CAN MULTI-PACKAGE

Abstract: A package (10) comprises a number of cans (14) or other containers arranged in an array of ranks and rows and a one piece carrier (12) having container encircling bands (20, 22) and apertures (16, 18) located on the cylindrical body portions between the ends of the containers (14) and extending between every pair of adjacent containers (14) to connect the array of containers (14) together to provide a stable, easy to carry package. Each container (14) is held individually without the carrier (12) engaging its chime, and the carrier (12) is not readily divisible without destroying the integrity of the package. A handle (30) is provided along one edge for carrying the package.

Description: The present invention relates to packages with carriers, and more particularly to a package with a carrier for assembling a predetermined number of cylindrical cans or containers and which contacts the containers at a position intermediate their ends. Carriers are well known and have been used in various forms for connecting together a predetermined number of containers, usually six, for ease of carrying. These carriers are normally constructed from a single piece of deformable plastic and are designed to engage the top rim or "chime" of each can. Such carriers are shown, for example, in US-A-2,874,835 and US-A-3,874,502. It is also well known to employ carriers for assembling a larger number of containers, usually twelve. Such a carrier is shown, for example, in US-A-4,018,331. Additionally, a package of 12 containers may be unstable or difficult to carry, and in US-A-4,269,308; US-A-4,385,691 and US-A-4,520,924 conventional carriers are used at the chimes to connect adjacent containers and, in addition, plastic encircling bands are shown and described contacting the containers between their ends to hold all 12 in close contiguous relationship whilst providing a handle for ease of carrying. The main drawback with these existing carriers is the ease with which one may separate a 12 pack into two 6 packs by cutting the carrier or encircling band itself. This condition is not favoured by bottlers since it destroys the integrity of the carrier and defeats the purpose of a 12 pack package. Additionally, can manufacturers often find it necessary to slightly neck the top of each can just beneath the chime. This necking exists in the form of one, two, three or four steps, depending on the type of can, and this significantly reduces the diameter of the top of each can. Accordingly, existing carriers must provide sufficient distance between successive can apertures which encircle the can tops so that the can's longitudinal axes all remain parallel after assembly, otherwise a "tipping" condition occurs. Moreover, due to these different can chime and neck arrangements, it becomes necessary to alter each carrier slightly properly to engage the various arrangements which raises inventory and manufacturing costs. In US 3,314,712 a container carrier is disclosed in which the containers are held about a cylindrical part of their body. It is also most desirable to provide an easy means for carrying the 12 pack, preferably by a handle rather than mere finger holes due to the extra weight involved. Handles cannot be incorporated into a top chime engaging carrier alone due to its unstable position at the top edge of the container and have heretofore been placed on the encircling band. According to this invention a package comprises a package comprising a plurality of containers arranged in an array of ranks and rows, each container having a generally cylindrical body portion, and a one-piece carrier comprising a resilient elastic deformable sheet of plastics material, a plurality of container encircling bands of predetermined width defining a plurality of reconfigurable container receiving and gripping apertures arranged in ranks and rows, a plurality of lateral axes between each adjacent pair of ranks and a plurality of longitudinal axes perpendicular to the lateral axes and passing through each aperture in a given row, a plurality of lateral webs lying on each lateral axis and a plurality of longitudinal webs lying parallel to the longitudinal axis the lateral webs consisting of the container encircling bands in the region between each adjacent aperture in a given row, and the longitudinal webs consisting of the container encircling bands in the region between each adjacent aperture in a given rank, in which the receiving and gripping apertures of the carrier contact the containers substantially in the middle of the cylindrical body portions of the containers, the carrier extending between every pair of adjacent containers to connect the array of containers together to provide a stable, easy to carry package in which each container is held individually without the carrier engaging its chime, whereby the containers are held closely adjacent each other, characterised in that the longitudinal webs are substantially the same width as the bands and the lateral webs are less than twice the width of the bands so that the package is not easily divisible whilst retaining the containers in their respective apertures. A package in accordance with this invention is difficult to divide as a result of the positioning of the carrier in the middle of the body of the containers and it remains stable even after several