container

Abstract

To provide a container with improved reliability of fitting between a paper container and a plastic container.SOLUTION: A container 1 of the invention includes a plastic container 2 as an inner container and a paper container 3 as an outer container in which the plastic container 2 is fitted. The paper container 3 has a fitting hole 33 on the side surface, and the plastic container 2 has a protruding portion 23 that fits into the fitting hole 33 on the side surface. The protruding portion 23 has a central protruding upper rib 24 along the container height direction, so that the sides of the paper container 3 have a folded shape when the plastic container 2 is fitted into the paper container 3, with the protruding upper rib 24 of the protruding portion 23 pressing against it.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] This invention relates to a container in which the contents are housed in an inner plastic container, and the plastic container is then placed in an outer paper container. [Background technology]

[0002] Disposable containers include containers in which the contents are stored in an inner plastic container, which is then placed in an outer paper container. A container in which the plastic container and the paper container are integrated by thermal bonding using heat sealing has been proposed. However, when the containers are integrated by bonding, it is time-consuming to separate the plastic container and the paper container for sorting them as waste.

[0003] Therefore, a method has been proposed in which a groove is formed in the paper container, a fitting recess is formed in the plastic container, and the fitting recess of the plastic container is fitted into the groove of the paper container so that the plastic container is fixed inside the paper container (see, for example, Patent Document 1). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2013-048814 DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] Paper containers have lower processing precision than plastic containers. As a result, the fitting strength between the paper container and the plastic container is low, and without adhesive, the paper container and the plastic container are easily separated. One possible method is to make the paper container less likely to deform by using thick paper to make the paper container, thereby increasing the fitting strength even with slightly poorer processing precision. However, using thick paper requires a large force to fit the plastic container to the paper container, reducing workability. In the worst case scenario, the force required to fit the plastic container to the paper container is insufficient, and the plastic container and the paper container do not fit together sufficiently, causing them to separate and the contents to fall out.

[0006] This invention was proposed to solve the problems of the prior art described above, and aims to provide a container that improves the reliability of fitting paper containers and plastic containers together. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, a container according to an embodiment of the present invention comprises a plastic container which is an inner container, and a paper container which is an outer container into which the plastic container is fitted, wherein the paper container has a fitting hole on the side, the plastic container has a protrusion on the side that fits into the fitting hole, the protrusion has a protrusion-top rib in the center that runs along the height direction of the plastic container, and when the plastic container is fitted into the paper container, the protrusion-top rib of the protrusion presses against the side of the paper container, causing the side of the paper container to bend.

[0008] The side surface having the projection may have a rib in the center that runs along the height direction of the plastic container, supporting the side surface of the paper container and maintaining the folded shape of the rib on the projection.

[0009] The protrusion may be elongated along the circumferential direction of the plastic container.

[0010] The plastic container and the paper container may have long sides that are relatively long in the circumferential direction and short sides that are relatively short in the main direction, and the fitting holes and the protrusions may be formed on the short sides. [Effects of the Invention]

[0011] According to the present invention, the reliability of fitting paper containers and plastic containers is improved. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0012] [Figure 1] This is a side view of the container. [Figure 2] This is a side view of a paper container. [Figure 3] This is a side view of a plastic container. [Figure 4] This is a bottom view of a plastic container. [Figure 5] This is a transition diagram showing the process of fitting a plastic container into a paper container. [Figure 6] This is a transition diagram showing the process of change between the protrusions of a plastic container and the sides of a paper container. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0013] (Overall composition) A container according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. In each drawing, thickness, dimensions, positional relationships, proportions, or shapes may be emphasized for ease of understanding, but the present invention is not limited to such emphasis. Hereinafter, the direction from the bottom side of the container to the opening side, or the reverse, is referred to as the height direction. Furthermore, the direction perpendicular to the height direction is referred to as the horizontal or left / right direction.

[0014] FIG. 1 is a side view of container 1. Container 1 is used, for example, as a disposable container for containing food. This container 1 comprises a plastic container 2 and a paper container 3. Plastic container 2 is an inner container, and contains food, such as prepared meals. After the food is contained, opening 28 of plastic container 2 is sealed with a transparent film or the like. Paper container 3 is an outer container. Plastic container 2 contains plastic container 2, which contains food.

