U.S. patent application number 15/567653 was filed with the patent office on 2018-05-17 for package.
The applicant listed for this patent is Mitsubishi Electric Corporation. Invention is credited to Kazuho ITO, Yuto TAKEUCHI, Kenichi UNNO, Hidetaka YAMAUCHI, Kentaro YONEHARA.
Application Number | 20180134440 15/567653 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 57247850 |
Filed Date | 2018-05-17 |
United States Patent
Application |
20180134440 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
UNNO; Kenichi ; et
al. |
May 17, 2018 |
PACKAGE
Abstract
A package packages an object to be packaged by placing the
object to be packaged on a tray box, covering the object with
packaging corrugated cardboard from the top, and wrapping a binding
band. The packaging corrugated cardboard includes a peripheral wall
having a pair of first sidewalls and a pair of second sidewalls, an
inner flap connected to a top side of each of the first sidewalls,
and an outer flap connected to a top side of each of the second
sidewalls. Each inner flap is provided with a pair of protrusions
protruding from both side ends of the flap. When the inner flap and
then the outer flap are closed, an opening on a top side of the
peripheral wall is closed with the protrusions being brought into
contact with the second sidewalls.
Inventors: |
UNNO; Kenichi; (Tokyo,
JP) ; ITO; Kazuho; (Tokyo, JP) ; YAMAUCHI;
Hidetaka; (Tokyo, JP) ; TAKEUCHI; Yuto;
(Tokyo, JP) ; YONEHARA; Kentaro; (Tokyo,
JP) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Mitsubishi Electric Corporation |
Tokyo |
|
JP |
|
|
Family ID: |
57247850 |
Appl. No.: |
15/567653 |
Filed: |
May 12, 2015 |
PCT Filed: |
May 12, 2015 |
PCT NO: |
PCT/JP2015/063574 |
371 Date: |
October 19, 2017 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
1/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B65D 5/103 20130101;
B65D 5/643 20130101; B65D 81/057 20130101; B65D 5/02 20130101; B65D
2585/6812 20130101; B65D 85/68 20130101; B65D 5/44 20130101; B65D
81/02 20130101; B65D 5/443 20130101 |
International
Class: |
B65D 5/10 20060101
B65D005/10; B65D 85/68 20060101 B65D085/68 |
Claims
1. A package comprising: a peripheral wall to have a pair of first
sidewalls facing each other, a pair of second sidewalls facing each
other, and an opening at one end; an inner flap to be provided at
the one end of each of the first sidewalls; a pair of protrusions
to protrude from both side ends of the inner flap; and an outer
flap to be provided at the one end of each of the second sidewalls
and be provided with a notch, the size of which is larger than or
equal to the size of each of the protrusions, at a position
corresponding to each of the protrusions, wherein closing of the
inner flap and then the outer flap closes the opening at the one
end of the peripheral wall with the protrusions being brought into
contact with the second sidewalls.
2. The package according to claim 1, wherein an edge of each of the
protrusions is brought into contact with the second sidewall when
the inner flap and the outer flap are closed.
3. The package according to claim 1, wherein each of the
protrusions is bent at some midpoint to cause a surface on an edge
side of the protrusion being bent to be brought into contact with
the second sidewall when the inner flap and the outer flap are
closed.
4. The package according to claim 3, wherein each of the
protrusions is bent with an edge facing downward.
5. The package according to claim 1, wherein each of the
protrusions is folded back at some midpoint to cause a part being
folded back to be brought into contact with the second sidewall
when the inner flap and the outer flap are closed.
6. The package according to claim 1, wherein each of the
protrusions is provided at a position that is the same distance
away from an edge of the inner flap.
7. The package according to claim 1, wherein the package is formed
by using corrugated cardboard.
Description
TECHNICAL FIELD
[0001] The present invention relates to a package that protects an
object to be packaged such as an outdoor unit of an air
conditioner.
BACKGROUND
[0002] An object to be packaged such as an outdoor unit of an air
conditioner is packaged as follows.
[0003] First, the object to be packaged is placed on a tray box
which is a tray-like corrugated cardboard box containing a
cushioning material such as expanded polystyrene. An upper
cushioning material such as expanded polystyrene is then placed
over the top of the object to be packaged. After that, the object
to be packaged with the upper cushioning material placed thereon is
covered with packaging corrugated cardboard having an open bottom,
around which a binding band is wrapped.
