The present invention concerns a device for closing of a container comprising a closure, which device comprises a container made of a rigid material, wherein the container has side parts, a bottom part and an upper part with at least one gable folding for forming an opening, and at least one clamp.

Containers made of a rigid material, like for example paperboard, have been used in the packaging industry for a long time for packaging of products. Packages having an outer casing of paperboard and an inner lining in form of a bag are especially used in the food industry to package products. Examples of such products are for example dried baby food, milk powder, formula powder, porridge powder, cornflakes, muesli, juice, ready-made liquid sauces, wet vegetable products etc.

There are many different models of packages, and some can be opened by means of the user's fingers. These packages are often formed with a roof ridge, so called roof ridge packages, and are provided with a spout, which in the closed state of the package is fixed, but releasably arranged between a pair of opposite panel walls of the package. These panel walls join at the rood ridge, which is arranged at the top of the package. The panel walls are connected with side panels, which at their top end have gable foldings, from which at least one is unfolded during opening of the package to form the spout, where after the content of the package can be dispensed with via the unfolded spout.

The package can subsequently be closed by closing the spout by folding the gable foldings back to its original state between the opposite panel walls of the package, which panel walls form the ridge of the package. When the gable folding is infolded, the spout is however not completely compressed or closed, why the content of the package easily can leak during careless handling of the package. In the case the packaged content comprises food, which consistency is pulverised and dry, like for example formula powder, the content can very easily unintentionally leak out from the package when the user incautiously presses the sides of the package slightly too hard, for example during careless handling of the package. This is consequently not adapted to its purpose.

Several different closure devices with clamps have been suggested to solve this problem, like the closure device that is disclosed in the US patent 3 381 883. US 3 381 883 shows a closure device with a clamp, which is adapted for a roof ridge type package, like for example a milk package. The clamp shown has of an extruded U, and the clamp is provided with protrusions on its internal sides for clamping the top of the roof ridge, to keep the package in a closed and shut state, after the package once has been opened.

The above described clamp according to US 3 381 883 is however not adapted to its purpose for a roof ridge type package, because the clamp easily slips of due to the towards each other leaning upper panels of the package, since neither the clamp nor the towards each other leaning upper panels have an element, which secures the position of the clamp, whereby the closure of the package does not take place. Furthermore, the clamp according to US 3 381 883 has no well-defined end positions, or outer positions, and therefore, the can easily slip off the roof ridge of the package during careless handling.

There is thus a need for an improved device for closing of packages.

EP-A-0 442 035, upon which the preamble of claim 1 is based, discloses a gable top container with a slidable reclosure device.

With the present invention, a device has been accomplished according to the type mentioned in the introduction, which device substantially removes the problem that has been related to the prior known devices.

A device accomplished according to the invention is defined in independent claim 1.

The present invention concerns a device according to claim 1 for closing of a container comprising a closure.

According to an embodiment of the invention, the recesses are arranged in the upper part of the closure, and the protrusions are arranged on the clamp.

According to an embodiment of the invention, the recesses in the upper part are arranged along the closure, and the recesses have a first and a second end position. The recesses in the upper part can be arranged in parallel with the longitudinal direction of the closure.

According to an embodiment of the invention, the clamp is further arranged on the upper part, which clamp is elongated and made of two panels joined with each other at an angle, which angle is selected to accomplish clamping between the inner sides of the clamp and outer surfaces of the first panel and flap.

According to an embodiment of the invention, the clamp has at least one protrusion arranged on each inner side of the panels, for guiding in a recess during setting of the container in a closed or entirely or partly opened state. The clamp is made of a flexible material to accomplish a snap-action between the protrusions and the recesses.

According to an embodiment of the invention, the protrusions of the clamp are preferably elongated, and extend along the longitudinal direction of the clamp.

According to another embodiment, the elongated protrusions of the clamp can be chamfered at their first and/or second ends.

According to another embodiment, there can be at least two protrusions of the clamp on each panel, and point formed, and arranged along the longitudinal direction of the clamp.

