AU2011201478A1 - A member for engaging a housing - Google Patents

Abstract

Abstract The present invention provides a member arranged to engage with a housing comprising: a first portion arranged to substantially cover at least one external face of the housing; and a second portion arranged to co-operate with the first portion and restrict access to at least one opening in the housing. The present invention provides a member arranged to engage with a housing comprising: a first portion arranged to substantially cover at least one external face of the housing; and a second portion arranged to co-operate with the first portion and restrict access to at least one opening in the housing.

Description

- 1 A MEMBER FOR ENGAGING A HOUSING Technical Field The present invention relates to a member for engaging a housing, and particularly, although not exclusively, to a substantially planar member arranged to engage with a 5 housing container. Background Manufacturers may store products in a box, packaging or other forms of housing. In some instances, the housing may include printed text that displays information about the product or provides an aesthetically attractive packaging to capture a consumer's attention. .0 However, in industries such as the pharmaceutical or chemical industries, it may be more desirable to include additional information such as usage advice or instructions with the product for the benefit on safety of the user. Known methods to include additional information with the product may include the printing of information on the external faces of a housing. However, the space on the .5 external faces of a housing may be limited as the housing may be sized to be as economical as possible. Another method to include additional information is the insertion of additional printed materials, such as an information insert or advice pamphlet within the housing. Although a large amount of information may be printed within these inserts or pamphlets, users may simply ignore the inserts in their haste to gain access to the product stored within 0 the housing. In some instances, such as when the information is not critical to the safety of the user, This may cause a mild inconvenience to the manufacturer. However, in other instances, where improper use of the product may potentially be dangerous to a user, the user's failure to read the information insert may in turn leave the manufacturer open to legal liability for not 25 properly advising the user on the safety aspects of the product. In other instances, Laws and Regulations may also govern the types of materials which may appear on the packaging of a product. In industries such as the alcohol industry, tobacco industry or pharmaceutical industry, there may be laws relating to advertising displayed on a product housing. As such, manufacturers may be limited or disallowed from 30 including advertising materials on the packaging itself.

-2 Summary of the Invention In accordance with a first aspect of the invention, there is provided a member arranged to engage with a housing comprising: a first portion arranged to substantially cover at least one external face of the housing; and a second portion arranged to co-operate with the first 5 portion and restrict access to at least one opening in the housing. In an embodiment of the first aspect, the second portion is manipulated to gain access to the housing, the first portion is arranged to substantially uncover the at least one external face. In an embodiment of the first aspect, the first portion includes an internal face arranged .0 to store information. In an embodiment of the first aspect, the internal face is arranged to face the external face of the housing. In an embodiment of the first aspect, the member further comprises at least one bonding portion arranged to bond the member with the housing. .5 In an embodiment of the first aspect, the bonding portion is arranged to release the member from the co-operating portion with the housing when the bonding portion is manipulated by the user. In an embodiment of the first aspect, the at least one of the first portion, and the second portion is arranged to be released from the bonding portion when the member is .0 manipulated by the user. In an embodiment of the first aspect, the member further includes at least one perforated edge arranged to tear apart when the member is manipulated by the user to release the at least one of the first portion and the second portion. In an embodiment of the first aspect, the at least one perforated edge is disposed on the 25 opposite edges of the housing. In an embodiment of the first aspect, the second portion comprises a tab adapted to insert into an opening of the housing when the opening is in a closed configuration. In an embodiment of the first aspect, the tab has a smaller width than that of the opening.

