Shipping package system for fragile panels

Abstract

A product vulnerable to damage during shipping, such as an automobile windshield glass, for example, is mounted on a support pad and fixed onto the pad by wrapping a stretch wrapping film around the combination of the pad and glass. The borders of the pad extend beyond the borders of the glass so the package containing the glass can be stood on edge, but the edge of the glass is spaced away from the surface on which the package is stood. Thus the glass, secured to the pad, is suspended away from that surface. Multiple packages can be packed into a shipping container and the loaded container can be lifted and transported by a lift truck with lifting forks received in passageways formed in the container by notches in the bottom edges of the support pads. The pads and containers are made of die-cut. corrugated fiberboard material although other material might also be used in the practice of the invention.

1 . Product packaging apparatus comprising: 
 a support having a front face and a rear face and having top and bottom edges and left and right side edges;    the support having at least one recess in the bottom edge and at least one recess in the top edge;    the support having forwardly projecting extensions at said side edges thereby providing forwardly projecting panels for resistance of said support to bending about axes parallel to a line containing said bottom edge; and    wrapping film received in said recesses and stretched around said support between said recesses for enveloping a portion of the product to be packaged and a portion of the support and for securing the product to the support in a position of the product within the perimeter of the support.    
   
   
       2 . A package comprising: 
 a product to be protected and having a perimeter edge and a front surface and having some exterior corners, the product having dimensions in x-axis and y-axis and z-axis directions, and the maximum x-axis dimension and the maximum y-axis dimension each being greater than the maximum z-axis dimension;    a support pad having a perimeter edge, top and bottom edges and left and right side edges and having sufficient vertical column strength from top to bottom to support the product without deforming, the bottom edge of the support pad having at least two points on a straight line for stable mounting of the bottom edge of the support on the bottom of a shipping container, the support pad having means for locating the product on the front face of the support pad, the entire perimeter edge of the product lying within said means for locating and within the perimeter edge of the support pad, the support pad having edge extension panels projecting forward from the pad a distance at least as great as the maximum z-axis dimension of the product; and    a stretch wrapping film wrapped around the support and the product and securing the product to the support pad to prevent movement of the product relative to the support pad.