Patent Publication Number: US-2007095711-A1

Title: Protective packaging assembly

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
      1) Field of the Invention  
      The present invention relates to protective packaging assemblies, and relates more particularly to packaging assemblies which include inflatable packaging material and a rigid foldable framing element.  
      2) Description of Related Art  
      Protective packaging assemblies are often used when an object or article to be packaged requires protection from physical shock or other vibration hazards. For example, when shipping an object that is relatively fragile it is often desirable to package the object inside a box to protect the object from physical impacts that may occur during loading, transit, and unloading. To add additional protection, protective packaging material is often placed within the box. There are numerous types and forms of protective packaging material for this purpose including paper or plastic dunnage and air-cushioning or foam-cushioning structures. In general, the packaging material is intended to control the movement of the object within the box and/or provide a cushioning layer between the object and the box in order to soften or absorb the effects of a physical impact to the box.  
      In order to be effective the packaging material typically must engage enough of the object to hold it substantially in place and engage the areas of the object likely to bear the physical impact. However, concern about not having enough packaging material, often causes users to compensate by using a great deal more packaging material than necessary. Essentially, this extra packaging material is being wasted and shipped. Alternatively, a user may not use or place enough of the packaging material in the box or, more specifically, position the packaging material in the proper areas to provide for effective protection of the object during transit. Also, in many cases, the packaging material, itself, might move around during transit and, thus, create protection issues.  
      In light of the foregoing, there remains a need for a packaging assembly that is configured to support, distribute, and place protective packaging material onto and around an object to protect it against impact and other forces.  
     BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
      The present invention may address one or more of the above problems. A protective packaging assembly may have a framing element that is operatively connected to an inflatable element, such as with an adhesive or push-tabs, so that the framing element can position the inflatable element adjacent to the packaged article in a desired manner. As such, the framing element may minimize the amount of protective material required to provide adequate protection and may reduce the protective material that would otherwise be wasted by not providing any protection to the article during shipment. Furthermore, the framing element may help hold the protective material to the article during shipping and, thus, reduces the likelihood of the protective material moving relative to the article during shipment.  
      Specifically, the packaging assembly may include an outer container, an inflatable element, and a framing element. The outer container defines an interior for holding the article or articles, as well as the inflatable element and the framing element. The inflatable element may define one or more inflated cells for cushioning and protecting the article or articles against impact and other forces. The framing element has an outer peripheral shape that corresponds to at least a portion of the interior of the outer container such that the framing element may be held securely within the interior. The framing element is operatively connected to the inflatable element to position the inflatable element adjacent to the article in a predetermined manner such that the inflated cells may cushion the article.  
      According to one embodiment, the inflatable element includes at least two layers of a film material. The layers define a plurality of inflated cells. Also, the inflated cells may be interconnected.  
      One aspect of the invention is the operative connection of the inflatable element to the framing element. For example, a portion of the inflatable element may be adhered to a portion the framing element. Also, one or more foldable tabs may be used to connect the two elements or a portion of the inflatable element may be held and retained by an opening within the framing element.  
      The present invention also provides a method of constructing the packaging structure for supporting and protecting an article within the outer container. The method may include forming a rigid and foldable framing sheet and operatively connecting a sheet of inflatable material to one side of the framing sheet, and configuring the framing sheet so that the outer peripheral shape of the framing sheet engages the outer container to securely hold the framing sheet within the outer container and an inner cavity region of the framing sheet is at least partially lined with the inflatable element for receiving and cushioning the article.  
      The step of operatively connecting the sheet of inflatable material to the framing element may include adhering a portion of the inflatable material to the framing element. It may also include inserting at least a portion of the framing element through the sheet of inflatable material. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING(S)  
      Having thus described the invention in general terms, reference will now be made to the accompanying drawings, which are not necessarily drawn to scale, and wherein:  
       FIG. 1  is a top view of a framing element according to an embodiment of the present invention;  
       FIG. 2  is an exploded view of a framing element and an inflatable element according to an embodiment of the present invention;  
       FIG. 3  is a cross-sectional view taken at line  3 - 3  of  FIG. 2  of a foldable tab of the framing element in a perpendicular position extending through the inflatable element;  
       FIG. 4  is a perspective view of the packaging structure according to one embodiment of the present invention, wherein two of the side portions of the framing element are in a twice folded position;  
       FIG. 5  is the packaging structure of  FIG. 4 , wherein a third side portion is in a twice folded position;  
       FIG. 6  is the packaging structure of  FIG. 5 , wherein a fourth side portion is in a twice folded position and an outer extension area of the inflatable element extends across the top of the article;  
       FIG. 7  is a perspective view of the packaging structure of  FIG. 6  being placed within an outer container;  
       FIG. 8  illustrates three separate inflatable elements according to an embodiment of the present invention; and  
       FIG. 9  is a partial exploded view of an embodiment of the present invention having two rolled up and separate inflatable elements;  
       FIG. 10   a  is an exploded partial view of a framing element and an inflatable element according to another embodiment of the present invention, wherein the framing element defines an X-shaped opening for engaging the inflatable element; and  
       FIG. 10   b  illustrates a portion of the inflatable element being pushed through the X-shaped opening of  FIG. 10   a.   