-3 In an embodiment of the first aspect, the tab is adapted to wedge into a gap defined by a side partition of the housing and a wall of the housing. In an embodiment of the first aspect, the information is printed information. In an embodiment of the first aspect, the information includes marketing information, 5 instructions, suggestions, advice or any combination thereof. In accordance with a second aspect of the invention, there is provided a method for dispensing information comprising the steps of: printing information on a member in accordance with the first aspect; and engaging the member to a product housing, wherein the member is arranged to restrict access to at least one opening in the housing. .0 In an embodiment of the second aspect, the step of printing information on a member includes printing information on one side of the member arranged to face an external face of the housing such that the information is visible when the member is manipulated. In accordance with a third aspect of the invention, there is provided a method for providing advertisements on a pharmaceutical housing comprising the steps of: printing .5 advertising information on a member in accordance with the first aspect; and engaging the member to a pharmaceutical housing, wherein the member is arranged to restrict access to at least one opening on the housing. In an embodiment of the third aspect, the step of printing advertising information on a member includes printing advertising on one side of the member arranged to face an 0 external face of the housing such that the advertising is visible when the member is manipulated. In an embodiment of the forth aspect, the second portion comprises a tab adapted to be inserted into a slot of the housing. In an embodiment of the forth aspect, the tab has a smaller width than the width of the 25 opening. In an embodiment of the forth aspect, the slot is located adjacent to a side wall and a side partition of the housing. Brief Description of the Drawings Embodiments of the present invention will now be described, by way of example, with 30 reference to the accompanying drawings in which: -4 Figure 1A is a front and rear view of a member arranged to engage to a housing in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention; Figure 1B is a perspective view of the member of Figure 1A in the process of being engaged to a housing; 5 Figure 2A is a front and rear view of a member arranged to engage to a housing in accordance with another embodiment of the present invention; Figure 2B is a perspective view of the member of Figure 2A in the process of being engaged to a housing; Figure 3A is a front and rear view of a member arranged to engage to a housing in .0 accordance with another embodiment of the present invention; Figure 3B is a perspective view of the member of Figure 3A in the process of being engaged to a housing; Figure 4A is a front and rear view of a member arranged to engage to a housing in accordance with another embodiment of the present invention; .5 Figure 4B is a perspective view of the member of Figure 4A in the process of being engaged to a housing; Figure 5A is a plan view of a member arranged to engage to a housing in accordance with another embodiment of the present invention; Figure 5B is a perspective view of the member of Figure 5A arranged to engage to a 20 housing; Figure 5C is a perspective view of the member of Figure 5A arranged to engage to a housing in the process of securing the member to the housing; Figure 5D is a perspective view of the member of Figure 5A alone when the member is engaged with the housing; and, 25 Figure 5E is a perspective view of the member of 5D with the housing. Detailed Description of the Preferred Embodiment Referring to Figures 1A and 1B, there is shown an embodiment of a member 100 arranged to engage with a housing 110 comprising: a first portion arranged to substantially -5 cover at least one external face of the housing; and, a second portion arranged to co operate with the first portion and restrict access to at least one opening 120 in the housing. In this embodiment, the member 100 is a planar tab arranged to be cut into a rectangular shape of dimensions similar to an external face of a housing 110 to which the member 100 is 5 to be engaged. The member 100 may be made of paper, cardboard, plastic, metal or other suitable materials and in this embodiment, it is folded into two sections, comprising a main section 102 and a side section 104. The main section 102 is arranged to be dimensioned to cover a front external face 112 of a housing 110. The side section 104 is dimensioned to cover a side external face 114 of the .0 housing 110. In one embodiment, the member is arranged to engage to the housing 110 such that the main section 102 covers the front external face 112 of the housing 110 whilst the side section 104 covers the side external face 114 of the housing 110. In this embodiment, the housing 110 includes an opening 120 on the front external face 112 of the housing 110 and as such, when the member 100 is engaged to the housing 110, .5 the main section 102 also covers this opening 120. In other embodiments, the opening 120 may be located on the side external face 114 of the housing 110, in which case, the side section 104 will cover the opening 120 when the member 100 is engaged to the housing 110. The main section 102 may have an external face 106 being defined by the front fact of '0 the member 100 and an internal face 108 being defined by the back face of the member 100. The external face 106 may include printed information similar or identical to the external face 112 of the housing 110 to which the main section 102 will cover once the member 100 is engaged to the housing 110. In this way, the external face 106 of the member 100 will then be exposed as an external face of the housing 110 and member 100 when the housing 25 and member are combined