Cushioning material

Abstract

To provide a cushioning material compatibly usable for a plurality of types of loads.SOLUTION: A cushioning material 10A of the present disclosure is to be received in a box body 90 together with loads 91A, 91B and oppositely placed sandwiching the loads 91A, 91B. The cushioning material 10A comprises a plate-formed main body 11 that is to be placed abutting against the loads 91A, 91B, protrusions 12T, 13T, 15T, and 16T that project from the plate-formed main body 11, and protrusion-receiving portions 12J, 13J, 15J, and 16J that are formed in the plate-formed main body 11 and, when a plate-formed main body 11 of another cushioning material 10A is superposed over the plate-formed main body 11, can receive protrusions 12T, 13T, 15T, and 16T of the other cushioning material 10A.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a cushioning material that is housed in a box together with luggage. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, as this type of cushioning material, there has been known a rectangular parallelepiped cushioning material that fits exactly into a box body and has a luggage fitting recess on one surface into which luggage fits (see, for example, Patent Document 1). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Jpn. Jpn. Appl. KOKAI Publication No. 56-33895 (Figure 5) Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] However, the conventional cushioning materials described above require multiple types of cushioning materials with different sizes of luggage fitting recesses to be prepared for different sizes of luggage, which increases manufacturing costs. Therefore, the present application provides a cushioning material that can be used for multiple types of luggage. [Means for solving the problem]

[0005] One aspect of the present disclosure made to solve the above problems is a cushioning material that is stored in a box together with luggage and is positioned facing each other with the luggage in between, and includes a plate-shaped main body portion that is assigned to the luggage, a protrusion that protrudes from the plate-shaped main body portion, and a protrusion receiving portion that is formed on the plate-shaped main body portion and can receive the protrusion of another cushioning material when the plate-shaped main body portion of another cushioning material is placed over the plate-shaped main body portion. [Effects of the Invention]

[0006] A cushioning material according to one aspect of the present disclosure has a structure in which a plate-shaped main body portion that is applied to a package has a protrusion and a protrusion receiving portion. When the plate-shaped main bodies of multiple cushioning materials are stacked together, the protrusion of one cushioning material is received in the protrusion receiving portion of the other cushioning material. This allows the same cushioning material to accommodate multiple types of package of different sizes by changing the number of plate-shaped main bodies to be stacked (i.e., the number of cushioning materials used) depending on the size of the gap between the package and the inner surface of the box. Furthermore, when multiple cushioning materials are stacked together, the engagement between the protrusion and the protrusion receiving portion prevents the cushioning materials from shifting relative to one another, stabilizing the cushioning materials and package within the box. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0007] [Figure 1] FIG. 1A is a perspective view of a box, luggage, and cushioning material of a first embodiment, and FIG. 1B is a perspective view of the box, luggage, and two-layer cushioning material. [Figure 2] Figure 2 is a perspective view of two layers of cushioning material. [Figure 3] FIG. 3A is a perspective view of the inner surface side of the cushioning material, and FIG. 3B is a perspective view of the outer surface side of the cushioning material. [Figure 4] 4A is a plan view of the cushioning material, FIG. 4B is a front view of the cushioning material, FIG. 4C is a bottom view of the cushioning material, and FIG. 4D is a side view of the cushioning material. [Figure 5] FIG. 5 is a partially enlarged perspective view of the box, the luggage, and the cushioning material. [Figure 6] FIG. 6A is a plan view of the box, the luggage, and the cushioning material, and FIG. 6B is a plan view of the box, the luggage, and the two-layer cushioning material. [Figure 7] FIG. 7A is a plan view of the two-ply cushioning material, and FIG. 7B is a bottom view of the two-ply cushioning material. [Figure 8] FIG. 8A is a side cross-sectional view of the center and grain, and FIG. 8B is a side cross-sectional view of a modified central protrusion. [Figure 9] FIG. 9A is a perspective view of the inner surface side of the cushioning material of the second embodiment, and FIG. 9B is a side cross-sectional view of the cushioning material of two layers. [Figure 10] FIG. 10A is a plan view of a box, luggage, and cushioning material of a third embodiment, and FIG. 10B is a plan view of a box, luggage, and two layers of cushioning material. [Figure 11]FIG. 11A is a perspective view of a cushioning material according to a fourth embodiment, and FIG. 11B is a plan view of a box, a package, and two layers of cushioning material. [Figure 12] FIG. 12A is a plan view of a box, luggage, and cushioning material of a fifth embodiment, and FIG. 12B is a plan view of a box, luggage, and two layers of cushioning material. [Figure 13] FIG. 13A is a plan view of a cushioning material according to a modified example, a box body, and luggage, and FIG. 13B is a plan view of a cushioning material according to a modified example in a two-ply state, a box body, and luggage. [Figure 14] FIG. 14A is a plan view of a cushioning material according to a modified example, a box body, and luggage, and FIG. 14B is a plan view of a cushioning material according to a modified example in a two-ply state, a box body, and luggage. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0008] [First embodiment] A cushioning material 10A according to a first embodiment of the present disclosure will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 8. FIG. 1A shows a state in which a box 90 contains a plurality of cushioning materials 10A according to this embodiment together with luggage 91A. The box 90 is, for example, a resin container that is open at the top and has a square planar shape. The luggage 91A has a cylindrical shape that is large enough to fit entirely within the box 90. As shown in FIG. 1B, a box 90 of the same size as that for luggage 91A can also be used to contain cylindrical luggage 91B that has a smaller outer diameter than luggage 91A. Hereinafter, when there is no need to distinguish between luggage 91A and 91B, they will be referred to as "luggage 91A, etc."

