Package with separate compartments

TECHNICAL FIELD [0001] The present invention generally relates to packaging for chewing gum and other products, in particular multi-chamber packaging for chewing gum and other products.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0002] Chewing gum is currently available to consumers in a wide range of different formats, including gum in blisters, gum in stripes, gum in drops, extruded gum and others. The rubber in the leaves can have dimensions: length about 6 - 7 cm, width about 1.5 - 2 cm and thickness about 0.2 cm. Striped rubber can be about 4.5 cm long, 1.2 cm wide and 0.3 cm thick.

[0003] There are also various types of rubber packaging, including certain types of packaging primarily used for one or another rubber format. Rubber strips are often sold in foil packs. Originally, these strips were laid in a side-by-side arrangement, 5 to seven strips in each package. Recently, such strips are placed in foil packaging in a face-to-face arrangement, which allows you to pack 15-20 strips in one convenient package.

[0004] Such packaging is currently popular and gives satisfactory results. However, this approach has been found to have some disadvantages. These disadvantages are related to the lack of adequate means to close the packaging after opening. Typically, some of the film needs to be peeled off to allow access to the rubber strips. The packaging can then be stored or put in a purse, jacket or trouser pocket. When stored in these conditions, some strips may fall out of the packaging. It is also likely that, under such storage conditions, foreign materials such as hyphae, dirt and so on may fall into the open packaging. Then, when pulling this packet out of the bag or pocket, a pair of straps may come out of the packet and become loose in the bag or pocket. Also, the packaging itself may look inconspicuous when removed from a purse or pocket due to the presence of foreign material that may have fallen or clinging to the packaging. This consideration can be of great importance for those who deal with sales and

EP 1 751 024 B1 to the marketing of chewing gums because they seek to strengthen the social aspects of sharing the contents of the chewing gum packaging with others.

[0005] Against this background and striving to improve known solutions, a new packaging design has been developed for chewing gum and other products.

[0006] Document No. US-A-2 959 338 discloses a package having an upper and lower compartment connected to each other by a flap, as described in the preamble of claim 1.

SUMMARY [0007] A package has been developed to contain individual pieces of an edible product that has an upper chamber and a lower chamber, each of which is shaped so that it can receive and contain multiple individual units of the edible product. The upper chamber is at least partially closed on five sides, including the rear wall, front wall, bottom and one pair of side walls. The lower chamber is at least partially closed on five sides, including the rear wall, front wall, bottom and one pair of side walls. The flap connects the upper and lower chambers with each other.

[0008] The upper and lower chambers can be separable from each other. The connection of the flap with the upper chamber can be cut to facilitate the separation of the chambers from each other. The upper chamber can be cut by making a perforated dividing line.

[0009] The current package also has a closing flap connected to the rear wall of the upper chamber. This closing flap cooperates - according to the choice - with the rear wall of the lower chamber. The indicated rear wall of the lower chamber has within it a receiving slot for receiving the part of the closing flap according to the choice. The indicated closing flap cooperates - according to the choice - with the front wall of the upper chamber. The indicated front wall of the upper chamber has within it a receiving slot for receiving the part of the closing flap according to the choice.

[0010] The flap may have a height approximately equal to the sum of one of the pair of upper chamber side walls and one of the lower chamber side walls. The flap may have a height approximately equal to the height of one of the pair of side walls of the lower chamber. This flap can be connected in such a way that the rear wall of the lower chamber is generally aligned with the rear wall of the upper chamber in a position in which

EP 1 751 024 B1 by which this lower chamber hangs down below the upper chamber. This flap can be connected in such a way that the rear wall of the lower chamber is generally aligned with the front wall of the upper chamber in a position in which the lower chamber hangs down below the upper chamber.

[0011] The present package may be made of two cardboard blanks, one of which forms the upper chamber and the other forms the lower chamber. The individual pieces of the edible product may be individual, individual chewing gum strips. The front walls of the upper and lower chambers can be fragmentary walls to allow access to individual, individual pieces of edible product that may be in these chambers.