together. Whilst the internal face 108 is hidden from view until the member 100 is at last in part separated from the housing 110. The internal face 108 may include printed information which may not be shown until the housing 110 and the member 100 is manipulated by a user. This may include, for example, when a user desires to open the housing 110 to access the contents therein, and in order to 30 access the opening 120, the user will lift the member 100 away from the housing 110 to gain access to the opening 120 since the member 100 will, at least in some embodiments core the opening 120 from view of the user. In this regard, the printed information stored within the internal face 108 of the main section 102 may include advertising, instructions, warnings, -6 advice or other information which would be inconvenient or disallowed from appearing on an external face 106 of the housing 110. However, once the member 100 is manipulated by the use, the information printed therein is revealed to the user. The member 100 may be engaged to the housing 110 by use of adhesives 116 or other 5 forms of fasteners to engage the member 100 to the housing 110. Preferably, two different types of adhesives or fasteners are used to bond the member 100 to the housing 110. The first bonding 116 between the side section 104 of the member 100 and the side external face 114 of the housing may use a stronger form of adhesive or fasteners to bond the side section 104 to the housing 110 to allow the member 100 to act as a flap on the housing 110. .0 This stronger form of adhesive or fasteners may include heated plastic adhesives arranged to permanently bond the member 100 and the housing 110 together. The second bonding 116B is between the external face 112 of the housing 110 and the main section 102. This second bond 1162 may use an adhesive which forms a weaker, non permanent or resilient bond such that a user may be able to peel off the main portion from .5 the external face of the housing to reveal the printed information on the back side 108 of the main portion 102 with relative ease. In some embodiments, the member 100 is produced by cutting a planar sheet to a suitable size for each housing 110 to which the member 100 is to be engaged to. Relevant information may also be printed on the front 106 and back face of the member 108. Once the 'o member 100 is produced, it may then be bonded or otherwise engaged to a housing 110 of a particular product by a process similar to the method already described above. Once the member 100 is engaged to the housing 110, the opening 120 of the housing 110 may be covered by the member 100. Accordingly, a user, when desiring to open the housing 110 to access the contents stored therein, may be inclined or instructed by printed 25 instructions to lift the main section 102 of the member 100 away from the housing 110 to reveal the opening 120 of the housing 110. By following this process, the user will then be exposed to information printed on the back 108 of the main section 120 of the member 100 during the process of accessing the contents of the housing 110. This embodiment is particularly advantageous in that additional print materials stored on 30 the internal face or back side 108 of the member 100 is likely to be exposed to a user before the user can access the contents of the housing. In some industries where user advice or warnings should be conveyed to a user for compliance, convenience or safety before the product is used, the embodiments of the present invention will be particularly useful to -7 manufacturers in these industries as the normal process of accessing the contents of the housing 110 will likely expose the user to the printed information on the back side 108 of the main portion 102 of the member 100. As such, the user is shown any additional information which may need to be conveyed to the user before use of the product. 5 Another advantage of an embodiment of the present invention includes the ability to provide additional advertising space to the housing 110. In certain countries, such as Australia, various regulations and laws may restrict advertising from being displayed on the housing of pharmaceutical, alcohol or tobacco products. By printing the advertising on internal face 108 of the member 100, the advertising .0 material is thereby hidden from the external faces of the housing and as such, may overcome the regulations or laws which restrict the use of advertising on the pharmaceutical, alcohol or tobacco products whilst allowing the advertisement to be exposed to the user of the product. With reference to Figure 2A and 2B, there is illustrated another embodiment of the .5 member 200 arranged to engage with a housing 110 comprising: a first portion arranged to substantially cover at least one external face of the housing; and a second portion arranged to co-operate with the first portion and restrict access to at least one opening in the housing. In this embodiment, the member 200 includes three .0 sections comprising of two side sections 204 and a center section 202. The center section 202 is arranged to substantially cover an external face 112 of the housing 110, including an opening 120 which may be disposed on the external face 112 of the housing 110. On the back face 206 of the center section 202, information, such as advertising, warnings or advice may be printed. The center section 202 is arranged to 25 engage to the housing via a bonding 116 between the adjacent side sections 204 to the housing 110 such that the printed information is hidden from view until the member 200 is manipulated by a user. Preferably, a weak adhesive 116B is also used to bond the main section 202 to the external face of the housing. This weak adhesive 116B is particularly useful in strengthening 30 the engagement of the member 200 to the housing 110 whilst allowing the member 200 to be removed by a user with relative ease.

