Sleeve, container, blank and container with content

Abstract

To provide a sleeve, a container, a blank, and a container with content which can obtain a high stacking performance.SOLUTION: A sleeve 12 used in a container 1 is provided along an outer peripheral surface of a polygonal inner container 11 with an opening at one end, and is provided along the outer peripheral surface of the inner container 11, has a notch 12a formed in a part facing a corner part 21c of the inner container 11, and is made of a paper material.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a sleeve to be provided on an inner container for accommodating contents, a container having a sleeve, a sleeve blank, and a container containing contents. [Background technology]

[0002] For example, heat insulation is required for containers that store high-temperature contents such as instant noodles. Recently, there has also been a demand for containers to be made of environmentally friendly materials and to be made thinner to reduce the amount of material used. For this reason, a technology is known in which a sleeve is provided around the container to provide heat insulation (see, for example, Patent Documents 1 and 2). The above-mentioned containers are generally transported from the container manufacturer in a stacked state, and after the food manufacturer fills the containers with the contents, the lid material is sealed to the flange of the container. For this reason, the container is required to be stackable. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2002-145356 A [Patent Document 2] JP 2004-315066 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] However, when a sleeve is provided on a container, the sleeve swells away from the container. In particular, in a polygonal container having corners, the sleeve swells more at the corners. This bulging of the sleeve reduces the stackability of the container. The reduced stackability of the container reduces the number of containers that can be transported, resulting in increased transportation costs. If the containers are forcibly stacked with the sleeves attached to them, the containers will become integrated with each other, making them difficult to remove, and causing problems in the process of filling the contents.

[0005] Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a sleeve, a container, a blank, and a container with contents that can achieve high stackability. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] According to one aspect of the present invention, the sleeve is a sleeve that is provided along the outer peripheral surface of an inner container having one end of a polygonal shape that is open, the sleeve is provided along the outer peripheral surface of the inner container, a notch is formed in a portion facing a corner of the inner container, and the sleeve is formed of a paper material. Effect of the Invention

[0007] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a sleeve, a container, a blank, and a container containing a content, which are capable of achieving high stackability. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a configuration of a container according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the configuration of the container with the inner container and the sleeve disassembled. [Diagram 3] FIG. [Figure 4] FIG. [Diagram 5] FIG. [Figure 6] FIG. [Figure 7] FIG. [Figure 8] FIG. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0009] Hereinafter, the configuration of a container 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. Fig. 1 is a perspective view showing the configuration of a container 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention, and Fig. 2 is a perspective view showing the configuration of the container 1 in a state where an inner container 11 and a sleeve 12 are disassembled. Figs. 3 and 4 are side views showing the configuration of the container 1 from different directions. Fig. 5 is a bottom view showing the configuration of the container 1. Figs. 6 and 7 are side views showing the configuration of the inner container 11 from different directions. Fig. 8 is a plan view showing a blank 112 of the sleeve 12 in a state where the sleeve 12 is unfolded.

[0010] As shown in Figures 1 to 4, the container 1 comprises an inner container 11 that contains a content 100, and a sleeve 12 provided on the outer circumferential surface of the inner container 11. Furthermore, as shown in Figure 4, the container 1 comprises a lid 13 that seals the inner container 11. As shown in Figure 4, the inner container 11 of the container 1 is sealed with the lid 13 in a state in which the content 100 is contained within the inner container 11, thereby forming a content-containing container 2. Here, the content 100 is, for example, a food product such as instant noodles that is cooked with hot water or by heating in a microwave oven.

[0011] As shown in Figs. 2, 6 and 7, the inner container 11 includes a body 21, a bottom 22 and a flange 23. The inner container 11 is formed in a polygonal cup shape. In this embodiment, the inner container 11 is formed in a rectangular cup shape with one of two orthogonal directions being shorter than the other. The inner container 11 is formed, for example, from a resin material, specifically polypropylene (PP), polystyrene (PS), expanded polystyrene (PSP), or a composite material containing 50% or more by weight of paper material and PP. The inner container 11 is formed, for example, by vacuum forming or pressure forming. The inner container 11 may have characters, symbols, designs, etc. printed on the outer surface.

