Package assembly with product feature display area

Abstract

The present invention relates to a product package assembly comprising: a plurality of fibrous structure products wherein each fibrous structure product comprises a textured surface; one or more inner packages that surrounds the plurality of fibrous structure products; an outer sleeve fitted over the inner package, the outer sleeve comprising: a. an outside face intended to be displayed to a consumer when the package is displayed for sale, the outside face comprising one or more product feature display areas that represent a product feature of the fibrous structure product; b. an inside face; and c. one or more open sides forming at least one inner package receiving pocket.

Description

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to a consumer product package assembly comprising a plurality of fibrous structure products and more particularly to such a consumer product package assembly having a reinforcing sleeve comprising a product feature display area thereon that represents, identifies, communicates, and/or amplifies, to the consumer, the product feature of the fibrous structure product within the package assembly.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Disposable consumer products and packages containing such products are well known in the art. Such products may include, for example, facial tissues, paper toweling, hankies, bath tissue, napkins, placemats, paper plates, etc. Frequently, these products are provided with textured surfaces or other features to enhance product performance and/or to enhance consumer appeal. Consumers, however, may not fully appreciate the actual benefits of the product until he or she sees or uses the actual product. Moreover, consumers prefer to view the product prior to selecting the product for purchase so that they may select an appealing product. In addition, product pakaging, even if transparent, may also conceal some of the specific features, especially the textured features, from the view of the consumers. It would be advantageous therefore, to provide a package assembly that has a product feature display area to maximize visability of the product and/or to represent and communicate the high quality features and benefits of the product to the consumer.

In addition, consumers prefer to purchase multiple rolls of these products at the same time. Therefore, these products are almost exclusively sold in multi-roll packages that are stacked one on top on the other on the store shelves. Such products are generally packaged in a clear, thin, flexible plastic wrap package. Although these packages are generally designed to protect the product from contamination, handling, shipping, and storage of the product, these types of packaging may perforate, tear, or stretch, during handling, may not stack easily, and may not protect the integrity of the product, especially the textured surfaces. Therefore, it would also be advantageous to provide a package assembly that further protects the product during handling, shipping and storage and that provides stable stacking of the multi-roll package or multi-package assembly on the store shelves.

Therefore, the present invention overcomes some of the disadvantages of the prior art by providing a consumer product package assembly comprising a plurality of fibrous structure products, a reinforcing outer sleeve comprising a product feature display area thereon that represents, identifies, communicates, and/or amplifies, to the consumer, the product feature of the fibrous structure product within the package assembly.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

While the specification concludes with claims that particularly point out and distinctly claim the present invention, it is believed that the present invention will be understood better from the following description of embodiments, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which like reference numerals identify identical elements.

Without intending to limit the invention, embodiments are described in more detail below:

FIG. 1 is a front plan view of a product package assembly comprising a plurality of toilet paper products in roll form comprising a texture surface, wrapped with an inner package and also comprising an outer sleeve fitted over the inner package, the outer sleeve comprising two inner package receiving pockets, a front panel and a top panel, the outer sleeve comprising a textured display area, according the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a planar view of the outer sleeve of the product package assembly of FIG. 1, the outer sleeve having a front panel comprising a textured display area on the outside face, a back panel, a top panel and a bottom panel.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the outer sleeve of FIG. 2 partially folded and closed showing the inside face, outside face, front panel, back panel, top panel and bottom panel.

FIG. 4 is a front plan view of a product package assembly comprising a plurality of toilet paper products in roll form comprising a texture surface, wrapped with an inner package and also comprising an outer sleeve fitted over the inner package, the outer sleeve comprising one inner package receiving pocket, a front panel and a top panel, the outer sleeve comprising a textured display area, according the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a planar view of the outer sleeve of the product package assembly of FIG. 4, the outer sleeve comprising a front panel comprising a textured display area on the outside face, a back panel, a top panel and a bottom panel.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a product package assembly comprising: a plurality of fibrous structure products wherein at least one fibrous structure product comprises a textured surface; one or more inner packages that surrounds the plurality of fibrous structure products; an outer sleeve fitted over the inner package, the outer sleeve comprising:

• • a. an outside face intended to be displayed to a consumer when the package is displayed for sale, the outside face comprising one or more product feature display areas that represent a product feature of the fibrous structure product;
  • b. an inside face; and
  • c. one or more open sides forming at least one inner package receiving pocket.

In one embodiment the product package assembly provides a package assembly that has a product feature display area to maximize visability of the product and/or to represent and communicate the high quality features and benefits of the product to the consumer.

In another embodiment the present invention provides a product package assembly that better protects the fibrous structure product and/or the textured surfaces of the product during handling, shipping and storage. Further, the package assembly may provide low cost and/or more stable stacking configuration of the multi-package assembly due to the the added support of the outer sleeve.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Definitions

As used herein, “paper product” refers to any formed, fibrous structure products, traditionally, but not necessarily, comprising cellulose fibers. In one embodiment, the paper products of the present invention include tissue-towel paper products.

