Retaining and shock-absorbing packing insert
AssigneeSealed Air Corporation
InventorLouis H. Ridgeway
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
Two or more packing spacers support an object within its shipping container in a floating arrangement that absorbs shocks, and flexion and torsion of the container due to shipping and handling loads. Each spacer is a structure with a frame-window covered with a flexible membrane of high tensile strength. The object is frictionally held between the membranes. The spacers are shaped and dimensioned to match the internal geometry of the container and to determine the space between the membranes occupied by the object. Spacers with large contact areas between their membranes and the object can hold and cushion objects of very high densities.
Claims10
A cushioning packaging that is particularly useful for fragile objects comprising the combination of:
- a polyhedral rigid shipping container formed of a plurality of walls that define the polyhedral shape of said container;
- and
- at least two spacing elements positioned within said rigid container and against generally opposite inner surfaces of said rigid container and in noncontacting relationship to one another in which said spacing elements define a space therebetween within said shipping container into which an object to be packaged can be placed;
- each of said spacing elements comprising:
- a planar framing surface oriented obliquely to the walls of said shipping container against which said spacing element is positioned, said planar framing surface further surrounding and defining a void that is similarly obliquely oriented to the walls of said container;
- and
- a film of pliable material of high tensile strength tightly spread over said void and peripherally secured to said framing surface for frictionally receiving an object to be packaged against each said respective film and for applying pressure to an object supported between said spacing elements to immobilize the object between said high tensile strength films and to frictionally limit any sliding movement of the object against said high tensile strength films when the object is subject to forces applied thereto.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.