Patent Description:
The present invention can be advantageous applied to a packet of cigarettes to which the following description will explicitly refer, without thereby losing generality.

It should be noted that, in the present text, reference will be made indiscriminately to the specific example of "cigarettes" rather than to the more generic expression "smoking articles", without however losing generality in relation to other types of articles (such as cigars, cigarettes or cigarillos, electronic cigarettes or ecgis; auxiliary products such as filters, refills for ecgis and other tobacco-based products, or with alternative or tobacco-replacement components).

With reference to the document <CIT> owned by the same Applicant, a rigid packet of smoking articles of the hinged-lid type is known.

The packets of the type in question have: an outer cup-shaped container, having an open upper end and a lid, which is shaped like a cup and is hinged to the outer container to rotate, with respect to the outer container itself, between an open position and a closed position of the open upper end; an inner wrapper, which is housed inside the container, encloses the cigarettes and has an opening for extracting cigarettes, which is closed by a closing label.

The closing label is fixed to the cover so that by opening or closing the lid, the extraction opening is simultaneously opened and closed through the closing label. For this object, the label is at least partially coated, on the inner side, with a repositionable adhesive material (for example, a pressure-sensitive adhesive).

Packets of the type in question are increasingly being used as they allow the smoking articles contained therein to be preserved better and longer.

The closing label used in these packets is a label made of plastic materials, while the blank from which the outer container is formed is made of cardboard. To attach the closing label to the lid, a water-based glue is used as this type of glue allows, during the packet-manufacturing phase, adjustments of the relative position of the label and the folded blank.

In order to improve the packet from an aesthetic point of view and with the object of meeting market demands, "laminated" blanks should be used for producing packets of the type described above. In particular, these blanks comprise a coating of the cardboard layer with a layer of plastic or metal material: for example, this coating layer may be a film made of PET, metallized PET (MET PET), polypropylene, aluminum or a finishing layer transferred or sprayed onto the surface of the card (for example, vacuum metallization or transfer metallization). This coating allows aesthetic effects to be achieved that are not obtainable with common cardboard.

However, since the label (which, as mentioned, is made of a plastic material) must be glued to the outer layer of the blank, the use of these "laminated" blanks involves the fact of having to glue together two materials that are not able to to absorb the water-based glue: therefore, it is not possible to fasten the label to the "laminated" blank in a reasonable time.

This problem could be solved by using hot glue; however, hot glue is not suitable as, by instantaneously fixing the label to the blank, it does not allow adjustments of the lid with respect to the label during the packet-manufacturing step. This leads to undesirable aesthetic effects, which are not compatible with the required quality standards: for example, wrinkles in the label or inner wrapper, or a slightly raised lid that is misaligned with respect to the container.

<CIT> and <CIT> represent prior art of possible interest as technical background.

The present invention aims to provide a packet of articles that overcomes the aforesaid drawbacks. In particular, the object of the present invention is to provide a packet of smoking articles of the type described above (i.e. with the closing label fixed to the lid), and which is improved from an aesthetic point of view, in particular, that is more attractive in the eyes of the consumer.

At the same time, one objective of the present invention is that of producing a packet of high quality in terms of robustness and manufacturing precision.

The objectives indicated above are achieved by means of a packet solution having the characteristics referred to in claim <NUM>. The present invention also relates to a method according to claim <NUM>. The claims form an integral part of the disclosure provided here.

As will be seen in detail below, the packet solution described here allows the use of a sheet or blank formed of plastic or metal materials, for producing the outer casing of the packet, such as, for example, PET, metallized PET (MET PET), polypropylene, aluminum, etc., which allows aesthetic effects to be achieved that cannot be obtained with a common sheet of cardboard.

The indicated materials share the fact that they are non-absorbent, with reference to liquids or paste substances.

This aspect makes it unfeasible to replace common cardboard blanks with blanks made of the materials indicated, as these materials involve the formation of packets that do not meet the required quality standards; in other words, attaching the label to the packet lid does not meet the required specifications.

In fact, as previously mentioned, the presence of non-absorbent material creates problems in the gluing step of the adhesive label to the lid of the outer casing. This operation is commonly performed through the use of liquid-based cold glue, usually water-based glue: the gluing process is not immediate, but is only activated when its liquid component begins to decrease, for example, due to absorption. In the application in question, this aspect is exploited to allow small adjustments in position to be made to the outer casing and the label even after being glued together.

