EP3294640B1

EP3294640B1 - Rigid pack for tobacco articles with a hinged lid

Info

Publication number: EP3294640B1
Application number: EP16733193.3A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Alver Tacchi; Roberto Polloni; Luca Federici
Original assignee: GD SpA
Current assignee: GD SpA
Priority date: 2015-05-14
Filing date: 2016-05-13
Publication date: 2019-02-27
Anticipated expiration: 2036-05-13
Also published as: EP3294640A1; WO2016181366A1; ZA201707403B; CN107635878A; CN107635878B; PL3294640T3

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to a rigid pack for tobacco articles.
The present invention is advantageously applied to a rigid pack of cigarettes to which the following description will make explicit reference without this implying any loss of generality.

PRIOR ART

A pack of cigarettes (commonly called "shoulder box" and, for example, as described in patent application WO2011072806A1 ), which discloses a pack for tobacco articles according to the preamble of appended claim 1 is known, comprising an outer tray-shaped container which is open at the top and houses a soft wrap which encloses a group of cigarettes normally having two layers of cigarettes overlapping one another, and a lid, which is hinged to the outer container to rotate between a closed position, in which the lid covers the outer container on three sides, and an open position, in which the lid is separated from the outer container to leave free access to the open upper end of the outer container.
A lifter element has been proposed to be used, which, at one end is connected to the soft wrap and, at the opposite end, is glued to the inner surface of the lid; in this way, the lifter element exploits the opening movement of the lid (i.e. the relative movement between the lid and the outer container) to determine an "automatic" lifting of the soft wrap as the lid is opened. In other words, thanks to the lifter element the user manually opens the lid and as the lid is opened the soft wrap is lifted from the outer container, partially protruding from the outer container until reaching a lifted position which facilitates the pulling-out of the cigarettes from the soft wrap.
The known cigarette packs of the type described above have some drawbacks, such as also in the highest lifted position the soft wrap is very (too) close to the outer container (and therefore the pulling-out of the cigarettes from the soft wrap is relatively difficult) and in that when closing the lid the lifter element may jam, thus forcing the user to push the lifter element down in order to close the lid.

DESCRIPTION OF INVENTION

The object of the present invention is to provide a rigid pack for tobacco articles, which is free from the drawbacks described above and, in particular, is simple and inexpensive to manufacture.
According to the present invention a rigid pack for tobacco articles, as claimed in the attached claims is provided.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The present invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, which illustrate some examples of non-limiting embodiments, wherein:

Figure 1 is a front perspective view and in a closed configuration of a rigid pack of cigarettes manufactured according to the present invention;
Figure 2 is a front perspective view and in an open configuration of the rigid pack of cigarettes of Figure 1;
Figure 3 is a schematic view, in side section, and in a closed configuration of the rigid pack of cigarettes of Figure 1;
Figures 4 and 5 are two different views in enlarged scale of corresponding details of Figure 3;
Figure 6 is a schematic, side view partially sectioned and in a partially open configuration of the rigid pack of cigarettes of Figure 1;
Figure 7 is a schematic, side view partially sectioned and in a fully open configuration of the rigid pack of cigarettes of Figure 1;
Figure 8 is a plan view of a blank used to produce an outer container of the rigid pack of cigarettes of Figure 1;
Figure 9 is a plan view of a blank used to produce an inner container of the rigid pack of cigarettes of Figure 1;
Figure 10 is a view in enlarged scale of a detail of an alternative of the rigid pack of cigarettes of Figure 1;
Figure 11 is a plan view of a blank used to produce an inner container of the rigid pack of cigarettes of Figure 10;
Figure 12 is a front perspective view and in a closed configuration of a different embodiment of a rigid pack of cigarettes manufactured according to the present invention;
Figure 13 is a front perspective view and in an open configuration of the rigid pack of cigarettes of Figure 12;
Figure 14 is a schematic, side view partially sectioned and in an open configuration of the rigid pack of cigarettes of Figure 12;
Figure 15 is a perspective view of a soft wrap of the rigid pack of cigarettes of Figure 12;
Figure 16 is a perspective view of a group of cigarettes housed inside the soft wrap of Figure 15;
Figure 17 is a perspective view of a stiffener housed inside the soft wrap of Figure 15;
Figure 18 is a schematic view, in side section and in a closed configuration of the rigid pack of cigarettes of Figure 12;
Figures 19 and 20 are two different views in enlarged scale of corresponding details of Figure 18;
Figure 21 is a front perspective view and in a closed configuration of an alternative of the rigid pack of cigarettes of Figure 12; and
Figure 22 is a schematic, side view partially sectioned and in an open configuration of the rigid pack of cigarettes of Figure 21.

PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION

In Figures 1 and 2 number 1 denotes, as a whole, a pack of cigarettes of the type commonly referred to as "shoulder box".
The pack 1 of cigarettes comprises an outer container 2 of rigid type, made of cardboard or rigid paperboard, which is tray-shaped, is open at the top and houses a soft wrap 3 housing a group 4 of cigarettes (illustrated in Figure 14). The soft wrap 3 is made from a wrapping sheet of metalized paper wrapped around the group 4 of cigarettes and has at the top a tear-off removable portion that is removed the first time the pack 1 of cigarettes is opened to access the underlying cigarettes. Furthermore, the pack 1 of cigarettes comprises a rigid lid 5 that is hinged to the outer container 2 along a hinge 6 to rotate between a closed position (illustrated in Figure 1), in which the lid 5 closes an open upper end 7 of the outer container 2 and surrounds on three sides the outer container 2 itself, and an open position (illustrated in figure 2), in which the lid 5 is lifted (separated) from the outer container 2 in order to allow access to the group of cigarettes 4 through the open upper end 7 of the outer container 2.
As illustrated in Figures 1 and 2, the outer container 2 is parallelepiped box-like shaped (that is, cup-shaped) and has a lower wall 8, which is opposite to the open upper end 7, a front wall 9 and a rear wall 10 parallel and opposite to each other, and two lateral walls 11 parallel to each other and interposed between the walls 9 and 10. Also the lid 5 is parallelepiped box-like shaped (that is, cup-shaped) and has an upper wall 12 which, when the lid 5 is in the closed position, is parallel and opposite to the lower wall 8 of the outer container 2, a front wall 13 which, when the lid 5 is in the closed position, is parallel to and faces the front wall 9 of outer container 2, and two lateral walls 14 parallel to each other that, when the lid 5 is in the closed position, are parallel to and face the corresponding lateral walls 11 of the outer container 2.
The lid 5 is hinged to the outer container 2 by means of the hinge 6 which connects the rear wall 10 of the outer container 2 to the upper wall 12 of the lid 5.
In a different embodiment, not illustrated, of the pack 1 of cigarettes, the hinge 6, which connects the lid 5 to the outer container 2 is arranged in a central or median location of the rear wall 10 so as to divide the wall 10 in two rear half-walls substantially equal and coplanar, when the lid 5 is in the closed position, of which one upper rear half-wall belongs to the lid 5 and one lower rear half-wall belongs to the outer container 2.
As illustrated in Figure 2, a fit-locking system is provided which keeps the lid 5 in the closed position with a given locking force; therefore in order to open the lid 5 it is necessary to apply a force sufficient to overcome the locking force. The locking system comprises a locking tab 15 which protrudes from an upper edge of the front wall 9 of the outer container 2 and a seat 16 that is formed inside the front wall 13 of the lid 5 (i.e. on the inner surface of the front wall 13 of the lid 5). When the lid 5 is in the closed position, the locking tab 15 fits inside the seat 16 by means of elastic deformation; to release the locking tab 15 from the seat 16 it is necessary to elastically deform the locking tab 15 by applying, to the lid 5, an opening force greater than the locking force (equal to the force required to elastically deform the tab 15). As illustrated in Figure 5, the locking tab 15 makes up a continuation, without interruptions, of the front wall 9 of the outer container 2 that is folded by 180° against the outer surface of the front wall 9. Whereas, the seat 16 is made up by folding an abutment tab 17 by 180° against the inner surface of the front wall 13 of the lid 5 which makes up a continuation of the front wall 13 itself; preferably, the abutment tab 17 is glued to the inner surface of the front wall 13 of the lid 5 by means of glue 18.
According to a preferred embodiment illustrated in Figures 1 and 2, the front wall 13 of the lid 5 has a recess 19, which is shaped as a circular sector and is an aid to facilitate gripping and then lifting the lid 5. The recess 19 is made up by means of a through hole which crosses both the front wall 13 of the lid 5 and the abutment tab 17 which is glued to the inner surface of the front wall 13 of the lid 5 (as well illustrated in figure 8).
As illustrated in Figure 2, the pack 1 of cigarettes comprises an inner container 20 of rigid type, made of cardboard or rigid paperboard, which houses the soft wrap 3 and is arranged on the inside of the outer container 2. The inner container 20 is mobile relative to the outer container 2 between a lowered position (illustrated in Figure 1) in which the inner container 20 is fully inserted into the outer container 2, and a lifted position (illustrated in Figure 2) in which the inner container 20 is partially extracted from the outer container 2. In particular, the inner container 20 is hinged to the outer container 2 to rotate relative to outer container 2 between the lowered position (illustrated in Figure 1) and the lifted position (illustrated in Figure 2) around a hinge 21 which is located in the area of an upper edge of the front wall 9 of the outer container 2.
The inner container 20 is parallelepiped box-like shaped (that is, cup-shaped) and has an open end, which, when the inner container 20 is in the lowered position, faces the rear wall 10 of the outer container 2, a front wall 22, which is opposite to the open end and, when the inner container 20 is in the lowered position, is parallel to and faces the front wall 9 of the outer container 2, an upper wall 23 which, when the inner container 20 is in the lowered position, faces the open upper end 7 of the outer container 2, a lower wall 24 which is parallel and opposite to the upper wall 23 and, when the inner container 20 is in the lowered position, is parallel to and faces the lower wall 8 of the outer container 2, and two side walls 25 parallel and opposite to one another that, when the inner container 20 is in the lowered position, are parallel to and face the corresponding lateral walls 11 of the outer container 2.
The upper wall 23 of the inner container 20 has a "U"-shaped window 26 which has the function of facilitating the pulling-out of the cigarettes 3 from the soft wrap.
