Patent Document

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application is a continuation of application Ser. No. 13/165,771 filed Jun. 21, 2011, now U.S. Pat. No. 8,573,397, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference. 
    
    
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     This invention relates generally to the field of containers for retail products. More particularly, the present invention relates to thermoformed containers adapted for use as retail phone packages that can be shipped as a partially assembled package, and then at a later time easily customized into a finished product for retail sale under a particular brand and/or with a particular rate plan. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     Inventory management in a retail store, in other words avoiding having either too much or too little stock on hand, is of great practical importance. Having too much inventory can lower profits because of the cost to maintain the inventory. Having too little inventory can lower profits when product is not available at the point of purchase to meet consumer demand. 
     Maintaining inventory in a retail environment is expensive for many reasons. The value of the inventory itself may be substantial for expensive consumer items like cell phones and other electronics. The time value of the money tied up in that inventory gets bigger as the value of the inventory climbs, and the longer the inventory sits on the shelf. The high cost of retail space is behind the rise of efficient sales operations like kiosks that can produce relatively high sales and inventory turnover with very little space. Inventory storage consumes space that could be used for other retail store operations, like product display, face to face sales, aisles, and a check out counter with cash register. For these and many other reasons, having too much inventory erodes profitability. 
     At the same time, it is extremely important for a retail store to have enough inventory available to meet immediate sale requirements. Not only must there be a sufficient quantity of inventory, that inventory must be made up of the right product mix, to be able to meet the changing needs and tastes of consumers. To effectively compete with lower-cost channels such as internet or mail order resellers, a retail store must be able to deliver a product in hand at the point of sale at the moment the consumer wants it, even if customer demand is variable and hard to predict. 
     The damage caused by insufficient inventory goes straight to the bottom line of a retail store operation. A customer who cannot buy because the retailer is out of stock may shop elsewhere, a loss of the immediate sale never to be made up. The lost sale is even more damaging if consumers begin to view the retailer as unreliable, eroding customer goodwill and possibly risking supplier relationships as sales drop off. Especially for hot items with a limited season or product lifetime and for products with a long lead-time to replenish inventory, insufficient stock can be a real problem for a retail store. 
     The problem of inventory management is particularly challenging for expensive consumer items like cell phones and similar devices like laptop or tablet computers, because these devices are continually evolving in terms of features and technology. The relatively short lifetimes of these types of products increases the risk that stock will become obsolete and see its resale value drop dramatically. 
     Inventory management for retail sales of cell phones and similar communications devices, in particular, is difficult for a second reason. These devices are sold with service contracts for connecting to cellular communication networks. Even within a particular cellular communication network provider, a particular make and model of a cell phone can be packaged and sold with a service contract under any of several brands owned by a particular cellular communication network provider (or under a store brand), under any of several different terms or rate plans (e.g. monthly or prepaid, data-heavy or no-data), and with packaging and documentation in multiple languages or other localization. Each brand, for example, could target a different market channel or demographic, even though they all connect to the same cellular network. 
     Thermoformed plastic containers are well known as inexpensive and highly customizable containers for the sale of a wide variety of products, everything from cell phones to deli meats. Thermoformed plastic containers are typically transparent and rigid, so they can give a consumer the ability to examine a product closely without actually touching it. They can be made tamper-resistant, to reduce the risk that the product could be damaged or contaminated. They are typically lightweight, and can be efficiently stored or shipped together in a nested fashion. 
     What is needed is a thermoformed container that is specially adapted to allow a cell phone (or similar product) to be partially packaged at one time and place, and then at a later time adapted for sale as a finished product with a particular brand (from a variety of brands or trademarks), and/or with a particular service plan (from a variety of rate plans or payment terms and/or languages) and/or with a particular language (or other localization) at a second time and place. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     In a preferred embodiment, a retail package according to the invention can be made as a four piece package, comprising (front to back) an outer shell face, inner shell face, inner shell back, and outer shell back. When assembled, the package forms three separate compartments, comprising (front to back) a front compartment, a central compartment, and a rear compartment. 
     The front and central compartments are adapted to be filled with product components, and then partially or completely sealed to prevent removal of those contents prior to delivery to the end retail purchaser. For example, the front compartment can hold a phone, positioned and framed for retail display. The outer shell face can include perforations to facilitate opening of the front compartment by the ultimate retail purchaser. The central component can hold accessories like a charger and/or cables. 
