Gravity feed dispensing cartons

Abstract

A carton includes a tubular body for receiving a stack of articles is disclosed. The articles in the carton are movable toward the lower end of the tubular body along the tubular axis of the tubular body. The tubular body includes a front panel and a rear panel. A removable portion is formed from the front panel of the tubular body and is disposed proximate the lower end of the tubular body. The removable portion when removed defines an exit opening through which a first one of the articles is forwardly movable so that the articles are removable one at a time from the carton through the exit opening. An access assisting feature defines a relief opening in the rear panel through which a second one of the articles is backwardly movable to allow a finger space to be created next to the first one of the articles.

1 . A display and dispensing package comprising:
 (a) a stack of articles including at least a first and a second vertically aligned articles, wherein:
 the first article including a first front face and a first rear face, and 
 the second article including a second front face and a second rear face, and being disposed on top of the first article, 
   (b) a carton including:
 (i) an upright tubular body disposed around an exterior of the stack of articles and including a lower end, and a pair of front and rear opposed panels,
 the front panel being disposed alongside the front faces of the first and the second articles, 
 the rear panel being disposed alongside the rear faces of the first and the second articles; 
 
 (ii) a dispensing feature defining an exit opening in the front panel, the exit opening being disposed and dimensioned such that the first article of the stack is forwardly movable through the exit opening; and 
 (iii) an access assisting feature defining a relief opening in the rear panel, the relief opening being disposed and dimensioned such that the second article of the stack is backwardly movable at least partially through the relief opening into a shifted position in which the second article is out of vertical alignment with the first article. 
   
     
     
         2 . The package of  claim 1 , wherein the exit opening is disposed and dimensioned such that the front face of the second article is exposed through the exit opening to allow the second article to be pressed on through the exit opening to move the second article into the shifted position. 
     
     
         3 . The package of  claim 2 , wherein the exit opening is disposed and dimensioned such that the front face of the second article is only partially exposed through the exit opening to prevent the second article from exiting through the exit opening when the second article is disposed on top of the first article. 
     
     
         4 . The package of  claim 1 , wherein the articles of the stack are of a substantially identical size and configuration, wherein each of the articles of the stack has a height, and wherein the relief opening includes a lower edge disposed at a distance above the lower end of the tubular body, the distance between the lower edge of the relief opening and the lower end of the tubular body being no greater than the height of each of the articles. 
     
     
         6 . The package of  claim 1 , wherein the articles of the stack are of a substantially identical size and configuration, wherein each of the articles of the stack has a height, and wherein the relief opening includes an upper edge disposed at a distance above the lower end of the tubular body, the distance between the upper edge of the relief opening and the lower end of the tubular body being no less than twice the height of each of the articles. 
     
     
         7 . The package of  claim 1 , wherein the articles of the stack are of a substantially identical size and configuration, wherein each of the articles of the stack has a height, and wherein the exit opening includes an upward extension having a first upper end disposed at a first distance above the lower end of the tubular body, the first distance being greater than the height of each of the articles. 
     
     
         8 . The package of  claim 7 , wherein the relief opening includes a second upper edge disposed at a second distance above the lower end of the tubular body, the second distance being greater than the first distance. 
     
     
         9 . A carton comprising:
 (a) a tubular body including an upper end, a lower end, a front panel, and a rear panel, wherein the tubular body defines an interior space for receiving at least a stack of articles for movement toward the lower end along a tubular axis of the tubular body, the stack of articles including at least a first and a second vertically aligned articles;   (b) a removable portion formed at least from the front panel and disposed proximate the lower end, the removable portion when removed defining an exit opening through which the first article is forwardly movable so that the articles in the stack are removable one at a time from the interior space through the exit opening; and   (c) an access assisting feature defining a relief opening in the rear panel through which the second article is backwardly movable to allow a finger space to be created next to the first article.   
     
     
         10 . The carton of  claim 9 , wherein the rear panel includes a lower end portion, and the relief opening has a lower edge disposed at a higher elevation than lowermost point on the removable portion so that the lower end portion of the rear panel provides a stopper for preventing the first article from exiting through the relief opening.