Abstract:
An impact resistant container system particularly useful for products such as stacked, thin sheets of photographic-film or printing plates and other articles that must be kept distortion free. The system has an inner container wherein the product is sandwiched between upper and lower protection sheets that extend beyond the corner margins of the product and the product is restrained from movement within the sandwich. The sandwich is snugly positioned within an outer container so that the article is spaced apart on all sides from the vertical walls of the outer container to provide impact protection crush zones.

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION  
       [0001]    This application claims priority from a provisional application filed Oct. 17, 2002 under Serial No. 60/419,130 having the same title, and inventors. 
     
    
     
       FIELD OF THE INVENTION  
         [0002]    This invention relates generally to a package and method for protecting fragile articles for shipping and storage. Particularly, the invention relates to a package and method for articles having corners that must be protected from impact because even slight deformation of the corner can render the article unusable. More particularly, one category of articles to be protected includes a stack of rectangular, thin photographic sheets with photosensitive emulsion applied to their surfaces and to printing plates. Even more particularly, a specific class of articles requiring corner protection includes planographic sheets and printing plates, and sheet-like articles that must remain free of distortion.  
         BACKGROUND  
         [0003]    The basic object for all packaging is to ensure that the packaged goods arrive in a condition so that the goods have not lost any of their capability for their intended use. The best package, therefore, is the one that ensures that when the goods are ready for use, they are in the same condition as when they were manufactured and packaged. Thus, the primary object of the present invention is to provide a package that protects the goods so that no loss of use occurs.  
           [0004]    Photosensitive printing plates of thin sheet metal that are coated with thermosensitive or light sensitive emulsion are fragile articles requiring special attention to the integrity of their corners and all edges. Such thin material is easily bent or crimped rendering it unsuitable for mounting and causing printing defects. The same problem results from photographic papers or other substrates in rectangular or square form that requires that the corners be free of defect or damage. Also, many articles formed from china, glass, porcelain, and similar materials are fragile and when in rectangular or square shapes require special attention for the protection of corners.  
           [0005]    Accordingly, it is another object of the present invention to provide a package and method for protecting the corners and edges of multi-cornered objects packaged therein.  
           [0006]    In addition to preventing distortion of corners caused by impacts, the very precise corners of a stack of metal plates are sharp and can readily cut any material in which they are wrapped. Photosensitive plates are usually wrapped in aluminum coated kraft paper or black polyethylene for light and moisture protection. Any tear or cut would let damaging light or moisture in. Thus, still another object of the present invention is to securely hold wrapped articles with sharp corners so that the wrapping material is not torn upon impact while being shipped or handled.  
           [0007]    In U.S. Pat. No. 5,370,229 granted on Dec. 6, 1994 to Ronald W. Krockel, et al., a high impact resistant package system for fragile products is disclosed having corner protective members, which extend beyond the corner edges of the product being packaged. These corner protective members are circular in shape and have a cutout portion to receive a right angle corner. The purpose is to absorb shock during handling and shipment. However, in this system, each corner of the article to be protected fits snugly and tightly into the corner of the protective member and is not spaced significantly apart from the apex of the corner.  
           [0008]    Accordingly, it is still another object of the present invention to provide a corner protective package wherein the corner of the article being protected is spaced away from the nearest corner of the package so that an adequate “crush zone” can be provided.  
           [0009]    Other patents showing packages with corner protective means are U.S. Pat. No. 5,447,234 which issued Sep. 5, 1995 to Lou T. Faulstick, et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 5,685,429 which issued Nov. 11, 1997 to Keith D. Myers; U.S. Patent Application Publication Number U.S. 2002/0060815 A1 published May 23, 2002 to Takayuki Usui; and U.S. Pat. No. 6,332,537 B1 granted Dec. 25, 2001 to Takayuki Usui. In each of the foregoing mentioned patents, either the corners of the article to be packaged are directly restrained by the container or the sides of the article immediately adjacent the corner are constrained at locations very close to the point of the corner so that any impact or shock to the container would be directly transmitted to the apex or point of the corner. The point of the corner is the most sensitive and susceptible to damage part of the article. Thus, it is a specific object of the present invention to prevent damage to the point or apex area of a corner of a fragile object.  
