TEAR-OPEN PACKAGE

Abstract

The present invention relates to a package (10) with a package rear side (13) and a package front side (12) connected thereto to form a packaging space (18) surrounded by the package (10), wherein one side of one of the package rear side (13) and package front side (12) has as the tear-open side (12) a tear-open zone (28) which has a smaller surface area than the tear-open side (12), and in the extension plane of the tear-open side (12) on at least two edges (30 or 32, at 36) extending in linearly independent directions adjoins packaging material of the tear-open side (12), and which in the unopened package state is separable by the application of an external force at least in sections to form a package opening (42) including the packaging space (18) from the adjoining packaging material of the tear-open side (12), wherein for this purpose the tear-open side (12) is formed from film material at least in the tear-open is zone (28).

Description

The present invention relates to a package with a package rear side and a package front side connected thereto to form a packaging space surrounded by the package. One side of one of the package rear side and package front side has as the tear-open side a tear-open zone, with which the package can be opened.

Packages of this type, in particular those which are formed by direct connection of a package front side to a package rear side, are very suitable for the space-saving packaging of flat packaged goods, for example flat electronic components, decals for collection albums or medicaments applied to flat substrates or flat-moulded medicaments, i.e. for all packaged goods whose extensions in a first spatial direction are much smaller than their extensions in spatial directions perpendicular to said first spatial direction. In particular, the invention also applies to packaged goods having curved rather than planar surface portions. Further, it is also possible to package in such packages solid articles having appreciable dimensions in three spatial directions which are orthogonal to one another.

It is important here that the package can be opened without danger of the packaged article being damaged or even destroyed.

In fact, in known rectangular packages, in which only a package rear side and a package front side are joined together along a peripheral edge so as to enclose a packaging space, and in which, to open the package, an edge portion from the rest of the package is torn off, it may happen with unfavourable positioning of the packaged article in the packaging space that the packaged article is caught by the opening tear and is torn or even ripped in an undesirable manner upon opening the package.

Therefore, it is the object of the present invention to propose a package, in particular for flat packaged goods, which can be opened simply and without danger of damage to the packaged article.

This object is achieved according to the present invention by a package with a package rear side and a package front side connected thereto to form a packaging space surrounded by the package, wherein one side of one of the package rear side and package front side has as the tear-open side a tear-open zone which has a smaller surface area than the tear-open side, and in the extension plane of the tear-open side on at least two edges extending in linearly independent directions adjoins packaging material of the tear-open side, and which in the unopened package state is capable of being separated by the application of an external force at least in sections to form a package opening affecting the packaging space from the adjoining packaging material of the tear-open side, wherein for this purpose the tear-open side is formed from film material at least in the tear-open zone. The package opening affecting or having an effect on the packaging space in particular means that the package opening allows or creates access to the packaging space.

Owing to the fact that the tear-open zone has a smaller surface area than the tear-open side, it is ensured that when opening the package one section of the package always remains unaffected by the opening procedure, with which the package can be held while it is being opened.

Furthermore, owing to the fact that on at least two sides the tear-open zone adjoins the packaging material of the tear-open side outside the tear-open zone, it can be ensured that, even when the package is open, a pocket-like residual packaging space remains which is in fact no longer closed but is suitable for locating the packaged article even in the opened package so that, when the package is opened, there is no threat of the packaged article being lost.

Owing to the fact that the tear-open side is made of film material at least in the tear-open zone, it can be ensured that the force required to open, in particular to tear open, the package by at least separating in sections the tear-open zone from the rest of the packaging material of the tear-open side, is not excessively high.

Preferably, the film material can be a laminated film which is assembled from at least two laminate layers.

Therefore, the laminated film can have a barrier layer, for instance of metal or a metal oxide or of EVOH, SiO₂ and the like. In the case of a metallic barrier layer, the laminated film is preferably metallised, for instance by sputtering or vapour deposition.

Moreover, the laminated film can have at least one film oriented in at least one direction so that this oriented film, preferably a uniaxially oriented film, defines by its orientation direction a tear-guiding direction, along which a tear preferably propagates in the oriented film and thus in the laminated film. When the uniaxially oriented film in the laminated film endeavours to impose on the remaining laminated film the tear-propagating direction predetermined by its orientation direction, it is advantageous for the uniaxially oriented film or the totality of uniaxially oriented films in the laminated film to be formed thicker than each individual remaining layer of the laminated film, especially preferably to be formed thicker than the totality of all the other layers of the laminated film.