[0009] The box 90 is not limited to being made of resin, but may be made of paper, metal, or wood. The luggage 91A and the like are not limited to being cylindrical, but may be, for example, spherical, prismatic, rectangular, or any other shape.

[0010] The cushioning material 10A is, for example, a molded product of bead-method polystyrene foam, and as shown in FIG. 2, has a plate-like main body 11 that is fitted to the baggage 91A or the like and has a plurality of protrusions and recesses, forming a bilaterally symmetrical shape.

[0011] The cushioning material 10A may be any foam molded product, for example, a foam molded product of open-cell or closed-cell resin. Although the cushioning material 10A of this embodiment is integrally molded as a whole, it may also be made by joining multiple foam molded products with an adhesive or the like.

[0012] Fig. 3A shows a perspective view of cushioning material 10A as seen from diagonally above the surface that will be applied to luggage 91A, etc. (hereinafter referred to as "inner surface 11N"), and Fig. 3B shows a perspective view of cushioning material 10A as seen from diagonally below the surface that is the reverse side, that is, outer surface 11G. In Figs. 3A and 3B, the overall width of cushioning material 10A is depicted as decreasing in one direction, but this is due to perspective, and the overall width of cushioning material 10A is generally uniform (see Fig. 4B).

[0013] 3A and 4B, the front shape of plate-shaped main body 11 in the thickness direction is a vertically long rectangle, and is curved in the horizontal direction overall, for example, with an inner surface 11N recessed and an outer surface 11G bulged, as shown in Fig. 4A. Central bent portions 12 and 13 are formed in the center of plate-shaped main body 11 in the horizontal direction, and a pair of side bent portions 14 are formed at both ends of plate-shaped main body 11 in the horizontal direction. The portions of plate-shaped main body 11 sandwiched between central bent portions 12 and 13 and the pair of side bent portions 14 form a pair of arc-shaped portions 11E.

[0014] As shown in Fig. 3A, central bending portion 12 extends from the upper end of plate-shaped main body 11 to a position near the lower end, and is formed by bending a portion of plate-shaped main body 11 into a groove-like trapezoidal cross section that protrudes outward. On the other hand, as shown in Fig. 3B, central bending portion 13 extends from the lower end of plate-shaped main body 11 to a position near the lower end, and is formed by bending a portion of plate-shaped main body 11 into a groove-like trapezoidal cross section that is deeper and wider than central bending portion 12, and is connected to the lower end of central bending portion 12. In addition, a finger hook portion 12Y in the shape of a square groove that crosses the tip of central bending portion 12T is formed near the upper end of central protrusion 12T.

[0015] As shown in Fig. 4D, a sloped wall 13D is provided between central bending portion 13 and central bending portion 12, sloping downward from the base end to the tip end of central bending portion 13. Also, as shown in Fig. 3B, the lower surface of central bending portion 13 is flush with the lower surface of the entire plate-shaped main body portion 11 and is a horizontal plane. The outer portions of central bending portions 12, 13 form central protrusions 12T, 13T that protrude from the outer surface 11G of plate-shaped main body portion 11, and the inner portions of central bending portions 12, 13 form protrusion receiving portions 12J, 13J that receive central protrusions 12T, 13T of one cushioning material 10A when the cushioning materials 10A are stacked on top of each other, as shown in Figs. 7A and 7B.