           [0010]    The foregoing and other objects are achieved by the present invention, which is described in the Summary of the Invention below and in the detailed description with reference to the drawings appended hereto.  
         SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0011]    In one aspect, the present invention is an impact resistant package that restrains a rectangular article from movement within the package using flaps that partially enclose the four sides of the article. Upper and lower corner protective members at each corner are provided that extend beyond the edges of the article and contact the interior surfaces of an outer container thereby holding the article securely while spacing the corners of the article from the corresponding interior corners of the outer container so that crush zones are provided to protect against impact. Likewise side edges of the article are spaced from the sides by said corner protection members.  
           [0012]    In another aspect, the present invention is a package for protecting the corners of an article comprising an article having a corner to be protected; upper and lower sheet-like corner protective members each having a corner extending beyond the protected corner of the article, said article being sandwiched between said members and being restrained from movement with respect to said members; a receptacle having an interior corner, said upper and lower members with the article sandwiched therebetween being positioned snugly in said corner of said receptacle.  
           [0013]    In yet another aspect, the invention is a package for protecting the corners of articles comprising a four-sided article having substantially right angle corners, a top, and a bottom; a preform having four sides and right angle corners with at least one foldable flap in each side, said article being positioned on said preform with each of said flaps being folded over a portion of a side of the article and each flap partially covering the top of the article, the corners of the article being spaced apart from the corners of the preform; lower corner protective members being provided by each corner of the preform; an upper corner protective member positioned above the top of said article, said upper member having four corners and being aligned with the corresponding corners of the lower corner protective member; and a receptacle having four right angle corners for receiving and holding said upper and lower corner protective members with said article secured therebetween.  
           [0014]    In a further aspect of the present invention, the invention is a package for protecting articles with corners comprising an article of generally rectangular parallelepiped shape having substantially flat top and bottom walls, transverse and longitudinal vertical side walls, the intersection of said side walls forming corners; a sheet-like preform, said preform having parallel transverse and parallel longitudinal sides, each side having flaps formed therein defined by spaced apart slots, said article being centrally positioned on said preform with its sides being substantially parallel to the corresponding sides of said preform, the portion of the preform upon which the article rests being defined as a bottom panel, said flaps being folded over said walls of the article, the lower and upper edges of each side wall of said article defining creasing and folding edges for each respective flap, each flap having a panel covering a portion of the top wall of said article; the vertical portion of each respective flap forming a panel for restraining movement of said article, and the unfolded portion of the preform between pairs of transverse and longitudinal slots or slits defining lower protective corner members; a sheet-like upper protective member having multiple corners and being positioned over said inner container so that its corners coincide with but are spaced vertically apart from the lower corners of the inner container, the coinciding corners of the preform and the upper corner protective members extending beyond the corners of the article thereby providing a crush zone for the article in each corner; transverse and longitudinal straps, each strap being wrapped around said folded preform to hold the respective top, bottom, side walls and upper protective member securely against the article thereby forming an inner container; an outer container formed from sheet-like material being substantially rectangular in shape having outer end and outer side flaps defined by first score lines, said first score lines intersecting to form corners, and end and side panels being defined by the space between the first and second score lines, said inner container being positioned on said outer container with the corner of said inner container coinciding with the corner formed by the first score lines; the end flaps and side flaps of the outer container being folded to form end panels between the first and second score line segments, said end flaps covering a portion of the upper corner protective member, said side flap being folded so that the portion of each flap between the first and second score line portions forms side panels for the outer container, said outer side flaps being folded over the outer end flaps and upper protective members with their respective edges meeting to form a seam and that closes the outer container. The seam can be sealed with adhesive tape.  
           [0015]    In yet another aspect, the materials from which the foregoing packaging members are formed are preferably paperboard, corrugated paperboard, or foamed plastic, or corrugated plastic. The foamed plastic may be foamed polystyrene, foamed polyethylene or another foamable polymer.  
