WO2009019217A1

WO2009019217A1 - Container for smoking articles

Info

Publication number: WO2009019217A1
Application number: PCT/EP2008/060147
Authority: WO
Inventors: Nicholas Bela Verebelyi; Edward Arthur Charles Mitchell; John William Hall
Original assignee: British American Tobacco (Investments) Limited
Priority date: 2007-08-07
Filing date: 2008-08-01
Publication date: 2009-02-12
Also published as: TW200936066A; AR067831A1; CL2008002229A1; GB0715367D0

Abstract

A container (10) for smoking articles is made from moulded plastic. The container comprises a body (11) for holding smoking articles and a lid (21) for closing the container. The lid is attached to the body by a hinge (40). The container further comprises a latch mechanism located on the body and the lid for retaining the container in the closed position. In the closed position, the lid meets the body along a line of closure (50). The lid and the body overlap along the line of closure to provide an inner wall and an outer wall. The latch mechanism comprises a recess (15) in the inner wall and an inwardly directed tab (25) attached to the outer wall for engagement with the recess to set the latch mechanism. The latch mechanism further comprises a flexure partly separated from the remainder of the body to permit an inward movement of the flexure. The latch mechanism further comprises a button (35) located on the flexure to allow a user to push the flexure inward to release the latch mechanism.

Description

Container for Smoking Articles

Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to containers for smoking articles such as cigarettes, and in particular to a container made out of plastic.

Background of the Invention

Cigarette packs are normally made out of cardboard, such as a standard (rectangular) hinged-lid carton (HLC). One drawback with such cardboard packs is that they provide little in the way of protection for the cigarettes. Thus the cigarettes can gain moisture from or lose moisture to the atmosphere (depending on the relative moisture content of the cigarettes and the atmosphere). An HLC is usually provided with a cellophane overwrap to provide some form of moisture barrier. The effectiveness of this barrier depends on the accuracy of folding and bonding the overwrap. However, the overwrap is breached and discarded when the HLC is first opened, and so therefore does not provide any subsequent protection for the contents of the HLC.

It is known to provide a moulded plastic container for cigarettes. Examples of such containers are disclosed in US 2411946, GB 1376193, US 4733796, FR 2642405, US 3327887, and US 3167104. In some of these containers, a latch mechanism is provided to hold the container in the closed position. In addition, the lid may be biased towards the open position, so that when the latch mechanism is released, the lid opens automatically.

Nevertheless, such plastic containers are rarely used in practice for cigarettes or other smoking articles. In general, known plastic containers do not provide the convenience and effectiveness of standard HLCs. Summary of the Invention

Accordingly, one embodiment of the invention provides a container for smoking articles. The container is made from moulded plastic and comprises a body for holding smoking articles, a lid for closing the container, the lid being attached to the body by a hinge, and a latch mechanism located on the body and the lid for retaining the container in the closed position. In the closed position, the lid meets the body along a line of closure, the lid and body overlapping along the line of closure to provide an inner wall and an outer wall. The latch mechanism comprises a recess in the inner wall; an inwardly directed tab attached to the outer wall for engagement with the recess to set the latch mechanism; a flexure comprising part of the body adjacent the line of closure, the flexure being partly separated from the remainder of the body to permit inward movement of the flexure with respect to the remainder of the body; and a button located on the flexure to allow a user to push the flexure inward with respect to the remainder of the body to release the latch mechanism.

Such a container offers good protection for the cigarettes or other smoking articles housed within the container. The latch mechanism is easy to operate (generally with just one hand), and also flexible in terms of the design of the remainder of the container.

The container is generally formed from moulded plastic. The latch mechanism may also be formed from moulded plastic. The latch mechanism may be cut or machined if appropriate. For example, the partial separation between the flexure and the remainder of the body may be achieved as part of the moulding process and/or via some subsequent cutting or machining operation. Some or all of the latch mechanism (e.g. the button) may be moulded or otherwise manufactured separately from the remainder of the container, with the latch mechanism and container then being assembled together for the final product.

