DESCREPTICN CARTON
TEOSNICAL FIELD
The present invention relates to a carton that is a package of an article and more specifically, it relates to a carton that adopts an expedient easy to open the carton.
BACKGROUND ART
As the package of the article, a carton made of cardboard, corrugated paper or the like as its materials has been widely used. There are various kinds of cartons and a carton formed by cutting a carton blank out of paperboard and assembling it as a carton in which at least one surface thereof is formed as an openable lid has been specified as one of the general cartons.
FIGS. 4A and 4B show an example of the above-mentioned carton. A carton 1 shown in each of the same figures has an openable hinged lid 2 on its longitudinal end surface and, as shown in FIG. 4A, the lid 2 has a flap 3 that is folded back at a right angles on its forward end so that the lid 2 can be closed by inserting the flap 3 into inside of the carton 1 as shown in FIG. 4B. A carton in which line slits 4 are cut on both ends of a score line formed between the lid 2 and the flap 3 has also been provided, and in this case, the lid 2 cannot open carelessly because the slits 4 of the lid 2 are caught by flaps 5 prepared on edges of both side surfaces (upper and lower surfaces shown in the figures) of the carton when the lid 2 is closed. Although, when the lid 2 is opened, the lid is pulled out by putting a finger on the flap 3 of the lid 2, it is difficult to insert the finger into a portion between the flap 3 of the lid 2 and a side surface of the carton 1, so that in many cartons, a notch 6 is formed in an edge
of the carton 1 on a lid side thereof as shown in FIG. 5 to make the finger easy to be put on the flap 3 of the lid 2.
As a carton in which the lid is easy to be opened, Japanese Patent Application Publication No. S52-45468 has disclosed a package box. The package box has a slit that is formed in a lid like a semicircle or a gate from an intermediate portion of a score line by the lid and a flap toward a flap side thereof, and when the flap is folded, a portion of the lid
Formed by the slit is not folded to extend along the same plane as the
lid, so that this extended portion rising from this flap can be used as
finger catching when the lid is opened to make the lid easy to open.
DISCLOSURE OP THE INVENTION
The conventional carton shown in FIGS. 4A and 4B has a defect such that it is difficult to insert the finger into the portion between the flap and the side surface of the carton when the lid is opened, and though the carton in which a notch is formed in an edge of the carton as shown in FIG. 5 makes the finger easy to be put on the flap, in any cartons shown in FIGS. 4A, 4B and 5, the flap is pushed down by the finger when the lid is opened so that it is difficult to open the lid because the flap of the lid catches a back side of any flaps of the carton. Further, in the carton in which the slits are provided on the flap of the lid, it is more difficult to open the lid because the slits are caught more deeply by the flaps of the carton. Accordingly, any power is required for opening the lid, so that the flap of the lid or the flaps of the carton may fail to be broken out. Although there are many cases in which the carton is scrapped after opening the lid, it is desirable to prevent the carton from being broken out when opening the lid because any article may be again packed in the carton after it has been unpacked from the carton in order to show the article or check its contents.
The package box disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Publication No. S52-45468 has the extended portion that is inseparable from the lid so that the lid can be pulled along an opening direction without pushing the flap down, thereby making the lid easy to open while the plate-like extended portion has not enough strength in some thickness of the paper material so that the extended portion may be folded to fail to act as the finger catching. Further, the extended portion rising at right angles from a corner at an end of the carton may hinder plural package boxes from being packed in a package container.
Thus, technical problems to be solved occur in order to provide a carton in which it is easy to open the lid and a deformation or any damage is avoided even when repeating that the lid is opened and closed so that it is an object of the present invention to solve the above-mentioned problems.
