HK1127325B - Package for stick-like smoking articles and blank for the same - Google Patents

Description

Package for rod-shaped smoking articles and blank therefor

Technical Field

The present invention relates to a package for rod-like smoking articles such as cigarettes and filter cigarettes, and a blank therefor.

Background

Such a package is generally called a hinge-lid type package, which is of a rectangular parallelepiped shape as a whole and has four corner edges extending in the longitudinal direction thereof. An inner package is housed within the package, the inner package generally comprising: by being on top of each other (Biao)み) and an inner wrapper wrapped around the bundle. Thus, the inner wrapper has four sides along the length of the rod-shaped smoking articleEdges, the profile of which is rounded.

Therefore, when the inner package is stored in the package box, not only a wasteful gap occurs between the rounded edge of the inner package and the corresponding corner edge of the package box, but also the package box becomes an awkward shape to grip due to the corner edge.

Therefore, the package box disclosed in patent document 1 has four corner edges each formed as a longitudinal edge in a circular arc shape, and a manufacturing machine and a manufacturing method of the package box are disclosed in patent document 2, for example.

Patent document 1: japanese examined patent publication (JP-B) No. 4-62937

Patent document 2: japanese examined patent publication (Kokoku) No. 7-88070

Patent document 1 does not specifically disclose a method for forming a corner edge of a package into a circular arc-shaped longitudinal edge, but patent document 2 discloses a mechanism and a method for forming a circular arc-shaped longitudinal edge. That is, according to patent document 2, each of the arcuate longitudinal edges is formed by forming fold lines, specifically, score lines, parallel to each other in a blank for a package. Since such a crease line can be seen from the outside of the package, the appearance of the package is deteriorated.

In order to form the above-described arc-shaped longitudinal edges, the edges are folded along the score lines, and a process for bending the regions between the score lines into an arc shape is also required. Therefore, the conventional packaging machine cannot mold the package box of patent document 2.

Disclosure of Invention

The present invention aims to provide a rod-shaped smoking article package and a blank thereof, which have arc-shaped longitudinal edges without impairing the appearance, can be molded by using a common packaging machine, and can sufficiently ensure the strength.

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a package for rod-shaped smoking articles comprising: a box body having an open end and accommodating an inner pack of a rod-shaped smoking article therein, wherein at least one corner edge extending in a longitudinal direction of the box body includes a longitudinal edge having an arc shape when viewed from a cross section of the box body, the arc shape of the longitudinal edge being formed by a plurality of longitudinal grooves formed only on an inner surface of the longitudinal edge and extending in the longitudinal direction of the box body; a lid connected to the box body via a hinge to open and close the opening end; and a reinforcing unit provided on the case to maintain a circular arc shape of the longitudinal edge.

According to the above package box, since the plurality of longitudinal grooves having the arc-shaped longitudinal edges are provided only on the inner surface of the box body, the longitudinal grooves are not exposed to the outside of the box body. And the longitudinal groove absorbs the difference generated between the arc length of the inner surface of the longitudinal edge which is in the shape of an arc and the arc length of the outer surface of the longitudinal edge, and the longitudinal edge provides a smooth outer surface. And although the longitudinal grooves reduce the strength of the longitudinal edges, the reduction in strength is compensated by the reinforcement unit, and the longitudinal edges maintain their circular arc shape.

In particular, the reinforcement unit is arranged on the inner face of the box and can comprise at least one reinforcement patch spanning a plurality of longitudinal slots, such reinforcement patch being preferably arranged in the vicinity of the open end of the box. In this case, the reinforcing patch is formed of a paste having fluidity applied to the inside of the case, and the applied paste is cured in a state of being inserted into the longitudinal groove to form the reinforcing patch.

And the reinforcing unit can comprise a decorative layer covering the entire exterior of the case body, the decorative layer being formed of aluminum or synthetic resin. The decorative layer complements the thickness of the longitudinal edges caused by the presence of the longitudinal grooves, so that the strength of the longitudinal edges, i.e. the box body, is increased.