     The rear compartment normally holds a book or other papers. Importantly, and unlike the front and central compartments, the rear compartment is adapted to allow easy one-way insertion of documents or other media that are specific to a particular service provider, brand, and/or service plan. After the documents or media are inserted, an outer sleeve bearing the brand etc. can be applied to assemble a finished product ready for retail sales display or delivery to the end retail purchaser. 
     This design enables a small stock of (relatively expensive) partially assembled packages (with cell phones in the front compartment and accessories in the central compartment, for example) combined with a a large stock of (relatively cheap) ancillary materials (such as documents, SIM cards, and outer sleeves) to provide an effective inventory adequate to meet immediate consumer demand for a large variety of different combinations of brands and/or service plans and/or languages. 
     Compared to keeping an inventory of fully assembled packages in the same number of combinations of cellular phone brands, service plans, and languages, this approach creates inventory depth by enabling a single phone in inventory to be flexibly sold under any of several different brands and/or service plans and/or languages, all in the same store right next to one another. This approach reduces inventory cost by allowing the brand, service plan and/or language for a particular phone to be finalized at a time and place closer to the final retail purchase, using inexpensive printed materials (instead of expensive cell phones) to provide inventory depth. Because the partially assembled packages have the cell phones and accessories sealed inside, this last-minute branding can be done with a minimum of risk that the accessories and phones will get shuffled, lost, or mismatched, as would be more likely if the compartments were not at least partially sealed to retain their contents. 
     A package according to the invention allows, for example, a cell phone and its accessories to be partially packaged at its point of manufacture in one country and then shipped in that form to a retail location or distribution center in a different country. In response to consumer demand, the partially packaged phone can then be adapted for sale in the destination country with a particular service provider, brand, and rate plan at the retail location or distribution center by combining the partially packaged phone with an outer sleeve and with documents or other ancillary materials inserted into the rear compartment. 
     The adaptation can even be done at a kiosk, whose very limited storage space would especially benefit from the highly efficient inventory management made possible by the present invention. This could be done each day at the kiosk to restock shelf inventory depleted by sales. It could also be done on demand when the customer chooses their desired provider, service plan, and/or language as the sale is completed. 
     In a first embodiment, the rear compartment is formed between the outer shell back and the inner shell back. A slit in a lateral side of the outer shell back provides an aperture into the rear compartment, for one-way insertion of sheet materials such as documents or other collateral material into that rear compartment. The inner shell back is adapted to receive and position documents or media (that are inserted through the slit) with a ramped corner in proximity to the slit on the outer shell back, and with upper and lower guide rails. 
     The ramped corner and the upper and lower guide rails help to guide and facilitate one-way placement of documentation or media into the rear compartment. As the documentation or media is inserted through the slit and up the ramped corner and into the rear compartment, the documentation or media slides between the guide rails to reach its final position in the rear compartment. As it slides during insertion, the documentation or media also moves up the ramped corner to a position away from the slit. This makes the aperture one-way, in that it is relatively easy to insert the documentation, but it is comparatively difficult to remove the documentation or media, except by rupturing the package as would be done by the ultimate purchaser. 
     Further, after the documentation or media is inserted into the rear compartment, the outer sleeve is normally applied. This means that tampering with or removing the contents of the package requires at least two steps to remove the sleeve and then rupture the package somehow. Depending on the nature of the goods, it might also be possible to allow the outer sleeve to be easily removed and replaced, and to make the aperture relatively large and two-way. This construction could enable inspection of the contents of the rear compartment by a prospective purchaser, while maintaining the integrity of the contents of the other compartments. 
     In a second embodiment, the adaptation to allow one-way insertion of documents is implemented by adapting the outer shell back to snap into place onto the inner shell back and the remainder of the partially assembled package. An interference fit with deep engagement channels between the inner shell back is used to form a relatively secure latch to partially or completely seal the rear compartment formed when the outer shell back is snapped into position on the inner shell back. 
     A first embodiment of the invention is a thermoformed package for retail sales comprising an outer shell face, an inner shell face, an inner shell back, and an outer shell back, with the outer shell face and the outer shell back joined together along their peripheries, with a front compartment between the outer shell face and the inner shell face and a rear compartment between the inner shell back and the outer shell back; with an aperture in the outer shell back shaped to pass a sheet material into the rear compartment. 