[0015] A protrusion 23 protrudes from the plastic container 2. In contrast, a fitting hole 33 is formed through the paper container 3. The protrusion 23 of the plastic container 2 is hooked into the fitting hole 33 of the paper container 3, thereby fitting the plastic container 2 and the paper container 3 together. As a result, the plastic container 2 is placed inside the paper container 3 through the opening 35 of the paper container 3 so that they overlap, and the container 1 becomes a double box made up of the plastic container 2 and the paper container 3.

[0016] (Paper container) The paper container 3 is made of paper. Examples of paper used for the paper container 3 include wood pulp such as hardwood pulp or softwood pulp, non-wood pulp such as straw pulp or bagasse pulp, and recycled paper pulp such as recycled newsprint or high-quality recycled paper. These pulps are processed into double-sided corrugated cardboard made by laminating liner sheets to both sides of a corrugated sheet, single-sided corrugated cardboard made by laminating a liner sheet to one side of a corrugated sheet, microflute, etc., and the paper container 3 is formed from these cardboards. The surface of the paper container 3 may be resin-coated.

[0017] FIG. 2 is a side view of a paper container 3. This paper container 3 has a roughly octagonal bottom 34 with four short sides and four long sides alternately arranged, and has a generally inverted truncated pyramid shape with an opening 35 open upward. The bottom 34 is flat. The four short sides of the bottom 34 are the same length, and the four long sides are the same length. A short side 31 is connected to each short side of the bottom 34, and a long side 32 is connected to each long side of the bottom 34. The four short sides 31 and the four long sides 32 are connected in the circumferential direction, surrounding the entire upper periphery of the bottom 34. The short sides 31 and the long sides 32 gradually expand upward from the bottom 34. The heights of the four short sides 31 and the four long sides 32 are constant, and the opening 35 of the paper container 3 also extends in the same plane.

[0018] A fitting hole 33 is formed through each short side surface 31 at the height of the bottom surface 34 side. The fitting hole 33 is trapezoidal and long along the circumferential direction of the short side surface 31, with the lower base on the bottom surface 34 side being slightly shorter than the width of the short side surface 31 and the upper base being shorter than the lower base. The short side surface 31 in which the fitting hole 33 is formed is flat over its entire area before the plastic container 2 is inserted.

[0019] (Plastic container) The plastic container 2 is a container made of plastic. Examples of plastics used for the plastic container 2 include petroleum-based plastics, biomass plastics, biodegradable plastics, and mixtures thereof.

[0020] Fig. 3 is a side view of plastic container 2, and Fig. 4 is a bottom view of plastic container 2. As shown in Fig. 4, plastic container 2 has a roughly octagonal bottom 27 with four short sides and four long sides alternately arranged, and has a roughly inverted truncated pyramid shape with opening 28 open upward. The outer dimensions of this plastic container 2 are the same as or slightly smaller than the inner dimensions of paper container 3 so that plastic container 2 can be accommodated within paper container 3. Around opening 28, flange 26, to which a film sealing opening 28 is attached, extends endlessly horizontally toward the outside of the container.

[0021] The short sides and long sides of the four sides of the base portion 27 are of the same length. Short sides 21 extend from each short side of the base portion 27, and long sides 22 extend from each long side of the base portion 27. The four short sides 21 and the four long sides 22 are connected in the circumferential direction and surround the entire top of the base portion 27. These short sides 21 and long sides 22 gradually widen upward from the base portion 27. The heights of the four short sides 21 and the four long sides 22 are constant, and the opening 28 of the plastic container 2 also expands on the same plane.

[0022] Each short side 21 has a projection 23 that protrudes at the same height as the bottom 27. This projection 23 extends outward from the plastic container 2. When the bottom 34 of the paper container 3 and the bottom 27 of the plastic container 2 are placed at the same height, the upper surface 23a of the projection 23 extends to the same height as, or slightly lower than, the upper end of the fitting hole 33. Furthermore, when the plastic container 2 is placed inside the paper container 3, the upper surface 23a of the projection extends beyond the opening of the fitting hole 33. The upper surface 23a of the projection also extends in the left-right direction along the short side 21.

[0023] The projection 23 has an upper projection rib 24 that extends in the height direction from the center of its side surface. This upper projection rib 24 has, for example, a cross-section in the horizontal direction that includes a semicircle or a polygon that includes a triangle or quadrilateral. Alternatively, the projection 23 may have a shape that is acute or obtuse at the center when viewed from a direction perpendicular to the opening 28 or the bottom surface 27, and the pointed portion may be a continuous line in the height direction. In this case, the upper projection rib 24 is a continuous line segment of this pointed portion. The pointed portion may also be rounded in an arc shape.

