EP1780132A1

EP1780132A1 - Handle for a carrying package

Info

Publication number: EP1780132A1
Application number: EP06123183A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Cesare Moglia; Jorma Nieminen
Original assignee: A&R Carton Oy
Current assignee: GPI Finland Oy
Priority date: 2005-11-01
Filing date: 2006-10-30
Publication date: 2007-05-02
Anticipated expiration: 2026-10-30
Also published as: DK1780132T3; FI7398U1; FIU20050355U0; EP1780132B1

Abstract

An object of the invention is a carrying means, which comprises a base part (2), which is formed to a package or a package blank (1) by incisions (4, 4') or by removing material of the package or the package blank, and a reinforcement part (6), which is arranged to be aligned with the base part. The reinforcement part (6) is attached to the package or the package blank (1) in at least two points, and between these attachment points it has been arranged to the reinforcement part (6) an openable fold (7) and to the base part (2) a weakening (3) by means of which the base part (2) is arranged to be breakable. An object of the invention is also a carrying package for the carrying means and a method for arranging a carrying means to a package or a package blank.

Description

The invention is related to a carrying means, a package blank and a carrying package as well as a method for arranging a carrying means according to the preambles of the independent claims presented below.
Individual goods are packaged to multi-packages made of package blanks for the transport and the sale of goods. Packages are moved for example when the consumer transfers packages from the sales outlet to his home. In order to facilitate the transfer of packages, attempts have been made to arrange different kinds of carrying means to them, which carrying means are advantageously mounted to their place already when making the package blanks.
For example a separate plastic handle can be arranged to a package as a carrying means. Arranging such a separate handle to a package or a package blank is troublesome because it requires complex stages in the manufacture of the packages or the package blanks. Also the recycling of the used packages becomes more difficult since most separate handles have been made of a material that would need to be removed before leaving the used package for recycling. Most consumers, however, don't bother doing this, which either leads to a decreased recycling percentage or to difficulties in the recycling process. The advantage of a separate handle is that it can be made sufficiently long so that a good carrying grip is obtained. However, in this case, the problem with the long handle is thus that the handle fastens to somewhere when the package is moved and rips the package apart. Additionally, long plastic strips used as handles are often sharp at the edges, which is unpleasant to the user.
A carrying means can also be arranged to a package made of a thin material, such as board, by incisions or by removing material of the package or package blank. The problem with a carrying means thus obtained has been its weakness, which has led to the carrying means being torn during the transfer of the package, especially when the goods packaged to the package are heavy. Carrying means can have been reinforced for example with separate reinforcement strips. The problem has, however, been that the length of the carrying means obtained by incising the package or the package blank or by removing material from it is limited, which makes the transfer of the package, especially carrying it, more difficult.
It is an object of the present invention is to reduce or even to completely eliminate the problems and drawbacks that appear in the prior art.
An object of the present invention is for example to obtain a carrying means which is durable and the length of which is sufficient for facilitating the carrying and the transfer of the package.
In order to realise the above-mentioned objects, among others, the invention is characterized by what is presented in the characterising parts of the enclosed independent claims.
A typical carrying means according to the invention comprises

a base part, which is formed to a package or a package blank by incisions or by removing material of a package or a package blank, and
a reinforcement part, which is arranged to face with the base part,