[0012] Numerous additional features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art from reading the following description below.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS [0013]

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of the current packaging design shown in a closed state.

Fig. 2 is a perspective view of the packaging pattern shown in Fig. 1, shown in an open state and comprising a plurality of individually packaged gum packs.

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the packaging pattern shown in Fig. 1 after separating its empty bottom chamber.

Fig. 4 is a perspective view of the remainder of the packaging pattern shown in Fig. 3, after the empty bottom chamber has been removed - showing the correct location of its closing flap to close the packaging.

Fig. 5 is an exploded plan view of the first cardboard blank that is used to form the upper chamber and closing flap of the current packaging pattern.

Fig. 6 is a perspective view of the pattern shown in Fig. 5 showing the lateral wings folded up and the bottom flap partially folded.

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Fig. 7 is an exploded plan view of the second cardboard blank that is used to form the bottom chamber of the current packaging pattern.

Fig. 8 is a perspective view of the pattern shown in Fig. 7, showing the side wings folded up and the connecting flap folded down with the adhesive applied thereto.

Fig. 9 is a plan view of a second embodiment of the current package design showing an alternative shape of the closing flap and the receiving slot when the closing flap is inserted and positioned in the receiving slot.

Fig. 10 is a plan view of the second embodiment shown in Fig. 9 with the closing flap removed from the receiving slot and partially bent upwards.

Fig. 11 is a plan view of the second embodiment shown in Fig. 9, with the closing flap removed from the receiving slot and bent upwards, and with the bottom chamber removed.

Fig. 12 is a plan view of the second embodiment shown in Fig. 9 but shown from the opposite side, with the closing flap separated from the receiving slot and folded up and with the lower chamber folded down and hanging below the lower chamber.

DESCRIPTION OF DETAIL [0014] At present, various relevant features of the current packaging design will be discussed with reference to the accompanying drawings, which will help illustrate these features. Although the present invention will now be described primarily in connection with the packaging of chewing gum, it should be clearly understood that this invention can be used in other applications where many separate chambers are needed / desired, each of which is intended for one or more removable objects. With the above in mind, for the purpose of illustration and description [of the invention] the following description of the chewing gum packaging is presented. Furthermore, this description is not intended to limit the invention to the form described therein. Consequently, variations and modifications are consistent with the following disclosure, and experience and knowledge in the relevant field are within the scope of the current packaging design. The embodiments described herein are intended to explain known modes of application of the invention and to enable others skilled in the art to use the invention in such or other embodiments with a variety of

Modifications necessary for the specific application (s) of the current packaging design.

[0015] Two cardboard blanks 10 and 12 (Figs. 5 and 7) are used in the package, divided so that they can be folded in such a way that each forms a chamber for containing an edible product such as chewing gum. One of the patterns forms the upper chamber 14, while the other of the patterns forms the lower chamber 16. One pattern (or chamber) is connected to the other in a way that allows it to be easily separated from each other by peeling along the perforation. The chambers 14 and 16 are originally made as joined together and folded together so that one is opposite the other, with a closing flap 18 from the upper chamber 14 having an end 20 inserted into the receiving slot 22 on the rear panel 24 of the lower chamber 16. The consumer can seat this end 20 in the slit 22 to obtain a compact package 26, as shown in Figure 1.

[0016] After the purchase, the transparent film (not shown in the drawing) can be removed from the package 18, whereby the buyer can lift the flap 18 which allows the bottom chamber 16 to swing down to the position shown in figure 2. In this position, the consumer he can remove the 28 product straps - as he wishes, or share them with others. Then, the buyer can restore the packaging 26 to its original configuration, shown in Figure 1. If the buyer wishes, first the rubber strips 28 from the lower chamber 16 can be consumed, and then - after it has been emptied, the chambers 14 and 16 can be separated from each other by tearing along the perforated dividing line, as illustrated in Fig. 3. Then, if desired, the buyer can fold the closing flap 18 around the upper chamber 14 and slide the end 20 of the closing flap 18 into the receiving slot 84 formed in the upper chamber 14 (as shown in Fig. 4) and continue to use the upper chamber 14 of packaging 26 in this manner until the product has been completely consumed.