[0024] Furthermore, a side rib 25 extending in the height direction is also formed in the center of the short side surface 21. This side rib 25 also has, for example, a circular arc shape including a semicircle or a polygonal shape including a triangle or a rectangle in a cross section cut in the horizontal direction. Alternatively, the short side surface 21 may also have a shape pointed at an acute or obtuse angle in the center when viewed from a direction perpendicular to the opening 28 or the bottom surface portion 27, and the pointed portion may continue in the height direction. In this case, the side rib 25 may also have a pointed portion that is a continuous line segment, and the pointed portion may be rounded in an arc shape.

[0025] Here, when the short side surface 21 is viewed from the side perpendicular to the line segment connecting the left and right ends of the short side surface 21 and parallel to the plane on which the opening 28 or the bottom surface portion 27 extends, the protrusion upper rib 24 and the side upper rib 25 extend coaxially.

[0026] (Fitting process) Fig. 5 is a transition diagram showing the process of fitting a plastic container 2 into a paper container 3. Fig. 6 is a transition diagram showing the process of changes in the protrusion 23 of the plastic container 2 and the side surface of the paper container 3. As shown in (a) and (b) of Fig. 5, after contents are placed in the plastic container 2 and the opening 28 is sealed with a film, the plastic container 2 is inserted into the paper container 3 from above. As shown in (a) and (b) of Fig. 6, when the plastic container 2 is placed into the paper container 3, the protrusion 23 protrudes beyond the short side surface 31 of the paper container 3, so that the protrusion 23 comes into contact with the upper end of the short side surface 31.

[0027] When the protrusion 23 and the upper end of the short side 31 are in contact and an attempt is made to push the plastic container 2 further into the paper container 3, the protrusion 23 pushes the short side 31 of the paper container 3 outward, as shown in (c) of Figure 6, and the protrusion 23 rubs against the inside of the short side 31 as it moves downward toward the fitting hole 33 of the paper container 3.

[0028] Here, the projection 23 has an upper projection rib 24 attached to it. As the projection 23 slides down along the inside of the short side surface 31, this upper projection rib 24 presses against the short side surface 31, bending the short side surface 31 outward into a convex mountain shape. Because the upper projection rib 24 is located at the apex of the projection 23, the groove line 31a of the mountain-shaped short side surface 31 is precisely aligned with the center of the projection 23. Furthermore, the inclination angle of the mountain-shaped short side surface 31 is neither significantly gentler nor significantly steeper than that of the projection 23, but rather matches the inclination angle of the projection 23. Note that the short side surface 31 only needs to be mountain-shaped; the groove line 31a does not need to appear as a distinct groove.

[0029] As shown in Figure 5(c), the projection 23 slides along the inside of the short side 31, pushing the plastic container 2 into the paper container 3, until eventually the projection 23 and the fitting hole 33 align. When the projection 23 and the fitting hole 33 align, the angle of inclination of the mountain-shaped short side 31 becomes gentler as it is released from the external force from the projection 23, allowing the projection 23 to enter the fitting hole 33. Then, the upper surface 23a of the projection 23 catches on the upper edge of the fitting hole 33, and the plastic container 2 and the paper container 3 are fitted together.

[0030] Here, the groove 31a made by the projection rib 24 is not fully restored, and the short side surface 31 changes from a flat state before the plastic container 2 is pressed in to a mountain-shaped shape. Also, since the groove 31a is formed by the projection rib 24 of the projection 23, the peak of the mountain shape on the short side surface 31 and the center of the projection 23 coincide with each other with high precision. Therefore, when the upper edge of the fitting hole 33 catches on the projection upper surface 23a of the projection 23, as shown in Figure 6(d), the short side surface 31 becomes wrapped around the projection upper surface 23a of the projection 23, in other words, it becomes coiled, and the area of ​​the short side surface 31 that catches on the projection 23 becomes longer.

[0031] Furthermore, since the centers of the line 31a and the protrusion 23 are aligned, it is possible to prevent the center of the mountain-shaped short side 31 from being misaligned with the center of the protrusion 23, causing the short side 31 to float outward, and in fact preventing the range of the short side 31 that catches on the protrusion 23 from becoming shorter than in the case of a flat short side 31.

