Cushioning material

Abstract

To provide a cushioning material for achieving a good fitting property and a better cushioning action.SOLUTION: A cushioning material 11 is made of a pair of a front sheet part 15 and a back sheet part 16 overlapping each other, which form a space for storing a packaged article, and these sheet parts 15 and 16 are made of a nonwoven fabric sheet material 17 having slits 18 that penetrate in a thickness direction and are arranged in a staggered pattern. The front sheet part 15 and the back sheet part 16 are made of two sheet materials 17 overlapping each other. Positions of the slits 18 of the sheet materials 17 in the front sheet part 15 and the back sheet part 16, which are made of the plurality of sheet materials 17, are made to be misaligned with each other when the slits are in a closed state.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a cushioning material used for displaying, packing, and wrapping various products such as fruits and vegetables, food products, and bottled products. [Background technology]

[0002] An example of a cushioning material is disclosed in Patent Document 1 below. This cushioning material has a structure in which a top sheet portion and a back sheet portion face each other and overlap each other, with the packaged item stored inside them. Both the top sheet portion and the back sheet portion are formed of a nonwoven sheet material with multiple slits extending in one direction arranged in a staggered pattern. The overlapping shape of the top sheet portion and the back sheet portion is maintained by a point seal portion that joins the inner surfaces of the sheet materials together.

[0003] In a cushioning material with this configuration, the slits open when a packaged item is placed inside, and the flexibility of the front and back sheets, made of nonwoven fabric, allows the entire material to deform and become three-dimensional. The point seal maintains the desired overlapping shape of the front and back sheets while still allowing for freedom of deformation, ensuring that the packaged item placed between the unfolded front and back sheets remains covered. This makes it safe to use even for soft, easily damaged packaged items. Furthermore, because the cushioning is secured by the point seal, the packaged item can be prevented from accidentally falling out while still allowing for freedom of deformation based on the slits.

[0004] However, although the slits open when the packaged items are covered, causing a shrinkage force to act on the cushioning material, the shrinkage force mainly depends on the nonwoven fabric material, and there are cases where the cushioning material does not conform well to packaged items, especially those with concave shapes. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0005] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2023-56718 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0006] The main object of this invention is to provide a cushion that fits well and provides better cushioning. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] The cushioning material for this purpose is configured such that the space for accommodating the packaged items is made up of a pair of overlapping front and back sheet sections, and these sheet sections are made up of nonwoven sheet material with slits that penetrate through the thickness and are arranged in a staggered pattern, and has the following configuration: At least one of the sheet sections is made up of multiple sheet materials that overlap each other. In addition, the positions of the slits in the sheet materials in the sheet section made up of multiple sheet materials do not match with each other when the slits are closed. "The positions of the slits do not match with each other when the slits are closed" means, in other words, that the slits do not overlap with each other between the sheet materials and are misaligned, as opposed to when slits are formed in a state where the sheet materials are overlapped.

[0008] In this structure, the slits that open when the packaged item is wrapped give the sheet material a three-dimensional structure, providing the sheet material itself with cushioning properties. The sheet portion formed by stacking these sheet materials has higher cushioning performance than a single-layer sheet, i.e., a sheet portion made of a single sheet material. Moreover, the slits, which are offset from each other when closed, interlock with each other when opened to form a three-dimensional structure. Because it is made of nonwoven fabric, it has flexibility, but is also sticky and thick, creating a strong three-dimensional structure that exerts a contractile force that conforms to the shape of the packaged item, covering it. [Effects of the Invention]

[0009] According to this invention, when the slits are opened and the sheet material is formed into a three-dimensional structure, the three-dimensional structure of the multiple layers of sheet material intertwines, thereby protecting the packaged item with its flexibility and high cushioning properties, and providing a tight-fitting covering for the packaged item with its strong contraction force. Furthermore, since the sheet material is made of nonwoven fabric, it is highly flexible and the corners of the slits are soft to the touch. In addition to providing good cushioning and a good fit, unlike paper materials such as kraft paper, the sheets return to their original shape even after the slits are opened and the sheets intertwine. In other words, paper is stiff, and when the slits are opened and the sheets intertwine, the intertwined portions do not easily return to their original shape, but nonwoven fabric easily restores its shape and can be reused. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0010] [Figure 1] FIG. [Figure 2] A perspective view of the packaged item and cushioning material. [Figure 3] FIG. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing the slit spacing of the cushioning material. [Figure 5] FIG. [Figure 6] Cross-sectional view of cushioning material covering a packaged item. [Figure 7] FIG. 10 is a partially cutaway front view of a cushioning material according to another example. [Figure 8] FIG. 10 is a perspective view of another example of a cushioning material. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0011] An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

[0012] FIG. 1 shows a partially cutaway front view of a cushioning material 11 that can be used as a so-called fruit cap.

[0013] The cushioning material 11 is formed in a flat cylindrical shape with openings 12 and 13 at both ends. When viewed from the front, the shape is square, more specifically, a slightly vertically elongated rectangle, with openings 12 and 13 at both ends in the longitudinal direction. In Figure 1, the opening 12 at the upper end, shown on the upper side, is slightly wider than the opening 13 at the lower end.