A typical package blank according to the invention comprises at least one carrying means according to the invention.
A typical carrying package according to the invention comprises one or more individual packages around which has at least partly been arranged a package made of sheet-like material, to which package at least one carrying means according to the invention has been arranged.
In a typical method for arranging a carrying means to a package or a package blank according to the invention
a base part of the carrying means is formed to the package or the package blank by incising or by removing material of the package or the package blank,
a reinforcement part is arranged to face the base part, and
the reinforcement part is attached to the package or the package blank in at least two points, and that between these attachment points, an openable fold is arranged to the reinforcement part and a weakening is arranged to the base part, by means of which weakening the base part of the carrying means is arranged to be breakable.
The below described embodiments relate, when applicable, both to the carrying means and to the method for producing it, even if it isn't always specifically so mentioned.
Now it has surprisingly been found out that the reinforcement part used in a carrying means for the package or the package blank can be attached in at least two points to the package or the package blank, whereby the reinforcement part can be equipped with a fold that is located between these attachment points. Correspondingly, a weakening can be arranged to the base part of the carrying means between the attachment points. When the carrying means is gripped in order to move the package, the base part of the carrying means breaks at the point of the weakening. Simultaneously, the fold of the reinforcement part, i.e. the pleat opens, and the reinforcement part forms a new extended carrying means by means of which the package can be moved and carried. In this way the carrying means to be formed to a package or a package blank can be arranged such that its length extends sufficiently when taken into use, so that the moving and carrying of the package becomes essentially easier.
In this application, by fold is meant a crease, a ruck, a pleat, a ply or the like. A fold can also be a concertina fold. The length of the fold is that length of the reinforcement part which is observable when the carrying means is in use and when observing the package from the outside.
A carrying means according to the invention thus comprises a base part and a reinforcement part that have been arranged to face each other. Advantageously, the length of the carrying means before the carrying means is taken into use, i.e. the initial length, is approximately the same as the length of the base part. When taken into use, the length of the carrying means extends so that its length of use is approximately the same as the fold length of the reinforcement part, or the aggregate length of the fold length of the reinforcement part and the base part of the carrying means. In a preferred embodiment the fold/folds of the reinforcement part has/have been arranged to face the weakening/weakenings of the base part. The longitudinal direction of the carrying means is usually congruent with the longitudinal direction of the reinforcement part of the carrying means, that is, with the largest dimension.
According to an embodiment of the invention, the reinforcement part has been made of flammable material, whereby the reinforcement part need not be removed if the empty package is disposed of by incineration. Typically, the reinforcement part is made of plastic, glass fibre or other threadlike or netlike material having sufficient strength. Typically, this material having sufficient tensile and tearing strength is combined with paper in order to enhance its bonding properties and/or in order to maintain the threadlike strings in their place. The reinforcement part can thus be made for example of paper reinforced with glass fibres, or paper laminate reinforced with plastic web, or the like.
The reinforcement part can be attached to a package or a package blank for example by heating, if the reinforcement part is made of such material that at least partly melts upon heating, forming simultaneously a gripping surface, or by gluing the reinforcement part by means of a separate glue to the base part. The reinforcement part can also comprise a adhesive surface, whereby the reinforcement part can have been formed of adhesive tape. Also glue can be used to attach the reinforcement part. According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, the reinforcement part is attached to the base part for the whole length of the base part. In this case, the fold/folds of the reinforcement part has/have been arranged to be aligned with the weakening/weakenings of the base part.
In an embodiment of the invention, the base part comprises at least two weakenings and/or the reinforcement part comprises at least two folds. This is preferable especially, if it is meant that the carrying means of the package, when in use, is formed solely or almost solely of the reinforcement part. If the base part comprises two weakenings, the base part is easily removable. In one especially preferred embodiment, the base part comprises two weakenings and the reinforcement part comprises two folds, and the folds and the weakenings have been arranged to face each other, the base part and reinforcement part being attached to each other. In this way a symmetrical carrying means can be obtained, in which the folds of the reinforcement part open symmetrically on both sides of the base part. It is advantageous to arrange several weakenings and folds to the carrying means, if it is aimed that, when in use, the length of the carrying means is considerable. Thereby the reinforcement part can be made to be more discrete before being taken into use, if the reinforcement part comprises several small folds instead of one large fold.
The reinforcement part is preferably attached to a package or a package blank on that side of the package or the package blank that becomes the inside of the package when using the package. In this way the reinforcement part is not visible before the carrying means is taken into use, whereby it doesn't disturb the outward appearance of the package. The inside of the package is thus that side of the package, on which side the packaged goods are located in the package.
