Combination shipping container and display box

A combination shipping container and compartmented display box capable of being formed from a single-piece paperboard as corrugated board blank is disclosed. The blank is suitable for erection into a rigid, multi-layered container having a plurality of compartments formed by interlocking divider walls and a top or cover portion which is separable from the bottom portion defining the open top, compartmented display box. Means are provided for separating the divider walls which form the compartments from the blank and, for separating the top or cover portion of the container from the display box.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
This invention relates generally to a new and useful container. More 
particularly, it relates to a combination shipping container and 
compartmented display box formed from a single-piece blank of foldable 
paperboard or corrugated board. The various components making up the 
entire container are included in, and, some are separable from, the blank. 
That is to say, the divider walls which, along with the side, front, and 
back walls, define the compartments of the display box can be detached 
from the blank as initially formed. Also, the fold line by which the outer 
body portion defining the cover section or top of the container is 
hingedly connected to the bottom portion defining the display box is 
provided with a continuous line of perforations that permit separation or 
removal of the top portion. The resultant containers are so constructed 
that several of them can be stacked, one on the other, without damage to 
their contents. 
In transporting packaged consumer goods to market, it is usually necessary 
that the containers utilized be of rugged construction. Such containers of 
goods should be capable of being transported from the manufacturer to the 
distributer or retailer without damage. Again, if empty containers had to 
be assembled prior to shipment to the manufacturer who would then fill 
them with the packaged goods, there would, of course, be resultant dead 
space which would force either reduction of the size of the shipment per 
unit of shipping space or an increase thereof at greater cost per order of 
containers. This problem is usually resolved by shipping the blanks, from 
which the containers are to be made, flat and stacked one on another. 
Again, such containers should, preferably, be made from one-piece blanks, 
since containers made from more than one blank obviously require 
additional labor in assembling and handling and, therefore, added expense. 
Accordingly, it is an object of this invention to provide a rugged 
combination shipping container and display box capable of being formed 
from a one-piece blank which overcomes the aforesaid shipping and handling 
problems. 
Another object of this invention is to provide a combination shipping 
container and display box in which the outer portion defining the cover 
section of the display box is divided from it by a line of perforations 
extending laterally along the top edge of the back wall of the display box 
to permit its removal from the lower portion defining the display box. 
The manufacturer of the goods to be packaged usually assembles the 
containers, either manually or by means of appropriate machines, into 
their desired erected form. Therefore, simplicity of the container blank 
design is a very important factor. Obviously, the task of the manufacturer 
of the goods to be packaged is complicated if he is required to assemble 
and secure the container in its desired form by use of extraneous means 
such as staples, straps, rivets, glue, paste, etc. This problem is 
resolved by incorporating in the blank means to secure the container in 
its desired erected form. Accordingly, it is another object of this 
invention to provide a container blank of relatively simple design which 
requires a minimum of manual skill or apparatus, and no extra parts, to be 
transformed into the desired erected form. 
Once assembled and filled with the goods to be packaged whether they are in 
smaller boxes, packets, cans, bottles, jars, bags or the like, the 
shipping containers are often stacked one on the other. For this reason, 
such containers must first be of durable construction to withstand the 
weight of other similarly filled containers which are stacked on them. 
Second, unless such containers are sturdy enough to endure not only the 
weight of numbers of like containers stacked thereon, but the duration of 
the stacking required and adverse handling and shipping circumstances, 
there is a problem of having the contents thereof damaged. Therefore, 
still another object of this invention is to provide a container wherein 
the wall thicknesses are doubled or tripled simply by overlapping elements 
of the blank when the container is erected. 
With these and other objects in view, the nature of which will be more 
apparent, the invention will be more fully understood by references to the 
attached drawings, the accompanying detailed description, and the appended 
claims.

Referring to the drawings in detail, the invention, as illustrated, is 
embodied in a combination shipping container and display box fabricated 
from corrugated board and includes a bottom portion defining a display box 
provided with interlocking divider walls normal to one another and a top 
portion defining a cover section, formed from a single, generally 
rectangular blank 1 shown in FIG. 1. 
Blank 1 is provided with a first series of substantially rectangular 
members which include the inner front wall panel 10, the outer front wall 
panel 11, the bottom panel 12, and the outer rear wall panel 13 of the 
display box, respectively. 
Said inner front wall panel 10 is hingedly connected to said outer front 
wall panel 11 by means of a first pair of narrowly spaced apart lateral 
parallel fold lines 14 and 14a which define a front wall top ledge panel 
15 disposed therebetween and is also provided with a pair of tabs 16 
spaced apart along its lateral outer edge. 