PATENT LITERATURE
[0004] Patent Literature 1: JP 2006-282258 A
[0005] In packaging the object to be packaged such as the outdoor
unit of the air conditioner in the aforementioned manner, the
binding band is fastened tightly in order to prevent loosening and
unfastening of the binding band caused by rough handling or the
like. This sometimes causes the binding band fastened tightly to
bite into a corner of the top side of the packaging corrugated
cardboard.
SUMMARY
[0006] An object of the present invention is to prevent the binding
band from biting into the corner.
[0007] A package according to the present invention includes:
[0008] a peripheral wall to have a pair of first sidewalls facing
each other, a pair of second sidewalls facing each other, and an
opening at one end;
[0009] an inner flap to be provided at the one end of each of the
first sidewalls;
[0010] an outer flap to be provided at the one end of each of the
second sidewalls; and
[0011] a pair of protrusions to protrude from both side ends of the
inner flap, wherein
[0012] closing of the inner flap and then the outer flap closes the
opening at the one end of the peripheral wall with protrusions
being brought into contact with the second sidewalls.
[0013] According to the present invention, the protrusions
protruding from both side ends of the inner flap are brought into
contact with the second sidewalls when the inner flap is closed.
The corner being reinforced with the protrusion, the binding band
may be wrapped around a part corresponding to the arrangement of
the protrusion to be able to avoid biting into the corner.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS
[0014] FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of a package 10
according to a first embodiment.
[0015] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the package 10 according to
the first embodiment.
[0016] FIG. 3 is a developed view of packaging corrugated cardboard
20 of the package 10 according to the first embodiment.
[0017] FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a state in which both flaps
of the packaging corrugated cardboard 20 of the package 10
according to the first embodiment are opened.
[0018] FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a state in which an outer
flap 25 of the packaging corrugated cardboard 20 of the package 10
according to the first embodiment is opened.
[0019] FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a state in which both of the
flaps of the packaging corrugated cardboard 20 of the package 10
according to the first embodiment are closed.
[0020] FIG. 7 is a plan view of the packaging corrugated cardboard
20 of the package 10 according to the first embodiment.
[0021] FIG. 8 is a partial cross-sectional view of the packaging
corrugated cardboard 20 of the package 10 according to the first
embodiment.
[0022] FIG. 9 is a partial cross-sectional view of the packaging
corrugated cardboard 20 of the package 10 according to the first
embodiment.
[0023] FIG. 10 is a developed view of packaging corrugated
cardboard 20 of a package 10 according to a second embodiment.
[0024] FIG. 11 is a plan view of the packaging corrugated cardboard
20 of the package 10 according to the second embodiment.
[0025] FIG. 12 is a partial cross-sectional view of the packaging
corrugated cardboard 20 of the package 10 according to the second
embodiment.
[0026] FIG. 13 is a developed view of packaging corrugated
cardboard 20 of a package 10 according to a third embodiment.
[0027] FIG. 14 is a plan view of the packaging corrugated cardboard
20 of the package 10 according to the third embodiment.
[0028] FIG. 15 is a partial cross-sectional view of the packaging
corrugated cardboard 20 of the package 10 according to the third
embodiment.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
First Embodiment
Description of Structure
[0029] The structure of a package 10 according to a first
embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2.
[0030] As illustrated in FIG. 1, the package 10 includes packaging
corrugated cardboard 20, a tray box 30, an upper cushioning
material 40, and a binding band 50.
[0031] The packaging corrugated cardboard 20 has a bottom that is
open and a top side that is closed by inner flaps 24 and outer
flaps 25. The tray box 30 is formed of a tray-like corrugated
cardboard box 31 which contains a lower cushioning material 32 made
of a cushioning material such as expanded polystyrene. The upper
cushioning material 40 is made of a cushioning material such as
expanded polystyrene. The binding band 50 is a band made of
polypropylene and having the width of 12 to 20 mm.
[0032] An outdoor unit 100, which is an object to be packaged, of
an air conditioner is placed on the tray box 30 and topped with the
upper cushioning material 40, as illustrated in FIG. 1. The outdoor
unit 100 topped with the upper cushioning material 40 is then
covered from the top with the packaging corrugated cardboard 20,
around which the binding band 50 is wrapped. The outdoor unit 100
is thus packaged with the package 10 as illustrated in FIG. 2.