The box body can enable four corner edges extending towards the length direction to be provided with arc-shaped longitudinal edges. And the lid can comprise four longitudinal edges corresponding to the longitudinal edges of the box, which are also formed in the shape of a circular arc, seen from the cross-section of the lid.

And the bottom wall of the box body and the upper wall of the cover comprise two transverse edges which are vertical to the length direction of the box body, and the transverse edges can also form an arc shape when viewed from the longitudinal sections of the box body and the cover.

The box body includes: the box body and the inside casing that forms the box body open end that this box body possesses, this inside casing is the U-shaped that surrounds inner packing has two bight edges that are located box body front wall side. In this case, the two corner edges of the inner frame can be formed in the same circular arc shape as the longitudinal edges of the box portion.

The inner frame moreover has two side edges on the side of the rear wall of the box portion, which can also be formed in the same circular arc shape as the longitudinal edges of the box portion. At this time, the inner frame holds the inner pack of the rod-like article in the box body.

The inner frame can comprise a decorative layer at least on the outside, which decorative layer is preferably formed from the same material as the decorative layer of the box body.

The present invention provides a blank for forming the above-described packaging box, the blank comprising: a main section extending in the longitudinal direction thereof to form a box body, and a sub section connected to one end of the main section via a hinge to form a cover, the main section including: a rear panel, a bottom panel and a front panel which are sequentially connected in the length direction from the sub-section side via a transverse fold-in line to form a rear wall, a bottom wall and a front wall of the box body, respectively; inner and outer folds respectively connected to both sides of the rear and front panels via longitudinal fold-in lines for forming inner and outer portions of the side walls of the box body, at least one of the longitudinal fold-in lines being formed only on the back of the blank and being formed from a plurality of longitudinal slots extending along the longitudinal fold-in lines; and at least one reinforcing position defined on the back surface of the main section for arranging a reinforcing unit for a longitudinal fold line formed by the longitudinal groove.

The reinforcement position is preferably located on the secondary section side. And the blank is formed from a longitudinal mesh thick paper having its fibers aligned along the length of the blank.

The above packing box exhibits a unique external appearance since at least one of the corner edges in the length direction thereof has a longitudinal edge in the shape of a circular arc. The package is also aesthetically pleasing because the outer faces of the longitudinal edges are substantially smooth. Further, since the case of the package box is provided with the reinforcing patches which are reinforcing means for the longitudinal edges, the shape of the open end of the case can be stably maintained. As a result, the opening and closing operation of the lid can be smoothly performed.

Other advantages of the invention will be apparent from the accompanying drawings and from the embodiments of the invention described below.

Drawings

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a closed state of a packing box of the first embodiment;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing an opened state of the packing box of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the package of FIGS. 1 and 2;

FIG. 4 is a view showing a blank for molding the box body and lid of the package box of FIGS. 1 and 2;

FIG. 5 is an enlarged cross-sectional view taken along the longitudinal fold line of the blank of FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view showing a circular arc-shaped longitudinal edge formed by folding in a longitudinal fold line;

fig. 7 is a view showing a blank for forming the inner frame of fig. 2;

FIG. 8 is a perspective view showing a closed state of the packing box of the second embodiment;

fig. 9 is a view showing a blank for molding the box body and the lid of the package box of fig. 8.

Detailed Description

The hinge-lid pack of the first embodiment of fig. 1 has a rectangular parallelepiped shape and is covered with a film wrapping material having a sealing tape. The film wrapper is omitted in fig. 1. The packing box has a box body 2, and the box body 2 has an opening at the upper end thereof. The open end of the box 2 has a lid 6 connected to the rear edge of the box 2 via a hinge 4, and the lid 6 opens and closes the open end of the box 2 by rotating about the hinge 4.