As shown in Figure 5, the first cardboard blank 10 has a closing flap 18 extending at one end thereof and a bottom flap 30 extending at its opposite end. From the side edges of the first cardboard blank 10, side flaps 32 and 34 extend in opposite directions. The remaining central part of the first cardboard blank 10 is the rear panel 35 of the upper chamber 14. The first cardboard blank 10 is made of SBS cellulose cardboard (solid bleach

EP 1 751 024 B1 sulfate), due in part to the good folding properties of this material. Alternatively, the chambers 14 and 16 could be made of another suitable material, such as polyvinyl chloride (PVC). The indicated cardboard material can be chalked (have a coating of white mineral pigment based on kaolin) on the outer surface and have no coating on its inner surface. Such a coating promotes the possibility of making prints on the cardboard, which can take place before the cutting, dividing and joining steps described below. There may also be laminated holographic material on the printed page.

[0018] As can be seen in Fig. 5, the closing flap 18 is generally a pentagon with one side defined by dividing line 36, two perpendicular side edges 54 and 56 and with a pair of top edges 58 and 60 that extend from side edges 54 and 56 and meet at the end 20 of the closing flap 18. The bottom flap 30 has one side defined by a dividing line 40, a pair of perpendicular side edges 62 and 64 and a bottom edge 66 that is perpendicular to the side edges 62 and 64. Side flaps 32 and 34 are their mirror images, so only side flap 32 will be described in more detail. This side flap 32 generally includes a rectangular portion between dividing lines 42 and 52 that will form side panel 68 of upper chamber 14. The remaining portion of side flap 32 is a front flap 70 after bending side flap 32 along dividing lines 42 and 52. This front flap includes a substantially rectangular portion and a substantially triangular portion located above the substantially rectangular portion.

[0019] As can be seen in Figure 5, the first cardboard blank 10 is divided in many places by dividing lines 36, 38, 40, 42, 44, 46, 48, 50 and 52. Lines 36, 38, 40, 42 and 44 are usually dividing lines, while lines 46, 48, 50 and 52 are indented dividing lines. The usual dividing line is a line formed in a carton using a tool having a groove type channel and a matching projection that is applied to the cardboard cutout 10 from opposite sides to form the material in a V shape. The cut line differs from the usual dividing line in that it is not only determined in the manner described above, but also has small gaps cut through the material in spaced apart places along this line. The cut split forms a line along which the bend is easier than along a regular split line. The disadvantage is that the cut line

Partitioning - on a sealed package viewed from the outside by the consumer, it does not look as neat as a normal dividing line. For this reason, the lines that are visible when the current packaging is completely finished (stacked) as shown in the drawing

Fig. 1 are ordinary dividing lines, while the other fold lines may be indented dividing lines.

[0020] As illustrated in Figs. 5 and 6, side flaps 32 and 34 are folded along dividing lines 42, 52, 38 and 48 to shape the front wings 70, while lower flap 30 is folded along dividing lines 40 and 50 to shape the bottom 80 and the front panel 82. The adhesive (not shown) may then be applied to the surface of the indicated front wings facing the front panel and / or to the portion of the front panel that is facing the front wings to attach this front panel 82 to the indicated front wings 70. In such the upper chamber 14 is formed from the first cardboard blank 10.

[0021] The bottom flap 30 has a receiving slot 84 formed in the front panel 82 of this flap. In Figure 4, the upper chamber 14 is shown with the end 20 of the closing flap 18 inserted into the receiving slot 84 on the front panel 82 of the upper chamber 14. As can be judged, this slot 84 will be used to close the current packaging after removing the lower chamber 16.

