Top gripping article carrier

Abstract

 A carton (110) of the top gripping type for accommodating a plurality of containers, the carton being tubular in structure and comprising top (118), bottom (114) and side walls (112,116), the bottom wall having a plurality of apertures arranged in rows, each aperture having a pair of foldable retention tabs (120,126) for operatively engaging a radially protruding part of a container held in each aperture, the carton comprising a bracing tab (134), connected to one (126) of said pair of foldable retention tabs and struck from the other (120) of said pair of foldable retention tabs, the bracing tab being disposed between and engaging two adjacent containers to minimize relative movement between those containers, wherein the aperture defined by the pair of foldable retention tabs is asymmetrical.

Description

Technical Field of the Invention

[0001] The invention relates to a carton produced for packaging a plurality of articles, for example bottles. More particularly but not exclusively, the invention relates to a carton and blank for forming the carton, of the top gripping type which attaches to the tops of the articles thereby securing the articles in an array for carrying.

Background of the Invention

[0002] Consumers like to purchase goods such as yoghurt drinks contained in bottles or pots in multiple packs, such bottles or pots often have flanged tops and therefore top gripping carriers are suitable for gripping and carrying an array of these bottles. Top gripping cartons which engage the underside of such flanged articles are known. Such cartons employ what are known as sunburst apertures, which have a series of tabs arranged circumferentially about an aperture. The tabs yield when the flanged top is pushed through the aperture and the tabs can then engage the underside of the flanged bottle top to prevent the removal of the bottle. A problem with such arrangements is that the support provided to hold the bottle is limited and the bottles may move, rotate or twist relative to one another. This creates a carton that is unstable and the unstable nature of the bottles within the carton can cause the weakening of the tabs so reducing their effectiveness as retention means.

[0003] A structure that attempts to solve this problem is disclosed in EP 1 007 434. In EP '434 a top gripping carrier is disclosed which has a bracing tab extending between adjacent bottles to restrict their movement in a horizontal direction and a retaining tab which supports the underside of the bottle flange to restrict the downward vertical movement of the bottles. A problem arises with this arrangement when a large number of bottles are contained within the carton, for example when six, eight or more bottles are contained in two rows of three or four. In these larger top gripping carriers, the effect of any movement of the bottles is emphasized by the number of bottles, this can result in the weakening of the bracing tabs which then results in the movement of the bottles contained in adjacent rows, which in turn can result in an unstable carton.

[0004] This problem is further emphasized when, as is often the case, the carton is made of paperboard and is stored within a refrigerator to keep the yoghurt drinks cool. The temperature and humidity of this environment can cause the paperboard material to weaken; this in combination with a large number of bottles can cause the bottles to be undesirably released from the top gripping clip. To prevent this from occurring, large side walls could be added to the carton. However, it is not desirable to add material, as this makes an expensive and uneconomical carrier. It is therefore preferable to provide a carton which uses an economical amount of material whilst providing a sufficiently strong and rigid carrier for gripping the tops of bottles and thereby securely holding them in a stable array.

[0005] The present invention seeks to avoid or at least mitigate these and other problems of the prior art by providing in one aspect a positional support to maintain the articles in a spaced arrangement and according to a second aspect a vertical support is provided to further minimize the movement of articles.

Summary of the Invention

[0006] According to a first aspect, the invention provides carton of the top gripping type for accommodating a plurality of containers, the carton being tubular in structure and comprising top, bottom and side walls, the bottom wall having a plurality of apertures arranged in rows, each aperture having one or more foldable retention tabs for operatively engaging a radially protruding part of a container held in each aperture, the carton comprising a bracing tab, connected to one of said foldable retention tabs, disposed between and engaging two adjacent containers to minimize relative movement between those containers, characterized by a side wall aperture being formed in one of said side walls adjacent one of those containers for engaging a portion of that container.

[0007] Preferably, wherein a lower edge of said side wall aperture engages an underside of the radially protruding part of said one of those containers, the engagement of the lower edge being radially opposite to the engagement of said bracing tab.

[0008] Optionally wherein a side wall tab, struck from and hinged to one of said side walls, engages the radially protruding part of a container held in an aperture adjacent said side wall tab radially opposite to the engagement of said bracing tab.

