Abstract:
An improved shipping and display carton ( 94 ) is provided which includes strategically located perforation lines ( 74 - 84 ) permitting removal of portions of the carton ( 94 ) to create a dual display. The side-by-side sections ( 96, 98 ) of the carton ( 94 ) may be individually used by manual separation thereof along a perforation line ( 40 ). The carton ( 94 ) is preferably fabricated using a preform ( 86 ), the latter produced using a unitary sheet blank ( 10 ).

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0001]     1. Field of the Invention  
         [0002]     The present invention is broadly concerned with a simplified combination shipping and display carton which can be used as a conventional carton for shipping and storage purposes, but which can be readily altered so as to create a display carton, all without the necessity of removal of any merchandise from the carton. More particularly, the invention is concerned with such shipping and display cartons, as well as carton blanks and preforms used in the fabrication of the final cartons, wherein the cartons include a plurality of side-by-side but separable carton sections each of which can be used as an individual display.  
         [0003]     2. Description of the Prior Art  
         [0004]     A bewildering variety of shipping boxes and cartons have been produced in the past. Most commonly, these items are fabricated from paper or cardboard, and have been designed to meet both general and specialized needs of shippers. Box suppliers usually provide box blanks to their customers, which can be appropriately folded and glued on-site to form a complete shipping box or carton.  
         [0005]     Traditionally, retail outlets receiving boxed merchandise open the boxes and remove and shelve the merchandise therein. This is time and labor-intensive, however, and moreover creates a waste problem because of the large number of discarded boxes. One expedient adopted by some retailers is to use a box cutter to cut upper portions of a shipping container, and to use the remainder as a merchandise holder or display. For example, a typical rectangular box may be cut all the way around leaving only the bottom wall and a short upstanding continuous sidewall. However, this practice is objectionable because the remainder of the box used for display purposes is normally unsightly. Also, the merchandise within the box may be damaged when the box is cut.  
         [0006]     Combination cartons which can serve as both a shipping carton and as a display have been proposed in the past. However, these have generally been nothing more than a conventional box or carton with perforation lines to facilitate alteration of the carton for display purposes. As such, these combination cartons lack the flexibility of use which many retailers may desire.  
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0007]     The present invention overcomes the problems outlined above and provides an improved combination shipping and display carton usually but not necessarily formed of Kraft paper. The overall carton comprises first and second side-by-side cartons each presenting a bottom wall, an outer sidewall, a center vertical divider wall, a top wall, and front and back closure flaps secured to said first and second bottom walls and to said first and second outer sidewalls. Additionally, portions of the top walls, outer sidewalls, center vertical divider walls and the front and back closure flaps are interconnected to the corresponding walls and flaps by perforation lines. This renders these portions removable along the perforation lines, whereby each of the cartons can serve as a display. Additionally, the center vertical divider walls are adhesively secured together but manually separable from each other; to this end, a perforation line is provided between said bottom walls permitting full separation of said first and second cartons.  
         [0008]     Preferably, the carton separation perforation line is located between the bottom walls of the respective juxtaposed cartons, and extends through and interconnects the front and back closure flaps secured to the first and second bottom walls.  
         [0009]     In order to facilitate modification of the carton for display purposes, the first and second center vertical divider walls and the first and second outer sidewalls each have an oblique perforation line extending from one margin thereof toward the other margin thereof and terminate at a point spaced from the other margin. Also, the first and second top walls each have a perforation line extending between and interconnecting the adjacent ends of the oblique perforation lines.  
         [0010]     The carton of the invention is preferably fabricated from a blank comprising a sheet of material presenting a series of interconnected sections each having opposed margins. Preferably, the sections include a first glue segment, a first central vertical divider wall, a first top wall, a first outer sidewall, a first bottom wall, a second bottom wall, a second outer sidewall, a second top wall, a second central vertical divider wall, and a second glue segment. The first top wall, first outer sidewall, first bottom wall, second bottom wall, second outer sidewall, and second top wall have opposed closure flaps connected thereto along fold lines which define the opposed margins of the corresponding sections. The first and second center vertical divider walls, the first and second outer sidewalls, and the first and second top walls each have the perforation lines described above. Moreover, the blank has a central perforation line between the first and second bottom walls.  