In one embodiment, the outer wall with the attached tab is part of the lid, and the inner wall with the recess is part of the body. The recess is located on the flexure between the button and the line of closure. The flexure comprises a strip that is attached to the body at one end and is separated from the remainder of the body along the sides of the flexure. The recess is located at the opposite end of the strip from the point of attachment to the rest of the body, adjacent the line of closure. The flexure is therefore able to move or pivot about the point of attachment to the rest of the body, subject to pressing the button, thereby causing movement of the recess to release the latch.

In one embodiment, the lid comprises a reduced thickness portion which forms the outer wall and a full thickness portion. The opposite end of the strip (beyond the hole in the strip) is sandwiched between the inwardly directed tab and the full thickness portion of the lid when the lid is closed. This configuration helps the latch mechanism to engage more firmly.

In one embodiment, the recess comprises a hole that passes all the way through the flexure and is elongated parallel to the line of closure. In other embodiments however, the recess may comprise just a dip or notch in the flexure, and/or may have any other appropriate shape (e.g. round, square, star, etc).

In one embodiment, the container has major front and back faces which are substantially rectangular. The hinge between the body and the lid is located on the back panel and the line of closure is located on the front panel with the latch mechanism. The line of closure is parallel to and below the hinge.

In one embodiment, the outer wall and the attached tab are part of the body, and the inner wall with the recess is part of the lid. In the closed position, the flexure abuts against the inner wall of the lid; in particular, the flexure abuts against a portion of the inner wall that extends below the recess. The flexure comprises a strip that is attached to the body at one end away from the line of closure and is separated from the remainder of the body along the sides of the flexure. The opposite end of the flexure, away from the point of attachment to the body, abuts against the inner wall of the lid. The button is located between the two ends of the strip. - A -

Thus when a user presses on the button, this causes the top of the flexure (nearest to the line of closure) to move inwards. This in turn moves inwards the portion of the inner wall that extends below the recess and which abuts against the top of the flexure. As a result, the recess itself moves inwards, thereby disengaging the recess from the tab on the body, and so releasing the latch mechanism.

In one embodiment, the hinge is located along the top of the container such that the lid opens and closes towards a side of the container, with the latch mechanism being located on this side of the container.

In one embodiment, lid is biased to open automatically from the closed position when the latch mechanism is released. This may be accomplished, for example, by incorporating a spring into the hinge joining the lid to the body. One possibility is that the hinge comprises a region of flexible, resilient material that generally acts to try to open the lid. This arrangement is convenient in that it allows a user to open the pack with just a press on the button.

A container such as described above may be used to hold smoking articles, such as cigarettes, cigarillos, tobacco substitute products, and so on.

Brief Description of the Drawings

Various embodiments of the invention will now be described in detail by way of example only with reference to the following drawings: Figure 1 is a front view of a container for smoking articles in accordance with one embodiment of the invention with the lid closed;

Figure 2 is a front view of the container of Figure 1 with the lid open;

Figure 3 is a perspective view of the container of Figure 1 with the lid open;

Figure 4 depicts in more detail the latch mechanism of the container of Figure 1 in accordance with one embodiment of the invention;

Figure 5 is a perspective view of a container for smoking articles in accordance with another embodiment of the invention with the lid closed; Figure 6 is a side view of the container of Figure 5 with the lid open; and

Figure 7 depicts in more detail the latch mechanism of the container of Figure 5 in accordance with one embodiment of the invention.

Detailed Description

Figures 1 to 3 illustrate a container 10 for smoking articles made out of moulded plastic in accordance with one embodiment of the invention. The use of moulded plastic for the container provides a high degree of protection for the smoking articles within the container, for example helping to prevent the ingress or egress of moisture. The container 10 has a generally bevelled shape. This makes handling the container easier, for example when removing the container from a pocket or inserting the container into a pocket, as well as helping to strengthen the container.

The container comprises a body 11 for holding the smoking articles and a lid 21. The lid is attached to the body by a hinge 40 located at the back of the container. The hinge allows the lid to rotate between a closed position (as in Figure 1) and an open position (as in Figure 2). When the container is closed, the lid 21 meets the body 11 along a line of closure 50, located at the front of the container and parallel to the hinge 40.

