blank and box there are four side panels in a row with four bottom panels and four top panels. In this case, there will be tape covered glue strips on three of the four top and bottom panels.

Embodiments of the present invention will now be described, by way of is example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:-Figure 1 is a top plan view of a blank for forming a box, Figure 2 is a set of three views of the blank of Figure 1 being formed into a sleeve, Figure 3 is a set of three views of the sleeve of Figure 2 being formed zo into a partially formed box, Figure 4 is a perspective view from below of the partially formed box, Figure 5 is a set of two views of the partially formed box of Figure 3 being further assembled, Figure 6 is a set of two views of the completed box, Figure 7 is a set of three views of the box of Figure 6, after opening.

Figure 1 shows a blank 10 which is for forming a box (either directly from the blank 10 or from a sleeve formed from the blank 10). The blank 10 comprises a row of side panels Fl, each side panel P1 connected to an adjacent side panel P1 by a line of weakness L1. The blank 10 also comprises a plurality of bottom panels P2, each bottom panel P2 connected to a respective side panel Al by a line of weakness L2, and a plurality of top panels P3, each top panel P3 connected to a respective side panel P1 by a line of weakness L3, with at least one of the top panels P3 being provided with a slot 14.

An internal panel P4 is connected to a side panel P1 at one end of the row of side panels P1 by a line of weakness L4, the internal panel P4 being divided by two lines of weakness L5. Also present are two handle panels P5, each handle panel P5 being located on a respective side panel P1 and connected to the respective side panel P1 by a respective line of weakness L6. A tear strip 16 is located along the row of side panels P1. The tear strip 16 is located on three of the side panels P1.

The row of side panels P1 is formed as a row of four side panels P1, each side panel P1 connected to a respective bottom panel P2 on one side and connected to a respective top panel P3 on an opposite side. Each top panel P3 is provided with a slot 14. The blank 10 also has an additional panel P6 connected to the internal panel P4 along a line of weakness L7 that is parallel to the lines of weakness L2 that connect the side panels P1 to the bottom panels P2. The additional panel P6 is of a rectangular shape with one corner removed, the line of weakness L7 that connects the additional panel P6 to the internal panel P4 defining the removed corner.

The lines of weakness L5 that divide the internal panel P4 are parallel to the line of weakness L4 that connects the internal panel P4 to the adjacent side panel P1. The two handle panels P5 are located on two side panels P1 located at the opposite end of the row of side panels P1 to the internal panel P4. Each handle panel P5 is formed by a respective cut Cl along the remainder of the outline of the respective handle panel P5 not defined by the line of weakness L6 that connects the handle panel P5 to the side panel P1. The blank further comprises a tape covered glue strip 18 running across one or more of the bottom panels P2 and a tape covered glue strip 20 running across one or more of the top panels P3.

The blank 10 is made from a single sheet of flat cardboard, which is cut from sheets of cardboard in a continuous process. The tear strip 16 and the glue and tape strips 18 are added after the blank 10 has been cut out. The lines of weakness on the blank 10 are provided, in general, to allow the cardboard to be folded in the correct place when the blank 10 is used to form a box. The lines of weakness on the blank 10 can be formed by partial cuts through the material or by a partial press into the material, or by any other

s suitable method.

In the preferred embodiment of the product and process, the blank 10 is first formed into a sleeve 22, as illustrated in Figure 2, before the final formation into a box. The sleeve 22 is formed by folding in the internal panel P4 along the line of weakness L4 so that the internal panel P4 is in contact with the adjacent side panel P1, folding the blank 10 along one of the lines of weakness L1 that connect two adjacent side panels P1 and gluing the internal panel P4 to a side panel P1 at an outer edge of that side panel P1. The flat sleeve 22 can now be shipped to the end user, who will form a collection box from the sleeve 22, as and when they need to use such a box.

Figure 3 illustrates the first part of the process of forming a collection box from the sleeve 22 of Figure 2. The end user squeezes together opposite corners of the sleeve 22 to form a tube that is open at both ends. The additional panel P6 is then pushed down to create the secure internal compartment for the cash that will be collected in the collection box. The bottom of the collection box is then completed by the user taking each bottom panel P2 in turn and folding each bottom panel P2 into the bottom. The tape strips 18 can be removed by the user revealing the glue underneath and this enables each bottom panel P2 to be glued to an adjacent bottom panel P2 as they are folded in. Figure 4 shows the partially formed box, with the bottom panels P2 all folded in and glued into position.