         [0011]     The carton blanks may be shipped as is to an end user. However, in preferred practice, the blank is used to fabricate a carton preform which can be more readily employed by the end user to create the final desired carton. Such a preform comprises a sheet of material presenting a bottom portion and first and second opposed top portions connected to the bottom portion. The bottom portion presents a series of interconnected sections each having opposed margins; the bottom portion sections include a first outer sidewall, a first bottom wall, a second bottom wall and a second outer sidewall. The first and second top portions each have a corresponding series of interconnected sections each having opposed margins. The first top portion is connected to the first outer sidewall at a point remote from the first bottom wall and includes a first top wall, a first center vertical divider wall, and a first glue segment. Similarly, the second top portion is connected to the second outer sidewall at a point remote from the second bottom wall and has a second top wall, a second center vertical divider wall, and a second glue segment. The first and second portions are folded over the bottom portion, with the first and second glue segments folded against the corresponding first and second center vertical divider walls and glued to the adjacent first and second bottom walls. In the use of such a preform, it is only necessary to fold and glue the center vertical divider walls together, followed by gluing together of the carton flaps. 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0012]      FIG. 1  is a plan view of the preferred carton blank used in fabricating the cartons of the invention;  
         [0013]      FIG. 2  is a plan view of a carton preform fabricated using the blank of  FIG. 1 ;  
         [0014]      FIG. 3  is a perspective view of the preform of  FIG. 2 , shown during initial stages of carton fabrication using the preform;  
         [0015]      FIG. 4  is a fragmentary view similar to that of  FIG. 3 , but showing the next stage of carton fabrication;  
         [0016]      FIG. 5  is a perspective view of a completed carton in accordance with the invention and showing the bottom and one sidewall of the carton;  
         [0017]      FIG. 6  is another perspective view of the completed carton, depicting the top and other sidewall thereof;  
         [0018]      FIG. 7  is a perspective view of the preferred carton of the invention, shown when used as a dual-carton display; and  
         [0019]      FIG. 8  is a perspective view illustrating the separation of the dual display cartons to form individual display cartons. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT  
       [0020]     Turning now to the drawings,  FIG. 1  illustrates a carton blank  10  fabricated from a single, unitary piece of Kraft paperboard. The blank  10  presents a series of sections including, in order from left to right, a first glue segment  12 , a first central vertical divider wall  14 , a first top wall  16 , a first outer sidewall  18 , a first bottom wall  20 , a second bottom wall  22 , a second outer sidewall  24 , a second top wall  26 , a second central vertical divider wall  28 , and second glue segment  30 . Each of the sections  12 - 30  has an upper and a lower margin referred to by reference letters “a” and “b” respectively; as shown, the upper and lower margins for the sections  16 - 26  are in the form of fold lines. In addition, it will be seen that the sections are interconnected by essentially mutually parallel fold lines  32 - 38 , central perforation line  40 , and fold lines  42 - 48 .  
         [0021]     The top wall  16 , first outer sidewall  18 , first bottom wall  20 , second bottom wall  22 , second outer sidewall  24  and second top wall  26  each have opposed and closure flaps, namely, in order from left to right in  FIG. 1 , flaps  50 ,  52 ,  54 ,  56 ,  58 ,  60 ,  62 ,  64 ,  66 ,  68  and  70 ,  72 . The respective flaps  50 - 72  are connected to the associated blank sections by the mutually parallel fold lines  16   a ,  16   b ,  18   a ,  18   b ,  20   a ,  20   b ,  22   a ,  22   b ,  24   a ,  24   b ,  26   a , and  26   b . Finally, it will be seen that the first and second glue segments  12  and  30  have upwardly extending auxiliary glue flaps  73  which are connected to the associated segments via fold lines  73   a.    
         [0022]     The blank  10  also has a number of perforation lines, including the previously mentioned line  40  which extends the full height of the blank and defines a separation line between the bottom walls  20  and  22 , flaps  58  and  62 , and flaps  62 , 64 . Moreover, the first and second central vertical divider walls  14  and  28  each have an oblique perforation line  74 ,  76  which extends from the upper margin  14   a ,  28   a  downwardly toward the lower margin  14   b ,  28   b , and terminating above the latter. The first and second top walls  16 ,  26  also have a perforation line  78 ,  80  which is substantially parallel with the corresponding margin  16   b ,  26   b  and extends from the end of the corresponding line  74  or  76  the full width of the wall. Finally, the first and second outer sidewalls  18 ,  24  have an oblique perforation line  82 ,  84  which extends upwardly from the associated lines  78  or  80  to the upper margin  18   a ,  24   a . It will also be observed that this perforation line extends vertically upwardly through the closure flaps  54 ,  62 , so as to divide the latter into two flap sections  54   a ,  54   b  and  66   a ,  66   b.    