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
      The present invention now will be described more fully hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which some, but not all embodiments of the invention are shown. Indeed, this invention may be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein; rather, these embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will satisfy applicable legal requirements. Like numbers refer to like elements throughout.  
      In general and as shown in the figures, the present invention provides a packaging assembly  10  for packaging and protecting one or more articles  11  for shipment. The assembly may include an outer container  12 , an inflatable element  16 , and a framing element  26 . The outer container  12  defines an interior for holding the article  11 , as well as the inflatable element  16  and the framing element  26 . The inflatable element  16  defines one or more inflated cells  18  for cushioning at least part of the article  11  from impact or vibration forces. The framing element  26  engages the outer container  12  such that the framing element  26  may be securely held within the interior of the outer container  12 . The framing element  26  may also be operatively connected to the inflatable element  16  to position the inflatable element  16  adjacent to the article  11  in a predetermined manner such that the inflated cells  18  cushion the article  11  when the outer container  12  is closed.  
      More specifically, the outer container  12  may be a shipping box or carton as known in the art. For example and as shown in  FIG. 7 , the outer container  12  may be a box made from cardboard. Typically, the outer container  12  has an opening and one or more walls. The walls define one or more inner surfaces and an interior for holding one or more articles and the opening provides access to the interior for placing the articles in and out of the container  12 . One or more of the walls may have movable edge portions  13  that are configured to close the opening of the container  12  and thus function as a lid or closure for the container  12 . In some embodiments, the container may further include a separate lid structure for closing the opening.  
      As shown best in  FIGS. 2 and 3 , the inflatable element  16  defines one or more inflated cells  18  for cushioning at least part of the article from impact or other forces. According to one embodiment of the present invention, the inflatable element  16  includes a first sheet of film material and a second sheet of film material. The sheets are joined together defining the plurality of cells  18  between them. The cells  18  may be inflated during the joining of the sheets or afterwards. For example, the inflatable element may be the air cellular material sold under the trade name of Bubble Wrap® by Sealed Air Corporation of Saddle Brook, N.J., wherein the cells are “inflated” by the air trapped within the cells during the manufacturing process of the material. Also, the inflatable element may be what is known in the art as NewAir I.B.™ Barrier Bubble Cushioning, wherein some of the cells are interconnected and inflated after the manufacturing process as described further in U.S. Pat. No. 6,410,119, which is incorporated herein by reference. It should be understood that the extent to which the cells may be inflated or the general volume, size and shape of the cells may vary between the cells. The varying dimensions of the cells allow the inflatable element to accommodate for the varying dimensions of the article and the framing element. The inflatable material may also be material sold under the trade names of AirCap® or Barrier Bubble®, both by Sealed Air Corporation, or other similar materials.  
      The inflatable element  16  is illustrated as having a generally cross shape with a central area  19  and four outer extension areas  22 - 25 . However, the overall shape of the inflatable element may vary between embodiments.  
       FIG. 1  illustrates a framing element  26 , according to an embodiment of the present invention. The framing element  26  may be formed of any substantially stiff material that is foldable such as paperboard, cardboard, or plastic. For example the framing element  26  may be a corrugated cardboard sheet shaped by a die-cutting process. The framing element  26  may include a central portion  28  and four foldable side portions  30 - 34 . The framing element  26  may also define a series of fold lines  36 - 43 , edge tabs  45 , and holes  46  for configuring or folding the framing element  26  such that it forms an outer peripheral shape and an inner cavity region. More specifically, according to the illustrated embodiments, each side portion  30 - 34  has a first fold line  36 - 39  that delimits the side portion  30 - 34  from the central portion  28 . Each side portion  30 - 34  may be foldable along this first fold line such that the side portion is substantially perpendicular to the central portion. Each side portion  30 - 33  may also include a pair of second fold lines  40 - 43  extending across the side portions  30 - 33  and generally parallel to the first fold lines  36 - 39 . Each side portion  30 - 33  may be foldable again along these second pair of folds lines  40 - 43  such that the distal edge  48 - 51  of each side portion extends back toward and proximate to the central portion  28 . As one in the art would appreciate, the flange portions  52 ,  53 ,  54 ,  55  extending from some of the side portions  31 ,  33  along with the edge tabs  45  and holes  46 , allow for the side portions  30 - 33  to be interlocked and supported in a generally perpendicular position to the central portion  28 , as seen in  FIGS. 4 through 7 . The central portion  28  may also include foldable tabs  34 ,  35 .  
