Patent Abstract:
A laundry treatment system includes a carton holding a freestanding fragrance spray bottle of fragrance together with unscented laundry treatment sheets. The fragrance spray bottle may be used to apply fragrance to the sheets immediately before use by the consumer so as to enable dispersion of the fragrance among the clothing during a laundry cycle. The box may include apertures for supporting multiple bottles to allow the consumer to change or mix fragrances or apply no fragrance at the time of drying.

Full Description:
BACKGROUND 
     The present invention relates to systems for the dispersion of fragrance in laundry during the drying cycle of a dryer and in particular to a dispersion system using tumble sheets such as fabric softener sheets to facilitate the dispersion of the fragrance. 
     A wide variety of laundry products include perfumes for imparting a pleasant fragrance to clothing and/or other textiles, such as towels, sheets, etc. Such perfumes may be carried in laundry detergents, bleaches, or softeners to be dispersed during the washing process of a washing machine or added to “tumble sheets” during the drying cycle of a dryer. Tumble sheets are fabric-like sheets that readily intermingle with clothing to disperse laundry treatment materials including antistatic agents, wrinkle reducing agents, stain repellents, odor neutralizers, softening agents, fabric refreshers, soil shielding/soil releasing agents, ultraviolet light protection agents, water repellency agents, insect repellency agents, and dye transfer inhibitors. These laundry treatment materials often have a waxy consistency that helps retain the treatment materials on the tumble sheets for a period of time to ensure good dispersion of these materials on the laundry items during the drying cycle. 
     Some perfume agents including those associated with freshness are highly volatile and thus may be easily lost during the high temperature manufacture of the tumble sheet. U.S. Pat. No. 6,352,969 recognizes that the loss of these “high note” fragrance components may be reduced by altering the normal manufacturing process in which the perfumes are mixed with other laundry treatment components and applied at high temperature to the tumble sheet. Instead, the teachings of this patent are to apply the perfume after the tumble sheet is coated with other laundry treatment components immediately before it is cut and packaged. It was unexpectedly found that the later-added perfume is well absorbed by the tumble sheet when added at a later point in the manufacturing process. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention permits further delay of the introduction of the fragrance to the tumble sheet to a point immediately before use of the tumble sheet in the laundry by providing a convenient kit for the consumer including unscented tumble sheets and a fragrance spray bottle. The kit provides the consumer with freedom to select which fragrance and how much fragrance to introduce to their clothes while preserving the good dispersion properties and other laundry treatment aspects of the tumble sheet. By delaying the introduction of fragrance to the tumble sheets, the packaged sheets may be used also for times when no scent is desired. Further, by delaying the introduction of fragrance to the tumble sheets, high note fragrance components are not lost during prolonged storage of the package in a store or warehouse. 
     Specifically, the present invention provides a carton containing therein a stack of individual, separate, unscented tumble sheets in a first compartment, the tumble sheets coated with a laundry treatment substance selected from the group consisting of: antistatic agents, wrinkle reducing agents, stain repellents, odor neutralizers, softening agents, fabric refreshers, soil shielding/soil releasing agents, ultraviolet light protection agents, water repellency agents, insect repellency agents, and dye transfer inhibitors, and containing in a second compartment a fragrance spray bottle holding fragrance applicable to the individual tumble sheets to be retained thereby for dispersion in clothing when the tumble sheet is intermixed with the clothing during drying of the clothing in a dryer, the compartments providing an access flap closable to retain the tumble sheets and fragrance spray bottle within the compartments. 
     It is thus a feature of at least one embodiment of the invention to provide for greater consumer control of fragrance type and amount applied to laundry during drying together with the beneficial dispersion and laundry treatment features of a tumble sheet. It is a further feature of at least one embodiment of the invention to better preserve high note fragrance components. 
     The carton may further include a series of openings aligned with the second compartment to expose the fragrance spray bottle therethrough. 
     It is thus an object of the invention to permit ready identification of a fragrance type as indicated by the fragrance spray bottle when different fragrances are packaged with the tumble sheets. 
     The openings in the carton may further be commensurate with a cross-section of the fragrance spray bottle so that the fragrance spray bottle and/or the spray bottle alongside additional fragrance spray bottles may be inserted in an opening after removal from the carton to support the fragrance spray bottles in an upright configuration. 
     It is thus a feature of at least one embodiment of the invention to provide a convenient treatment station that makes it both practical and convenient for point-of-use fragrance application to a tumble sheet. 
     The bottle may have container walls of a transparent, tinted plastic allowing inspection of a level of fragrance contained therein, the tint selected according to a predetermined relationship between tint and fragrance. 