Furthermore, the laminated film, for instance in order to impart a certain degree of shape retention to the film, may be a polyester film, for instance of polyethylene terephthalate.

As the at least uniaxially oriented film there comes into consideration, for example, a film made of oriented polypropylene or oriented polyamide.

In addition, the laminated film can have a layer with a coloured or printed imprint, as well as a layer of a covering lacquer.

Furthermore, the laminated film can especially preferably have on one of its outer sides a layer of sealable material, for instance of sealable polyethylene or other thermoplastic synthetic material so as to enable the package front side and the package rear side to be simply and reliably connected to one another by sealing.

In principle, it may be envisaged for the tear-open zone to be designed so that it overlaps the packaged article on all sides. For example, the tear-open zone can correspond essentially to one complete wall of the packaging space, i.e. essentially one of the package sides of one of package front side and package rear side less any edge seams. The packaged article can thereby be completely exposed after the opening of the package.

Frequently, however, a tear-open zone of smaller area is already sufficient for reliable opening of the package and removal of the packaged article. It can then be envisaged configuring the tear-open zone so that it is surrounded on three sides by packaging material of the tear-open side.

Likewise, if it is desired for one edge of the package to remain unaffected by the formation and/or the operation of the tear-open zone, the tear-open zone can then be surrounded on four sides by packaging material of the tear-open side in the unopened package state.

In principle, it may be envisaged for the tear-open zone to be formed substantially exclusively from film material, in particular laminated film, so that the transition zone from the film material into the remaining, different packaging material of the tear-open side defines the boundary of the tear-open zone in the unopened package state.

However, particularly simple tearing open of the package in the tear-open zone with low force application can be achieved in that the tear-open side is formed also in the immediate vicinity of the tear-open zone at least in sections of film material. A defined tear-open path can then be incorporated into the film material by corresponding manipulation of the film material. As manipulation there comes into consideration, for example, perforation, in particular laser perforation, embossing, partial slitting or even the use of unidirectionally oriented films.

For reasons of as simple as possible a production of the package, preferably the tear-open side is formed substantially completely from film material.

In continuation of the above-mentioned concept, the production of the package can be further simplified and the total weight of the package can be further reduced in that both the package front side and the package rear side are formed substantially completely from film material.

In principle, however, it should not be excluded that the packaging side serving as the tear-open side is formed from substantially rigid packaging material compared to film material, for instance deep-drawn plastics material. This can be suitably contoured so that the filling article to be packaged can be accommodated.

If the tear-open zone extends from a tear-open zone start up to an edge zone of the package, it can be effected especially simply that the tear-open zone is capable of being torn off from the tear-open side so that the tear-open zone, after the formation of an opening for access into the packaging space, no longer interferes upon removal of the packaged article.

To facilitate the gripping of the tear-open zone and thus to facilitate the tearing-open of the package, it is provided for the tear-open zone to have a grip tab, preferably at its start.

In order to prevent the grip tab from being undesirably bent or even destroyed, for instance torn off, it can be provided for the grip tab, when the package is viewed in the plane of the tear-open side, to be surrounded on all sides by packaging material of the tear-open side. That is to say, when additionally the grip tab is arranged in the extension plane of the tear-open side, the grip tab does not protrude beyond the edge of the package so that it is exposed to a lesser extent to undesirable external influences. However, even then, in accordance with the present application, when the package is viewed in the plane of the tear-open side, the grip tab should be considered to be surrounded on all sides by packaging material of the tear-open side if the grip tab is in fact not entirely situated in the plane of the tear-open side but in a deformed condition or deformed in the plane of the tear-open side it is surrounded on all sides by packaging material of the tear-open side.

In the unlikely case of a curved tear-open side, the tangential plane at the respective adjacent point of the tear-open side should be assumed to be the plane of the tear-open side in accordance with the present application.

Since packages of the type being discussed here are, as a rule, mass-produced, it is desirable for the package to have a reproducible substantially always uniform is opening behaviour. For this purpose, it can be provided for the tear-open zone to extend along a predetermined tear-open path in a tear-open direction from a tear-open zone start, preferably from the grip tab, to a tear-open zone end.

