Container and inner packing element therefor for elongate fragile articles

Claim 1

A CONTAINER FOR ELONGATE FRAGILE ARTICLES COMPRISING, IN COMBINATION: WALL MEANS FORMING A PARALLELEPIPED CARTON; FIRST AND SECOND INNER PACKING ELEMENTS DISPOSED WITHIN SAID CARTON, EACH OF SAID ELEMENTS COMPRISING FIRST AND SECOND PANELS FOLDABLY CONNECTED ALONG JUXTAPOSED EDGES SPACED ABOVE THE BOTTOM OF THE CARTON AND EXTENDING FROM SAID EDGES AT AN ANGLE WITH RESPECT TO ONE ANOTHER TOWARD THE BOTTOM OF SAID CONTAINER, A PLURALITY OF SPACED APART CUTS IN EACH OF SAID FIRST AND SECOND PANELS EXTENDING GENERALLY NORMALLY TO SAID JUXTAPOSED EDGES FROM SPACED APART POINTS THEREALONG THROUGH SAID FIRST AND SECOND PANELS TOWARD THE OPPOSITE EDGES THEREOF, FOLD LINES ON OPPOSITE SIDES OF EACH OF SAID CUTS AND PARALLEL THERETO AND FORMING WITH SAID CUTS A PLURALITY OF SPACED APART SLOTS IN EACH OF SAID PANELS AND A PAIR OF FLANGES ON OPPOSITE EDGES OF SAID CUTS, EACH OF SAID FLANGES BEING FOLDED ALONG SAID FOLD LINE TO A POSITION AT AN ANGLE WITH RESPECT TO THE RESPECTIVE PANEL AND EXTENDING FROM THAT SIDE OF THE RESPECTIVE PANEL THAT FACES TOWARD THE BOTTOM OF THE CONTAINER; MEANS FOR MAINTAINING THE ANGULAR RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE FIRST AND SECOND PANELS OF EACH OF SAID ELEMENTS COMPRISING A THIRD PANEL FOLDABLY ATTACHED TO AN OPPOSITE EDGE OF ONE OF SAID FIRST AND SECOND PANELS AND EXTENDING THEREFROM TO THE OPPOSITE EDGE OF THE OTHER OF THE FIRST AND SECOND PANELS, A FOURTH PANEL FOLDABLY ATTACHED TO THE OPPOSITE EDGE OF THE OTHER OF SAID FIRST AND SECOND PANELS AND EXTENDING THEREFROM TOWARD THE OPPOSITE EDGE OF THE ONE OF SAID FIRST AND SECOND PANELS, SAID THIRD AND FOURTH PANELS BEING DISPOSED PARALLEL AND CLOSELY ADJACENT TO ONE ANOTHER AND FORMING A TRIANGULARLY SHAPED TUBULAR BODY WITH SAID FIRST AND SECOND PANELS, SAID FOURTH PANEL EXTENDING PAST THE OPPOSITE EDGE OF THE OTHER OF SAID FIRST AND SECOND PANELS AND TERMINATING ADJACENT A WALL OF SAID CARTON; A FIFTH PANEL FOLDABLY CONNECTED TO THE EDGE OF THE FOURTH PANEL ALONG JUXTAPOSED EDGES AND FOLDED ALONG SAID EDGES TO A POSITION PARALLEL TO A PLANE BISECTING THE ANGLE BETWEEN THE FIRST AND SECOND PANELS, EXTENDING FROM THAT SIDE OF THE FOURTH PANEL THAT FACES THE JUXTAPOSED EDGES OF THE FIRST AND SECOND PANELS AND LYING CLOSELY ADJACENT TO SAID WALL OF SAID CARTON.