"Packaging" This invention relates to packaging. Many packages are known which comprise an outer casing made of cardboard, paperboard or similar lightweight semi-rigid sheet material, to which any desired printing or graphics may be applied, and an inner bag or liner, usually made of a more or less air-tight flexible sheet material, to receive the intended contents of the package, for example confectionery, biscuits, toiletries or products for infusion such as tea or coffee. It is an object of the present invention to provide an improved, and in particular simplified, package of this kind.
According to the invention there is provided a package comprising an inner container made of flexible sheet material, and a wrap-around outer cover made of cardboard, paperboard or similar lightweight semi-rigid sheet material, the said outer cover being formed from a single elongate blank consisting only of a single row of hingedly interconnected panels, including two opposite side wall panels, a base panel between the said side wall panels, and at least one top connecting panel for holding the said side wall panels together at the top.
Such an arrangement provides a particularly simple construction of package in that the outer cover consists only of a wrap-around strip of sheet material formed with appropriate panels to provide the package with two opposite side walls, a base, and means for holding it together.
The inner container and the outer cover are preferably secured together in some convenient fashion.
In a preferred embodiment of the invention a side wall of the inner container is secured, e. g. glued, to one of the said side wall panels of the outer cover. Such parts may be further secured together, for example at
the base of the package, but preferably the securement between the side wall of the inner container and the said one side wall panel of the outer cover is the only securement between them.
Preferably, the said top connecting panel is hingedly connected to one of the said side wall panels of the outer cover and is releasably engageable with the other of said side wall panels to hold the said side wall panels together as aforesaid. The top of the said other side wall panel may then be trapped between the top connecting panel and the top of the said one side wall panel. The top of the inner container may then be folded over the top edge of the said other side wall panel and be trapped between the same and the said top connecting panel and said one side wall panel.
The scope of the invention also extends to a package as set forth above when the said outer cover is in a flat, unerected condition, with the said inner container also in a flat condition and secured to one of the said side wall panels of the outer cover. This is the condition in which the package will usually be supplied to a customer for filling and closing.
The scope of the invention also extends to a blank for making the outer cover of a package as set forth above, said blank consisting only of a single row of hingedly interconnected panels, including two opposite side wall panels, a base panel between the said side wall panels, and at least one top connecting panel for holding the said side wall panels together at the top.
An embodiment of the invention will now be described by way of example and with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which :Figure 1 is a plan view of a cardboard blank for making the outer cover of a package according to the invention;Figure 2 is a plan view of the blank with an inner container secured to it;
Figures 3 and 4 are perspective views of successive stages in the erection of the package ; and Figure 5 is a perspective view of the finished package.
Referring first to Figure 1, the cardboard blank consists of a single row of hingedly interconnected panels, namely a front side wall forming panel 1, a back side wall forming panel 2, a base forming panel 3, and a top connecting panel 4, the panel 4 being formed with a connecting tab 5 for insertion in a slot 6 in the front panel 1.
Indicated at 7 on the back panel 2 are gluing areas where the inner container will be attached, and Figure 2 shows the blank still in its flat condition but with the inner container 8 stuck to the back panel. The inner container is a bag made of substantially air-tight plastics film, with a closed base 9 and an open top 10 which extends above the fold line 11 between the back panel 2 and the top connecting panel 4. It is in the condition shown in Figure 2 that the product will be supplied to a customer for filling and subsequent marketing.
Turning now to Figures 3 to 5, the customer will fill the bag 8 through its open top, for example with sweets, thus expanding the bag and causing it to sit on the base panel 3, as shown in Figure 3. The top of the bag will usually be sealed closed at this time, as indicated at 12. The front panel 1 is now folded up as shown in Figure 4, so that its top edge 13 engages the bag just below its top. The top connecting panel 4 is then folded down and its tab 5 inserted in the slot 6, as shown in figure 5, whereby the top region 13 of the bag is folded over and trapped between the panel 4 and the front panel 1. Alternatively, if the product in the bag is suitable, the top of the bag could be left open, but held closed by its entrapment between the panels of the outer cover.