As illustrated in Figure 5, the inner container 20 is hinged to the outer container 2 by means of a connection tab 27, which is connected to the outer container 2 (in particular, it is seamlessly connected to outer container 2 along the hinge 21) and is glued to the front wall 22 of the inner container 20 (housing the soft wrap 3) by means of glue 28. The connection tab 27 makes up a continuation, without interruptions, of the front wall 9 of the outer container 2, is arranged on the opposite side relative to the locking tab 15, and is folded by 180° against the inner surface of the front wall 9 of the outer container 2 along the hinge 21.
Finally, as illustrated in Figure 2, the pack 1 of cigarettes comprises a lifter element 29, which at one end is mechanically connected to the inner container 20 bearing the soft wrap 3 and, at the opposite end, is mechanically connected (glued) to an inner surface of the upper wall 12 of the lid 5; in this way, the lifter element 29 exploits the opening movement of the lid 5 (i.e. the relative movement between the lid 5 and the outer container 2) to determine an "automatic" lifting of the inner container 20 bearing the soft wrap 3 as the lid is opened. In other words, thanks to the lifter element 29 the user manually opens the lid 5 and, as the lid 5 is opened, the container 20 bearing the inner soft wrap 3 is lifted from the outer container 2 partially protruding from the outer container 2 until reaching a lifted position which facilitates the pulling-out of the cigarettes from the soft wrap 3.
As illustrated in Figures 2-4 and 6-7, the lifter element 29 makes up a continuation, without interruptions, of the lower wall 24 of the inner container 20 and is glued to the inner surface of the upper wall 12 of the lid 5 by means of glue 30 (illustrated in figures 3 and 4); in other words, from the outset, the lifter element 29 is an integral part of the inner container 20 and is subsequently bound (glued) to the inner surface of the upper wall 12 of the lid 5 by means of glue 30 (illustrated in Figures 3 and 4).
As illustrated in Figures 3 and 4, in the lowered position of the inner container 20 (i.e. when the lid 5 is in the closed position), the lifter element 29 is "U"-folded around the inner container 20 (in particular around part of the lower wall 24 of the inner container 20, around the entire open end of the inner container 20, and around part of the upper wall 23 of the inner container 20). As illustrated in Figures 6 and 7, in the lifted position of the inner container 20 (i.e. when the lid 5 is in the open position), the lifter element 29 stretches, thus moving away from the inner container 20.
According to a preferred embodiment, the lifter element 29 has four folding lines 31, 32, 33 and 34, which are parallel and are arranged spaced apart one with respect to the other. The folding line 31 separates the lifter element 29 from the remaining part of the lower wall 24 of the inner container 20 allowing the lifter element 29 to be inclined relative to the lower wall 24. Between the folding line 31 and the folding line 32 a panel 35 of the lifter element 29 is defined.
Between the folding line 32 and the folding line 33 a panel 36 of the lifter element 29 is defined. Between the folding line 33 and the folding line 34 a panel 37 of the lifter element 29 is defined. Downstream of the folding line 34 a panel 38 of the lifter element 29 is defined, which panel 38 is glued to the inner surface of the upper wall 12 of the lid 5 by means of glue 30 (illustrated in Figures 3 and 4). The panels 36 and 37 of the lifter element 29 have the same size, whereas the panel 35 is larger than the panels 36 and 37. Namely the panels 36 and 37 of the lifter element 29 have the same longitudinal size, while the panel 35 is axially larger (extended) than the panels 36 and 37.
As illustrated in Figures 3 and 4, in the lowered position of the inner container 20 (i.e. when the lid 5 is in the closed position), the panel 37 of the lifter element 29 is parallel to and spaced apart from the rear wall 10 of the outer container 2 so that between the panel 37 of the lifter element 29 and the rear wall 10 of the outer container 2 there is an empty space 39a, 39a i.e. a free space without content. As illustrated in Figures 3 and 4, in the lowered position of the inner container 20 (i.e. when the lid 5 is in the closed position), the lifter element 37 of the panel 29 is parallel to and spaced apart from the open end of the inner container 20 (i.e. from rear wall of the soft wrap 3) so that between the panel 37 of the lifter element 29 and the open end of the inner container 20 (i.e. the rear wall of the soft wrap 3) there is an empty space 39b, i.e. a free space 39b without content.
The empty spaces 39a and 39b must be of a sufficient size for allowing the lifter element 29 to deform freely (i.e. to move without "colliding" against other elements) within the empty spaces 39a and 39b. Preferably, the distance between the panel 37 of the lifter element 29 and the rear wall 10 of the outer container 2 is equal to at least 30% of the thickness of the outer container 2 (measured between the open upper end 7 and the lower wall 8 of the outer container 2). Preferably, the distance between the panel 37 of the lifter element 29 and the open end of the inner container 20 (i.e. the rear wall of the soft wrap 3) is equal to at least 20% of the thickness of the outer container 2 (measured between the open upper end 7 and the lower wall 8 of the outer container 2).
As illustrated in Figures 3 and 4, in the lowered position of the inner container 20 (i.e. when the lid 5 is in the closed position), the lifter element 29 (in particular the panel 37 of the lifter element 29) is arranged in an intermediate position between the open end of the inner container 20 (i.e. between the rear wall of the soft wrap 3) and the rear wall 10 of outer container 2; in other words, the lifter element 29 (in particular the panel 37 of the lifter element 29) is spaced apart both from the open end of the inner container 20 (i.e. from the rear wall of the soft wrap 3) and from the rear wall 10 of the outer container 2 (and generally closer to the open end of the inner container 20 and farther from the rear wall 10 of the outer container 2).