     It is thus an object of the invention to provide a simple method of distinguishing among colorless fragrances preferred to avoid staining of clothing and to provide a simple and attractive method of visually distinguishing among fragrance types both before and after sale of the product. The colored bottle may readily indicate the fragrance type through the openings in the carton. 
     The carton may provide outer walls forming generally a rectangular parallelepiped surrounding a matching volume and wherein the first and second compartments may be formed by a spanning wall dividing the volume into the first and second compartments. 
     It is thus a feature of at least one embodiment of the invention to provide a simple method of creating separate compartments to prevent crushing of the tumble sheets and to appropriately support and display the fragrance spray bottle while further reducing outward bowing of the broad package face, particularly when intercut with apertures. 
     The carton may provide a first rectangular wall sized to support a base of the stack formed by a lower most tumble sheet such that the base extends substantially an entire width of the first rectangular wall and to support adjacent to the stack a side wall of the fragrance spray bottle, a longest dimension of the fragrance spray bottle extending along a line across the width of the first rectangular wall; the carton provides perpendicularly extending sidewalls along the periphery of the first rectangular wall joined by a second rectangular wall substantially parallel to and of equal dimensions to the first rectangular wall, and spanning a wall extending upward from a line separating the stack and the bottle between the first and second rectangular walls, the upstanding sidewalls and spanning wall extending by an amount substantially equal to the height of the stack. 
     It is thus a feature of at least one embodiment of the invention to permit a compact carton dimension that promotes a large presentation front surface and may stably rest on one side with proper support of the tumble sheets. 
     The carton may include printed indicia on the first rectangular wall denoting a rotational orientation of the first rectangular wall when the carton is resting on an upstanding sidewall such that the stack is positioned below the fragrance spray bottle. 
     It is thus a feature of at least one embodiment of the invention to promote carton facings that maximize product visibility. 
     The openings may be in the first rectangular face. 
     It is thus a feature of at least one embodiment of the invention to provide exposure of the fragrance spray bottle on the same surface providing greatest presentation value to the purchasing consumer. 
     The spanning wall may include tabs extending perpendicularly to a line along the width of the rectangular base in between the orifices. 
     It is thus a feature of at least one embodiment of the invention to provide large apertures while supporting and reinforcing the interstitial material. 
     The spanning wall may be attached to only one of the first and second rectangular walls. 
     It is thus a feature of at least one embodiment of the invention to permit simplified fabrication of the carton. 
     The spanning wall may include a portion extending along and abutting the first rectangular wall and extending beneath the fragrance spray bottle when the fragrance spray bottle is within the second compartment. 
     It is thus a feature of at least one embodiment of the invention to provide reinforcement of the fragrance spray bottle compartment. 
     These particular features and advantages may apply to only some embodiments falling within the claims and thus do not define the scope of the invention. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view of the carton of the present invention when displayed on a typical shelf facing with its broad face forward; 
         FIG. 2  is a perspective view of the carton of  FIG. 1  in use as a laundry treatment center showing the contained stack of tumble sheets and fragrance spray bottle removed through a side access flap and with one fragrance spray bottle positioned in the carton as a holder; 
         FIG. 3  is a cross-section taken a long line  3 - 3  of  FIG. 2  showing orientation of the fragrance spray bottle and laundry sheets within the carton of  FIG. 2 ; 
         FIG. 4  is an exploded view in partial phantom of the carton of  FIG. 3  showing a spanning wall used to form compartments for the bottle and stack of tumble sheets; 
         FIG. 5  is a top plan view of the carton of  FIG. 4  showing the use of spacers to center the bottle within apertures in the broad face of the carton and reinforcing tabs between those orifices attaching the spanning wall to the front face of the carton; 
         FIG. 6  is a perspective view similar to that of  FIG. 2  showing an alternative embodiment wherein the tumble sheets and fragrance spray bottle are in a single compartment; 
         FIG. 7  is a perspective view similar to that of  FIG. 2  showing an alternative embodiment wherein the broad face of the carton forms the access flap; and 
         FIG. 8  is a perspective view similar to that of  FIG. 2  showing an alternative embodiment wherein only a section of the broad face of the carton forms the access flap. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     Referring now to  FIG. 1 , the present invention may provide a fragrance dispersal system  10  including a carton  12 , for example, of coated cardboard stock, holding other components of the dispersal system  10  for retail sales. The carton  12  may be a generally rectangular parallelepiped having a rectangular front wall  14  and corresponding rear wall  16  in parallel opposition separated by perpendicular sidewalls  20   a - d . The rectangular front wall  14  and rear wall  16  are the largest walls of the carton  12  and support on them printed point of sale information  22 , for example, indicating the product, the brand, its purpose, and its benefits. In a retail facing, the carton  12  made be set stably on sidewall  20   c  to prominently display the information on front wall  14 . 
