JP6764650B2 - Grip means for containers - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a packaging material, specifically a laminated packaging material made of paperboard coated with a thermoplastic resin.

Patent Document 1 discloses a paper container made of a laminated body mainly composed of paper and having irregularities on the outer surface of the container in order to improve anti-slip property and design. The laminate includes an inner layer having at least a thermosetting resin layer on one surface of the paper and an outer layer having at least a thermosetting resin layer on the other surface. A part of the paper container is provided with irregularities to improve the non-slip property.

Patent Document 2 relates to a commercial packaging material including at least one flat surface or curved surface and an anti-theft label, and having a groove on the surface on which the anti-theft label is located.

Patent Document 3 describes an integrated circuit such as a transponder, in which an integrated circuit is adhered to a substrate such as a cardboard packaging material, a patch antenna is attached to the substrate and the integrated circuit, and at least a part of the patch antenna and a sealing layer are attached to the integrated circuit. Is disclosed as an integrated circuit mounted on a substrate by applying. A recess is formed in the substrate, and integrated circuits can be arranged in the recess. The patch antenna can be screen-printed on the substrate and integrated circuit using conductive ink, or the patch antenna can be a metal foil attached to the substrate and integrated circuit. If the integrated circuit is a transponder, the identification code can be programmed into it before or after mounting it on the board.

Patent Document 4 discloses a stackable box. This stackable box has an upright tab at the top of each end panel, a holding tab at the bottom of the side panel, and a recess near the center of the base of the box. With such a configuration, the boxes can be stacked, and when the second box is placed on top of the first box, the upright tab of the first box is the holding tab of the second box and / or the second box. Engage with the depression.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2003-276725 International Publication 00/7503 Pamphlet European Patent Application Publication No. 0615285 UK Patent Application Publication No. 2471268

According to the first aspect of the present invention, a container blank for forming a container is provided. The container blank has a first plane and a second plane facing each other, and includes a row of main body forming panels arranged side by side, and a boundary between the main body forming panels is an upper part of the main body forming panel. Defined by each boundary lines of weakness extending substantially perpendicular to the row from the bottom to the bottom, at least one of the body forming panels is line of the first plane. Including depression), the recess line is not visible on the opposite second plane, and a grip improving substance is arranged in the recess line.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, a container including a loop of a main body panel is provided. The boundaries between the main body panels are defined by each fragile boundary line extending substantially perpendicular to the loop from the top to the bottom of the main body forming panel, and each main body panel is formed on each outer plane and inside. It has a flat surface, and at least one of the main body panels includes a concave line in the outer flat surface, the concave line is not visible in the inner flat surface, and a grip improving substance is arranged in the concave line.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method of forming a container blank of a sheet material. The method is a step of marking the sheet material with a pattern of fragile lines defining a main body forming panel of the container blank, wherein the container blank has a first plane and a second plane facing each other. A step of forming a recess line on at least one of the first planes of the main body forming panel, wherein the recess line is not visible at a corresponding position on the second plane. Including the step of arranging the grip improving substance inside.

According to these aspects, a non-slip substance can be applied to the outer surface of the packaging material without interfering with any part of the container manufacturing process.

By forming a concave line on the first flat surface of the laminated material, the surface characteristics of the second surface on the opposite side are not changed, and the inner surface of the main body forming portion of the packaging material is seemingly smooth and the packaging material is first. There is an advantage that it is maintained in a state where there is no trace formed by embossing or the like formed on the surface 1. This is especially advantageous for sterile packaging where it is desirable that the inner surface be as smooth as possible so that there is no effect on the packaging material that risks destroying the barrier function of the resulting container.

In a preferred embodiment, the grip-enhancing material is a friction-increasing material that increases the amount of friction between the consumer's finger and the body panel of the container. Other substances can also be used, for example, to convey information to the user, for example to indicate the temperature of the contents.

An embodiment of the present invention will be described below as an example with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 is a plan view of a container blank that is converted into a container. FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a container composed of the container blank of FIG. FIG. 3 is a partial cross-sectional view of a packaging material preferably used to form the container of FIG.

With reference to FIG. 1, a container blank 2 having a first plane constituting the outer surface of the container to be formed and a second plane forming the inner surface of the container to be formed has a paperboard base material layer and moisture-proof heat. Includes a laminate that includes an outermost layer and an innermost layer of the plastic resin (an oxygen barrier layer, such as aluminum foil, may be interposed between the substrate and the innermost thermoplastic resin layer). A gable-topped container 4 or a packed container composed of it (shown in FIG. 2) is used for packaging liquids such as milk or fruit juices, especially sterile packaging of such liquids.