[0009] Alternatively or additionally comprising a keel structure extending internally of the carton between first and second rows of article receiving apertures, the keel structure being formed from a series of connected retention and bracing tabs disposed between pairs of adjacent apertures, the keel structure being interrupted by a series of separations between adjacent apertures and spanning a length of the carrier which is greater than the length of the interrupting separations. Preferably wherein the series of connected retention and bracing tabs are formed from apertures in the first row and the keel structure comprises a series of retention tabs formed from apertures in the second row.

[0010] Optionally wherein said side edge aperture is shaped such that a flat lower edge is provided to engage the underside of the radially protruding part of a container and wherein an upper edge of the side edge aperture is shaped such that a concave projection of the top wall is defined, said concave projection providing a protective cover of the top of a container held within the adjacent aperture. Preferably said bracing tab has a maximum width equal to the diameter of the aperture from which it is formed.

[0011] Optionally the bracing tabs are struck from material used to form the retention tabs of the first such that the retention tabs from the first row comprise a shaped notch and wherein the retention tabs of the second row comprise a similar shaped notch.

[0012] According to a second aspect, the invention provides a blank for forming a carton of the top gripping type, the carton for carrying a plurality of containers such as bottles arranged in rows, the blank comprising a series of panels for forming top, bottom and side walls of the carton, the bottom wall of the blank having a plurality of apertures arranged in rows, each aperture having one or more foldable retention tabs struck therefrom for operatively engaging a radially protruding part of a container to be held in each aperture when the blank is set-up into a carton, the blank comprising a bracing tab connected to one of said foldable retention tabs and characterized by a side wall aperture being formed in one of said side walls adjacent one of said aperture, the bracing tab and side wall aperture being structured and arranged such that upon erecting the blank into a carton loaded with containers, the bracing tab engages the underside of a radially protruding part of each of two opposite containers to minimize relative movement between those articles and the side wall edge engages one of those containers.

[0013] Preferably a lower edge of said side wall aperture is structured to engage an underside of the radially protruding part of said one of those containers, the engagement of the lower edge being radially opposite to the engagement of said bracing tab when the blank is set-up.

[0014] Optionally a side wall tab, struck from and hinged to one of said side walls, engages the radially protruding part of a container held in an aperture adjacent said side wall tab radially opposite to the engagement of said bracing tab when the blank is set-up. Preferably said bracing tab has a maximum width equal to the diameter of the aperture from which it is formed.

[0015] According to a third aspect, the invention provides a carton of the top gripping type for carrying a plurality of articles such as bottles, the top gripping carrier comprising a series of panels for forming top, bottom and side walls of the carrier, the bottom wall of the carrier having an article receiving aperture for receiving an upper portion of an article held by the carrier, the top gripping carrier further comprising a first retention tab formed in part from a side wall and in part from material used to form an adjacent article receiving aperture, said first retention tab being hinged to said side wall and being disposed operatively to engage a protruding part of an article present in that aperture thereby limiting the vertical movement of that article.

[0016] Optionally the carton may further comprise a second retention tab and a bracing tab struck from said article receiving aperture, the second retention tab and a bracing tab being connected together such that the first retention tab operatively engages an underside of a radially protruding part of an article held within that article receiving aperture and wherein the bracing tab is disposed between that article and an article held in an opposed article receiving aperture to minimize relative movement between those articles. Optionally the bracing tab may be provided with a cut out which cutout defines the part of the first retention tab which is struck from the article receiving aperture.

[0017] Preferably a third retention tab is formed from material used to create the opposed article receiving aperture, the third retention tab operatively engages an underside of a radially protruding part of an article held within that opposed article receiving aperture to minimize the downward vertical movement of that article.

[0018] Preferably a second bracing tab is hinged to the third retention tab, the second bracing tab being shaped similarly to the cut out of the first bracing tab such that the two bracing tabs interlock.