     A second embodiment of the invention is a thermoformed package for retail sales comprising an outer shell face, an inner shell face, an inner shell back with a rim; and an outer shell back with a deep channel, with the outer shell face and the inner shell back joined together along their peripheries to form a partially finished container that has a front compartment, where the rim of the inner shell back can be snapped onto the channel of the outer shell back with an interference fit that joins the rim and channel and forms a rear compartment between the inner shell back and the outer shell back. 
     A third embodiment of the invention is a method of late-branding cellular phones for retail sale. 
     Further objects, features, and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following detailed description when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       In the drawings: 
         FIG. 1A  is a front elevation view of an exemplary retail phone package according to a first embodiment of the invention, without the outer sleeve; 
         FIG. 1B  is a front elevation view of the retail phone package of  FIG. 1  with the outer sleeve in place; 
         FIG. 2  is a perspective view of the package of  FIG. 1 , rotated to show the front side and the left (aperture) side of the package; 
         FIG. 3A  is a perspective view of the package of  FIG. 1 , rotated to show the rear and left sides of the package; 
         FIG. 3B  is a perspective view of the package of  FIG. 1 , rotated to show the rear and left sides of the package, with the outer sleeve in place; 
         FIG. 4  is a cross-sectional view of the package of  FIG. 1 , taken along the line  4 - 4  in  FIG. 1 , to show the front, central, and rear compartments and their contents; 
         FIG. 5  is an exploded perspective view of the package of  FIG. 1 , rotated to expose the top, front, and left sides of the package components; 
         FIG. 6  is an exploded bottom perspective view of the package of  FIG. 1 , rotated to expose the bottom, rear, and left sides of the package components; 
         FIGS. 7A ,  7 B, and  7 C are front perspective, rear perspective, and front elevation views of the outer shell face of the package of  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIGS. 8A ,  8 B, and  8 C are front perspective, rear perspective, and front elevation views of the inner shell face of the package of  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 9A  is a front perspective view of the inner shell back of the package of  FIG. 1 , rotated to show the interior detail of the sharp corner; 
         FIG. 9B  is a rear perspective view of the inner shell back of the package of  FIG. 1 , rotated to show the exterior detail of the rounded corner; 
         FIG. 9C  is a front perspective view of the inner shell back of the package of  FIG. 1 , rotated to show the interior detail of the rounded corner; 
         FIG. 9   d  is a rear perspective view of the inner shell back of the package of  FIG. 1 , rotated to show the exterior detail of the sharp corner; 
         FIG. 9E  is a rear elevation view of the inner shell back of the package of  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 10A  is a front perspective view of the outer shell back of the package of  FIG. 1 , rotated to show the interior detail of the right (non-aperture) side; 
         FIG. 10B  is a rear perspective view of the outer shell back of the package of  FIG. 1 , rotated to show the exterior detail of the left (aperture) side; 
         FIG. 10C  is a front perspective view of the outer shell back of the package of  FIG. 1 , rotated to show the interior detail of the left (aperture) side; 
         FIG. 10D  is a rear perspective view of the outer shell back of the package of  FIG. 1 , rotated to show the exterior detail of the right (non-aperture) side; 
         FIG. 10E  is a view of the outer shell back of the package of  FIG. 1 , with the aperture spread open by fingers; 
         FIG. 11  is a perspective view of an alternative outer shell face for the package of  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 12  is an exploded perspective view of an exemplary retail phone package according to a second embodiment of the invention, without any outer sleeve; 
         FIG. 13  is an exploded perspective view of the outer shell back positioned for mating with the partially assembled package comprising the outer shell face, inner shell face, inner shell back (and package contents) according to the second embodiment of the invention; 
         FIG. 14  is a rear perspective view of a package comprising the components of  FIG. 12 , with the outer sleeve in place to form a finished package; 
         FIG. 15  is a cross-sectional view of the finished package of  FIG. 14 , taken along the line  15 - 15  in  FIG. 14  to show the compartments and their contents. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
       FIGS. 1A ,  1 B,  2 ,  3 A, and  3 B show an exemplary package  10  for retail sales of cellular telephones or similar high value objects or devices, such as computers, tablet computers, or collectible items.  FIG. 1A  shows the package  10  (without any outer sleeve  95 ) positioned to be suspended by its hanger loop  11  from a hook in a retail sales display (not shown). 
