GB2391795A

GB2391795A - A cardboard or semi-rigid material display with edge protecting strips

Info

Publication number: GB2391795A
Application number: GB0220207A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Stephen James Pointon
Original assignee: SCA Packaging Ltd
Current assignee: SCA Packaging Ltd
Priority date: 2002-08-30
Filing date: 2002-08-30
Publication date: 2004-02-18
Anticipated expiration: 2022-08-30
Also published as: GB0220207D0; GB2391795B

Abstract

A display unit 1 constructed of single or multiply cardboard 29a, 29b, corrugated board or other semi-rigid material, having strips 16 for protecting the free edges 27. The section of the strip 16 is in the form of a channel 26 that has a base 24 and walls 20, 22. It can be secured to the edge with the aid of lips 30 and a foam backed adhesive tape 34 secured to the base 24 of the channel. Another type of strip 18 having longer walls 46, 48, is provided for the base of the display and is flexible to lateral deflection so it can be bent or folded at the corners of the display in order to provide a continuous watertight protection. The strips 16, 18, can alternatively be attached by means of protrusions that engage with the flutes in the corrugated board, in which case they may not necessarily have a channel section.

Description

239 1 795

Display Unit 5 The present invention relates to a display unit constructed from cardboard, corrugated board or other semi-rigid material. More particularly, but not exclusively, the present invention relates to a point of sale display unit 10 It is known to provide point of sale display units to display confectionery and other food and drinks products, as well as non-food products, in a visually attractive manner to customers. Display units of this type are typically constructed from corrugated board as 15 this may provide a relatively lightweight but rigid structure. Other display units may be used for example as advertising units, for example in cinema foyers, where they may merely display just a graphical image, or include pockets for containing promotional literature, 20 for example.

However, in the present case the Applicant has recognized certain limitations associated with these known display units. In particular, the edges of the display units tend to become scuffed and damaged in use 25 and this detracts from their overall appearance and may also shorten their operational lifespan. Moreover, if the display unit is constructed from corrugated board, an open edge will reveal the internal flutes in the board and this may be considered to be unattractive by 30 customers.

To address these problems, the present invention provides a display unit constructed from a cardboard, corrugated board, or other semi-rigid material, said display unit having at least one edge, and having a 35 protective strip provided along at least a portion of said edge.

The protective strip helps to protect the edge from

- 2 - damage and thus improves the durability of the display unit so that it may be used as a semi-rigid fixture having a life span of up to 6 months, for example. The protective strip may also advantageously increase the 5 rigidity of the display unit and improve the overall appearance thereof.

Preferably the protective strip is provided with a channel for receiving the edge of the display unit.

The strip may be configured so as to retain itself 10 on the edge. For example it may have one or more walls or formations which grip the edge. For example where the strip is provided with a channel, at least one of the walls of the channel, or a part thereof may be resilient so as to grip the edge.

IS Preferably, however, the protective strip is retained in position using adhesive. The adhesive may be applied between the strip and the display at the time of erection, but preferably it is pre-applied to one of the components, most preferably the strip. An adhesive 20 tape can be used for this purpose.

In the preferred embodiment, an adhesive tape is affixed in a or the channel, most preferably the base of the channel, of the protective strip.

Preferably a foam or other resilient deformable 25 material is interposed between the strip and the edge to accommodate any unevenness in the edge. Most preferably, therefore, the strip is attached to the edge by a foam backed adhesive tape.

A further problem with existing display units is 30 that they tend to absorb water at their bases, for example when the surrounding floor is being cleaned.

The absorption of water can damage the units and render them unattractive. Thus, the life span of the units may be further reduced.

35 The protective strip of the invention can also protect the edges of the display unit against the absorption of water into the sheet material, thereby

- 3 - increasing further the longevity of the display unit.

Viewed from a further aspect, therefore, the present invention provides a display unit constructed from a corrugated board, cardboard or other similar 5 material, said display unit having a base with at least one edge, a water resistant protective strip being provided along at least a portion of said edge.

Preferably, therefore, the strip is made of a waterproof or water resistant material.

10 The protective strip is preferably made from a plastics material. Preferably, the protective strip is extruded. The strip may be configured so as to facilitate its location on the edge. For example a wall of the strip 15 may be flared to assist in locating the protective strip in position.

In cross-section, the protective strip may have an outer surface which is convex to facilitate more readily the application of pressure to the protective strip to 20 locate it in position.

Where the protective strip is to be provided around the base of the display unit, the bottom surface of the strip is preferably flat to improve stability of the unit. 25 Although the protective strip may be preformed to a particular shape, for example to match the profile of a free edge, it is preferably flexible to facilitate mounting on a range of different profiles.

