Patent Document

This application is a continuation of Ser. No. 10/425,846, filed on Apr. 29, 2003 now U.S. Pat. No. 6,715,639, which is a continuation of Ser. No. 09/757,714, filed on Jan. 9, 2001 now U.S. Pat. No. 6,578,736. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates generally to an enclosed paperboard carton capable of enclosing containers, which carton has a unique opening and dispensing feature that allows the containers, for example, cans or bottles, to be removed or dispensed without destroying the overall structural integrity of the carton. The dispensing feature may also provide a safety net for the first container that is automatically dispensed when the carton is opened. This dispensing feature also permits the carton to be carried from one location to another after the dispenser has been opened without the containers falling out of the carton. 
     2. Background 
     Fully enclosed carton capable of enclosing cans have been used in the past that have a feature for dispensing the cans one at a time. Dispenser sections have been provided at various locations within these cartons depending on the design. Many of these dispensers suffer from the disadvantage that once open, they allow all of the containers to roll out. In addition, it is difficult to carry one of these cartons without the containers falling out once the dispenser has been opened. Most of these dispensers have been designed for dispensing cans or bottles which have cylindrical tops and bottoms of substantially the same size and configuration. These dispensers are not suitable for dispensing bottles that have a neck of smaller diameter than the body of the bottle. 
     In effect, many of these dispensers destroy the overall carton integrity once they have been opened. Many of these dispensing features do not have any means for preventing the first container that is automatically dispensed from falling free from the carton. In other words, its dispensing feature has no safety net. 
     3. Prior Art 
     U.S. Pat. No. 3,265,283 to Farquhar discloses a fully enclosed carton having a dispenser for dispensing the enclosed cans. The end wall of the carton has a dispensing flap which can be folded down upon opening. An aperture formed by the flap extends into the side walls to permit grasping of the can to withdraw it from the carton. When the flap is opened, the cans are held in the carton by an accurate flap portion extending downwardly in the end wall into the center of the aperture. The structural integrity of this carton is compromised because the entire bottom end of the carton is opened. The dispensing flap does not provide a safety net to prevent a can from rolling out of the carton and falling to the floor. This carton cannot be easily moved from one location to another after the dispenser has been opened without the containers falling out. It will be realized that the design of this carton is not satisfactory for dispensing bottles with necks as the exiting container being dispensed needs to have a corresponding cylindrical top and bottom of approximately the same size to facilitate easy dispensing by a person grasping the ends of the exiting container. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 4,364,509 to Holley, Jr. et al. also discloses a fully enclosed carton with a dispenser in one of the end walls. This dispenser is likewise formed in the end wall by tearing out an end flap and lowering it into proper position. Expansion slits are provided in the side wall for the user&#39;s fingers to grasp the ends of the exiting can. This carton is not adapted for use with bottles, because of the necessity of grasping the ends of the container for removal. In addition, it is not adapted for carrying cans once the carton has been opened as they are likely to roll out of the dispenser. There is also no safety net to receive the cans as they are rolled out of the dispenser. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     It is an object of this invention to provide a dispenser that preserves the integrity of the carton after the dispenser has been opened. It is a further object to provide a dispenser that can be used with both cans and bottles. It is another object of this invention to provide a safety net or basket for the containers that are automatically dispensed when the dispenser is opened. It is a still further object of this invention is to develop a dispenser that will permit the carton to be moved from one location to another after it has been opened without discharging containers. The final object of this invention is to provide a dispenser that can be easily opened. 
     Briefly described, in a preferred form, the objects of this invention are achieved by providing an enclosed carton that has a unique dispenser in the exiting end of the carton. This carton is generally rectangular and has a bottom, a top, two sides, a closed end and an exiting end. The carton is foldably constructed from a blank having panels and flaps. The exiting end or ends of the carton permits containers to be taken from the carton via the dispenser. 
     This carton has a dispenser that is torn from an end of the carton by tearing an end portion of the top panel, a triangular portion from the adjoining side panels, and all of the side end flaps except the bottom most portions, to form a dispenser. The top end flap is removed when this dispenser is opened. This dispenser may have a semi-circular score line attached to the dispenser score line in the top panel for easy opening of the dispenser. A person&#39;s fingers can be inserted between this semi-circular score line and the dispenser to commence the opening of the dispenser. This semi-circular score line is placed so that when it is pushed open, a person&#39;s fingers will go between the first and second containers inside of the carton. A score line can be provided that bisects the semi-circular score line parallel to the longitudinal axis of the containers to permit ease of entry of a person&#39;s fingers. The bottom portions of the side end flaps are left intact to preserve the structural integrity of the carton and also to provide a wall to prevent an end container in the bottom of the carton from accidentally rolling out. 