The above described conformation of the lifter element 29 is particularly advantageous, since it allows to optimize the action of the lifter element 29 both during the opening of the lid 5, and during the closing of the lid 5; in particular, the movements of the lifter element 29 (and therefore of the lid 5) are particularly smooth and free of jamming, and at the same time it is possible to obtain a significant lifting of the inner container 20 (as illustrated in Figures 2 and 7, in the completely open position, the inner container 20 is almost completely extracted from the outer container 2, due to a rotation of about 25° of the inner container 20 around the hinge 21) so that the upper end of the inner container 20 is spaced apart from the outer container 2 and therefore the group 4 of cigarettes is easily accessible.
The outer container 2 and the lid 5 illustrated in Figures 1 and 2 are obtained from a single blank 40 illustrated in Figure 8 and comprising a plurality of panels, which will be marked with accented reference number equal to the reference numbers that distinguish the corresponding walls of the outer container 2 and of the lid 5.
With reference to Figure 8, the blank 40 has two longitudinal weakening lines 41 and a plurality of transverse weakening lines 42, which define, between the two longitudinal weakening lines 41, a panel 27' which makes up the connection tab 27 (inside the panel 27' a panel 15', that makes up the locking tab 15, is obtained by means of a cut), a panel 9' which makes up the front wall 9 of outer container 2, a panel 8' which makes up the lower wall 8 of the container 2, a panel 10' which makes up the rear wall 10 of the outer container 2, a panel 12' which makes up the upper wall 12 of the lid 5, a panel 13' which makes up the front wall 13 of the lid 5, and a panel 17' which makes up the abutment tab 17.
The blank 40 comprises a pair of fins 11', which are arranged on opposite sides of the panel 8, are connected to the panel 8' by longitudinal weakening lines 41, and each one makes up an outer part of a side wall 11 of the outer container 2. The blank 40 comprises a pair of fins 11", which are arranged on opposite sides of the fins 11', are connected to the fins 11' by further longitudinal weakening lines 41, and each one makes up an inner part of a side wall 11 of the outer container 2. Each fin 11' comprises a corresponding tab 44, which is folded by 90° relative to the fin 11' and is glued to the panel 9' . Furthermore, each fin 11' comprises a corresponding tab 45, which is arranged on the opposite side of the tab 44 and is folded by 90° relative to the fin 11' and is glued to the panel 10'.
The blank 40 comprises a pair of fins 14', which are arranged on opposite sides of the panel 12', are connected to the panel 12' by longitudinal weakening lines 41, and each one makes up an outer part of a side wall 14 of the lid 5. The blank 40 comprises a pair of fins 14", which are arranged on opposite sides of the fins 14', are connected to the fins 14' by further longitudinal weakening lines 41, and each one makes up an inner part of a side wall 14 of the lid 5. Each fin 14' comprises a corresponding tab 43, which is folded by 90° relative to the fin 14' and is glued to panel 13'.
The inner container 20 illustrated in Figure 2 is obtained from a blank 46 illustrated in Figure 9 and comprising a plurality of panels, which will be marked with accented reference numbers equal to the reference numbers that distinguish the corresponding walls of the inner container 20.
With reference to Figure 9, the blank 40 has two longitudinal weakening lines 47 and a plurality of transverse weakening lines 48, which define, between the two longitudinal weakening lines 47, a panel 24' which makes up the lower wall 24 of the inner container 20, a panel 22' that makes up the front wall 22 of the inner container 20 and a panel 23' which makes up the upper wall 23 of the inner container 20. To the panel 24' the panels 35, 36 37 and 38, that make up the lifter element 29, are connected.
The blank 46 comprises a pair of tabs 25', which are arranged on opposite sides of the panel 23', are connected to the panel 23' by longitudinal weakening lines 47, and each one makes up an outer part of a side wall 25 of the inner container 20. The blank 46 comprises a pair of fins 25", which are arranged on opposite sides of the panel 24', are connected to the panel 24' by longitudinal weakening lines 47, and each one makes an inner part of a side wall 25 of the inner container 20. Each fin 25" comprises a corresponding tab 49, which is folded by 90° relative to the fin 25" and is glued to panel 22'.
In the embodiment illustrated in Figures 3 and 5, the connection tab 27 is part of the outer container 2 (in particular is seamlessly connected to the outer container 2 along the hinge 21) and is glued to the front wall 22 of the inner container 20 (housing the soft wrap 3) by means of glue 28. As better illustrated figure 8, the connection tab 27 makes up a continuation, without interruptions, of the front wall 9 of the outer container 2, is arranged on the side opposite to the locking tab 15, and is folded by 180° against the inner surface of the front wall 9 of the outer container 2 along the hinge 21.
In the alternative embodiment illustrated in Figure 10, the connection tab 27 is part of the inner container 20 (in particular is seamlessly connected to the inner container 20 along the hinge 21) and is glued to the front wall 9 of the outer container 2 by means of glue 28. As better illustrated in figure 11, the connection tab 27 is made up within the front wall 22 of the inner container 20 by means of a "U"-shaped incision and is hinged to the inner container 20 in the area of the transverse edge between the front wall 22 and the upper wall 23.
In the embodiment illustrated in Figures 9 and 11, the fins 25' are wider (deeper) than the fins 25" so that the ends of the fins 25' protrude from the lower wall 24 of the inner container 20; in other words, the fins 25' are wider (deeper) than the side walls 25 of the inner container 20 so that the ends of the fins 25' protrude from the lower wall 24 of the inner container 20. This solution allows to "lift" the inner container 20 relative to the underlying lower wall 8 of the outer container 2 and inside the outer container 2, so that the upper wall 23 of the inner container 20 is substantially in contact with the wall 12 of the lid 5 when the lid 5 is in the closed position (i.e. the ends of the fins 25' protrude from the lower wall 24 of the inner container 20 thus lifting the lower wall 24 of the inner container 20 relative to the underlying lower wall 8 of the outer container 2); in this way, it is possible to better adhere the upper wall 12 of the lid 5 to the panel 38 of the lifter element 29 by means of glue 30. In fact, when the upper wall 23 of the inner container 20 is substantially in contact with the upper wall 12 of the lid 5, then the upper wall 23 of the inner container 20 provides an adequate contrast that allows to apply a sufficiently high pressure between the upper wall 12 of the lid 5 and the panel 38 of the lifter element 29 by pressing from the outside on the upper wall 12 of the lid 5; in this way, it is possible to optimally adhere glue 30 to both the upper wall 12 of the lid 5, and to the panel 38 of the lifter element 29.
