US2886234A - Reclosable cartons - Google Patents

Description

May 12, 1959 P. A. ToENsMEIER RECLQSABLE cAR'roNs 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 FiledSept. 30. 1957 FIG. l

United .States Patent RECLOSABLE CARTONS Patrick A. Toeusmeier, Hamden, Coun., assignor to The New Haven Board & Carton Company, New Haven, Conn., a corporation of Connecticut Application September 30, 1957, Serial No. 686,987

6 Claims. (Cl. 229-44) This invention relates to cartons having a removable and replaceable top and resides more particularly in a novel carton of the type described which requires less paperboard than prior similar cartons of the same capacity and is accordingly more economical to manufacture.

In one form of carton having a removable and replaceable top, the bodyof the carton is formed of connectedl front, rear, and end walls and the topincludes a plurality of connected panels of such dimensions as to give it the cross-section of the carton body. The lower edge of the top is hinged to the upper edge of theA rear wall of the body and the topcan be swung on the hinge away from the upper end of the body to expose the contents of the carton and then swung back to close the body again. The carton is provided with guiding and retaining means projecting above the upper end of the body and, when the top is swung to closed position, it telescopes over such means and is engaged and held in place thereby. The guiding and retaining means usually take the form of one or more panels separated from the carton body and secured in place against the inside of the body. As the panels are not part of the body blank, they represent additional material and placing and securing them in place are extra manufacturing operations, so that the use of the panels adds to the cost of production.

The carton of the invention includes a topy hinged to the upper edge of the rear wall of the body and means, which guide the top as it is moved toward closed position and vthen engage the top from within to retain it in that position. In the new carton, such guiding and retaining means are formed by one or more flaps partially severed from the portions of the blank forming the walls of the carton body, such aps being secured to the remainder of the blank along transverse fold lines. In the production of the carton, the flaps are reversely folded so that they lie within the body, and they are secured to the inner surface thereof. In that position, the flaps project above the upper edge of the front wall of the body in position to guide and be received within the top as the latter is moved toward closed position. Since the laps are sections from within the outline of the parts of the blank forming lthe carton. body walls, their use does not require additional material, and they can be folded and secured in'placey in the usual operations, to which the blank ii', subjected to convert it into a carton.

For a better understanding of the invention, reference may be made to the accompanying drawings, in which Fig. 1 is a plan view of a blank for one form of the new carton;

Fig. 2 is a plan view, with parts broken away, of a blank for a modified form of the new carton;

Fig. 3 is a view in perspective of `a carton made from the blank of Fig. l;

Fig. 4 is a view in perspective, with parts broken away, of a carton made from the blank of Fig. 2;

Fig. 5 is -a plan View of a blank for another modiiied form of the new carton; and,

Fig. 6 is a view in perspective of a carton made from the blank of Fig. 5.

The blank shown in Fig. 1 is for a carton oblong in cross-section and it includes a rear wall 10, an end wall 11, a front wall 12, a secondend wall 13, and a glue flap 14 connected along fold lines in the order stated.

Bottom closing flaps 15, 16, 17, and 18 are secured along fold lines to the lower edges of walls 10, 11, 12 and 13,

respectively, and these flaps can be turned in uponv one another and secured together to form the bottom closure of the carton.

At its upper end, the blank is formed with parts mak` ing up a removable and replaceable top and these parts` include a rear panel 19, an end panel 20, a front panel 21, another end panel 22, and a glue'flapI 23 connected -along fold lines in the order named. vThe rear panel 19" is connected along its lower edge of the upper edge ofv A flap 29 is partially severed from the front Vwall 12l and the end walls 11 and 13 of the carton body and the ap extends entirely across the frontwall and is hinged thereto along a transverse fold line 30. The end sections 29a, 29b of the ap are wider thanv the central portion andv are traversed by the fold lines between the end walls 11, 13 and the front wall 12 of the body. Preferably,

the end sections have curved cuts 31, 32, the ends of which lie in the fold lines across the sections and, when the sections are bent on the fold lines, the cuts define the ends of small tongues 31a, 32a projecting outwardly.