A “tissue-towel paper product” refers to products comprising paper tissue or paper towel technology in general, including, but not limited to, conventional felt-pressed or conventional wet-pressed tissue paper, pattern densified tissue paper, starch substrates, and high bulk, uncompacted tissue paper. Non-limiting examples of tissue-towel paper products include disposable or reusable, toweling, facial tissue, bath tissue, table napkins, placemats, wipes, and the like.

“Ply” or “Plies”, as used herein, means an individual fibrous structure or sheet of fibrous structure, optionally to be disposed in a substantially contiguous, face-to-face relationship with other plies, forming a multi-ply fibrous structure. It is also contemplated that a single fibrous structure can effectively form two “plies” or multiple “plies”, for example, by being folded on itself. In one embodiment, the ply has an end use as a tissue-towel paper product. A ply may comprise one or more wet-laid layers, air-laid layers, and/or combinations thereof. If more than one layer is used, it is not necessary for each layer to be made from the same fibrous structure. Further, the layers may or may not be homogenous within a layer. The actual makeup of a tissue paper ply is generally determined by the desired benefits of the final tissue-towel paper product, as would be known to one of skill in the art. The fibrous structure may comprise one or more plies of non-woven materials in addition to the wet-laid and/or air-laid plies.

The term “fibrous structure”, as used herein, means an arrangement of fibers produced in any papermaking machine known in the art to create a ply of paper. “Fiber” means an elongate particulate having an apparent length exceeding its apparent width. More specifically, and as used herein, fiber refers to such fibers suitable for a papermaking process. “Basis Weight”, as used herein, is the weight per unit area of a sample reported in lbs/3000 ft² or g/m².

“Machine Direction” or “MD”, as used herein, means the direction parallel to the flow of the fibrous structure through the papermaking machine and/or product manufacturing equipment.

“Cross Machine Direction” or “CD”, as used herein, means the direction perpendicular to the machine direction in the same plane of the fibrous structure and/or fibrous structure product comprising the fibrous structure.

“Densified”, as used herein, means a portion of a fibrous structure product that is characterized by having a relatively high-bulk field of relatively low fiber density and an array of densified zones of relatively high fiber density. The high-bulk field is alternatively characterized as a field of pillow regions. The densified zones are alternatively referred to as knuckle regions. The densified zones may be discretely spaced within the high-bulk field or may be interconnected, either fully or partially, within the high-bulk field. One embodiment of a method of making a pattern densified fibrous structure and devices used therein are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,529,480 and 4,528,239.

“Non-densified”, as used herein, means a portion of a fibrous structure product that exhibits a lesser density than another portion of the fibrous structure product.

“Embossing”, as used herein, refers to the process of deflecting a relatively small portion of a cellulosic fibrous structure normal to its plane and impacting the projected portion of the fibrous structure against a relatively hard surface to permanently disrupt the fiber to fiber bonds.

“Laminating”, as used herein, refers to the process of firmly uniting superimposed layers of paper with or without adhesive, to form a multi-ply sheet.

“Textured surface of the fibrous structure product”, as used herein, refers to the incorporation of texture into the fibrous structure product via the converting end of the papermaking process and/or the during the wet end stage of papermaking, including embossing, wet microcontraction, creping, the use of papermaking belts to effect a pattern densified structure, etc., and combinations thereof.

Fibrous Structure Product with Textured Surface

In one embodiment the package assembly of the present invention comprises a plurality of rolls of fibrous structure product wherein at least one roll comprises a textured surface. In another embodiment each roll, of the plurality of rolls of fibrous structured product, comprises a textured surface.

The present invention is equally applicable to all types of consumer paper products such as paper towels, toilet tissue, facial tissue, napkins, placemats, wipes and the like.

The present invention contemplates the use of a variety of paper making fibers, such as, natural fibers, synthetic fibers, as well as any other suitable fibers, starches, and combinations thereof. Paper making fibers useful in the present invention include cellulosic fibers commonly known as wood pulp fibers. Applicable wood pulps include chemical pulps, such as Kraft, sulfite and sulfate pulps, as well as mechanical pulps including, groundwood, thermomechanical pulp, chemically modified, and the like. Chemical pulps may be used in tissue towel embodiments since they are known to those of skill in the art to impart a superior tactical sense of softness to tissue sheets made therefrom. Pulps derived from deciduous trees (hardwood) and/or coniferous trees (softwood) can be utilized herein. Such hardwood and softwood fibers can be blended or deposited in layers to provide a stratified web. Exemplary layering embodiments and processes of layering are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,994,771 and 4,300,981. Additionally, fibers derived from wood pulp such as cotton linters, bagesse, and the like, can be used. Additionally, fibers derived from recycled paper, which may contain any of all of the categories as well as other non-fibrous materials such as fillers and adhesives used to manufacture the original paper product may be used in the present web. In addition, fibers and/or filaments made from polymers, specifically hydroxyl polymers, may be used in the present invention. Non-limiting examples of suitable hydroxyl polymers include polyvinyl alcohol, starch, starch derivatives, chitosan, chitosan derivatives, cellulose derivatives, gums, arabinans, galactans, and combinations thereof. Additionally, other synthetic fibers such as rayon, polyethylene, and polypropylene fibers can be used within the scope of the present invention. Further, such fibers may be latex bonded.