At the top edge of the front wall of the body portion 11 is a region of reduced thickness 14. Likewise, at the bottom edge of the front wall of the lid 21 is a region of reduced thickness 24. Accordingly, the body includes a ledge at the base of reduced thickness portion 14 and the lid includes an overhang at the top of the reduced thickness portion 24. When the container is closed, these two regions of reduced thickness overlap and abut one another. The lid region 24 of reduced thickness lies outside the body region 14 of reduced thickness, and the body ledge abuts against (mates with) the lid overhang.

The container 10 is provided with a latch mechanism to retain the lid in the closed position. The latch mechanism includes an inwardly directed tab or protuberance 25 located on the inside of the reduced thickness region 24 of the lid 21, plus a corresponding, outwardly facing hole or recess 15 located on the reduced thickness region 14 of the front wall of the body 11. When the pack is shut, the tab 25 engages or enters the recess 15 to retain the pack in the closed position.

The latch mechanism also includes a button 35 located on the front wall of the body 11 of the container. The button 35 is pressed to release the latch. More particularly, when button 35 is pressed, this disengages the tab 25 from the hole 15, thereby allowing the lid 21 to open.

Note that in some embodiments, the lid may be biased towards the open position, for example by a spring mechanism incorporated into the hinge 40. In this arrangement, whenever the tab 25 is disengaged from the hole 15, the lid 21 is automatically moved to the open position shown in Figures 2 and 3. This allows a user to readily operate the container 10 with a single hand by just pushing on button 35, without requiring a separate action to open the lid 21 (i.e. the single operation of pushing the button both releases the latch mechanism and also opens the lid).

The button 35 is surrounded by a ridge 36, which is generally level with or higher than the surface of button 35 (compared to the main surface of the front wall of the body 11). This ensures that if a flat surface is brought into contact with the main surface of the front wall of the body 11 , for example by placing the container 10 into a bag, on a table, etc, the flat surface is supported by ridge 36 rather than contacting (or more particularly operating) button 35. This therefore helps to protect against accidental opening of container 10 (which might otherwise lead to loss of or damage to the smoking articles contained therein).

Figure 4 is a more detailed view of the latch mechanism from inside container 10 in accordance with one embodiment of the invention. This shows the tab 25 protruding inwards from the reduced thickness portion 24 of the front wall of the lid 21 (the step or overhang of this reduced thickness portion 24 of the lid is indicated schematically by the dotted line in Figure 4). The body 11 includes a strip or flexure 17 that is defined by two substantially parallel cuts 18 A, 18B extending down from the top edge of the front wall of the body. The strip 17 is generally coplanar with the remainder of the front wall of the body.

The hole or recess 15 is located at the top end of strip 17. At the opposite end of the strip from hole 15, the strip is attached to the rest of the front wall of the body by bridge 19 (in the particular embodiment of Figure 4, bridge 19 comprises two, narrow and parallel stretches of material). Note that strip 17 may be formed directly by moulding, or by partial cutting of the front wall of the body 11 , or by any other suitable technique.

The thickness of strip 17 and bridge 19 corresponds approximately to that of reduced thickness portion 14 along the top of the front wall of the body. In general, all of the body wall within ring or ridge 36, including strip 17, has this reduced thickness. In part this helps to accommodate button 35 (so that it does not protrude above ridge 36). In addition, the reduced thickness helps bridge 19 to serve as a point of flexion, about which strip 17 can move forwards and backwards in relation to the rest of the front wall of the body (i.e. in a direction into and out of the container).

The button 35 is mounted on the outside surface of strip 17. Pressing the button 35 causes the strip to flex inwards, which acts to releases the latch mechanism. In particular, assuming that the tab 25 is initially located within the hole 15 to hold the lid shut, as strip 17 flexes inwards, hole 15 is likewise carried inwards. Tab 25 therefore disengages from within the hole 15, thereby allowing the lid to open.

Such a latch mechanism has some significant benefits over those of many known devices. Thus there are no sharp protrusions on the exterior of the container, which might snag or even break when removing the container from a pocket (for example) . Indeed, the button 35 is the only external manifestation of the latch mechanism when the container is shut. In addition, the action of button 35 in conjunction with strip 17 provides a simple and effective mechanism for releasing the latch mechanism to open the container 10. Thus there is a simple opening action involving a single push inwards on button 35, which therefore allows easy opening of container 10 with a single hand. Furthermore, button 35 allows a user to immediately determine how to open the container.

