Abstract:
Package ( 1 ) for receiving agricultural or industrial products to be packed comprising a bottom part ( 2 ) and a cover part ( 3 ), whereby the cover part ( 3 ) is provided with an enlarged side surface.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     U.S. Pat. No. 3,536,250 discloses another package similar to the one described above in which the flexible flap is an integral part of the upper part. Between the front surface of the upper part and the flexible flap there is a horizontal surface forming a step between the front surface and the flexible flap forming an abutment surface for arresting the upper part. The front surface of this package is provided with channels and projections forming a mechanism for disengaging the upper part. The irregularities in the front surface which is small as in U.S. Pat. No. 3,370,420 make it very difficult to provide this surface with print or text. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     It is the object of the present invention to provide a package of the kind referred to above, which allows a major part of the side surface of the package to be provided with text or images. The package according to the invention has a front panel on the cover part which overlaps the front of the bottom part. In this way the front panel of the cover part can cover the whole front of the package, thus allowing for an increased surface to provide text or images. 
     Another object of the invention is to provide a package that is easier to open and close. The front panel of the cover part can be used to hold the cover part in its closed position without the need for a flexible flap as used in the prior art packages. For this purpose the package can be constructed in such a way that the cover part will come into frictional contact with the bottom part at the end of the closing and at the beginning of the opening movement. For the same purpose also projections can be provided on the front of the bottom part. The corresponding holes for receiving the projections will then be located at the lower part of the front panel of the cover part, and therefore they will not be at the most noticeable part of the front of the package so that they do not disturb. 
     The front panel of the cover part may extend completely down to the bottom part of the package so that it can rest on the surface carrying the package in order to improve the stability of the package. The cover part may be provided with a planar top surface that defines projections to hold a package stacked onto it in place. 
     According to a preferred embodiment the package is produced by pulp moulding. The packages are moulded and dried with the cover part in its open position. The freshly moulded product is very weak, and it is necessary for the lid to be supported. For this purpose an edge defined by the planar top surface and the front panel of the cover part can be used. 
     Further advantages and embodiments of the package according to the present invention and the method for producing said package are set forth in the independent claims. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     In the following detailed portion of the present description, the invention will be explained in more detail with reference to the exemplary embodiments of the package according to the invention as shown in the drawings, in which 
     FIG. 1 is a perspective view as seen from above of two packages detachably connected side to side according to the invention, 
     FIG. 2 is a front view of the package with the cover part in its closed position, 
     FIG. 3 is a side view of the package with the cover part in its closed position, 
     FIG. 4 is the same side view as FIG. 3, but with the cover part in its open position, 
     FIG. 5 is a perspective view as seen from above of a prior art package, 
     FIG. 6 is a perspective view as seen from above of two packages detachably connected side to side according to the invention of a second embodiment, 
     FIG. 7 is a front view of the package with the cover part in its closed position of a second embodiment, 
     FIG. 8 is a side view of the package with the cover part in its closed position of a second embodiment, and 
     FIG. 9 is the same side view as FIG. 8, but with the cover part in its open position. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     FIG. 1 shows a pair of packages  1  detachably connected and in their open position. A package consists of a bottom part  2  and a cover part  3 . The bottom part is preferably rectangularly shaped and defines a plurality of upwardly open pockets  17  for receiving products to be packed. The bottom part further defines side surfaces  5  to  8 . These side surfaces  5  to  8  define the upper edges of the bottom part  2 , and they are non-planar in order to define the above-mentioned pockets. The package is provided with a cover part  3  that can take an open and a closed position. The cover part  3  consists of at least a planar top surface  10  and a front surface  4 . The front surface  4  and the top surface  10  meet at an angle to form a supporting edge  13  for the cover part to rest on in its open position. The bottom part and the cover part are connected by a hinge  9  located at the upper edge of one of the side surfaces  5  of the bottom part  2  and at the cover part  3  opposite to the side surface  4 . 
     FIG. 2 shows a side view with the cover part  3  in its closed position. The front surface  4  extends from the planar top surface  10  down. According to a preferred embodiment, the front surface  4  of the cover extends substantially parallel to and adjacent to the side surface  7 . This allows the front surface  4  to be supported by the side surface  7 . In the exemplary embodiment, the front surface  4  of the cover part is provided with two holes  14  for receiving projections  15  of the bottom part in order to lock the cover part  3 . According to a preferred embodiment, the front surface  4  extends fully down to the bottom of the package so that it may serve as a support for the cover part and allows a more stable construction of the package. 