[0019] According to a fourth aspect, the invention provides a blank for forming a top gripping carrier, the top gripping carrier for carrying a plurality of articles such as bottles, the blank comprising a series of panels for forming top, bottom and side walls of the top gripping carrier, the bottom wall of the blank having an article receiving aperture for receiving an upper portion of an article to be held by the top gripping carrier, the blank further comprising a first retention tab formed in part from a side wall and in part from material used to form an adjacent article receiving aperture, said first retention tab being hinged to said side wall and when the blank is formed into a set-up carrier the first retention tab is disposed operatively to engage a protruding part of an article present in that aperture thereby limiting the vertical movement of that article.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0020] Three exemplary embodiments of the invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

FIGURE 1 shows a plan view of a blank for forming a top gripping carrier according to one aspect of the invention;

FIGURE 2 shows a perspective top, side and end view of a top gripping carrier constructed from the blank of Figure 1, holding a 2x3 array of bottles;

FIGURE 3 shows a second perspective view of the carrier constructed from the blank of Figure 1, shown from the top, other side and other end;

FIGURE 4 shows an end on view of the loaded carrier of Figures 2 and 3;

FIGURE 5 shows a blank for forming a top gripping carrier according to a second aspect of the invention;

FIGURE 6 shows a top plan view of a portion of the blank of Figure 5 being formed around a 2x3 array of bottles;

FIGURE 7 shows an end on view of the carrier of Figure 6 fully formed and loaded;

FIGURE 8 shows a plan view of a blank for forming a carrier according to a third aspect of the invention;

FIGURE 9 shows a top plan view of part of the blank of Figure 8 being formed around a 2x3 array of bottles as the blank is formed into a top gripping carrier;

FIGURE 10 shows an end on view of a carrier of the third aspect of the invention loaded and fully formed.

Specific Description of Exemplary Embodiments

[0021] Referring to the drawings, and in particular Figure 1 thereof, there is shown a carton blank 10 for forming a top gripping carrier 60 (shown in Figure 2) which is made from paperboard or other similar foldable sheet material. The blank 10 comprises a glue flap 32, first side panel 12, base panel 14, second side panel 16, and top panel 18, connected one to the next in series along fold lines 40, 42, 52 and 54 respectively.

[0022] As illustrated in Figure 1, bottom panel 14 is formed with two rows of three article receiving apertures. The article receiving apertures are defined by one or more retention tabs 30, 26 and 28, which are struck from material forming the base panel 16. Additionally each pair of article receiving apertures provides a bracing 34 and a side wall tab 20.

[0023] The article receiving apertures can be more clearly seen in Figures 2 and 3, where bottles (B) are shown having been inserted into the article receiving apertures and the bracing 34, side wall tab 20 and retention tabs 30, 26, 28 have been folded out of the plane of the bottom panel 14. In this example, the top gripping carrier 60 is formed with two rows of three article receiving apertures in the bottom panel 16 and in Figure 2; six bottles in a two x three arrays are shown. It is envisaged however that more or less than six bottles may be contained within the top gripping carrier of the present invention and in more or less than two rows.

[0024] Turning in detail to the configuration of one pair of article receiving apertures, it being understood that the others are formed of like configuration and many pairs of article receiving apertures may be provided within the scope of the present invention, there comprises a first retention tab 26 struck from and connected to the bottom panel 14 along fold line 48. Bracing tab 34 extends from and is hinged to the first retention tab 26 along fold line 46. The bracing tab 34 is separated from the bottom panel 14 by a cut line, although in other embodiments, the bracing tab 34 may be defined by a perforate line which can be broken when the blank is erected into the top gripping carrier shown in Figure 2. A second retention tab 28 is struck from the opposed article receiving aperture, the second retention tab 28 is formed similarly to the first retention tab 28 and is foldably connected to the bottom panel 16 along fold line 50.

[0025] Together, the bracing tab 34 and the first retention tab 26 form part of a keel structure which structure can be viewed in Figures 2 and 3. Once the upper portion of an article, such as a bottle (B) is inserted into the article receiving aperture, the first retention tab 26 and bracing tab 34 are folded out of the plane of the bottom panel 14. The first retention tab 26 operatively engages an underside of a radially protruding part or flange of the bottle (B) to restrict the downward movement of the bottle (B) so that it is retained within the article receiving aperture. The bracing tab 34 is further folded, relative to the first retention tab 26, about fold line 46, so that it is disposed between bottles (B) in opposed adjacent apertures. The bracing tab 34 operatively engages the underside of radially protruding portions of the two bottles such that the movement of those two bottles relative to one another and in a downward vertical direction is minimized. Similar parts of the keel structure are formed between the other article receiving apertures, such that a keel structure is formed which extends alongside and between the rows of article receiving apertures. The keel structure is interrupted by separations between adjacent pairs of article receiving apertures. The keel structure is further strengthened by the second retention tab 28 which also operatively engages the underside of a flanged part of a bottle (B).