However, on blanks with non-absorbent material, the liquid component of the glue is not absorbed, and the glue struggles to activate (or rather, to start the cross-linking process), requiring an extremely long time, which is incompatible with an industrial process.

To overcome the aforesaid drawback, it is theoretically possible to envisage the use of hot glue instead of cold glue. The Applicant, however, was able to verify that the use of hot glue totally eliminates the possibility of subjecting the label and the lid of the outer casing to adjustments in position, so that the packets obtained have greater inaccuracies, and the production quality is lower compared to the production of packets with cardboard blanks and gluing with a liquid-based glue, in particular, a water-based glue.

According to the present invention, to overcome the aforesaid drawback, the packet solution described here provides a layer of absorbent material on the label, or on the lid of the outer casing, which is designed to define the connection area of the label with the lid, or the connection area of the lid with the label, and on which glue is applied.

This layer of absorbent material is arranged in combination with the non-absorbent material of which the label or the outer casing of the packet is made, and, during formation of the packet, functions to absorb the liquid component of the glue, so that the glue can activate.

As will be seen in detail below, with respect to known solutions, the layer of absorbent material indicated may be an additional material that also composes the final structure of the label or of the outer casing. Alternatively, and with specific reference to the embodiment in which this layer of absorbent material is arranged on the outer casing, it can instead be obtained from the same cardboard material of which the outer casing is formed.

Further characteristics and advantages of the invention will become evident from the description that follows with reference to the attached drawings, provided purely by way of non-limiting example, wherein:.

The references used here are only for convenience and do not therefore define the field of protection or the scope of the embodiments.

With reference to <FIG> and <FIG>, the packet described here, indicated - in its entirety - by the reference number <NUM>, comprises an inner wrapper <NUM> that wraps a group of cigarettes P, and an outer casing <NUM> that contains the group of cigarettes P wrapped in the inner wrapper <NUM>.

The outer casing <NUM> consists of a folded sheet (commonly referred to as a "blank") that defines:.

The lid 4B is hinged to the container 4A, around a folding line I, to be movable between a closed position, wherein the group of cigarettes P wrapped in the inner wrapper <NUM> is completely closed inside the casing formed by the container 4A and the lid 4B, and an open position, wherein the lid 4B is folded towards the rear side of the packet, exposing the inner wrapper <NUM> and the group of cigarettes P to the external environment. The cigarettes rise above the walls <NUM>, <NUM> and <NUM> of the container 4A through the upper opening <NUM>' defined by the upper edges of the same walls.

The inner wrapper <NUM> wraps the group of cigarettes P so as to completely enclose them therein, and has a cut-out portion 2A which is positioned on the upper end of the group of cigarettes P, and with which the opening <NUM>' is obtained for extracting the cigarettes.

The packet <NUM> also comprises an adhesive label <NUM>, which is applied onto the inner wrapper <NUM> in order to completely cover the portion 2A. For reasons that will become evident, the adhesive that covers the label <NUM> on the side intended to be applied to the wrapper <NUM> is divided into permanent adhesive (which is positioned on the portion 2A) and repositionable adhesive (for example, a pressure adhesive) which is positioned, instead, on the surrounding part of the label. In addition, the part of the label <NUM> fixed to the rear face of the inner wrapper <NUM> may be provided with permanent glue or repositionable glue.

The label <NUM> has a substantially rectangular profile and is applied over the upper end of the inner wrapper <NUM> so as to partially extend on the front face and on the rear face of the wrapper <NUM>. The label <NUM> is attached to the front wall <NUM> of the lid 4B, with its end portion positioned on the front side of the inner wrapper <NUM>.

In this way, the displacement of the lid 4B from the closed position to the open position, and vice versa, causes, at the same time, the lifting and lowering of the label <NUM>, respectively, and, consequently, also the opening and closing of the extraction opening <NUM>'; the portion 2A in fact follows the label <NUM> in the same movements, being attached thereto by means of permanent adhesive.

On the other hand, the repositionable adhesive allows re-sealing of the wrapper <NUM> to be guaranteed.