When, for example, the protective strip is to be 30 provided on the free edge of a panel which is not to be folded, the flexibility of the protective strip in the plane of the sheet material making up the panel may be chosen to be greater than the flexibility of the protective strip in the plane perpendicular to the 35 first plane. This arrangement improves the rigidity of the protective strip and the display unit in the plane perpendicular to the plane of the sheet material, whilst

- 4 - facilitating bending of the protective strip to match free edges having a curved profile.

In arrangements where the protective strip extends across a fold line, however, the strip is preferably 5 sufficiently flexible to facilitate folding about the associated fold line while it is in position. Most preferably the protective strip is such that it may be folded through substantially 180 to allow it to be retained in position when the panel(s) are folded over 10 on themselves, for example, during transit, prior to erection. The display unit is preferably a point of sale display unit for displaying confectionery, food and drink products, or non-food products, in a retail 15 outlet. However, it can equally take other forms, for example an advertisement unit displaying a graphical image which need not be adapted to hold a product.

Viewed from a still further aspect, the present invention provides a method of manufacturing or erecting 20 a display unit made from a cardboard, corrugated board sheet or other semi rigid material, comprising the step of locating a protective strip on an edge thereof.

A preferred embodiment of the present invention will now be described by way of example only and with 25 reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 shows a perspective view of a display unit having first and second protective strips in accordance with the present invention; Figure 2 shows a perspective view of the underside 30 of the rear of the display unit of Figure 1; Figure 3 shows a perspective view of a first protective strip; and Figure 4 shows a perspective view of a second protective strip.

35 A point of sale display unit 1 having left and right side panels 2, 4, a front panel 6, a back panel 8, and first, second and third shelves 10, 12, 14 is shown

in Figures 1 and 2. A first protective strip 16 is provided along the front edges of the side panels 2, 4 and the shelves 10, 12, 14. A second protective strip 18 is provided along the lower edges of the side and 5 rear panels 2, 4, 8.

The point of sale display unit 1 is constructed from a corrugated board sheet material. The first protective strip 16 and the second protective strip 18 are both manufactured from flexible plastics materials 10 employing known extrusion techniques.

The first protective strip 16, as shown in perspective in Figure 3, has first and second side walls 20 and 22 and a top wall 24 which together define a channel 26 to receive the free edge 27 of a side panel 15 2, 4 or a shelf panel 10, 12, 14. In this instance, the free edge 27 is formed of two sheets of material 29a, 29b which together form a wall 4 of the unit 1. The wall 4 (and indeed the other walls and shelves) can be double ply, as shown, single ply or multiple ply. The 20 protective strip 16 locates the free edges of each sheet 29a, 29b relative to each other and provides a particularly rigid construction.

First and second lips 28, 30 are provided on facing side walls 20, 22 of the channel 26 which act to grip 25 the associated panel edges and so help retain the strip 16 in position.

The channel 26 of the first protective strip 16 has a bottom surface 32 having a foam backed adhesive tape 34 provided thereon. A removable cover strip 36 is 30 provided over the adhesive and this is removed prior to locating the protective strip 16 on the display unit edge 27. The foam backing on the adhesive 34 accommodates irregularities in the edge of the corrugated material and thus helps ensure consistent 35 adhesion of the first protective strip 16 along its length. The first protective strip 16 has an outer surface

À 6 38 which is convex in cross-section. First and second concave surfaces 40, 42 are provided on the underside of the first protective strip 16.

The second protective strip 18, as shown in 5 perspective in Figure 4, has a channel 44 defined therein to receive the lower edges of the side and rear panels 2, 4, 8 of the unit 1. Inner and outer walls 46, 48 define the channel 44. The inner wall 46 is inclined inwardly to engage the inside surface of the associated 10 display unit panel to create a waterproof seal and to retain the protective strip in position (although adhesive may also be used). The outer wall 48 lies adjacent to the outer surface of the associated panel.

The base surface 50 of the second protective strip 15 18 is flat to improve stability of the unit.

The second protective strip 18 extends over the fold lines at the junctions between the side and rear panels 2, 4, 8. Therefore, to enable the display unit 1 to be folded for transport or storage with the second 20 protective strip 18 in position, the second protective strip 18 is sufficiently flexible to facilitate folding thereof through 180 in a plane perpendicular to the plane defined by the sheet material.

The erection of the display unit 1 of Figure 1 is 25 effected by erecting the display unit in its intended display location from a folded down transit configuration in a known way and then push-fitting or sliding the first and second protective strips 16, 18 into position along the free edges thereof, after first 30 removing the cover strip 36 from the adhesive tape 34, if present. Alternatively, the strips 16, 18 may be located along the free edges of the display unit 1 during the manufacturing stage, or indeed at any other designated stage prior to its positioning in its desired 35 display location, to enable the display unit to be erected in a known manner with the protective strips already in position.

