CARTON WITH DIVIDER

• US 20100122999A1
• Filed: 12/10/2009
• Published: 05/20/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 06/29/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Graphic Packaging International Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Graphic Packaging International Incorporated
• Inventors: Brand, Kirsten L.
• Granted Patent: US 8,459,535 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 229/120.180
• CPC Class Codes: B31B 2120/25 formed by partitions or like inserts not integral with walls
• CPC Class Codes: B31B 50/26 Folding sheets, blanks or webs
• CPC Class Codes: B31B 50/81 Forming or attaching accessories, e.g. opening devices, closures or tear strings
• CPC Class Codes: B65D 2571/00141 glued
• CPC Class Codes: B65D 2571/00401 inserted the wrapper
• CPC Class Codes: B65D 2571/0045 for hands
• CPC Class Codes: B65D 2571/0066 formed from one single sheet
• CPC Class Codes: B65D 2571/00728 the end walls being closed by gluing
• CPC Class Codes: B65D 2571/00864 Lines of weakness for separating into subgroups
• CPC Class Codes: B65D 5/48048 Single partition formed by folding one or more blanks and provided with flaps fixed to or maintained by parts of the container body B65D5/4804 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: B65D 5/5475 for dividing a "cross-like" container body into separate parts
• CPC Class Codes: B65D 71/36 having a tubular shape, e.g. tubular wrappers, with end walls

Abstract

A carton for containing a plurality of articles. The carton comprises panels that extend at least partially around an interior of the carton. The panels comprise a top panel, a bottom panel, a first side panel, and a second side panel. At least one divider panel is in the interior of the carton. The divider panel is attached to at least one of the panels. A dispenser is for allowing access to the articles in the carton. The dispenser is for separating the carton into a first portion and a second portion. At least one of the first portion and the second portion is at least partially closed by the at least one divider panel.

Claims

1. A carton for containing a plurality of articles, the carton comprising:

panels that extend at least partially around an interior of the carton, the panels comprise a top panel, a bottom panel, a first side panel, and a second side panel;

at least one divider panel in the interior of the carton, the divider panel being attached to at least one of the panels;

a dispenser for allowing access to the articles in the carton, the dispenser being for separating the carton into a first portion and a second portion, at least one of the first portion and the second portion is at least partially closed by the at least one divider panel.

2. The carton of claim 1 wherein the at least one of the panels is at least one of the top panel and the bottom panel.

3. The carton of claim 1 wherein the at least one divider panel comprises an upper portion and lower portion, the upper portion having an upper attachment flap attached to the top panel and the lower portion having a lower attachment flap attached to the bottom panel.

4. The carton of claim 3 wherein the upper portion is foldably attached to the lower portion at a fold line.

5. The carton of claim 3 wherein each attachment flap is formed by a generally U-shaped cut in a respective portion of the divider panel.

6. The carton of claim 1 wherein the at least one divider panel is a first divider panel, the carton further comprising a second divider panel in the interior of the carton, the second divider panel being at least partially attached to at least one of the top panel and the bottom panel.

7. The carton of claim 6 wherein the second divider panel comprises an upper portion and lower portion, the upper potion having an upper attachment flap attached to the top panel and the lower portion having a lower attachment flap attached to the bottom panel.

8. The carton of claim 1 wherein the dispenser comprises a tear strip defined by two spaced apart tear lines.

9. The carton of claim 8 wherein the tear strip is generally located on a centerline of the carton so that the first portion and the second portion are approximately the same size.

10. The carton of claim 1 wherein the first side panel and the second side panel have respective lateral fold lines extending across a length of a respective side panel.

11. The carton of claim 1 wherein the bottom panel has a width greater than a width of the top panel.

12. The carton of claim 11 wherein the bottom panel has a length greater than a length of the top panel.

13. The carton of claim 6 further comprising first end flaps respectively foldably connected to respective panels for closing a first end of the carton and second end flaps respectively foldably connected to respective panels for closing a second end of the carton, the first portion of the carton having ends that are respectively closed by the first end flaps and the first divider panel and the second portion of the carton having ends that are respectively closed by the second end flaps and the second divider panel.

32. The method of claim 3 wherein the at least one attachment flap comprises a first attachment flap foldably connected to the divider panel and a second attachment flap foldably connected to the divider panel, and the attaching the divider panel to the blank comprises attaching the first attachment flap to the top panel and attaching the second attachment flap to the bottom panel.

33. The method of claim 32 wherein the first side panel comprise a first lateral fold line extending across a length of the first side panel and the second side panel comprises a second lateral fold line extending across a length of the second side panel, the attaching the divider panel comprises folding the blank along one of the first lateral fold line and the second lateral fold line to position a respective one of the top panel and the bottom panel in face-to-face relationship with at least a portion of the divider panel.