In detail, as shown in fig. 2, the case 2 includes a case body 8, and the case body 8 has an inclined opening at an upper end thereof. And the box 2 further comprises an inner frame 10, which inner frame 10 is substantially U-shaped. The inner frame 10 is on the one hand partially inserted into the box portion 8 and on the other hand has an end portion projecting from the opening of the box portion 8 and forming an open end 12 of the box 2.

Therefore, the inner frame 10 has a front wall exposed to the outside of the box body 8, and the front wall is formed with a substantially U-shaped notch 14.

On the other hand, the lid 6 has a box shape and can cover the open end of the box 2, i.e., the protruding portion of the inner frame 10, and close the open end 12 of the box 2. I.e., the lid 6 has an inclined opening at the lower end thereof, and the openings of the lid 6 and the case body 8 are aligned with each other when the lid 6 is closed.

As is apparent from fig. 1 and 2, the box body 8 includes, as four corner edges extending in the longitudinal direction thereof, circular arc longitudinal edges 16, respectively, and these circular arc longitudinal edges 16 are circular arc-shaped as viewed in the cross section of the box body 8. The four corner edges of the lid 6 along the length of the box body 8 are also formed with rounded longitudinal edges 18 similar to the rounded longitudinal edges 16. When the lid 6 is closed, the circular-arc longitudinal edge 18 of the lid 6 coincides with the circular-arc longitudinal edge 16 corresponding to the box body 8, and these circular-arc longitudinal edges 16, 18 are arranged on the same line.

The inner frame 10 has two circular arc longitudinal edges 24 corresponding to the two circular arc longitudinal edges 16 on the front wall side in the box body 8 and two circular arc longitudinal edges 26 corresponding to the two circular arc longitudinal edges 16 on the rear wall side in the box body 8, and these circular arc longitudinal edges 24, 26 are in the same circular arc shape as the circular arc longitudinal edges 16 of the box body 8 and coincide with the corresponding circular arc longitudinal edges 16, respectively, from the inside.

Thus, as shown in fig. 3, the inner pack IP in the box body 8 is engagingly held by the inner frame 10. The inner package IP comprises: a bundle of 20 filter cigarettes in a stacked condition and an inner wrapper wrapped around the bundle.

The structure of the package according to the present invention, which is more specific, will be apparent from the description of the blank for forming the box body 8 and the lid 6, and fig. 4 shows the back surface of the blank.

The blank 28 is formed from longitudinal mesh thick paper. Here, the longitudinal mesh thick paper means that fibers forming the thick paper are aligned in the longitudinal direction of the blank 28.

Since the basic structure and tucking sequence of the blank 28 described above are well known, a brief explanation of the basic structure of the blank 28 follows.

The blank 28 is substantially divided into a main section 30 forming the box body 8 and a secondary section 32 forming the lid 6, these sections 30, 32 being adjacent in the longitudinal direction of the blank 28 and being connected to each other via said own hinge 4.

The main section 30 has a rear panel 34, a bottom panel 36 and a front panel 38, and these panels 34, 36 and 38 are arranged in sequence from the sub-section 32, i.e., the self-hinge 4 side, along the longitudinal direction of the blank 28. The sheets adjacent in the longitudinal direction of the blank 28 are connected by transverse fold lines extending in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the blank 28. These tabs 34, 36, 38 are portions for forming the rear wall, bottom wall and front wall of the box body 8, respectively.

The inner flaps 40 are connected to both sides of the rear sheet 34 via longitudinal fold lines, respectively. The longitudinal fold-in line extends in the longitudinal direction of the blank 28, and each inner hinge 40 is a portion for forming an inner portion of the side wall in the box body 8. Outer flaps 42 are connected to both sides of the front panel 38 via longitudinal fold lines, respectively, and these outer flaps 42 are portions for forming outer portions of the side walls. That is, the side wall of the box body 8 is formed by overlapping the inner and outer flaps 40, 42 with each other.

As shown in fig. 4, the inner bottom flaps 44 are connected to the lower ends of the inner side flaps 40 via the transverse fold-in lines, and these inner bottom flaps 44 function as reinforcing members for the base sheet 36 and are portions for forming the bottom wall inner portion of the box body 8.