       FIG. 1B  shows the package  10  in an opaque or transparent outer sleeve  95 , for example made of printed cardboard, bearing one or more service plans  93  and one or more brands  96  where the term brands is intended to be broadly understood to include not only conventional trademarks that indicate manufacturer, but also other identifying information such as language version. The sleeve  95  may include one or more product windows  97  cut from the outer sleeve  95  to expose areas of the package  10  or its contents. The sleeve  95  or the package  10  may bear one or more product identifiers  98  or other information about the product, such as serial numbers, radio frequency identification tags, bar codes, or Universal Product Codes (“UPC”) which may be visible through an product identification window  99  in the outer sleeve  95 . 
     The package  10  may be made from a transparent or an opaque material such as a thermoformable plastic. However, if the package is at least partially made from a transparent material, then the product identifier  98  can be placed inside the package  10 , and yet remain visible through the product identification window  99 . This construction can deter or prevent a method of retail theft called “UPC switching” in which a UPC code for a less expensive product is affixed to a more expensive product in order to purchase the expensive product at a fraudulent price. 
     The package  10  may have a hanger loop  11  for retail display, and is preferably at least partially sealed to protect its contents along a periphery  12 . The periphery  12  may terminate in a flange  13 . The package  10  has a front or frontispiece  14  (best shown in  FIG. 1 ) and a rear, back, or posterior  15  (best shown in  FIGS. 3A &amp; 3B ). Assuming for naming purposes that the package  10  is positioned in the orientation shown in  FIG. 1 , the package  10  has a top  16 , a right side  17 , a bottom  18 , and a left side  19 . 
     As perhaps best shown in the exploded views of  FIGS. 5 &amp; 6 , the exemplary package  10  may comprise four pieces: an outer shell face  20 , an inner shell face  40 , an inner shell back  50 , and an outer shell back  60 . These components of the exemplary package  10  can each be made of any transparent or opaque sheet materials, for example using a thermoformable plastic and a vacuum thermoforming process. 
     As perhaps best shown in the cross-section of  FIG. 4 , the front compartment  80  is formed between the outer shell face  20  and the inner shell face  40 , and may have front compartment contents  90 , for example an electronic product like a cellular phone, e-book reader, tablet computer, or any collectible item, toy, or similar device or object. The central compartment  82  is formed between the inner shell face  40  and the inner shell back  50 , and may have central compartment contents  92 , for example hardware accessories like a charger, power supply, carrying case, wrist loop, cables, or spare batteries. The rear compartment  84  is formed between the inner shell back  50  and the outer shell back  60 , and may have rear compartment contents  94 , for example printed or electronic media like a user&#39;s manual, welcome kit, audio or video media or other data, coupon, promotional item, service agreement, software, required disclosures, product identification card bearing a product identifier  98  such as an UPC code, or other content. 
     As perhaps best shown in  FIGS. 7A-7C , the outer shell face  20  has an exterior face  21  and an interior face  22 . The exterior face  21  may have a protrusion  23  shaped to fit or hold a product  90  for display, for example a cell phone. The protrusion  23  can be placed in a recess  24  to frame the displayed product  90 . The forward surface of the protrusion  23  can be flush with the front surface  25  of the exterior face  21  of the outer shell face  20 . The outer shell face  20  may include a perforation  26  partially or completely encircling the protrusion  23  or recess  24 , to facilitate easy removal of the displayed product  90 . 
     The outer shell face  20  has a periphery that may include a rim  27  and a sealing wall  28  with one or more indentations  29 , adapted for mating with complementary structures on the outer shell back  60 . The indentations  29  shown in the exterior view of  FIG. 7A  correspond to bumps  30  in the interior view of  FIG. 7B . The periphery of the outer shell face  20  terminates in a peripheral flange  31  that includes a top edge  32 , a right edge  33 , a bottom edge  34 , and a left edge  35 . 