In one embodiment the paper is produced by forming a predominantly aqueous slurry comprising about 95% to about 99.9% water.

The fibrous structure product may comprise any tissue-towel paper product known in the industry. Embodiment of these substrates may be made according U.S. Pat. No. 4,191,609 issued Mar. 4, 1980 to Trokhan; U.S. Pat. No. 4,300,981 issued to Carstens on Nov. 17, 1981; U.S. Pat. No. 4,191,609 issued to Trokhan on Mar. 4, 1980; U.S. Pat. No. 4,514,345 issued to Johnson et al. on Apr. 30, 1985; U.S. Pat. No. 4,528,239 issued to Trokhan on Jul. 9, 1985; U.S. Pat. No. 4,529,480 issued to Trokhan on Jul. 16, 1985; U.S. Pat. No. 4,637,859 issued to Trokhan on Jan. 20, 1987; U.S. Pat. No. 5,245,025 issued to Trokhan et al. on Sep. 14, 1993; U.S. Pat. No. 5,275,700 issued to Trokhan on Jan. 4, 1994; U.S. Pat. No. 5,328,565 issued to Rasch et al. on Jul. 12, 1994; U.S. Pat. No. 5,334,289 issued to Trokhan et al. on Aug. 2, 1994; U.S. Pat. No. 5,364,504 issued to Smurkowski et al. on Nov. 15, 1995; U.S. Pat. No. 5,527,428 issued to Trokhan et al. on Jun. 18, 1996; U.S. Pat. No. 5,556,509 issued to Trokhan et al. on Sep. 17, 1996; U.S. Pat. No. 5,628,876 issued to Ayers et al. on May 13, 1997; U.S. Pat. No. 5,629,052 issued to Trokhan et al. on May 13, 1997; U.S. Pat. No. 5,637,194 issued to Ampulski et al. on Jun. 10, 1997; U.S. Pat. No. 5,411,636 issued to Hermans et al. on May 2, 1995; EP 677612 published in the name of Wendt et al. on Oct. 18, 1995, and U.S. Patent Application 2004/0192136A1 published in the name of Gusky et al. on Sep. 30, 2004.

The tissue-towel substrates may be manufactured via a wet-laid making process where the resulting web is through-air-dried or conventionally dried. Optionally, the substrate may be foreshortened by creping or by wet microcontraction. Creping and/or wet microcontraction are disclosed in commonly assigned U.S. Pat. No. 6,048,938 issued to Neal et al. on Apr. 11, 2000; U.S. Pat. No. 5,942,085 issued to Neal et al. on Aug. 24, 1999; U.S. Pat. No. 5,865,950 issued to Vinson et al. on Feb. 2, 1999; U.S. Pat. No. 4,440,597 issued to Wells et al. on Apr. 3, 1984; U.S. Pat. No. 4,191,756 issued to Sawdai on May 4, 1980; and U.S. Pat. No. 6,187,138 issued to Neal et al. on Feb. 13, 2001.

Conventionally pressed tissue paper and methods for making such paper are known in the art, for example U.S. Pat. No. 6,547,928 issued to Bamholtz et al. on Apr. 15, 2003. One suitable tissue paper is pattern densified tissue paper which is characterized by having a relatively high-bulk field of relatively low fiber density and an array of densified zones of relatively high fiber density. The high-bulk field is alternatively characterized as a field of pillow regions. The densified zones are alternatively referred to as knuckle regions. The densified zones may be discretely spaced within the high-bulk field or may be interconnected, either fully or partially, within the high-bulk field. Processes for making pattern densified tissue webs are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,301,746, issued to Sanford, et al. on Jan. 31, 1967; U.S. Pat. No. 3,974,025, issued to Ayers on Aug. 10, 1976; U.S. Pat. No. 4,191,609, issued to on Mar. 4, 1980; and U.S. Pat. No. 4,637,859, issued to on Jan. 20, 1987; U.S. Pat. No. 3,301,746, issued to Sanford, et al. on Jan. 31, 1967; U.S. Pat. No. 3,821,068, issued to Salvucci, Jr. et al. on May 21, 1974; U.S. Pat. No. 3,974,025, issued to Ayers on Aug. 10, 1976; U.S. Pat. No. 3,573,164, issued to Friedberg, et al. on Mar. 30, 1971; U.S. Pat. No. 3,473,576, issued to Amneus on Oct. 21, 1969; U.S. Pat. No. 4,239,065, issued to Trokhan on Dec. 16, 1980; and U.S. Pat. No. 4,528,239, issued to Trokhan on Jul. 9, 1985.