-8 The side sections 204 are arranged to bond to the side external faces 114 of the housing 110 to engage the member 200 to the housing 110. In this embodiment, the side sections 204 are bonded to the housing 110 by use of an adhesive 116, glue or other forms of fasteners. 5 Once the member 200 is engaged to the housing, a user desiring to access the contents of the housing may first manipulated the member 200 to find the opening 120 of the housing 110. In this process, the user may be inclined to, or instructed by printed information on the member 200 to tear away the member 200, or to peel off the member 200 to reveal the opening 120 of the housing 110. In this process, information printed on the internal or back .0 face 206 of the center section of the member 200 may be shown to the user. With reference to Figures 3A and 3B, there is illustrated another embodiment of the member 300 arranged to engage with a housing 110 comprising: a first portion arranged to substantially cover at least one external face of the housing; and .5 a second portion arranged to co-operate with the first portion and restrict access to at least one opening in the housing. In this embodiment, the member 300 includes three sections 302 and 304. The sections include a main section 302 and two side sections 304 similar to the embodiment as shown in Figures 2A and 2B. The side sections 304 are arranged to bond 116 to the side faces 114 of the housing 110 such that the member 300 is .0 engaged to the housing 110. Preferably, a weak adhesive 116B is also used to bond the main section 302 to the external face of the housing. This weak adhesive 116B is particularly useful in strengthening the engagement of the member 300 to the housing 110 whilst allowing the member 300 to be removed by a user with relative ease. In this example embodiment, the main section 302 includes two perforated edges 310 25 disposed vertically on the main section 302 of the member 300. The perforated edges 310 provide a tear edge arranged to allow a user to tear a portion of the main section 302 between the two perforated edges away from the member 300. By tearing away the portion of the main section 302, information printed on the back side of the main section 306 will then be revealed to a user. Preferably, the opening 120 of the housing 110 is also revealed 30 by the user once the portion of the main section 302 is torn away by the user. Preferably, the perforated edges 310 are disposed adjacent to the edges joining the main section 302 to the side portions 304 to allow a substantial portion of the external face 114 of the housing 110 to be covered by the main section 302. This is also advantageous in -9 that the back side 306 of the main section 302 will have a larger amount of space for information to be printed. With reference to Figure 4A and 4B, there is illustrated another embodiment of the member 400 arranged to engage with a housing 110 comprising: 5 a first portion arranged to substantially cover at least one external face of the housing; and a second portion arranged to co-operate with the first portion and restrict access to at least one opening in the housing. In this embodiment, the member 400 includes five sections 402A, 402B and 404, these five .0 sections include two main sections 402A and 402B arranged to substantially cover the front and rear external faces 112 of the housing 110 and three side sections 404 for engagement with the side external face 114 of a housing 110. In this embodiment, one or more of the side sections 404 may be bonded to the housing 110 by use of an adhesive 116 so as to engage the member 400 to the housing 110. .5 Preferably, the opening 120 of the housing 110 is covered by at least one of the main section 402A, 402B, although it may also be covered by one or more side sections 404. Once the member 400 is engaged to the housing 110, a user may interact with the member 400 by manipulating the member 400 away from the housing 110 such that the member 400 or portions thereof are removed from the housing 110 to reveal the opening 0 120. Once the opening 120 is revealed, the user can then proceed to access the contents therein. In this process, the user may then also be exposed to the information printed on the internal or back face 406 of the member 400. With reference to Figures 5A to 5E, there is illustrated another embodiment of a member 500 arranged to engage with a housing 510, comprising: a first portion arranged to 25 substantially cover at least one external face of the housing; and a second portion arranged to co-operate with the first portion and restrict access to at least one opening in the housing. In this embodiment, the member 500 has at least one side section and a tap for inserting into a slot of the housing. Referring to Figure 5A, there is provided an embodiment of the member 500, which has 30 a rectangular main section 502 of dimensions similar to an external face of a housing 510 to which the member 500 is to be engaged. However, it would be apparent to a person skilled in the art that the shape of the main section 502 can be varied so long as the main section - 10 can provide a substantial coverage of the external face of the housing 501. The member 500 may be made of paper, cardboard, plastic, metal or other suitable materials. The member 500 comprises a main section 502, and two side sections 504 extending from the opposite sides of the main section. Each side section 504 has a tab 506 extending 5 from a distal end thereof. The side section 504 is freely foldable along the intersection between the main section 502 and the side section. The tabs 506 are freely foldable along the intersection between the side section 504 and the tab 506. The main section 502 may be arranged to be dimensioned to cover a front external face 512 of a housing 510. The side section 504 may be dimensioned to cover a side partition .0 514 of the housing 510. In this manner, the