containers have been removed. Furthermore, contact by rubbing of the containers together is reduced as a result of the positioning of the carrier. The location of the carrier also permits use of a single size for all similar body diameter can sizes regardless of the type of chimes or necks employed by the manufacturer. Additionally, the containers cannot "tip" since the carrier engages their middle and less detail is needed in the spacing of apertures. Finally, "pistoning" and "skewing", which refer to vertical and horizontal movement between the cans respectively, are eliminated since the carrier is a single unit which holds the cans closely and tightly together. A particular example of a package in accordance with this invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 is a perspective view of a package; Figure 2 is a plan of the package; and, Figure 3 is a plan of the carrier. Referring now to the drawings in greater detail, there is illustrated in Figure 1 a package unit 10 constructed according to the teachings of the present invention. The unit 10 consists of a plastic carrier 12 and a plurality of containers 14 which are normally cylindrical aluminum beverage containers but can be any type of container which has a generally cylindrical portion of length suitable for the carrier to engage, regardless of the cross section of the container. The carrier 12, as illustrated in Figure 3, is formed from a blank of uniform thickness and includes oval shaped side row apertures 16 and lemon shaped center row apertures 18 arranged generally in ranks and are defined by a series of interconnecting bands 20 and 22 respectively. Although these shapes are desirable for effective gripping of the containers, it is to be understood that similar shapes may be employed without departing from the teachings of the present invention. These apertures 16 and 18 are also designed to have a peripheral extent, defined by the inner margin of each band 20 and 22, to be less than the peripheral extent of the cylindrical body portion of the container to be associated therewith. The apertures 16 and 18 of the carrier 12, are basically defined by a series of lateral and longitudinal axes. In the preferred embodiment illustrated in Figure 3, three rank axes A1, A2 and A3 are illustrated which separate the carrier 12 into fourths in a lateral direction. Similarly, row axes A4, A5 and A6 bisect each rank including the apertures 16 and 18 as well as the bands 20 and 22 and run in a longitudinal direction perpendicular to axes A1, A2 and A3. Accordingly, as can be discerned by examining Figure 3, the axes of the carrier 12 intersect and form lateral webs 24 and 26 which are situated on the lateral axes A1, A2 and A3 while longitudinal webs 28 connect adjacent pairs of apertures in a given rank. Normally, a chime engaging carrier for a container having a necked portion is designed so that the lateral webs 24 and 26 are wider than the width of the band portions 20 and 22 of a carrier 12 and is approximately twice the width while the thickness of the carrier 12 remains uniform throughout. This limitation is critical since it prevents the "tipping" problems mentioned above. If these sections are made too narrow, a necked chime carrier will force adjacent cans to tip toward each other since the distance between apertures is less than the distance between the container walls themselves. The design of wide lateral webs is illustrated, for example, in US-A-4,-018,331. In this disclosure, although the longitudinal webs were proximate in width to the band itself, the lateral webs were significantly wider and were approximately twice the width of the bands. In the present invention, the thickness of the carrier 12 remains uniform throughout while the lateral webs 24 and 26 can be reduced in width from previous lateral webs since the carrier 12 engages along the length of the containers. These webs 24 and 26 are considerably less than twice the width of the bands 20 and 22 and are proximate the width of longitudinal webs 28. This significantly reduces the amount of material used per carrier while providing a universal carrier which can be used for any similar container regardless of its chime or neck arrangement. The reduced width of the lateral webs 24 and 26 together with the position of the carrier 12 along the container length also prevents several undesirable conditions. For example, any abrasion of the containers caused by rubbing together is eliminated since the carrier is positioned along their length which only permits adjacent containers to contact each other near their ends. Additionally, no extra encircling band is needed for stability and when one or several containers are removed, the 12 pack arrangement remains intact. Furthermore, "pistoning" and "skewing" between adjacent cans is eliminated. More importantly, separation of the carrier is virtually impossible for several reasons. First, the position of the carrier is located so far from the ends of the container that it inhibits a cutter from reaching the carrier. Second, since the containers are now held so close together, it is difficult for a cutter to be inserted between them. Finally, cutting of a lateral web will usually result in the piercing of a band defining an aperture since the bands engage the containers in a manner different from previous carriers. If