BLISTER CARD PACKAGING STRUCTURE WITH A VIEWING PANEL

Abstract

A package structure includes a viewing panel (16), a blister (14), a front card (12), and a rear card (18). The viewing panel has a surface area. The blister includes a body-portion, with the body portion being sized and shaped to receive one or more consumer goods therein. The front card defines a front opening (30) therein. That front opening is sized and shaped to receive the body portion of the blister therethrough. The rear card (18) defines a rear opening therein, with the rear opening having a surface area that is less than the surface area of the viewing panel. The rear card (18) is attached to the front card to secure the viewing panel therebetween.

Description

BACKGROUND

The present application is directed to blister card packaging structures and, more particularly, to trap sealing blister card packaging structures incorporating a viewing panel or window.

Various consumer goods, such as pharmaceuticals, software, electronics, health and beauty products and the like, typically are packaged in trap sealing blister packages. Traditionally, trap sealing blister packages are formed by positioning a consumer good in a flanged blister and sealing the flanged blister between two cards.

It has long been presumed that the only way to make the consumer good visible in the package was to faun the flanged blister from transparent polymeric materials. However, constructing flanged blisters from transparent polymeric materials requires additional, more expensive materials and more complex processing steps as compared to constructing flanged blisters from paperboard-based substrates.

Accordingly, there is a need for a blister card packaging structure having a transparent viewing panel or window available at a relatively low cost.

SUMMARY

In one aspect, the disclosed blister card packaging structure may include a viewing panel having a surface area, a blister including a flange, a viewing panel receiving recess and a body portion, the viewing panel receiving recess being sized and shaped to closely receive the viewing panel therein, a front card defining an opening therein, the opening being sized and shaped to receive the body portion therethrough and prevent passage of the flange therethrough, and a rear card defining an opening therein, the opening of the rear card having a surface area that is less than the surface area of the viewing panel, wherein the front card is sealed to the rear card to secure the flange and the viewing panel therebetween.

Other aspects of the disclosed blister card packaging structure will become apparent from the following description and the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a top plan view of the components of one aspect of the disclosed blister card packaging structure;

FIG. 2 is a side elevational view of the components of the blister card packaging structure of FIG. 1 in a pre-assembled configuration;

FIG. 3 is a front perspective view of the blister card packaging structure of FIG. 2 in a partially assembled configuration;

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a portion of the blister card packaging structure of FIG. 3; and

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a portion of the blister card packaging structure of FIG. 4.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, one aspect of the disclosed blister card packaging structure, generally designated 10, may include a front card 12, a blister 14, a viewing panel 16 and a rear card 18. Additional components and features may be used without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

The viewing panel 16 may be a sheet or film of transparent or generally transparent material. For example, the viewing panel 16 may be formed from a sheet of polymeric material, such as polyvinyl chloride (PVC), polyethylene terephthalate (PET), amorphous polyethylene terephthalate (APET), polylactide (PLA), polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) or the like. The size and shape of the viewing panel 16 may be dictated by the overall size and shape of the packaging structure 10 and by other design considerations. For example, the viewing panel 16 may be generally rectangular, square or circular in top view. In one aspect, the viewing panel 16 may have a thickness sufficient to resist tampering and deter theft.

The blister 14 may include a flange 20, a viewing panel receiving recess 22 and a body portion 24. The body portion 24 may define a storage chamber in which various items, such as consumer goods, may be received. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the body portion 24 may be formed into various shapes, such as a hemispherical bubble, a rectangular box or other regular or irregular shapes. The shape and size of the body portion 24 of the blister 14 may be dictated by the items to be packaged in the packaging structure 10.

In one aspect, the blister 14 may be formed by thermoforming a paperboard substrate into the desired shape and configuration. Optionally, the paperboard substrate may be coated with or otherwise include additional layers and/or materials, such as printable coatings, polymeric coatings, tear resistant layers and the like. In another aspect, the blister 14 may be formed from a polymeric material using, for example, a stamping process, an injection molding process or the like. At this point, those skilled in the art will appreciate that the blister 14 may be formed from a wide variety of materials using a wide variety of processes.

As shown in greater detail in FIGS. 4 and 5, the viewing panel receiving recess 22 may be formed as a lip or the like in the blister 14 between the flange 20 and the body portion 24 and may extend about the periphery of the body portion 24. The viewing panel receiving recess 22 may be sized and shaped to closely receive the viewing panel 16 therein and to support the viewing panel 16 over the body portion 24 of the blister 14.