Also, in this portion of the blank which is to be made up as the display 
box, there are a pair of longitudinal slits 21 and a lateral fold line 22 
beginning at the end of and extending in a direction perpendicular to said 
slits 21 to define the intermediate front walls panels 23. The width of 
said outer front wall panel 11 and that of said lateral parallel fold line 
14 slightly exceed that of said inner front wall panel 10 and said lateral 
parallel fold line 14a, preferably by the width of a pair of longitudinal 
slots 24. 
Said bottom portion 12 is defined by and hingedly connected to outer front 
wall panel 11 along lateral fold line 17, a pair of longitudinal fold 
lines 18, and a second lateral fold line 19 and is provided with a pair of 
lateral slots 20 disposed along said lateral fold line 17 and spaced apart 
from one another so as to correspond with said inner front wall panel tabs 
16. Lateral fold line 17 is coextensive with fold lines 22 and is 
preferably perpendicular to longitudinal fold lines 18. 
In the portion of the blank from which the display box is formed there are 
included a pair of substantially pentagonal outer side wall panels 25 
hingedly connected to said bottom panel 12 by means of said first pair of 
longitudinal fold lines 18, and a pair of narrowly spaced parallel fold 
lines 26 and 26a hingedly connecting said outer side wall panels 25 to 
substantially pentagonal inner side wall panels 25a to define side wall 
top ledge panels 27 disposed therebetween. Each of the dimensions of said 
inner side wall panels 25a has dimensions slightly less than that of each 
of said outer side wall panels 25. 
The outer rear wall panel 13 is defined by said second lateral fold line 
19, a pair of longitudinal fold lines 18a which are coextensive with said 
first pair of longitudinal fold lines 18, and a perforated lateral fold 
line 28, said outer rear wall panel 13 being substantially higher than 
said front wall panel 11. A pair of substantially pentagonal intermediate 
side wall panels 29 are defined by a pair of lateral slots 30 beginning at 
and extending in a direction perpendicular to said longitudinal fold lines 
18a which hingedly connect said intermediate side wall panels 29 to said 
outer rear wall panel 13. Said intermediate side wall panels 29 have the 
same configuration as, but have dimensions slightly smaller than, those of 
said inner and outer side wall panels 25 and 25a, so as to allow the 
latter to overlap and thereby form top ledge panel 27. 
The blank is also provided with a second series of substantially 
rectangular members which comprise the top panel 31 of the cover section 
and the outer rear wall panel 32 and the inner rear wall panel 33. Said 
top panel 31 is defined by a pair of longitudinal fold lines 34, a fourth 
lateral fold line 35, and by perforated lateral fold line 28 which 
hingedly connects it to the outer rear wall panel 13 of the display box is 
formed. Top panel 31 is provided with a second pair of lateral slots 36 
spaced apart along said fourth lateral fold line 35. In this cover portion 
of the blank, there is included a pair of opposed cover section side wall 
panels 37 which are hingedly attached to said cover section top panel 31 
by means of longitudinal fold lines 34. Each of said cover section side 
wall panels 37 is provided with an intermediate rear wall panel 38 
hingedly connected thereto by means of lateral fold line 39. Said 
intermediate rear wall panels 38 are defined by said lateral fold lines 39 
and longitudinal slots 40. 
Said cover section inner rear wall panel 33 is hingedly connected to said 
cover section outer rear wall panel 32 by means of a fourth pair of 
narrowly spaced apart lateral parallel fold lines 41 and 41a which define 
a rear wall top ledge panel 42 disposed therebetween. The width of said 
cover section outer rear wall panel 32 and that of said fourth lateral 
parallel fold line 41 slightly exceed those of said cover section inner 
rear wall panel 33 and said fourth lateral parallel fold line 41a to 
permit the overlapping of said intermediate rear wall panels 38 by said 
cover section inner rear wall panel 33 when the cover section is erected. 
Cover section inner rear wall panel 33 is provided with a pair of tabs 43 
spaced apart along its outer edge and is hingedly connected along the 
inner edge to said cover section outer rear wall panel 32 by means of said 
fourth pair of narrowly spaced apart lateral parallel fold lines 41 and 
41a, so as to receive with said second pair of lateral slots 36 in the 
erected cover section. 
Also, in this portion of the blank which is to be made up as the cover 
section, there are included a corresponding substantially rectangular 
intersecting divider wall 44 and a substantially trapezoidal intersecting 
divider wall 45 which are detachably connected to said cover section inner 
rear wall panel 33 along its side edges by means of longitudinal 
perforated score lines 46. Said intersecting divider wall 44 is provided 
with a longitudinal slot 47 which is centrally located and extends from 
its outer edge in a direction parallel to said longitudinal perforated 
score lines 46. Said intersecting divider wall 45 is also provided with a 
longitudinal slot 48 which is centrally located and extends from its outer 
edge in a direction parallel to said longitudinal score lines 46. Slot 47 
of said intersecting divider wall 44 and slot 48 of said intersecting 
divider wall 45 are designed to be joined together, with the latter being 
substantially longer. Intersecting divider wall 45 is also provided with a 
notch 49 which is disposed along said longitudinal perforated score line 
46. Notch 49 is designed to receive divider wall 44 which, if desired, can 
ultimately be engaged therewith to serve as a display panel in the 
uncovered display box as described hereinbelow. 