[0012] The body 21 includes a pair of first side portions 21a, a pair of second side portions 21b each having a larger width in a circumferential direction of the body 21 than the pair of first side portions 21a, and four corner portions 21c disposed between the first side portions 21a and the second side portions 21b. For example, the first side portions 21a and the second side portions 21b are formed in a flat shape. The corner portions 21c are formed in a curved shape, for example.

[0013] The lower end of the body 21 is closed by the bottom 22, and the upper end is open. The body 21 is formed in a tapered shape inclined with respect to the axial direction of the body 21 so that the width gradually decreases from the flange 23 side toward the bottom 22 side at least on the bottom 22 side of the pair of first side portions 21a, the pair of second side portions 21b, and the corner portions 21c.

[0014] In this embodiment, the body 21 has a lower wall 31 continuous with the bottom 22 and an upper wall 32 continuous with the flange 23, and the lower wall 31 and the upper wall 32 are continuous with each other, and the width of the lower end of the upper wall 32 is formed larger than the width of the upper end of the lower wall 31. The body 21 also has a plurality of stacking ribs 33 protruding from the inner surface side of the upper wall 32 and a plurality of reinforcing ribs 34 protruding from the outer surface side of the lower wall 31. When the inner containers 11 are stacked, the stacking ribs 33 of the inner containers 11 overlapping vertically engage with each other, thereby placing the overlapping inner containers 11 in a predetermined positional relationship. The reinforcing ribs 34 extend, for example, along the lower wall 31 in the opposing direction of the bottom 22 and the flange 23.

[0015] The first side portion 21a includes, for example, a first lower portion 31a forming a part of the lower wall 31 and a first upper portion 32a forming a part of the upper wall 32. For example, the first lower portion 31a and the first upper portion 32a may have different or the same inclination angle with respect to the axial direction of the body portion 21. Also, for example, the first upper portion 32a may be shaped along the axial direction, and the first lower portion 31a may be shaped to be inclined with respect to the axial direction of the body portion 21.

[0016] The second side portion 21b includes, for example, a second lower portion 31b forming a part of the lower wall 31 and a second upper portion 32b forming a part of the upper wall 32. For example, the second lower portion 31b and the second upper portion 32b may have different or the same inclination angle with respect to the axial direction of the body portion 21. Also, for example, the second upper portion 32b may be shaped along the axial direction, and the second lower portion 31b may be shaped to be inclined with respect to the axial direction of the body portion 21. For example, the inclination angles of the first lower portion 31a and the second lower portion 31b are set to be the same, and the inclination angles of the first upper portion 32a and the second upper portion 32b are set to be the same.

[0017] Corner 21c includes, for example, lower corner 31c forming a part of lower wall 31, and upper corner 32c forming a part of upper wall 32. For example, lower corner 31c and upper corner 32c may have different or the same inclination angle with respect to the axial direction of body 21. Also, for example, upper corner 32c may be along the axial direction, and lower corner 31c may be inclined with respect to the axial direction of body 21. Also, lower corner 31c and upper corner 32c may have the same or different radii of curvature.

[0018] The bottom portion 22 is integrally formed at the lower end of the body portion 21. The bottom portion 22 is formed in a flat plate shape. For example, the center side of the bottom portion 22 may protrude toward the flange 23 more than the outer edge side.

[0019] The flange 23 is formed, for example, integrally with the upper end (opening end) of the body portion 21. The flange 23 is formed in an annular shape extending from the upper edge of the body portion 21 in a direction perpendicular or intersecting the axial direction of the body portion 21. The flange 23 includes a flat flange portion 23a and an annular sealing protrusion 23b protruding upward from the upper surface of the flange portion 23a. The sealing protrusion 23b has, for example, a flat upper surface, to which the lid 13 is heat sealed.