[0016] As shown in FIG. 4B, a pair of base ends of inclined wall 13D located on both sides of central bent portion 12 are bent horizontally, thereby forming a pair of upward-facing horizontal surfaces 30A in central protrusion 13T and a pair of downward-facing horizontal surfaces 30B (see FIG. 4C) in protrusion receiving portion 12J. Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 8A, these upward-facing and downward-facing horizontal surfaces 30A, 30B are arranged at the same height. Furthermore, to prevent the cushioning materials 10A from shifting up and down when stacked, the outer surface of one cushioning material 10A (the cushioning material 10A on the left in FIG. 8A) overlaps with the inner surface of the other cushioning material 10A (the cushioning material 10A on the right in FIG. 8A). Therefore, the wall portions inclined with respect to the stacking direction of cushioning materials 10A are thinner in accordance with the angle of inclination than the wall portions perpendicular to the stacking direction, and the inner and outer surfaces are parallel. Specifically, the inclined wall 13D of the central bent portion 13, which is inclined with respect to the overlapping direction of the cushioning materials 10A, and both side walls (portions marked with reference numeral 13V in FIG. 4C), and both side walls of the central bent portion 12 are thinner than the tip walls of the central bent portions 12, 13, which are perpendicular to the overlapping direction, and their inner and outer surfaces are parallel. Similarly, the second flat portion 14B of the side bent portion 14, which will be described later, is thinner than the first flat portion 14A, and its inner and outer surfaces are parallel. Furthermore, when the cushioning materials 10A are overlapped, the upward-facing horizontal surface 30A of one cushioning material 10A overlaps with the downward-facing horizontal surface 30B of the other cushioning material 10A, thereby preventing one cushioning material 10A from slipping off the other cushioning material 10A when the other cushioning material 10A is pulled up.

[0017] 8B, the horizontal surfaces 30A, 30B on the inside and outside of the central bending portion 13 may be inclined surfaces 31A, 31B that are inclined in the opposite direction to the central bending portion 13. In this way, when cushioning materials 10A are stacked on top of each other and one cushioning material 10A is pulled up, it is possible to more reliably prevent the other cushioning material 10A from slipping off the other cushioning material 10A.

[0018] 7A and 7B, the pair of side bent portions 14 are formed by bending both side edges of the plate-shaped main body 11 toward the outer surface 11G in a crank shape. Specifically, each side bent portion 14 has a first flat portion 14A that protrudes laterally from the arc portion 11E and is parallel to the lateral direction of the plate-shaped main body 11, and a second flat portion 14B that is bent from the first flat portion 14A toward the inner surface 11N at an angle of approximately 45°. As shown in FIG. 7B, the outer portion of each side bent portion 14 forms a side protrusion 15T that protrudes from the outer surface 11G of the plate-shaped main body 11, and the inner portion of each side bent portion 14 forms a protrusion receiving portion 15J that receives the side protrusion 15T of one of the cushioning materials 10A when the cushioning materials 10A are stacked together.

[0019] Furthermore, tip surfaces 15U of side protrusions 15T are flat surfaces that are inclined at an angle of 45° relative to the lateral direction of plate-like main body 11. As shown in Fig. 4C, a pair of imaginary extension planes I extending from tip surfaces 15U of a pair of side protrusions 15T intersect at right angles beyond tip surface 13U of central protrusion 13T. Furthermore, corners between tip surface 13U and both side surfaces 13V of central protrusion 13T are chamfered to form flat surfaces parallel to extension plane I.

[0020] As shown in FIG. 3B, a pair of special side protrusions 16T are formed at the upper ends of the pair of side bent portions 14 by slightly extending the upper ends of the pair of side protrusions 15T in a stepped manner. The backsides of the pair of special side protrusions 16T form stepped recessed protrusion receiving portions 16J, as shown in FIG. 3A. The lower surfaces of the special side protrusions 16T are horizontal, and the bottom surfaces of the protrusion receiving portions 16J are also horizontal. As shown in FIG. 7A, when cushioning materials 10A are stacked on top of each other, the pair of special side protrusions 16T of one cushioning material 10A are received in the protrusion receiving portions 16J of the other cushioning material 10A, and the horizontal lower surfaces of the special side protrusions 16T overlap the horizontal bottom surfaces of the protrusion receiving portions 16J. The lower surface of the special side protrusion 16T and the bottom surface of the protrusion receiving portion 16J may be inclined in the vertical direction so that they overlap each other when the cushioning materials 10A are stacked on top of each other.