As shown in FIG. 2, in one aspect, the viewing panel receiving recess 22 may have a depth D that generally corresponds to the thickness T of the viewing panel 16 such that the top surface 17 of the viewing panel 16 is generally flush with the top surface 15 of the flange 20 when the packaging structure 10 is in the assembled configuration. However, those skilled in the art will appreciate that an alternative aspect of the disclosed packaging structure 10 may be formed without the viewing panel receiving recess 22, wherein the viewing panel 16 is positioned on the top surface 15 of the flange 20. Furthermore, optionally, those skilled in the art will appreciate that an adhesive may be used to secure the viewing panel 16 to the viewing panel receiving recess 22.

As shown in FIG. 1, the front and rear cards 12, 18 may be formed as separate pieces. Alternatively, the front and rear cards 12, 18 may be formed as a single continuous piece of material and may be separated by a fold line (not shown). For example, the cards 12, 18 may be formed by die cutting a bulk supply sheet, though those skilled in the art will appreciate that any available means for forming cards 12, 18 may be used.

Furthermore, while the front and rear cards 12, 18 are shown in FIG. 1 as defining a generally rectangular periphery in top view, those skilled in the art will appreciate that the front and rear cards 12, 18 may be formed into various sizes and shapes depending upon the application of the packaging structure 10.

Referring to FIG. 2, the front card 12 may include an outer surface 26 and an inner surface 28 and may define an opening 30 (also see FIG. 1) therein sized and shaped to receive the body portion 24 of the blister 14 therethrough, while preventing the flange 20 of the blister 14 from passing therethrough. The rear card 18 may include an outer surface 32 and an inner surface 34 and may define an opening 36 (also see FIG. 1) therein sized and shaped to expose the viewing panel 16 when the packaging structure 10 is in the assembled configuration. In one aspect, the opening 36 in the rear card 18 may be slightly smaller than the viewing panel 16 to facilitate fully enclosing the viewing panel 16 between the front and rear cards 12, 18.

Optionally, a hanger notch (not shown) may be formed in the front and/or rear cards 14, 16 to facilitate hanging the assembled packaging structure 10 on a retail display rack (not shown).

The front and rear cards 14, 16 may be formed from any conventional blister package substrate such as a paperboard substrate. Examples of suitable paperboard substrates include solid bleached sulfate (SBS), folding boxboard and recycled board, whether bleached or unbleached. For example, the front and rear cards 12, 18 may be formed from or may include a SBS board having a thickness of about 10 to about 30 points.

The outer surfaces 26, 32 of the front and rear cards 12, 18 may be coated with a printable coating selected for compatibility with the desired printing method and the selected substrate from which the front and rear cards 12, 18 are formed. For example, the outer surfaces 26, 32 of the front and rear cards 12, 18 may be coated with clay, calcium carbonate or combinations thereof.

The inner surfaces 28, 34 of the front and rear cards 12, 18 may be coated with a sealing material. The sealing material may be any material that may form a seal between the inner surfaces 28, 34 of the front and rear cards 12, 18. In one aspect, the sealing material may be an adhesive (e.g., a pressure sensitive adhesive or a curable adhesive). In another aspect, the sealing material may be a material that melts and seals to adjacent substrates or layers upon the application of heat, radio frequency energy and/or ultrasonic energy. Examples of useful sealing materials include ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA), ethylene methyl acrylate (EMA), copolymers of EVA and EMA, and combinations of EVA and/or EMA and other polymers or materials, low density polyethylene, high density polyethylene, linear low density polyethylene, ethylene acrylic acid, ethylene methacrylate, ethylene ethyl acrylate and ethylene n-butyl acrylate.

Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the front and/or rear cards 12, 18 may include additional layers or materials without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. For example, the front and/or rear cards 12, 18 may include a tear resistant layer or material to provide improved package security. For example, the front and/or rear cards 12, 18 may include an oriented film layer, such as a layer of biaxially oriented polyester film sold under the mark MYLAR® (E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Company of Wilmington, Del.).

Referring to FIG. 3, the packaging structure 10 may be formed by (1) positioning the body portion 24 of the blister 14 through the opening 30 in the front card 12 such that the flange 20 of the blister 14 is positioned against the inner surface 28 of the front card 12, (2) positioning an item (e.g., a consumer good) into the body portion 24 of the blister 14, (3) positioning the viewing panel 16 over the body portion 24 such that the viewing panel 16 is received in the viewing panel receiving portion 22 of the blister 14, (4) positioning the rear card 18 over the front card 12 such that the flange 20 and viewing panel 16 are positioned therebetween and such that at least a portion of the inner surface 34 of the rear card 18 is positioned to engage at least a portion of the inner surface 28 of the front card, and (5) applying heat, radio frequency energy, ultrasonic energy, microwave energy, mechanical pressure and/or an adhesive to the mated portions of the front and rear cards 12, 18 to seal the front card 12 to the rear card 18.