[0033] The structure of the packaging corrugated cardboard 20
according to the first embodiment will be described with reference
to FIGS. 3 to 8.
[0034] As illustrated in FIG. 3, the packaging corrugated cardboard
20 includes a peripheral wall 23 having a pair of first sidewalls
21 and a pair of second sidewalls 22. The first sidewall 21 has a
narrower width than the second sidewall 22 in this case. The
packaging corrugated cardboard 20 includes the inner flaps 24
connected to the top sides of the first sidewalls 21, and the outer
flaps 25 connected to the top sides of the second sidewalls 22. The
outer flaps 25 are butt flaps, the edges of which butt against each
other when closed. The packaging corrugated cardboard 20 includes a
joint 26 that joins the ends of the peripheral wall 23 together.
Here, the joint 26 is provided at a side end of the second sidewall
22.
[0035] Each of the inner flaps 24 is provided with a pair of
protrusions 27 protruding from both side ends of the flap. The
protrusion 27 is rectangular in shape in this case. On the other
hand, each of the outer flaps 25 is provided with a notch 28 at a
position corresponding to the protrusion 27. The notch 28 is
rectangular in shape having the same size as the protrusion 27 or
larger than the protrusion 27.
[0036] Each of the first sidewalls 21 includes a handhold opening
29 that is bored for a handler to lay his hand thereon.
[0037] As illustrated in FIG. 4, the packaging corrugated cardboard
20 is folded between the first sidewalls 21 and the second
sidewalls 22 to place and fix the joint 26 provided at the side end
of the second sidewall 22 over an inner wall of the side end of the
first sidewall 21. This allows the pair of the first sidewalls 21
to face each other and the pair of the second sidewalls 22 to face
each other. Note that at this point, the inner flaps 24 and the
outer flaps 25 are open so that the top side of the packaging
corrugated cardboard 20 is open.
[0038] The inner flaps 24 are closed as illustrated in FIG. 5, and
then the outer flaps 25 are closed as illustrated in FIG. 6. This
closes the opening on the top side of the packaging corrugated
cardboard 20, which is formed into the shape of a rectangular
parallelepiped with an open bottom.
[0039] As illustrated in FIG. 7, a width A1 between the edges of
the pair of the protrusions 27 is slightly wider than a width B1 of
the first sidewall 21. The width B1 of the first sidewall 21 is
slightly wider than a width C1 of the inner flap 24. That is, a
protrusion dimension a1 of the protrusion 27 is slightly larger
than a dimension c1 (=(B1-C1)/2) between the end of the first
sidewall 21 and the end of the inner flap 24.
[0040] When the inner flaps 24 are closed and then the outer flaps
25 are closed, as illustrated in FIG. 6, the inner flaps 24 and the
protrusions 27 are pressed down by the outer flaps 25. Then, the
packaging corrugated cardboard 20 being made of corrugated
cardboard, the first sidewall 21 is bent slightly to cause the edge
of the protrusion 27 to come into contact with the vicinity of an
upper end of the second sidewall 22, as illustrated in FIG. 8. In
other words, the protrusion 27 protrudes, pushing the second
sidewall 22 from the inside to the outside.
[0041] The binding band 50 is wrapped so as to pass outside the
part of the second sidewall 22 in contact with the edge of the
protrusion 27.
[0042] Here, when the protrusion dimension a1 of the protrusion 27
is too large, the protrusion 27 is possibly bent at the time the
outer flaps 25 are closed to press down the inner flaps 24 and the
protrusions 27. When the protrusion dimension a1 of the protrusion
27 is too small, on the other hand, the protrusions 27 do not
protrude even when the inner flaps 24 and the outer flaps 25 are
closed.
[0043] It is thus desirable for the protrusion dimension a1 of the
protrusion 27 to be approximately twice the thickness of the
corrugated cardboard forming the packaging corrugated cardboard 20.
Specifically, it is desirable for the protrusion dimension a1 of
the protrusion 27 to be approximately 10 to 16 mm.