      Although depicted as a generally rectangular shape with four sides, the overall shape and structure of the framing element may vary depending on the intended article for the outer container. More specifically, the inner cavity region may be configured to receive the article, while the outer peripheral shape may be configured to engage the outer container such the framing element may be held securely in place within the interior of the outer container. Therefore the overall shape of the framing element will typically be influenced by the shape of the article and the shape of the outer container.  
      “Securely held” as used herein generally describes the relationship between the framing element and the outer container. More specifically, the framing element is configured to correspond and engage at least a portion of an inner surface of the outer container such that the framing element is restricted from moving around within the container in at least one direction. One in the art would appreciate that the framing element may be securely held within the container and still be removable from the container or not require the compete closure of the container.  
      One aspect of the present invention is operatively connecting the framing element and the inflatable element. “Operatively connecting” as used herein generally defines creating one or more interconnections between the two elements or configuring the inflatable element to have a mutual shape with the inner cavity region of the framing element such that at least a portion of the inflatable element may be positioned and held by the framing element. For example, as shown in  FIG. 2 , a portion of the inflatable element  16  may be attached to the central portion  28  of the framing element  26  by an adhesive  60 . Also,  FIGS. 2 and 3  illustrate another interconnection between the inflatable element  16  and the framing element  26  by the foldable tabs  34 ,  35  of the framing element  26 . The foldable tabs  34 ,  35  may be foldable to a generally perpendicular position. The inflatable element  16  may engage these foldable tabs  34 ,  35  through slits  20 ,  21  defined in the inflatable element  16 . The slits  20 ,  21  and foldable tabs  34 ,  35  create another interconnection that operatively connects the inflatable element  16  to the framing element  26 .  
      Yet another example of an interconnection, according to some embodiments of the present invention, is illustrated in  FIGS. 10   a  and  10   b .  FIG. 10   a  illustrates an X-shaped opening  40  defined in the central portion  28 ′ of the framing element  26 ′. The opening  40  may be configured to receive and retain a portion of the inflatable element  16 ′ as shown by  41  in  FIG. 10   b . Although depicted as an X-shaped opening, any shape or size opening, including cuts formed in the framing elements, may be used that is configured to receive and hold a portion of the inflatable element. Also, although depicted as a two-step process, i.e. providing a framing element with an opening and then pushing the inflatable element through the opening, the process for creating such an interconnection may vary. For example, a punch or similar device may be used to push a portion of the inflatable element through the framing element and, thus, create the opening within the framing element. Pushing a portion of the inflatable element through the framing element is generally referred to herein as a “push-through tab.” 
      A portion of the inflatable element may be shaped to facilitate one or more interconnections between the framing element and the inflatable element. For example, an edge or other portion of the inflatable element may be T-shaped. The T-shaped edge may be folded and inserted through a cut in the framing element. Once inserted the T-shaped edge is unfolded and the shape of the edge supports a continuing connection between the inflatable element and the framing element.  
      Furthermore, the inflatable element and the framing element may have interlocking portions. For example, at least a portion of the edges of the inflatable element and the framing element may be dovetailed so as to interlock a portion of the edges together.  
       FIGS. 2 through 7  illustrate the packaging of an article  11  according to one embodiment of the present invention.  FIG. 2  depicts the connecting of the inflatable element  16  to the framing element  26  as described above. A portion of the central area  19  of the inflatable element  16  may be adhered to the central portion  28  of the framing element  26 , while the outer extension areas  22 - 25  may overlie the side portions  30 - 33  of the framing element  26 .  FIG. 3  illustrates one of the foldable tabs  34  extending through one of the slits  20  defined in the inflatable element  16 .  
       FIG. 4  illustrates an article  11 , such as a laptop computer, placed in a partly formed inner cavity region of the framing element  26  between the two foldable tabs  34 ,  35 . The two side portions  30 ,  32  extending parallel the edge tabs  34 ,  35  are in a twice folded position forming generally perpendicular side walls of the inner cavity region. The outer extension areas  22 ,  24  of the inflatable element  16  corresponding to these side walls  30 ,  32  are rolled up between the side walls  30 ,  32  and the foldable tabs  34 ,  35 . These rolled up portions of the inflatable element  16  reinforce the tabs  34 ,  35  in their generally perpendicular position and thus help prevent the movement of the article  11  in the direction of the foldable tabs  34 ,  35 . The other side portions  31 ,  33 , the ones generally perpendicular to the foldable tabs  34 ,  35 , are in a once folded position with their corresponding outer extensions areas  23 ,  25  of the inflatable element  16  extending beyond the distal edges  49 ,  51  of the side portions  31 ,  33 .  