À 7 The first and second protective strips 16 and 18 protect the free edges on which they are placed from damage. The protective strips 16 and 18 also seal the edges of the display unit 1 to prevent water being 5 absorbed into the corrugated board, particularly through the bottom of the unit walls.

The skilled person will appreciate that various modifications can be made to the display unit described herein without departing from the scope of the 10 invention.

For example, although the preferred embodiment described herein utilises different first and second protective strips, it will be appreciated that a single type of protective strip could be used throughout for 15 any given unit.

Furthermore, the strips may be adapted to be mounted on single or multiple thicknesses of sheet material, either with cut, exposed edges or folded edges. 20 Where the edge of multiple thicknesses of material are covered, one or more dividing walls may be provided extending along the length of the protective strip in the channel to locate each of the free edges separately.

In another arrangement, the protective strip may be 25 provided with protrusions to engage with the flutes in corrugated board to retain the strip in position. As such, the strip need not have a channel for receiving the edge.

Also, while the strips disclosed are flexible 30 plastics strips, this is not essential and other non-

flexible materials could be used, such as metal. Thus the strip could be an extruded metal strip, for example of aluminium.

It will be appreciated that although the 35 description herein refers to display units constructed

from corrugated board, the invention may equally be employed for display units constructed from other

l - 8 - materials such as cardboard or other similar paper based materials, or indeed semi-rigid plastic materials, for example in sheet form.

In addition, although a point of sale unit has been; 5 described, the invention is not limited to such and other units are intended to fall within the scope of the invention. For example the unit may merely act to; display graphical images and not be adapted to hold products.

Claims

- 9 Claims

1. A display unit constructed from a cardboard, corrugated board, or other semi-rigid material, said: 5 display unit having at least one edge, and having a protective strip provided along at least a portion of said edge.: 2. A display unit as claimed in claim 1 wherein the 10 protective strip is provided with a channel for receiving the said edge.

3. A display unit as claimed in claim 1 or 2 wherein the strip is configured to retain itself on the edge.

4. A display unit as claimed in claim 3 wherein the strip has one or more resilient walls or formations which grip the edge.

20 5. A display unit as claimed in claim 4 wherein the strip is provided with a channel and at least one of the walls of the channel is resilient or has a resilient portion for gripping the edge.

25 6. A display unit as claimed in any preceding claim wherein the protective strip is retained in position: using adhesive.

7. A display unit as claimed in claim 6 wherein the 30 adhesive is preapplied to one of the components, preferably the strip. I 8. A display unit as claimed in claim 7 wherein the adhesive is in the form of an adhesive tape.

9. A display unit as claimed in claim 8 wherein the] tape is affixed in a channel, most preferably the base

- 10 of a channel of the protective strip.

10. A display unit as claimed in any preceding claim wherein a foam or other resilient material is interposed 5 between the strip and the edge. 3 11. A display unit as claimed in claim 10 wherein the strip is attached to the edge by a foam backed adhesive tape. 12. A display unit as claimed in any preceding claim wherein the protective strip is positioned along a base edge of the display unit so as to protect against the absorption of water into the base edge.

13. A display unit constructed from a corrugated board, cardboard or similar material, said display unit having a base with at least one edge, a water resistant protective strip being provided along at least a portion 20 of said edge.

14. A display unit as claimed in any preceding claim wherein the strip is made of a waterproof or water resistant material.

15. A display unit as claimed in any preceding claim wherein the strip is made from a plastics material.

16. A display unit as claimed in any claim 15 wherein 30 the strip is extruded.

17. A display unit as claimed in any preceding claim wherein the strip is configured to facilitate its location over the edge.

18. A display unit as claimed in claim 17 wherein a wall of the strip is flared to facilitate such location.

19. A display unit as claimed in any preceding claim wherein the strip is flexible.

5 20. A display unit as claimed in claim 19 wherein the flexibility of the protective strip in the plane of the edge is greater than the flexibility of the protective strip in the plane perpendicular to the edge.

lo 21. A display unit as claimed in claim 19 or 20 wherein the strip is sufficiently flexible to be folded.

22. A display unit as claimed in any preceding claim wherein the unit is a point of sale display unit.

23. A display unit as claimed in any of claims 1 to 21 wherein the unit is an advertising unit.

24. A method of manufacturing or erecting a sheet 20 display unit made from a cardboard, corrugated board or other semi rigid material, comprising the step of locating a protective strip on an edge thereof.