In accordance with this invention, the erected combination shipping 
container and display box is formed from the blank shown in FIG. 1 in the 
following manner; the bottom portion comprising the display box is formed 
as shown in FIG. 2, by folding the outer side wall panels 25 and 25a along 
the first pair of longitudinal fold lines 18, towards the center of bottom 
panel 12, folding the intermediate front wall panels 29 forward along the 
second pair of longitudinal fold lines 18a, folding outer front wall 
panels 11 upwardly along first lateral fold line 17, folding inner front 
wall panel 10 in a forward and downward direction along first pair of 
narrowly spaced parallel fold lines 15 and 15a so that inner front wall 
panel 10 and the thusly formed front wall top ledge panel 15 is 
perpendicular thereto overlaps intermediate front wall panels 23, with 
inner front wall tabs 16 inserted into bottom panel slots 20 as seen in 
FIG. 6. Next, intersecting divider walls 44 and 45 are detached from the 
cover section inner rear wall panel 33 by severing longitudinal perforated 
score lines 46, as respectively shown in FIG. 1, and set aside. The cover 
section is formed by first folding side wall panels 37 inwardly along the 
third pair of longitudinal fold lines 34, folding said cover section 
intermediate rear wall panels 38 forward along the second pair of lateral 
fold lines 39 folding cover section outer rear wall panel 32 forward along 
fourth lateral fold line 35, and then folding cover section inner rear 
wall panel 33 forward along the fourth pair of narrowly spaced apart 
lateral fold lines 41 and 41a as seen in FIG. 3, so that the cover section 
inner rear wall panel 33 and the thusly formed rear wall top ledge panel 
42 overlap cover section intermediate rear wall panels 38, with tabs 43 
inserted into the second pair of lateral slots 36. Then, as shown 
cross-sectionally in FIGS. 6 and 7, the compartments within the display 
box are formed by engaging slots 47 and 48 of intersecting divider walls 
44 and 45, respectively. The thusly formed divider wall construction is 
thereafter placed into the display box in such a manner that the inclined 
edge of divider wall 45 is in the same plane as the side wall top ledge 
panels 27, with the two side edges of divider wall 44 abutting the 
respective inner side wall panels 25 and 25a, as shown in FIGS. 5 and 8. 
After the combination shipping container and compartmented display box is 
erected in the foregoing manner, the articles to be contained therein such 
as, for example, packets 50 may be placed in the display box as indicated 
in FIGS. 5 and 8. 
At this point, it is to be noted that the articles to be contained in the 
display box can also be glass bottles or jars. However, it is understood 
that such shipping of glass may require the use of additional separator 
panels or inserts in order to eliminate or reduce breakage which may 
result from the glass-to-glass contact. Regardless of the form of the 
contents shipped, whether packets or glass jars, the parcticular articles 
should be of a uniform height not in excess of that of the rear wall panel 
13 of the display box shown in FIGS. 5 and 8. 
Once the compartments of the display box are completely filled, the 
combination shipping container and display box may be closed by folding 
the cover section forward along perforated lateral fold line 28, as shown 
in FIG. 5. A perspective view of the outside of the completely formed and 
filled combination shipping container and display box, with the cover 
section therefor in its closed position, is shown in FIG. 4 taken along 
lines 6-8 and 7--7. 
After the filled combination shipping container and display box is received 
by the retail merchant, the contents therein may be displayed by 
separating the cover section from the display box by merely cutting along 
perforated score line 28 to produce the uncovered display box shown in 
FIG. 8. As previously indicated, if desired, divider wall 44 may also 
serve as a vertically extended display panel which can render the filled 
display box more attractive. This optional, alternate use of divider wall 
44 is effected by removing it from its initial engagement with divider 
wall 45 and mounting it onto the latter by fitting slot 47 onto notch 49. 
Thus, it becomes apparent that this invention provides a novel combination 
shipping container and display box which can readily be erected from a 
single-piece paperboard blank. The blank of the packaging unit embodied in 
this invention is of such relatively simple design and unique 
self-containing construction that the combination shipping container and 
display box formed therefrom can be erected without the aid of any 
extraneous means of securance such as staples, glue, straps, rivets, etc.