[0044] Moreover, when a width dimension b1 of the protrusion 27 is
too large, the protrusion 27 is less easily bent and put inside the
second sidewall 22 at the time the outer flaps 25 are closed to
press down the inner flaps 24 and the protrusions 27. This causes
reduced workability. When the width dimension b1 of the protrusion
27 is too small, on the other hand, it is hard for the binding band
50 to be wrapped so as to pass outside the part in contact with the
edge of the protrusion 27.
[0045] It is thus desirable for the width dimension b1 of the
protrusion 27 to be approximately two to five times the width of
the binding band 50. Specifically, it is desirable for the width
dimension b1 of the protrusion 27 to be approximately 30 to 100
mm.
[0046] An area 60 in FIGS. 2 to 7 indicates the direction of grain
of a corrugated medium in the corrugated cardboard forming the
packaging corrugated cardboard 20. As illustrated in FIGS. 5 and 7,
the direction of the grain of the corrugated medium in the
corrugated cardboard is orthogonal to the direction in which the
protrusion 27 protrudes. That is, the direction of the grain of the
corrugated medium in the corrugated cardboard is orthogonal to the
direction of a shearing stress acting on the packaging corrugated
cardboard 20 by the binding band 50.
Effects of First Embodiment
[0047] As has been described, the package 10 according to the first
embodiment is structured such that each of the inner flaps 24 of
the packaging corrugated cardboard 20 includes the pair of the
protrusions 27, the edge of each of which comes into contact with
the second sidewall 22 when the inner flaps 24 and the outer flaps
25 are closed. The binding band 50 is then wrapped so as to pass
outside the part of the second sidewall 22 in contact with the edge
of the protrusion 27.
[0048] The protrusion 27 reinforces the corner of the top side of
the packaging corrugated cardboard 20 to be able to prevent the
binding band 50 from biting into the packaging corrugated cardboard
20 even when the binding band 50 is wrapped tightly. In other
words, when the binding band 50 tightly binds the corner of the top
side from the outside to the inside, the protrusion 27 protrudes
from the inside to the outside to be able to prevent the binding
band 50 from biting into the packaging corrugated cardboard 20.
[0049] Note that the protrusion 27 may be bent when binding of the
binding band 50 is too tight. Even when bent, however, the
protrusion 27 keeps preventing the binding band 50 from biting into
the packaging corrugated cardboard 20 since the edge of the
protrusion 27 remains in contact with the second sidewall 22, as
illustrated in FIG. 9.
[0050] The package 10 according to the first embodiment achieves
reinforcement with the protrusion 27 provided on the inner flap 24
without arranging another component. The reinforcement can thus be
achieved with a simple structure at low cost.
[0051] Specifically, the packaging corrugated cardboard 20 can be
cut out and manufactured from a sheet of corrugated cardboard with
the notch 28 provided in a part of the outer flap 25 corresponding
to the protrusion 27. Note that the provision of the notch 28 does
not particularly lead to a reduction in strength because the notch
28 is not formed in a part receiving the force of the binding band
50. The notch 28 does not particularly lead to a reduction in
workability, either.
[0052] The direction of the grain of the corrugated medium in the
corrugated cardboard is orthogonal to the direction in which the
binding band 50 shears the packaging corrugated cardboard 20. As a
result, the packaging corrugated cardboard 20 is not readily torn
by the force received from the binding band 50.
[0053] Note that in the aforementioned description, the inner flap
24 is connected to the first sidewall 21 having the smaller width,
and the outer flap 25 is connected to the second sidewall 22 having
the larger width. Conversely, however, the inner flap 24 may be
connected to the second sidewall 22 having the larger width, and
the outer flap 25 may be connected to the first sidewall 21 having
the smaller width. The protrusion 27 may then be formed on the
inner flap 24 connected to the second sidewall 22 having the larger
width.
[0054] Alternatively, the first sidewall 21 and the second sidewall
22 may have the same width.
[0055] Moreover, each of the inner flaps 24 is provided with only
one pair of the protrusions 27 in the aforementioned description.
Each of the inner flaps 24 may however be provided with a plurality
of pairs of the protrusions 27.
[0056] Moreover, the protrusion 27 is rectangular in shape in the
aforementioned description. The protrusion 27 may however be formed
in another shape such as a trapezoid.
[0057] A protruding shape equivalent to the protrusion 27 may also
be formed on the upper cushioning material 40 that is located below
the protrusion 27 in packaging the outdoor unit 100. This can
further increase reinforcement strength.
