Container

Abstract

 A cardboard box has a lid (13) which engages telescopically on the box body (11). The lid has push-in portions (14) at opposite corners which engage in complementary apertures (12) in the corners of the body to hold the lid in place. The push-in portions are tearable away in tamper-evident fashion to release the lid for removal.

Description

[0001] This invention relates to containers made of cardboard, corrugated board or similar lightweight foldable sheet material, comprising a container part and a lid part, and has as its primary object to provide such a container with improved means for holding the lid part against opening.

[0002] According to the invention there is provided a container made of cardboard, corrugated board or similar lightweight foldable sheet material, comprising a container part and a lid part which when the lid is closed respectively define inner and outer walls of an outwardly projecting corner of the container, the said wall of the lid part including a holding portion which extends around said corner and is displaceable inwardly into a complementary aperture in the corresponding corner region of the container part whereby to hold the lid part against opening, said holding portion being at least partially separable from the lid part to permit such opening when desired.

[0003] The holding portion being at least partially separable from the lid part to enable the lid to be opened means that the container is tamper-evident following such opening, by virtue of such separation of the holding portion being apparent.

[0004] Preferably the said holding portion is displaceable inwardly by reversing a fold line therein which defines the said corner. The holding portion is then preferably formed with further fold lines on opposite sides of said corner fold line and parallel thereto, to assist said reverse folding.

[0005] Preferably the said holding portion is at least partially separable as aforesaid by way of a line of spaced perforations extending at least partially around its perimeter.

[0006] Preferably, to enable the said parts to be securely held together, the container has a plurality of said outwardly projecting corners, each with a said holding portion and aperture.

[0007] The lid part could be hinged to the container part, in which case the container could be made from a single blank of corrugated board or the like. Alternatively the lid part could be separate and telescopically engageable with the container part.

[0008] The scope of the invention also extends to a blank or blanks for making a container as set forth above.

[0009] An embodiment of the invention will now be described by way of example and with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:-

Figure 1 is a plan view of a blank for making the lid part of a container comprising a container part and a lid part, in accordance with the invention;

Figure 2 is a plan view of a blank for making the container part;

Figure 3 is a perspective view of one end of the container part and lid part when erected but before interengagement;

Figure 4 is a perspective view showing the container part and lid part interengaged, with a holding portion in its operative condition; and

Figure 5 is a view similar to Figure 4 but illustrating the removal of the holding portion to permit separation of the parts.

[0010] This lidded box according to the invention is particularly for holding cut flowers during transit, and comprises a box body and a lid which are interengageable in telescopic fashion.

[0011] Referring first to Figure 1, the blank for making the box lid comprises a main panel 1, two side wall panels 2 hingedly carrying end wall flaps 3, and inner and outer end wall panels 4 and 5.

[0012] Similarly the blank shown in Figure 2 for making the box body comprises a base panel 6, side wall panels 7 carrying end wall flaps 8, and pairs of inner and outer end wall panels 9 and 10.

[0013] The blanks of Figures 1 and 2 are erected in a conventional manner by folding up the side wall panels, folding their end wall flaps in, folding up the inner end wall panels, folding the outer end wall panels in through 180° to enclose the end wall flaps between the inner and outer end wall panels, and gluing the end wall components together to hold the whole assembly erect.

[0014] Referring now to Figure 3, this shows how each of two diagonally opposite corners (only one shown) of the box body 11 is formed with an aperture 12 extending around the corner, defined by suitable cut-outs in the panels as clearly shown in Figure 2. The lid 13, which is the outer part of the box body and lid combination, is formed with holding portions 14 extending around corresponding opposite corners, each defined by an oval line of perforations 15 extending across the fold line 16 between the side wall panel 2 and one of its end wall flaps 3, as clearly seen in Figure 1. Each of the holding portions 14 is formed with a line of perforations 17 in line with the corner fold 16 of the erected lid, and two further lines of perforations 18 one on each side of the line 17, to enable the central area of the holding portion to be displaced inwardly, as shown in Figure 4, into the complementary aperture 12 in the corner of the box body 11. This engagement of the diagonally opposite holding portions 14 of the lid in the corresponding apertures 12 in the body holds the lid on the box body and prevents its removal.

[0015] When it is desired to remove the lid, the holding portions are removed by tearing along their perimetric lines of perforations, as shown in Figure 5, so that the lid is released and may be removed. Such removal of the holding portions makes the box tamper-evident.

[0016] The above described embodiment of the invention is a container whose two parts, the box body and the lid, are separate units made from separate blanks. The scope of the invention also extends, however, to containers whose two said parts are permanently interconnected, such as a box body and a hinged lid made from a single blank, for example.

Claims

1. A container made of cardboard, corrugated board or similar lightweight foldable sheet material, comprising a container part (11) and a lid part (13) which when the lid is closed respectively define inner and outer walls of an outwardly projecting corner of the container, the said wall of the lid part including a holding portion (14) which extends around said corner and is displaceable inwardly into a complementary aperture (12) in the corresponding corner region of the container part whereby to hold the lid part against opening, said holding portion being at least partially separable from the lid part to permit such opening when desired.

2. A container as claimed in claim 1, wherein the said holding portion (14) is displaceable inwardly by reversing a fold line (17) therein which defines the said corner.

3. A container as claimed in claim 2, wherein the said holding portion (14) is formed with further fold lines (18) on opposite sides of said corner fold line (17) and parallel thereto, to assist said reverse folding.

4. A container as claimed in any of claims 1 to 3, wherein the said holding portion (14) is at least partially separable as aforesaid by way of a line of spaced perforations (15) extending at least partially around its perimeter.

5. A container as claimed in claim 4, wherein the said perforations (15) extend wholly around the perimeter of the holding portion (14), to render it wholly separable from the lid part (13).

6. A container as claimed in any preceding claim, which has a plurality of said outwardly projecting corners, each with a said holding portion (14) and aperture (12).

7. A container as claimed in claim 6, wherein said corners are mutually parallel.

8. A container as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the said interengagement of the said container part and lid part is telescopic, parallel to said corner or corners.

9. A blank or blanks for making a container as claimed in any of claims 1 to 8.

Drawing