DUAL DISPENSING CONTAINER

• US 20110233266A1
• Filed: 06/08/2011
• Published: 09/29/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 10/02/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Kellanova
• Original Assignee: Kellogg Company
• Inventors: Pezzoli, Paul
• Granted Patent: US 8,833,638 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 229/235
• CPC Class Codes: B65D 5/541 the lines of weakness being provided in one or more closure flaps
• CPC Class Codes: B65D 5/542 the lines of weakness being provided in the container body
• CPC Class Codes: B65D 5/5445 for dividing a tubular body into separate parts

Abstract

A container of the present invention is designed for shipping and holding various items. The container is formed from a blank of a material, such as corrugated material, plastic, paperboard, etc. and includes side panels extending between a top portion and a bottom portion. A tear line extends around the side panels for disengaging the top portion from the container thereby exposing all of the items extending along the side panels. An improved configuration of the perforations or slits along the tear line prevents the corners defined between the side panels from being damaged and deformed and provides for smooth tearing of the tear line from the container. A second tear section is defined in the a portion of the container by a perforation line with the tear section being separable from the top portion thereby partially exposing the items contained in the container.

Claims

1. A container erected from a blank of a material for holding a product, said container comprising:

a plurality of panels extending between a common top fold line and a common bottom fold line and foldable relative to one another along multiple fold lines thereby forming said container of a tubular configuration;

a plurality of flaps integral with and foldable relative each of said panels along said common top and bottom fold lines to form a bottom end and a top end of said container;

at least one peripheral tear line extending around said container for exposing said container to an open top thereby exposing all of the product; and

said at least one peripheral tear line defined by first and second multitude of slits with said first multitude of slits being spaced from one another at a first distance as said at least one peripheral line extends through said flaps of one of said top and bottom ends and said second multitude of slits being spaced from one another at a second distance as said at least one peripheral tear line extends through one of said panels.

2. The container of claim 1, wherein said first distance is shorter than said second distance.

3. The container of claim 1, further including a tear section defined within one of said side panels by a perforation line with said tear section being separable from one of said side panels for partially exposing the product contained in said container.

4. The container of claim 3, wherein said one side panel has a width and said tear section has a width generally equal to said side panel width.

5. The container of claim 3, wherein said one side panel has a height, said tear section has a height that is less than said side panel height.

6. The container of claim 5, wherein said tear section height is less than ½

said side panel height.

7. The container of claim 5, wherein said tear section height is less than ⅓

said side panel height.

8. The container of claim 3, wherein said one side panel has a width and height, said tear section has a width generally equal to said side panel width and a height that is less than said side panel height.

15. The container of claim 3, wherein said tear section height is less than ⅓

said panel height.

9. A container erected from a blank of a material for holding a product, said container comprising:

a plurality of panels extending between a common top and a common bottom and foldable relative to one another along multiple fold lines thereby forming said container of a tubular configuration;

a plurality of flaps integral with and foldable relative to at least one of said panels along said common top and bottom to form a bottom end and a top end of said container;

at least one peripheral tear line extending around said container for exposing said container to an open top thereby exposing all of the product; and

said at least one peripheral tear line defined by first and second multitude of slits with said first multitude of slits being spaced from one another at a first distance as said at least one peripheral line extends through at least one of said plurality of panels or flaps and said second multitude of slits being spaced from one another at a second distance as said at least one peripheral tear line extends through another one of said plurality of panels or flaps.

10. The container of claim 9, wherein said first distance is shorter than said second distance.

11. The container of claim 9, further including a tear section defined within one of said plurality of panels by a perforation line with said tear section being separable from said one of said plurality of panels for partially exposing the product contained in said container.

12. The container of claim 11, wherein said one of said plurality of panels has a panel width and said tear section has a width generally equal to said panel width.

13. The container of claim 11, wherein said one of said plurality of panels has a panel height, said tear section has a height that is less than said panel height.

14. The container of claim 13, wherein said tear section height is less than ½

said panel height.

16. The container of claim 9, wherein said first multitude of slits extend through at least one of said plurality of flaps and said second multitude of slits extend through an adjacent one of said plurality of panels.

17. The container of claim 9, wherein said first multitude of slits extend through at least one of said plurality of panels and said second multitude of slits extend through an adjacent one of said plurality of panels.

18. The container of claim 9, further including a tear section defined within one of said plurality of flaps by a perforation line with said tear section being separable from said one of said plurality of flaps for partially exposing the product contained in said container.

19. The container of claim 18, wherein said one of said plurality of flaps has a flap width and said tear section has a width generally equal to said flap width.

20. The container of claim 18, wherein said one of said plurality of flaps has a flap height, said tear section has a height that is less than said flap height.