Shipping and dispensing box for slit sheet material
Exemplary embodiments pertain to a combined shipping and expansion device for shipping a roll of unexpanded slit sheet material and for expanding the slit sheet material. In some examples, the device includes: a container made with recyclable paper or board; a roll of slit sheet material wound around a core member and positioned within the container; the roll of slit sheet material having a slit pattern that forms open cells upon expansion; the core member being made with recyclable paper or board and having a length greater than a width of the roll of slit sheet wound around the core member and having protrusions that extend beyond each side of the roll of slit sheet material; a plurality of yoke members within the container, including at least one yoke member that rotatably receives a first of the protrusions and at least one yoke member that rotatably receives a second of the protrusions; and the container having a dispensing opening through which the slit sheet material wound around the core member can be extended and pulled, causing the core member to rotate relative to the yoke members via rotation of the roll of slit sheet material. The combined shipping and expansion device is made from substantially entirely recyclable paper or board materials, whereby after complete dispensing of the slit sheet material from the shipping and expansion device, the combined shipping and expansion device can be recycled in a paper recycling facility.
1. A recyclable combined shipping and expansion device for shipping a roll of unexpanded slit sheet material and for expanding the slit sheet material, comprising:
a) a container;
b) said container comprising a corrugated box formed from recyclable paper;
c) a core member;
d) said core member comprising a hollow tube formed from recyclable paper;
e) a roll of unexpanded slit sheet paper wound around the core member;
f) said core member having a length greater than a length of said roll of slit sheet paper wound around the core member and having protrusions that extend beyond each end of said roll of slit sheet material;
g) said corrugated box having a front wall extending horizontally between a pair of end walls, said front wall having a horizontal length between said pair of end walls that is greater than the length of said core member and having a vertical height between a first outer edge of said front wall and a second outer edge of said front wall that is greater than a diameter of said roll of unexpanded slit sheet paper;
h) said container including a first yoke proximate a first of said pair of end walls that rotatably receives a first of said protrusions and a second yoke proximate a second of said pair of end walls that rotatably receives a second of said protrusions;
i) said front wall having an elongated dispensing opening extending from proximate said first of said pair of end walls to proximate said second of said pair of end walls, through which elongated dispensing opening the slit sheet paper wound around the core member extends and when pulled causes the core member to rotate relative to the yoke members via rotation of the roll of slit sheet material;
i) a first outer extremity of a periphery of said roll of slit sheet paper within said corrugated box being at a first side of a central axis of said core and proximate in height to said first outer edge of said front wall and a second outer extremity of the periphery of said roll of slit sheet paper within said corrugated box being at a second side of the central axis of said core and proximate in height to said second outer edge of said front wall;
k) said dispensing opening being at said first side of said central axis adjacent said first outer edge of said front wall;
l) Said slit sheet paper being unwound from said roll of slit sheet paper with the slit sheet paper separating from said roll of slit sheet paper as it is pulled from said second outer extremity of the periphery of said roll of slit sheet paper at said second side of the central axis; and
m) wherein after the slit sheet paper is separated from the roll of slit sheet paper as it is pulled from said second outer extremity of the periphery of said roll of slit sheet paper at said second side of the central axis, the slit sheet paper extends between said roll of slit sheet paper and said front wall to said elongated dispensing opening at said first side of said central axis adjacent said first outer edge of said front wall.
2. The combined shipping and expansion device of claim 1 , wherein said container includes a top panel that is movably mounted above said roll of slit sheet material within said container.
3. The combined shipping and expansion device of claim 2 , further including a releasable attachment mechanism for releasably affixing said top panel.
4. The combined shipping and expansion device of claim 3 , wherein said releasable attachment mechanism includes hook and loop fasteners.
5. The combined shipping and expansion device of claim 1 , wherein said slit sheet is expandable by applying an expansion force in a range from 0.15 to 0.22 pounds per inch, to form at least one expanded sheet having an array of hexagonal cells.
6. The combined shipping and expansion device of claim 1 , wherein the slit sheet paper is a paper having a weight in a range from about 30 to 40 pounds per 3,000 square feet.
7. The combined shipping and expansion device of claim 2 , wherein said top panel is pivotable between a closed position in which said top panel applies a downward pressure to inhibit rotation of the roll and an open position in which said top panel does not apply a downward pressure to inhibit rotation of the roll.
8. The combined shipping and expansion device of claim 7 , wherein said top panel further includes a tab member extending from a perimeter edge thereof, said tab member being folded inward such that when said top panel is in said closed position said tab member extends inside said corrugated box.
9. The combined shipping and expansion device of claim 8 , wherein when said top panel is in said closed position, said top panel applies the downward pressure to inhibit rotation of the roll via said tab member.
10. The combined shipping and expansion device of claim 8 , wherein said tab member has a substantially rectangular shape and is pivotally connected to said top panel along a said perimeter edge of said top panel.
11. The combined shipping and expansion device of claim 10 , wherein said substantially rectangular shape of said tab member includes two rounded corners at distal corners of said tab member opposite to said perimeter edge of said top panel.
12. The combined shipping and expansion device of claim 2 , wherein said top panel further includes a tab member extending from a perimeter edge thereof, said tab member being folded inward such that when said top panel is in a closed position said tab member extends inside said corrugated box.
13. The combined shipping and expansion device of claim 1 , wherein said first yoke and said second yoke are panels of said corrugated box.
14. The combined shipping and expansion device of claim 1 , wherein said first yoke, said second yoke, said pair of end walls and said front wall of said corrugated box are formed from a single sheet.
15. The combined shipping and expansion device of claim 1 , wherein said first yoke, said second yoke, said pair of end walls and said front wall of said corrugated box are formed from a single die-cut sheet.
16. The combined shipping and expansion device of claim 1 , wherein said elongated dispensing opening is substantially rectangular.
17. The combined shipping and expansion device of claim 16 , wherein said substantially rectangular elongated dispensing opening includes rounded corners at corners of said elongated dispensing opening distal to said first outer edge of said front wall.
18. The combined shipping and expansion device of claim 1 , wherein said corrugated box includes a back wall opposite to said front wall, said back wall having a releasable clamping tab which is foldable downward from a plane of said back wall to rest up a horizontal surface to clamp the combined shipping and expansion device with respect to the horizontal surface.
19. The combined shipping and expansion device of claim 18 , wherein said releasable clamping tab includes a rounded distal end that is pivoted downward to the horizontal surface.
20. The combined shipping and expansion device of claim 1 , wherein said first yoke and said second yoke each have arcuate openings.
21. The combined shipping and expansion device of claim 1 , wherein said arcuate openings of said first yoke and second yoke each have a radius of curvature sufficient to rotatably receive said protrusions of said core member.
22. A method of using the combined shipping and expansion device of claim 1 , including:
a) shipping the combined shipping and expansion device to a location of a user;
b) at the location of the user, manually pulling the slit sheet material outward through said dispensing opening and expanding the slit sheet material.
23. The method of claim 22 , further including after fully dispensing the slit sheet material from the container delivering the combined shipping and expansion device to a paper recycling facility.
24. The method of claim 22 , further including after fully dispensing the slit sheet material from the container disposing of the combined shipping and expansion device, whereby said combined shipping and expansion device is used as a single-use shipping and expansion device.
25. The method of claim 24 , wherein said disposing of the combined shipping and expansion device includes delivering the combined shipping and expansion device to a paper recycling facility for recycling.