The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Sep. 17, 1996
Filed:
Nov. 18, 1994
Gustavo Raudalus, San Pedro Sula, HN;
Raul Fernandez, San Jose, CR;
Franklin Sanabria, San Jose, CR;
Rodrigo Barsallo, San Jose, CR;
Salomon Chong, San Pedro Sula, HN;
Elmer Howell, San Jose, CR;
Francisco Rodriguez, San Jose, CR;
Randall Petersen, San Jose, CR;
Daniel Mullock, Cincinnati, OH (US);
Chiquita Brands, Inc., Cincinnati, OH (US);
Abstract
A container system for the shipping and storing of product such as bananas, comprising: (a) a substantially rigid outer container having at least one ventilation opening; (b) a closable inner container positioned within the outer container receiving the product, the inner container having a bottom portion and a top portion; and (c) means attached to the top portion of the inner container for opening the inner container so as to provide increased ventilation to the product. The inner container preferably comprises a flexible bag having a sealed bottom as its bottom portion, an open top adjacent the top portion, and a perforation extending about at least a portion of the bag, so that the opening means opens the bag by severing the bag at the perforation. The opening means may comprise a cord attached to the top portion of the bag. A method of packing, shipping and storing product utilizing this container is provided. A method of ventilating and storing a plurality of stacked boxes using this container system is provided. A method of producing a container of banana clusters is also provided, wherein the banana clusters are placed into a container in a four row pattern with the two upper-most rows in a crowns-up configuration. Various cushioning pads for this packing pattern are also provided.