     It should be realized that the dispenser does not have to be totally removed from the carton, as the score lines in the side and top panels can be broken and the dispenser flipped over along the score lines in the side end flaps to form a safety net or basket when the first container in the top of the carton rolls out of the dispenser. If the score line in the side end flaps is not broken, the dispenser can be reclosed. 
     This carton can be constructed by gluing, taping, stapling and the like, or by locking. The dispenser of this invention can be put in one end of the carton or in both ends. A dispenser can be torn from the carton and placed under the other end of the carton to elevate it to facilitate the removal of the containers from the carton. These and other objects, features, and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent upon reading the following specification in conjunction with the accompanying drawing figures. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a plan view of a blank from which a carton according to this invention is formed. 
         FIG. 2  is a perspective end view of the carton loaded with cans showing the dispenser being partially opened. 
         FIG. 3  is a perspective end view of the carton containing cans with the basket shaped dispenser open but attached and containing a can. 
         FIG. 4  is a perspective side view of the carton containing cans showing the top most end can being gripped by hand for removal from the carton. 
         FIG. 5  is a plan view of the blank from which a carton according to this invention is formed having a single handle opening with the bottoms flaps being designed to be glued together. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     The present invention is intended primarily for use with cans and bottles of the types used to contain soft drinks, beer and the like. The blank  10  is formed from a foldable sheet material, such as paperboard. The blank has a top flap  12  which is connected by fold line  14  to side panel  16 , which in turn is connected by fold line  18  to bottom panel  20 . Bottom panel  20  is connected by fold line  22  to side panel  24 , which in turn is connected by fold line  26  to top flap  28 . 
     This carton is capable of containing cans or bottles in two rows of six containers each. This carton has the “racetrack” handle  30  and  32  formed in the top flaps,  12  and  28 , respectively. Cushioning flaps  34  and  36  are provided for the comfort of a person&#39;s hands, and are foldably joined to top flaps  12  and  28 . On the exiting end of the carton, top end flap  38  is joined to top flap  12  by fold line  40 . Side end flap  42  is joined to side panel  16  by fold line  44 . Bottom end flap  46  is joined to bottom panel  20  by fold line  48 . Side end flap  50  is joined by fold line  52  to side panel  24 . Top end flap  54  is joined to top flap  28  by fold line  56 . 
     On the closed end of the carton, top end flap  58  is connected to top flap  12  by fold line  60 , side end flap  62  is connected to side panel  16  by fold line  64 , bottom end flap  66  is attached to bottom panel  20  by fold line  68 , side end flap  70  is connected to side panel  24  by fold line  72  and top end flap  74  is connected to top flap  28  by fold line  76 . 
     It will be understood by those skilled in the art that the carton of the present invention is generally symmetrical about a horizontal line of bisection, as viewed when  FIG. 1  is rotated lengthwise. This symmetry aids in the efficient production of the present carton. 
     In forming this blank  10  into a carton, top flap  12  is glued to top flap  28  forming a sleeve. The cans or bottles are then loaded into the carton on their sides and the various end flaps on both ends are closed. Using one end as an example, top end flaps  38  and  54  are folded downwardly and bottom end flap  46  is folded upwardly and then side end flaps  42  and  50  are folded sideways. These various end flaps are held together by glue or other means. The other end of the carton is glued and closed in the same fashion. 
     When the blank is folded and glued, the resulting carton has a closed end and an exiting end. However, a dispenser can be placed on both ends of the cartons. The containers exit the carton through the exiting end of the carton. The exiting end of the carton has a tear line  78  that extends through the top flaps  12  and  28 , through the side panels  16  and  24  to form a triangular dispensing flap on the dispenser  79  into the side end flaps  42  and  50 . In order to facilitate the opening of this dispenser  79 , a finger flap  82  may be provided for the easy insertion of the fingers to start the tearing of the dispenser  79 . Finger flap  82  is connected to top flaps  12  and  28  by tear line  80 . Finger flap  82  may be provided with insertion flap  86  to facilitate entry of the fingers into the carton. For the opening of the dispenser  79 , insertion flap  86  is connected to finger flap  82  by fold line  84 . Finger flap  82  and insertion flap  86  are connected to the dispenser  79  by fold line  88  which interrupts the tear line  78 . It will be noticed that tear line  78  extends into side end flaps  42  and  50  so as to form a substantial bottom portion  90  and  92  so that the end of the carton will have a bottom end when the dispenser  79  is opened. 
       FIG. 2  shows the carton full of cans with the dispenser  79  open except for the tear lines  78  through the side end flaps  42 ,  50 . It will be noted that the dispenser is a unitary structure. The dispenser  79  is opened by a person inserting his or her fingers into finger flap  82  and pulling the dispenser  79  open. Insertion flap  86  is provided to facilitate the entry of the fingers into the opening provided by finger flap  82 . Finger flap  82  and insertion flap  86  are placed so that the fingers will enter the interior of the carton between the first and second cans. 