According to an alternative embodiment, in order to "lift" the inner container 20 inside the outer container 2 so that the upper wall 23 of the inner container 20 is substantially in contact with the upper wall 12 of the lid 5, when lid 5 is in the closed position, it is possible to form extensions (at least two) on the lower wall 24 of the inner container 20; said extensions are formed by means of corresponding "u"-shaped incisions through the lower wall 24 of the inner container 20 and are folded by 90° relative to the lower wall 24 of the inner container 20 so as to make up "legs" that lift the lower wall 24 of the inner container 20 relative to the underlying lower wall 8 of the outer container 2.
According to a different embodiment not illustrated, the fins 25' have the same width (depth, size) of the fins 25" and therefore the ends of the fins 25' do not protrude from the lower wall 24 of the inner container 20 (i.e. flush with the lower wall 24 of the inner container 20).
In Figures 12, 13 and 14 a different embodiment of the pack 1 of cigarettes described above is illustrated.
The pack 1 of cigarettes illustrated in Figures 12, 13 and 14 differs from pack 1 of cigarettes illustrated in Figures 1 and 2 for the absence of the inner container 20 and for the (completely) different conformation of the lifter element 29. In the pack 1 of cigarettes illustrated in Figures 12 and 13, the soft wrap 3 is inserted into the outer container 2 in direct contact with the outer container 2 (that is, without the interposition of the inner container 20 which, in this embodiment, is completely absent); accordingly, the walls of the soft wrap 3 touch directly the corresponding walls of the outer container 2 and the front wall of the soft wrap 3 is glued to the connection tab 25 by means of glue 28 (Figure 20) .
As illustrated in Figure 15, the soft wrap 3 is sealed and has a pull-out opening 49 for the cigarettes; the pull-out opening 49 for the cigarettes is centrally arranged, it is closed by an "open & close" sealing panel 50 and affects a portion of an upper wall of the soft wrap 3 and a portion of a rear wall of the soft wrap 3. The sealing panel 50 normally adheres to the part of the soft wrap 3 arranged around the pull-out opening 49 to close (seal) the pull-out opening 49 itself and may be partially and temporarily lifted to free the pull-out opening 49, and therefore allow the pulling-out of a cigarette through the pull-out opening 49.
As illustrated in Figure 17, the soft wrap 3 comprises a stiffener 51, which is made of cardboard or rigid paperboard (quite similar to the cardboard or rigid paperboard making the outer container 2), is "U"-shaped and is arranged inside the soft wrap 3 in contact with the group 4 of cigarettes (illustrated in figure 16). The stiffener 51 comprises a front wall 52 substantially rectangular-shaped, which is arranged in contact with a front wall of the group 4 of cigarettes and a pair of side walls 53, which are connected to opposite sides of the front wall 52 and are arranged in contact with the side walls of the group 4 of cigarettes. The front wall 52 has a window 54 which is "U"-shaped and facilitates the pulling-out of the cigarettes from the group 4 of cigarettes.
The function of the stiffener 51 is to confer greater rigidity and greater shape stability to the soft wrap 3 so as to prevent the soft wrap 3 from collapsing upon itself after removing a part of the cigarettes housed inside the soft wrap 3 making the pulling-out of the remaining cigarettes complicated and, in particular, making the opening and the subsequent closing of the sealing panel 50 extremely complicated. An additional function of the stiffener 51 is to provide a mechanical protection for the cigarettes when forming and manipulating the soft wrap 3.
The soft wrap 3 is obtained by folding a heat-sealable wrapping sheet, which is rectangular-shaped, is folded around the group of cigarettes 4 enclosed in the stiffener 51 and once folded is stabilized by heat sealing (i.e. overlapping portions of the wrapping sheet are connected together in a stable manner by means of heat sealing). The wrapping sheet has a "U"-shaped incision 55 which defines the pull-out opening 49. Furthermore, the sealing panel 50 is glued to the wrapping sheet which is rectangular-shaped and completely covers the incision 55 (i.e. the pull-out opening 49). Between the sealing panel 50 and the wrapping sheet a repositionable glue 56 (illustrated in Figures 17 and 18) pressure-sensitive (i.e. that does not dry) is interposed, which allows, even a long time after, to separate the sealing panel 50 from the wrapping sheet and then to re-assemble the sealing panel 50 to the wrapping sheet for a great number of times.
The presence of the pressure-sensitive repositionable glue 56 (i.e. that does not dry) between the sealing panel 50 and the wrapping sheet determines a temporary gluing (that is, that in use is separated) between the portion of the wrapping sheet surrounding the incision 55 (that is, surrounding the pull-out opening 49) and the sealing panel 50 so as to normally keep the sealing panel 50 in contact with the wrapping sheet to close (seal) the pull-out opening 49. Moreover, the presence of the pressure-sensitive repositionable glue 56 (i.e. that does not dry) between the sealing panel 50 and the wrapping sheet determines the functionally permanent gluing (that is, that also in use is never separated) of the portion of the wrapping sheet enclosed within the incision 55 (i.e. in the area of the pull-out opening 49) to the sealing panel 50; therefore, when the sealing panel 50 is lifted from the wrapping sheet the portion of the sealing panel 50 enclosed within the incision 55 (i.e. in the area of the pull-out opening 49) is lifted together with the sealing panel 50 thus freeing the pull-out opening 49. Obviously, it is also possible to use the non-detachable permanent glue (i.e. that dries) which is interposed between the sealing panel 50 and the wrapping sheet within the incision 55 (i.e. in the area of the pull-out opening 49) in order to strengthen the mechanical bond between these two parts.