Preferably, the tear-open zone is formed shorter along the tear-open direction than the package at the attachment location of the tear-open zone in the tear-open direction.

The tear-open zone can be formed strip-like, i.e. with a width extension which is clearly smaller compared to the length extension (in tearing-open direction) of the tear-open zone, in which case the width extension is in turn smaller than the equidirectional dimension of the package at the application location of the tear-open zone.

To ensure that the above-described grip tab, which in particular is surrounded on all sides by packaging material of the tear-open side, is capable of being gripped per se, the tear-open side is preferably provided with a material weakening, for instance a cutting line piercing the tear-open side, which defines the grip tab and/or by which the grip tab is capable of being released with particular ease from the material bond of the tear-open side.

Since the grip tab is provided for simple gripping, preferably in a zone of the package in which the tear-open zone is not connected to the respective other package side so as to prevent a material weakening created by the formation of the grip tab, such as embossing, scoring, in particular penetration, of the tear-open side causing undesirable access to the packaging space, it may be provided for a material weakening created by the formation of the grip tab, in particular penetration, of the tear-open side to be separated from the packaging space. In particular, this separation is such that the material weakening created by the formation of the grip tab does not impair the integrity of the enclosure of the packaging space.

In a particularly simple manner, the separation of the weakening of the tear-open side from the packaging space, which weakening is created by the formation of the grip tab, can be effected in that the tear-open side is detachably connected to the respective other side of one of package front side and package rear side along a detaching zone which is situated at least in sections between the grip tab and the packaging space.

In principle, the detaching zone can extend beyond the region of the tear-open side, in which the grip tab and above all the material weakening provided for its creation is provided. It is then also possible for the grip tab to be detachably connected to the respective other package side and only peeled therefrom for the purpose of opening it.

However, if it is desired to have the grip tab ready to be gripped as rapidly as possible and, therefore, avoid any connection of the grip tab to one of the package sides, a material weakening created by the formation of the grip tab can be separated from the packaging space in that the detaching zone is situated behind the grip tab in the tear-open direction and extends at least over the entire width of the tear-open zone.

As indicated above, a sealed connection can be envisaged as a simply produced connection of the tear-open side to the respective other package side.

Here the above-mentioned detaching zone is preferably formed by a detachable so-called “peelable” seal. For this purpose, preferably the outer surface of the tear-open side facing the respective other side of one of package front side and package rear side and/or the outer surface, facing the tear-open side, of the respective other packaging side of one of package front side and package rear side is provided with a corresponding sealable outer layer. The latter can be provided on at least one of the aforesaid sides, preferably on both, even only in the manner of a pattern, preferably only at those locations at which it is actually required for a sealing connection. It is thereby possible to prevent contamination of the packaged articles by the constituents of the sealable layer with a degree of probability bordering on certainty.

Furthermore, to form the package and in particular to form the packaging space it can be envisaged that the package front side and the package rear side are joined together at least in sections but preferably in a completely non-detachable manner along an edge surrounding the packaging space, especially preferably are joined by sealing. Owing to the preferred non-detachable connection it is ensured that the package contents are accessible or can be rendered accessible only through the predetermined opening location, i.e. the tear-open zone.

To facilitate handling of the package while it is being opened, it may be provided for it to have a holding portion which is substantially free of packaging space and in which the package is capable of being gripped and held for a tearing-open operation. The package can be gripped with one hand at this holding portion, while with the other hand the package can be torn open, for instance after gripping the grip tab.

In order to enable the forces arising during the tearing-open to be accommodated, it may preferably be provided for the holding portion to be provided in tearing-open direction in front of a tear-open zone start, in particular in front of the grip tab.

In principle, it can be envisaged forming the package front side from a different material than the package rear side, even from different film material, in particular laminated films.

In order to achieve as effective a production as possible, it can be envisaged that the package front side and the package rear side are made of an integral piece of material, preferably a piece of film material, such that the package front side and the package rear side can be created by accordingly folding the integral piece of material.

The present invention will be described in more detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 shows a plan view of a tear-open side of an embodiment of a package according to the invention, in the closed package condition, and

FIG. 2 shows the plan view of FIG. 1 in open package condition.