[0020] The sleeve 12 is a heat insulating sleeve provided along the outer circumferential surface of the inner container 11. The sleeve 12 is formed from a single sheet of paper. The sleeve 12 is formed in an annular shape along the outer circumferential surface of the body 21 of the inner container 11. The sleeve 12 is formed so that the body 21 of the inner container 11 can be inserted into it. Furthermore, the sleeve 12 is, for example, at least partially bonded to the body 21 of the inner container 11.

[0021] 2, the sleeve 12 includes four notches 12a formed in parts of the regions facing the four corners 21c of the inner container 11. The notches 12a are formed at the end on the flange 23 side when the sleeve 12 is attached to the inner container 11. In addition, when the sleeve 12 is attached to the inner container 11, the sleeve 12 has a folded-back portion 12b formed by folding the end inward and attaching it at the end on the bottom 22 side.

[0022] As a specific example, as shown in Figures 1 to 5, the sleeve 12 has a pair of first side portions 41 facing the pair of first side portions 21a, a pair of second side portions 42 facing the pair of second side portions 21b, and four corner portions 43 facing the four corner portions 21c.

[0023] The first side portion 41 includes a first lower portion 41a facing the first lower portion 31a and a first upper portion 41b facing the first upper portion 32a. The second side portion 42 includes a second lower portion 42a facing the second lower portion 31b and a second upper portion 42b facing the second upper portion 32b.

[0024] For example, the width of the first lower portion portion 41a and the second lower portion portion 42a is larger than the width of the first lower portion 31a and the second lower portion 31b in the opposing direction of the bottom portion 22 and the flange 23, i.e., in the height direction of the container 1. Furthermore, the width of the first upper portion portion 41b and the second upper portion portion 42b in the height direction of the container 1 is the same as the width of the first upper portion 32a and the second upper portion 32b.

[0025] The corner portion portion 43 faces, for example, the lower corner portion 31c. In other words, since the corner portion portion 43 is not formed at a position facing the upper corner portion 32c, the notch 12a is formed by the edges of the first upper portion portion 41b, the second upper portion portion 42b and the corner portion portion 43. For example, the upper edge of the corner portion portion 43 abuts against a portion forming the corner portion 21c of the continuous portion 31d that continues the upper end of the lower wall 31 and the lower end of the upper wall 32.

[0026] The corner portion 43 is formed with a fold line 52 that guides the bending direction when the corner portion 43 is folded so as to approximate the curvature of the lower corner 31c. For example, the fold lines 52 are perforations or indentations, and a plurality of fold lines 52 are formed in the corner portion 43 aligned in the circumferential direction, in other words, in the curvature direction of the corner 21c. In addition, the fold lines 51 may be provided between the corner portion 43 and the first side portion 41 and the second side portion 42.

[0027] For example, in the height direction of the container 1, the width of the corner portion 43 is greater than the width of the lower corner portion 31c. Moreover, the lower end of the corner portion 43 is at the same position in the height direction as the lower ends of the first lower portion 41a and the second lower portion 42a. That is, the height dimension of the sleeve 12 is greater than the height dimension of the body portion 21 of the inner container 11. Therefore, when the inner container 11 is inserted into the sleeve 12, the lower end of the sleeve 12 where the folded portion 12b is formed extends downward beyond the bottom portion 22 of the inner container 11.

[0028] For example, at least a portion of the sleeve 12 above the lower end of the notch 12a in the height direction of the container 1 is adhered to the body 21 of the inner container 11 with an adhesive or the like. As a specific example, at least one of the first upper-part portion 41b and the second upper-part portion 42b, which are located above the lower end of the notch 12a, of the sleeve 12, and preferably both the first upper-part portion 41b and the second upper-part portion 42b, are adhered to the upper wall 32 of the body 21 of the inner container 11.

[0029] The lid 13 is formed, for example, in a sheet shape, and has a resin layer capable of being heat-sealed on the surface facing the inner container 11. For example, the lid 13 uses a resin material, a paper material, and / or a metal material as a base material on which the resin layer for heat sealing is provided. The lid 13 is heat-sealed to the sealing projection 23b of the flange 23 of the inner container 11 to hermetically seal the inner container 11.

