CIGARETTE PACK WITH A MEGOTS RECOVERY COMPARTMENT

Abstract

A cigarette or tobacco container (1) comprising a main compartment (2) for holding cigarettes or tobacco and a compartment (3) for collecting cigarette butts, characterized in that the cigarette butt collection compartment (3) is fixed and includes at least one opening (30) which is closed by a flexible elastic membrane (6) having at least one slit (60, 61). Figure to be published with the abbreviation: Fig. 1

Description

Title of the invention: PACK OF CIGARETTES WITH A CIGARETTE BUT COLLECTION COMPARTMENT

[0001] The invention relates to the field of cigarette packets and the recovery of cigarette butts.

[0002] Outdoors and in the absence of ashtrays, smokers have a strong tendency to throw their cigarette butts on the ground. However, the degradation of cigarette butts, particularly cigarette filters, is of the order of several years, which constitutes a real source of pollution.

[0003] To protect the environment and very easily encourage smokers not to throw their cigarette butts on the ground, it is known to integrate a cigarette butt collection compartment into a cigarette packet or a cigarette packet case. Patent application FR2739532 relates to a case provided with a heat-resistant compartment forming an ashtray, the compartment being movable in translation in the manner of a drawer or pivoting. European patent application EP2132995 describes a cigarette packet, part of which forms a compartment for cigarette butts, in the form of a drawer.

[0004] However, the aforementioned compartments which are mobile may not always be easy to open. Furthermore, if accessibility to the compartment makes it easier to empty it to subsequently dispose of the cigarette butts in a bin, there is nevertheless a risk of disposing of them anywhere in nature, especially when the compartment is associated with a reusable case. In addition, whether for the case or for the cigarette packet, when the compartment is open, the user may inadvertently spill its contents, without then taking the trouble to pick them up.

[0005] The invention therefore aims to overcome the aforementioned drawbacks by proposing a solution which is simple to use, guaranteeing that the cigarette butts will not be knocked over once they have been grouped together, and preferably requiring the cigarette butts to be thrown away at the same time as the empty packet of cigarettes.

[0006] The invention relates to a cigarette or tobacco container comprising a main compartment intended for housing cigarettes or tobacco and a cigarette butt collection compartment, characterized in that the cigarette butt collection compartment is unopenable (during use), and comprises at least one orifice (passing through the thickness of the wall of the cigarette butt collection compartment), the orifice opening onto the outside and being closed by a flexible elastic membrane provided with at least one slit. The flexible elastic membrane is capable of opening when pressure is exerted on it and of returning to its original shape when pressure ceases. the pressure.

[0007] Once the cigarette is correctly extinguished, the butt is intended to be introduced through the orifice by pushing on the elastic membrane which, via the slot(s), is located, allowing the total insertion of the butt, and once the butt is introduced, closes automatically.

[0008] The cigarette butt recovery compartment is thus simple and quick to implement.

[0009] Once the cigarette butts have been inserted, they cannot come out because, on the one hand, the compartment is closed on all its faces and cannot be opened, and on the other hand, the insertion orifice is also closed and is designed, thanks to the elastic membrane with slot(s), to allow the insertion of a cigarette butt by pushing through the membrane, without the possibility of exit, the elasticity of the membrane allowing it to return to its initial shape after deformation.

[0010] The cigarette butt collection compartment being unopenable during its use, and being always closed, unlike the prior art, it prevents any risk of dropping the cigarette butts or accidentally scattering them during the use of said cigarette butt collection compartment or during the handling of the cigarette container.

[0011] Furthermore, the cigarette butt collection compartment, by remaining continuously closed, prevents the spread of unpleasant cold tobacco odors.

[0012] According to one characteristic, the cigarette or tobacco container forms a packet of cigarettes or a tobacco pouch.

[0013] In a preferred embodiment, the cigarette container forms a cigarette pack, i.e., the direct packaging for cigarettes. Consequently, the cigarette pack comprises not only the main compartment for cigarettes but also the butt collection compartment of the invention. Since the butt collection compartment is directly coupled to the main compartment intended to house the cigarettes, the user, when throwing the cigarette pack in the trash, will also simultaneously throw away the butts.