[0021] As shown in Fig. 3A, a pair of tapered slopes 11S are formed on the upper edge of the inner surface of the pair of arcuate portions 11E. Also, as shown in Fig. 3B, recesses 11W are formed on the side edges of the outer surfaces of the pair of arcuate portions 11E that face the pair of side bend portions 14, with the upper and lower ends recessed in a rectangular stepped shape. The bottom surfaces of these recesses 11W are flush with the outer surfaces of the first flat portions 14A of the side bend portions 14.

[0022] The circular patterns on the bottom surface of the recess 11W and the tip surface 13U of the central protrusion 13T are marks formed by the gap between the multiple bead inlets in the mold for molding the cushioning material 10A by the bead method and the lid that covers them, or marks formed by pushing the cushioning material 10A out with a rod when removing it from the mold.

[0023] The configuration of the cushioning material 10A of this embodiment has been described above. Next, the effects of the cushioning material 10A of this embodiment will be described.

[0024] As shown in FIG. 1A , when cushioning materials 10A are used for cylindrical cargo 91A, for example, a pair of cushioning materials 10A is placed in a box 90 before the cargo 91A. The pair of cushioning materials 10A are then placed at diagonal corners of the box 90, with the central protrusions 13T of each cushioning material 10A butting against the corners of the box 90. In this state, the pair of cushioning materials 10A can stand on their own. Then, the worker releases their hands from the pair of cushioning materials 10A and, for example, holds the cargo 91A between both hands in a direction perpendicular to the opposing direction of the pair of cushioning materials 10A, and inserts it from above between the pair of cushioning materials 10A. Then, the cargo 91A is guided by the slopes 11S of the pair of cushioning materials 10A and fits between the pair of cushioning materials 10A.

[0025] In the above example of work, the worker holds the luggage 91A between both hands in a direction perpendicular to the opposing direction of the pair of cushioning materials 10A and inserts it from above between the pair of cushioning materials 10A. However, the worker may hold the luggage between both hands in the opposing direction of the pair of cushioning materials 10A, and insert the luggage from above between the pair of cushioning materials 10A with both hands positioned within the protrusion receiving portions 12J of the pair of cushioning materials 10A.

[0026] When a load 91A is fitted between the pair of cushioning materials 10A, the load 91A pushes the pair of cushioning materials 10A away from each other in the diagonal direction of the box body 90. As shown in FIG. 5, the corners on both sides of the tip surface 13U of the central protrusion 13T of each cushioning material 10A are pressed against the inner surfaces of a pair of adjacent side walls 90S of the box body 90, sandwiching the corner, and the pair of special side protrusions 16T of each cushioning material 10A are pressed against the upper inner surfaces of the pair of side walls 90S. Furthermore, because the box body 90 is narrower at the bottom than at the top due to the draft angle created by resin molding, the pair of side protrusions 15T on both sides of the plate-shaped main body 11 are pressed against the lower inner surfaces of the pair of side walls 90S while the plate-shaped main body 11 is held in a substantially vertical position. This restricts movement of the pair of cushioning materials 10A within the box body 90. Then, as shown in Figure 6A, when the plate-shaped main body 11 is stretched between a pair of side walls 90S, it elastically deforms to deepen the curve (to reduce the radius of curvature), and the curved inner surface 11N of the plate-shaped main body 11 is pressed against the outer peripheral surface of the luggage 91A, thereby restricting the movement of the luggage 91A within the box body 90.

[0027] In this embodiment, the side protrusions 15T and the special side protrusions 16T are configured to be pressed against the side wall 90S of the box body 90 at two points, but the side protrusions 15T or the special side protrusions 16T may be provided in accordance with the slope of the side wall 90S so that the side protrusions 15T or the special side protrusions 16T are pressed over substantially the entire vertical direction of the side wall 90S. Furthermore, if the side wall 90S does not have a slope, the special side protrusions 16T at the upper end of the cushioning material 10A may be eliminated, or the special side protrusions 16T may be provided at both the upper and lower ends of the cushioning material 10A.