           [0016]    In a still further aspect, the present invention is a method for packaging fragile articles which provides impact resistance for corners comprising the steps of placing the article to be protected on a rectangular, sheet-like preform that has a pair of spaced apart slots or slits in each side of said preform, the pairs of slits being spaced apart from the corners of the perform; folding the flaps upwardly and over the article using the article as a guide for the folding edge for the flaps, or using prescored flaps or by scoring the flaps on the machine, said preform having a greater horizontal surface area than the article so that the corners of the preform extend beyond the corners of the article; holding the flaps in position thereby holding the article securely within the flaps; positioning an upper corner protective member over the article, said upper member being sized and positioned so that its corners are vertically spaced apart from and parallel and coincident to the corners of the preform, said corners extending beyond the corners of the article, and positioning the preform with the article thereupon in a container having interior dimensions to snugly receive the corners of said preform and upper protective member; and thereafter closing said outer container. In a further embodiment of the method, a step of strapping the folded flaps of the preform and the upper corner protective member to form an inner container with the article sandwiched therebetween is performed.  
           [0017]    The invention generally provides a system for protecting articles that must remain as free of distortions as possible; and, the invention may be better understood by reference to the drawings, which are described below. 
       
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0018]    The drawings which are appended hereto and made a part of this disclosure are provided by way of illustration and do not limit the scope of the invention. In the drawings:  
         [0019]    [0019]FIG. 1 is a plan view from above of the outer carton or container in an unfolded flattened position;  
         [0020]    [0020]FIG. 2 is a plan view of the preform for the inner container of the present invention;  
         [0021]    [0021]FIG. 3 is a plan view showing the article to be packaged positioned on the preform of FIG. 2;  
         [0022]    [0022]FIG. 4 is the same as the view of FIG. 3 except with the top pad positioned over the article  
         [0023]    [0023]FIG. 5 is the plan view of FIG. 4 with the end and side flaps folded;  
         [0024]    [0024]FIG. 6 is the same view as FIG. 5 but straps have been applied to secure the folded flaps;  
         [0025]    [0025]FIG. 6 a  is an exploded view of the package of the present invention showing the arrangement of the flattened outer carton, the preform, the article, and the upper protective member or pad in superposed position;  
         [0026]    [0026]FIG. 6 b  is a view showing the inner package of the present invention as viewed in FIG. 6 positioned in the outer carton;  
         [0027]    [0027]FIG. 6 c  is a view showing the inner package positioned on the unfolded outer container and being located within the score lines;  
         [0028]    [0028]FIG. 6 d  is a view showing the end flaps of the outer container being folded upwardly over the inner container;  
         [0029]    [0029]FIG. 6 e  is a view showing the completion of the folding of one end flap while the other is in position to be folded; and  
         [0030]    [0030]FIG. 6 f  shows the closing of the package with the outer edge flaps of the outer container completing their folding operation. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION  
       [0031]    Referring now to FIG. 1, a preferred embodiment of the invention will be described which provides a surprisingly effective impact resistant package. Outer is carton or container or receptacle  1  is shown in lay flat position before folding. Score lines  2  and  2 ′ are shown as a parallel pair of score lines with the inner score line  2  defining a rectangle and connecting the corners which are formed by the intersection of end flaps  3  and side flaps  4 . The outer container is preferably constructed from corrugated paperboard wherein flutes are sandwiched between sheets of kraft paper. However, paperboard sheet may be used as well as foamed plastic sheets such as foam polystyrene, foamed polyethylene or any suitable foamable polymers or corrugated plastics.  
         [0032]    [0032]FIG. 2 shows inner container or carton preform  5  having adjustable width side flaps  7  that are formed by the spaced apart slits or slots  7 ′ on the longitudinal sides of the preform. The space between slits and the length of the slits may be varied as desired. Flaps  6  on the transverse sides of the preform are formed by the slits or slots  6 ′. Protective corners  8  are provided at each of the four corners of the preform  5 . This inner carton or container preform  5  can also be formed from paperboard, corrugated paperboard, or a foamed polymer or corrugated plastic.  