a band is cut, the ability to sub-group the multi-package into two or more multi-packages is significantly lessened. More specifically, due to the increased width of the lateral webs 24 and 26 of previous carriers, the bands 20 and 22 were able to engage and fully contact the entire circumference of each can 14 while still having enough lateral web width to provide sufficient spacing of the containers. These webs normally conform to a "U" shape after application to the cans 14. In the present invention, due to the decreased width of lateral webs 24 and 26, a "U" shape does not normally occur which prevents bands 20 and 22 from fully contacting the entire circumference of each can 14. Here, the bands 20 and 22 are somewhat pulled away from the containers 14 near each lateral web 24 and 26 and an attempt to cut the carrier here can pierce the aperture which will cause the can to be released by the band. It is this combination of tight lateral spacing, reduced band contact area and intermediate container contact which makes carrier sepation extremely difficult, if not impossible, while maintaining enough stability to properly hold each container. The carrier 12 also has a handle 30 integrally formed to one of its outer edges. The preferred embodiment shows such a handle 30 placed along one longitudinal side of the carrier 12, but placement along a lateral side of the carrier 12 can readily be accomplished while performing the same function. It is to be noted that the handle 30 spans the two intermediate ranks of the carrier 12 which lie between axes A1 and A3 and in fact extends past these two axes to engage the bands 20 which define the apertures 16 of the two end ranks. Previous handle means terminated somewhat before axes A1 and A3 but are extended in the present invention to more equally bear the load and eliminate stress within the carrier 12. In operation, an array of cylindrical cans, preferably twelve, is placed beneath the carrier 12 which is deformed by stretching jaws of a carrier applying mechanism (not shown) which then forces the carrier bands 20 and 22 down to a position generally midway along the body of the cans to provide the necessary frictional holding power and stability for the package. Additional features of the carrier 12 include several apertures 32 placed along axes A1, A2 and A3 between successive ranks as well as smaller apertures 34 placed near the handle 30. These apertures 32 and 34 create the individual bands holding each can, provide proper deformation during stretching and reduce the weight and material of the carrier.

Claims: A package (10) comprising a plurality of containers (14) arranged in an array of ranks and rows, each container (14) having a generally cylindrical body portion, and a one-piece carrier (12) comprising a resilient elastic deformable sheet of plastics material, a plurality of container encircling bands (20,22) of predetermined width defining a plurality of reconfigurable container receiving and gripping apertures (16,18) arranged in ranks and rows, a plurality of lateral axes (A1,A2,A3) between each adjacent pair of ranks and a plurality of longitudinal axes (A4,A5,A6) perpendicular to the lateral axes (A1,A2,A3) and passing through each aperture (16,18) in a given row, a plurality of lateral webs (24,26) lying on each lateral axis (A1,A2,A3) and a plurality of longitudinal webs (28) lying parallel to the longitudinal axis (A4,A5,A6) the lateral webs (24,26) consisting of the container encircling bands (20,22) in the region between each adjacent aperture (16-16:18-18) in a given row, and the longitudinal webs consisting of the container encircling bands (20,22) in the region between each adjacent aperture (16-18-16) in a given rank, in which the receiving and gripping apertures (16,18) of the carrier (12) contact the containers (14) substantially in the middle of the cylindrical body portions of the containers (14), the carrier (12) extending between every pair of adjacent containers (14) to connect the array of containers together to provide a stable, easy to carry package in which each container (14) is held individually without the carrier (12) engaging its chime, whereby the containers (14) are held closely adjacent each other, characterised in that the longitudinal webs (28) are substantially the same width as the bands (20,22) and the lateral webs (24,26) are less than twice the width of the bands (20,22) so that the package (10) is not easily divisible whilst retaining the containers (14) in their respective apertures (16,18). A package according to claim 1, wherein the array of containers (14) includes three rows and four ranks. A package according to claim 1 or 2, further comprising a carrying handle (30) formed integrally with the carrier (12). A package according to claim 3 when dependent upon claim 2, wherein the handle (30) is located on one of the longitudinal sides of the package and has a length which spans and is connected to all of the ranks. A package according to any one of the preceding claims, further comprising a plurality of apertures (32) each located at an intersection of the lateral axes (A, A2, A3) and lines parallel to and spaced between the longitudinal axes (A4, A5, A6).

Inventors: KLYGIS, MINDAUGAS JULIUS,
Applicants: ILLINOIS TOOL WORKS INC.
Application year: 1987
Main classification: B65D71
IPC codes: B65D71