[0028] 1B and 6B, when a package 91B smaller than package 91A is to be stored in a box 90 of the same size as package 91A described above, two cushioning materials 10A are stacked on top of each other. Then, outer surface 11G of plate-shaped main body 11 of inner cushioning material 10A overlaps with inner surface 11N of plate-shaped main body 11 of outer cushioning material 10A, and central protrusions 12T and 13T, side protrusions 15T, and special side protrusions 16T (hereinafter collectively referred to as "protrusions 12T, 13T, 15T, and 16T") of inner cushioning material 10A are received in protrusion receiving portions 12J, 13J, 15J, and 16J of inner cushioning material 10A, as shown in FIGS. 7A and 7B. 1B and 6B, two pairs of cushioning materials 10A, each stacked in two, are placed at diagonal positions of the box body 90, and then the luggage 91B is inserted from above between the two pairs of cushioning materials 10A in the same manner as described above. If there is still a gap between the cushioning materials 10A and the luggage 91B at this time, the cushioning materials 10A placed at each of the pair of diagonal corners of the box body 90 can be adjusted by stacking three sheets each, or by stacking one sheet two and the other sheet three. Furthermore, the luggage 91B is positioned within the box body 90 and its movement is restricted by its outer circumferential surface abutting against a pair of opening edges in the projection receiving portions 12J of the pair of cushioning materials 10A. When using multiple overlapping cushioning materials 10A, the cushioning materials 10A may be stacked on top of each other before being housed in the box 90, or additional cushioning materials 10A may be inserted into a box 90 that already houses cushioning materials 10A and placed on top of the cushioning materials 10A already inside the box 90. In this case, the only areas at the top of the box 90 that come close to the side walls are the easily deformed special side protrusions 16T, and there is space below the special side protrusions 16T, making it easy to insert additional cushioning materials 10A. In addition, the inclined wall 13D of the central protrusion 13T is inclined in the vertical direction, and serves as a guide when inserting additional cushioning materials 10A.

[0029] As described above, the cushioning material 10A of this embodiment has a structure in which the plate-shaped main body portion 11 assigned to the packages 91A and 91B has protrusions 12T, 13T, 15T, and 16T and protrusion receiving portions 12J, 13J, 15J, and 16J. When the plate-shaped main body portions 11 of multiple cushioning materials 10A are stacked on top of each other, the protrusions 12T, 13T, 15T, and 16T of one cushioning material 10A are received in the protrusion receiving portions 12J, 13J, 15J, and 16J of the other cushioning material 10A. As a result, by changing the number of plate-shaped main body portions 11 to be stacked (i.e., the number of cushioning materials 10A used) depending on the size of the gap between the packages 91A and 91B and the inner surface of the box 90, the same cushioning material 10A can be used for packages 91A and 91B of various sizes.

[0030] Furthermore, the cushioning material 10A is arranged at only one pair of two pairs of diagonal corners of the box body 90 and fits within an area of ​​approximately half or less of the side wall 90S of the box body 90, thereby reducing the number of cushioning materials 10A used and the material costs of the cushioning materials 10A. Note that the cushioning materials 10A of this embodiment may be arranged at two pairs of diagonal corners of the box body 90.

[0031] Furthermore, when multiple cushioning materials 10A are stacked, the engagement between the protrusions 12T, 13T, 15T, and 16T and the protrusion receiving portions 12J, 13J, 15J, and 16J prevents the cushioning materials 10A from shifting relative to one another, stabilizing the cushioning materials 10A and the cargo 91A and 91B within the box 90. Furthermore, the central protrusion 13T, side protrusions 15T, and special side protrusions 16T, which are "positioning protrusions" that position the cushioning materials 10A within the box 90, form gaps between the inner surface of the box 90 and the plate-like main body 11, thereby reducing the cost of materials for constructing the cushioning materials 10A. Furthermore, because the cushioning materials 10A are self-supporting, tasks such as storing the cushioning materials 10A in the box 90 and then storing the cargo 91B in the box 90 can be easily performed.

[0032] When removing the luggage 91A, 91B and the cushioning material 10A from the box body 90, the luggage 91A, 91B can be removed first, and then the cushioning material 10A can be removed. At this time, by hooking a finger on the finger hook portion 12Y, the cushioning material 10A can be removed from the box body 90 without slipping. Furthermore, since the finger hook portion 12Y is positioned so as to face the gap formed between the plate-shaped main body 11 and the corner of the box body 90, it is possible to insert a hand into the gap and easily hook a finger on the finger hook portion 12Y.

[0033] Furthermore, in the case of multiple overlapping cushioning materials 10A, the inner lower surface of the projection receiving portion 16J of the outer cushioning material 10A (the side farthest from the luggage 91B) overlaps from below with the special side projection 16T of the inner cushioning material 10A (the side closer to the luggage 91B) from below, so that even if only the outer cushioning material 10A is pulled up, the inner cushioning material 10A is also pulled up. Also, because the inclined wall 13D of the inner cushioning material 10A overlaps from below with the inclined wall 13D of the outer cushioning material 10A, even if only the inner cushioning material 10A is pulled up, the outer cushioning material 10A is also pulled up. As a result, even if only one of the overlapping cushioning materials 10A is pulled up, the overlapping cushioning materials 10A are pulled up together, making it easy to remove the cushioning material 10A from the box 90.