     As shown in  FIGS. 8A-8C , the inner shell face  40  has an exterior face  41  and an interior face  42 . The exterior face  41  may have a recess  43  shaped and dimensioned to receive the recess  24  of the outer shell face  20  when the outer shell face  20  is nested together with the inner shell face  40  as shown in the cross-sectional view of  FIG. 4 . The inner shell face  40  includes a front surface  44  surrounding the recess  43 , and a top side wall  45 , a right side wall  46 , a bottom side wall  47 , and a left side wall  48 , all terminating in a peripheral edge  49 . 
     As shown in  FIGS. 9A-9E , the inner shell back  50  has an exterior face  51  and an interior face  52 , and includes a top side wall  53 , a (lateral) right side wall  54 , a bottom side wall  55 , and a (lateral) left side wall  56 , all terminating in a peripheral edge  159 . Importantly, the left side wall  56  meets the exterior face  51  at a rounded corner  57  (best shown in  FIGS. 9B ,  9 C, &amp;  9 E). In contrast, the right side wall  54  meets the exterior face  51  at a relatively sharp corner  58  (best shown in  FIGS. 9A ,  9 D, &amp;  9 E). Guide rails  59  pare preferably provided, for example as raised protrusions along the upper and lower ends of the inner shell back  50 . It is not required that the rounded corner and aperture appear on the left side, or that the sharp corner appear on the right side. Each of these features could appear on different or multiple sides. 
     As perhaps best shown in  FIGS. 10A-10E , the outer shell back  60  has an exterior face  61  and an interior face  62 . The outer shell back  60  includes a central cavity  63  surrounded by a top side wall  64 , a (lateral) right side wall  65 , a bottom side wall  66 , and a (lateral) left side wall  67 . The periphery of the outer shell back  60  is formed to mate with complementary structures on the periphery of the outer shell face  20 , and includes a rim  68 , a sealing wall  69  with one or more indentations  70 , and terminates in a peripheral flange  71  extending to a peripheral edge  179 . 
     As shown in  FIG. 10E  in a spread-apart position, the outer shell back  60  has an aperture  72 . As perhaps best shown in  FIG. 10B , the aperture  72  can be formed as a flap  73  and a slot  74 , with the slot  74  formed as a vertical cut  75  and a hinge cut  76 . 
       FIG. 11  shows an alternative outer shell face  220  for the package of  FIG. 1 , where the perforations  226  are located closer to the periphery of the outer shell face  220 , providing easy-open access to the entire contents of the package. 
       FIGS. 12-15  provide views of an exemplary retail phone package  110  according to a second embodiment of the invention. As perhaps best shown in the exploded view of  FIG. 12 , the second package  110  may comprise four pieces: an outer shell face  120 , an inner shell face  140 , an inner shell back  150 , and an outer shell back  160  made of thermoformed plastic. 
     The outer shell face  120  has an exterior face  121  and an interior face  122  (not shown), with a protrusion  123  shaped and adapted to fit or hold a product framed in a recess  124  on the front surface  125 . The outer shell face may include a perforation  126  adjacent to the rim  127 , sealing wall  128 , and peripheral flange  131 . The sealing wall  128  includes one or more indentations  129  which form bumps  130  on the inside surface of the sealing wall  128  for mating with complementary structures on the outer shell back  160 . The outer shell face has a top edge  132 , a right edge  133 , a bottom edge  134 , and a left edge  135 . 
     The inner shell face  140  has an exterior face  141  and an interior face  142  (not shown), with a recess  143  shaped and positioned to receive the recess  124  in the outer shell face  120 . The inner shell face  140  includes a front surface  144 , a top side wall  145 , a right side wall  146 , a bottom side wall  147 , and a left side wall  148 , all terminating in a peripheral edge  149 . 
     The inner shell back  150  has an exterior face  151 , and an interior face  152 , with a top side wall  153 , a right side wall  154 , a bottom side wall  155 , and a left side wall  156 , all terminating in a peripheral edge  259  and peripheral flange  171 . The inner shell back  150  may also include a book receptacle  157 , for example to hold a book or other media, and an identification area  158  for placement of product identifiers  198  or other information about the product, such as serial numbers, radio frequency identification tags, bar codes, or a UPC on either the interior face  152  or exterior face  151 . The inner shell back  150  may include indentations  170  that extend into a deep mating channel  173 . The inner shell back  150  may also include a notch  172 , as perhaps best shown in  FIG. 13 . 
