Abstract:
A container comprises a sheet of polymer formed into a base portion. The base portion has cavities for receiving and supporting frangible items. A cover portion has cavities for covering the frangible items. The cover portion has a flat peripheral wall defining concavities. A first hinge rotates the cover portion onto the base portion to hold the items captive. An elongated tab has male connectors oriented with a ramp portion. A female connector projects from the peripheral wall of the cover portion and is in vertical alignment with the male connectors. A second hinge rotates the tab toward the interior of the base portion. Connectors block the cover portion to the base portion when closed together. A grasping wall spans between and projects from the receiving cavities and from the container, defining a grasping surface. A clearance is positioned between the female connector and the base portion when the container is closed.

Description:
FIELD OF THE APPLICATION 
   The present application relates to containers for receiving frangible objects such as eggs, and to structural components of such containers. 
   BACKGROUND OF THE ART 
   Egg containers of all kinds have been developed for the transportation and sale of eggs. As eggs are relatively fragile, the egg containers must protect the eggs from the various manipulations involved from the packaging of the eggs to the consumer&#39;s refrigerator. 
   One significant improvement in egg containers is the use of thermoformed plastics as material for the egg containers. Thermoformed plastics are typically transparent, which allows the eggs to be visible, and are relatively inexpensive to produce. As they can inspect the eggs by seeing through the material of the egg container, the consumers do not need to open the egg container, as is the case with cardboard egg containers, for instance. In the case of cardboard boxes, it may occur that the boxes are not closed properly after inspection. This may cause the breakage of eggs if the improperly closed egg container is subsequently manipulated by another consumer. 
   SUMMARY OF THE APPLICATION 
   It is therefore an aim of the present disclosure to provide a novel egg container. 
   Therefore, in accordance with the present application, there is provided a container for receiving frangible items comprising a sheet of polymer formed into: a base portion having a plurality of item receiving cavities for supporting frangible items; at least one cover portion having at least one item covering concavity for covering the frangible items, the cover portion having a generally flat peripheral wall defining the at least one item covering concavity; a first hinge between a first longitudinal edge of the base portion and the cover portion for rotating the cover portion onto the base portion to hold the frangible items captive in the item receiving cavities; connectors to block the cover portion to the base portion when closed together; at least one grasping wall spanning between the two item receiving cavities on an opening side of the container, the two item receiving cavities being along a second longitudinal edge of the base portion, the grasping wall projecting away from the two egg receiving cavities and outward from the container to define a grasping surface; and friction surface means on the grasping surface. 
   Further in accordance with the present application, there is provided a container for receiving frangible items comprising a sheet of polymer molded into: a base portion having a plurality of item receiving cavities for supporting frangible items; a cover portion having at least one item covering concavity for covering the frangible items, the cover portion having a generally flat peripheral wall defining the at least one item covering concavity; a first hinge between a first longitudinal edge of the base portion and the cover portion for rotating the cover portion onto the base portion in closing the container to hold the frangible items captive in the item receiving cavities; an elongated tab having wedge-shaped male connectors oriented with a ramp portion facing upward; a second hinge between a second longitudinal edge of the base portion and the elongated tab for rotating the elongated tab toward an interior of the base portion; at least one female connector projecting outwardly from the generally flat peripheral wall of the cover portion, the at least one female connector being in vertical alignment with the wedge-shaped male connectors of the tab for mating engagement therewith when the container is closed; and at least one outwardly projecting clearance positioned between the at least one wedge-shaped female connector and the second longitudinal edge of the base portion when the container is closed. 

   
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       FIG. 1  is a schematic perspective view of a two-fold egg container; 
       FIG. 2  is a schematic perspective view of a three-fold egg container; 
       FIG. 3  is an enlarged elevation view of a grasping system for the egg containers of  FIGS. 1 and 2 ; 
       FIG. 4  is a perspective view of a closure system of the egg container of  FIGS. 1 and 2 ; and 
       FIG. 5  is an enlarged perspective view of a closure system of the egg container of  FIG. 4 . 
   

   DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
   Referring to the drawings and more particularly to  FIG. 1 , an egg container is generally shown at  10 . The egg containers described hereinafter are preferably made of transparent or translucent plastics, for instance using a thermoforming process or other molding process. Other materials and/or processes may be used as well. The containers described hereinafter may be used to contain eggs or any other frangible items (e.g., tomatoes). 