In FIG. 1 an embodiment of a package according to the invention is generally denoted by the reference numeral 10.

The package 10 has a package front side 12 which is formed as a tear-open side and which is connected to a package rear side 13 (see FIG. 2) of the same size and situated behind it in the viewing direction of FIG. 1, preferably by a non-detachable sealing in the sealing zone 14 between outer edge 10a of the package 10 and the enclosing edge, indicated by a dashed line 16, of the packaging space 18 formed between the package front side 12 and the package rear side 13. In other words, in the peripheral sealing zone 14 the package front side 12 and the package rear side 13 can be sealed non-detachably to one another, whereas the two package sides 12 and 13 are not joined together in the vicinity of the packaging space 18.

A dashed line 20 represents a packaged item 22, which is thin in the viewing direction of FIGS. 1 and 2, for instance a photograph, a decal or a medicament in the form of thin lamina, which is accommodated in the packaging space 18 behind the package front side 12 but in front of the package rear side 13.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 at its left upper edge, the packaging space 18 can have a bulge 18a which can serve to form a grip tab 24, since here the packaging material forming the grip tab is not connected to the package rear side and thus can be simply folded or flapped from the extension plane of the tear-open side.

For this purpose, the package front side 12 forming the tear-open side can be provided with a curvilinear penetration 26, for instance in the form of cut or a stamping, so that the grip tab 24 is capable of being bent from the extension surface of the package front side 12 about a bending axis B defined by the end points 26a and 26b of the penetration 26 and lying in the extension plane of the package front side 12 so as to enable the grip tab 24 to be gripped more easily.

The grip tab 24 preferably forms a start portion of a tear-open zone 28, which extends along the tear-open direction A. The extension of the tear-open zone 28 transversely to the tear-open direction A is indicated by the dotted lines 30 and 32. These tear-guiding lines 30 and 32 define a tear-open path 34.

The tear-guiding lines 30 and 32 preferably start at the end points 26a and 26b of the penetration 26 incorporated into the package front side 12 to form the grip tab 24, which on account of their notch effect can serve as a tearing aid.

The tear-guiding lines 32 can guide a tear induced in the package front side 12 forming the tear-open side by a material weakening, such as a perforation, in particular laser perforation, which preferably do not penetrate completely the package front side 12 so as to protect the packaged article 22 from external influences in the thickness direction, by other material weakenings, such as material removal, embossing and the like, or by a unidirectional stretching extending along the tear-guiding lines 30 and 32.

The tear-open zone 28 can end at its longitudinal end opposite the grip tab 24 in the vicinity of the packaging space 18, or it can additionally extend as far as into the sealing zone 14 or even up to the edge 10a of the package 10.

In the preferred example of embodiment shown in FIG. 1, the tear-open zone 28 is surrounded on four sides of the package front side 12 forming the tear-open side by packaging material (laminated film) of the package front side 12.

In order to separate the penetration 26 of the package front side 12 from the packaging space 18 and thus effectively close the packaging space 18 with respect to the outer zone, a sealing zone is preferably provided in which the inner surface of the package front side 12 and the inner surface of the package rear side 13 can be detachably joined together by sealing.

The zone 36 of a detachable seal extends preferably transversely to the tear-open direction A in the extension plane of the tear-open side (package front side 12), preferably at least over the width of the tear-open zone 28, especially preferably beyond the width of the bulge 18a of the packaging space 18, so that the bulge 18a is separated from the packaging space 18 by the zone 36 of the detachable seal.

The zone of a detachable seal 36 can extend in a direction orthogonal to the tear-open direction A even over the entire width of the package 10, if this is advantageous for manufacturing reasons.

In FIG. 2, the package 10 of FIG. 1 is shown in the opened package condition. For this purpose, the tear-open zone 28 was gripped at the grip tab 24 while the package 10 was held with the other hand at the holding portion 14a, and separated along the tear-open direction A by application of an external force, in particular by tearing open, from the surrounding packaging material of the package front side 12 forming the tear-open side. In doing this, the opening edges 38 and 40, which are preferably joined integrally to the penetration 26, are created which together with the penetration 26 form an opening 42 of the package.

