Expandable carton

Abstract

A leak resistant expandable carton is end-loadable and expandable to retain ice or other matter above a compartment loaded with articles such as cans or bottles. The carton is expanded by separating its top wall with a tear strip and then by raising composite top end flaps, which are hingedly connected to the top wall and to the end walls of the carton. As the composite top end flaps are raised, the top wall sections are raised to be side extensions that are coplanar with and to extend above a pair of side walls. At the same time, the composite top end flaps unfold and are raised to be end extensions that are coplanar with and to extend above the pair of end walls. The side and end extensions are substantially continuously interconnected so that the expanded portion of the carton is relatively rigid and contiguous.

Description

RELATED APPLICATIONS[0001]This application claims priority to U.S. Application No. 60 / 804,393, filed Jun. 9, 2006, the entirety of which is incorporated herein by reference.TECHNICAL FIELD[0002]This invention relates generally to cartons and, more specifically, to cartons that are expandable to a larger volume.BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION[0003]Cartons that are expandable to increase their volume or capacity are known in the art, and are useful to allow a consumer to, for example, add ice to a carton that is full of beverage cans or bottles. These cartons are often also designed to retain liquid as the ice melts.[0004]Some such cartons are made expandable by the addition of extension panels and gusset panels, which must be stowed until the carton is expanded, and thus often inhibit machine loading of articles into the cartons. Specifically, the extension panels and gusset panels obstruct an open end of the carton when the carton is arranged as a tubular structure for end loading, ther...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0010]The present invention addresses the shortcomings of the prior art by providing an end loadable carton that is expandable to include a chimney that increases the volume of the carton so that ice or other matter can be placed in close proximity to the original contents of the carton. Advantageously, the loaded carton becomes a package that is easy to carry and to open, and the process of opening the package substantially automatically creates the chimney, thereby readying the package for unloading or for addition of ice. Ideally, the carton is formed from a unitary blank, further facilitating erecting the carton by automated process.

[0012]According to one aspect of certain exemplary embodiments of invention, the carton is expanded by operating a tear strip that extends between the top wall sections. The sections are liberated from one another, but remain hingedly connected to each composite top end flap, and thus to the end closures. The top end flap is pulled outwardly and upwardly away from the remainder of the end closure. The composite top end flap includes end extension panels and gusset panels which allow the separated sections of the top wall to then become substantially coplanar with respective side walls and the extension panels and gusset panels to become substantially coplanar with respective end walls. Thereby, a chimney of the carton is formed to increase the capacity of the carton.

[0019]The separated top wall sections can be raised to be substantially coplanar with respective side walls, and the composite top end flap can be raised and arranged such that the extension panels and the gusset panels are substantially coplanar with the side end flaps. In effect, therefore, the original side walls and end walls are simply extended in height to achieve expansion of the carton. The side and end extensions are substantially continuously interconnected so that the expanded portion of the carton is relatively rigid and contiguous.

[0020]According to another aspect of the invention, the expandable carton is formed from a unitary blank, which greatly simplifies its construction. The blank includes major panels that become the top, bottom, and side walls, these major panels being connected in series along transverse edges in any sequence that yields the desired configuration. For example, the first panel in the series may be a first partial side panel that is hingedly connected along its side edge to a top panel, which is hingedly connected along its side edge to a second side panel, which is hingedly connected along its side edge to a bottom panel that is connected along its side edge to a second partial side panel. Together the first and second partial side panels form a composite side wall to which first and second partial side end flaps are connected to form a composite side end flap. Alternatively, an edge flap may allow interconnection of the bottom panel to the first side panel. Those skilled in the art will readily appreciate the ability to shift the sequence panel by panel to alter the design without escaping the scope of the invention.

Problems solved by technology

Some such cartons are made expandable by the addition of extension panels and gusset panels, which must be stowed until the carton is expanded, and thus often inhibit machine loading of articles into the cartons.

Specifically, the extension panels and gusset panels obstruct an open end of the carton when the carton is arranged as a tubular structure for end loading, thereby preventing smooth mechanical loading.

To overcome this obstruction, these expandable cartons must be hand loaded, which is much less efficient compared to the output of contemporary high speed packaging automated processes.

Therefore, a heretofore unaddressed need exists in the industry to address the aforementioned deficiencies and inadequacies.

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