         [0033]    In FIG. 3, article  9  is shown placed upon the preform  5  and being positioned centrally thereupon. The article has an end edge  11 , a side edge  10 , and corners  23  which are to be protected. The article  9  is, in a preferred embodiment, a stack of thin aluminum sheets, photograph paper, or planographic printing plates. Such a stack is shown in European Patent Application EP 1,207,122A2. This stack may be between about ½″ to about 1½″ tall or taller and comprise 15 to 150 sheets. Typically the sheets are interleaved with protective paper tissue. The sheets are those type used at many applications, particularly printing as described in the aforementioned patent application. The article  9  may be over wrapped with a light protective sheet of aluminum foil coated kraft paper laminate as shown in European Patent Application EP 1,081,550A1. As an alternate, the article may be wrapped in a black plastic film, which is light protective.  
         [0034]    In FIG. 4, the “dog-bone” shaped upper pad member  14  has been positioned over article  9 . The corners  15  of the pad  14  (see FIG. 5 also) correspond to the respective corners in preform  5 .  
         [0035]    In FIG. 5 the side flaps  7  and end flaps  6  are shown folded over the sides of article  9  and over pad  14  the top of article  9 . The article itself may be used as the folding guide so that the preform  5  need not be pre-scored. Thus, article  9  may vary in width and length and the flaps, which are adjustable or variable in their lengths, will accommodate the changes in dimensions. The flaps in this folded over position are held in folded position over protective member  14  as shown in FIGS. 5, 6,  6   a , and  6   b . Then, plastic or glass fiber straps  12  and  13  are applied so that the article  9  is secured within the folded inner package  17  and the article cannot move with respect to the perform  5  or member  14 . As can be seen when the flaps  6  and  7  are folded in this manner and securely held, the four corners  8  project outwardly beyond corners  23  of the article and they form top and bottom pads. Tape could be used instead, but; straps are preferred because they will not adhere to the light protective wrapping material which they might contact the article and the straps can be readily removed without pulling on or disrupting the integrity of the material around which they are is secured.  
         [0036]    In FIGS. 4 and 5 the upper corner protective member  14  or “dog bone” is shown positioned over Article  9 . (See FIG. 3). This is a member that can be formed from corrugated paperboard, foamed plastic, corrugated plastic, or paperboard. These four materials, as mentioned, are all preferable because of their resilience and ability to withstand impact yet provide a cushioning effect. The upper preform  14  has four corners  15  or “ears” which are connected by the central connecting member  16 . The corner-to-corner dimensions of upper corner protective member  15  in longitudinal and transverse directions match the dimensions of inner package  17  and the longitudinal and transverse spacing of corners  8 . The dog bone shape can be formed from a rectangular sheet by removing material between the ears to form the ears and connecting member.  
         [0037]    Referring next to FIG. 6 a , the exploded view shows the assembly of the preferred package and the superposed alignment of the package components. FIG. 6 b  shows the inner package  17 , which is the package of FIG. 6 as it is to be placed onto the outer container form  1 . Thus, between FIGS. 6 a  and  6   b  the article  9  has been placed on preform  5  and transverse or end flaps  6  and longitudinal or side flaps  7  have been folded over article  9  and member  14  and strapped in place to form package  17 .  
         [0038]    [0038]FIG. 6 c  shows the inner package  17  positioned on the outer container  1  with all four corners  8  coinciding with or being coextensive with the respective four corners  15  of the upper protective member  14  as it is positioned over the article  9  in a superimposed configuration held by straps  12  and  13  as shown in FIG. 5. The positioning of these corners and their alignment is shown by the arrows in FIGS. 6 a  and  6   b.    