The user assembling the box now turns their attention to the top of the box and folds in the top panels P3 in the same manner in which they formed the bottom of the box. This is illustrated in the views shown in Figure 5. The user first folds in the top panel P3 that does not have any tape present and then peels back the tape strip 20 on the next top panel P3 and folds that panel P3 down onto the first top panel. This is repeated for the other two top panels P3, which creates the final sealed collection box 12, shown in Figure 6. The user pushes in the handle panels P5 to create the handles that can be used to comfortably grip the collection box 12. The collection box 12 is also provided with an extension 24 to one of the side panels P1, which has two uses, firstly as a decorative element that allows a logo or the like to be printed on the relevant panel P1 and the extension and secondly as a pull tab for the tear strip 16.

The collection box 12 that is formed from the blank 10 (or sleeve 22) is easily recyclable and has a simple assembly. Multiple tape seals are provided for security and strength. The collection box 12 is tamper evident and has an easy but not obvious opening. Integral handholes are provided by the handle panels P5 and the collection box 12 supports the use of a shaped design for interesting branding, as provided by the extension 24. Although the box 12 is shown as being a plain appearance, of course the collection box 12 can be printed with a logo and/or further details of the charity or good cause that is collecting money via the collection box 12.

Figure 7 shows how the collection box 12 can be opened, once the process of collecting money with the collection box 12 has been completed. Any money that is collected through the slot 14 is retained within the internal compartment of the collection box 12 and this is sealed from the outside. The tear strip 16 has a hidden opening and the user pulls the tear strip 16 to tear open at least three of the side panels P1. As can be seen in the final view of Figure 7, the top panels P3 are completed folded over and the internal compartment of the collection box 12 is now open for access to the money contained within.

Claims

CLAIMS1. A blank (10) for forming a box (12), the blank (10) comprising: * a row of side panels (P1), each side panel (P1) connected to an adjacent side panel (P1) by a line of weakness (L1), * a plurality of bottom panels (P2), each bottom panel (P2) connected to a respective side panel (P1) by a line of weakness (L2), * a plurality of top panels (P3), each top panel (P3) connected to a respective side panel (P1) by a line of weakness (L3), at least one of the top panels (P3) being provided with a slot (14), * an internal panel (P4) connected to a side panel (P1) at one end of the row of side panels (P1) by a line of weakness (L4), the internal panel (P4) divided by two lines of weakness (L5), * two handle panels (P5), each handle panel (P5) located on a respective side panel (P1) and connected to the respective side panel (P1) by a respective line of weakness (L6), and * a tear strip (16) located along the row of side panels (P1).
2. A blank according to claim 1, wherein the row of side panels (P1) comprises a row of four side panels (P1), each side panel (P1) connected to a respective bottom panel (P2) on one side and connected to a respective top panel (P3) on an opposite side.
3. A blank according to claim 1 or 2, wherein each top panel (P3) is provided with a slot (14).
4. A blank according to claim 1, 2 or 3, and further comprising an additional panel (P6) connected to the internal panel (P4) along a line of weakness (L7) that is parallel to the lines of weakness (L2) that connect the side panels (P1) to the bottom panels (P2).
5. A blank according to claim 4 wherein the additional panel (P6) is of a rectangular shape with one corner removed, the line of weakness (L7) that connects the additional panel (P6) to the internal panel (P4) defining the removed corner.
6. A blank according to any preceding claim, wherein the lines of weakness (L5) that divide the internal panel (P4) are parallel to the line of weakness (L4) that connects the internal panel (P4) to the adjacent side panel (P1).
7. A blank according to any preceding claim, wherein the two handle panels (P5) are located on two side panels (P1) located at the opposite end of the row of side panels (P1) to the internal panel (P4).
8. A blank according to any preceding claim, wherein each handle panel (P5) is formed by a respective cut (Cl) along the remainder of the outline of the respective handle panel (P5) not defined by the line of weakness (L6) that connects the handle panel (P5) to the side panel (P1).
9. A blank according to any preceding claim, wherein the tear strip (16) is located on three side panels (P1).
10. A blank according to any preceding claim, and further comprising a tape covered glue strip (18) running across one or more of the bottom panels (P2).
11. A blank according to any preceding claim, and further comprising a tape covered glue strip (20) running across one or more of the top panels (P3).
12. A sleeve (22) formed from the blank (10) of any one of claims 1 to 11, wherein the sleeve (22) is formed by folding in the internal panel (P4) so that the internal panel (P4) is in contact with the adjacent side panel (P1), folding the blank (10) along one of the lines of weakness (L1) that connect two adjacent side panels (P1) and gluing the internal panel (P4) to a side panel (P1) at an outer edge of that side panel (P1).
13. A box (12) formed from the blank of any one of claims 1 to 11 or from the sleeve of claim 12.