Collapsible display carrier and method of making

A display carrier foldable from a generally flat collapsed condition for shipping and storage to an erect position for retaining at least a pair of articles, said carrier being formed of a flexible material and comprising

• top and bottom walls;
• a pair of side walls, each side wall being hingedly attached to each of said top and bottom walls, to form a carrier sleeve;
• a reinforcing wall extending between and hingedly attached to the top and bottom walls;
• a planar retaining tab resiliently connected along a fold line to one of the top and bottom walls and having a single contoured edge joining opposite ends of the fold line, the contoured edge being shaped to permit one of such articles to slide over the tab when the carrier is in such erect position and to retain such articles in place;
• the reinforcing wall having a tab-receiving bight at one end portion of the reinforcing wall and adapted to limit rotation of the tab about the fold line in one direction when the carrier sleeve is in the erect position;
• wherein the tab is foldable between a flattened condition for storage and an erect position for retaining articles, the carrier including lift tab means for lifting the tab from its flattened condition as the sleeve is folded from the collapsed condition to the article receiving position.

A display carrier foldable from a generally flat collapsed condition for shipping and storage to an erect position for retaining at least a pair of articles, said carrier being formed of a flexible material and comprising

• top and bottom walls;
• a pair of side walls, each side wall being hingedly attached to each of said top and bottom walls to form a carrier sleeve;
• a reinforcing wall extending between and hingedly attached to the top and bottom walls;
• a pair of planar retaining tabs hinged to opposite edges of one of the top and bottom walls;
• each retaining tab being resiliently connected along a fold line to its respective top or bottom wall and having a single contoured edge joining opposite ends of the fold line, the contoured edge being shaped to permit one of such articles to slide over the tab when the carrier is in such erect position and to retain such article in place;
• the reinforcing wall having a pair of tab-receiving bights, one associated with each of the tabs and adapted to limit rotation of a tab about the fold line in one direction when the carrier sleeve is in the erect position;
• the reinforcing wall adjacent the bights holding the tabs folded flat against their respective top or bottom wall when the carrier is in the collapsed condition;
• and
• lift tab means for lifting at least one of the retaining tabs from the folded flat position as the carrier is folded from the collapsed condition to the article receiving position.

A display carrier folded from a generally flat collapsed condition for shipping and storage to an erect position, said carrier retaining at least a pair of articles in the erect position, said carrier being formed of a flexible material and comprising

• top and bottom walls;
• a pair of side walls, each side wall being hingedly attached to each of said top and bottom walls to form a carrier sleeve;
• a reinforcing wall extending between and hingedly attached to the top and bottom walls;
• a planar retaining tab resiliently connected along a fold line to one of the top and bottom walls and having a single contoured edge joining opposite ends of the fold line, the contoured edge being shaped to permit one of such articles to slide over the tab when the carrier is in such erect position and retain such articles in place;
• the reinforcing wall having a tab-receiving bight at one end portion of the reinforcing wall and adapted to limit rotation of the tab about the fold line in one direction when the carrier sleeve is in the erect position;
• the bight defining a range of folding motion of the tab about the fold line, the tab being movable toward a first limit of its range by contact between the base of an article and a portion of the edge of the tab as the article is being inserted across the tab into the carrier and to a second, opposite limit of its range to resist withdrawal of the article;
• the height of the article being greater than the distance between the inside of the top wall and said portion of the tab when the tab is at its second limit.

A display carrier having an erect position for retaining at least a pair of articles, said carrier being formed of a flexible material and comprising

• top and bottom walls;
• a pair of side walls, each side wall being hingedly attached to each of said top and bottom walls, to form a carrier sleeve;
• a reinforcing wall extending between and hingedly attached to the top and bottom walls;
• a retaining tab resiliently connected along a fold line to one of the top and bottom walls and having a single contoured edge joining opposite ends of the fold line, the contoured edge being shaped to permit one of such articles to slide over the tab and to retain such articles in the carrier;
• the bight in the reinforcing wall receiving the tab, the bight including a first edge for engaging the tab to limit rotation of the tab about the fold line in one direction whereby the tab resists withdrawal of the article from the carrier;
• the bight having a second edge spaced from the first edge for limiting rotation of the tab about the fold line in a second direction opposite from said one direction, the tab being pressed against the second edge as an article is inserted into the carrier;
• and
• wherein the tab is foldable between a flattened condition for storage and an erect position for retaining articles, the carrier including lift tab means for lifting the tab from its flattened condition as the sleeve is folded from the collapsed condition to the article receiving position.

A method of making a carton for storing articles when in an erect position from a longitudinally extending blank having creases defining first, second, third, fourth, fifth, and sixth fold lines, all parallel to each other and transverse to the longitudinal axis of the blank to define a glue flap, and central, overlap, left side, top, right side and bottom panels, a planar retaining tab connected along a fold line to one of the top and bottom panels and having a single contoured edge joining opposite ends of a seventh fold line, the contoured edge being shaped to permit one of such articles to slide over the tab when the carrier is in such erect position and retain such article in place once fully inserted, the central panel having bights formed in the free, longitudinal edges thereof;

• the method comprising the steps of
• first folding the retaining tabs about the longitudinal fold lines until a surface of each tab is folded flat against a surface of the central panel,
• folding the blank about one of the transverse fold lines to bring a surface of the central panel which is adjacent a bight in contact with at least one of the retaining tabs to hold said tab in a folded condition, and
• thereafter folding the blank about another of the fold lines.