Uncompacted, non pattern-densified tissue paper structures are also contemplated within the scope of the present invention and are described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,812,000 issued to Joseph L. Salvucci, Jr. et al. on May 21, 1974; and U.S. Pat. No. 4,208,459, issued to Henry E. Becker, et al. on Jun. 17, 1980. Uncreped tissue paper as defined in the art are also contemplated. The techniques to produce uncreped tissue in this manner are taught in the prior art. For example, Wendt, et al. in European Patent Application 0 677 612A2, published Oct. 18, 1995; Hyland, et al. in European Patent Application 0 617 164 A1, published Sep. 28, 1994; and Farrington, et al. in U.S. Pat. No. 5,656,132 issued Aug. 12, 1997.

Uncreped tissue paper, in one embodiment, refers to tissue paper which is non-compressively dried, in one embodiment, by through air drying. Resultant through air dried webs are pattern densified such that zones of relatively high density are dispersed within a high bulk field, including pattern densified tissue wherein zones of relatively high density are continuous and the high bulk field is discrete. The techniques to produce uncreped tissue in this manner are taught in the prior art. For example, Wendt, et. al. in European Patent Application 0 677 612A2, published Oct. 18, 1995; Hyland, et. al. in European Patent Application 0 617 164 A1, published Sep. 28, 1994; and Farrington, et. al. in U.S. Pat. No. 5,656,132 published Aug. 12, 1997.

Other materials are also intended to be within the scope of the present invention as long as they do not interfere or counteract any advantage presented by the instant invention.

The substrate which comprises the fibrous structure of the present invention may be cellulosic, or a combination of both cellulose and non-cellulose. The substrate may be conventionally dried using one or more press felts or through-air dried. If the substrate which comprises the paper according to the present invention is conventionally dried, it may be conventionally dried using a felt which applies a pattern to the paper as taught by commonly assigned U.S. Pat. No. 5,556,509 issued Sep. 17, 1996 to Trokhan et al. and PCT Application WO 96/00812 published Jan. 11, 1996 in the name of Trokhan et al. The substrate which comprises the paper according to the present invention may also be through air dried. A suitable through air dried substrate may be made according to commonly assigned U.S. Pat. No. 4,191,609.

The fibrous structure product according to the present invention may be made according to commonly assigned U.S. Pat. No.: 4,528,239 issued Jul. 9, 1985 to Trokhan; U.S. Pat. No. 4,529,480 issued Jul. 16, 1985 to Trokhan; U.S. Pat. No. 5,275,700 issued Jan. 4, 1994 to Trokhan; U.S. Pat. No. 5,364,504 issued Nov. 15, 1985 to Smurkoski et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 5,527,428 issued Jun. 18, 1996 to Trokhan et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 5,609,725 issued Mar. 11, 1997 to Van Phan; U.S. Pat. No. 5,679,222 issued Oct. 21, 1997 to Rasch et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 5,709,775 issued Jan. 20, 1995 to Trokhan et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 5,795,440 issued Aug. 18, 1998 to Ampulski et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 5,900,122 issued May 4, 1999 to Huston; U.S. Pat. No. 5,906,710 issued May 25, 1999 to Trokhan; U.S. Pat. No. 5,935,381 issued Aug. 10, 1999 to Trokhan et al.; and U.S. Pat. No. 5,938,893 issued Aug. 17, 1999 to Trokhan et al.

In one embodiment the plies of the multi-ply fibrous structure may be the same substrate respectively or the plies may comprise different substrates combined to create desired consumer benefits. In one embodiment the fibrous structures comprise two plies of tissue substrate. In another embodiment the fibrous structure comprises a first ply, a second ply, and at least one inner ply.

In one embodiment, the fibrous structure product has a basis weight of from about 12 to about 50 lbs/3000 ft², in another embodiment from about 18 lbs/3000 ft² to about 40 lbs/3000 ft². In another embodiment the basis weight is about 26 lbs/3000 ft² to about 40 lbs/3000 ft²; and in yet another embodiment the basis weight is about 27 lbs/3000 ft² and about 37 lbs/3000 ft^2, as measured by the Basis Weight Method described herein.

In one embodiment of the present invention, the fibrous structure product has a plurality of embossments. In one embodiment the embossment pattern is applied only to the first ply. In another embodiment the fibrous structure product is a two ply product wherein both plies comprise a plurality of embossments. In one embodiment the fibrous structure product comprises two or more plies of fibrous structure wherein at least one of the piles has a plurality of embossments thereon.

Suitable means of embossing include those disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,323,983 issued to Palmer on Sep. 8, 1964; U.S. Pat. No. 5,468,323 issued to McNeil on Nov. 21, 1995; U.S. Pat. No. 5,693,406 issued to Wegele et al. on Dec. 2, 1997; U.S. Pat. No. 5,972,466 issued to Trokhan on Oct. 26, 1999; U.S. Pat. No. 6,030,690 issued to McNeil et al. on Feb. 29, 2000; and U.S. Pat. No. 6,086,715 issued to McNeil on July 11.