[0014] In the example of the cigarette packet, the cigarette butt collection compartment forms an extension of the main compartment while being partitioned off from the latter, preferably the cigarette packet being parallelepiped.

[0015] In another embodiment, the container forms a tobacco pouch. Such a tobacco pouch container has an access opening for the interior of the pouch, and the cigarette butt collection compartment forms a rigid cylindrical body (of circular section or preferably of square or rectangular section) which extends along the length of the pouch and opposite the opening.

[0016] In yet another embodiment, the container could be a case reusable. However, the invention applies more to disposable packaging in order to directly throw away the butt collection compartment once the cigarette pack or tobacco pouch is empty. The butt collection compartment is in particular disposable. In the case of a case, the butt collection compartment, once full, can be thrown away and replaced with a new one that is empty. The case is then designed to removably arrange a butt collection compartment of the invention.

[0017] According to one characteristic, the flexible elastic membrane of the cigarette butt recovery compartment is an elastomeric material, in particular heat-resistant. Preferably, the elastomeric material is based on rubber, in particular butyl rubber or an ethylene-propylene-diene monomer (EPDM).

[0018] According to one characteristic, the orifice of the cigarette butt recovery compartment has a section adapted to the diameter of the cigarette butt intended to be introduced through the orifice.

[0019] According to another characteristic, said at least one slit made in the elastic flexible membrane is located in the center of the membrane. In particular, the elastic flexible membrane comprises two slits in the shape of a centered cross.

[0020] According to yet another characteristic, the flexible elastic membrane has the shape of a pellet which is attached, preferably by gluing or heat-sealing its periphery, inside the cigarette butt recovery compartment, and opposite the orifice.

[0021] Advantageously, the cigarette butt collection compartment has a volume adapted to receive at least a number of cigarette butts corresponding to the number of cigarettes which are intended to be housed in the main compartment or to be smoked with the quantity of tobacco intended to be available in the main compartment.

[0022] According to yet another characteristic, the interior of the cigarette butt recovery compartment is made of a heat-resistant, or even fire-resistant, material to avoid any risk of flammability. In particular, the interior of the compartment is covered with a metallic material of the aluminum type or a thermosetting plastic material. In the latter case, when the container is made of cardboard, the cardboard of the cigarette butt recovery compartment is, for example, made of fire-resistant cardboard made from a fire-resistant thermosetting resin.

[0023] Advantageously, the container may include on its exterior (on one of its external faces) a metal element against which a cigarette butt can be crushed to extinguish it before being introduced into the cigarette butt collection compartment.

[0024] According to another characteristic, the cigarette butt recovery compartment can be divisible and / or detachable from the main compartment when the cigarette butt collection compartment is full (in particular after complete use of the container and therefore of said cigarette butt collection compartment). Advantageously, when the container is made of a cigarette packet packaging, it may comprise on the periphery of the cigarette butt collection compartment and at the boundary with the main compartment, a divisible cutting line of the cigarette butt collection compartment in relation to the main compartment. Thus, the cigarette butt collection compartment can be directly thrown into the usual waste bin, while the main compartment when it is made of cardboard can be thrown into the recyclable cardboard bin.

[0025] According to another characteristic, at least the cigarette butt recovery compartment is made of cardboard. In particular, the cigarette butt recovery compartment may be made of odorous cardboard.

[0026] The present invention is now described using examples which are solely illustrative and in no way limitative of the scope of the invention, and from the attached illustrations, in which: - [Fig.l] or [Fig.l] illustrates a bird's eye perspective view of an exemplary embodiment of a container according to the invention in the form of a packet of cigarettes. - [Fig.2] or [Fig.2] corresponds to [Fig.l] and shows a cigarette butt in introductory course in the cigarette butt collection compartment. - [Fig.3] or [Fig.3] is a side view of the packet of [Fig.l] showing the opening for inserting the cigarette butts. - [Fig.4] or [Fig.4] represents a sectional view along the height of the package of [Fig.l] and opposite the cigarette butt insertion hole. - [Fig.5] or [Fig.5] shows a cross-sectional and top view of the cigarette butt collection compartment. - [Fig.6] or [Fig.6] is another example of embodiment of the container of the invention in the form of a tobacco pouch. - [Fig.7] or [Fig.7] is a variant of the tobacco pouch of the [Fig.6].