[0022] The second cardboard blank 12 is in many respects similar to the first cardboard blank. It is made of the same material and has a chalk coating on one side to improve the conditions for printing on it. The second cardboard cutout 12 also has a bottom flap 90 and side flaps 92 and 94, which are identical to the lower flap 30 and side flaps 32 and 34 of the first cardboard cutout 10. The main differences between the second cardboard blank 12 and the indicated cardboard blank 10 relate to the connecting flap 96 of the second cardboard blank 12 and the receiving slot 22 of the lower chamber 16.

[0023] The connecting flap 96 of the second cardboard blank 12 is clearly different from the closing flap 18 of the first cardboard blank 10. The connecting flap 96 is generally rectangular, with one side defined by the usual dividing line 98 at the bottom of the flap, a pair of side edges 100 and 102 and top edge 104. Perforated line

The division 106 divides the connecting flap 96 into the upper part 108 and the lower part 110. This perforated dividing line 106 includes a recess and a series of perforations arranged close enough that only the amount of paper necessary to hold the part 108 is intact. and 110 in its entirety until separation is desired. When desired, this perforated dividing line 106 allows separation in such a way that parts 108 and 110 can be fairly easily separated by the purchaser. As illustrated in Figs. 2 and 8, the upper portion 108 of the connecting flap 96 has adhesive 112 applied to its inner surface to fuse with the outer surface of the bottom 80 of the upper chamber 14. This is shown in Figs. 1 and 2. Fig. . 3 shows both chambers 14 and 16 after being mutually separated along this perforated dividing line 106.

[0024] When connected in such a way, the rear panel of the lower chamber 16 and the front panel of the upper chamber 14 will tend to hang generally in the same plane when the package is opened as shown in Fig. 2 - with the upper chamber held in position vertical and with the lower free hanging chamber below it. The lower portion 110 of the said connecting flap may therefore be sized to have a height approximately equal to the side wall of the bottom chamber.

[0025] The lower chamber 16 also differs from the upper chamber 14 in the position and orientation of the receiving slot 22 of the lower chamber 16 compared to the receiving slot 84 of the upper chamber 14. The receiving slot 22 of the lower chamber 16 is formed within the rear bottom panel 24 chambers 16 unlike the receiving slot 84 - formed within the front panel 82. In this case, the receiving slot 22 is so oriented that its rounded portion is directed in the opposite direction to the rounded portion of the receiving slot 84 when the present package assumes the orientation as shown in Figures 2 and 3. When the lower chamber 16 is deflected in up to a position adjacent to the upper chamber 14 with the orientation shown in Fig. 1, then the rounded part has such an orientation that it is possible to interact with the end 20 of the closing flap 18. Unlike the differences described above regarding the connecting flap 96, the folding and attachment of the side flaps 92 and 94 to the bottom flap 90 is carried out in a similar manner as this has been described above in connection with the upper chamber 14.

[0026] An alternative embodiment of the invention is shown in Fig. 9 i

Of 10. The main differences between this embodiment and the first embodiment described above relate to the shape of the closing flap and the location of the receiving slot within the upper and lower chambers. As can be seen, the closing flap 120 in this embodiment of the invention is unilaterally asymmetrical. Consequently, the receiving slot 122 within the lower chamber is shifted towards one side edge so that it can receive the end of the closing flap 120. The receiving slot 124 within the upper chamber is shifted in a similar manner. As can be appreciated, the teaching of the present invention also applies to other systems with differently shaped closing flaps and differently shaped and positioned receiving slots.

[0027] In another alternative (not shown), the lower chamber 16 can be joined to the upper chamber by applying adhesive 112 to the outer surface of the upper part 108 connecting flaps 96 to attach it to the outer surface of the upper chamber bottom 80

14. With this connection, the rear panels of both upper 14 and lower 16 chambers will tend to hang generally in the same plane when the package is opened as shown in Figure 2 - with the upper chamber being held in an upright position and with the lower free hanging chamber below her. The lower portion 110 of the connecting flap may thus be sized to have a height approximately equal to the sum of the side wall of the upper chamber and the side wall of the bottom chamber.

