CARTON WITH FOLDED-IN GUSSET TIPS

• US 20060124715A1
• Filed: 10/26/2005
• Published: 06/15/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 12/14/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Tetra Laval Holdings & Finance SA (Tetra Laval Holdings BV)
• Original Assignee: Tetra Laval Holdings & Finance SA (Tetra Laval Holdings BV)
• Inventors: Kortsmit, Peter, Ljungstrom, Tommy
• Granted Patent: US 7,147,145 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 229/184
• CPC Class Codes: B65D 5/061 Rectangular containers having a body with gusset-flaps folded inwardly beneath the closure flaps
• CPC Class Codes: B65D 5/067 Gable-top containers

Abstract

A package having a bottom wall with in-folded gusset tips includes a plurality of upstanding side walls, each side wall contiguous or sealed to its adjacent side walls, a sealed top and a sealed bottom wall. The sealed bottom wall is formed from opposing leading and trailing panels, intermediate, opposing gusset panels and a sixth panel. The gusset panels are folded inwardly toward one another to form triangular panels. The triangular panels are disposed interior of the leading and trailing panels. The ends of the gusset panels define triangular tips that are folded away from one another. The sixth panel has a length that is less than or equal to the distance between the gusset tips.

Claims

1. A package having a bottom wall with in-folded gusset tips, comprising:

a plurality of upstanding side walls, each side wall contiguous or sealed to its adjacent side walls;

a sealed top; and

a sealed bottom wall, the sealed bottom wall being formed from opposing leading and trailing panels, intermediate, opposing gusset panels, and a sixth panel contiguous with the trailing panel, the gusset panels being folded inwardly toward one another to form triangular panels, the triangular panels being disposed interior of the leading and trailing panels, ends of the gusset panels defining triangular tips folded away from one another, the sixth panel being folded rearwardly so as to lie between the leading and trailing panels and within the ends of the gusset panels,

wherein the triangular tips, when folded, are spaced a predetermined distance from one another and wherein the sixth panel has a length that is equal to or slightly less than the distance between the triangular tips and within a footprint defined by the triangular tips, and the leading and trailing bottom panels.

2. The package in accordance with claim 1 wherein the triangular tips are disposed between the triangular gusset panels and the leading and trailing panels.

3. The package in accordance with claim 1 wherein the leading panel is sealed over the trailing panel.

4. The package in accordance with claim 1 wherein the package has a gable-formed top.

5. The package in accordance with claim 1 wherein the triangular panels define an angle α

(as they overlie their respective gusset panels and wherein side edges of the sixth panel define an angle β

as the sixth panel overlies the trailing panel, and wherein the angle α

(is less than or equal to the angle β

.

6. A blank for a carton of the type having a plurality of upstanding side walls, each contiguous or sealed to its adjacent side wall and a sealed bottom wall with in-folded gusset tips, the blank comprising:

a rear wall panel, a front wall panel and opposing side wall panels, a vertical crease line partitioning each of the panels from adjacent panels;

a plurality of top panels adjacent to and contiguous with the front, rear and side wall panels, the top panels partitioned from their adjacent top panels by the vertical crease lines and separated from their respective side wall panels by a horizontal crease line;

a plurality of bottom wall panels adjacent to and contiguous with the front, rear and side wall panels, the bottom wall panels partitioned from their adjacent bottom wall panels by the vertical crease lines and separated from their respective side wall panels by a horizontal crease line, the bottom wall panels including a leading panel, a pair of opposing gusset panels, a trailing panel and a sixth panel contiguous with the trailing panel, the sixth panel having a length measured at a juncture with the trailing panel, the gusset panels each having a major diagonal crease line terminating at a folding region, each folding region defined by a rectangular area having minor diagonal crease lines extending from the rectangular area to an edge of the gusset panel, the major diagonal crease lines terminating at the folding region spaced from an edge of the gusset panel,

wherein when the blank is folded and sealed to form the carton, the gusset panels are in-folded to form a pair of opposing triangular tip that are spaced a predetermined distance from one another and wherein the sixth panel length is equal to or slightly less than the distance between the triangular tips and within a footprint defined by the triangular tips, and the leading and trailing bottom panels.

7. The blank in accordance with claim 6 wherein the folding region rectangular area is defined by a crease line parallel to an edge of the gusset panel and spaced from the edge a predetermined distance, and a pair of spaced perpendicular crease lines.