On the other hand, the sub-section 32 includes: a back panel 46, a top panel 48, a front panel 50 and an inner front panel 52, wherein the panels 46, 48, 50 and 52 are arranged in this order from the back panel 34 side in the longitudinal direction of the blank 28. Here too, the sheets adjacent in the longitudinal direction of the blank 28 are connected to each other via a transverse fold-in line. The rear panel 46, the top panel 48, and the front panel 50 are portions for forming the rear wall, the upper wall, and the front wall of the lid 6, respectively, and the inner front panel 52 functions as a reinforcing member for the front panel 50 and is a portion for forming the inner portion of the front wall of the lid 6.

The inner flap 54 is connected to both sides of the rear panel 46 via longitudinal fold-in lines, and the outer flap 56 is connected to both sides of the front panel 50 via longitudinal fold-in lines. As seen in fig. 4, the inner and outer hinges 54, 56 disposed on the same side are portions for forming the side wall of the lid 6 by overlapping each other.

As shown in fig. 4, the inner top flaps 58 are connected to the upper edges of the inner side flaps 54 via the transverse fold-in lines, and these inner top flaps 58 function as reinforcing members for the top sheet 48 and are portions for forming the inner portions of the upper wall of the lid 6.

The transverse fold-in line and the longitudinal fold-in line are generally formed by crease lines, but fold-in regions 16a, 18a, which are longitudinal fold-in lines for forming the circular arc longitudinal edges 16, 18, are formed by a plurality of longitudinal grooves instead of crease lines.

These longitudinal grooves extend parallel to each other within the width W of the folded region in the width direction of the blank 28, and fig. 5 exaggeratedly shows the cross section of the longitudinal grooves 60 forming the folded region 16 a. These longitudinal grooves 60 are formed by forming notches, for example, in the longitudinal direction of the blank 28, that is, in the fiber arrangement direction of the longitudinal mesh thick paper, and the number of the longitudinal grooves 60 included in the folded region is preferably 5 to 8.

As can be seen from fig. 5, the longitudinal grooves 60 reduce the thickness of the blank 28 and increase the flexibility of the folded-in regions 16a, 18 a. The longitudinal grooves 60 absorb the difference between the length of the outer arcs in the arc longitudinal edges 16, 18 and the length of the inner arcs thereof. Therefore, when the blank 28 is folded along the folding-in regions 16a or 18a, folding-in at these folding-in regions 16a, 18a is easy. And since the plurality of longitudinal grooves 60 forming the tucked-in regions 16a, 18a are not exposed to the outside of the rounded longitudinal edges 16, 18, these longitudinal grooves 60 provide a smooth outside to the rounded longitudinal edges 16, 18.

As described above, since the folded regions 16a and 18a are flexible, it is not necessary to preliminarily fold these folded regions. As a result, the blank 28 can be folded using a conventional packaging machine, and the package of fig. 1 and 2 can be easily molded.

As shown in fig. 5, a decorative layer 62 of, for example, aluminum or resin is formed on the outer surface of the blank 28, and the decorative layer 62 covers the entire outer surface of the blank 28. The decorative layer 62 not only decorates the appearance of the package alone, but also compensates for the reduced thickness of the blank 28 in the tucked-in regions 16a, 18a caused by the presence of the longitudinal grooves 60. That is, the decorative layer 62 functions as a reinforcing means for complementing the insufficient strength of the folded-in regions 16a, 18 a. Therefore, no breakage occurs at the rounded longitudinal edge 16 or 18 when the blank 28 is folded along the fold-in areas 16a, 18 a.

On the other hand, the box body 8 can contain at least one reinforcing patch on its inside. As is apparent from fig. 4, the reinforcing patch 64 is provided at a predetermined position on the back surface of the blank 28 before the blank 28 is folded. Specifically, the reinforcing patches 64 are respectively provided at two positions of the folded-in region 16a forming the circular-arc longitudinal edge 16, and the reinforcing patches 64 are separated from each other in the longitudinal direction of the folded-in region 16a and have a size crossing the folded-in region 16 a.