[0030] Next, the blank 112 of the sleeve 12 will be described with reference to Fig. 8. The blank 112 is a piece of material obtained by punching a paper material into the shape of the unfolded sleeve 12. As shown in Fig. 8, the blank 112 includes a pair of first side portion pieces 141A, 141B that form one first side portion 41 by bonding ends together, a first side portion surface 141 that forms the other first side portion 41, a pair of second side portion surfaces 142 that form a pair of second side portions 42, and four corner portion surfaces 143 that form four corner portions 43. For example, the first side portion piece 141A on one side, the corner portion surface 143, the second side portion surface 142, the corner portion surface 143, the first side portion surface 141, the corner portion surface 143, the second side portion surface 142, the corner portion surface 143, and the first side portion piece 141B on the other side are formed integrally in this order.

[0031] For example, when the body 21 is tapered, the first side piece 141A, the corner portion surface 143, the second side portion surface 142, the corner portion surface 143, the first side portion surface 141, the corner portion surface 143, the second side portion surface 142, the corner portion surface 143, and the first side piece 141B on the other side are arranged in a fan shape in that order, and the corner portion surface 143 (corner portion 43) is set so that the width at the upper end is larger than the width at the lower end.

[0032] For example, fold lines 151 (fold lines 51) for guiding bending when forming the sleeve 12 are formed at the boundaries between the first side portion pieces 141A, 141B and the corner portion surface 143, the boundary between the first side portion surface 141 and the corner portion surface 143, and the boundary between the second side portion surface 142 and the corner portion surface 143. In addition, for example, fold lines 152 (fold lines 52) for guiding bending when forming the sleeve 12 are formed at the corner portion surface 143.

[0033] In a direction perpendicular to the arrangement direction of the faces 141, 142, and 143 of the blank 112, i.e., in the height direction of the sleeve 12 (container 1), the blank 112 is formed such that the end side where the folded-back portion 12b is formed is longer than the sleeve 12 by the length folded back at the folded-back portion 12b. In addition, the edge shape of the blank 112 on the opposite side to the side where the folded-back portion 12b is formed in the height direction of the sleeve 12 is formed in the same shape as the shape of the upper end side of the sleeve 12, so that a notch 112a (notch 12a) is formed. In addition, the width of the pair of first side portion pieces 141A and 141B in the arrangement direction of the faces 141, 142, and 143, i.e., in the circumferential direction of the sleeve 12, is set to be larger than half the width of the first side portion 41 and the first side portion surface 141. That is, the pair of first side portion pieces 141A, 141B which form both ends of the blank 112 include an adhesive margin for forming the first side portion 41 by being joined with an adhesive or the like.

[0034] Next, an example of a method for manufacturing the sleeve 12 will be described. First, a sheet of paper material is cut by punching and fold lines 51, 52 are formed to form the blank 112 shown in FIG. 8. Next, the blank 112 is folded along the fold lines 51, 52 to form a ring, and the adhesive margins of the pair of first side portion pieces 141A, 141B are overlapped and bonded with an adhesive. In addition, the lower end of the ring-shaped blank 112 is folded back inward and attached to form the folded back portion 12b. Through these steps, the sleeve 12 is formed from the blank 112.

[0035] Note that, for example, an adhesive is applied to a part of the inner surface of the sleeve 12, and the inner container 11 is inserted into the sleeve 12, thereby fixing the sleeve 12 to the outer peripheral surface of the inner container 11. Note that, the blank 112 may have a resin layer for heat sealing provided on the surface that will become the inner surface of the sleeve 12, and the joining of the first side portion pieces 141A, 141B to each other, the joining of the folded-back portion 12b, and the joining of the inner container 11 and the sleeve 12 may be performed by heat sealing. The joining of the inner container 11 and the sleeve 12 may also be performed by fitting or seaming the sleeve 12 to the inner container 11. Alternatively, the inner container 11 and the sleeve 12 may be configured so that the inner container 11 is detachably inserted into the sleeve 12 without being joined to each other.