[0032] Furthermore, on the short side surface 31, a side surface rib 25 is formed at a position coinciding with the protrusion upper rib 24. This side surface rib 25 continues to support the crease 31a formed in a short time, and prevents the short side surface 31 from restoring from a mountain shape to a flat shape, giving the short side surface 31 a mountain shape. Therefore, as the short side surface 31 restores to a flat shape, the range of the short side surface 31 that catches on the protrusion 23 does not become shorter, and the short side surface 31 continues to wrap around the protrusion upper surface 23a of the protrusion 23.

[0033] (effect) As described above, this container 1 comprises a plastic container 2, which is an inner container, and a paper container 3, which is an outer container into which the plastic container 2 is fitted. The paper container 3 has a fitting hole 33 on its side, and the plastic container 2 has a protrusion 23 on its side that fits into the fitting hole 33. The protrusion 23 has a protrusion-upper rib 24 in the center along the height direction of the container, and when the plastic container 2 is fitted into the paper container 3, the protrusion-upper rib 24 of the protrusion 23 presses against the side of the paper container 3, resulting in a bent shape.

[0034] This allows the side of the paper container 3 to cling to and catch on the protrusions 23, increasing the reliability of the fit between the paper container 3 and the plastic container 2. Furthermore, because the folded portion of the paper container 3, i.e., the crease 31a, is formed by the protrusions 23, the alignment precision between the protrusions 23 and the crease 31a is high. This further increases the reliability of the fit between the paper container 3 and the plastic container 2.

[0035] In the container 1, the fitting holes 33 and the protrusions 23 are located on the short side surfaces 31, but they may also be located on the long side surfaces 32. The fitting holes 33 and the protrusions 23 may be located not only on the bottom surface 27 and the bottom surface 34, but also at any position in the height direction. Furthermore, the fitting holes 33 and the protrusions 23 may be located on either side of the plastic container 2 and the paper container 3, with the sides of the plastic container 2 and the paper container 3 being the same length. However, when the protrusions 23 and the fitting holes 33 are formed on the short side surfaces 21 and 31, the short side surfaces 31 are more likely to bend at an angle than when the protrusions 23 and the fitting holes 33 are formed on the long side surfaces 32, and are more difficult to return to their original state after bending. Therefore, the fit between the paper container 3 and the plastic container 2 is highly reliable and can be maintained for a long period of time. Furthermore, the four sides of the long side surfaces 22 and 32 of this container 1 do not necessarily have to be the same length, as long as the two opposing sides are the same. The depth of the container 1 can also be set arbitrarily.

[0036] In addition, the side surface having the protrusion 23 has a side surface rib 25 in the center that is warped in the height direction of the container, and supports the side surface of the paper container 3 so that the protrusion rib 24 maintains the folded shape.

[0037] As a result, the shape bent by the protrusion 23 is maintained by the side ribs 25 and is difficult to restore even after the protrusion 23 and the fitting hole 33 are fitted together, and the side of the paper container 3 can continue to be caught by the protrusion 23. Therefore, the paper container 3 and the plastic container 2 can maintain a secure fit for a long period of time.

[0038] Furthermore, the protrusions 23 are elongated along the circumferential direction of the plastic container 2. This increases the area over which the side of the paper container 3 clings to the protrusions 23, further increasing the reliability of the fit between the paper container 3 and the plastic container 2. [Explanation of symbols]

[0039] 1 container 2. Plastic containers 21 Short side 22 long side 23 Protrusion 23a Top surface of protrusion 24 Protruding upper rib 25 Upper side rib 26 flange 27 Bottom part 28 Aperture 3. Paper containers 31 short side 31a Streak line 32 long side 33 Fitting hole 34 Bottom part 35 Aperture

Claims

1. The inner container is a plastic container, A paper container which is an outer container into which the aforementioned plastic container is fitted, Equipped with The aforementioned paper container has fitting holes on its side, the plastic container has a protrusion on a side surface thereof that fits into the fitting hole; The aforementioned projection has a projection rib in the center that is aligned with the height direction of the plastic container, The side surface having the projection has a side surface rib that is aligned with the height direction of the plastic container, on the extension line of the projection upper rib. When the plastic container is fitted into the paper container, the side surface of the paper container is pressed against the protruding rib of the protruding portion, resulting in a bent shape, and is supported by the side surface rib, so that the protruding rib maintains the bent shape. A container characterized by:

2. The protrusion is long along the circumferential direction of the plastic container, 2. The container according to claim 1,

3. The plastic container and the paper container each have a long side that is relatively long in the circumferential direction and a short side that is relatively short in the circumferential direction. The fitting hole and the projection are formed on the short side.

3. The container according to claim 1 or 2,

Images