[0028] Typically, the chewing gum product is manufactured, then cooled and seasoned. The gum in strips and sheets is made by expanding the chewing gum product into sheets, cutting them into strips, and then dividing them into individual units. It has been found practical that individual rubber strips are individually wrapped into separate sheets of waxed paper, and then a series of rubber strips wrapped in this manner can be placed in a foil half-case (not shown). The current packaging for gum is prepared at the same time. Thus, the cardboard is printed, cut and divided, and then folded. The packaging is filled, assembled and closed, and then a transparent film with a strip is applied to the outside to allow it to tear. An exhibition tray is being prepared with twelve such packages. The exhibition trays are surrounded by a transparent film, then packed into cardboard

Collective packaging, palletized and protected by heat shrink film. Then transferred to the warehouse and sent to distribution centers.

[0029] In some embodiments, the gum strips may be glued or otherwise affixed to the package. This can prevent the rubber strips from falling out of the package or from accumulating inside the package. Thus, the rubber strips can be secured in the package or attached to the package in such a way that they can be released. There are many ways to stick the rubber strips to the packaging. One option is to put the rubber strips inside or on a plastic half-case, paper or plastic strip, in a band, or other type of sheet-like material (collectively referred to as "sheet") before placing them in the package. Said sheet can be single-layer or multi-layer. One of the layers may contain a moisture barrier material to reduce the amount of moisture adsorbed by the rubber strips while the rubber strips are in this package.

[0030] Alternatively for using the sheet, the rubber strips can be placed in the package without using the sheet. When the strips are placed directly in the packaging, they (or their wrappers) may or may not be adhered to the packaging. For example, the rubber strips may be attached via wax or other adhesive to one or more internal surfaces of the package. The wax or glue can be or be in one or more strips or strips of glue that can be glued to more than one strip of chewing gum. The package itself may contain paraffin or other waxy material on its inner surface to adhere chewing gum strips. Alternatively, multiple wax or glue spots can be arranged on one or more of the inner surfaces of the package, each of which may adhere to one or more than one rubber strip or to one or more rubber strip wrappers. If wraps for rubber strips are used, the adhesive used to attach the rubber strips to the packaging will seal the wraps with the packaging. The adhesive may be strong enough to prevent or reduce the risk of wrapping being removed from the packaging. Thus, the wrappers will remain in the package when the rubber strips are removed from the package and from the wrappers. Alternatively, the adhesive band between wraps and packaging may be such that the wrapper and gum strips may be removed from the package, but strong enough to prevent the gum strips in the wraps from falling out of the package or from

Piling up in this package. One potential embodiment is illustrated in Provisional Patent Application No. US 60 / 570,015 entitled "Packaging of rubber strips having glued wings" (Gum Slab Packaging Having

Adhesive Flap), made on May 11, 2004, file no., Hoffman & Law Firm

Baron, LLP: 1421-28P.

[0031] Another alternative may be a solution where the rubber strips may adhere to each other regardless of whether a sheet is present in the package. For example, drops or strip of glue can be placed on the rubber strips or their wraps so that the rubber strips or their wraps stick together. Droplets or a strip of glue can be placed on one or more sides of the rubber strips, which can be placed in a side-to-side configuration in the package. The same or a different type of adhesive may also be used to adhere the rubber strips to the housing and / or to the sheet.

[0032] When a sheet is present, it is possible to glue the rubber strips to this sheet with some kind of adhesive, cold or hot glue, and then the outer part of the sheet can be glued to the inner surface or wall of the package. One or more strips, dots, or other adhesive surfaces may be used to adhere the sheet to one or more than one inner surface of the package. Alternatively, the sheet need not be glued to the packaging and simply can only be placed in the packaging. It may also be desirable not to stick the strips to the sheet, and only then to stick the sheet to the packaging. Alternatively, the sheet need not be glued to the packaging.