[0027] The container 1 of the invention illustrated in the figures comprises a main compartment 2 intended to house cigarettes or tobacco and a compartment 3 for collecting cigarette butts. Figures 1 to 5 illustrate as a container a packet of cigarettes, while [Fig.6] and [Fig.7] illustrate a tobacco pouch.

[0028] The main compartment 2 for cigarettes corresponds to a usual pack of cigarettes for housing cigarettes. This main compartment 2 comprises a body 20, preferably parallelepiped, open on one of its faces, generally in so-called upper end, for access to the interior of the package, and a closing flap 21, which is capable of closing the body 20.

[0029] The cigarette butt recovery compartment 3 forms an extension to the main compartment 2. The cigarette butt recovery compartment 3 is here arranged at the lower end of the pack, that is to say in the longitudinal extension of the main compartment 2, opposite the opening and the flap 21 of the pack. Alternatively, the cigarette butt recovery compartment 3 could be arranged as a lateral extension of the main compartment 2, by being placed against one of the lateral faces of the pack.

[0030] Preferably, the main compartment 2 and the cigarette butt recovery compartment 3 form a parallelepiped assembly.

[0031] In the illustrated embodiment, the cigarette butt collection compartment 3 has the same width and thickness as those of the main compartment 2 for cigarettes, and has a height (depending on the longitudinal dimension of the pack) which is for example 25 mm. The cigarette butt collection compartment 3 has a volume adapted to receive at least a number of butts corresponding to the number of cigarettes which will be housed in the main compartment 2.

[0032] The cigarette butt recovery compartment 3 is separated from the main compartment 2 by a partition 4 which is inside the pack ([Fig.4]).

[0033] Preferably, the main compartment 2 and the cigarette butt recovery compartment 3 are made of cardboard, and are made from a folded cardboard blank, shaped and glued in the appropriate places.

[0034] As shown in Figures 4 and 5, the cigarette butt recovery compartment 3 is covered internally on all of its internal faces with a heat-resistant coating 5 such as a metal coating, for example aluminum. The heat-resistant coating 5 is for example a metal foil that has been glued to the cardboard blank. Alternatively, the cardboard of the cigarette butt recovery compartment 3 may be fireproof.

[0035] The cigarette butt recovery compartment 3 is closed on all its faces. The cigarette butt recovery compartment 3 cannot be opened. It has on one of its faces at least one through orifice 30 (depending on the thickness of the compartment) which is closed by a flexible elastic membrane 6. The orifice 30 opens onto the outside of the cigarette butt recovery compartment 3 and therefore onto the outside of the pack. The flexible elastic membrane 6 has at least one slot 60, for example two slots 60 and 61 in the shape of a centered cross. The combination of the orifice 30 and the flexible elastic membrane 6 constitutes a self-closing access. This provides access for introducing the cigarette butts into the compartment 3 without having to manipulate said compartment and without the cigarette butts being able to come out. The cigarette butt recovery compartment 3 remains completely closed and is therefore not openable during use or during handling of the cigarette pack. The only possibility of opening it would be to tear it, rendering it unusable.

[0036] The flexible elastic membrane 6 provided with the slots 60 and 61 allows, by pushing the cigarette butt against said membrane, the cigarette butt to be inserted through it by spreading the slots, the membrane returning to its original shape when the pressure ceases.

[0037] The flexible elastic membrane 6 is made of an elastomeric material, preferably rubber-based and heat-resistant, for example butyl rubber.

[0038] The flexible elastic membrane 6 has the shape of a disc 62 (figures 4 and 5) which is attached by gluing its periphery against the internal face of the wall of the compartment 3 and opposite the orifice 30. The disc 62 is glued to the cardboard blank of the package before the said blank is formed.

[0039] Advantageously, the pack 1 may comprise a metal element 7 which is integral with one of the faces of the pack, and against which the cigarette butt can be crushed to extinguish it before introducing it into the cigarette butt recovery compartment 3.