     A series of apertures  24  may be die cut in the front wall  14  near its upper edge adjacent to sidewall  20   a , the apertures  24  preferably being equal sized circles whose centers are displaced in a line along a width of the front wall  14  disposed generally horizontally during retail display. A fragrance spray bottle  26  resting horizontally within an internal compartment (to be described below) is visible through the apertures  24 . 
     In a preferred embodiment, the front wall  14  of the carton may be approximately 5½ inches high and 7 inches wide with the sidewalls  20  holding the front wall  14  and rear wall  16  approximately 1½ inches in separation. 
     Referring now also to  FIG. 2 , the fragrance spray bottle  26  may be a conventional mechanical pump sprayer including a cylindrical reservoir  34  holding a fragrance  36  sealed therein by a spray mechanism  38  the upper operator of which is contained within a protective cap  40 . In one embodiment, the fragrance spray bottle reservoir  34  is constructed of a transparent, tinted thermoplastic polymer allowing direct viewing of the height of the fragrance  36  within the reservoir  34  while also announcing the type of fragrance by color of the tinted polymer so that different colors of fragrance spray bottles  26  may be placed into different cartons  12  on a seasonal or occasional basis with different fragrances  36 . So, for example, a purple bottle may denote a first type of fragrance  36  and a pink bottle a second type of fragrance  36  while permitting the fragrances  36  to be untinted. The fragrance  36  may include the fragrance itself and a carrier such as water and/or another solvent to assist in incorporation of the fragrance into the materials of the sheets  32 . Although described and shown as a tinted bottle, the bottle may alternatively be clear plastic, be labeled, etc. 
     The carton  12  also holds a stack  30  of folded, unscented tumble sheets  32  in addition to the fragrance spray bottle  26 . The sheets may, for example, be a nonwoven polyester material or the like known in the art and pre-coated with laundry treatment materials including one or more of: antistatic agents, wrinkle reducing agents, stain repellents, and dye transfer inhibitors. Although shown and described as a stack  30 , the tumble sheets may be provided in alternative configurations such as on a roll with perforations allowing easy separation of the tumble sheets, etc. 
     The stack  30  of sheets  32  will generally have a height  35  equal to the separation of the front wall  14  and rear wall  16  by the sidewalls  20  and will have a width  39  (described above) essentially equal to a width of the front wall  14  and rear wall  16  measured in a direction parallel to sidewalls  20   c  and  20   a . The fragrance spray bottle  26  defines a height  37 , measured from the base on which it rests during normal use to the top of the protective cap  40 , that is preferably equal to or less than the width  39  of the stack  30  measured along the stack&#39;s longest dimension. In one embodiment, the sheets may have an unfolded dimension of approximately 6½″×9″ and a folded dimension of 6½″×3.5″ where the 6½″ is the width  39 . 
     During use of the product, the carton  12  may be placed flat upon rear wall  16  so that the apertures  24  face upward from the front wall  14  to receive the reservoir  34  of the fragrance spray bottle  26  whose circular cross-section in width matches the size of the apertures  24 . In this way multiple fragrance spray bottles  26  may be collected and stably supported to be readily used by the consumer for laundry applications. The consumer may remove an individual sheet  32  from the stack  30  and spray the unfolded sheet  32  with fragrance  36  using the fragrance spray bottle  26 . The spraying is conducted substantially at room temperature at a time many hours if not weeks after manufacture of the sheets  32 . The fragrance  36  may be adsorbed by the material of the sheet  32  which is then promptly placed into laundry in the dryer to act as a dispersal agent for the fragrance  36  distributing it evenly among the laundry. The multiple apertures  24  allow different fragrance bottles to be collected and stored in the original carton  12  as additional product is purchased with different fragrances. Although the bottle  26  and apertures  24  are shown and described herein as being circular, it should be obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art that the bottles and apertures may be in any correlating shape. Further, the apertures may be different from each other such that one type of bottle, for example having a flower shape correlating to a scent for the fragrance in that bottle fits in one type of aperture having a correlating flower shape, etc. 
     Referring now to  FIGS. 2 and 3 , one sidewall  20   d  may provide resealable flaps  28 , for example, using a tab and slot arrangement well known in the art, to open and reveal a first compartment  41  holding the fragrance spray bottle  26  for removal through the open flaps  28  and a second compartment  42  holding the stack  30  for removal through the open flaps  28 . Compartment  41  and  42  may be formed in part by a spanning wall  44  extending from the front wall  14  to the rear wall  16  of the carton  12  generally parallel to the sidewalls  20   a  and  20   c.    