         [0039]    In FIG. 6 c , the crush zone  18  is shown and it is represented by the space between the two arrow heads, which is the space between the shadow line  9 ′, which is the edge of article  9 , and the margin of the respective protection member. As can be seen in FIG. 6 c , there are no restraining members of the package adjacent the corners of the article  9  that can apply force to the corner area of the article in the event of an impact, because the flaps which do hold the article in place on the perform are substantially removed from the corner. Thus, no shock is likely to be transmitted directly to a corner of the article. (In other words, only in catastrophic complete destruction of the package would impact damage occur to the corners of the article.) If a blow is received on this corner the force of the blow will be absorbed by the outer carton  1  first and then by the corners of the upper and lower protective members without disturbing the corner of the article. Thus, the article  9  is protected as it is sandwiched between protective members  8  and  15  that form crush zone  18 . As can be appreciated, the protection member  14  and  15  not only provide a corner “crush zone” but they also provide the end and side crush zones.  
         [0040]    The article also is protected on its vertical end and sidewalls by the sidewall formed by flaps  7  when folded and end wall protection provided by flaps  6  when folded. Both flaps  6  and  7  provide top surface protection to the top of article  9  in combination with the connector portion  16  of upper member  14 . (See FIG. 6).  
         [0041]    Looking now at FIG. 6 d , the end flaps  3  are folded upwardly from the inner set of score lines  2  and then in FIG. 6 e  the flap  3  is folded over from the outer score line  2 ′ which forms fold line  19  and the space between the score lines  2  and  2 ′ as folded provides the end panel  20 . A similar operation takes place in FIG. 6 f  where flap  4  is folded over first from the inner score line  2  (not shown) and then from the line  22  formed by outer score line  2 ′ to close the package as shown by the arrows as it rotates down to meet the other flap. Vertical side panel  21  is formed by the space between score lines. Once folded, these flaps  4  form a tight seam as their longitudinal edges abut which can be sealed with an adhesive tape. The resulting package, which is the preferred embodiment, is formed with corrugated paperboard and provides protection for the article therein for shipping and for storage. In placing the inner container  17  within an outer receptacle or wrapping an outer receptacle around the outer container, the important feature is that both upper and lower corner protective members are restrained from movement within the receptacle so that impact shock is absorbed by the crush zone portion of the protective members.  
         [0042]    The dog bone shape of the upper corner protective member  14  as shown in FIGS. 4 through 6 f  provides easier handling than a completely solid, rectangular sheet does and when placed in a container as shown in  6   d , not only are additional “crush zones” provided between the side edge of the article covered by flap  7  and the score line  2  from which side flap  21  rises but an area is created for wrapping the straps without direct contact of the straps to the wrapping of article  9 . The ends of the article are likewise covered and provided with crush zones.  
         [0043]    In the method of the present invention the steps of assembling the package follow the sequence described above in FIGS.  1 - 6   f . The folding can be accomplished by machine and the folding of the end and side flaps  6  and  7  as has taken place between FIGS. 4 and 5 can be done by upwardly moving fingers that fold the flaps over the ends and sides of the article and member  14  and the fingers hold the flaps while the straps are applied. Adhesive tape can also be applied here in the place of the straps but for ease of opening straps are preferred because they can be readily cut and removed from the package whereas tapes with adhesive tend to stick and would have to be peeled from the members or from the wrapping of the article  9  if contacted. Removal of adhesive tape in such an event could possibly tear the wrapping material exposing the contents to light. Also, adhesive tapes are difficult to dispose of. Thus, all steps performed in the packaging process are readily understood to preserve the integrity of the wrapping of the article  9  so that the package is not only protected from physical shock but also the possibility of a tear or rupture is significantly reduced.  
         [0044]    In the process of making the package as shown in FIGS.  1  to  6   f , the process may be characterized as one of sandwiching the article  9  between protective members, restraining the article so it cannot move with respect to the members, and then placing the sandwiched article in a conforming receptacle or container or forming a receptacle around the sandwiched article. As a result, a highly useful packaging system of a package and a process for packaging fragile articles is provided.  
         [0045]    After having read the foregoing specification and viewed the attached drawings, many embodiments and applications of the invention may become apparent to those skilled in the art but the invention is limited only by the scope of the claims as set forth below.