child-proof paper or cardboard container

Abstract

A paper or cardboard container, including a container body and a cover movable between an open configuration and a closed configuration, the cover having a pair of sides having respective engagement tabs, which engage respective through-windows of the side walls of the container body, a front wall of the container body having a folded distal portion having a base flap folded against an inner surface of the front wall and a stiffening flap arranged at a lower end of the base flap and folded towards the inside of the container.

Claims

1. A paper or cardboard container, comprising: a container body comprising a bottom wall, a front wall, a rear wall, and two side walls, wherein: the front wall, the rear wall and the side walls have respective upper edges which define an opening opposite the bottom wall, and each of said side walls comprises an outer layer having a through-hole and an inner layer having a through-window facing the through-hole of the outer layer; a cover movable between an open configuration and a closed configuration, wherein: the cover comprises an upper wall, a pair of sides parallel to each other and perpendicular to the upper wall, each side of said pair of sides has an engagement tab folded over a respective outer surface, in said closed configuration, the engagement tabs of the pair of sides engage respective through-windows of said side walls and hold the cover on the container body; and the cover is adapted to be released from the container body by inserting a finger of a user into each of said through-holes and pressing inwards on said engagement tabs; and wherein the front wall has a folded distal portion having a base flap folded against an inner surface of the front wall and a stiffening flap arranged at a lower end of the base flap and folded towards an inside of the container.

2. The container of claim 1, wherein the cover has a front side perpendicular to said side walls, and wherein in said closed configuration a lower edge of said front side rests against said stiffening flap.

3. The container of claim 1, wherein said stiffening flap extends over a full width of the front wall.

4. The container of claim 1, wherein said stiffening flap extends only for a part of a width of the front wall.

5. The container of claim 4, wherein said stiffening flap comprises at least two sections spaced apart from each other.

6. The container of claim 1, wherein said stiffening flap has side ends provided with notches which engage lower edges of respective through-windows of said side walls or respective slots formed in said side walls.

7. The container of claim 1, wherein said stiffening flap has at least one wing which rests against the inner surface of the front wall.

8. The container of claim 7, wherein said at least one wing has a notch which engages a respective slot formed in the front wall.

9. A blank for making the paper or cardboard container according to claim 1.

10. A consumer product comprising the paper or cardboard container according to claim 1, containing a plurality of water-soluble single-dose articles.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0024] The present invention will now be described in detail with reference to the attached drawings, given purely by way of non-limiting example, wherein:

[0025] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a first embodiment of a container according to the present invention, in a closed configuration,

[0026] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the container of FIG. 1 in an open configuration,

[0027] FIG. 3 is a cross-section along the line III-III of FIG. 1,

[0028] FIG. 4 is a cross-section along the line IV-IV of FIG. 1,

[0029] FIG. 5 is a plan view of a paper or cardboard blank used to make the container of FIGS. 1 and 2,

[0030] FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a second embodiment of a container according to the present invention, in an open configuration,

[0031] FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing a variant of the container of FIG. 6,

[0032] FIG. 8 is a partial perspective view of a third embodiment of a container according to the present invention, in an open configuration,

[0033] FIG. 9 is a front cross-section of the container of FIG. 8,

[0034] FIG. 10 is a perspective view showing a variant of the container of FIG. 8,

[0035] FIG. 11 is a cross-section of the part indicated by the arrow XI in FIG. 10,

[0036] FIG. 12 is a partial perspective view of a fourth embodiment of a container according to the present invention, in an open configuration,

[0037] FIG. 13 is a partial perspective view from a different angle of the container of FIG. 12,

[0038] FIG. 14 is a partial perspective view of a further variant of a container according to the present invention.

[0039] It will be appreciated that the attached drawings are schematic and that the different figures may not be shown to the same scale. Also, in various figures, some elements may not be shown to better show other elements.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0040] FIGS. 1 and 2 show a consumer product comprising a paper or cardboard container 10 containing a plurality of water-soluble single-dose articles.

[0041] The paper or cardboard container 10 comprises a container body 12 and a cover 14. The container body 12 has an opening 16, and the cover 14 is removably applied to the opening 16 and is movable between a closed configuration shown in FIG. 1 and an open configuration shown in FIG. 2.

[0042] The container body 12 comprises a bottom wall 18 opposite the opening 16, a front wall 20, a rear wall 21, and two side walls 22. The front wall 20 and the rear wall 21 are parallel to each other and perpendicular to the bottom wall 18. The two side walls 22 are parallel to each other and perpendicular to the bottom wall 18 and to the front walls 20, 21. The front wall 20, the rear wall 21 and the side walls 22 have respective upper edges that define the opening 16.

[0043] In possible embodiments, the container body 12 could have a trapezoidal cross-section, in the most general sense a scalene trapezium shape.

[0044] The cover 14 comprises an upper wall 42, a pair of sides 44 parallel to each other and perpendicular to the upper wall 42 and a front side 46. The front side 46 is perpendicular to the sides 44 and is inclined with respect to the upper wall 42. The front side 46 may have folded side portions 50 that can be fixed, for example, by glue, to respective sides 44.

[0045] The cover 14 is hinged to the container body 12 along a hinge line 52 which extends along an upper side of the rear wall 21 of the container body 12.

[0046] With reference to FIG. 5, the cover 14 and the container body 12 are made starting from a single flat blank of paper or cardboard 120 by folding the blank 120 along folding lines indicated in FIG. 5 with dashed lines. The container 10 is entirely made of paper or cardboard and can be recycled as paper waste without the need to remove any plastic part.