   The egg container  10  of  FIG. 1  is a two-fold egg container, as it has two portions hinged to one another. The egg container  10  has a base portion  11  having a plurality of egg-receiving cavities  12  (e.g., six, twelve, eighteen, twenty-four, or any other suitable number), with each cavity  12  supporting an egg. A top cover portion  13  is hinged to the base portion  11  by hinge  14 . The top cover portion  13  may or may not have egg cavities to cover a top portion of the eggs supported by the egg-receiving cavities  12 . Alternatively, the top cover portion  13  may present a flat top surface as in  FIG. 1 , with or without strengthening components (e.g., arches, posts). Although not shown, mating connectors or any other suitable type of connectors are provided on the periphery of the base portion  11  and top cover portion  13  for interlocking them when the egg container  10  is closed. 
   Referring to  FIG. 2 , a three-fold egg container is generally illustrated at  10 ′. The egg container  10 ′ is similar to the egg container  10  of  FIG. 1 , but has a middle cover portion  15 . The middle cover portion  15  is hinged to the base portion  11  by hinge  16 . The hinges  14  and  16  are preferably on opposite edges of the base portion  11 . The middle cover portion  15  typically has egg cavities  17  to cover a top portion of the eggs supported by the egg-receiving cavities  12 . Although not shown, mating connectors or any other suitable type of connectors are provided on the periphery of the top cover portion  13  and the middle cover portion  15  for interlocking them when the egg container  10 ′ is closed. 
   In order to close the egg container  10 ′, the middle cover portion  15  is firstly hinged into contact with the base container  12 , as illustrated by arrow A. The top cover portion  13  is then hinged onto the middle cover portion  15 , as illustrated by arrow B. When the egg container  10 / 10 ′ is closed, peripheral flanges  21  and  22  lay flat one on the other. 
   Referring to  FIG. 3 , the egg container  10 / 10 ′ is shown having a grasping system for facilitating the opening of the egg container  10 / 10 ′ (i.e., two-fold or tri-fold egg container). The grasping system is positioned on an opening side of the egg container  10 / 10 ′ and comprises a wall  30  that projects forwardly in the base portion  11 , and toward an exterior of the base portion  11 . The wall  30  spans between top parts of two of the egg receiving cavities  12 , preferably between the egg receiving cavities  12  that are on opposite sides of a central axis of the egg container  10 / 10 ′. The wall  30  projects forwardly from the egg receiving cavities  12 . It is observed in  FIG. 5  that there is a single wall  30  in the egg container  10 / 10 ′, but there may be more on the opening side of the egg container  10 / 10 ′. However, there are preferably pairs of egg receiving cavities  12  with no wall  30  between them. Accordingly, the absence of other such walls visually emphasizes the presence of this component of the grasping system on the base portion  11 . The wall  30  merges into a vertical portion  30 A of the peripheral wall of the base portion  11 . 
   Protrusions such as ribs  31  are provided on the wall and project forwardly therefrom. The ribs  31  form a friction surface that will be contacted by a finger/fingers of a user when opening the egg container. The ribs  31  are illustrated as being partly on the wall  30 , and partly on the vertical portion  30 A of the peripheral wall of the base portion  11 . The ribs  31  are generally horizontal, and are therefore transverse to an opening direction of the egg container  10 / 10 ′. An oversized rib  31 A may be provided at a bottom of the wall  30 , for reinforcing the wall  30 . Other geometries may be used for the friction surface as an alternative to ribs. For instance, a plurality of pimples may be provided. Alternatively, gripping patches may be glued to the wall  30 . Any suitable friction surface means may be used. 
   Still referring to  FIG. 5 , another set of protrusions are provided on the top cover portion  13 , and is illustrated as ribs  32 . The ribs  32  are parallel to the ribs  31 , and generally define a circular shape to match that of a finger tip. The ribs  32  may define other shapes as well. Other geometries may be used for the protrusions as an alternative to ribs. For instance, a plurality of pimples may be provided. 
   The presence of protrusions on both the base portion  11  and the top cover portion  13  guide a user in opening the egg container  10 / 10 ′ with the grasping system. As the grasping system may be centrally located on the egg container  10 / 10 ′, the opening pressure is generally evenly distributed on the top cover portion  13 , thereby facilitating the separation of the top cover portion  13  from the base portion  11 . 