The wrapper <NUM> may be composed of a sheet of heat-sealable material, for producing hermetically sealed wrappers, or of a multilayer sheet (i.e. a blank) with a base layer of paper or cardboard. In addition, it should be noted that the opening <NUM>' of the inner wrapper <NUM> could be obtained by means of a through opening in the heat-sealable sheet or in the blank used to make the inner wrapper <NUM>.

The lid 4B and the label <NUM> have respective areas A1 and A2 for their mutual connection, which are attached to each other through a layer of glue <NUM>. Due to the advantages discussed above, the glue <NUM> used is a cold glue or a liquid-based glue (in particular water-based), which is activated by the absorption (i.e. removal) of the liquid component.

In a manner known per se, the label <NUM> is made of one or more layers of plastic material (for example, PET and/or polypropylene) to exhibit a mechanical behavior of a resilient type, which allows it to deform during the movements of the lid 4B but without undergoing permanent plastic deformations.

As anticipated above, in the packet described here, the outer casing <NUM> externally includes plastic or metal materials to provide a particular aesthetic appearance to the casing.

For example, the sheet or blank <NUM> (see <FIG>) that forms the outer shell may include PET, metallized PET (MET PET), polypropylene or aluminum.

In preferred embodiments, the blank <NUM> has a multilayer laminar structure consisting of a sheet of cardboard <NUM> and a sheet <NUM> of plastic or metal material coupled thereto.

In alternative embodiments, the blank <NUM> is, instead, constituted by a sheet of cardboard prepared with a coating of plastic or metal material made through a printing process or an equivalent process for the transfer of a layer of material.

By way of example, the cardboard sheet may be of the SBS or FBB type, and may have a thickness between <NUM> microns and <NUM> microns, and a density between <NUM>/m<NUM> and <NUM>/m<NUM>.

The sheet of plastic and metal material coupled to the cardboard sheet may have a thickness between <NUM> microns and <NUM> microns. In the case of a plastic or metal coating, this can have a thickness below <NUM> micron.

The blank <NUM> has two opposite faces, only one of which defines the outer surface of the casing <NUM>, and this will be the face defined by the layer of plastic or metal material, i.e. the upper face 100A with reference to the example of <FIG>.

Still with reference to <FIG>, the blank <NUM> has a predetermined profile and a series of predefined folding lines to allow the casing <NUM> to be obtained through a predetermined sequence of folding operations performed on the blank.

With reference now to <FIG> and <FIG>, it will be noted that the front wall <NUM> of the lid 4B of the casing is formed by a portion <NUM> of the blank, which defines the outer surface of this wall, and by an end flap <NUM>, which is folded against the inner side of the portion <NUM> to stiffen the structure of the lid, and to form its lower edge (with a folding line, rather than a cut line).

Due to the flap <NUM>, the plastic/metal material that defines the face 100A of the blank is, therefore, found in the casing <NUM> formed, also on the inner surface of the front wall <NUM> of its lid 4B, in particular, precisely at the area where the label <NUM> must be glued (i.e. in the connection area A1 of the lid 4B).

The plastic/metal materials indicated above are non-absorbent materials, unlike paper or cardboard, which can be considered absorbent materials. Incidentally, it should be noted that the term "absorbent" (and similarly the term "non-absorbent") used in this discussion is to be understood in a general way, as the ability of the material to absorb a liquid or a paste substance. For the application described here, single-layer materials, in particular paper, have been demonstrated to be particularly suitable. Preferably, the layer of absorbent paper material is uncoated. Preferably, the layer of absorbent material is a mono-layer of paper material with high inner resistance (in other words, the resistance to delamination of the paper layer must be greater than or equal to the bonding strength of the layer to the lid 4B and/or to the label <NUM>).

In view of the above, it will be noted that, in the absence of additional measures, both the connection area A1 of the lid 4B with the label <NUM>, and the area A2 connecting the label <NUM> with the lid 4B, would both be defined by non-absorbent material, which would generate the problems discussed at the beginning for the gluing of the two components.

To overcome this drawback, the packet solution described here includes a layer of absorbent material <NUM> specially designed to define, at least in part, one or the other of the two connection areas A1 and A2.

Preferably, the area of the layer of absorbent material <NUM> is equal to or greater than the area of one of the two connection areas A1, A2. In other words, the glue <NUM> is only arranged at the layer of absorbent material <NUM>.