[0033] One option would be to glue both the sheet and the rubber strips to one or more of the inner surfaces or walls of the package. For example, you could use a sheet or case that would cover only part of the rubber strips when the rubber strips are placed on or in the sheet in such a way that the upper parts of these strips (or their wraps) extend above the sheet edge when that sheet and strips rubbers are placed inside the packaging. A strip of glue could be applied to the inside rear wall of the rubber chamber in this package, in a position approximately equal to or overlapping the top edge of the pouch. If the strip of glue were wide enough, it would allow both the case and the top of the rubber strip to be glued to the inner surface of this package. Alternatively, two strips can be used

One adhesive for attaching the rubber strips (or wraps thereof) to the package and one for adhering the sheet to one or more than one inner wall or surface of the package. Both of these adhesive strips could be located on the same inner back wall of this package or - for example, one of them could be on the indicated inner back wall of the package to glue the upper parts of the rubber strips to this inner back wall of the package, the other on the inner front side of the package to stick the sheet to the inside front side of the package. One potential implementation example is illustrated in Provisional Patent Application No. US 60 / 570,004 entitled "Packaging for rubber strips with adhesive protection" (Gum Slab Packaging with Adhesive Securement) made on May 11, 2004, File No. Hoffman & Law Firm Baron, LLP: 142123P.

[0034] As can be seen, a number of variations are possible on this general topic. In addition, the adhesive does not have to be applied in the form of strips but can be applied in a different shape or arrangement. Hot wax is an example of a suitable adhesive.

[0035] According to a further example, an adhesive may be used to glue gum packs to the sheet and / or to glue the sheet to one or more than one inner surface or wall of the package. This configuration used in another packaging design is illustrated in US Patent Publication No. 2003/0080020 (Patent Application No. US 10 / 003,336) entitled "Packaging containing food products attached in a manner that allows them to be removed" (Package Having Releaseably Secured Consumable Products).

[0036] Although the packaging design described above has been discussed in connection with chewing gum in stripes, it can be easily adapted for use in blister gum, extruded gum, dragee gum and candy coating gum. In addition, each chamber can hold only one large piece of chewing gum. In addition, the packaging pattern described herein can be used for other types of individual food items (for example, cakes, chocolate bars, irises, toffee, fruit rolls and so on). Alternatively, such packaging can be used for the sale of postage, distribution or storage of inedible products such as photos, coupons, tickets, stamps, jigsaw puzzles, game elements and so on.

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The individual product units in the current packaging can be all the same or they can be different units that can be grouped or grouped together, or - for food products they can be of different types or different flavors. The current packaging can also be used for pharmaceuticals or nutraceuticals such as pills, vitamins, oral care strips and so on or for products that cannot be chewed or swallowed (e.g. chewing tobacco, painkillers for use in gum disease and so on further).

[0037] As can be seen, the current packaging design has many advantages. One benefit is to have one row of chewing gum strips instead of two or more rows of gum strips directly adjacent to each other. In the present case, it is easier to pull out a single rubber when removing it, and the remaining pieces are less likely to fall out of the packaging. In addition, the current packaging has a more pleasant appearance and looks better, which may lead to sharing rubber with others. In addition, the current packaging closes well and completely covers the product in the form of chewing gum. Not all of these advantages are found in every embodiment of the invention.

[0038] The above description of the current packaging design has been presented for illustration and explanation. Furthermore, this description is not intended to limit the invention to the form disclosed herein. Consequently, variations and modifications in accordance with the above disclosure, as well as experience and knowledge in the relevant technical field, are within the scope of the present invention. The embodiments described above are further intended to explain the most preferred known embodiment of the invention and to enable those skilled in the art to use the invention in such or other embodiments together with the various modifications necessary for the specific application (s) of the present invention.

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