[0014] As shown in Figure 2, the cushioning material 11 of this shape has a space 14 for containing the packaged item X, which is made up of a front sheet portion 15 and a back sheet portion 16 that overlap each other, and the front sheet portion 15 and the back sheet portion 16 are each made up of sheet material 17.

[0015] The sheet material 17 is made of a nonwoven fabric, such as a spunbonded nonwoven fabric or a thermal-bonded nonwoven fabric, and has a plurality of slits 18 penetrating through the thickness direction over the entire surface. The slits 18 are configured to provide cushioning properties. That is, when an item to be packaged X is placed inside the cushioning material 11, the slits 18 are pushed open and open, giving the sheet material 17 a three-dimensional mesh-like structure. In this example, the slits 18 are all formed in a straight line and are arranged in a staggered pattern extending in the same direction as the longitudinal direction of the slits 18. From the viewpoint of productivity, the nonwoven fabric used is preferably a spunbonded nonwoven fabric.

[0016] Figure 3 shows a partially enlarged view of the sheet material 17. As shown in this figure, the slits 18 are formed to a fixed length L, and form slit rows 19 that are lined up in a row at equal intervals in the longitudinal direction of the slits 18. A plurality of slit rows 19 are provided, and the slit rows 19 are arranged so that the midpoint of the interval between the slits 18 in these slit rows 19, i.e., the serial interval S, corresponds to the midpoint of the longitudinal direction of the slits 18 of adjacent slit rows 19. The interval between the slit rows 19, i.e., the parallel interval W, is set, similar to the serial interval S, so as to obtain a desired three-dimensional shape.

[0017] At least one of the front sheet portion 15 and the back sheet portion 16 is formed by stacking multiple sheets of the above-mentioned sheet material 17 on top of each other. In this example, the front sheet portion 15 and the back sheet portion 16 are each formed by two sheets of sheet material 17. That is, the front sheet portion 15 is formed by sheets 17a and 17b, and the back sheet portion 16 is formed by sheets 17c and 17d. The positions of the slits 18 of the sheet materials 17 in the sheet portion formed by multiple sheet materials 17, i.e., the front sheet portion 15 and the back sheet portion 16, are arranged so that they do not match each other when the slits 18 are closed, as shown in FIG. 1.

[0018] Specifically, for example, the parallel spacing W between the slit rows 19 may be different between overlapping sheets 17 in the sheet portion 15, 16, which is made up of multiple sheet materials 17. For example, as shown in the cross-sectional view (a) of FIG. 4 , the parallel spacing W1 between the slit rows 19 in one sheet material 17 constituting the sheet portion 15, 16 is different from the parallel spacing W2 between the slit rows 19 in the other sheet material 17. The parallel spacings W1, W2 are wider for the sheet material 17 depicted at the top of the drawing. As shown in the cross-sectional view (b), the slits 18 can be misaligned by shifting the positions of the slit rows 19 in the parallel direction while maintaining the same parallel spacing W3 between the slit rows 19 in the sheet materials 17 constituting the sheet portion 15, 16. Shifting the slit rows 19 in the parallel direction in this manner is advantageous in that it makes it easier for the three-dimensional sheet materials 17 to entangle with each other.

[0019] Although not shown in the figure, the positions of the slits 18 may be shifted between the sheet materials 17 by varying the longitudinal positions of the slit rows 19, or by changing the length L of the slits 18 or the serial spacing S of the slits 18.

[0020] The positions of the slits 18 between overlapping sheets 17 are misaligned by shifting the positions of the slits 18 in the closed state as shown in Fig. 1, but there are various ways of doing this as described above. Therefore, the misalignment of the slits 18 between sheets 17 may extend over the entire surface of the sheet 17 or may be limited to a part of it. In other words, the misalignment of the positions of the slits 18 may be partial.

[0021] In addition, among the sheet materials 17 constituting the front sheet portion 15 and the back sheet portion 16, for the sheet materials 17 (17b, 17c) located on the inside and overlapping each other, the positions of the slits 18 may either be misaligned or aligned with each other when the slits are closed.

[0022] The front sheet portion 15 and the back sheet portion 16, which have two sheets 17 with different slit 18 arrangements between them, are integrated at joints 21 formed on both left and right edges to form the flat tubular shape described above. The joints 21 can be formed by ultrasonic welding. In the example shown in FIG. 1, the joints 21 are formed by arranging a plurality of square dot-like weld points 21a in a line. The two joints 21 are parallel to each other.

[0023] In addition to the joints 21, end joints 22 are formed. As described above, the end joints 22 slightly narrow the opening 13 at the lower end, and are formed near one end of the longitudinal direction of the joints 21 on both the left and right sides, i.e., the lower end, and more inward than the joints 21. The end joints 22 are formed by ultrasonic welding, just like the joints 21.

[0024] 1 is configured with a plurality of dot-like welded points 22a arranged in the same manner as joint 21, and is formed in a line shape that slopes diagonally inward from the left and right ends, in other words, a line shape that slopes inward toward the lower end, forming an inverted V shape. The larger angle of end joint 22 relative to joint 21 is preferably about 150 degrees.