Alternatively, the area of the layer of absorbent material <NUM> could be smaller than the area of one of the two connection areas A1, A2. In this case, the glue <NUM> is arranged partly at the layer of absorbent material <NUM> and partly outside said layer of absorbent material <NUM>.

Preferably, the layer of absorbent material <NUM> is capable of absorbing a liquid; in particular, it is capable of absorbing the liquid-based (in particular water-based) glue <NUM>. Advantageously, the layer of absorbent material <NUM> favors the drying of the glue <NUM>, while allowing adjustment of the position of the label <NUM> during the packet-manufacturing method.

In accordance with a preferred embodiment, the layer of absorbent material <NUM> is made of a paper material. Advantageously, it allows the absorption of the glue in order to favor its drying and is, at the same time, economical. In particular, the layer of absorbent material is a mono-layer of paper material with high inner resistance (in other words, the resistance to delamination of the paper layer must be greater than or equal to the bonding strength of the layer to the lid 4B or to the label <NUM>). Preferably, the layer of absorbent paper material is uncoated.

According to a first embodiment of the present invention (see <FIG>), the label <NUM> is arranged with a layer of absorbent material <NUM>, which at least partially defines the connection area A2, and which is permanently coupled to the sheet of plastic material constituting the basic structure of the label (indicated in these Figures by reference <NUM>). The layer <NUM> is arranged on the side of the sheet <NUM> facing the connection area A1 (<FIG>). Preferably, the absorbent layer <NUM> consists of a sheet of paper.

The absorbent layer <NUM> may cover the entire side of the sheet <NUM> (<FIG>) or it may only cover one or more predefined regions (<FIG>).

In this regard, <FIG> illustrates an embodiment example of the label <NUM>, wherein the layer <NUM> completely covers the sheet <NUM> of plastic material. <FIG>, on the other hand, illustrates an example wherein the layer <NUM> has a limited extension to substantially define only the connection area A2, and is positioned in proximity to and along the end edge <NUM> of the sheet <NUM>, where such an area is provided. <FIG> illustrates yet another example, wherein the layer <NUM> used in the example of <FIG> is combined with another layer <NUM>' (preferably of the same material as the layer <NUM>), which is positioned on the opposite edge <NUM>' of the sheet <NUM>, and has the function of causing, at this area, an overall thickness of the label identical to the thickness at the edge <NUM>, where the first layer <NUM> is applied. This arrangement facilitates the manipulation of the labels <NUM> during production of the packets, allowing, in particular, production of reels of labels having a regular cylindrical geometry like the common reels of material used in the sector of interest here. The same advantage is obtained with the label <NUM> of the embodiment example of <FIG>, but through a greater use of material.

In any case, it can be noted that the layer <NUM>, and/or the layer <NUM>' of the embodiment example of <FIG>, may be coupled to the sheet <NUM> within the production cycle of the supplier of the sheet <NUM> or directly in the packet-forming machine.

In preferred embodiments, the label <NUM> has a multilayer laminar structure, formed by the sheet <NUM> of plastic material and the sheet of paper <NUM>, which are coupled (by means of a permanent adhesive) due to the effect of a lamination process.

In alternative embodiments, the sheet of paper <NUM> is, instead, an adhesive sheet applied to the sheet of plastic material.

As discussed above, the layer <NUM> of absorbent material has the function of absorbing the liquid component of the glue in order to allow its activation, when this, during the process of forming the packets, is applied to the connection area A1 or A2, for mutual fastening of the lid 4B and the label <NUM>. The structural characteristics (in particular thickness and density) of the layer <NUM> responsible for its absorption capacity, can, obviously, be selected according to the requirements of individual applications. By way of example, for some applications, a sheet of paper is used with a thickness between <NUM> microns and <NUM> microns, and a density between <NUM>/m<NUM> and <NUM>/m<NUM>. Preferably, the paper sheet is an uncoated mono-layer with high inner resistance (in other words, the resistance to delamination of the paper layer must be greater than or equal to the bonding strength of the layer to the lid 4B and/or to the label <NUM>).