In addition, the provision of strip 17 as defined by cuts 18A, 18B avoids the user having to deform a complete wall of the body 11 in order to open the container 10. The main portion of the body can therefore be constructed in accordance with the general requirements for rigidity and robustness of the container, without also having to accommodate an opening movement.

Figures 5 and 6 illustrate a container 100 for smoking articles in accordance with another embodiment of the invention (such smoking articles are indicated by the dashed lines 200 in Figure 6). The container 100 again comprises a body 111 for holding the smoking articles and a lid 121, which is joined to the body 111 by a hinge 140. However, in contrast to the embodiment of Figures 1 to 3, in which the hinge 40 runs along the back wall of the container, in the embodiment of Figures 5 and 6, the hinge runs across the top of the container from the front of the container to the back of the container. In other words, the lid 121 represents approximately one-half of the top of the container. The configuration of Figures 4 and 5 is referred herein as a corner-opening container.

The lower edge of the lid 121 includes a ledge which defines a reduced thickness portion 124. The upper edge of the body (where it meets lid 121) comprises an overhang which defines a reduced thickness portion 114. As with the embodiments of Figures 1 to 3, the reduced thickness portion 124 of the lid and the reduced thickness portion 114 of the body overlap and abut one another when the pack is closed, with the lid overhang mating against the body ledge. However, in the embodiment of Figures 5 and 6, the reduced thickness portion of the lid 124 is inside the reduced thickness portion of the body 114 (this is the opposite arrangement to the configuration of Figures 1 to 3). As with the embodiments of Figures 1 to 3, the container 100 is provided with a latch mechanism to retain the lid in the closed position. The latch mechanism includes an inwardly directed tab or protuberance 125 located on the reduced thickness region 114 of the body 111, plus a corresponding outwardly facing hole or recess 115 located on the reduced thickness region 124 of the side wall of the lid 121 (this allocation of the hole 115 and the tab 125 to the body 111 and to the lid 121 respectively in the embodiment of Figures 5 and 6 is the opposite to the allocation for the embodiment of Figures 1 to 3). When the container is shut, the tab 125 engages or enters the recess 115 to retain the container in the closed position.

The latch mechanism also includes a button 135 located on the side wall of the body 111 of the container. The button 135 is pressed to release the latch. More particularly, when button 135 is pressed, this disengages the tab 125 from the hole 115, thereby allowing the lid 121 to open.

As for the embodiment of Figures 1 to 3, the lid may be biased towards the open position, for example by a spring mechanism incorporated into the hinge 140. In this arrangement, whenever the tab 125 is disengaged from the hole 115, the lid 121 is automatically moved to the open position shown in Figure 6. This allows a user to readily operate the container 110 with a single hand by just pushing on button 135, without requiring a separate action to open the lid 121.

The button 135 is located in a slight recess 137 of the side wall. Consequently the button is generally level with or below the remaining surface of the side wall of the body 111. This ensures that if a flat surface is brought into contact with the side wall of the body 111, for example by placing the container 110 into a bag, on a table, etc, the flat surface is supported by side wall of the body, rather than contacting (or more particularly operating) button 135. This therefore helps to protect against accidental opening of container 100 (which might otherwise lead to loss of or damage to the smoking articles contained therein). Figure 7 is a more detailed view of the latch mechanism from inside container 100 in accordance with one embodiment of the invention. This shows the tab 125 protruding inwards from the reduced thickness portion 114 of the side wall of the body 111. The tab 125 mates with a corresponding hole 115 in the reduced thickness portion 124 of the side wall of the lid 121.

The latch mechanism can be released by a strip or flexure 117 that extends into a hole in the side wall of the body. The strip comprises two parallel strands that are joined together at their top ends (i.e. at the ends closest to the lid). The strip is joined to the main side wall of the body at its bottom end and is generally coplanar with this side wall.

The thickness of strip 117 corresponds approximately to that of reduced thickness portion 114 along the top of the side wall of the body. In part this helps to accommodate button 135 (so that it does not protrude above recessed portion 137). In addition, the reduced thickness helps strip 117 to be flexible, whereby strip 117 can move forwards and backwards in relation to the rest of the side wall of the body (i.e. in a direction into and out of the container) .

