Abstract:
A windowed carton for use during retail sale and including a transparent internal tray for containing, positioning and displaying a product. The tray is adapted with integral support members for providing strength and rigidity to the carton.

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION  
         [0001]    This invention relates to a windowed carton for use during retail sale, and more specifically, to such a carton including a transparent internal support for containing, positioning and displaying a product such as a musical instrument while additionally providing support to the carton.  
         BACKGROUND AND OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION  
         [0002]    A common problem with windowed retail cartons is that the cut-out window used to provide a view of the product inside tends to weaken the structure of the carton and cause damage during handling.  
           [0003]    Furthermore, many such cartons fail to have sufficient rigidity to support additional cartons stacked thereon such as during shipping and stock-keeping.  
           [0004]    For these reasons, it is common to add additional support components into the carton, such as Styrofoam or cardboard blocks. Of course, this results in additional cost in both materials and environmental waste, but additionally, this results in increased shipping weight and complexity during packing and unpacking.  
           [0005]    Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a structurally improved windowed carton.  
           [0006]    It is an additional object to provide a structure for a windowed carton that lessens the material needed for adequate support.  
           [0007]    Another object is to provide a windowed carton ensemble that allows the user to easily remove the product and to properly repack it if desired.  
           [0008]    Another object is to provide an ensemble structure that allows the ensemble to be stood on end or multiply stacked.  
         SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0009]    One or more of the above mentioned objects along with other objects, are accomplished by a carton that has a planar windowed display face, a planar back face parallel to the display face, and a plurality of connecting planar side faces disposed therebetween. The carton thus defines an inner chamber for containing a product. A tray surrounds the product to fix the product into a desired location within the inner chamber and to provide protection of the product through the carton&#39;s window. The tray is transparent to provide a view of the product through the window. The tray is adapted with support members at various locations corresponding to areas of the carton which are structurally weakened by the window and which are prone to usual shipping and handling damage.  
           [0010]    Thus, the carton and tray assembly provide adequate structural support for the product within, while additionally allowing a potential purchaser to view the product within, and without additional supporting components or the additional costs associated therewith.  
           [0011]    The invention may be best understood with a view of the following drawings and description of its preferred embodiment.  
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0012]    These and other objects and features of the invention will become more apparent upon a perusal of the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings wherein:  
         [0013]    [0013]FIG. 1 generally shows a top perspective view of a windowed carton and tray ensemble according to the present invention, having a guitar disposed therein;  
         [0014]    [0014]FIG. 2 shows an exploded view of the ensemble of FIG. 1;  
         [0015]    [0015]FIG. 3 shows a front view of the ensemble of FIG. 1;  
         [0016]    [0016]FIG. 4 shows a partial side cross-sectional view of the ensemble of FIG. 1, taken at line  4 - 4  of FIG. 3;  
         [0017]    [0017]FIG. 5 shows an end cross-sectional view of the ensemble of FIG. 1, taken at line  5 - 5  of FIG. 3; and  
         [0018]    [0018]FIG. 6 shows an end cross-sectional view of the ensemble of FIG. 1, taken at line  6 - 6  of FIG. 3. 
     
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT  
       [0019]    The preferred embodiment of a windowed carton and tray ensemble  100 , including a guitar  102  contained therein is shown in FIGS.  1 - 6 . Ensemble  100  includes carton  104  and transparent tray  107 . The carton  104  is constructed of cardboard and includes a planar display face  106  including a window  110  for viewing a portion  108  of the guitar  102  therethrough. The carton  104  additionally includes a planar back face  112  parallel to the display face  106 , and a plurality of connecting planar side faces disposed therebetween, including bottom face  114 , top face  116 , and right and left side faces  120 L and  120 R, respectively. The carton  104  thus defines an inner chamber  122  for containing the tray  107  and guitar  102 . The tray  107  is constructed of a thermo-formed transparent plastic sheet, preferably polystyrene, and includes an inverted basket  124  contoured for surrounding the portion  108  of the guitar  102  and also includes a flange  126 , whose peripheral edge  130  is shaped to correspond to the inner chamber  122 , thereby rigidly positioning the guitar  102  in a desired location within the inner chamber  122  so that the portion  108  of the guitar  102  is viewable through window  110  and tray  107 , while the guitar  102  is additionally protected from tampering by the tray  107 .  
         [0020]    The tray  107  is adapted with three supporting struts  132 A through  132 C, disposed at locations corresponding to areas of the carton  104  which are structurally weakened by the window  110 . The tray is additionally adapted with supporting strut  132 D at the lower sharp corner  136  of the carton  104  which is most prone to usual shipping and handling damage. These supporting struts are formed integrally with the tray  107  and of material otherwise already used by the tray  107  and are therefore provided without additional cost. They provide sufficient structural support to allow the carton  104  to be stood on end during retail display, as shown in FIG. 1, or to be stacked during shipping and stock-keeping.  
         [0021]    It should also be appreciated that the shape of carton  104  somewhat mimics the general shape of the guitar  102 , and the position of the guitar  102  within the carton  104  renders the guitar&#39;s strings  140  viewable through the window  110 . In fact, except for the tamper protection afforded by the transparent tray  107 , the strings  140  would be accessible to the potential purchaser. This arrangement does however allow the potential user to simulate the holding and use of the guitar  102  without removing the guitar  102  from the carton  104  and without actually touching the strings  140 , which is found to be an incentive during the purchasing decision.  
         [0022]    The afore-described carton and tray ensemble is merely the preferred of an infinite variety of embodiments of the invention and it should be understood that the true scope of the invention should only be limited by the following claims and equivalents thereto.