[0040] After consuming all the cigarettes in pack 1, the user, by throwing the empty pack 1 in the trash, also throws away all the cigarette butts which are stored in the cigarette butt collection compartment 3.

[0041] In an alternative embodiment, the package 1 is designed such that at the boundary of the main compartment 2 and the cigarette butt recovery compartment 3, the material constituting the package (the cardboard) comprises a breakable line 8, shown diagrammatically in dotted lines in Figures 1 and 3, which facilitates the cutting by hand of the cigarette butt recovery compartment 3. The latter can then be thrown into the usual non-recyclable waste bin, while the main compartment 2 can be thrown into the cardboard recycling bin.

[0042] [Fig. 6] illustrates an exemplary embodiment of a container in the form of a tobacco pouch. The tobacco pouch 1 is a flexible envelope comprising the main compartment 2 of flexible body 20, and the compartment 3 for collecting the cigarette butts. The pouch 1 comprises an access opening that can be closed by a flap 21 in the upper part and the compartment 3 for collecting the cigarette butts is arranged opposite the access opening, forming the bottom of the pouch. The compartment 3 for collecting the cigarette butts is formed of a preferably rigid cylindrical body, here of circular section, which extends along the length of the pouch. The compartment 3 for collecting the cigarette butts is completely closed, cannot be opened, and comprises at one of its distal ends the orifice 30 which is closed by the elastic flexible membrane 6 provided with at least one slot 60, 61.

[0043] Alternatively, the cylindrical body of the cigarette butt recovery compartment 3 of the joke 1 may have a completely different section. [Fig.7] shows a parallel body piped, the cylindrical body being of square or rectangular section. Such a parallelepiped shape gives the pouch a flat bottom which allows easier access to the tobacco when there is very little tobacco left in the pouch, and prevents the tobacco from getting stuck between the flexible casing and the bottom wall if it were on the contrary circular in shape.

Claims

Claims

1. Cigarette or tobacco container (1) comprising a main compartment (2) for housing cigarettes or tobacco and a compartment (3) for collecting cigarette butts, the compartment (3) for collecting cigarette butts being unopenable, and comprising at least one orifice (30) which opens to the outside and is closed by a flexible elastic membrane (6) provided with at least one slit (60, 61), characterized in that it comprises at the periphery of the compartment (3) for collecting cigarette butts and at the boundary with the main compartment (2), a breakable line for cutting the compartment for collecting cigarette butts relative to the main compartment to make it detachable from the main compartment (2) and to be disposable separately from the main compartment.

2. Cigarette or tobacco container according to claim 1, characterized in that the elastic flexible membrane (6) is an elastomeric material, in particular heat-resistant, preferably based on rubber, in particular butyl rubber or EPDM.

3. Cigarette or tobacco container according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the orifice (30) has a section adapted to the diameter of the cigarette butt intended to be introduced through the orifice.

4. Cigarette or tobacco container according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that said at least one slot (60, 61) with which the elastic flexible membrane (6) is provided is located in the center of the membrane, in particular the elastic flexible membrane has two slots in the shape of a centered cross.

5. Cigarette or tobacco container according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the elastic flexible membrane (6) has the shape of a pellet (62) which is attached, preferably by gluing or heat-sealing its periphery, inside the cigarette butt recovery compartment (3) and opposite the orifice (30).

6. Cigarette or tobacco container according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the interior of the compartment (3) for collecting cigarette butts is made of a heat-resistant material, in particular is covered with a metallic material of the aluminum type or a thermosetting plastic material.

7. Cigarette or tobacco container according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the recovery compartment (3) The cigarette butt storage compartment has a volume suitable for receiving at least a number of cigarette butts corresponding to the number of cigarettes which are intended to be housed in the main compartment (2) or to be smoked with the quantity of tobacco intended to be available in the main compartment (2).

8. Cigarette or tobacco container according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that it comprises on its exterior a metallic element (7) against which a cigarette butt can be crushed to extinguish it.

9. Cigarette or tobacco container according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that at least the compartment (3) for collecting the cigarette butts is made of cardboard, in particular the compartment for collecting the cigarette butts is made of odorous cardboard.

10. Cigarette or tobacco container according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that it forms a packet of cigarettes or a tobacco pouch.

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