Diamond-shaped Carton Having Fifth Side

Abstract

A carton having first and second four-sided end walls, four sidewalls each being connected at either end to corresponding sides of the end walls, and a fifth sidewall extending from a corner of the first end wall to a corresponding corner of the second end wall and being concave, thereby to join two adjacent sidewalls.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

This invention relates to cartons and is directed more particularly to a novelty carton suitable for packaging toiletry articles such as bottles of lotions, shaving cream and cosmetics in general.

2. Description of the Prior Art

It is desirable that consumer products be packaged in cartons which are unique to the product and may be readily identified therewith. It is also desirable that such cartons be of a unique design so as to catch the eye of potential purchasers.

In an attempt to satisfy the above desirable characteristics, packages have been designed which are indeed unique and distinctive but which in many instances are relatively expensive because of the unusual structure of the carton. In other instances, protection to the contents of the package is diminished in pursuit of a distinctive or unusual carton configuration. In still other instances, shipment and storage problems arise because of the unusual shape of a carton. Thus, while unusual configurations of cartons are desirable from a sales standpoint, they usually involve several disadvantages which may tend to outweigh the advantage sought by the novelty of the package.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a carton which affords excellent protection to its contents, facilitates shipment and storage thereof, is inexpensive to produce, and at the same time presents an unusual and attractive appearance.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a unitary blank of sheet material from which a carton as described above readily may be formed.

With the above and other objects in view, as will hereinafter appear, a feature of the present invention is the provision of a carton having first and second end walls, the end walls being quadrilaterals, four sidewalls, each sidewall being connected at either end to corresponding sides of the end walls, and a fifth sidewall extending from a vertex of the first end wall to a corresponding vertex of the second end wall and being concave, whereby to join two adjacent sidewalls.

In accordance with a further feature of the invention, there is provided a unitary blank from which a carton as described is formed, the blank including fold lines dividing the blank into four side panels, the blank further including end panels which are foldable into quadrilaterals, each side of the quadrilaterals being adapted to be disposed adjacent a corresponding end of a side panel and curved fold lines defining a fifth side panel extending from one end panel to the other end panel and joining two adjacent side panels.

The above and other features of the invention, including various novel details of construction and combination of parts, will now be more particularly described with reference to the accompanying drawings and pointed out in the claims. It will be understood that the particular carton and blank embodying the invention is shown by way of illustration only and not as a limitation of the invention. The principles and features of this invention may be employed in various and numerous embodiments without departing from the scope of the invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Reference is made to the accompanying drawings in which there is shown an illustrative embodiment of the invention from which its novel features and advantages will be apparent.

FIG. 1 is an elevational view of one form of carton illustrative of an embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 2 is an end view of the carton shown in FIG. 1;

Fig. 3 is a cross-sectional view, taken along the line III--III of FIG. 1; and

FIG. 4 is a plan view of a unitary blank from which the carton shown in FIGS. 1-3 is made.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

Referring to FIGS. 1-3, it will be seen that the illustrative carton includes first and second end walls 2, 4 which are quadrilaterals. Interconnecting the end walls 2, 4 are four sidewalls 6, 8, 10 and 12. Extending from a vertex 14 of the end wall 2 to a corresponding vertex 16 of the end wall 4 is a fifth sidewall 18 defined by arcuate fold lines 20, 22. The sidewall 18 thus joins the adjacent sidewalls 6, 8 and is of a concave contour, in accordance with the arcuate lines 20, 22.

Referring to FIG. 4, there will be seen an integral blank 30 from which the above described carton is formed. The blank 30 is divided into the side panels 6, 8, 10, 12 and 18 by fold lines 32, 34 and 36, in addition to the arcuate fold lines 20, 22. The fold lines may be perforated, grooved, or otherwise made adaptable for folding of the blank. The side panel 12 is provided with a coextensive flap 38 which may be provided with adhesive for joining to the side panel 10, as illustrated in FIG. 3. The side panel 12 is provided with end flaps 40, 42 and the side panel 8 is provided with end flaps 44, 46. Attached to either end of the side panel 6 are the end panels 2, 4 which may have attached thereto tab members 48, 50 respectively. The blank 30 may be of cardboard, or any suitable sheet material. The side panel 18 may be of the same or a different material, as for example a transparent material, or may be colored or decorated in any manner so as to present the appearance of a conspicuous ornamental unit.

In forming the carton shown in FIGS. 1-3 from the blank shown in FIG. 4, the side panels 10 and 12 are folded inwardly along their fold lines and maintain their planar condition. The elongated flap 38 is adhesively secured to the inner surface of the side panel 10, as shown in FIG. 3. The panel 18 is left undisturbed and forms a flat medium joining the panel 6 and 8, and stands out as an unbroken, somewhat oval figure disposed in planes of its own.

The end flaps 40, 42, 44, 46 are folded inwardly at 90.degree.. The end panels 2, 4 are then folded in superimposed position and the top and bottom of the carton completed by tucking in the tab members 48, 50.

It is to be understood that the present invention is by no means limited to the particular construction herein disclosed and/or shown in the drawings, but also comprises any modifications or equivalents within the scope of the disclosure.

Claims

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. A carton having first and second end walls, said end walls being substantially diamond-shaped parallelograms, four flat sidewalls each sidewall being adjacent at either end thereof to corresponding sides of the end walls, and a fifth side wall extending from a vertex of the first end wall to a corresponding vertex of the second end wall, said fifth sidewall, being concave and being defined by a pair of arcuate lines extending from said first end wall vertex to said second end wall vertex, said fifth sidewall joining adjacent first and second of said four flat sidewalls, the planes of said first and second sidewalls intersecting at an obtuse angle, a third of said four flat side walls joining said second side wall at an acute angle, a fourth of said four flat sidewalls joining said first sidewall at an acute angle, said third sidewall joining said fourth sidewall at an obtuse angle.