[0047] With reference to FIGS. 4 and 5, each of the side walls 22 comprises an outer layer 24 having a through-hole 28, and an inner layer 26 having a through-window 30 facing the through-hole 28 of the outer layer 24.

[0048] The inner layer 26 of each of the side walls 22 may be formed by a distal portion of the respective side wall 22 folded around a fold line passing through the upper edge of the side wall 22.

[0049] In possible embodiments, each side wall 22 may have an intermediate layer which can be formed by portions 32, 34 folded with respect to the respective front walls 20, 21.

[0050] Again with reference to FIGS. 4 and 5, each of the sides 44 of the cover 14 has an engagement tab 48 folded onto a respective outer surface. The engagement tabs 48 may be fixed, for example, by glue, to the respective outer surfaces of the sides 44 of the cover 14 or they can be free, i.e. not fixed to the respective outer surfaces of the sides 44.

[0051] In the closed configuration of the container 10, the engagement tabs 48 of the sides 44 of the cover 14 engage with respective through-windows 30 of the side walls 22 of the container body 12 and hold the cover 14 on the container body 12.

[0052] A user may release the cover 14 from the container body 12 by inserting a finger into each of the through-holes 28 and pressing inwards on the engagement tabs 48. After having disengaged the cover 14 from the container body 12, the user can lift the cover 14 by swinging it around the hinge axis 52.

[0053] The operations necessary to remove the cover 14 are sufficiently complex to ensure that the paper or cardboard container 10 is child-proof.

[0054] Referring to FIGS. 3 and 5, the front wall 20 of the container body has a folded distal portion 90 having a base flap 92 folded against an inner surface of the front wall 20, and a stiffening flap 94 arranged at a lower end of the base flap 92 and folded towards the inside of the container.

[0055] The base flap 92 is folded relative to the front wall 20 around a fold line passing through the upper edge of the front wall 20. The base flap 92 is in contact with the inner surface of the front wall 20 and may be fixed, for example, by glue, to the inner surface of the front wall 20.

[0056] The stiffening flap 94 is folded with respect to the base flap 92 around a fold line passing through the lower end of the base flap 92.

[0057] The stiffening flap 94 is inclined with respect to the front wall 20 by an angle between 20 and 160. Preferably, the stiffening flap 94 is perpendicular to the front wall 20.

[0058] In possible embodiments, the stiffening flap 94 extends across the entire width of the front wall 20.

[0059] The stiffening flap 94 makes the front wall 20 more rigid, and makes it more difficult to bend the upper edge of the front wall towards the inside or outside of the container.

[0060] In the case of large containers, which have a front wall with a large width, the greater rigidity of the front wall 20 obtained thanks to the stiffening flap 94 considerably improves safety regarding the opening by children.

[0061] The stiffening flap 94 prevents contact with the products contained inside the container 10 in the event that in the configuration wherein the cover 14 is closed, children manage to insert their fingers between the upper edge of the front wall and the front side 46 of the cover 14.

[0062] In possible embodiments, the front side 46 of the cover 14 rests against the stiffening flap 94 in the closed configuration of the container. In this way, the stiffening flap 94 prevents the cover 14 from being pushed into the container body 12 beyond the position wherein the engagement tabs 48 are engaged in the respective through-windows 30.

[0063] With reference to FIGS. 4 and 5, in possible embodiments the inner layer 26 of each of the side walls 22 has a flap 54 folded perpendicularly to the inner layer 26 and extending along a lower edge of the through-window 30.

[0064] With reference to FIGS. 3 and 4, in one possible embodiment, the side portions of the stiffening flap 94 rest on respective flaps 54. The side portions of the stiffening flap 94 may be fixed, for example, by glue, to respective flaps 54.

[0065] With reference to FIG. 6, in a possible embodiment, the stiffening flap 94 has side ends provided with notches 98 which engage the lower edges of respective through-windows 30 of the side walls 22.

[0066] With reference to FIG. 7, in a possible embodiment the stiffening flap 94 has side ends provided with notches 98 which engage respective slots 100 formed in the side walls 22.

[0067] With reference to FIGS. 8 and 9, in possible embodiments, the stiffening flap 92 may have at least one wing 102, preferably a pair of wings 102, which rests against the inner surface of the front wall 20, and prevents downward oscillation of the stiffening flap 92. The at least one wing 102 may be formed by folded side portions of the stiffening flap 92. The at least one wing 102 may be parallel to the side walls 22 and may be fixed, for example, by glue, to a respective inner surface of a respective side wall 22.

[0068] With reference to FIGS. 10 and 11, in possible embodiments each of the wings 102 of the stiffening flap 92 has a notch 104 which engages a respective slot 106 formed in the front wall 20.

[0069] With reference to FIGS. 12 and 13, in possible embodiments, the stiffening flap 94 extends only for a part of the width of the front wall 20. The stiffening flap 94 may comprise at least two sections 96 spaced apart from each other. Each of the sections 96 of the stiffening flap 94 may be provided with a pair of wings 102 which rest against the inner surface of the front wall 20.

[0070] With reference to FIG. 14, in possible embodiments, the stiffening flap 94 may have a turned-up edge 108 facing upwards, so that the stiffening flap substantially has a U-shaped cross-section which further increases the rigidity of the stiffening flap 94.

[0071] Of course, without prejudice to the principle of the invention, the details of construction and the embodiments can be widely varied with respect to those described and illustrated, without thereby departing from the scope of the invention as defined by the claims that follow.