Suitable means of laminating the plies include but are not limited to those methods disclosed in commonly assigned U.S. Pat. No. 6,113,723 issued to McNeil et al. on Sep. 5, 2000; U.S. Pat. No. 6,086,715 issued to McNeil on Jul. 11, 2000; U.S. Pat. No. 5,972,466 issued to Trokhan on Oct. 26, 1999; U.S. Pat. No. 5,858,554 issued to Neal et al. on Jan. 12, 1999; U.S. Pat. No. 5,693,406 issued to Wegele et al. on Dec. 2, 1997; U.S. Pat. No. 5,468,323 issued to McNeil on Nov. 21, 1995; U.S. Pat. No. 5,294,475 issued to McNeil on Mar. 15, 1994.

In one embodiment the fibrous structure product is in roll form. When in roll form, the fibrous structure product may be wound about a core or may be wound without a core.

Inner Package and Outer Sleeve

The present invention further relates to a product package assembly comprising, in addition to the plurality of fibrous structure products, one or more inner packages that surrounds the plurality of fibrous structure products as well as an outer sleeve fitted over the inner package. The outer sleeve comprises an outside face intended to be displayed to a consumer when the package is displayed for sale, the outside face comprising one or more product feature display areas that represent the product feature of the fibrous structure product. The outer sleeve further comprises an inside face and one or more open sides forming at least one inner package receiving pocket.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, product package assembly 1 comprises an inner package 13 comprising a plurality of fibrous structure products 4 in roll form, wherein at least one of the fibrous structure products comprise a textured surface 8. The product package assembly 1 further comprises an outer sleeve 9 fitted over the inner package 13, the outer sleeve 9 having two open sides 12 forming one or more inner package receiving pockets 16. The outer sleeve 9 comprises a front panel 3, a top panel 5, back panel 6, and a bottom panel 7. Referring to FIG. 2 the outer sleeve 9 has a product feature display area 2 (which is a textured display area) on the front panel 3 on the outside face 10 of the outer sleeve 9. The outer sleeve 9 further comprises an outside face 10 and an inside face 11 (shown in FIG. 3). The product feature display area 2 is a magnified representation of the textured surface of the fibrous structure product.

Referring now to FIG. 3, the outer sleeve 9 of FIG. 2 is partially folded along the solid lines, and partially closed, showing the inside face 11, outside face 10, front panel 3, back panel 6, top panel 5 and bottom panel 7.

Referring to FIGS. 4 and 5, a product package assembly 20 comprises an inner package 33 comprising a plurality of fibrous structure products 23 in roll form, wherein the fibrous structure product 23 comprises a textured surface 26. The product package assembly 20 further comprises an outer sleeve 27 fitted over the inner package 33, the outer sleeve 27 having one open side 31 forming an inner package receiving pocket into which the inner package 33 is received. The outer sleeve 27 comprises a front panel 22, a top panel 24, back panel 34, and a bottom panel 25. Referring to FIG. 5 the outer sleeve 27 has a product feature display area 21 that is, in this case a textured display area, on the front panel 22 on the outside face 29 of the outer sleeve 27. The outer sleeve 27 further comprises a side panel 32. The product feature display area is a magnified representation of the textured surface 26 of the fibrous structure product 33.

In one embodiment the package assembly of the present invention comprises an inner package 13 and 33 to surround a plurality of fibrous structure products 4 and 23. Generally where the fibrous structure products 4 and 23 are in roll form, the multi-rolls may be stacked upon one another or aligned in side by side configuration, in these multi-roll packages and then covered with a an inner packaging material which may be a flexible, thin plastic wrap.

The inner package may be filled with a plurality of rolls which may be uniformly arranged within the inner package either stacked one on top of another or in a side by side configuration. Desirably, the rolls are placed within the inner package in a uniform arrangement, in particular, arranged within the interior in one or more stacked rows.

In one embodiment the inner package 13 and 33 may be made from any one of a wide variety of materials that are known in the art to accommodate the desired number of fibrous structure products and/or rolls and have sufficient flexibility and strength to hold and contain the fibrous structure products and/or rolls without breaking and without excessive bulging or stretching of the material. Materials include, but are not limited to, cut-resistant flexible material, polymeric plastic films, foils, paper, paper composites, knitted or woven fabrics, nonwoven fabrics and the like, or combinations thereof. Suitable materials can be made from polymeric materials such as polyethylene, polypropylene, polyester, nylon, and the like, as well as any combination thereof. In one embodiment, the material for the inner packages comprises a low density polyethylene (LDPE) film, a LLDPE (linear low density polyethylene) film, a MDPE (medium density polyethylene) film, a HDPE (high density polyethylene) film, and combinations thereof, to form a laminate. In another embodiment a polyethylene/polypropylene combination is used. In a specific embodiment, the inner package has a thickness of from about 1 mils to about 5 mils (about 0.025 to 0.125 mm). As used herein, the term “polymer” or “polymeric” generally includes but is not limited to, homopolymers, copolymers, such as for example, block, graft, random and alternating copolymers, terpolymers, etc. and blends and modifications thereof. Furthermore, unless otherwise specifically limited, the term “polymer” shall include all possible geometrical configuration of the material.

