Carton with article protection features

• Main Authors: Holley John Murdick Jr, Ford Colin P
• Format: Patent
• Language: English
• Published: 23.02.2018
• Subjects: ACCESSORIES, CLOSURES, OR FITTINGS THEREFOR; CONTAINERS FOR STORAGE OR TRANSPORT OF ARTICLES OR MATERIALS,e.g. BAGS, BARRELS, BOTTLES, BOXES, CANS, CARTONS, CRATES,DRUMS, JARS, TANKS, HOPPERS, FORWARDING CONTAINERS; CONVEYING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL; MAKING ARTICLES OF PAPER, CARDBOARD OR MATERIAL WORKED IN A MANNERANALOGOUS TO PAPER; MAKING CONTAINERS OF PAPER, CARDBOARD OR MATERIAL WORKED IN AMANNER ANALOGOUS TO PAPER; PACKAGES; PACKAGING ELEMENTS; PACKING; PERFORMING OPERATIONS; STORING; TRANSPORTING; WORKING PAPER, CARDBOARD OR MATERIAL WORKED IN A MANNER ANALOGOUSTO PAPER

For convenience, beverage containers such as bottles are often transported in cartons. Existing cartons range in material and configuration, and often offer minimal or complex protection to the beverage containers. The present invention addresses this issue by providing cartons with article protection features which are relatively simpler to assemble and which offer better means of protecting the beverage containers. In this respect the present invention provides a carton for holding a plurality of containers, the carton comprising: a plurality of panels that extends at least partially around an interior of the carton, the plurality of panels comprising a top panel; and an insert comprising a central panel, an inner end flap foldably connected to the central panel, and at least one crown guard flap foldably connected to the inner end flap adjacent a crown guard opening in the insert, the central panel comprising a stop edge adjacent the crown guard opening, and the crown guard flap comprising a first portion foldably connected to the inner end flap and a second portion foldably connected to the first portion; wherein the top panel at least partially overlaps the central panel, and the second portion of the crown guard flap is disposed adjacent the stop edge of the central panel. The foldability of the article protection features provide for a more efficient assembly process. Further, the design and configuration provides for a more tailored fit, resulting in relatively better protection to the beverage containers.