This invention is proposed to achieve the above-mentioned object
and provides a carton that is formed by folding a sheet made of paper,
plastic or the like and in which at least one surface is formed as an
openable hinged lid having a flap that is formed by folding a forward end
of the lid inwardly and the lid is closed by inserting the flap into the
carton, characterized in that two parallel slits that lie at right angles
to a score line by the lid and the flap are formed, that score lines each
lying between forward ends of the two slits or between rear ends of the
two slits and a score line lying between intermediate portions of the two
slits and being deflected away from the score line by the lid and the flap
toward a flap side are formed so that a portion of the lid that Stand btween
by the two slits rises as a triangle shape to form a finger-catching portion
when the flap is folded from the lid at right angles, and that a cut is
formed on a side surface of the carton to expose the finger-catching
portion when the lid is closed.
The carton related to the present invention has the finger-catching portion that rises as a triangle shape on the flap at a forward end of the hinged lid and the lid can be easily pulled with a finger being caught on the finger-catching portion. Forming the finger-catching portion also enables the lid to be pulled toward an opening direction without pushing the flap down, thereby avoiding any block in opening and closing the lid so that the flap of the lid catches a back side of any flaps of the carton or the slits on the score line by the lid and the flap are caught more deeply by the flaps of the carton, which is different from the conventional typed one, and almost preventing the lid and the flap from being deformed or broken out.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a developed view for showing an embodiment of a carton according to the invention;
FIG. 2A is a perspective view for showing a lid-closing process of the carton according to the invention;
FIG. 2B is a perspective view for showing a lid-closing process of the carton according to the invention;
FIG. 2C is a perspective view for showing a lid-closing process of the carton according to the invention;
FIG. 3 is an enlarged illustration for illustrating a finger-catching portion shown in FIG. 2B;
FIG. 4A is a perspective view for showing a lid-opening condition of the conventional carton;
FIG. 4B is a perspective view for showing a lid-closing condition of the conventional carton; and
FIG. 5 is a perspective view for showing the conventional carton.
BEST MODE FOR CARRYlNG OUT THE INVENTION
The invention achieves the object such that it is easy to open the
lid and a deformation or any damage is avoided even when repeating that
the lid is opened and closed by providing a carton that has an openable
hinged lid, in which two parallel slits that lie at right angles to a score
line by the lid and the flap are formed; score lines each lying between
forward ends of the two slits or between rear ends of the two slits and
a score line lying between intermediate portions of the two slits and being
deflected away from the score line by the lid and the flap toward a flap
side are formed so that a portion of the lid that Stand btween by the two slits rises as a triangle shape to form a finger-catching portion when the flap is folded from the lid at right angles; and a cut is formed on a side surface of the carton to expose the finger-catching portion when the lid is closed.
FIG. 1 is a developed view for showing a carton 11 according to the invention. In this figure, four surfaces 12, 13, 14, 15 of top, left, right, and bottom thereof is continuously shown up and down but it is supposed that a surface 12 is referred to as "a right side surface", a surface 13 is referred to as "a top surface", a surface 14 is referred to as "a left side surface", and a surface 14 is referred to as "a bottom surface". Broken lines indicate score lines f that are formed by press.
A margin 16 for gluing is formed on a horizontal edge (an upper edge shown in FIG. 1) of the right side surface 12 and a forward lid 17 is connected in succession with a forward edge thereof (a right edge shown in FIG. 1) . A rear lid 18 is connected in succession with a rear edge (a left edge shown in FIG. 1) of the left side surface 14 and flaps 19 are respectively connected in succession with forward and rear edges (left and right edges shown in FIG. 1) of the top surface 13 and the bottom surface 15, respectively. Flaps 20, 21 are formed at forward sides from score lines fl, f2 formed near the forward ends of the forward lid 17 and the rear lid
18, respectively, and slits 22 are cut away along the same direction as those of the score lines fl, f2 from both ends of each of the score lines fl, f2. It is to be noted that the slits 22 is not indispensable and thus, a configuration such that the flaps 20, 21 is only folded without providing any slits 22 may be used.