Accordingly, those skilled in the art will appreciate that incorporating a viewing panel 16 into the packaging structure 10 as described above allows the packaged product to be viewed without the need for forming the entire blister 14 from a transparent polymeric material and without the need for an additional step of gluing a window onto the package.

Although various aspects of the disclosed blister card packaging structure have been shown and described, modifications may occur to those skilled in the art upon reading the specification.

Claims

1. A package structure, comprising:

a viewing panel having a surface area;

a blister including a body portion, the body portion being sized and shaped to receive one or more consumer goods therein;

a front card defining a front opening therein, the front opening being sized and shaped to receive the body portion of the blister therethrough; and

a rear card defining a rear opening therein, the rear opening having a surface area that is less than the surface area of the viewing panel, the rear card being attached to the front card to secure the viewing panel therebetween;

wherein the blister further comprises a viewing panel receiving recess, the viewing panel receiving recess being sized and shaped to closely receive the viewing panel therein.

2. The package structure of claim 1, wherein the viewing panel is comprised of a transparent or generally transparent material.

3. The package structure of claim 2, wherein the viewing panel is adhesively secured to the blister.

4. The package structure of claim 1, wherein the blister is a substrate having a desired shape and configuration.

5. The package structure of claim 4, wherein the blister is a paperboard substrate.

6. The package structure of claim 5, wherein the paperboard substrate includes at least one additional layer.

7. The package structure of claim 6, wherein one given additional layer is a printable coating, a polymeric coating, or a tear-resistant layer.

8. The package structure of claim 4, wherein the blister is formed of a polymeric material.

9. (canceled)

10. The package structure of claim 1, wherein the blister further comprises a flange, the front opening further being sized and shaped to prevent passage of the flange therethrough.

11. The package structure of claim 10, wherein the viewing panel receiving recess defines a lip in the blister between the flange and the body portion.

12. The package structure of claim 1, wherein the viewing panel receiving recess has a recess depth that generally corresponds to a panel thickness of the viewing panel.

13. The package structure of claim 1, wherein the front card and the rear card are formed as separate pieces.

14. The package structure of claim 1, wherein the front card and rear card formed of a single, continuous piece, separated by a fold line.

15. The package structure of claim 1, wherein the front card and the rear card are each made of a substrate material.

16. The package structure of claim 15, wherein the substrate material is a paperboard material.

17. The package structure of claim 1, wherein the front card and the rear card each have a corresponding inner surface, each respective inner surface being positioned to engage the other inner surface, a sealing material being provided between the respective inner surfaces for attaching the respective inner surfaces to one another.

18. The package structure of claim 1, wherein the front card and the rear card each include a tear-resistant layer or material.

19. A package structure, comprising:

a viewing panel having a surface area;

a blister including a body portion; a front card defining a front opening therein, the front opening being sized and shaped to receive the body portion of the blister therethrough; and

a rear card defining a rear opening therein, the rear opening having a surface area that is less than the surface area of the viewing panel, the rear card being attached to the front card to secure the viewing panel therebetween;

wherein the blister further comprises a viewing panel receiving recess, the viewing panel receiving recess being sized and shaped to closely receive the viewing panel therein.

20. The package structure of claim 19, wherein at least one of the blister, the front card, and the rear card is made of blister package substrate material.

21. The package structure of claim 20, wherein the blister package substrate material is a paperboard substrate material.

22. The package structure of claim 19, wherein at least one of the blister, the front card, and the rear card has at least one of a tear-resistant layer and a printable layer associated therewith.

23. The package structure of claim 19, wherein at least a portion of the front card and at least a portion of the rear card are sealed to one another using a sealing material, thereby securing the viewing panel therebetween.

24. The package structure of claim 23, wherein the sealing material is an adhesive.

25. The package structure of claim 24, wherein the adhesive is pressure-sensitive or curable.

26. The package structure of claim 23, wherein the sealing material is a sealant that melts and seals adjacent substrates upon application of at least one of heat, radio-frequency energy, microwave energy, and ultrasonic energy thereto.

27. The package structure of claim 19, wherein the blister further includes a flange, the front opening being further sized and shaped to prevent passage of the flange therethrough.

28. The package structure of claim 19, wherein at least one of the front card and the rear card has a hanger notch formed therein.

29. A package structure, comprising:

a viewing panel having a surface area;

a blister including a body portion, the body portion being sized and shaped to receive one or more consumer goods therein;

a front card defining a front opening therein, the front opening being sized and shaped to receive the body portion of the blister therethrough; and

a rear card defining a rear opening therein, the rear opening having a surface area that is less than the surface area of the viewing panel, the rear card being attached to the front card to secure the viewing panel therebetween;

wherein the blister includes means for closely receiving the viewing panel therein and supporting the viewing panel over the body portion.