The reinforcement part has typically the width of 1 to 5 cm, typically 2 to 4 cm. The reinforcement part can have equal width for all of its length but in one embodiment of the invention, the reinforcement part is shaped to be more narrow when facing the base part, i.e. the ends of the reinforcement part are wider than the central part of the reinforcement part. In practice, the attachment area of the reinforcement part, i.e. the area on which the reinforcement part is attached to the carrying package or the carrying package blank, ought to be sufficiently large so that the required strength is obtained in view of carrying the package. Due to this, that part of the reinforcement part that attaches the reinforcement part to the package or the package blank, has a certain minimum length and a minimum width so that it would not serve as a tear strip, and would not be detached from the carrying package or the carrying package blank. On the other hand, that part of the reinforcement part that extends over the base part, need not be very long, if it simultaneously is sufficiently wide in order to obtain the required attachment area. When that part of the reinforcement part that extends over the base part has a sufficient minimum width, the attachment area will decide the length and width of the reinforcement part. A man skilled in the art can easily deduce or experimentally determine the required length of the reinforcement part on the basis of the materials used and the end use. In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the width of the reinforcement part of the carrying means in the carrying area of the reinforcement part is from 10 to 50 mm, preferably from 20 to 35 mm, and attachment areas are arranged to the ends of the reinforcement part, in which the width of the reinforcement part is from 30 to 70 mm, preferably from 40 to 60 mm, however preferably so that the width of the attachment area is larger than the width of the carrying area. By carrying area is meant here the area visible during the use of the reinforcement part.
According to a preferred embodiment the width of the reinforcement part is chosen to be substantially the same as the width of the base part. Very advantageously, the width of the reinforcement part does not exceed the width of the base part. In an embodiment the reinforcement part may also comprise a number of parallelly arranged thin reinforcement parts to each of which a necessary fold has been arranged.
According to an embodiment of the invention the total length of the opened fold of the reinforcement part is from 3 to 120 cm, preferably from 5 to 30 cm, very preferably from 10 to 20 cm, even more preferably from 13 to 17 cm. By total length of the fold is meant here the length of the part of the fold that is visible in use, when opened, or if the carrying means comprises several folds, the aggregate length of the visible parts of all folds when opened. Often in practice, the weight of the products to be packaged decides the total length of the fold of the reinforcement part. Depending on the weight of the final package, it is preferable to arrange the total length of the fold to be such that the package is carried either on the whole width of the palm or just with 1 to 2 fingers. This thus also decides the length of the fold.
According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, the package or the package blank is made of cardboard, paperboard or other corresponding material comprising cellulose or fibres, such as wood fibres. The invention is suitable to be used also for packages and package blanks made of other sheet-like materials, for example packages made of thin thermosetting plastic grades. In one embodiment of the invention the reinforcement part is made of paper laminate reinforced with plastic web and the package or the package blank is made of cardboard, paperboard or other corresponding material.
According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, the package blank is essentially rectangular in shape. In this case, the package blank has a first, short side, which typically corresponds to the length of the row of the individual packages to be arranged in a row side by side onto the package blank. The package blank also has a second, long side, which is perpendicular against to the first side, and the length of which second side is sufficient to encase the row formed by the individual packages to be packaged. A typical package according to the invention is thus arranged to be substantially open on the two opposite first sides. A package blank typically comprises creases, folds or the like that are typically perpendicular with regard to the first side and parallel to the second side. In a package or a package blank, that surface which remains, when the package is carried, between two creases, folds or the like, and to which the carrying means is substantially formed, can be called the carrying surface.
The longitudinal direction of the carrying means can be congruent with the creases, folds or the like arranged to a package or a package blank. In an embodiment of the invention, the longitudinal direction of the carrying means is arranged to be differing from the direction of the creases or folds defining the carrying surface, whereby carrying the package is much easier in practice. A carrying means that extends in use enables that the reinforcement part of the carrying means can advantageously be attached at least partly outside the carrying surface in order to obtain sufficient carrying strength. Nor do the length and/or the strength of the base part set constraints to the direction of the carrying means, because the strength and the ease of use of the carrying means are based on the strength of the reinforcement part and the extendability of its fold.
In one embodiment of the invention, the longitudinal direction of the carrying means forms an angle with regard to the creases, folds or the like defining the carrying surface. The carrying means can thus be placed obliquely with regard to the creases of the carrying surface. Very advantageously, the longitudinal direction of the carrying means forms an angle of 90 degrees with the creases, folds or the like that define the carrying surface. In an embodiment, also more than one carrying means can be arranged to the carrying surface, and the angles of these carrying means can differ from each other, or they can be opposite to each another.
In one embodiment of the invention, the reinforcement part of the carrying means is attached to the material forming the package blank or the package so that the reinforcement part is arranged to extend over the creases, folds or the like that define the carrying surface. Thus the reinforcement part can be attached at least partly on the sides of the package, whereby the force mediated by the carrying means is directed to the sides of the package. At the same time, the reinforcement part can be attached to the package material on a larger area. The carrying means itself may have been arranged to be parallel to the creases, folds or the like that define the carrying surface, or perpendicular to them.
Advantageously, a carrying package according to the invention is meant for multi-packaging of liquid packages, such as beverage bottles, cans or similar individual packages. A carrying package according to the invention is also excellently suited to yoghurt packages or corresponding packages that are difficult to move or to transport due to their weight or their volume.
According to an embodiment of the invention, the reinforcement part is arranged to be so long that it enables the final package to be carried on a shoulder like a shoulder bag. Thus the hands of the person carrying the package remain free, which makes it possible to carry more packages or bags than earlier.
In a further embodiment of the invention, two carrying means according to the invention can be arranged side by side to one package or package blank, whereby it is easier for two persons to carry one package. The parallel carrying means can also be arranged so that the package can be carried on the back like a backpack, the carrying means according to the invention forming the carrying straps of the "backpack" package.
In the following, the invention will be presented more in detail with reference to the appended exemplary Figures, in which