   As the vertical portion  30 A is longer than the wall  30 , it has a tendency to deform prior to the wall  30 , when pressure is applied to the ribs  31 . Accordingly, the egg receiving cavities  12  are protected from deformation by the presence of some of the ribs  31  in the vertical portion  30 A. 
   Referring concurrently to  FIGS. 4 and 5 , a closure system is illustrated for the egg container  10 . The closure system is used with two-fold egg containers. The closure system comprises a tab  50  that projects forwardly from the peripheral flange  20  of the base portion  11 . The tab  50  is hinged to the peripheral flange  20 , whereby it is shown oriented upwardly in  FIGS. 4 and 5 . Wedge connectors  51  are formed in the tab  50 .  FIGS. 4 and 5  show four such wedge connectors  51 , but there may be more or fewer of the wedge connectors  51  on the tab  50 . 
   Corresponding female connectors  52  are formed in the top cover portion  13 . Each female connector  52  is aligned vertically with a respective wedge connector  51 , for mating engagement therewith. The wedge connector  51  is matingly inserted into the female connector  52 , and a downwardly-oriented flat surface of the wedge connector  51  abuts against a corresponding abutment surface of the female connector  52 , thereby securing the top cover portion  13  to the base portion of the egg container  10 . In order to open the egg container  10 , the wedge connectors  51  are moved out of engagement with the female connectors  52 , for instance by pulling the top cover portion  13  away from the base portion  11 . The wedge connectors  51  have a wedge shape to facilitate the engagement of the wedge connectors  51  in the female connectors  52  when closing the egg container  10 , by presenting a ramp portion against which the top cover portion  13  slides during closing of the egg container  10 . 
   It is observed that the female connectors  52  may be wider than the wedge connectors  51 , as shown in  FIGS. 7 and 8 . This excess width of the female connectors  52  is to ensure that the wedge connectors  51  fit into the female connectors  52  despite any misalignment of the top cover portion  13  with respect to the base portion  11 . 
   Clearances  53  are defined in the top cover portion  13 , and are each paired up with one of the female connectors  52 . The clearances  53  are positioned below the female connectors  52  when the egg container  10  is closed. The clearances  53  of a bottom container  10  accommodate the female connectors  52  of a top container  10  when the containers  10  are stacked one on another. This ensures that stacks of open containers  10  are vertically straight. 
   The clearances  53  form a passage that facilitates the demolding of the egg container. More specifically, the presence of the female connectors  52  requires the presence of corresponding protrusions on the mold used to form the egg container  10 . As the female connectors  52  project outwardly from the inner cavity of the top cover portion  13 , there have been some difficulties in removing the egg container  10  from its mold without deforming the egg container. Therefore, the use of the clearances  53  is particularly practical when the egg container  10  is stacked open. In an embodiment, a portion of the clearances  53  adjacent to the female connectors is ramp-shaped to facilitate engagement of the connectors  52  and  53 . It is pointed out that there may be a single elongated one of the female connectors  52  and a single elongated one of the clearances  53  for a plurality of wedge connectors  51 . In another embodiment, as illustrated in  FIG. 4 , the egg container  10  has the peripheral flange  22  and the clearances  53  open into the peripheral flange  22 . 
   In an embodiment, posts  54  may be provided to project upwardly from the base portion  11 , and are placed behind the wedge connectors  51 . The posts  54  are positioned so as to be in close proximity to a rear side of the wedge connectors  51  when the egg container  10  is closed. Accordingly, in case of excess pressure on the top cover portion  13 , the wedge connectors  51  will not disengage from the female connectors  52 , as the posts  54  will prevent the tab from rotating inwardly. Posts or other like abutment members may be used to limit the inward rotation of the tab  50 . 
   The egg containers  10  and  10 ′ may have one or more of the elements described above. Although the egg containers  10  and  10 ′ are preferably made of a transparent thermoplastic that is molded (e.g., vacuum molded), it is considered to provide some of the above-referred embodiments in other materials. 
   The egg containers of the present disclosure may contain any suitable number of egg receiving cavities. One suitable material for the egg containers of the present application is polyethylene terephthalate (PET). PET has many advantages, as this material can be transparent or opaque and can be produced at high volume and at low cost. Wall thicknesses of PET cases in a contemplated embodiment are of 0.0175 inch in thickness, but other thicknesses as low as 0.012 to as high as 0.022 inch are also contemplated. It is pointed out that the thickness may be outside of these ranges, especially after the container  10  is formed. However, any suitable thickness can be used, depending on the fragility of the objects packaged in the container  10 .