The package assembly of the present invention further comprises an outer sleeve. The outer sleeve may provide easier stacking of a plurality of fibrous structure products on the store shelf. The outer sleeve generally supports and protects the fibrous structure product from handling, transporting of the package assembly, as well as the general integrity of the inner package as well. Furthermore the outer sleeve may help to maintain the caliper, emboss height, emboss quality and/or visual appearance, etc. of the fibrous structure product.

The outer sleeve may partially or fully surround the inner package. In one embodiment the outer sleeve surrounds from about 50% to about 100%, in another embodiment from about 60% to about 95%, in another embodiment from about 70% to about 90%, of the surface area of the inner package. The outer sleeve 9 and 27 comprises one or more open sides 12 and 31, generally comprises 1-2 open sides, forming an inner package receiving pocket, and the outer sleeve generally slides into place around and over the inner package.

In one embodiment the outer sleeve may be made from a wide variety of materials that are known in the art to accommodate the desired number of inner packages and/or rolls and that have sufficient strength to hold and contain the inner package(s) without breaking or tearing and without excessive bulging or stretching of the material. Materials include, but are not limited to, paperboard, corrugated paperboard, cut-resistant flexible material, polymeric plastic films, heavy guage polyurethane films, foils, paper, paper composites, knitted or woven fabrics, nonwoven fabrics and the like, or combinations thereof. Suitable materials can be made from polymeric materials such as polyethylene, polypropylene, polyester, nylon, and the like, as well as any combination thereof. In a specific embodiment, the outer sleeve has a thickness of from about 1 mil to about 20 mils (about 0.025 to 0.125 mm), in another embodiment from about 5 mils to about 20 mils. As used herein, the term “polymer” or “polymeric” generally includes but is not limited to, homopolymers, copolymers, such as for example, block, graft, random and alternating copolymers, terpolymers, etc. and blends and modifications thereof. Furthermore, unless otherwise specifically limited, the term “polymer” shall include all possible geometrical configuration of the material.

The outer sleeve may be prepared from a single piece of material or can be prepared from multiple pieces of material. If multiple pieces of material are used, the individual pieces must be joined together using a suitable means. For example, the individual pieces may be joined by various conventional techniques, such as adhesive bonding, thermal bonding, ultrasonic bonding, welding, and so forth. In another embodiment, the panels are connected with mechanical fastening systems, such as interlocking flaps, sewing, stapling, riveting, and so forth as well as combinations.

In one embodiment the outer sleeve is shape retaining. “Shape retaining”, as used herein, is intended to mean that the front, back, top, bottom, panels of the outer sleeve do not tend to fall inward towards the interior or outward away from the interior and the top panel does not fall inward towards the interior of the outer sleeve when folded in a closed configuration.

The outer sleeve may be formed by bonding, stitching, and/or adhering the opposing bottom panels to each other, the opposing top panels to each other. In another embodiment the sleeve may be formed by bonding, stitching, and/or adhering the bottom panel or the top panel, to the front or back panel, to form a seal. The seal may be formed by heat and bonding (e.g. fusing portions of the packaging material to other portions of the packaging material), pressure bonding, by thermal bonding, by ultrasonic bonding, by adhesive bonding, welding, mechanical fastening systems such as interlocking flaps, sewing, stapling, riveting, melt bead sealing, impulse sealing, dielectric sealing, and combinations thereof, and/or or by another means known to those skilled in the art. The purpose of the seal is to secure the panels of the outer sleeve together whereby the front panel, the back panel, the top panel and bottom panel create the internal compartment, the outer sleeve having one or more open sides 12 and 31 so that the outer sleeve 9 and 27 is open on either one or more sides for form an inner package receiving pocket 31. The outer sleeve is designed to partially surround the inner package which comprises the plurality of fibrous structure products and/or rolls inserted into it via the inner package receiving pockets 12 and 31. In one embodiment, after the inner package or packages are positioned within the outer sleeve, the bottom panel 7 will then be sealed via an adhesive. Alternatively, the opposing bottom panels may be sealed and thereafter the inner package and/or packages may be inserted into it via the inner package receiving pocket 12.