As illustrated in Figure 15, the sealing panel 50 is provided with a connection tab 57, which is without pressure-sensitive repositionable glue 56 (i.e. which does not dry) on the side facing the wrapping sheet (that is, on the surface facing the wrapping sheet) and is located close to the pull-out opening 49 and below the pull-out opening 49 itself. The connection tab 57 is in no way fixed to the wrapping sheet in contrast to the rest of the sealing panel 50 and is bound (glued) to the inner surface of the upper wall 12 of the lid 5 by means of glue 30 (illustrated in Figures 18 and 19).
When the lid 5 is opened (that is, is separated from the outer container 2), the lid 5 pulls, inevitably, along with it also the connection tab 57 that is bound (glued) to the inner surface of the upper wall 12 of the lid 5 by means of glue 30; accordingly, the opening of the lid 5 determines a separation between the sealing panel 50 (to which the connection tab 57 belongs) and the rest of the soft wrap 3 by determining an uncovering of the pull-out opening 49. In other words, the opening of the lid 5 determines an "automatic" opening of the sealing panel 50. At the same time, when the lid 5 is opened (that is, is separated from the outer container 2), the lid 5 pulls, inevitably, along with it also the connection tab 57 that is bound (glued) to the inner surface of the upper wall 12 of the lid 5 by means of glue 30; accordingly, the opening of the lid 5 causes a lifting of the soft wrap 3 relative to the outer container 2, i.e. the sealing panel 50 (to which the connection tab 57 belongs) also acts as a lifter element. In other words, in the pack 1 of cigarettes illustrated in Figures 13 and 14, the lifter element function is carried out by the sealing panel 50 (to which belongs the connection tab 57, that is bound to the inner surface of upper wall 12 of the lid 5 by means of glue 30).
As illustrated in Figures 18 and 19, the sealing panel 50 has a separating portion without glues and is interposed between the glue 30 that binds (permanently) the connection tab 57 of the sealing panel 50 to the lid 5 and the repositionable glue 56 that binds (in a releasable manner) the sealing panel 50 to the underlying wrapping sheet; the function of the detaching section is to facilitate the deformation of the sealing panel 50 when the opening of the lid 5 starts, allowing an easier peeling of the repositionable glue 56, i.e. the function of the detaching section is to allow to peel the repositionable glue 56 with a reduced peeling force and therefore with less risk of breaking the link generated by glue 30.
As illustrated in Figures 18 and 19, in a lowered position of the soft wrap 3 (i.e. when the lid 5 is in the closed position) a part of the sealing panel 50 (which makes up the lifter element) is parallel to and spaced apart from the rear wall 10 of the outer container 2 so that between the sealing panel 50 (which makes up the lifter element) and the rear wall 10 of the outer container 2 there is an empty space 39a. As illustrated in Figures 18 and 19, in the lowered position of the soft wrap 3 (i.e. when the lid 5 is in the closed position) the sealing panel 50 (which makes up the lifter element) adheres to the soft wrap 3 and therefore there is no empty space 39b between the sealing panel 50 (which makes up the lifter element) and the rear wall of the soft wrap 3.
The empty space 39a must be of sufficient size to allow the sealing panel 50 (which makes up the lifter element) to deform freely (i.e. to move without "colliding" against other elements) within the empty space 39a itself. Preferably, the distance between the sealing panel 50 (which makes up the lifter element), i.e. the rear wall of the soft wrap 3 to which the panel 50 adheres, and the rear wall 10 of the outer container 2 is equal to at least 40% of the thickness of the outer container 2 (measured between the open upper end 7 and the lower wall 8 of the outer container 2).
In Figures 21 and 22 an alternative of the pack 1 of cigarettes illustrated in Figures 10 and 11, which differs from pack 1 of cigarettes illustrated in Figures 10 and 11 only for the smaller size in length (and possibly in thickness) of the group 4 of cigarettes, is illustrated. In particular, the pack 1 of cigarettes illustrated in Figures 21 and 22 is suitable to house a group 4 new generation cigarettes without tobacco combustion which have a reduced length with respect to traditional cigarettes.
Summarizing what has been described above, the connection tab 27 is glued directly or indirectly to the front wall of the soft wrap 3 by means of glue 28, i.e. the connection tab 27 can be glued to the front wall 22 of the inner container 20 housing the soft wrap 3 (and thus be indirectly glued to the front wall of the soft wrap 3 which is integral with the inner container 20) as in the embodiments illustrated in figures 1-11, or it can be glued to the front wall of the soft wrap 3 (and therefore be directly glued to the front wall of the soft wrap 3) as in the embodiments illustrated in figures 12-22.
In the embodiments illustrated in the attached figures all the edges of the outer container 2, of the inner container 20, and of the lid 5 are straight; according to alternatives not illustrated at least part of the longitudinal edges and/or of the transverse edges are bevelled or rounded.
The pack 1 of cigarettes described above has numerous advantages.
In the first place, in the pack 1 of cigarettes described above the action of the lifter element is optimized both during opening of the lid 5, and during closing of the lid 5; in particular, the movements of the lifter element (and therefore of the lid 5) are particularly smooth and free from jamming, and at the same time it is possible to obtain a significant lifting of the soft wrap 3 (housed or not housed inside the inner container 20).
Also, the pack 1 of cigarettes described above can be manufactured in a very fast and inexpensive way, as, compared to a similar known pack of cigarettes features, it has simple and quickly implementable changes.
The embodiment illustrated in the accompanying figures refers to the manufacturing of a pack of cigarettes, but the present invention is also applicable without substantial changes to the manufacturing of any other type of pack of tobacco articles (for example, a pack of cigars, a pack of liquid vaporizing type electronic cigarettes, pack of new generation cigarettes without tobacco combustion...).