member 500 is adapted to engage the housing 510, and thereby the main section 502 covers the front external face 512 of the housing 110 whilst the side section 504 covers the side partition 514 of the housing 510. In this embodiment, the housing 510 is designed to include an opening 524, which is arranged to be covered by the side partitions 514. Each side partition 514 further comprises .5 a free flap 516 to assist the closing of the opening 524 with the side partition. When the opening 524 of housing 510 is in the closed configuration as shown in figure 5C, the side partition 514 will cover the opening and the free flap 516 will be inserted into the opening to hold the side partition in place. The side partition 514 and the free flap 516 do not seal off the opening completely, a slot 520 can be found between a wall 522 and the side partition 0 516 of the housing. In order to attach the member 500 to the housing 510, the housing is first manipulated into a closed configuration as shown in Figures 5C and 5E. Once the member 500 is engaged with the housing 510, the side section 504 is folded towards the side partition 514 of the housing such that the side section is substantially superimpose over the side partition. 25 The tab 506 is then folded so as to wedge into the slot 520 of the closed opening 524. When the tab 506 is pushed into the slot 520, the tab is jammed between the side wall 522 and the free flap 516. Due to the physical configuration of the housing 510, the tab 506 is held between the side wall 522 and the free flap 516 by the pressure and friction therein. In this way, the member 500 can be securely attached to the housing 510. 30 This embodiment exploits the geometry of the slot 520, which is formed when housing 510 is manipulated to a closed configuration as shown in Figures 5C and 5E, in order to allow the tab 506 to engage with the housing. By wedging the tabs 516 into the slots 520 at the sides of the housing 510, the member 500 can be secured to the housing without the - 11 use of any bnding agent. In this way, the cost for securing member 500 to the housing will be comparatively cheaper. Also, as no binding agent is used when securing the member 500 to the housing, the member can be easily removed from the housing when unpacking the package, 5 In other embodiment, it is also possible to create the slots 520 by cutting out a portion of the housing 510 to allow the insertion of the tabs 506 of the member 510. In another embodiment, the slots 520 can be located at a side wall 522 of the housing 510. In this embodiment, the side sections 504 cover the side partition 514 of the housing 510, and the side partitions are thereby obstructed by the side sections to prevent a user .0 from accessing the opening 524 of the housing. The opening 524 of the housing is therefore not readily accessible without first removing the side section to expose the side partition 514. Once the member 500 is securely engaged with the housing, a user desiring to access the contents of the housing may first manipulate the member 500 to find the opening 524 of the housing 510. To access the opening 524 of the housing, the user has to retrieve the tab .5 506 from the slot 520. After the tab 506 is released, the user may then unfold the side section 504 in order to expose the side partition 514 of the housing 510. In this process, the user may be inclined to, or instructed by printed information on the member 500 to uncover the member 500 in order to expose the opening 524 of the housing 510. By doing so, information printed on the internal or back face of the main section 502 of the member 500 .0 can be revealed to the user. In one preferred embodiment, the tab 506 has a smaller width than that of the opening 524. In another embodiment, the tab 508 can be cut into any tapering shape to achieve this purpose. This is to facilitate the insertion of the tab 506 into the opening 524. In an example embodiment, embodiments of the present invention may be used in the 25 pharmaceutical industry for providing additional advertising or information concerning pharmaceutical products. Pharmaceutical products, such as medications, vaccines or therapeutic compounds may be stocked in pharmacies or health food in individual housing resembling a rectangular box. The housing may also have perforations which directs to a user to tear open the housing by use of the perforations to access the contents stored within 30 the housing. During the manufacturing process, each of these housings may include labelling of the product's name or identity, including any manufacturer's trade marks or branding. In one embodiment, the product may be inserted into each of the housing by machine or manual - 12 labour, followed by the closing the openings of the housing to secure the contents stored within. Once all the opening of the housing is sealed or closed, a member 100, 200, 300, 400, 500 of any one of the embodiments described herein or variations of these embodiments, may be engaged to the housing to provide advertising or other forms of 5 information to a user, whilst ensuring the advertising information is not shown until the user manipulates the member and/or the housing. In alternative embodiments, the information stored on the member may be digital information. In these instances, electronic, optical, magnetic or barcode media may be printed or disposed on the face of the member. .0 It will be appreciated by persons skilled in the art that numerous variations and/or modifications may be made to the invention as shown in the specific embodiments without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention as broadly described. The present embodiments are, therefore, to be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive. .5 Any reference to prior art contained herein is not to be taken as an admission that the information is common general knowledge, unless otherwise indicated.