[0058] The effect of preventing biting of the binding band 50 can
be obtained by just providing the protruding shape on the upper
cushioning material 40 instead of providing the protrusion 27 on
the first sidewall 21. In this case, however, it is desirable for
the upper cushioning material 40 to be made of material that is not
brittle like expanded polystyrene but has some degree of strength
while being usable as a cushioning material.
[0059] Moreover, the binding band 50 has the width of 12 to 20 mm
in the aforementioned description. The width of the binding band 50
need not however be limited to 12 to 20 mm.
[0060] Note that the smaller the width of the binding band 50, the
larger the binding pressure of the binding band 50 acting on the
corner of the top side of the packaging corrugated cardboard 20.
This makes it easy for the binding band 50 to bite into the
packaging corrugated cardboard 20. Accordingly, the corner of the
top side of the packaging corrugated cardboard 20 needs to be
reinforced sufficiently in using a band with the width smaller than
12 mm as the binding band 50.
[0061] On the other hand, the larger the width of the binding band
50, the smaller the binding pressure of the binding band 50 acting
on the corner of the top side of the packaging corrugated cardboard
20. This makes it hard for the binding band 50 to bite into the
packaging corrugated cardboard 20. However, a band wider than 20 mm
is not widely used and can cause an increase in cost.
Second Embodiment
[0062] A package 10 according to a second embodiment is different
from that of the first embodiment in that a protrusion 27 has a
bent shape. This difference will be described in the second
embodiment.
[0063] The structure of packaging corrugated cardboard 20 according
to the second embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS.
10 to 12.
[0064] A bend part 271 is formed in the protrusion 27 as
illustrated in FIG. 10. The bend part 271 is a guide line parallel
to the surface of a second sidewall 22. The guide line is a bend
line along which a flute is crushed for easy bending of corrugated
cardboard.
[0065] The protrusion 27 is bent at a right angle along the bend
part 271 such that the edge of the protrusion faces downward when
an inner flap 24 is closed.
[0066] With the protrusion 27 being bent along the bend part 271,
the inner flaps 24 are closed and then outer flaps 25 are closed to
close an opening on a top side of the packaging corrugated
cardboard 20.
[0067] As illustrated in FIG. 11, a width D2 between the bend parts
271 of a pair of the protrusions 27 is slightly wider than a width
B2 of a first sidewall 21. The width B2 of the first sidewall 21 is
slightly wider than a width C2 of the inner flap 24. That is, a
protrusion dimension d2 of the protrusion 27 up to the bend part
271 is slightly larger than a dimension c2 (=(B2-C2)/2) between the
end of the first sidewall 21 and the end of the inner flap 24. A
protrusion dimension a2 of the protrusion 27 up to the edge thereof
is approximately twice the protrusion dimension d2 up to the bend
part 271.
[0068] When the inner flaps 24 are closed and then the outer flaps
25 are closed, the inner flaps 24 and the protrusions 27 are
pressed down by the outer flaps 25. Then, as illustrated in FIG.
12, the first sidewall 21 is bent slightly to cause a surface of
the edge side of the protrusion 27 being bent to come into contact
with the vicinity of an upper end of the second sidewall 22.
[0069] Here, the protrusion dimension d2 up to the bend part 271 is
nearly equal to the protrusion dimension a1 for the same reason as
that for the protrusion dimension a1 according to the first
embodiment. Moreover, a width dimension b2 of the protrusion 27 is
nearly equal to the width dimension b1 of the protrusion 27
according to the first embodiment.
Effects of Second Embodiment
[0070] As has been described, the package 10 according to the
second embodiment is structured such that, with the protrusion 27
being bent, the surface on the edge side of the protrusion being
bent comes into contact with the second sidewall 22 when the inner
flaps 24 and the outer flaps 25 are closed. A binding band 50 is
then wrapped so as to pass outside a part of the second sidewall 22
in contact with the surface on the edge side of the protrusion
27.
[0071] The protrusion 27 reinforces the corner on the top side of
the packaging corrugated cardboard 20 to be able to prevent the
binding band 50 from biting into the cardboard even when the
binding band 50 is wrapped tightly.