[0036] Next, an example of a method for manufacturing the content-containing container 2 will be described. First, the inner container 11, which is a pressure-molded product, is manufactured by pressure molding or the like. The molded inner containers 11 are then stacked and transported to a process or factory where the sleeve 12 is joined. Next, the inner containers 11 are separated from the stacked inner containers 11, and the sleeve 12 is wrapped around and bonded to the inner container 11. This makes the inner container 11 and the sleeve 12 integrated. The inner containers 11 with the sleeve 12 attached are then stacked, packaged, and transported to a food factory. In the food factory, the inner container 11 is filled with the content 100, and the lid 13 is heat-sealed to the flange 23 of the inner container 11. Through these steps, the content-containing container 2 is manufactured.

[0037] According to the container 1 thus configured, when the sleeve 12 for insulation is provided on the outer peripheral surface of the inner container 11, a notch 12a is provided in the corner portion 43 of the sleeve 12 facing the corner portion 21c of the inner container 11. With this configuration, the corner portion 43 can be easily shaped to fit the curved corner portion 21c, so that the sleeve 12 can be prevented from expanding in a direction away from the inner container 11. By shaping the sleeve 12 to fit the outer peripheral surface of the inner container 11 and preventing the sleeve 12 from expanding, it is possible to prevent the sleeve 12 provided on the inner container 11 from interfering with the inner surface of another inner container 11 when stacking the inner containers 11 provided with the sleeve 12. Therefore, the inner containers 11 provided with the sleeve 12 can obtain high stackability and can prevent blocking during stacking.

[0038] Furthermore, the sleeve 12 (blank 112) has fold lines 51, 52 (fold lines 151, 152), which allows the corner portion 43 to be bent so as to fit along the curved corner 21c of the inner container 11. Thus, the corner portion 43 of the sleeve 12 can be stably formed into a desired shape that fits along the corner 21c of the inner container 11. This makes it possible to suppress variation in the shape of the sleeve 12 and prevent the sleeve 12 from expanding, thereby allowing the container 1 to have high stackability and to prevent blocking during stacking.

[0039] Furthermore, by making the height dimension of the sleeve 12 larger than the height dimension of the body 21 of the inner container 11, when the inner container 11 is inserted into the sleeve 12, the lower end of the sleeve 12 extends downward beyond the bottom 22 of the inner container 11. Therefore, when holding the container 1, the flange 23 of the inner container 11 and the lower end of the sleeve 12 can be grasped with the hands, so that the container 1 can be held safely even if the body 21 or the part of the sleeve 12 facing the body 21 becomes hot when the contents 100 is hot.

[0040] Moreover, the sleeve 12 is configured such that one of the pair of first side portions 41 is formed by joining the first side portion pieces 141A, 141B of the blank 112. Moreover, the first side portion 41 has a shorter length than the second side portion 42, and therefore has high strength against external forces. This makes it possible to prevent the blank 112 from being crushed by external forces generated during joining when the blank 112 is formed into the sleeve 12 by an assembly device.

[0041] Furthermore, since the sleeve 12 has a folded portion 12b at the lower end, the strength at the lower end is improved, enabling the inner container 11 to be stably held and deformation due to spring back after shaping to be prevented.

[0042] Furthermore, at least a portion of the sleeve 12 above the lower end of the notch 12a is adhered to the body 21 of the inner container 11, so that the sleeve 12 and the body 21 are fixed below the flange 23. This makes it possible to prevent poor release when the container 1 is released from a retainer, which is a jig used when heat-sealing the lid 13 to the inner container 11, and to prevent the sleeve 12 from falling off the inner container 11.

[0043] As described above, the blank 112, the sleeve 12, and the container 1 according to the embodiment can provide high stackability.

[0044] The present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiment. In the above-mentioned example, the sleeve 12 is provided on the inner container 11 having a rectangular body 21 in one direction shorter than the other perpendicular direction, but the present invention is not limited to this. As long as the inner container 11 is polygonal with corners 21c and the sleeve 12 has a notch 12a in a part of the part facing the corners 21c, the present invention can be applied to containers 1 of various shapes. For example, the inner container 11 and the sleeve 12 may be square, triangular, or hexagonal.