34. The method of claim 33 further comprising folding the blank along the other of the first lateral fold line and the second lateral fold line to position a respective one of the first side panel and the second side panel for attachment to a respective one of the top panel and the bottom panel

14. Blanks for forming a carton for containing at least one divider, the blanks comprising:

a first blank for being formed into the carton, the first blank comprising a plurality of panels comprising at least a top panel, a bottom panel, a first side panel, and a second side panel, the first blank comprising dispenser features for separating the carton formed from the first blank into a first portion and a second portion;

a second blank for forming the divider, the divider is for at least partially closing at least one of the first portion and the second portion of the carton, the second blank comprising at least one divider panel having an attachment flap foldably connected thereto, the attachment flap being positioned for attachment to one of the panels of the first blank.

15. The blanks of claim 14 wherein the one of the panels is one of the top panel and the bottom panel.

16. The blanks of claim 14 wherein the second blank is releasably attached to the first blank.

17. The blanks of claim 14 wherein the attachment flap is a first attachment flap for foldably connecting the divider panel to the top panel and the second blank further comprises a second attachment flap for foldably connecting to the divider panel to the bottom panel.

18. The blanks of claim 14 wherein the divider panel is a first divider panel for at least partially closing the first portion of the carton formed from the blank and the second blank comprises a second divider panel for at least partially closing the second portion of the carton formed from the blank.

19. The blanks of claim 18 wherein the second divider panel comprises a first attachment flap for foldably connecting the second divider panel to the top panel and a second attachment flap for foldably connecting the second divider panel to the bottom panel.

20. The blanks of claim 17 wherein the at least one divider panel comprises an upper portion and lower portion, the upper and lower portion being foldably connected at a fold line, the first attachment flap being an upper attachment flap foldably connected to the upper portion and the second attachment flap being a lower attachment flap foldably connected to the lower portion.

21. The blanks of claim 20 wherein each attachment flap is formed by a generally U-shaped cut in the respective portion of the divider panel.

22. The blanks of claim 14 wherein the dispenser features comprise a tear strip defined by two spaced apart tear lines, the tear strip is generally located on a centerline of the first blank.

23. The blanks of claim 14 wherein the first side panel and the second side panel have respective lateral fold lines extending across a length of a respective side panel.

24. The blanks of claim 14 wherein the bottom panel has a width greater than a width of the top panel and the bottom panel has a length greater than a length of the top panel.

25. Method of forming a carton from a blank, the method comprising:

providing a carton blank and a divider blank, the carton blank comprising a plurality of panels comprising at least a top panel, a bottom panel, a first side panel, and a second side panel, the carton blank comprising dispenser features, the divider blank comprising at least one divider panel having at least one attachment flap foldably connected thereto,

attaching the divider blank to the carton blank by securing the at least one attachment flap to one of the panels;

forming a carton from the carton blank by positioning the top panel, bottom panel, first side panel, and second side panel to form a generally open-ended sleeve;

forming the divider by positioning the divider blank to divide the carton into a first portion and a second portion.

26. The method of claim 25 wherein the one of the panels is one of the top panel and the bottom panel.

27. The method of claim 25 wherein the open-ended sleeve has an open first end and an open second end, and the method further comprising loading containers into the carton from the first end and loading containers into the open-ended sleeve from the second end.

28. The method of claim 27 wherein the carton blank comprises a plurality of first end flaps foldably attached to respective panels of the plurality panels at a first end of the blank and a plurality of second end flaps foldably connected to respective panels of the plurality of panels at a second end of the blank, the method further comprising positing the first end flaps to close the first end and positioning the second end flaps to close the second end.

29. The method of claim further comprising activating the dispensing features to separate the first portion from the second portion of the carton.

30. The method of claim 29 wherein the at least one divider panel is a first divider panel that forms a first closed end of the first portion of the carton and the first end flaps form a closed second end of the first portion.

31. The method of claim 30 wherein the at least one divider panel comprises a second divider panel that forms a first closed end of the second portion of the carton and the second end flaps form a closed second end of the second portion.

35. A blank for forming a divider of a carton, the blank comprising:

at least one divider panel;

a first attachment flap foldably connected to the at least one divider panel, the first attachment flap being at least partially defined by at least one cut line in the at least one divider panel;

a second attachment flap foldably connected to the at least one divider panel, the second attachment flap being at least partially defined by at least one cut line in the at least one divider panel;

the first attachment flap and the second attachment flap being independently positionable relative to the divider panel to attach the divider to respective panels of the carton.