According to an embodiment of the invention, the clamp further has on at least one of its external sides means to provide an improved grip during sliding of the clamp, for putting the container in a completely or partly open state and a closed state respectively.

According to an embodiment of the invention, the measure A from one of the side edges of the panels of the clamp to a protrusion is less than the measure C from one of the side edges of the container to an end of the recesses. The measure A together with the measure B from the side edge of the clamp to the end of the protrusion arranged furthest away from the side edge, is larger than the measure D, which refers to the distance between outer ends of the recesses arranged furthest away from each other, for concealing the recesses in the open and closed state of the container respectively.

The invention will now be explained with reference to the attached drawings. On these:

fig. 1

shows an isometric view of the device according to the invention in an opened and pulled off state;

fig. 2

shows an isometric view of the device according to the invention in an opened and pulled off state;

fig. 3

shows an isometric view of the device according to the invention in a closed and shut state;

fig. 4

shows an isometric view of a part of the device according to the invention in an unopened state;

fig. 5

shows an isometric view of a part of the device according to the invention; and

fig. 6

shows an isometric view of a part of the device according to an alternative embodiment.

In the description below, direction terms like for example upper, lower, side etc. will be used. These direction statements refer to an upright standing package, when this is standing with its bottom on a support structure.

The invention concerns a device for closing of an opened container 1, that is, a container whose seal has been broken. The device will be described below with reference to fig. 1-6.

The container 1 is made of a rigid material like for example paperboard, plastic etc., and is formed of side parts 2, a bottom part 3, and an upper part 4, wherein the upper part 4 is formed of the side parts 2, which are joined with each other to form a closure.

The ridge in the upper part 4 of the package is formed from a first upper part 5 on a first side panel 7, and a second upper part 6 on a second side panel 8 opposite each other. At least one of the first and second end panels 9, 10 comprises a gable folding with a foldable main panel 11, and a first and a second gable support panel 12, 13. In the closed state of the package, the first and second upper parts 5, 6 on the first and second side panels 7, 8 are leaning and angled toward each other, wherein the panels 11, 12, 13 of the gable folding are infolded in-between said first and second upper parts 5, 6 to form the ridge.

In the unopened state of the package, which is showed in fig. 4, the first and second side panels 7, 8 are mutually joined along the ridge, and to open the package, a part of the first and second side panels 7, 8 are torn off, in an upper corner 14 of the package. After the upper corner 14 has been torn off, which is showed in fig. 2, the gable folding can be unfolded from its infolded state to accomplish the opened state, which is shown in fig. 1, by unfolding of spout or opening of the package 1. The content of the package can subsequently be dispensed through the spout.

To accomplish the unfolding of the opening, fold lines 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 34 are arranged between the main panel 11, the first and second gable support panels 12, 13, the first and second end panels 9, 10, and the upper first and second parts 5, 6 of the first and second side panels 7, 8.

The package 1 can be provided with an internal lining (not shown) in shape of a bag for example. The external shape of the lining conforms mainly to the internal shape of the package, and an upper part of the lining is in the closed state of the package 1 closed and attached to the first and second side panels 7, 8.

To close the package 1 after it has been opened according to above, the gable part is infolded between the side panels 7, 8 to its original position, and at least one clamp 21 is arranged along the ridge of the container 1, for closing the package. Recesses 22 are arranged in the upper part 4 of the package along the ridge, to guide the clamp 21, which is slidably arranged along the ridge of the package. The clamp 21 is slidable in the recesses 22 between a first position and a second position. In the completely open position of the package, the clamp 21 is arranged in the first position, which is showed in fig. 1 and 2, and in the closed position of the package, the clamp 21 is arranged in the second position, which is showed in fig. 3.

The recesses 22 are elongated and arranged along the ridge, and the recesses 22 have a first end position 23, and a second end position 24, between which end positions 23, 24 the clamp 21 is slidable during opening and closing of the package 1 respectively. The recesses 22 shown in fig. 4 are arranged parallel along the ridge.