         [0023]     The blank  10  may be manufactured and sold as is, but more preferably is used to fabricate a carton preform  86  depicted in  FIGS. 2 and 3 . The preform has a bottom portion  88  as well as first and second opposed top portions  90 ,  92  connected to and folded over the bottom portion  88 . The bottom portion is made up of first outer sidewall  18 , first bottom wall  20 , second bottom wall  22  and second outer sidewall  24 , together associated with the closure flaps. The first top portion  90  is folded over along fold line  36  and has first top wall  16 , first central vertical divider wall  14  and first glue segment  12 . In like manner, the second top portion  92  is folded over bottom portion  88  along fold line  44  and has second top wall  26 , second vertical divider wall  28  and second glue segment  30 . In order to complete the preform  86 , the glue segments  12  and  30  are folded back upon the adjacent center vertical divider walls  14  and  28  in a face-to-face relationship. Then, the surfaces of the glue segments  12  and  30 , and the surfaces of the auxiliary glue flaps  73 , remote from the center vertical divider walls  14  and  28  are glued to the first and second bottom walls  20 ,  22 , and to the flaps  58 ,  62  thereof, so that the perforation fold line  40  is between the glued segments and flaps. This relationship is best seen in  FIG. 3 .  
         [0024]     The carton preform  86  can readily be used to form a complete combination shipping and display carton  94  shown in  FIGS. 5 and 6 . In the first step shown in  FIG. 3 , the portions  90  and  92  are folded toward each other about the fold lines  38 ,  42  until the first and second center vertical divider walls  14  and  28  come into close, face-to-face relationship. During or prior to this folding step, a small amount of glue is applied to one of the center divider walls below the perforation lines  72 ,  76  so that, when the divider walls are pressed together, the preform assumes the configuration of  FIG. 4 . That is, the preform in this condition presents a pair of side-by-side sections  96  and  98 .  
         [0025]     In order to complete the carton  94  it is only necessary to fold the closure flaps inwardly upon each other with appropriate application of glue. In practice, the flaps  56  and  68  are folded inwardly, whereupon flaps  56 ,  62  and  60 ,  64  are folded atop the flaps  56  and  68  and glued thereto. This forms a back wall  100  for the carton ( FIG. 5 ). At this point the carton  94  presents a pair of open sections  96 ,  98  adapted to receive any suitable merchandise. These sections are filled, and the carton is closed by folding inwardly the flaps  66   a ,  66   b  and  54   a ,  54   b , followed by application of glue and folding flaps  50  and  70  and  58  and  62  atop the flaps  66   a ,  66   b  and  54   a ,  54   b . This creates a front wall  102  and the finishes the carton  94 .  
         [0026]     The merchandise can then be shipped within the carton  94  in the usual manner. If it is desired to use the carton  94  for display purposes, it is only necessary to remove the portions of the first and second top walls  16 ,  26 , first outer sidewalls  18 ,  24 , first and second central vertical divider walls  14 ,  28  and the flap sections  54   a ,  66   a  from the carton, so that the carton assumes the configuration of  FIG. 7 . Such portion removal is accomplished by manually grasping the portions of the carton defined by perforation lines  74 ,  76 ,  78 ,  80  and  82 , and to manually detach these portions from the remainder of the carton.  
         [0027]     It is also possible to separate the two sections  6 ,  98  of the carton  94  so that each may be used as a separate display container, such as depicted in  FIG. 8 . This involves merely manually tearing along the perforation line  40  throughout the extent of the bottom walls  20 ,  22 , and to also separate the flaps  58 ,  62  and  60 ,  64 .  
         [0028]     While the carton  94  of the invention may be fabricated from Kraft or similar paper, the invention is not so limited. In some instances, the carton may be produced using white or other colored stock, with advertising or other printing thereon. For example, the outer faces of the flaps  58 ,  62  may bear such printing.