TRAY FOR PROTECTIVE PACKAGING

1 . A tray comprising:

a first side and a second side;

a plurality of inner support portions, each inner support portion configured to receive a portion of at least one object from the first side;

a plurality of contoured outer support portions, each outer support portion being adjacent to at least one inner support portion; and

wherein the outer support portions substantially protect the object from the second side.

2 . The tray of claim 1 , wherein the object is a bottle, and wherein each of the inner support portions is configured to receive a corresponding portion of the bottle.

3 . The tray of claim 1 , wherein the inner support portions and the outer support portions are constructed from molded pulp.

4 . The tray of claim 1 , wherein the outer support sections are substantially triangular.

5 . The tray of claim 4 , wherein each outer support portion includes a first surface and a second surface extending outwardly from the second side to a curved vertex portion configured to join the first surface and the second surface.

6 . The tray of claim 1 , wherein each outer support portion substantially spans a width of the tray.

7 . The tray of claim 1 , wherein each outer support portion is substantially perpendicular to a length of the tray.

8 . The tray of claim 1 , further comprising a plurality of ribs disposed proximate a perimeter of the tray along a length and width of the tray.

9 . The tray of claim 1 , wherein the first side defines a plane, the plane substantially defining a diagonal of a package.

10 . A package comprising:

a first tray and a second tray, each of the first tray and the second tray including a first side and a second side, a plurality of inner support portions, each inner support portion configured to receive a portion of at least one object from the first side, and a plurality of contoured outer support portions, each outer support portion being adjacent to at least one inner support portion;

wherein the first side of the first tray defines a first plane and the first side of the second tray defines a second plane;

wherein the first tray and the second tray define an enclosure configured to house the corresponding portions of the object when the first plane and the second plane are superimposed; and

wherein the first plane and the second plane substantially define a diagonal of the package when the first plane and the second plane are superimposed.

11 . The package of claim 10 , wherein the outer support portions are substantially triangular.

12 . The package of claim 11 , wherein each outer support portion of the first tray and the second tray includes a first surface and a second surface extending outwardly from the second side to a substantially curved vertex portion configured to join the first surface and the second surface.

13 . The package of claim 10 , wherein the object is a bottle, and wherein each of the inner support portions of the first tray and the second tray is configured to receive a corresponding portion of the bottle.

14 . The package of claim 10 , wherein an edge of the first tray is pivotally coupled to a correspondingly configured edge of the second tray to define a pivot axis between the first tray and the second tray, and wherein the first tray and the second tray are pivotable about the pivot axis between a plurality of open positions where the first sides of the first tray and the second tray are exposed and a closed position wherein the first plane and the second plane are substantially superimposed.

15 . The package of claim 10 , wherein the inner support portions and the outer support portions are constructed from molded pulp.

16 . The package of claim 10 , wherein each outer support portion substantially spans a width of the corresponding tray.

17 . The package of claim 10 , wherein each outer support portion is substantially perpendicular to a length of the corresponding tray.

18 . The package of claim 10 , each of the first tray and the second tray further comprising a plurality of ribs disposed proximate a perimeter of the corresponding tray along a length and width of the corresponding tray.

19 . A tray for an object comprising:

a plurality of spaced apart inner support portions disposed along a length of the tray, each inner support portion configured to receive a corresponding portion of the object from a first side of the tray;

a plurality of a spaced apart and contoured outer support portions disposed along the length and configured to substantially span a width of the tray, each outer support portion being adjacent to at least one inner support portion, each outer support portion including a first surface and a second surface extending outwardly from a second side to a vertex portion configured to join the first surface and the second surface;

wherein the inner support portions collectively support the object; and

wherein the outer support portions substantially protect the object from the outer side.

20 . The tray of claim 19 , wherein the object is a bottle, and wherein each of the inner support portions is configured to receive a corresponding portion of the bottle.

21 . The tray of claim 19 , wherein the inner support portions and the outer support portions are constructed from molded pulp.

22 . The tray of claim 19 , wherein each outer support portion is substantially perpendicular to a length of the tray.

23 . The tray of claim 19 , further comprising a plurality of ribs disposed proximate a perimeter of the tray along a length and width of the tray.

24 . The tray of claim 19 , wherein the first side defines a plane, the plane substantially defining a diagonal of a package.