[0034] As shown by the dotted lines in Figures 6A and 6B, even for luggage 92A and 92B which have approximately rectangular planar shapes but different sizes, by receiving a pair of diagonal portions of the luggage in the protrusion receiving portions 12J of a pair of cushioning materials 10A, cushioning material 10A can be used for luggage 92A and 92B in the same way as cylindrical luggage 91A and 91B which have different sizes.

[0035] [Second embodiment] Cushioning material 10B of this embodiment shown in FIGS. 9A and 9B differs from cushioning material 10A of the first embodiment only in that finger hook portion 12X has a structure that passes through central bent portion 12.

[0036] [Third embodiment] The cushioning material 10C of this embodiment shown in FIGS. 10A and 10B differs from the cushioning material 10A of the first embodiment only in that it does not have the central bent portions 12, 13.

[0037] [Fourth embodiment] 11A and 11B, cushioning material 10D of this embodiment includes a plate-shaped main body 20 curved in an arc shape, and a housing 21 connected to the lower edge of the outer surface of plate-shaped main body 20, which is the bulging side. Housing 21 has a substantially right-angled triangular upper wall 21A that protrudes outward from the lower edge of the outer surface of plate-shaped main body 20, and a pair of side walls 21B that hang down from the outer edges of two sides of upper wall 21A and are perpendicular to each other. An outer portion of housing 21 forms protrusion 21T, and an inner portion of housing 21 forms protrusion receiving portion 21J.

[0038] 11B, cushioning materials 10D are arranged at a pair of diagonal positions of the box body 90. Then, the plate-shaped main body portion 20 is applied to the outer surfaces of the luggage 91A, 91B with the protrusion 21T of each cushioning material 10D overlapping the corner portion of the box body 90 and the plate-shaped main body portion 20 spanning a pair of side walls 90S on both sides of the corner of the plate-shaped main body portion 20. Furthermore, the cushioning materials 10D are overlapped with each other with the protrusion 21T of one cushioning material 10D housed inside the protrusion receiving portion 21J of the other cushioning material 10D.

[0039] [Fifth embodiment] 12A and 12B, the cushioning materials 10E1 and 10E2 of this embodiment are corrugated plates, with the crests of the waves forming protrusions 22T and the valleys forming protrusion receiving portions 22J. Furthermore, the entire cushioning materials 10E1 and 10E2 form a plate-like main body. Furthermore, the cushioning materials 10E1 and 10E2 have different widths. The pair of cushioning materials 10E1 are stacked on one pair of opposing surfaces of the box body 90, while the pair of cushioning materials 10E2 are stacked on the other pair of opposing surfaces of the box body 90.

[0040] [Other embodiments] While the cushioning materials 10A, 10B, etc. of the first to fifth embodiments described above have protrusions and protrusion receiving portions for receiving the protrusions, FIGS. 13A, 12B, 13A, and 13B show cushioning materials 10F, 10G that do not have protrusions or protrusion receiving portions and are stacked in two to accommodate different sized packages 91A, 91B. The cushioning material 10F shown in FIGS. 13A and 13B has a structure in which two flat plates are orthogonal to each other. It is used by being positioned at a pair of diagonal corners of a box 90. Furthermore, the cushioning material 10G shown in FIGS. 14A and 14B has a structure in which three flat plates are connected to form a groove-shaped structure with a trapezoidal cross section. It is used by being positioned opposite the cushioning material 10E1 described above within the box 90.

[0041] <Additional Notes> The following describes the features extracted from the above embodiment, while indicating, as necessary, the effects, etc. Note that, for ease of understanding, the corresponding configurations in the above embodiment are indicated in parentheses as appropriate below, but these features are not limited to the specific configurations indicated in parentheses.

[0042] [Feature 1] Cushioning materials (10A to 10E1, 10E2) are accommodated in a box (90) together with luggage (91A, 91B, 92A, 92B) and are arranged opposite each other with the luggage (91A, 91B, 92A, 92B) in between, the cushioning materials (10A to 10E1, 10E2) including: plate-shaped main body portions (11, 20) that are applied to the luggage (91A, 91B, 92A, 92B); protrusions (12T, 13T, 15T, 16T, 21T, 22T) that protrude from the plate-shaped main body portions (11, 20); and projection receiving portions (12J, 13J, 15J, 16J, 21J, 22J) that can receive the projections (12T, 13T, 15T, 16T, 21T, 22T) of another cushioning material (10A to 10E1, 10E2) when the plate-shaped main body portion (11, 20) of another cushioning material (10A to 10E1, 10E2) is overlapped on the plate-shaped main body portion (11, 20).