Claims

A pack (1) for tobacco articles comprising:
an outer container (2), which has the shape of a parallelepiped and has an open upper end (7), a lower wall (8), which is opposite to the open upper end (7), a front wall (9) and a rear wall (10) which are parallel and opposite to one another, and two lateral walls (11), which are parallel and opposite to one another;

a lid (5), which is hinged to the outer container (2) by means of a first hinge (6) located in the area of the rear wall (10) of the outer container (2), has the shape of a parallelepiped, and has an upper wall (12), which, when the lid (7) is in a closed position, is parallel and opposite to the lower wall (8) of the outer container (2), a front wall (13), which, when the lid (5) is in the closed position, is parallel to and faces the corresponding front wall (9) of the outer container (2), and two lateral walls (14), which, when the lid (5) is in the closed position, are parallel to and face the corresponding lateral walls (11) of the outer container (2);

a soft wrap (3), which contains a group (4) of tobacco articles and is housed in the outer container (2); and

a lifter element (29), which, at one end is connected to the soft wrap (3) and, at the opposite end, is glued to an inner surface of the upper wall (12) of the lid (5) by means of a first glue (30) so as to cause the soft wrap (3) to be lifted as the lid (5) is opened, thus using the opening movement of the lid (5);

the pack (1) for tobacco articles is characterized in that:
when the lid (5) is in the closed position, a part (37) of the lifter element (29) is parallel to and spaced apart from the rear wall (10) of the outer container (2), so that, between the lifter element (29) and the rear wall (10) of the outer container (2), there is a first empty space (39a); and

