Apparatus for folding cardboard boxes

An apparatus for folding cardboard boxes that folds four top portion flaps of a corrugated cardboard box on top of one another in an overlapping manner to form an interleaved top in a closed positions, the apparatus for folding cardboard boxes comprising:

• a locking member with an elastic member that is compressible along a direction of movement of the locking member, the locking member contacting a first end of each of the four top portion flaps of the corrugated cardboard box to prevent the four top portion flaps from closing before an amount of compression of the elastic member exceeds a predetermined value;
• and
• an overlapping folding member that pushes against a second end of each of the four top portion flaps of the corrugated cardboard box,
• the locking member contacting a distal edge of the first end of each of the four top portion flaps of the corrugated cardboard box thereby retaining each of the four top portion flaps in an open position due to elastic force of the elastic member, the locking member being further configured such that in response to the overlapping folding member pushing the second end of each of the four top portion flaps of the corrugated cardboard box the force of the pushing by the overlapping folding member moves the locking member to compress the elastic member beyond the predetermined value causing release of the first end of each of the four top portion flaps of the corrugated cardboard box moving the four top portion flaps to the closed position.