Constrictions (not shown) can be arranged along the length of the recesses 22. These constrictions serve to provide a minor resistance for the protrusions 28 of the clamp 21, when the clamp 21 is pushed back and/or forth in the recesses 22 by the user. The constrictions can in this manner accomplish a state along the length of the recesses 22, in which the container can be in a partly opened state, between the completely opened and the closed state. This partly opened state can be used for limiting and controlling the dispensed product out of the container. The size of the constriction is selected such that the clamp 21 can be pushed past the constriction in case a partly opened state is not desired.

One of the first and second side panels 7, 8 has a projecting flap 25 on the upper part 4, forming part of the upper part 4 of the package. The projecting flap 25 is arranged for folding and attaching to the opposite side panel 7, 8 along an upper fold line 26, for closing of the package and attaching to the opposite side panel 7, 8. The recesses 22 extend through the package material, and are arranged in the projecting flap 25 and the opposite side panel 7 or 8, and alternatively also in the side panel 7 or 8, which is arranged to bear against the projecting flap 25.

The clamp 21 is arranged on the upper part 4 of the package. The clamp 21 is elongated and made of two panels 27, which are joined with each other at an angle α. The angle α is adapted to the shape of the ridge, to accomplish clamping between the inner sides 33 of the clamp 21 and the first upper panel 7, 8, and the projecting flap 25. The clamp 21 is formed to squeeze the gable folding together, as is showed in fig. 3, when its seal has been broken, to accomplish a sealed reclosure of the opened package.

The clamp 21 has at least one protrusions 28 arranged on the inner surface 33 of each panel. The protrusions 28 are arranged for engagement with the recesses 22, and for guided sliding therein when putting the container 1 between a closed or a completely or partly open state.

The clamp 21 is made of a flexible material to accomplish a snap-action between the protrusions 28 and the recesses 22. The clamp 21 and the protrusions 28 can advantageously be made in one piece. The flexible material can for example be paper board, which is laminated with several layers, or some kind of plastic like for example polyethylene, polypropylene etc.

The container 1 is made of a thick and rigid material and the clamp 21 can be made of a less rigid material to accomplish clamping action. The protrusions 28 on the clamp 21 are elongated, and extend parallel to the longitudinal extension of the clamp 21.

Means 29 for providing an improved grip during sliding of the clamp 21, during opening and closing of the package respectively, are provided on the external sides 35 of the clamp 21. The means 29 for improved grip can for example be formed of depressions, projecting parts, etc., which increases the friction between the user's fingers and the clamp 21.

In the first position of the clamp 21, the first end 31 of the protrusion 28 can coincide with the first end position 23 of the recess 22, and in the second position of the clamp 21, the second end 32 of the protrusion 28 can coincide with the second end position 24 of the recess 22.

The measure A refers to the distance from one of the side edges 30 of the panels 27 of the clamp 21 to an end 31, 32 of a protrusion 28. The measure A is somewhat less than, or equal to, the measure C, which refers to the distance from one of the end panels 9, 10 of the package to an end of a recess 22.

Furthermore, the measure A together with the measure B from the side edge 30 of the clamp 21 to the end 31, 32 of the protrusion arranged furthest away from the side edge 30, is larger than the measure D, which refers to the distance between outer ends 23, 24 of the recesses 22 arranged furthest away from each other, for concealing of the recesses 22 in the open and closed state of the container respectively.

In fig. 6, an isometric view of an alternative embodiment of the clamp 21 according to the invention is shown. Contrary to fig. 5, the clamp 21 in fig. 6 has elongated protrusions 28, which are chamfered at one end 31, 32. The chamfering can be arranged in the first or second end 31, 32. According to fig. 6, the chamfering extends over the entire length of the protrusions 28. According to an embodiment different from the showed, the chamfering can extend over only a part of the length of the protrusions 28. According to yet another embodiment different from the showed, the protrusions can be chamfered at the ends 31, 32 of the protrusion 28, whereby the chamfered areas can join with each other at the centre area of the protrusion 28. A clamp shape according to any of these types can for example be suitable when the clamp 21 should be easy to remove from a container 1, which has an opening that extends over the entire upper part 4 of the container 1, which is the case when the container contains products what must be scooped out of the container 1.