Moreover, with reference to the embodiment example of <FIG>, wherein the layer <NUM> completely covers the sheet of plastic material, the thickness of the layer <NUM> must, in any case, be limited (but in any case such as to ensure the absorption of the glue <NUM>), in order not to alter the resilient behavior given to the label by the plastic sheet. Advantageously, the embodiment of <FIG> is particularly advantageous since the central part of the label <NUM> does not provide the absorbent layer, so as to maintain the usual flexibility characteristics of traditional labels <NUM>.

According to an alternative embodiment not illustrated, the label <NUM> comprises a sheet <NUM> of plastic material, which is totally (or almost totally) covered by the layer <NUM> of absorbent material (in particular, paper) in a manner similar to the label <NUM> illustrated in <FIG>. However, this embodiment, not illustrated, envisages that the layer <NUM> is attached (by means of permanent glue) to the plastic sheet <NUM> only at the edges <NUM>, <NUM>'. Advantageously, in this embodiment, the resilient behavior of the label <NUM> does not change since the central part of the label <NUM> is not stiffened by the layer <NUM>.

According to a further embodiment not forming part of the present invention (see <FIG>), which is alternative to the one described above, the outer casing <NUM> has the layer of absorbent material <NUM>, which is designed to define the connection area A1. In this case, the label <NUM> can be made in a conventional manner and, therefore, be formed solely of plastic (non-absorbent) material.

On the blank <NUM>, the layer <NUM> is arranged on the face 100A and, in particular, on the flap <NUM>, to define, in the casing formed, at least one portion of the inner surface of the front wall <NUM> of the lid 4B.

According to this embodiment, it is preferable that the layer <NUM> is contained within the perimeter of the flap <NUM> in order not to be visible on the outer surface of the formed casing.

Similarly to what has been described above, the layer <NUM> is preferably a sheet of paper. It can consist of a sheet of paper applied to the flap <NUM> of the blank <NUM>. This sheet of paper may be adhesive or be glued to the flap <NUM> of the blank <NUM>.

Alternatively, the layer <NUM> can be made up of the same cardboard base layer that constitutes the blank <NUM>, left uncovered on the face 100A only at the flap <NUM>, to define the connection area A1.

For this embodiment it is preferable to use a blank consisting of a sheet of cardboard with a coating of plastic or metal material made by means of a printing process, due to the ease with which this type of process allows an empty area to be created in the coating in a predetermined position.

In view of the above, it can be noted that the packet <NUM> according to the embodiments described does not require, for its production, any particular modification of the packet-forming machine, but simply requires supplying the machine with new materials as described above. According to another embodiment (not illustrated) of the second embodiment of the present invention, the layer of absorbent material <NUM> arranged to define at least in part the connection area Al, is obtained on the casing <NUM> through an additional folded flap carried on the flap <NUM>, which is arranged so as to face the cardboard layer of the blank <NUM> towards the connection area A2. Unlike the previous examples, this additional embodiment obviously requires an additional folding operation directly by the packet-forming machine as well as a different gluing pattern.

Claim 1:
A packet (<NUM>) of smoking articles, of the type comprising:
- a group of smoking articles (P);
- an inner wrapper (<NUM>) which is wrapped around said group of smoking articles (P) and comprises an opening (<NUM>') for extracting said smoking articles;
- an outer casing (<NUM>) containing said group of smoking articles (P) wrapped in said inner wrapper (<NUM>), wherein said outer casing (<NUM>) is made of a blank (<NUM>) that is folded so as to define:
- a container (4A) which is cup-shaped and has an upper opening (<NUM>'); - a lid (4B) which is cup-shaped and is hinged to said container (4A) so as to be movable between an open position and a closed position;
- a label (<NUM>), which is applied on said extraction opening (<NUM>') and is attached, by means of glue (<NUM>), to said lid (4B) in such a way that the movement of said lid (4B) from said closed position to said open position, and vice versa, causes - at the same time - opening and closing, respectively, of said extraction opening (<NUM>') by means of said label (<NUM>);
wherein said label (<NUM>) and said lid (4B) are reciprocally attached at relative connection areas (A1, A2),
wherein said glue (<NUM>) is liquid-based glue, particularly water-based glue,
said packet being characterized in that it has a layer (<NUM>) of absorbent material, which is provided on said label (<NUM>) so as to define at least partially the area (A2) connecting said label (<NUM>) to said lid (4B), and on which said glue is applied.