In one embodiment, the inside face 11 of the outer sleeve 9 contains information to be conveyed to the consumer. As is shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the outer sleeve has an outside face 10 and an inside face 11. In one embodiment the outside face 10 is typically the side of the outer sleeve 9 in which the consumer sees when the package is displayed on the retail store shelf and/or when the package assembly is carried or handled. The inside face 11 of the outer sleeve 9 is generally viewable only after the outer sleeve 9 is opened. Information which may be provided on the inside face 11, includes an inspirational message, advertisements, promotional language, a promotional offer such as coupons for future purchase of a similar or different product or products from the same company and/or points towards an offer such as free products, a proof of purchase, information regarding the softness, absorbency, thickness, and size of the fibrous structure product contained within the interior compartment, a guide to other similar or complementary products within a given product line made by the same manufacturer, a listing of complementary products that may be used in combination with the fibrous structure product, a thank you message, games, and the like, as well as combinations.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, in one embodiment, the outer sleeve 9 further comprises a handle 15 on the outside face 10 the top panel 5. The handle 15 comprises perforations in the top panel 5, made of a rigid material that may be punched out to form a cut out type of handle. The handle 15 may be used by the consumer to carry the package assembly. The handle may be placed in any practical location on the outside face of the outer sleeve. In another embodiment the handle 15 may comprise a handle such as those useful for soda beverage carriers, for example the handles described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,785,991, Schuster, issued Nov. 22, 1988. In another embodiment the top panel 5 of the outer sleeve 9 may serve as a handle as well, without further modification (e.g. the consumer may insert their fingers between the edge of the top panel 5 and the inner package 13.) In another embodiment the seal used to connect the bottom panel or top panel to form the outer sleeve, may be designed to form into a handle for the product package assembly.

In addition, the inner package and/or the outer sleeve of the present invention may additionally be provided with other features, including open windows or die cutouts or clear panels to view or touch the fibrous structure product inside the package assembly or to view graphics on the inner package or the fibrous structure product.

Product Feature Display Area on Outer Sleeve

The outer sleeve of the present invention further comprises a product feature display area. The product feature display area is generally located on the outer face of the outer sleeve, and represents (either visually, graphically and/or verbally) the softness, absorbency, thickness, and/or texture of the fibrous structure product of the product package assembly. In one embodiment the product feature display area comprises a texture display area, representing the textured surface of the fibrous structure product.

Although FIGS. 1, 2, 4 and 5 show the product feature display area 2 and 21 on the front panel 3 and 22, the product feature display area may be placed on any area of the outside face 10 and 29 of the outer sleeve 9 and 27. In one embodiment the product feature display area is on the front panel 3 and 22 since, in general, the front panel 3 and 22 are intended to be displayed to a consumer when the package assembly is displayed on the store shelf for sale.

The product feature display area comprises less than 90% of the surface area of the outside face of the outer sleeve in order to minimize the obstruction of the product information, promotional information, or aesthetic configuration that also may be present on the outer sleeve. In one embodiment the product feature display area comprises from about 2% to about 70%, inanother embodiment from about 5% to about 20%, of the surface area of the outside face of the outer sleeve. In one embodiment the product feature display area is located on the front panel of the outer sleeve.

In one embodiment the product feature display area is selected from the group consisting of a graphic representation of the product feature, a printed graphic representation of the product feature including gravure or flexographic printing, a photographic image representing the product feature, lithography of the product feature, plurality of embossments representing the product feature, a swatch representing the product feature, a sample of the actual fibrous structure product, a 3-dimensional lenticular or holographic image representing the product feature, an opening in the inner package and outer sleeve to access the actual fibrous structure product (e.g. a removed or otherwise cut-away portion of the inner package and the outer sleeve which allows access to the fibrous structure product contained within the interior of the product package assembly), and combinations thereof.

In one embodiment the product feature display area comprises printing embossed marks on the outer sleeve using tightly registered lithography to accentuate the emboss pattern.

In another embodiment the product feature display area may include a swatch of material (e.g that represents a product feature or the textured surface of the fibrous product) or a sample of the actual fibrous structure product. An actual sample would allow the consumers, during shopping, to touch, inspect, evaluate the product features and/or texture, without actually opening the package. The sample may be a piece of the actual fibrous structure product or it may be a substitute material having the same or similar features as the fibrous structure product. The outer sleeve may comprise multiple product feature display areas, generally from about 1 to about 25, in another embodiment from about 1 to about 10.

In one embodiment the if a sample is used as the product feature display area, it may be attached to the outside face of the outer sleeve via any method known to one of skill in the art. The sample may be flush with the external surface of the outside face or may be hinged, creased, folded and/or specifically configured to be outside the plane of the external surface of the outside face. This embodiment allows consumers to evaluate multiple surfaces of the sample.

In another embodiment all or a portion of the product feature display area is a magnified representation of the product feature of the fibrous structure product. The product feature display area may be any shape or size.

Basis Weight Method

Basis weight is measured by preparing one or more samples of a certain area (3000 ft² or m²) and weighing the sample(s) of a fibrous structure according to the present invention on a top loading balance with a minimum resolution of 0.01 g. The balance is protected from air drafts and other disturbances using a draft shield. Weights are recorded when the readings on the balance become constant. The average weight (lbs or g) and the average area of the samples (3000 ft² or m²) are calculated. The basis weight (lbs/3000 ft² or g/m²) is calculated by dividing the average weight (lbs or g) by the average area of the samples (3000 ft² or m²). This method is herein referred to as the Basis Weight Method.

All measurements referred to herein are made at 23±1° C. and 50% relative humidity, unless otherwise specified.

All publications, patent applications, and issued patents mentioned herein are hereby incorporated in their entirety by reference. Citation of any reference is not an admission regarding any determination as to its availability as prior art to the claimed invention.