Claims (22)

1. A member arranged to engage with a housing comprising: a first portion arranged to substantially cover at least one external face of the housing; 5 and a second portion arranged to co-operate with the first portion to restrict access to at least one opening in the housing.

2. A member in accordance with Claim 1, wherein when the second portion is manipulated to gain access to the housing, the first portion is arranged to substantially .0 uncover the at least one external face.

3. A member in accordance with Claims 1 or 2, wherein the first portion includes an internal face arranged to store information.

4. A member in accordance with Claim 3, wherein the internal face is arranged to face the at least one external face of the housing.

.5 5. A member in accordance with any one of the preceding claims further comprising at least one bonding portion arranged to bond the member with the housing.

6. A member in accordance with Claim 5, wherein the bonding portion is arranged to release the member from the co-operating portion with the housing when the bonding portion is manipulated by the user. 20

7. A member in accordance with Claims 5 or 6, wherein the at least one of the first portion, and the second portion is arranged to be released from the bonding portion when the member is manipulated by the user.

8. A member in accordance with Claim 7 further including at least one perforated edge arranged to tear apart when the member is manipulated by the user to release the at 25 least one of the first portion and the second portion.

9. A member in accordance with Claim 8, wherein the at least one perforated edge is disposed on the opposite edges of the housing. - 14

10. A member in accordance with any one of Claims 1 to 4, wherein the second portion comprises a tab adapted to be inserted into a slot of the housing.

11. A member in accordance with Claim 10, wherein the tab has a smaller width than the width of the opening. 5

12. A member in accordance with Claims 10 or 11, wherein the slot is located adjacent to a side wall and a side partition of the housing.

13. A member in accordance with Claims 3 to 12, wherein the information is printed information.

14. A member in accordance with Claims 3 to 13, wherein the information includes .0 marketing information, instructions, suggestions, advice or any combination thereof.

15. A method for dispensing information comprising the steps of: printing information on a member in accordance with any one of Claims 1 to 14; and engaging the member to a product housing.

16. A method according to Claim 15, wherein the member is arranged to restrict .5 access to at least one opening in the housing.

17. A method in accordance with Claims 15 or 16, wherein the step of printing information on a member includes printing information on one side of the member arranged to face an external face of the housing such that the information is visible when the member is manipulated. 20

18. A method for providing advertisements on a pharmaceutical housing comprising the steps of: printing advertising information on a member in accordance with any one of Claims 1 to 14; and engaging the member to a pharmaceutical housing, wherein the member is arranged to 25 restrict access to at least one opening on the housing.

19. A method in accordance with Claim 17, wherein the step of printing advertising information on a member includes printing advertising on one side of the member arranged to face an external face of the housing such that the advertising is visible when the member is manipulated. - 15

20. A product housing adapted to receive a member in accordance with any one of claims 1 to 14.

21. A product packaging comprising a product housing being engaged to a member in accordance with claims 1 to 14. 5

22. A product packaging in accordance with claim 21, wherein the product housing is a pharmaceutical product housing.