[0045] Furthermore, the sleeve 12 is not limited to the above example. For example, the sleeve 12 may be configured such that a perforation for breaking the sleeve 12 is formed in a part of the sleeve 12 in order to facilitate separation of the inner container 11 and the sleeve 12 when the container 1 is disposed of.

[0046] Furthermore, the lid 13 is not limited to the above-mentioned example. For example, the lid 13 may be configured to be fitted onto the flange 23 instead of being heat-sealed to the flange 23.

[0047] The present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiment, and can be modified in various ways without departing from the gist of the present invention. The embodiments may be combined as appropriate, and in that case, the combined effect can be obtained. Furthermore, the above-mentioned embodiment includes various inventions, and various inventions can be extracted by combinations selected from the multiple components disclosed. For example, if the problem can be solved and the effect can be obtained even if some components are deleted from all the components shown in the embodiment, the configuration from which the components are deleted can be extracted as an invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0048] 1...container, 2...container containing contents, 11...inner container, 12...sleeve, 12a...notch, 12b...folded portion, 13...lid, 21...body portion, 21a...first side portion, 21b...second side portion, 21c...corner portion, 22...bottom portion, 23...flange, 23a...flange portion, 23b...sealing projection, 31...lower wall, 31a...first lower portion, 31b...second lower portion, 31c...lower corner portion, 31d...continuous portion, 32...upper wall, 32a...first upper portion, 32b...second upper portion, 32c...upper corner portion, 33...stack rib, 34 ...reinforcing rib, 41...first side portion, 41a...first lower portion, 41b...first upper portion, 42...second side portion, 42a...second lower portion, 42b...second upper portion, 43...corner portion, 51...fold line, 52...fold line, 100...contents, 112...blank, 112a...notch, 141...first side portion surface, 141A...first side portion piece, 141B...first side portion piece, 142...second side portion surface, 143...corner portion surface, 151...fold line, 152...fold line.

Claims

1. A sleeve that is provided along the outer circumferential surface of an inner container having an opening at one end of a polygonal shape, A sleeve made of a paper material, the sleeve being provided along the outer circumferential surface of the inner container and having a notch formed in a portion facing a corner of the inner container.

2. A corner portion facing the corner portion of the inner container and a side portion facing the side portion of the inner container, The sleeve according to claim 1 , wherein the notch is formed on the corner portion side of the inner container at an open end thereof.

3. The corners of the inner container are formed into a curved shape, The sleeve according to claim 2 , wherein the corner portion has a plurality of fold lines formed therein that are aligned in a curvature direction of the corner portion.

4. The sleeve is formed in a rectangular shape and includes a pair of first side portions and a pair of second side portions that are longer than the pair of first side portions in a circumferential direction of the sleeve, The sleeve of claim 3 , wherein the side portions include a pair of first side portions opposing the pair of first sides and a pair of second side portions opposing the pair of second sides.

5. The sleeve according to claim 4 , wherein one of the pair of first side portions is attached in an overlapping manner at a center side in the circumferential direction, so as to be formed into an annular shape.

6. 2. The sleeve according to claim 1, further comprising a folded portion formed on a bottom side of the inner container.

7. 3. The sleeve according to claim 2, wherein at least the side portion above a lower end of the notch is bonded to the inner container.

8. A polygonal inner container; The sleeve according to any one of claims 1 to 7, which is provided along an outer circumferential surface of the inner container; A container comprising:

9. A blank for forming a sleeve according to any one of claims 1 to 7, A blank formed from a sheet of said paper material, the two ends of which are joined to form said sleeve.

10. A polygonal inner container; The sleeve according to any one of claims 1 to 7, which is provided along an outer circumferential surface of the inner container; A content contained in the inner container; A lid that seals the inner container in which the contents are contained; A container containing a content.

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