[0026] In this embodiment the bottle (B) contained within the article receiving aperture is supported by a side wall tab 20 which is struck in part from the side panel 12 and in part from the bottom panel 14. The side wall tab 20 is hinged to the side panel 12 along fold line 44. In this embodiment, the bracing tab 34 is provided with a cut out which defines the part of the side wall tab 20 which is struck from the article receiving aperture. An upper edge 56 of the side wall tab 20 is therefore defined by a cut line common to the bracing tab 34 and the side wall tab 20.

[0027] The upper edge 56 of the side wall tab 20 engages the bottle (B) to limit downward vertical movement of the bottle thereby retaining it within the top gripping carrier 60.

[0028] A third retention tab 30 is formed from material used to create the opposed article receiving aperture, the third retention tab 30 operatively engages an underside of a radially protruding part of an article held within that opposed article receiving aperture to minimize the downward vertical movement of that article. The third retention tab 30 is hinged along fold line 52 which adjoins the bottom panel 14 and the second side panel 16. In this embodiment the third retention tab 30 is provided with an aperture 24. In another embodiment it is envisaged that the side wall tab 20 may not be present, it is also envisaged that rather than being an aperture 24, a second bracing tab (24) could be provided, which would be hinged to the second retention tab 28 along a fold line in a similar way to the arrangement of the first retention tab 26 and bracing tab 34. Such a second bracing tab (24) may be shaped similarly to the cut out of the first bracing tab, which defined retention tab 20 such that the two bracing tabs 24 and 34 could mate or interlock, thereby providing a strengthened keel structure.

[0029] The top gripping carrier 60 is formed around the array of bottles (B) as shown in Figures 2, 3 and 4. The top gripping carrier is also provided with a series of side edge apertures 22 which are aligned with the article receiving apertures such that a lower edge of each side edge aperture engages the underside of a flanged part of a bottle (B). Alternatively or additionally, an upper edge of the side edge aperture 22 may engage a part of the top portion of a bottle. In this way the side wall aperture 22 can restrict the vertical movement of a bottle so held within the carrier. Additionally the top portions of the bottles are protected by a projection of the top wall 18 as can be seen in Figure 3.

[0030] A second embodiment of the invention is illustrated in Figures 5-7 and a third embodiment in Figures 8 - 10. These embodiments will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings in which similar features are denoted by like reference numerals which have been raised by a factor of 100 or 200 to indicate the different embodiments.

[0031] Figure 5 illustrates a blank 110 for forming a top gripping carrier. The blank 110 comprises a glue panel 132, first side panel 112, a bottom panel 114, a second side panel 116 and a top panel 118. First and second retention tabs 126 and 128 are struck from the bottom panel 110 and in part define opposite article receiving apertures. A bracing tab 134 is also provided and is hinged to first retention tab 126 along fold line 148. Together the retention tab 126 and bracing tab 134 form part of a keel structure which is disposed in alignment with first and second rows of article receiving apertures. The keel structure comprises similar portions provided by bracing 134 and retention tabs 126 of adjacent article receiving apertures as illustrated in Figure 6. The keel structure is provided to limit the relative movement of bottles in opposed article receiving apertures and additional fourth retention tabs 120 (in this embodiment not struck from the side wall) and third retention tabs 130 are provided which support the underside of the bottles (B1) nearest to the side walls 112, 116. This can also be seen from the end on view of the carton illustrated in Figure 7.

[0032] Additionally side edge apertures 122 are provided; each side edge aperture is formed in one of the side walls 112 or 116 and retains an upper portion of an article present in an adjacent article receiving aperture thereby minimizing vertical movement of that article. Each side edge aperture 122 has a lower edge which engages an underside of a radially protruding part of an article held in the adjacent aperture. The engagement of the lower edge of the side edge aperture 122 is radially opposite to the engagement of the bracing tab 134 with the underside of the radially protruding part. In combination therefore, the keel structure and side edge apertures provide a strong and stable top gripping carrier.