[0072] Specifically, unlike the first embodiment, the protrusion 27
is in surface contact with the second sidewall 22 to be able to
increase reinforcement strength.
[0073] The bend part 271 may be not the single guide line formed at
a bend position but a plurality of scores or creases formed in the
vicinity of the bend position. Note, however, that strength against
binding of the binding band 50 is possibly reduced when too many of
the scores or creases are formed. It is thus desirable to determine
the number of scores or creases in consideration of both the
strength against binding of the binding band 50 and efficiency of
the bending operation.
Third Embodiment
[0074] A package 10 according to a third embodiment is different
from that of the first and second embodiments in that a protrusion
27 has a shape that is folded back. This difference will be
described in the third embodiment.
[0075] The structure of packaging corrugated cardboard 20 according
to the third embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS.
13 to 15.
[0076] A fold-back part 272 is formed in the protrusion 27 as
illustrated in FIG. 13. The fold-back part 272 is a guide line
parallel to the surface of a second sidewall 22. The protrusion 27
is folded back 180 degrees downward at the fold-back part 272.
[0077] With the protrusion 27 being folded back at the fold-back
part 272, inner flaps 24 are closed and then outer flaps 25 are
closed to close an opening on a top side of the packaging
corrugated cardboard 20.
[0078] As illustrated in FIG. 14, a width D3 between the fold-back
parts 272 of a pair of the protrusions 27 is slightly wider than a
width B3 of a first sidewall 21. The width B3 of the first sidewall
21 is slightly wider than a width C3 of the inner flap 24. That is,
a protrusion dimension d3 of the protrusion 27 up to the fold-back
part 272 is slightly larger than a dimension c3 (=(B3-C3)/2)
between the end of the first sidewall 21 and the end of the inner
flap 24. A protrusion dimension a3 of the protrusion 27 up to the
edge thereof is approximately twice the protrusion dimension d3 up
to the fold-back part 272.
[0079] When the inner flaps 24 are closed and then the outer flaps
25 are closed, the inner flaps 24 and the protrusions 27 are
pressed down by the outer flaps 25. Then, as illustrated in FIG.
15, the first sidewall 21 is bent slightly to cause the fold-back
part 272 of the protrusion 27 to come into contact with the
vicinity of an upper end of the second sidewall 22.
[0080] Here, the protrusion dimension d3 up to the fold-back part
272 is nearly equal to the protrusion dimension a1 for the same
reason as that for the protrusion dimension a1 according to the
first embodiment. Moreover, a width dimension b3 of the protrusion
27 is nearly equal to the width dimension b1 of the protrusion 27
according to the first embodiment.
Effects of Third Embodiment
[0081] As has been described, the package 10 according to the third
embodiment is structured such that, with the protrusion 27 being
folded back, the fold-back part 272 comes into contact with the
second sidewall 22 when the inner flaps 24 and the outer flaps 25
are closed. A binding band 50 is then wrapped so as to pass outside
a part of the second sidewall 22 in contact with the fold-back part
272 of the protrusion 27.
[0082] The protrusion 27 reinforces the corner on the top side of
the packaging corrugated cardboard 20 to be able to prevent the
binding band 50 from biting into the cardboard even when the
binding band 50 is wrapped tightly.
[0083] Specifically, the protrusion 27 is folded in two unlike the
first embodiment to be able to increase reinforcement strength.
[0084] Note that as illustrated in FIG. 15, a groove 41 may be
formed on a top side of an upper cushioning material 40 to
accommodate the tip of the protrusion 27 being folded back. This
can prevent a bulge on the top side that is otherwise formed by
folding back the protrusion 27. As a result, an unstable state
caused by the bulge on the top side can be avoided when the package
10 containing an object to be packaged is stacked at the time of
storage in a warehouse or transport.
[0085] Moreover, the protrusion 27 is folded back downward in the
aforementioned description. The protrusion 27 may however be folded
back upward as well.
[0086] Furthermore, the fold-back part 272 may be not the single
guide line formed at a bend position but a plurality of scores or
creases formed in the vicinity of the bend position. Note, however,
that strength against binding of the binding band 50 is possibly
reduced when too many of the scores or creases are formed. It is
thus desirable to determine the number of scores or creases in
consideration of both the strength against binding of the binding
band 50 and efficiency of the fold-back operation.
* * * * *