It is preferable that one of the two reinforcement patches 64 respectively given to the respective folded-in regions 16a is provided at an end of the folded-in region 16a located at the opening side of the box body 8.

Specifically, the reinforcing patch 64 is provided on the blank 28 by applying a flowable paste 66 to the blank 28 just before folding the blank 28. The paste 66 immediately after application does not hinder the folding of the blank 28, and as shown in fig. 6, the paste 66 intrudes into the vertical grooves 60 by the folding of the blank 28. Therefore, after the package is manufactured, the reinforcing patch 64 formed of the hardened paste 66 works together with the decorative layer 62 to give the rounded longitudinal edges 16 sufficient strength.

As described above, the blank 28 is made of a vertical mesh thick paper, and the plurality of vertical grooves 60 forming the tucked region 16a reduce the strength of the circular arc vertical edge 16, but the reinforcing patch 60 increases the rigidity of the circular arc vertical edge 16 after the pack is formed. The result is: even if the longitudinal grooves 60 exist, the formed packing box is not easily deformed by an external force. In particular, since the reinforcement patch 60 is located in the vicinity of the opening of the case body 8, deformation of the opening end 12 of the case 2 can be suppressed, and as a result, opening and closing of the lid 6, in particular, closing of the lid 6 can be reliably and smoothly performed.

The reinforcing patch 60, i.e., the paste 66, can be used for bonding the box body 8 and the inner frame 10, and it is also possible to set that an adhesive for bonding the inner frame 10 and the box body 8 is not necessary.

It is not preferable to impart the reinforcement patch 60 to the rounded longitudinal edge 18. The reason for this is that the circular arc longitudinal edge 18 is shorter than the circular arc longitudinal edge 16, and the cover 6 has sufficient strength regardless of the presence of the circular arc edge 18, without requiring reinforcement of the reinforcement patch 60. On the other hand, when the reinforcing patch 60 is provided to the arcuate longitudinal edge 18, the paste forming the reinforcing patch 60 adheres to the inner wrapping material of the inner package IP, which may cause a problem.

Fig. 7 shows a blank 68 of paper for forming inner frame 10.

The blank 68 has folded-in regions 24a, 26a for forming the circular-arc longitudinal edges 24, 26 (see fig. 2), respectively, and these folded-in regions 24a, 26a are also formed by a plurality of longitudinal grooves similar to the longitudinal grooves 60. The blank 68 may also have a decorative layer 62, similar to the decorative layer described above, on its entire outer surface.

Figures 8 and 9 show a second embodiment of a pack and its blank, respectively.

The packing box of the second embodiment differs from the packing box of the first embodiment only in that the front and rear lateral edges of the bottom wall of the box body 8 and the front and rear lateral edges of the upper wall of the lid 6 are also formed with rounded lateral edges 20, 22. These rounded transverse edges 20, 22 are rounded in shape when viewed in longitudinal section of the package.

The package of figure 8 is formed by folding in the blank 28 shown in figure 9. The blank 28 of fig. 9 comprises tucked areas 20a, 22a for forming the rounded transverse edges 20, 22, these tucked areas 20a, 22a being formed by a plurality of longitudinal slits similar to the longitudinal slit 60 described above, the longitudinal slits here extending in a transverse direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the blank 28.

The present invention is not limited to the package and the blank of the first to fourth embodiments described above, and various modifications are possible.

For example, the package of the present invention may be provided with at least one set of rounded longitudinal edges 16, 18, and the rounded transverse edges 20, 22 are not necessarily indispensable. The longitudinal groove 60 is not limited to the illustrated cross-sectional shape, and may have various cross-sectional shapes. And the inner frame may be a normal inner frame that does not include the folded-in area.

Finally, the present invention is not limited to the hinge-lid type package box, and is also applicable to a tongue-lid type (タングリツド) package box.