       FIG. 3  shows the dispenser  79  completely opened but still attached to the carton by tear line  78  not being torn open through side end flaps  42  and  50 . When the dispenser  79  is completely opened, the top can C will fall into the basket formed by the dispensing flap  79  and be retained. This dispenser  79  serves as a safety net to prevent the can from leaving the vicinity of the carton. The dispenser  79  forms a basket with triangular flaps forming side walls, side end flaps  42  and  50  forming a bottom wall and the torn off portions of the top flaps  12  and  28  forming an end wall. 
     In order to maintain the structural integrity of this carton, the bottom portions  90  and  92  of the side end flaps  42  and  50  are not removed from the carton when the dispenser is removed. The structural integrity of the carton is improved by the fact that the bottom end flap  46  is not removed. The bottom end flap  46  has a height H approximately equal to the distance between A and B along fold lines  44  and  52  respectively. This means that the bottom end flap  46  has the same height as the bottom portions  90  and  92  of the side end flaps  42  and  50 , thus producing a strong bottom end structure. 
     If desired, the dispenser  79  can be totally removed from carton or left attached along tear line  78  in side flaps  42  and  50  and reclosed. 
     As illustrated in  FIG. 4 , a can C can be easily removed from the carton by using the fingers F and the thumb T of a hand. 
       FIG. 5  is a plan view of a blank from which a carton containing cans in three rows of four cans each according to the invention is formed. This carton has a single slot handle for carrying. The blank  110  has a bottom flap  112  which is connected by fold line  114  to side panel  116 , which in turn is connected by fold line  118  to top panel  120 . Top panel  120  in turn is connected by fold line  122  to side panel  124  which in turn is connected by fold line  126  to bottom flap  128 . On the closed end of the carton, bottom end flap  130  is foldably connected by fold line  132  to bottom flap  112 . Side end flap  134  is connected by fold line  136  to side panel  116 . Top end flap  138  is connected by fold line  140  to top panel  120 . Side end flap  142  is connected by fold line  144  to side panel  124  and bottom end flap  146  is connected by fold line  148  to bottom flap  128 . The exiting end of the carton has a bottom end flap  150  which is connected to bottom flap  112  by fold line  152 . Side end flap  154  is connected by fold line  156  to side panel  116 . Top end flap  158  is connected by fold line  160  to top panel  120 . Side end flap  162  is connected by fold line  164  to side panel  124 . Bottom end flap  166  is connected by fold line  168  to bottom flap  128 . 
     This carton has a slot handle  170  formed by cut line  172  and fold lines  174  and  176 . It also has a score line  178  to assist in dissipating the forces involved in lifting a loaded carton. 
     A dispenser  180  is formed by tearing tear line  182  which extends from the top panel  120  through side panels  116 ,  124  and into side end flaps  154  and  162 . Tear line  182  extends into side end flaps  154  and  162 , so as to leave bottom portions  184 ,  186  that has a height when the carton is formed along lines  156 ,  164  respectively that is approximately equal to the height of bottom end flaps  150  and  166  in order to provide structural strength to the carton. This carton may have a finger flap  188  connected to dispenser  180  by fold line  190  and insertion flap  192  connected to finger flap  188  by fold line  194 . Finger flap  188  and insertion flap  192  are joined to top panel  120  by tear line  196 . 
     A sleeve from this carton is prepared by gluing the bottom flap  112  and  128  in an overlapping relationship. This carton is then loaded in the same manner as the carton shown in FIG.  2  through as the end of the cartons. Side end flaps  134 ,  142 ,  154 , and  162  are glued over the bottom end flaps  130 ,  146 ,  150 ,  166  and top end flaps  138  and  158  to close the ends of the carton. The dispenser is opened in the same manner as the dispenser shown in  FIGS. 1 and 2 . 
     The dispenser of this invention can be used for both cans and other types of cylindrical containers. It is particularly useful for PET bottles having a stubby configuration. 
     UNIQUE FEATURES OF THE DISPENSER OF THIS INVENTION 
     One of the unique features of the dispenser of this invention is that it provides easy access to the cans or bottles in the carton but yet does not greatly diminish the structural integrity of the carton. This is partly because the bottom end of the end panel in which the dispenser is located is retained. This accomplished by leaving a bottom portion on the side end panel that is equal in height to the bottom end flaps. 
     The dispenser of this invention provides an easy opening feature in that it has a finger flap and insertion flap so that a person&#39;s fingers can be inserted between the first and second can to open the dispenser. 
     This dispenser also provides a safety net or basket in that if the tear line for the dispenser is not torn along the side end flaps, it remains attached to the carton and can catch in its basket a can as it is removed from the carton. 
     While the invention has been disclosed in its preferred forms, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that many modifications, additions, and deletions can be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention and its equivalents as set forth in the following claims.

Technology Category: 1