In converting the blank of Fig. l to carton form, the flap 29 is reversely folded upon fold line 30 to cause it to lie against the inner lsurface of the bl-ank and it iS,

secured in that position. When the flap is thus folded, the entire flap projects upwardly beyond the cut separating panels 20, 21, 22 from the corresponding walls 11,

12, 13. The blank is next folded on the fold lines separating adjacent walls and adjacent panels and the folding is continued until the glue flap 14 overlies the rear wall 10 and the glue ap 23 overlies the rear panel 19. The flaps are then secured in position by gluing and the bottom of the body is closed by turning in flaps 15, 16, 17, 18 and securing them together in overlapping relation. The top closing aps 25, 26, 27, and 28 are similarly folded inward and securedfupon one another to close the upper end of the top'. described, the end sections 29a, 29h of ap 29 arebent along the fold lines traversing them, so that the tongues 31a, 32a project outwardly in thev plane of one part of each end section and across the edge of the other.

In the completedcarton, the lower edges of panels 20,

21, and 22 of the top overlie the upper edge of flap 29,

since the central section of the flap projects upwardly above the upward edge of front wall 12, and the end sections 29a, 29b of the ap project upwardly above the upper edges of walls 11, 12, and 13 at the corners between the front and end walls. When the carton is to be opened, the top is swung on the hinge connection 24 so, that it moves away from the body of the carton and exposes the contents. When the carton is to be reclosed, the top is sw-ung back and, in such movement, the toptelescopes over the exposed portions of ap 29. These portions of the flap guide the top to closed position and the tongues 31a, 32a engage the end panels of the top.. from within to retain the top in place,

Patented Maly 12, 1959 In folding the blank as The blank shown inFig.v 2 is generally similar to that of Fig. l and includes a rear wall 33, an end Wall 34, a front wall 35, and an end wall 36 secured together along fold lines in the order named. A glue flap 37 is secured to the louter edge ofend wall 36 along a fold line and a partition flap 38 is similarlysecured tothe outer edge of ap 3.7. 'A glue flap 39-is secured along a fold line tothe outer `edge of partition 38.

The .blank of Fig. 2 is provided with parts forming a removabley and replaceable top and such parts include a rear panel 40, arr-end ipanel 41, -a front panel 42, an end panel 43, and a glue ap 44 connected along fold lines in the` order stated. The lower edge of the rear panel 40 is l,connected along a fold line 45 forming a hinge connection to the upper edge of rear wall 43, while the panels 41, 42,l 43 4are :separated by a cut from end walls 34, 35, 36, respectively, and the glue flap 44'is similarly separated from the glue. ap 3.7. At its lower end, the :blank has flaps 46 and 47 connected along fold lines to the lower edges of walls 34, 36 and a ap 48 with Ka tuck flap 49 is similarly connected to a lower edge of :rear wall 33. Flaps 46-49, incl., form parts of a bottom closure and the. top is provided with a similar closure made up of ilaps, 50, `51 secured to the upper edges of end panels 41, 43,l respectively, anda flap 52 having atuck llap 53 and secured to the upper edge of the front panel 42.