To manufacture the container blank 2, a web of packing material is passed between a pair of rollers in a known manner. The pair of rollers cut the packaging material around the edges of the container blank, the first plane of the container blank forming the outer surface of the final container and the second of the container blank forming the inner surface of the final container. It forms the lines of weakness found on both sides of the plane.

The container blank 2 includes four panels P1 to P4 forming the main body, bounded by fragile lines in the form of score lines S1, S2, S3 and S4, and has a fifth standard sealing panel. The main body panels P1 to P4 are bordered by further fragile lines in the form of score lines S5 to S8 at their lower ends and separated from the end closing panels P6 to P9 arranged in a row. Similarly, the main body panels P1 to P4 arranged in a row are bounded by further fragile lines in the form of score lines S9 to S11 at their upper ends, and the top obturating panels P10 and P11 arranged in a row and It is separated from P13. Although the upper closed panel P12 and the main body panel P3 immediately inside the upper closed panel P12 are not separated by a physical score line, when the container blank 2 to the container 4 are formed at the boundary between the panel P3 and the panel P12. There is an invisible fragile line in which the upper closing panel P12 is bent with respect to the main body panel P3. The panels P10 and P12 are quadrangular, each forming a quadrangular roof panel of the gable roof type container 4, while the panels P11 and P13 are also quadrangular, but substantially by the diagonal score lines S12, S13, S14 and S15. It is divided into three triangular sub-panels P11a to P11c and P13a to P13c, respectively. The upper sealing panels P10 to P13 arranged in a row are bounded by the upper sealing panels P14 to P17 arranged in a row at their upper ends to form the seal fin 6 (see FIG. 2) of the container 4. A through hole 8 (or a loop of weakness in the case of sterile packaging) is formed in the front upper closing panel P12, to which a pour spout fitment 10 is applied.

When the container 4 is made from the container blank 2 shown in FIG. 1, the container blank 2 is converted into a container sleeve. The container sleeve has a rectangular cross section, and the main body panels P1 to P4 form a loop around the sleeve, and the upper closing panels P10 to P13 form a loop around the sleeve. The end closure panels P6 to P9 are bent over the mandrel to form an end closure. After bending the end closure panels P6 to P9, these panels are sealed on the mandrel to form the bottom closure. The sealing involves heating and pressing the panels P6 to P9 together to form a sealed bottom closure to bring the thermoplastic resin layer into a sticky state. Alternatively, other sealing methods such as gluing can be used and heating may not be required in the case of gluing. After filling the container 4, the upper closure is formed by forming the seal fins 6 in a known manner. Then, the flange of the spout plug 10 (see FIG. 2) can be attached to the outer surface of the upper closed subpanel P12 by, for example, ultrasonic welding on the fragile ring-shaped portion 8. Alternatively, the flange of the spout plug 10 may be applied to the inside of the subpanel P12 before closing the spout protruding through the through hole 8. Container 4 may be suitable for aseptic or non-sterile packaging of liquids.

With reference to FIG. 3, the laminated packaging material is an oxygen barrier disposed between the paperboard base material 100, the outer layer 102 of the thermoplastic material, the inner layer 104 of the thermoplastic material and the paperboard base material 100 and the inner layer 104 of the thermoplastic material. A barrier layer such as layer 106 is included. When forming the container blank 2, a pair of rollers through which the packaging material passes are prepared, and the outer layer 102 of the thermoplastic material and the surface of the paperboard layer 100 facing the outer layer 102 of the thermoplastic material are pressed. At least one line of depression 12 is formed on the surface of the packaging material forming the outer surface 14 of the final container, while the corresponding inner surface 16 remains smooth. This is obtained by providing a desired pattern composed of one or more depression devices on one of the rollers in contact with the outer surface 14 and smoothing the corresponding portion of the other roller. As described above, the recessed line 12 may be visible on the outer surface but not on the inner surface.

Before converting the container blank 2 to the container sleeve, a substance 18 for improving grip is arranged in the recess line 12 so that the substance 18 is not contained in the recess line 12 and spills on the outermost surface of the outer surface 14. Can be made to. The substance can be in the form of a friction-increasing substance. In this way, the friction increasing material 18 is maintained where it is most needed.

