Gable-top container

Abstract: A top closure arrangement for an oblong rectangular, gable top container 12, wherein selected score lines 34, 36, 38, 42 and 44 are formed on the wider top panels 30 defining panel segments 46 to 54 for inward folding during the sealing process. A pour spout fitment is mounted on one of the narrower, outer, top panels 22 for more convenient handling of the container 12 by the consumer during the pouring process.

Description: This invention relates generally to fluid-carrying containers and, more particularly, to an improved top closure arrangement for an oblong rectangular cross-section, gable-top character container. For gable-top paperboard containers having an oblong rectangular cross-section, the conventional sealing fins extend across the centre of the top of the oppositely disposed wider body panels. When a capped pouring spout fitment is to be mounted on one of the wider top panels, manually gripping across the wider body panels for pouring the contents of the container is not convenient or easy for most consumers. Accordingly, it would be advantageous for gripping the container to have sealing fins extending across the centre of the top of the oppositely disposed narrower body panels, with the pouring spout fitment mounted on one of the narrower top panels. As such, the convenience of handling would be comparable to the handling of a gable top rectangular container with an integral pouring spout, such as shown in US-A-4,390,121; in the flat top rectangular containers shown in US-A-4,911,306; US-A-4,785,993; US-A-5,029,713; and US-A-5, 086, 928; and also in the slant top rectangular containers shown in EP-B-0,491,759, GB-A-2,253,611, and US-A-4,971,243. According to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a container including two oppositely disposed wider body panels, two wider top panels adjacent the respective wider body panels, two oppositely disposed narrower body panels, two narrower top panels adjacent the respective narrower body panels, and a top closure seal which comprises sealing fins sealed between other sealing fins, characterized in that the first-mentioned sealing fins are on the wider top panels and said other sealing fins are on the narrower top panels. Owing to this aspect of the invention it is possible to provide a top closure arrangement for a rectangular cross-section container of gable top character, wherein the external sealing fins are formed across the centre of the top of oppositely disposed narrower top panels. According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a container including two oppositely disposed wider body panels, two wider top panels adjacent the respective wider body panels, two oppositely disposed narrower body panels, two narrower top panels adjacent the respective narrower body panels, pouring means provided on one of the top panels, and a top closure seal, characterized in that the seal extends from one to the other of the wider top panels. Owing to this aspect of the invention it is possible to provide an improved top closure arrangement for a rectangular cross-section container of gable-top character, having pouring means, e.g. a pour spout fitment, provided on a top panel thereof. In a preferred embodiment of the invention, a top closure arrangement of a rectangular, gable top container includes selected score lines formed on two wider top panels and defining panel segments for inward folding during the sealing process, with pouring means, e.g. a pour spout fitment, provided on one of two narrower, top panels for more convenient handling of the container by the consumer during the pouring process. In order that the invention may be clearly understood and readily carried into effect, reference will now be made, by way of example, to the accompanying drawings, wherein:- Figure 1 is a fragmentary plan view of a blank for forming a gable-top container; Figure 2 is a fragmentary perspective view of a top closure of a container formed from the blank of Figure 1, and shown in a partially closed condition; Figure 3 is a fragmentary perspective view of the container top closure of Figure 2, but completely closed; Figure 4 is a fragmentary plan view of a modification of the Figure 1 structure; and Figure 5 is a fragmentary perspective view of the container top closure of Figure 4, but completely closed. Referring now to the drawings in greater detail, Figure 1 illustrates a thermoplastics-coated paperboard blank 10 for forming the rectangularly-cross-sectioned container 12 illustrated in Figures 2 and 3. The blank 10 includes two wider body panels 14 and two narrower body panels 16, separated by vertical score lines 18. The top closure arrangement 20 includes a narrower, rectangular, top panel 22 separated by a horizontal score line 24 from each narrower body panel 16. A sealing fin 26 is separated by a horizontal score line 28 from each panel 22. A pouring spout fitment, represented as 29', is mounted in a hole 29 in one of the narrower panels 22 in any convenient manner, such as shown and described in US-A-5,267,934, or in US-A-5,435,803. A foldable, wider, rectangular, top panel 30 is separated by a horizontal score line 32 from each wider body panel 14. The panel 30 includes symmetrical upwardly converging diagonal score lines 34 extending from each intersection of the score lines 32 and 18 to horizontal score lines 36 extending from the respective adjacent score lines 28. Additional symmetrical upwardly converging score lines 38 extend from each intersection of the score lines 32 and 18 to intersect at a point 40 midway across the panel 30. Symmetrical upwardly diverging score lines 42 extend from the intersection point 40 to the free edge of the panel 30, passing through the intersecting ends of the score lines 34 and 36. A central vertical score line 44 extends upwardly from the intersection point 40 to the free edge of the panel 30. Sealing fins 46 are enclosed by the score lines 18, 36 and 42 and the free edge of the panel 30. The score lines 18, 34 and 36 define panel segments 48. The score lines 34, 38 and 42 define panel segments 50. The score lines 42 and 44 and the free edge of the panel 30 define panel segments 52. The score line 32 and the two score lines 38 define a panel segment 54. In the last of the phases in which the blank 10 is folded to form the container 12, each panel 30 is folded along its various score lines as follows. Each of the panel segments 48, 50 and 54 protrudes inwardly, and the dual panel segments 52 protrude outwardly within the confines of the panel segments 46, 48, 50 and 54. The sealing fins 46 extend toward one another to confine the upper portions of the panel segments 52 therebetween. The sealing fins 26 above the panels 22 progressively approach each other (Figure 2) until they confine the sealing fins 46 and upper portions of the panel segments 52 between their outer end portions, and directly engage each other at their central portions (Figure 3). The bottom closure (not shown) is a conventional closure arrangement, such as shown and described in US-A-3,498,524, incorporated herein by reference. Inasmuch as the free edges 60 of each panel 30 between the ends of the sealing fins 46 are aligned with the free edges 62 of the latter on the blank 10 (Figure 1), the free edges 60 dip downwardly, as may be noted in Figure 2, during the folding process. The adjacent upper portions of the panel segments 52 that are sealed as described above are triangularly shaped between the sealing fins 46, since the free edges 60 dip downwardly. If it should be desirable that the free edges 60 and 62 be aligned after folding, for a more uniform sealing configuration, as shown in Figure 5, each panel 30 of the blank 10 of Figure 4 is formed to include upwardly converging free edges 60a, thereby extending the panel segments 52a. It is apparent that the embodiments described with reference to the drawings provide an oblong rectangular gable-top character container (which may be of slant-top character) which includes a top seal which extends across the width of the oppositely disposed narrower body panels, rather than the conventional top seal which is parallel to the wider body panels. As such, the carton may be more readily and easily handled by the consumer while pouring the contents of the carton, than if the top seal were to extend across the wider panels, with pouring means located on one of the wider panels. It should be further apparent that the present panel 30 may be provided at one wider side of a container top closure with a conventional folded and sealed gable top arrangement, such as shown and described in US-A-3,116,002 (incorporated herein by reference), included in the other wider side of the container to provide a conventional integral and openable pour spout. There are many possibilities within the teachings of the invention. For example, the pouring means may take the form of the pour spout fitment 29' or a hatch fitment closing the pouring hole 29 formed through the narrower closure panel or covering a narrower closure panel zone through which a consumer will form a pouring hole. Alternatively, the pouring means may take the form of a tear zone which can be torn by a consumer to reveal or form a pouring hole through a narrower closure panel.