The button 135 is mounted on the outside surface of strip 117. Pressing the button 135 causes the strip to flex inwards, which acts to release the latch mechanism. In particular, assuming that the tab 125 is initially located within the hole 115 to hold the lid shut, as strip 117 flexes inwards, the strip 117 engages and pushes inwards the portion 126 of the lid rim immediately below the hole 115. This in turn moves hole 115 inwards, so that tab 125 disengages from the hole 115, thereby allowing the lid to open. This latch mechanism shares many of the benefits discussed above in relation to the embodiment of Figures 1 to 3, such as single-handed operation, smooth external profile, no need to reduce the general strength of the side walls, etc.

In conclusion, although a variety of embodiments have been described herein, these are provided by way of example only, and many variations and modifications on such embodiments will be apparent to the skilled person. For example, the latch mechanism of Figure 4 might be employed with the corner opening container of Figures 5 and 6, while the latch mechanism of Figure 7 might be employed with the front opening container of Figures 1 to 3. It will be appreciated that such variations and modification will generally fall within the scope of the present invention, which is defined by the appended claims and their equivalents.

Claims

1. A container for smoking articles, the container being made from moulded plastic and comprising a body for holding smoking articles, a lid for closing the container, the lid being attached to the body by a hinge, and a latch mechanism located on the body and the lid for retaining the container in the closed position, wherein in the closed position, the lid meets the body along a line of closure, the lid and body overlapping along the line of closure to provide an inner wall and an outer wall, the latch mechanism comprising: a recess in the inner wall; an inwardly directed tab attached to the outer wall for engagement with the recess to set the latch mechanism; a flexure comprising one portion of the body adjacent the line of closure, said flexure being partly separated from the remainder of the body to permit inward movement of the flexure with respect to the remainder of the body; and a button located on the flexure to allow a user to push the flexure inward with respect to the remainder of the body to release the latch mechanism.

2. The container of claim 1 , wherein the outer wall with the attached tab is part of the lid, and the inner wall with the recess is part of the body.

3. The container of claim 2, wherein the recess is located on the flexure between the button and the line of closure.

4. The container of claim 3, wherein the flexure comprises a strip that is attached to the body at one end and is separated from the remainder of the body along its sides, and wherein the recess is located at the opposite end of the strip adjacent the line of closure.

5. The container of claim 4, wherein the lid comprises a reduced thickness portion corresponding to the outer wall and a full thickness portion, and wherein said opposite end of the strip is sandwiched between said inwardly directed tab and the full thickness portion of the lid when the lid is closed.

6. The container of any of claims 2 to 5, wherein said recess comprises a hole in the flexure.

7. The container of claim 6, wherein said hole is elongated parallel to the line of closure.

8. The container of any of claims 2 to 7, wherein the container has major front and back faces which are substantially rectangular, said hinge between the body and the lid being located on the back panel and the line of closure being located on the front panel, wherein the latch mechanism is located on the front panel.

9. The container of claim 8, wherein the line of closure is parallel to and below the hinge.

10. The container of claim 1 , wherein the outer wall and with the attached tab is part of the body, and the inner wall with the recess is part of the lid.

11. The container of claim 10, wherein in the closed position, the flexure abuts against the inner wall of the lid.

12. The container of claim 11, wherein the flexure abuts against a portion of the inner wall that extends below the recess.

13. The container of claim 11 or 12, wherein the flexure comprises a strip that is attached to the body at one end away from the line of closure and is separated from the remainder of the body along its sides, wherein the opposite end of the flexure abuts against the inner wall of the lid.

14. The container of claim 13, wherein the button is located between the two ends of said strip.

15. The container of any of claims 10 to 14, wherein said recess comprises a hole in the inner wall.

16. The container of any of claims 10 to 15, wherein said hinge is located along the top of the container such that the lid opens and closes towards a side of the container, wherein the latch mechanism is located on said side of the container.

17. The container of any preceding claim, wherein the lid is biased to open automatically from the closed position when the latch mechanism is released.

18. The container of any preceding claim, housing smoking articles.

19. A container substantially as described herein with reference to the attached drawings.