A ap 54 is partially severed from the end wall 34 and the front Wall 35 of the blank and is hinged along its top to the two walls. The flap is traversed by the fold line, which separates the two walls, and is formed with -a curved cut 55 with its ends in the fold line. A flap 56 similar in all respects to ap 54 is partially severed from the front wall 35 and the end wall 36 and ilap 56 has a curved cut 57 with its ends in the fold line, which traverses it. The cuts 55, 57 define retaining tongues 55a, 57a similar in purpose and function to the tongues In the conversion of the blank of Fig. 2 to a carton, the` flaps 54, 56 are reversely folded and secured in position to. the inner surface of the blank by glue areas 58, 59, respectively. yGlue is applied to appropriate areas on the blank and the blank is then folded to cause the glue flap 37 to lie against and ber secured to the inner surface of the rear wall 33. Similarly, the glue- Hap 37 is caused, to be secured to thev inner surface of the front walll 35 and glue flap 44 to be securedv to the rear panel 40; After the body .of the. carton is squared, flaps 46, 4 7 al the bottom of the, blank are turned in, the ap 48 isyfolded to overlie them, and the tuck flap 49 is inserted in place. The topv is similarly closed by the inward folding of flaps 50., 51 and 52 and the insertion of the tuck ilap 53.

In the completed carton, the-upper ends of the reversely folded aps 54, 56 project upwardly above the upper edgesl of the front and end walls to serve 'as guiding and retaining means for the top. and, lsince the aps are formed of, material within the outline of the parts of the blank forming the carton body walls, their use does not requite additional material. The partition 38- subdivides the, interior ofA the carton into two compartments and, in the cartondisclosed, the compartments are of unequal size, but, by proper proportioning of the glue ap 37, thee compartments may be of any relative size desired.

Theblank. shown inl-lig.` is similar in all respects to 4 the blank of Fig. 1v except that it includes a pair of aps 60, 61, each partially severed from the front Wall 62 and from one of the end walls 63, 64. The flaps are connected to the walls, from which they are cut, along respective fold lines 60a, 61a and, in the completed carton, the aps are reversely folded upon lines 60a, 61a, so that they project upwardly above the top edges of the front and end walls. Each ap is traversed by a fold line between the front wall and one of the -end walls and flap 60 is provided with a curved cut 65 having its ends in the fold line, While flap 6-1 has a similar -cut the completed carton, the portions of the flaps projecting above the upper edges of the front and end walls -serve as guiding means for the top 67 hin-ged to the upper edge of the rear wall 68. The curved cuts 65, 66 define small tongues 69, 70 which project youtwardly in position to engage the inner surface of the top as it is swung to closed position and retain the top in that position.

`I claim:

l. A carton, which comprises a body lformed of front, rear, and end walls connected together, a closure for the bottom of the body secured to the lower ends of the Walls, a removable and replaceable top for the body made -up of front, rear, and end panels secured togetherV and a closure for the upper end .of the top secured to the upper ends of the panels, the lower edge of the rear panel being attached to the upper edge of the rear wall by a hin-ge connection, and at least one flap formed ofparts of the walls within the outline thereof by partial severance therefrom, the flap being secured to the body along a transverse fold line, the ap being reversely folded to lie Within the body and project above the upper edgel of the yfront wall in position to lbe received within the top, when the latter is moved from open to closed position.

2. The carton of claim l', in which the flap extends across the front wall of the body and the ends of the flap are sections severed from the end walls of lthe '.body.V

3. The carton of claim l, which has a pair of flaps cut partly from the front wall and partly from respective end Walls, the aps being hinged to the front andrespective end walls and reversely yfolded to lie within the body and project above the upper edges of the front andrespective endv walls.

4. The carton of claim 1, in which the interior of the body is subdivided into two compartments by a vertical partition extending between. and having its ends connected to the front. and rear. walls. y

5. The carton of claim 4, in which av glue ap 'having one lateral edge secured to the vertical edgel of one of the end walls is attached to the inner surface of an adjacent wall and the partition is an extension from the' outer lateral edge of the glue flap.

6. The carton of claim l, in which the flap projectsA above the upper edges of both the iront wall and at least one end wall.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,247,870' Chalmers July l, 194'1 2,473,055` Guyer June 14, 1949 2,768,778 Ferguson Oct. l30, 1956 2,803,394 Ringler Aug.' 20, 1957 2,824,684 Ahlers Feb. 25,1958"

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