[0043] The cushioning material of Feature 1 has a structure in which a plate-shaped main body portion that is applied to the package has a protrusion and a protrusion receiving portion. When the plate-shaped main body portions of multiple cushioning materials are stacked together, the protrusion of one cushioning material is received in the protrusion receiving portion of the other cushioning material. This allows the same cushioning material to accommodate multiple types of package of different sizes by changing the number of plate-shaped main body portions stacked together (i.e., the number of cushioning materials used) depending on the size of the gap between the package and the inner surface of the box. Furthermore, when multiple cushioning materials are stacked together, the engagement between the protrusion and the protrusion receiving portion prevents the cushioning materials from shifting relative to each other, stabilizing the cushioning materials and package within the box.

[0044] The protrusion may protrude toward the inner surface of the box body to restrict movement of the cushioning material relative to the box body, as in Feature 2, or may protrude opposite the inner surface of the box body to restrict movement of the cargo relative to the cushioning material, or may simply be used to restrict misalignment of the cushioning materials relative to each other.

[0045] [Feature 2] The cushioning materials (10A to 10E1, 10E2) according to Feature 1, wherein the protrusions (13T, 15T, 16T, 21T, 22T) are position-regulating protrusions (13T, 15T, 16T, 21T) that protrude from the plate-shaped main body (11, 20) toward the inner surface of the box body (90) and regulate the movement of the cushioning materials (10A to 10E) within the box body (90).

[0046] The protrusion of the cushioning material of Feature 2 is a position-regulating protrusion that protrudes toward the inner surface of the box body, and the position-regulating protrusion forms a gap between the inner surface of the box body and the plate-shaped main body portion, thereby reducing the cost of materials used to construct the cushioning material.

[0047] [Feature 3] The cushioning material (10A, 10B, 10D) according to feature 1 or 2, wherein the protrusions (13T, 21T) are arranged at the lower end of the plate-shaped main body portion (11, 20), and the plate-shaped main body portion (11, 20) can stand on its own by abutting the protrusions (13T, 21T) against the bottom surface of the box body (90).

[0048] The cushioning material of feature 3 is self-standing, so that the cushioning material can be housed in a box, and then the cargo can be housed in the box easily.

[0049] [Feature 4] The cushioning material (10A, 10B, 10D) according to any one of features 1 to 3, wherein the plate-shaped main body portion (11, 20) has a widthwise intermediate portion arranged on a diagonal line of the box body (90), the protrusion (13T) protrudes from the plate-shaped main body portion (11, 20) toward a corner of the box body (90), and the plate-shaped main body portion (11, 20) is provided with finger hook portions (12X, 12Y) on a portion facing the inner surface of the box body (90) above the protrusion (13T) with a space therebetween.

[0050] In the cushioning material of Feature 4, the protrusions protrude toward the corners of the box body and are sandwiched between a pair of side walls of the box body, thereby restricting movement of the cushioning material within the box body. Furthermore, in the cushioning material of Feature 4, a user can easily insert their hand into the gap formed between the plate-shaped main body and the corner of the box body and place their fingers on the finger rest. Then, by pulling up the plate-shaped main body with their fingers resting thereon, the cushioning material can be easily removed from the box body.

[0051] [Feature 5] The protrusions (12T, 13T, 15T, 16T, 21T) include a first protrusion (12T, 13T, 21T) disposed in the middle of the width direction of the plate-shaped main body (11, 20), and a pair of second protrusions (15T, 16T) protruding from both ends of the width direction of the plate-shaped main body (11, 20) and abutting against a pair of side walls of the box body (90). A cushioning material (10A, 10B, 10D) according to any one of features 1 to 4, wherein the first protrusion receiving portion (12J, 13J, 15J, 16J, 21J) includes a first protrusion receiving portion (12J, 13J, 21J) capable of receiving the first protrusion (12T, 13T, 21T) and a pair of second protrusion receiving portions (15J, 16J) capable of receiving the pair of second protrusions (15T, 16T).

[0052] The cushioning material of Feature 5 has protrusions at the center and both ends in the width direction of the plate-shaped main body portion, and has protrusion receiving portions corresponding to each protrusion, so that the engagement between the protrusions and protrusion receiving portions across the entire stacked plate-shaped main body portion prevents the plate-shaped main body portions from shifting relative to each other.