The tear-open zone 28 is illustrated only partly in a folded-over condition facing away from the opening 42.

The opened package 10 can be bent preferably about a virtual bending axis K passing through the opening 42 substantially along its longitudinal direction, so that the flat packaged article 22 is capable of being readily gripped and removed from the residual pocket 44 which is formed by the rest of the now open packaging space 18 remaining in the package 10.

For this purpose, the package portion 10a situated in FIG. 2 above the bending axis K can be folded about the bending axis K away from the viewer in FIG. 2.

As a result of the detachable seal in the zone 36, the tear-open zone 28 could be readily peeled from the package rear side 13, without any fear of the tear-open zone being destroyed before the opening of the package 10.

Claims

1. A package (10) with a package rear side (13) and a package front side (12) connected thereto to form a packaging space (18) surrounded by the package (10), wherein one side of one of the package rear side (13) and package front side (12) has as the tear-open side (12) a tear-open zone (28) which has a smaller surface area than the tear-open side (12), and in the extension plane of the tear-open side (12) on at least two edges (30 or 32, at 36) extending in linearly independent directions adjoins packaging material of the tear-open side (12), and which in the unopened package state is separable from the adjoining packaging material of the tear-open side (12) by the application of an external force at least in sections to form a package opening (42) affecting the packaging space (18), wherein for this purpose the tear-open side (12) is formed from film material at least in the tear-open zone (28).

2. A package according to claim 1, characterised in that the tear-open zone (28) is surrounded on three sides by packaging material of the tear-open side (12).

3. A package according to claim 1, characterised in that the tear-open zone (28) is surrounded on four sides by packaging material of the tear-open side (12).

4. A package according to claim 1, characterised in that the tear-open side (12) even in the immediate vicinity of the tear-open zone (28) is formed at least in sections of film material, preferably is formed substantially completely from film material.

5. A package according to claim 1, characterised in that both the package front side (12) and the package rear side (13) are formed substantially completely from film material.

6. A package according to claim 1, characterised in that the tear-open zone (28) extends from a tear-open zone start (at 24) up to an edge zone (10a) of the package (10).

7. A package according to claim 1, characterised in that the tear-open zone (28) is capable of being torn off from the tear-open side (12).

8. A package according to claim 1, characterised in that the tear-open zone (28) has a grip tab (24), preferably at its start.

9. A package according to claim 8, characterised in that the grip tab (24), when the package (10) is viewed in the plane of the tear-open side (12), is surrounded on all sides by packaging material of the tear-open side (12).

10. A package according to claim 1, characterised in that the tear-open zone (28) extends along a predetermined tear-open path (34) in a tear-open direction (A) from a tear-open zone start (at 24), preferably from the grip tab (24), to a tear-open zone end.

11. A package according to claim 8, characterised in that a material weakening (26) created by the formation of the grip tab (24), in particular piercing (26), of the tear-open side (12) is separated from the packaging space (18), in particular in such a way that the integrity of the enclosure of the packaging space (18) is not impaired.

12. A package according to claim 11, characterised in that the tear-open side (12) is detachably connected to the respective other side (13) of one of package front side (12) and package rear side (13) along a detaching zone (36) which is situated at least in sections between the grip tab (24) and the packaging space (18).

13. A package according to claim 12, characterised in that the detaching zone (36) is situated behind the grip tab (24) in the tear-open direction (A) and extends at least over the entire width of the tear-open zone (28).

14. A package according to claim 12, characterised in that the tear-open side (12) is connected to the respective other side (13) of one of package front side (12) and package rear side (13) by sealing.

15. A package according to claim 1, characterised in that the package front side (12) and the package rear side (13) are joined at least in sections to one another preferably in a completely non-detachable manner along an edge (14) surrounding the packaging space (18), especially preferably are joined by sealing.

16. A package according to claim 1, characterised in that it has a holding portion (14a) which is substantially free of packaging space and in which the package (10) is capable of being gripped and held for a tearing-open operation.

17. A package according to claim 16, characterised in that the holding portion (14a) is provided in tearing-open direction (A) in front of a tear-open zone start (at 24), in particular in front of the grip tab (24).

18. A package according to claim 1, characterised in that the package front side (12) and the package rear side (13) are formed from an integral piece of material, preferably a piece of film material.