Herein, “comprising” means the term “comprising” and can include “consisting of” and “consisting essentially of.”

The dimensions and values disclosed herein are not to be understood as being strictly limited to the exact numerical values recited. Instead, unless otherwise specified, each such dimension is intended to mean both the recited value and a functionally equivalent range surrounding that value. For example, a dimension disclosed as “40 mm” is intended to mean “about 40 mm”.

While particular embodiments of the present invention have been illustrated and described, it would be obvious to those skilled in the art that various other changes and modifications can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. It is therefore intended to cover in the appended claims all such changes and modifications that are within the scope of this invention.

Claims

1. A product package assembly comprising:

a plurality of fibrous structure products wherein at least one fibrous structure product comprises a textured surface;

one or more inner packages that surrounds the plurality of fibrous structure products;

an outer sleeve fitted over the inner package, the outer sleeve comprising:

a. an outside face intended to be displayed to a consumer when the package is displayed for sale, the outside face comprising one or more product feature display areas that represent a product feature of the fibrous structure product;

b. an inside face; and

c. one or more open sides forming at least one inner package receiving pocket.

2. The product package assembly of claim 1 wherein the fibrous structure product is absorbent.

3. The product package assembly of claim 2 wherein the fibrous structure product comprises a plurality of rolls wherein each roll comprises a textured surface.

4. The product package assembly of claim 3 wherein the fibrous structure product is selected from the group consisting of paper towels, toilet tissue, facial tissue, and combinations thereof.

5. The product package assembly of claim 4 wherein the fibrous structure product is selected from the group consisting of: creped or uncreped through-air-dried fibrous structure plies, differential density fibrous structure plies, wet laid fibrous structure plies, air laid fibrous structure plies, conventional fibrous structure plies and combinations thereof.

6. The product package assembly of claim 5 wherein the fibrous structure product comprises a creped through-air dried tissue paper.

7. The product package assembly of claim 2 wherein the fibrous structure product is a two ply tissue or towel product.

8. The product package assembly of claim 2 wherein the textured surface is selected from the group consisting of: differential density fibrous structure plies formed during the papermaking process, a plurality of embossments, and combinations thereof.

9. The product package assembly of claim 8 wherein the textured surface comprises a plurality of embossments.

10. The product package assembly of claim 1 wherein the inner package comprises a material selected from the group consisting of cut-resistant flexible material, polymeric plastic film, foil, paper, paper composite, knitted or woven fabric, nonwoven fabric, polyethylene, polypropylene, polyester, nylon, and combination thereof.

11. The product package assembly of claim 10 comprising 2 inner packages.

12. The product package assembly of claim 1 wherein the outer sleeve is shape retaining.

13. The product package assembly of claim 12 wherein the outer sleeve further comprises a back panel; a top panel; and a bottom panel.

14. The product package assembly of claim 13 wherein the outer sleeve comprises a material selected from the group consisting of paper stock, paperboard, corrugated paperboard, cut-resistant flexible material, polymeric plastic films, foils, paper, paper composites, knitted or woven fabrics, nonwoven fabrics, and combinations thereof.

15. The product package assembly of claim 1 wherein the receiving pockets are constructed and arranged to receive a single inner package.

16. The product package assembly of claim 1 wherein the receiving pockets are constructed and arranged to receive two or more inner packages in a stacked relationship.

17. The product package assembly of claim 1 wherein the receiving pockets are constructed and arranged to receive two or more inner packages in a side by side relationship.

18. The product package assembly of claim 1 wherein the front panel and the back panel are the same.

19. The product package assembly of claim 1 wherein the front panel and the back panel are different.

20. The product assembly of claim 1 wherein the package assembly has from about 1 to about 25 product feature display areas.

21. The product assembly of claim 20 wherein the package assembly has from about 1 to about 10 product feature display areas.

22. The product assembly of claim 21 wherein the product feature display area is a textured display area.

23. The product package assembly of claim 20 wherein the product feature display area is selected from the group consisting of a graphic representation of the product feature, a printed graphic representation of the product feature including gravure or flexographic printing, a photographic image representing the product feature, lithography of the product feature, plurality of embossments representing the product feature, a swatch representing the product feature, a sample of the actual fibrous structure product, a 3-dimensional lenticular or holographic image representing the product feature, opening in the inner package and outer sleeve to access the fibrous structure product, and combinations thereof.

24. The product package assembly of claim 1 further comprising a handle.

25. A product package assembly comprising:

a plurality of rolls of fibrous structure products wherein each fibrous structure product comprises a textured surface;

one or more inner packages that surrounds the plurality of fibrous structure products;

an outer sleeve fitted over the inner package, the outer sleeve comprising:

a. an outside face intended to be displayed to a consumer when the package is displayed for sale, the outside face comprising one or more texture display areas that represent the textured surface of the fibrous structure product;

b. an inside face; and

c. one or more open sides forming at least one inner package receiving pocket.