[0033] It is envisaged that third retention tabs 130 may each be provided with a cut out similar in size and shape to the bracing tab 134. In this arrangement the blank would look substantially symmetrical with the fourth and third retention tabs 120, 130 being identical. Alternatively or additionally it is envisaged that second retention tabs 128 could be provided with a complimentary shaping to the bracing tab 134 to provide a co-operative locking of the bracing tab 134 in the second retention tab 28.

[0034] A blank 210 for forming a top gripping article carrier according to a third embodiment is shown in Figure 8. In this embodiment the bracing tab 234 has a maximum width which is approximately equal to the diameter of the article receiving aperture from which it is struck. Therefore the keel structure formed alongside one row of bottles (B2) is interrupted by a series of separations between adjacent article receiving apertures and the keel structure spans a length of the carrier which is greater than the length of the interrupting separations. In other embodiments it is envisaged that the separations may be negligible in size or indeed each bracing tab 234 may be connected to an adjacent bracing tab 234.

[0035] In the third embodiment side edge apertures 222 are also provided to limit the vertical movement of each bottle (B2) held by the carrier. The function of the side edge apertures 222 can be seen from the end on view of Figure 10. Each side edge aperture 222 is provided with a lower edge for engaging the underside of a radially protruding part of an article held in the adjacent aperture at a location radially opposite to the engagement of the bracing tab 234 with the underside of a radially protruding part of that article.

[0036] It can be appreciated that various changes may be made without departing from the scope of the present invention, for example, the size and shape of the panels may be adjusted to accommodate articles of differing size or shape. The article receiving apertures may be shaped differently to accommodate articles of differing size or shape. Other variations may also be made within the scope of the invention, for example, side edge apertures 22 may be provided on both sides of the carrier, or only on one side, the retention tab 20 may also be provided on both sides of the carrier.

[0037] It will be recognised that as used herein, directional references such as "top", "base", "end", "side", "inner", "outer", "upper" and "lower" do not limit the respective panels to such orientation, but merely serve to distinguish these panels from one another. Any reference to a frangible line can also be construed as a cut line, score line, perforate line or slit, without departing from the scope of invention. Also, any reference to hinged connection should not be construed as necessarily referring to a single fold line only; indeed it is envisaged that hinged connection can be formed from one or more of the following, a line of demarcation or weakened line, a score line, a frangible line or a fold line without departing from the scope of invention.

Claims

1. A carton of the top gripping type for accommodating a plurality of containers, the carton being tubular in structure and comprising top, bottom and side walls, the bottom wall having a plurality of apertures arranged in rows, each aperture having a pair of foldable retention tabs for operatively engaging a radially protruding part of a container held in each aperture, the carton comprising a bracing tab, connected to one of said pair of foldable retention tabs and structure from the other of said pair of foldable retention tabs, the bracing tab being disposed between and engaging two adjacent containers to minimize relative movement between those containers, characterized in that the aperture defined by the pair of foldable retention tabs is asymmetrical.

2. A carton according to claim 1 wherein the aperture is wider along an outer edge than along an inner edge.

3. A carton according to claims 1 or 2 wherein the foldable retention tab from which the bracing tab is struck is hinged to the carton along a first fold line and the foldable retention tab to which the bracing tab is connected is hinged to the carton along a second fold line the first fold line being longer in length than the second fold line.

4. A carton according to any preceding claim wherein the carton comprises a sidewall aperture formed in one of the side walls adjacent one of those containers for engaging a portion of that container.

5. A carton according to claim 3 wherein a first side wall is hinged to the bottom wall along a third fold line which is coincident with the second fold line; the length of the second fold line is greater in length than a portion of the third fold line defined between a pair of adjacent apertures.

6. A blank for forming a carton of the top gripping type for accommodating a plurality of containers, the carton being tubular in structure and comprising top, bottom and side walls, the bottom wall having a plurality of apertures arranged in rows, each aperture having a pair of foldable retention tabs for operatively engaging a radially protruding part of a container held in each aperture, the carton comprising a bracing tab, connected to one of said pair of foldable retention tabs and structure from the other of said pair of foldable retention tabs, the bracing tab being disposed between and engaging two adjacent containers to minimize relative movement between those containers, characterized in that the aperture defined by the pair of foldable retention tabs is asymmetrical.

Drawing