the soft wrap (3) is hinged to the outer container (2) by means of a connection tab (27), which binds directly or indirectly the soft wrap (3) to the outer container (2) and rotates around a second hinge (21) parallel to the first hinge (6) .
The pack (1) for tobacco articles according to claim 1, wherein:
when the lid (5) is in the closed position, the distance between the lifter element (29) and the rear wall (10) of the outer container (2) is equal to at least 40% of the thickness of the outer container (2) measured between the open upper end (7) and the lower wall (8) of the outer container (2); and when the lid (5) is in the closed position, the lifter element (29) adheres to the soft wrap (3).
The pack (1) for tobacco articles according to claim 1, wherein, when the lid (5) is in the closed position, a part (37) of the lifter element (29) is parallel to and spaced apart from the rear wall of the soft wrap (3), so that, between the lifter element (29) and the rear wall of the soft wrap (3), there is a second empty space (39b).
The pack (1) for tobacco articles according to claim 3, wherein, when the lid (5) is in the closed position, the distance between the lifter element (29) and the rear wall of the soft wrap (3) is equal to at least 20% of the thickness of the outer container (2) measured between the open upper end (7) and the lower wall (8) of the outer container (2).
The pack (1) for tobacco articles according to claim 3 or 4, wherein, when the lid (5) is in the closed position, the lifter element (29) is in an intermediate position between the rear wall of the soft wrap (3) and the rear wall (10) of the outer container (2), so that the lifter element (29) is spaced apart both from the rear wall of the soft wrap (3) and from the rear wall (10) of the outer container (2).
The pack (1) for tobacco articles according to claim 5, wherein, when the lid (5) is in the closed position, the lifter element (29) is closer to the rear wall of the soft wrap (3) and farther from the rear wall (10) of the outer container (2).
The pack (1) for tobacco articles according to one of the claims from 1 to 6, wherein the connection tab (27) makes up a continuation, without interruptions, of the front wall (9) of the outer container (2), is folded by 180° against an inner surface (9) of the front wall (9) of the outer container (2) along the second hinge (21), and is directly or indirectly glued to a front wall of the soft wrap (3) by means of a second glue (28).
The pack (1) for tobacco articles according to any of the claims from 1 to 7 and comprising an inner container (20), which houses the soft wrap (3), is arranged on the inside of the outer container (2), and has an open end, which, when the inner container (20) is in a lowered position, faces the rear wall (10) of the outer container (2), a front wall (22), which is opposite to the open end and, when the inner container (20) is in the lowered position, is parallel to and faces the front wall (9) of the outer container (2), an upper wall (23), which, when the inner container (20) is in the lowered position, faces the open upper end (7) of the outer container (2), a lower wall (24), which is parallel and opposite to the upper wall (23) and, when the inner container (20) is in the lowered position, is parallel to and faces the lower wall (8) of the outer container (2), and two parallel lateral walls (25), which, when the inner container (20) is in the lowered position, are parallel and face the corresponding lateral walls (11) of the outer container (2).
The pack (1) for tobacco articles according to claim 8, wherein the inner container (20) housing the soft wrap (3) is hinged to the outer container (2) by means of the connection tab (27), which is connected to the outer container (2) along the second hinge (21) and is glued to the front wall (22) of the inner container (20) housing the soft wrap (3) by means of the second glue (28).
The pack (1) for tobacco articles according to claim 8, wherein the inner container (20) housing the soft wrap (3) is hinged to the outer container (2) by means of the connection tab (27), which is connected to the inner container (20) housing the soft wrap (3) along the second hinge (21) and is glued to the front wall (9) of the outer container (2) by means of the second glue (28).
The pack (1) for tobacco articles according to claim 8, 9 or 10, wherein the upper wall (23) of the inner container (20) has a "U"-shaped window (26).
The pack (1) for tobacco articles according to any of the claims from 8 to 11, wherein the lifter element (29) makes up a continuation, without interruptions, of the of the lower wall (24) of the inner container (20).
The pack (1) for tobacco articles according to claim 12, wherein:
when the lid (5) is in the closed position, the lifter element (29) is "U"-folded around the inner container (20); and

when the lid (5) is in an open position, the lifter element (29) stretches, thus moving away from the inner container (20) .
The pack (1) for tobacco articles according to claim 12 or 13, wherein:
the lifter element (29) has four folding lines (31, 32, 33, 34), which are parallel to one another and are all spaced apart from one another;

a first folding line (31) separates the lifter element (29) from the remaining part of the lower wall (24) of the inner container (20), thus allowing the lifter element (29) to be inclined relative to the lower wall (24) itself;

between the first folding line (31) and a second folding line (32) a first panel (35) of the lifter element (29) is defined;

between the second folding line (32) and a third folding line (33) a second panel (36) of the lifter element (29) is defined;

between the third folding line (33) and a fourth folding line (34) a third panel (37) of the lifter element (29) is defined; and

downstream of the fourth folding line (34) a fourth panel (38) of the lifter element (29) is defined, said fourth panel (38) being glued to the inner surface of the upper wall (12) of the lid (5) by means of the first glue (30).
The pack (1) for tobacco articles according to claim 14, wherein:
the second panel (36) and the third panel of the lifter element (29) have the same size; and

the first panel (35) of the lifter element (29) is larger than the second panel (36) and the third panel (37).
The pack (1) for tobacco articles according to any of the claims from 8 to 15, wherein:
each lateral wall (25) of the inner container (20) is made up by two overlapped and glued fins (25', 25"); and

in each lateral wall (25) of the inner container (20) an outer fin (25') is larger than an inner fin (25") so as to have an end protruding from the lower wall (24) of the inner container (20) and therefore lift the lower wall (24) of the inner container (20) relative to the lower wall (8) of the outer container (2).
The pack (1) for tobacco articles according to any of the claims from 8 to 15, wherein the lower wall (24) of the inner container (20) comprises extensions which are folded by 90° relative to the lower wall (24) and which lift the lower wall (24) of the inner container (20) relative to the lower wall (8) of the outer container (2).
The pack (1) for tobacco articles according to any of the claims from 1 to 8, wherein:
the soft wrap (3) is inserted into the outer container (2) in direct contact with the outer container (2);

the soft wrap (3), has a pull-out opening (49) for the tobacco articles, which is closed by an "open & close" sealing panel (50) ;

the sealing panel (50) normally adheres to the part of the soft wrap (3) arranged around the pull-out opening (49) by means of a pressure-sensitive repositionable glue (56); and

the sealing panel (50) is provided with a connection tab (57), which has no repositionable glue (56), is located close to the pull-out opening (49), and is glued to the inner surface of the upper wall (12) of the lid (5) by means of the first glue (30) so that the sealing panel (50) also makes up the lifter element.
The pack (1) for tobacco articles according to claim 18, wherein the connection tab (27) makes up a continuation, without interruptions, of the front wall (9) of the outer container (2), is folded by 180° against an inner surface of the front wall (9) of the outer container (2) along the second hinge (21), and is glued to a front wall of the soft wrap (3) by means of a second glue (28).