In the filling device, various adjustments of the filling device are often required when the container blank has different surface friction characteristics, such as when a grip element or the like is adhered to the outer surface of the container and protrudes outward from the outer surface. , To remove the container blank from the magazine, to place the container blank on the mandrel, to move the container from the mandrel to the chain pocket, to orient the container in the chain pocket throughout the filling device, and finally to the top The performance of the filling device can be different when sealing. The combination of the recessed wire 12 and the friction increasing substance 18 contained in the recessed wire 12 does not adversely affect the performance of the filling device.

It is advantageous that the friction increasing material 18 is a fluid material, such as a high friction ink or varnish, before coating. The high-friction ink or varnish is composed of a modified acrylic resin and behaves like a rubber substance (relatively elastic and relatively flexible), providing non-slip properties. In addition, high friction inks or varnishes do not contain silicones or waxes known as slip agents.

The friction increasing material 18 may be placed in the recess line 12 during the same process of applying other inks used to decorate the container, for example in an ultraviolet (UV) printing process performed at another ink station. .. UV printing is a relatively fast process because it is not necessary to wait for the ink to dry. Therefore, the friction increasing material 18 can be selected to cure when exposed to UV irradiation, similar to the ink used in this step. However, other methods of printing the decoration of the container can also be used with the suitable friction increasing material 18 which can be selected accordingly.

Thus, the friction increasing material 18 can be applied at various levels to have varying degrees of friction and / or friction regions and other tactile features without interfering with the manufacturing process. The friction-increasing material 18 is generally contained within the recessed line 12 and does not interfere with contact or processing with other adjacent container blanks or sleeves, facilitating stacking and withdrawal of flat container blanks or sleeves. To do.

By having such a container 4 in hand, the consumer can experience an improved grip on the container. This is especially advantageous for consumers who may have visual impairment and / or disability. By using the container 4, the risk of spilling the liquid food contents and the risk of dropping the container 4 are reduced.

Similar to the tread of a vehicle tire designed to provide a gripping surface on the ground on which the vehicle travels, the recessed lines 12 can be arranged in a particular desired pattern for optimum grip. In this way, the recessed line 12 clearly shows how the consumer should hold the container 4.

The inner surface 16 of the packaging material has no recessed lines 12 and therefore remains smooth so that the inner surface 16 can be sterilized efficiently. Such a smooth inner surface is ideal for the sterilization process. This is because there are no ridges or wrinkles on the packaging that allow bacteria and other microorganisms to continue to survive after sterilization.

The depth of the recess line 12 should be less than half the thickness of the paperboard layer so that the amount of substance 18 used is minimized and sufficient contact is obtained between the skin of the consumer's finger and the substance 18. It is preferably present, and most preferably less than 1/4 of the thickness of the paperboard layer.

The region of the outer surface 14 that has not been pressurized to form the recessed line 12 remains relatively smooth, similar to known vessels of this type. Thus, the recessed line 12 visually and / or tactilely delineates one or more grip areas 20 for holding the container 4 in an advantageous manner for the consumer.

The container 4 of FIG. 2 has a main body side panel P2 having a plurality of grip regions 20 defined by a plurality of recessed lines 12. One grip region 20 is formed from a pattern of substantially circular recessed lines 12, and another grip region is formed from a pattern of recessed lines 12 having a plurality of waveforms. The same or different patterns may be provided on the side panel of the main body on the opposite side in consideration of how the consumer's fingers are arranged when holding the container 4. The position and pattern of the recessed line 12 of the main body panel P2 may differ depending on the size of the container 4. It is not necessary to provide the different grip regions 20 shown together, they may be of any desired shape and pattern independent of each other. The pattern of the substantially circular recessed line 12 shown in the figure is between the joint portion between the main body side panel P2 and the main body rear panel P1 and the joint portion between the main body side panel P2 and the main body front panel P3. Is slightly tilted with respect to the horizon. This allows the consumer to hold the container 4 naturally. Each of the opposing main body panels P2 and P4 and the opposing upper closing panels P11b and P13b each further contained a linear fragile portion 22, and all of the liquid food contents were ejected and the container 4 was emptied. Remaining from the folded container 4 to show the consumer where to fold the container for disposal / recycling in case or to completely remove a relatively viscous liquid such as yogurt from the container 4 and empty it. It may be promoted by squeezing out the liquid contents of. The linear fragile portion 22 does not pass through the grip region 20 but provides the consumer with a general bend line for crushing the container 4.