[0053] [Feature 6] The cushioning material (10A to 10D) according to any one of Features 1 to 5, wherein the protrusions (12T, 13T, 15T, 16T, 21T) and the protrusion receiving portions (12J, 13J, 15J, 16J, 21J) include special protrusions (13T, 16T, 21T) and special protrusion receiving portions (13J, 16J, 21J) that engage with each other in a concave-convex manner so that, when the plate-shaped main body portions (11, 20) of one cushioning material (10A to 10D) and another cushioning material (10A to 10D) are overlapped with each other, simply pulling one of the outer or inner plate-shaped main body portions (11, 20) upward also pulls the other plate-shaped main body portion (11, 20) upward.

[0054] According to the configuration of Feature 6, simply by pulling upward one of the stacked plate-shaped main body portions, the other plate-shaped main body portion is also pulled upward, making it easy to remove the cushioning material from the box body.

[0055] [Feature 7] The cushioning material (10A to 10C) according to any one of Features 1 to 6, wherein the protrusions (15T, 16T) include a pair of special side protrusions (15T, 16T) that protrude from the upper ends of both widthwise ends of the plate-shaped main body portion (11, 20) and abut against a pair of side walls of the box body (90).

[0056] In the cushioning material of Feature 7, the pair of special side protrusions as the protrusions protrude from the upper ends of the upper ends at both widthwise ends of the plate-shaped main body, so that when the plate-shaped main body parts of the cushioning material are stacked together, the inner lower surfaces of the pair of protrusion receiving parts that receive the pair of special side protrusions face the pair of special side protrusions from below. As a result, when the plate-shaped main body parts of the cushioning material are stacked together, simply pulling the outer plate-shaped main body part upward also pulls the inner plate-shaped main body part upward, making it easy to remove the cushioning material from the box.

[0057] Although the present specification and drawings disclose specific examples of the technology included in the scope of the claims, the technology described in the claims is not limited to these specific examples, but also includes various modifications and variations of the specific examples, and also includes parts of the specific examples taken out alone. [Explanation of symbols]

[0058] 10A~10G each buffer material 11,20 Plate-shaped main body 12J, 13J Protrusion receiving portion (first protrusion receiving portion) 12X,12Y Finger rest 12T center protrusion (1st protrusion) 13T central protrusion (1st protrusion, special protrusion) 15J, 16J Protrusion receiving portion (second protrusion receiving portion) 15T Side protrusion (second protrusion) 16T Side special protrusion (second protrusion, special protrusion) 21T,22T protrusion 21J, 22J Protrusion receiving part 90 box body 91A, 91B, 92A, 92B Luggage

Claims

1. A cushioning material that is housed in a box together with luggage and is arranged opposite to the luggage, a plate-shaped main body portion that is applied to the luggage; a protrusion protruding from the plate-shaped main body; A cushioning material comprising: a protrusion receiving portion formed on the plate-shaped main body portion, capable of receiving the protrusion of another cushioning material when the plate-shaped main body portion of another cushioning material is overlapped on the plate-shaped main body portion.

2. The cushioning material according to claim 1 , wherein the protrusion is a position-regulating protrusion that protrudes from the plate-like main body toward the inner surface of the box and regulates movement of the cushioning material within the box.

3. the protrusion is disposed at a lower end of the plate-shaped main body, The cushioning material according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the plate-shaped main body is self-supporting with the protrusion abutting against the bottom surface of the box.

4. The plate-like main body has a widthwise intermediate portion disposed on a diagonal line of the box body, The cushioning material described in claim 1 or 2, wherein the protrusion protrudes from the plate-shaped main body toward a corner of the box body, and the plate-shaped main body has a finger grip portion on a portion thereof above the protrusion and facing the inner surface of the box body across a space.

5. The protrusions include a first protrusion disposed at a widthwise intermediate portion of the plate-shaped main body portion, and a pair of second protrusions protruding from both widthwise end portions of the plate-shaped main body portion and abutting against a pair of side walls of the box body, The cushioning material according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the protrusion receiving portion includes a first protrusion receiving portion capable of receiving the first protrusion, and a pair of second protrusion receiving portions capable of receiving the pair of second protrusions.

6. The cushioning material described in claim 1 or 2, wherein the protrusion and the protrusion receiving portion include a special protrusion and a special protrusion receiving portion that engage with each other in a concave-convex manner so that when the cushioning material and the plate-shaped main body portions of another cushioning material are stacked on top of each other, simply pulling one of the outer or inner plate-shaped main body portions upward will also pull the other plate-shaped main body portion upward.

7. 3. The cushioning material according to claim 2, wherein the protrusions include a pair of special side protrusions that protrude from upper ends at both widthwise ends of the plate-like main body and abut against a pair of side walls of the box body.

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