[0025] The above configuration is one embodiment for carrying out the present invention, and the present invention is not limited to only the above configuration, and other configurations can also be adopted.

[0026] For example, overlapping sheet materials 17 may be different colors, as shown in Figure 7. In the illustration, the difference in color is represented by the different dot patterns and the presence or absence of dots. The color of the inner sheet material 17 that is visible when slit 18 is opened, and the color of the inner sheet material 17 that is exposed when the upper opening side is folded back, not only enhances the appearance, but also, depending on the color scheme, can improve the visual effect of the packaged item X.

[0027] Moreover, the end joint portion 22 may be formed by a dot-like point seal as shown in FIG.

[0028] The joints 21 and the end joints 22 can be formed by arranging dot-like ultrasonic welds to form a line, or can be formed by ultrasonic welds made of lines.

[0029] The cushioning material 11 configured as described above is distributed in the form of a flat sheet, and when used, it is stretched and a packaged item X, such as peaches, is placed in the space 14 between the front sheet portion 15 and the back sheet portion 16 as shown in Figure 2.

[0030] When wrapping the packaged item X with the cushioning material 11, if necessary, the upper opening side portion without the end joint portion 22 is folded outward and overlapped with the lower opening side portion, as shown in Figure 5. At this time, the end joint portion 22 maintains the shape of both the left and right sides, preventing distortion of the lower opening 13 and misalignment between the sheets 17. This allows for easy and quick folding.

[0031] A cross-sectional view of the wrapped state is shown in Figure 6. When the packaged item X is wrapped around the highly elastic cushioning material 11, it quickly stretches, opening the slit 18. Then, the part surrounding the slit 18 rises diagonally, creating a honeycomb-like three-dimensional structure. In other words, the thin sheet-like sheet material 17 becomes three-dimensional and thicker, providing a cushioning effect.

[0032] Moreover, the sheet portions 15 and 16 are formed by stacking two sheets of such sheet material 17, and therefore exhibit a good cushioning effect.

[0033] Furthermore, the positions of the slits 18 in the closed state are shifted between the overlapping sheets 17, so when the sheet material 17 is made three-dimensional, it becomes entangled with the other sheets as shown enlarged in Figure 6, increasing its thickness and elasticity, thereby providing a better cushioning effect.

[0034] In addition to this excellent cushioning effect, the three-dimensional, intertwined, and overlapping sheet material 17 also exerts a strong contraction force, i.e., a force that tries to close the slits 18 and shrink. This allows it to conform well to the shape of the packaged item X, providing a tightly fitting covering. Although it has a high contraction force, the sheet material 17 made of nonwoven fabric is also highly flexible, so that even delicate packaged items X, such as peaches, can be prevented from being damaged by the corners of the slits 18. Because it is stretchy and thick, it can provide a highly conformable covering, and therefore provides excellent cushioning even for delicate packaged items X, such as grapes, that have complex shapes and are prone to coming apart from the bunch.

[0035] In particular, the cushioning material 11 is more flexible than kraft paper, so it can be used safely for perishable fruits such as peaches, which are difficult to use with fruit caps made of kraft paper. For cushioning material 11 to be used for perishable fruits such as peaches, it is preferable to use a nonwoven fabric with a basis weight of 30 gsm to 100 gsm, as this will provide effective flexibility.

[0036] When the front sheet portion 15 and the back sheet portion 16 are folded and covered, the thickness is further increased, thereby enhancing the cushioning function. Therefore, even if either the front sheet portion 15 or the back sheet portion 16 is made of a single sheet material 17 depending on the application, it can still function sufficiently as cushioning material 11. [Explanation of symbols]

[0037] 11...Cushioning material 12,13…Aperture 14…Space 15...Front sheet section 16...Back sheet part 17...Sheet material 18...Slit 19...Slit row 21…Joint part 22...End joint X...Packaged item

Claims

1. A cushioning material in which the space for accommodating the packaged item is constituted by a pair of overlapping front and back sheet portions, and these sheet portions are constituted by a nonwoven sheet material having slits that penetrate through the thickness direction and are arranged in a staggered pattern, At least one of the sheet portions is made up of a plurality of the sheet materials overlapping each other, The positions of the slits of the sheet materials in the sheet portion made up of a plurality of the sheet materials are not aligned with each other when the slits are in a closed state. Buffer material.

2. The parallel intervals of the slit rows, which are made up of a plurality of slits aligned in the longitudinal direction of the slits, are different between the overlapping sheet materials in the sheet portion made up of a plurality of the sheet materials. The cushioning material according to claim 1 .

3. Joints that join the front and back sheet portions to each other are formed on both the left and right sides, An end joint was formed to narrow the width of the opening formed near one end in the longitudinal direction of the joint. The cushioning material according to claim 1 or 2.

4. The end joints are formed in a linear shape that slopes diagonally inward from the left and right ends. The cushioning material according to claim 3.

5. The front and back sheet portions are both made of two sheets of the sheet material. The cushioning material according to claim 1 or 2.

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