     The outer shell back  160  has an exterior face  161 , and an interior face  162 , with a ridge  163  configured and positioned to mate with the notch  172  of the inner shell back  150 . The outer shell back  160  includes a top side wall  164 , a right side wall  165 , a bottom side wall  166 , and a left side wall  167 , each terminating in a rim  168 , sealing wall  169 , peripheral flange  271 , and peripheral edge  279 . 
     As shown in  FIG. 13 , the outer shell back  160  can be positioned for mating with the partially assembled package  196  comprising the outer shell face  120 , inner shell face  140 , and inner shell back  150  (with package contents, if any), to form the finished package  110  (minus the outer sleeve  195 ).  FIG. 14  shows the finished package  110  comprising the components of  FIG. 12 , with the outer sleeve  195  in place. The outer sleeve  195  may include a UPC or identifier window  199 . Similar to the first package  10 , the second package  110  may have a hanger loop  111  for retail display, and may be sealed to protect its contents along an at least partially sealed periphery  112  with a flange  113 . The second package  110  has a front or frontispiece  114 , a rear, back, or posterior  115 , a top  116 , a right side  117 , a bottom  118 , and a left side  119 . 
     As perhaps best shown in the cross-section of  FIG. 15 , the second package  110  may also include three compartments: a front compartment  180  between the outer shell face  120  and the inner shell face  140 , a central compartment  182  between the inner shell face  140  and the inner shell back  50 , and a rear compartment  184  between the inner shell back  150  and the outer shell back  160 . The package  110  may contain a product  190  in the front compartment  180 , accessories  192  in the central compartment  182 , and documentation or other rear compartment contents  194  in the rear compartment  184 . 
     In the package  110 , both the outer shell face  120  and the outer shell back  160  have perforations  126  for easy-open. As perhaps best shown in  FIG. 14 , the second package  110  may include ears  191 , for example on the upper and lower ends of the right and left side edges, extending through slots  193  in the outer sleeve  195 , to help keep the sleeve  195  in place. 
     While the exemplary packages  10  and  110  each comprise four separate pieces (outer shell face, inner shell face, inner shell back, outer shell back), this is not required and a different number of separate pieces could be used. For example, the outer shell face and outer shell back could be joined by a hinge into a unitary “clamshell”. The inner shell face and inner shell back, or some other combination of pieces, could similarly be joined. 
     While the exemplary package  10  includes three compartments (front compartment  80 , central compartment  82 , rear compartment  84 ), this is not required and a greater or fewer number of compartments could be used. For example, a compartment could be divided to form a different number of compartments for particular applications. The package as a whole or the individual compartments could be different sizes and/or shapes. Instead of four separate pieces to form a package with three separate compartments, three separate pieces could be used to form a package with two separate compartments or greater number of pieces could be used to form a package with more compartments. 
     The components of the packages  10  and  110  are preferably made using thermoforming methods, from a suitable thermoformable material, such as a thermoformable plastic such as oriented polystyrene (OPS), talc-filled polypropylene (TFPP), polypropylene (PP), high impact polystyrene (HIPS), polyethylene terepthalate (PET), amorphous PET (APET), crystalline polyethylene (CPET) polystyrene copolymer blends, styrene block copolymer blends, and the like. The material is not necessarily homogeneous, but may be, for example, a laminate, co-extruded material, or multilayer material. In an appropriate case, one or more of these components could also be made of different formable, molded, or folded materials, for example metal, foil, or a cardboard or paper sheet material that is or could be recycled instead of, or in combination with, thermoformable plastic. 
     The component pieces forming the package  10  may be made of different materials. For example, the outer shell face  20  and outer shell back  60  may be made of transparent material to allow viewing of the contents of the front compartment  80  and the rear compartment  84 . The inner shell face  40  and inner shell back  50  may be made of opaque material to obscure the contents of the central compartment  82 . 
     While the packages  10  and  110  have been described in context of consumer electronic sales, this is not required and the packages could be used for other purposes. For example, a package according to the invention could be used for food products, with the front and/or central compartments holding non-perishable or perishable food items, and the rear compartment holding a different food or other meal-related materials. The rear compartment could also hold a removable hot or cold pack, either passive or chemically activated. 
     It is understood that the invention is not confined to the embodiments set forth herein as illustrative, but embraces all such forms thereof that come within the scope of the following claims.

Technology Category: 7