Claims (14)

1. A package of rod-shaped smoking articles, comprising: a box body having an open end and accommodating an inner pack of a rod-shaped smoking article therein, the box body including a longitudinal edge having an arc shape when viewed from a cross section of the box body at least one corner edge extending in a longitudinal direction of the box body, the arc shape of the longitudinal edge being formed by a plurality of longitudinal grooves formed only in an inner surface of the longitudinal edge and extending in the longitudinal direction of the box body;

a lid connected to the box body via a hinge to open and close the opening end;

a reinforcement unit disposed on the box to maintain a circular arc shape of the longitudinal edge, the reinforcement unit disposed on an inner face of the box, including at least one reinforcement patch spanning the plurality of longitudinal grooves.

2. The pack of rod-shaped smoking articles according to claim 1, wherein the reinforcement patch is located in the vicinity of the open end of the box.

3. The pack of rod-shaped smoking articles according to claim 1, wherein the reinforcement patch is formed by a paste applied to the inside of the pack body and into the longitudinal groove.

4. The package for rod-shaped smoking articles according to claim 1, wherein the reinforcing unit further comprises a decorative layer covering the entire outer face of the case.

5. The pack for rod-shaped smoking articles according to claim 1, wherein four corner edges of the box extending in the longitudinal direction have longitudinal edges of the circular arc shape.

6. The pack of rod-shaped smoking articles according to claim 5, wherein the lid comprises four longitudinal edges corresponding to the longitudinal edges of the box, the longitudinal edges having a circular arc shape when viewed in cross section of the lid.

7. The stick type smoking article pack according to claim 6, wherein the bottom wall of the box body and the upper wall of the lid include two lateral edges perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the box body, respectively, and the lateral edges are formed in a circular arc shape as viewed in a longitudinal section of the box body and the lid.

8. The pack of rod-shaped smoking articles according to claim 5, wherein the pack body comprises: a box body and an inner frame which is arranged on the box body and forms the opening end of the box body,

the inner frame is in a U shape surrounding the inner package and is provided with two corner edges positioned on the front wall side of the box body.

9. The pack for rod-shaped smoking articles according to claim 8, wherein both corner edges of the inner frame are formed in the same circular arc shape as the longitudinal edges of the box portion.

10. The pack for rod-shaped smoking articles according to claim 9, wherein the inner frame has both side edges on the rear wall side of the lid, which are formed in the same circular arc shape as the longitudinal edges of the box portion.

11. The pack for rod-shaped smoking articles according to claim 7, wherein the inner frame comprises a decorative layer at least on the outside.

12. A blank for a pack, for forming a pack of rod-shaped smoking articles, the pack comprising: a box for containing the rod-shaped articles and a cover which is connected with the box through a hinge and can be opened and closed,

the blank comprises: a main section extending in the longitudinal direction thereof for forming the box body, and a sub-section connected to one end of the main section via a hinge for forming the lid,

the primary section includes:

a rear panel, a bottom panel, and a front panel which are connected in order in the longitudinal direction from the sub-section side via a transverse fold-in line to form a rear wall, a bottom wall, and a front wall of the box body, respectively;

inner and outer flaps respectively connected to both sides of the rear and front panels via longitudinal fold-in lines for forming inner and outer portions of the side walls of the box body, at least one of the longitudinal fold-in lines being formed only on the back side of the blank and being formed from a plurality of longitudinal grooves extending along the longitudinal fold-in lines;

and at least one reinforcing position defined on the back surface of the main section for disposing a reinforcing means for the longitudinal fold line formed by the longitudinal groove, the reinforcing means being provided on the inner surface of the box body and including at least one reinforcing patch crossing the plurality of longitudinal grooves.

13. A blank for a pack according to claim 12 wherein the reinforcing location is located to the side of the secondary section.

14. A blank for a pack according to claim 12 wherein the blank is formed from longitudinal mesh paper having fibres aligned along the length of the blank.