Two longitudinal slits 23 that lie at right angles to the score line f 1 are cut away near the forward end of the forward lid 17 and three score lines 24, 25, 26 that are respectively connected between forward ends (right ends shown in FIG. 1) of the two parallel longitudinal slits 23, between rear ends thereof, and between portions thereof near the forward ends, respectively, are formed by press. A rectangular area enclosed by the two longitudinal slits 23, the score line 24 connecting between the forward ends thereof, and the score line 26 connecting between the rear ends thereof is formed as a finger-catching portion 27, which will be described later. A cut 28 having a width almost equal to a space between the two longitudinal slits 23 of the forward lid 17 is formed on a forward edge 14a (a right edge shown in FIG. 1) of the left side surface 14.
FIGS. 2A, 2B, 2C show the carton 11 in which the carton blank shown in FIG. 1 is assembled as a box and FIG. 2A shows a condition such that the flap 20 of the forward end of the forward lid 17 has not yet folded. As shown in FIGS. 2B, 3, when the flap 20 of the forward end of the forward lid 17 is folded at right angles, the finger-catching portion 27 is also folded on the three score lines 24, 25, 26 in which the intermediate score line 25 of the finger-catching portion 27 is deflected away from the score line fl of the flap 20 toward a forward end side so that a position of an apex of the finger-catching portion 27 can be deflected away from an edge by the forward lid 17 and the flap 20 toward the forward end side (i. e., a side of the flap) . In other words, a configuration such that the apex of the finger-catching portion 27 rises from a surface of the folded flap 20 is seen.
As shown in FIG. 2C, when the flap 20 is inserted inside the left side surface 14 of the carton 11 assembled as the box, the forward lid 17 is closed with the finger-catching portion 27 meeting the cut 28 of the left side surface 14 so that the slits 22 on both ends of the flap 20 can be caught by the flaps 19 of the top surface 13 and the bottom surface 15 to keep the closed condition of the forward lid 17.
When the forward lid 17 is opened, if the finger-catching portion 27 rising as a triangle rib is caught by a finger so as to be pulled along an opening direction, it is possible to pull the forward lid 17 without pushing the flap 20 down, thereby enabling the forward lid 17 to be opened by slipping the flap 20 of the forward lid 17 and the flaps 19 of the top surface 13 and the bottom surface 15 easily.
Thus, any unreasonable power is not applied to the flap 20 of the forward lid 17 and the flaps 19 of the top surface 13 and the bottom surface 15 when the lid is opened so that even if repeating that the lid is opened and closed, a risk of a deformation or any damage of the flaps 19, 20 is considerably decreased as compared with that of the conventional carton.
If plural cartons 11 are packed side by side in a package container, the apex of the finger-catching portion 27 touches a side surface of an adjacent carton 11 so that the finger-catching portion 27 and the flap 20 can be pushed down, thereby enabling the cartons 11 to be squeezed therein. In this moment, a deformation or any damage of the finger-catching portion 27 is avoided and when taking any carton 11 out of the package container, the finger-catching portion 27 and the flap 20 returns to their initial state shown in FIG. 2C by means of any elastic restoring power that their paper materials have.
It is to be noted that this invention in not limited to the above-mentioned embodiments, and any various modifications or alterations may occur within a technical scope of the claimed invention so that this invention naturally contains these modifications or alterations.

CLAIM
1. A carton that is formed by folding a sheet made of paper, plastic or the like and in which at least one surface is formed as an openable hinged lid having a flap that is formed by folding a forward end of the lid inwardly and the lid is closed by inserting the flap into the carton, characterized in that two parallel slits that lie at right angles to a score line by the lid and the flap are formed, that score lines each lying between forward ends of the two slits or between rear ends of the two slits and a score line lying between intermediate portions of the two slits and being deflected away from the score line by the lid and the flap toward a flap side are formed so that a portion of the lid that stand btween fey/the two slits rises as a triangle shape to form a finger-catching portion when the flap is folded from the lid at right angles, and that a cut is formed on a side surface of the carton to expose the finger-catching portion when the lid is closed.