     Referring now to  FIGS. 3 ,  5  and  6 , the spanning wall  44  may comprise an L-shaped cardboard member having a panel  48  extending generally parallel to sidewalls  28   a  and  20   c  attached at its lower edge to a stabilizing flange  50  extending perpendicularly from the panel  48 . The stabilizing flange  50  may abut an upper surface of rear wall  16  between the fragrance spray bottle  26  and the rear wall  16 . An upper edge of the panel  48  includes two tabs  52  extending perpendicularly therefrom along the front wall  14  to fit between the apertures  24  and to be glued to the underside of front wall  14  providing reinforcement between the apertures  24  as shown in  FIG. 5 . 
     Referring to  FIGS. 4 and 5 , compartments  41  and  42  formed by the spanning wall  44  allow the stack  30  to be placed in side-by-side configuration with the fragrance spray bottle  26  where the height  37  of the fragrance spray bottle  26  is aligned with the width  39  of the stack  30  so as to provide a slim form factor to carton  12  of compact volume providing good display area. The spanning wall  44 , by separating the stack  30  from the fragrance spray bottle  26 , prevents deformation of the sheets  32  of the stack  30  by the weight of the fragrance spray bottle  26  during shipping, handling, or while displayed in the position shown in  FIG. 1 . Optionally the spanning wall  44  may be glued only to the top of the front wall  14  by tabs  54 , being held to the rear wall  16  by the pressure of the fragrance spray bottle  26  constrained between the front wall  14  and rear wall  16 . The spanning wall  44  may act as a tensile member preventing outward bowing of the front wall  46  at the weak section of the apertures  24 . 
     Spacers  56  may be placed at either or both ends of the fragrance spray bottle  26  so as to center the fragrance spray bottle  26  within the compartment  41 . 
     Generally the weight of the sheets  32  in the stack  30  will provide a low center of gravity providing suitable stability for the carton  12  in the orientation shown in  FIG. 1  with the apertures  24  and fragrance spray bottle  26  near the top of the carton. According to alternative embodiments, the sheets and bottle may be positioned on the side of the bottle, etc. to provide any of a number of various configurations within the scope of the present invention to implement the functionality described herein. 
     As noted above, it is expected during use the consumer will use the fragrance spray bottle  26  immediately before drying clothes to dust the tumble sheet  32  with fragrance placing the scent achieved within the clothing during the drying process. The remaining sheets  32  are stored within the carton  12  with the fragrance spray bottle  26  retained in the aperture  24 . As additional sheets  32  may be purchased with different fragrances, those bottles will be added to the remaining apertures  24  and the sheets  32  used to replace the sheets in the carton  12  as the latter are depleted. 
     Referring now to  FIG. 6 , in an alternative embodiment, the sidewall  44  may be removed such that the stack  30  of tumble sheets  32  are positioned in a single compartment with the fragrance spray bottle  26 . Although shown according to a particular packaging configuration, it should be understood that the fragrance bottle  26  and stack  30  may be positioned in a variety of configurations. 
     Referring now to  FIG. 7 , in an alternative embodiment, the access flap  28  may be moved from the sidewall  20   d  and implemented instead by the front wall  14  of the carton  12  which may hinge upward about its connection point at sidewall  20   a  to provide access to both the fragrance spray bottle  26  and the stack  30  of sheets  32  through the front wall  14 . A locking tab mechanism of a type known in the art may be used to hold the flap  28  down when the carton  12  is used to retain the fragrance spray bottles  26 , when the latter are placed through the apertures  24  as shown in  FIG. 2 . In this configuration, the tabs  52  on an attachment of the spanning wall  44  at its upper edge are eliminated and the leg  50  glued to the inside of the rear wall  16 . 
     Referring now to  FIG. 8 , in another alternative embodiment, the “hinge” portion of the access flap  28  may be moved from its connection point at sidewall  20   a  to a point along the extent of sidewalls  20   b  and  20   d  to provide access to only the stack  30  of sheets  32  through the front wall  14 . The fragrance spray bottle  26  may, according to an exemplary embodiment, be accessed by a separate opening along or formed by one of sidewalls  20   b  and  20   d.    
     The present invention has been described in terms of the preferred embodiment, and it is recognized that equivalents, alternatives, and modifications, aside from those expressly stated, are possible and within the scope of the appending claims.

Technology Classification (CPC): 3