Claims: A container including two oppositely disposed wider body panels (14), two wider top panels (30) adjacent the respective wider body panels (14), two oppositely disposed narrower body panels (16), two narrower top panels (22) adjacent the respective narrower body panels (16), and a top closure seal which comprises sealing fins (46) sealed between other sealing fins (26), characterized in that the first-mentioned sealing fins (46) are on the wider top panels (30) and said other sealing fins (26) are on the narrower top panels (22). A container including two oppositely disposed wider body panels (14), two wider top panels (30) adjacent the respective wider body panels (14), two oppositely disposed narrower body panels (16), two narrower top panels (22) adjacent the respective narrower body panels (16), pouring means (29,29') provided on one (22) of the top panels (22,30), and a top closure seal, characterized in that the seal extends from one to the other of the wider top panels (14). A container according to claim 2, wherein said seal comprises sealing fins (46) on the wider top panels (30) sealed between other sealing fins (26) on the narrower top panels (22). A container according to claim 1 or 3, wherein the sealing fins (26) on the narrower top panels (22) comprise a sealing fin (26) on each of said narrower top panels (22) and extending full width, and the sealing fins (46) on the wider top panels (30) comprise a pair of sealing fins (46) on each of said wider top panels (30), the pairs (46) being spaced apart from each other. A container according to claim 4, wherein panel segments (48-54) of each wider top panel (30) comprise a central in-folded triangular panel segment (54), two adjacent in-folded triangular panel segments (48,50) on each side of the central in-folded triangular panel segment (54), and two adjacent out-folded triangular panel segments (52) intermediate the two sets of two in-folded triangular panel segments (48,50) on the respective sides of the central in-folded triangular panel segment (54). A container according to claim 5, wherein, for each wider top panel (30), said two adjacent out-folded triangular panel segments (52) have their apices (40) positioned at the apex (40) of said central in-folded triangular panel segment (54), and the sides (60) opposite the apices (40) positioned between the sealing fins (46) on the wider top panel (30). A container according to claim 6, wherein, for each wider top panel (30), each two adjacent in-folded triangular panel segments (48,50) have apices which meet at a corner between the adjacent wider body panel (14) and the wider top panel (30), and sides (36,42) opposite the apices which lie against sides (36,42) of one of the sealing fins (46) and one of the out-folded triangular panel segments (52), respectively. A container according to claim 6 or 7, wherein, for each wider top panel (30), said sides (60) opposite the apices (40) of the out-folded triangular panel segments (52) are sealed between the sealing fins (46) on said wider top panel (30). A container according to any one of claims 5 to 8, and further comprising score lines (34,38,42) formed on each of said wider top panels (30) to bound the panel segments (48-54). A container according to claim 2 or 3, or any one of claims 4 to 9 as appended to claim 2, wherein said pouring means (29,29') comprises a pouring spout fitment (29').

Inventors: PAPE LESLIE, SHOWLER MICHAEL F, PAPE, LESLIE, SHOWLER, MICHAEL F.
Applicants: ELOPAK SYSTEMS, ELOPAK SYSTEMS AG
Application year: 1997
Main classification: B65D5
IPC codes: B65D5