Figure 1: shows from a first side a package blank to which a carrying means according to one embodiment of the invention has been arranged, before the carrying means is taken into use,
Figure 2: shows a carrying means according to Figure 1 from a second side before it is taken into use, and
Figure 3: shows by way of an example a carrying means according to an embodiment of the invention in the use position, and
Figure 4: shows a carrying means according to yet another embodiment of the invention, arranged to a package blank before the carrying means is taken into use.

In Figure 1 is shown from a first side a package blank 1 to which a carrying means has been arranged before the carrying means has been taken into use. Of the carrying means, a base part 2 to which a weakening 3 has been arranged, is visible. The base part 2 has been formed to the package blank 1 by incisions 4, 4' and by removing semi-circle shaped items 5, 5' from the material of the package blank 1. The reinforcement part is not visible in Figure 1, as it is arranged on the other side of the base part 2.
In Figure 2, a carrying means 10 according to Figure 1 is shown from the other side of the carrying means before it is taken into use. The carrying means has been formed of the base part 2 which is formed to the package blank material 1' by incisions 4, 4' and by removing semi-circle shaped items 5, 5'. To the base part 2 is arranged a reinforcement part 6 to which a fold 7 is arranged. The fold 7 of the reinforcement part 6 is arranged to face the weakening 3 arranged to the base part 2.
In Figure 3, a carrying means according to the invention is shown in the use position by way of an example. A carrying means 1 has been arranged to a package 31, the carrying means being formed of a base part 2 and a reinforcement part 3. When taken into use, the base part 2 has broken at the point of the weakening arranged to it, whereby the fold arranged to the reinforcement part 3 has opened, and the total length of the carrying means has grown, thus making it easier to carry the package 31.
In Figure 4, a carrying means 42 arranged to a package blank 41 is shown before the assembly of the package blank and before taking the carrying means into use. The carrying means 42 is arranged to the package blank 41 so that the longitudinal direction of the carrying means 42 forms an angle of 90 degrees with regard to the folds 43', 43" defining the carrying surface 43. At the same time, the ends 44', 44" of the reinforcement part 44 of the carrying means 42 are arranged to extend over said folds 43', 43". The ends 44', 44" of the reinforcement part 44 are arranged to be substantially wider than the central part of the reinforcement part 44, whereby it is possible to guarantee a sufficient attachment surface between the package blank 41 and the reinforcement part 44. A number of folds 45 has been arranged to the reinforcement part 44, by means of which folds the reinforcement part extends to its length of use. Also a wide number of different perforations or holes 46, 46', 46" have been arranged to the package blank for the packaging or the placing of the goods to be packaged.
It is evident to a person skilled in the art that the invention is not limited exclusively to the examples described above, but that it can vary within the scope of the claims presented below.

Claims

A carrying means comprising
- a base part (2) which is formed to a package or a package blank (1) with incisions (4, 4') or by removing material of a package or a package blank, and

- a reinforcement part (6) which is arranged to face the base part,
characterized in that the reinforcement part (6) is attached to the package or the package blank (1) in at least two points, and that between these attachment points, it has been arranged to the reinforcement part (6) an openable fold (7) and to the base part (2) a weakening (3) by means of which the base part (2) is arranged to be breakable.
Carrying means according to claim 1, characterized in that the base part (2) comprises at least two weakenings and the reinforcement part (6) comprises at least two folds.
Carrying means according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the reinforcement part (6) is attached to the base part (2) for all of the base part's length, and that the fold/folds (7) of the reinforcement part (6) is/are arranged to face the weakening/weakenings (3) of the base part (2).
Carrying means according to claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the reinforcement part (6) and the base part (2) are approximately equally wide.
Carrying means according to any of the previous claims, characterized in that the total length of the fold (7) of the reinforcement part (6) is from 3 to 120 cm, preferably from 5 to 30 cm, very preferably from 10 to 20 cm and even more preferably from 13 to 17 cm.
A package blank according to any of the previous claims, characterized in that the longitudinal direction of the carrying means forms a 90 degree angle with respect to the creases, folds or the like that define the carrying surface.
The package blank according any of the previous claims, characterized in that the reinforcement part of the carrying means is attached to the package material so that the reinforcement part is arranged to extend over the creases, folds or the like that define the carrying surface.
Carrying means according to claims 1 to 7, characterized in that the reinforcement part (6) is made of paper laminate reinforced with plastic web, and that the package or the package blank (1) is made of sheet-like material, for example of cardboard.
A package blank comprising at least one carrying means according to claims 1 to 8.
A carrying package comprising one or more individual packages around which at least partly has been formed a package made of sheet-like material, characterized in that at least one carrying means according to any of the claims 1 to 8 has been arranged to the carrying package.
Method for arranging a carrying means to a package or a package blank, in which method
- forming a base part to a package or a package blank by incisions or by removing material of the package or the package blank, and

- arranging a reinforcement part to face the base part,
characterized in
attaching the reinforcement part to the package or the package blank in at least two points, and that between these attachment points, an openable fold is arranged to the reinforcement part and a weakening is arranged to the base part, by means of which weakening the base part of the carrying means is arranged to be breakable.