Extensible paper and its use in the production of expanded slit packaging wrap and void fill products

A shipping package, comprising:

• a wrapped object, said wrapped object being wrapped in at least two layers of an expanded slit sheet paper wrap having interlocking hexagonal cells,
• said slit sheet paper being expanded by applying an expansion force in the range from 0.15 to 0.22 pounds per inch, to form said at least two layers of expanded slit sheet paper wrap having interlocking hexagonal cells,
• said slit sheet paper wrap being formed from an extensible paper having an extensible range from 1-9% in a machine direction and 1-5% in a cross direction,
• said wrapped object being contained within a shipping container.

A method of expanding a slit sheet material that upon expansion, forms two or more layers of interlocking hexagonal cells,

• said slit sheet material being an extensible paper having an extensible range from 1-9% in a machine direction and 1-5% in a cross direction,
• comprising the steps of:
• expanding said slit sheet material,
• wrapping said slit sheet material to form adjacent layers, said adjacent layers being in interlocking contact,
• whereby expanded layers resist contraction and nesting.

A method of protecting an object for shipping by wrapping and cushioning said object in an expanded slit sheet material, said expanded slit sheet material being at least one sheet of expandable sheet material, said at least one sheet of expandable sheet material being flexible, non-woven fibrous material, having a plurality of spaced parallel rows of individual slits in a slit pattern extending transversely from one end of the fibrous sheet material to the opposing end of said at least one sheet, each of said rows having interval spaces between consecutive slits, said slits in each row being positioned adjacent the interval space between consecutive slits in the adjacent parallel row of slits, said slit sheet material being formed from an extensible paper having an extensible range from 1-9% in the machine direction and 1-5% in the cross direction,

• comprising the steps of:
• a) expanding a length of at least one sheet of an expandable sheet material by applying an expansion force in the range from 0.15 to 0.22 pounds per inch, to form at least one expanded sheet having an array of openings,
• said flexible, non-woven fibrous sheet material and said slit pattern, in combination producing an expandable sheet characterized by
• i) forming upon expansion, an array of hexagonal openings, said openings being bound by land areas and leg areas, and being generally similar in shape and size, in a consistent, uniformly repeating pattern, and opening in generally a random pattern extending transversely from one end of the fibrous sheet to the opposing end and also adjacent to the first set of rows non-repeatable traversing from one end to the opposing end of the fibrous sheet material,
• b) wrapping said at least one expanded sheet around an object, and
• c) placing the wrapped object in a package.