THERMOFORMED CONTAINER

• US 3,800,998 A
• Filed: 08/24/1972
• Issued: 04/02/1974
• Est. Priority Date: 08/24/1972
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Bryan R. Gask
• Original Assignee: Bryan R. Gask
• Inventors: Gask, Bryan R.
• Primary Examiner(s): Dixson, Jr., William T.
• Application Number:
  US05/283,424
• Time in Patent Office: 586 Days
• Field of Search: 312/207 220/31S 206/78R,56AA,45.34,15.1B 229/2.5,45,29M
• US Class Current: 229/406
• CPC Class Codes: B65D 75/225 the sheet or blank comprising more than one fold line B65D75/245 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: B65D 75/52 Details

Abstract

A one-piece container adapted to be thermo-formed and die cut out of thermoplastic sheet material comprises two compartment sections hinged to opposite sides of a central base section. Peripheral flanges of the compartment sections lie in a common flat plane when the container is formed and allow it to be die cut out of the surrounding material along the flat cutting plane. When the container is folded to its closed condition, complimentary recesses in the compartment sections confront each other to enclose the container contents and the peripheral flanges converge from the base section with their end portions in engagement with each other at the apex of the container to maintain the latter in that condition.

Claims

1. A thermoformed plastic container comprising:

a. A generally rectangular central base section;

b. a pair of complementary compartment sections flexibly joined along their base ends to the corresponding opposed edges of said base section, each of said compartment sections including a substantially flat peripheral flange extending along its lateral edges and its free end opposite its base end, said compartment sections being movable from a closed condition at which said flanges are in confronting wedge shaped relation to each other with their base ends separated by said base section and with their free ends in mutual engagement and an open condition in which said flanges are in coplanar relation to each other at opposite sides of said base section;

c. compartment means defining complementary open-faced recesses in said compartment sections, said compartment means being adapted when said compartment sections are in said closed condition to assume positions at which the open faces of said recesses are in confronting relation to each other with at least part of said compartment means extending outwardly beyond the planes of their respective compartment section flanges; and

d. closure means comprising a closure element located at the free end of one of said flanges and an opening, located at the free end of the other of said flanges, for receiving said closure element therein so as to releasably maintain said compartment sections in said closed condition.

2. A container according to claim 1 in which the open faces of said recesses are at least partially surrounded by flat panels of the corresponding compartment sections, said panels being adapted to closely confront each other when said compartment sections are in said closed condition.

3. A container according to claim 2 in which each of said recesses is angularly intercepted by the plane of the corresponding peripheral compartment section flange.

4. A container according to claim 1 in which the free ends of said flanges are provided with respective openings that confront each other when said compartment sections are in said closed condition to provide means for suspending said container from a suspension member extending through said confronting openings.

5. A container according to claim 1 including means defining a central aperture in said base section to allow an element of an article packaged by said container to project out of said container through said central aperture.