     The projections  15  and the corresponding holes  14  are located at the lower part of the package so that they least disturb the front surface  4 . In another preferred embodiment (not shown), the inner side of the front panel  4  is provided with ridges that hook to the projections  15  so that the front side  4  is without disturbing holes. 
     Further, FIG. 3 illustrates a side view from which it can be seen that the cover part is provided with side panels  18 ,  19  extending down to the upper edges of the corresponding side surfaces  6 ,  8  of the bottom part. The side panels  18 ,  19  of the cover part are designed such as to form a preferably triangular ventilation opening  20 . 
     In order to be able to remove a package from a mould in which it could be made, it is necessary for the panels to define a certain minimum angle α with the vertical, i.e. with the direction of removal from the mould. This angle α thus poses certain restrictions on the freedom of construction. With the front panel  4  of the cover part  3  parallel and adjacent to the front  7  of the bottom part  2 , it is necessary for the hinge to be positioned above half the height of the closed package. The height of the front  7  of the bottom part  2  can extend above the height of the hinge  9  in order to increase the closing pressure. The back  5  of the bottom part extends higher than the front and sides of the bottom part  2  in order to allow the hinge  9  to be positioned higher. Another feature is that the hinge  9  can be connected to the cover part  3  practically at the edge of the planar top surface  10 . This allows the planar top surface  10  to be larger and allowing more space for text and images. 
     FIG. 4 shows the package from the same side as FIG. 3, but with the cover part in its open position. The cover part  3  rests on the edge  13 . This support is necessary for a pulp moulded package for providing support for transporting and drying the freshly moulded package. The bottom part  2  may be provided with pillow posts that support the planar top surface  10  in order to improve the stability of the package. In the open position, the front surface  4  of the cover part  3  again forms the minimum angle α with the vertical. If, as in the exemplary embodiment, the front surface  4  is to be parallel to the side surface  7  in the closed position, then the top surface  10  has to form an angle of at least 2α with the horizontal. This can be achieved by locating the hinge  9  at a height corresponding to at least B sin 2α, in which B is the distance from the hinge  9  to the supporting point of the edge  13 . 
     FIGS. 6 to  9  show a second embodiment in which the front panel  4  comprises two rigidly connected planar panel portions  22  and  24 . The panel portions  22  and  24  form an obtuse angle with one another. 
     According to a further embodiment, the tip  11  of the front panel  4  is in physical contact with the upper edge  16  of the front  7  during the last part of the closing movement and the first part of the opening movement, respectively. The cover part  3  can thus be locked to the bottom part without the need for projections and holes. The strength of this physical contact may be varied by: 
     a) adjusting the height of the front  7 , 
     b) adjusting the distance from the hinge  9  to the inside surface of the front panel  4  relative to the distance between the upper edge  16  and the hinge  9 . 
     These two possibilities for adjustment influence the pressure during the closing process as well as the compressive stress in the closed position. 
     The top surface  10  can be provided with projections  12  that hold a package stacked on the top surface  10  in place. 
     The package according to the preferred embodiment is an egg-carton. The shown embodiment is a twin-pack of two 6-packs. The egg-carton can also be a 4-pack, a 10-pack or a 12-pack or other common format. 
     The packages may be produced by moulding pulp mass. In a preferred embodiment, the packages are preferably produced in sets of two packages that are connected detachably at their sides. In order to produce such a package a vacuum-permeable mould surface is provided, followed by aspirating a fibre-pulp mass onto the mould. The freshly moulded packages of wet pulp have a low stability since the wet pulp is very weak. In order to be able to transport the packages from the mould to the drying oven it is therefore necessary that both the bottom part and the cover part have a supporting surface to carry them. This support is naturally available for the bottom part, however for the cover part member such support must be provided. In the present invention this is provided by the edge  13  which is formed by the planar top surface  10  meeting the front surface  4  at an angle. The package may be after-pressed in order to provide a more smooth and appealing outer surface. 
     FIG. 5 shows a prior art package with flexible flaps attached to the front of the bottom part opposite to the hinge. These flaps pose difficulties to the user when opening and closing the package.