The corrugated concave line 12 may or may not be continuous as shown in the figure.

The grip area 20 may also form an area for specific printing related to container handling. Such printing may take the form of text and / or images.

Claims (16)

A packaging material for forming a container, which has a first surface and a second surface facing each other, includes a row of main body forming panels arranged side by side, and a boundary between the main body forming panels. Each fragile boundary line extending substantially perpendicular to the row from the top to the bottom of the body forming panel, at least one of the body forming panels has a recessed line on the first surface. Including, a grip improving substance is arranged in the recessed line ,
The grip improving substance is a friction increasing substance, and the entire grip improving substance is contained in the recessed line .
The main body forming panel includes a plurality of grip regions, a first grip region is formed from a pattern of the recessed lines that are substantially circular, and a second grip region is formed by the recessed lines having a plurality of waveforms. There is a packaging material. The packaging material according to claim 1 , wherein the grip improving substance is a high friction ink or a varnish. The packaging material according to claim 2 , wherein the high-friction ink or varnish contains a modified acrylic resin. The packaging material includes a paperboard base material, a layer of a first thermoplastic material on the first surface, a layer of a second thermoplastic material on the second surface, and the paperboard base material. The recessed line is the surface of the paperboard substrate facing the first layer of the thermoplastic, including a laminated wrapping material comprising and a barrier layer disposed between the second layer of the thermoplastic material. The packaging material according to any one of claims 1 to 3, which is formed in the layer of the first thermoplastic material. The packaging material according to claim 4, wherein the depth of the recessed line is less than half the thickness of the paperboard base material. In any one of claims 1 to 5 , the recessed line is present in the second and fourth main body forming panels of the first, second, third and fourth main body forming panels in a row. The listed packaging material. A container containing a loop of the main body panel, the boundary between the main body panels is defined by each fragile boundary line extending substantially perpendicular to the loop from the top to the bottom of the main body panel. each said body panel has a respective outer plane and the inner plane, at least one of the body panel includes a recessed line to the outer flat surface, the inside recessed seen lines disposed grip improvement substance,
The grip improving substance is a friction increasing substance, and the entire grip improving substance is contained in the recessed line .
The main body panel includes a plurality of grip regions, a first grip region is formed from a pattern of the recessed lines that are substantially circular, and a second grip region is formed by the recessed lines having a plurality of waveforms. , Container. The container according to claim 7 , wherein the grip improving substance is a high friction ink or a varnish. The container according to claim 8 , wherein the high friction ink or varnish contains a modified acrylic resin. The container includes a paperboard base material, a layer of a first thermoplastic material on the first plane, a layer of a second thermoplastic material on the second plane, and the paperboard base material. The recessed line comprises a laminated packaging material including a barrier layer disposed between the second layer of the thermoplastic material and the recessed line with the surface of the paperboard substrate facing the first layer of the thermoplastic material. The container according to any one of claims 7 to 9 , which is formed on a layer of the first thermoplastic material. The container according to claim 10 , wherein the depth of the recessed line is less than half the thickness of the paperboard substrate. The container according to any one of claims 7 to 11 , wherein the recessed line is present in the main body panel facing the loop. A method of forming a container blank for sheet material.
A step of marking the sheet material with a pattern of fragile lines defining a main body forming panel of the container blank, wherein the container blank has a first surface and a second surface facing each other.
A step of forming a recessed line on at least one of the first surfaces of the main body forming panel , wherein the first surface includes a plurality of grip areas, and the first grip area is substantially circular. The process, which is formed from a pattern of recessed lines and the second grip region is formed by said recessed lines of a plurality of waveforms ,
The process of arranging the grip improving substance in the recessed line and
Is a method that includes
The method, wherein the grip-improving substance is a friction-increasing substance, and the entire grip-improving substance is contained in the recessed line. The container blank includes a paperboard base material, a layer of a first thermoplastic material on the first surface, a layer of a second thermoplastic material on the second surface, and the paperboard base material. The step of forming the recessed line comprises a laminated packaging material including a barrier layer disposed between the second layer of the thermoplastic material and the paperboard base facing the first layer of the thermoplastic material. 13. The method of claim 13 , wherein the surface of the material and the first thermoplastic material are pressurized. 14. The method of claim 14 , wherein the pressurization comprises pressurizing the recessed wire to a depth of less than half the thickness of the paperboard substrate. The method according to any one of claims 13 to 15 , wherein the step of arranging the grip improving substance is by an ultraviolet printing process.

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