       FIG. 5  illustrates one of the side portions  33 , in the twice folded position, forming a third side wall of the inner cavity region. According to this illustrated embodiment, the corresponding outer extension area  25  of the inflatable element  16  may be contained within the twice folded side portion  33 .  
       FIG. 6  illustrates the last remaining side portion  31  being folded again to form a fourth and last side wall of the inner cavity region and the corresponding outer extension area  23  of the inflatable element  16  extending over the top of the article  11  and being secured to the far side of the article  11  between the third side wall  33  and the article  11 .  
       FIG. 7  illustrates one of the aspects of the present invention. The operatively connected framing element  26  and inflatable element  16  form a packaging structure that may be configured to hold and protect an article  11  as described above. The packaging structure, as shown, fits into the outer container  12 . The outer peripheral shape of the framing element  26  may be configured to engage the outer container  12  such that the framing element  26  may be held securely within the outer container  12  and the inflatable element  16 , which may be partially positioned by the framing element  26 , provides protection to the article  11 .  
       FIGS. 8 and 9  illustrate another embodiment of the present invention. According to this embodiment, the outer extension areas  22 ,  24  corresponding to the side walls or side portions  30 ,  32  parallel to the foldable tabs  34 ,  35  may be separate elements from the first inflatable element  16  that may be operatively connected to the framing element  26 . These separate inflatable elements  22 ,  24  may be rolled and placed between the foldable tabs  34 ,  35  and side walls  30 ,  32 . Additional separate inflatable elements may be used to provide additional protection. The separate inflatable elements  22 ,  24  may be made from the same material as the first inflatable element  16  or be of a differing protective cushioning material. Although not illustrated, one in the art would appreciate that any of the additional separate inflatable elements may also be operatively connected to the framing element.  
      In yet another aspect of the present invention, the inflating of the cells in the inflatable elements may be used to facilitate the configuring or erecting of the framing element into a final shape. For example, the inflation of the cells may facilitate the folding or unfolding of certain areas of the framing element to configure the framing element and its inner cavity region to a shape for receiving the article. Also, as mentioned, the timing of the inflation of these cells may vary. According to one embodiment, one or more of the cells may be inflated after the placing of the article within the inner cavity region. By placing the article in the inner cavity region first, the cells may then be inflated to an optimal level such that the cells substantially occupy any voids between the article and the framing element. Furthermore, the inflation process may be used to facilitate the centering or positioning of the article within the inner cavity region. It should also be noted that the amount of inflation by cell may vary depending on the location of the cells to the article.  
      According to the illustrated embodiments, the framing element was formed from a process like die-cutting, before the inflatable element was operatively connected thereto. However, in another embodiment, not depicted, the inflatable element and the framing sheet may be adhered together before the die cutting process. For example, a layer of inflatable material may be adhered substantially to a layer of framing material, such as cardboard. Therefore, when the framing element is produced by the die cutting or similar process, the inflatable element substantially lines one side of the framing element. Also, it may not be necessary to inflate every cell of the inflatable element, for example the cells positioned within a side wall as discussed above would not necessarily be inflated. The die-cutting process may be used to deflate or remove inflated cells in order to facilitate the folding of the framing material.  
      Although the present invention has been described regarding packaging and protecting an article, the invention would equally apply to the packaging of multiple articles. Furthermore, although the inflatable element is illustrated as substantially covering the framing element, the amount of inflatable element connected to the framing element may vary between embodiments. For example, the inflatable element or elements may be placed in a few engagement points between the inner cavity region of the framing element and the article.  
      The present invention has several features. For example, the framing element may be configured to help support, distribute, and position the inflatable element onto, around, or adjacent to the article to be shipped in order to provide effective protection to the article against shock, vibration, and other forces. Moreover, the framing element may minimize the amount of protective material that is required to provide adequate protection to the article. This, also, may reduce the amount of protective material that would otherwise be wasted by just being along for the ride and not providing any protection to the article during shipment. Furthermore, the framing element may help hold the protective material to the article during shipping and, thus, reduce the likelihood of the protective material moving relative to the article during shipment.  
      Many modifications and other embodiments of the invention set forth herein will come to mind to one skilled in the art to which this invention pertains having the benefit of the teachings presented in the foregoing descriptions and the associated drawings. Therefore, it is to be understood that the invention is not to be limited to the specific embodiments disclosed and that modifications and other embodiments are intended to be included within the scope of the appended claims. Although specific terms are employed herein, they are used in a generic and descriptive sense only and not for purposes of limitation.