A PROTECTIVE BAG FOR A HAND, A WEB-SHAPED MATERIAL AND UNITS FORMED ON THE BASIS OF THE WEB-SHAPED MATERIAL

Abstract

The invention relates to a web-shaped material with perforated lines, whereby, when tearing the material along the perforated lines, for example at the place of use that could be in a supermarket, units can be formed for use as a kind of glove or mitten.

Description

The present invention relates to a protective bag with a pocket for a hand and a web-shaped material, defining a number of units, each of which has a pocket and which is created by division of the web.

The prior art already includes a multiplicity of disposable gloves. One example is described in EP2436509, which, however, requires the use of complicated production equipment for defining the individual fingers of the glove.

The prior art also includes webs of foil materials intended for being divided into individual units, known as “T-shirt bags”, with a handle. To provide the handle, the foil layers of such bags are not connected all the way between the two ends of the bags.

The object of the present invention is, in a simple manner, to provide a protective bag with a pocket, as defined in claim 1, and into which pocket a person can insert his or her hand. The protective bag is preferably for one-time-only use, can be manufactured at low costs and can be used by a person for gripping around objects that should not be touched directly by the person, e.g. fresh food in a supermarket or for filling up fuel at e.g. petrol stations.

The object of the invention is also to provide a web-shaped material with perforated lines, such as defined in claim 4, wherein, when tearing apart the material along the perforated lines, preferably at the place of use, which e.g. could be in a supermarket or at the petrol station, units for use can easily be formed for use as a protective bag by a person subsequently inserting his or her hand into the pocket. For this purpose, the web-shaped material defined in claim 4 can be rolled up.

In order to illustrate how to use the protective bag/unit at the place of use, each bag/unit can be provided with a print illustrating or symbolizing a hand.

Embodiments of the invention will be explained further in the following with reference to the drawing, in which

FIG. 1 shows a section of a first embodiment for a flexible material web according to the invention, viewed from above, and

FIGS. 2 and 3 show corresponding sections of a second and a third embodiment, respectively, of a flexible material web according to the invention.

In FIGS. 1, 2 and 3, the reference numeral 1 generally indicates a section of a flexible material web, consisting of two thin plastic foil layers 4, 5 placed on top of each other, which are mutually connected along two parallel, longitudinal connection lines 10, 11, which typically extend continuously and rectilinearly in the longitudinal direction of the entire web 1 as well as along a number of transverse connection lines 15, each of which extends continuously transverse to the longitudinal direction of the web 1 all the way between the two longitudinal connection lines 10, 11. After manufacturing, the web 1 is rolled up into rolls with a web length of e.g. 400 metres and a diameter of e.g. 150 mm. In the shown embodiment, the web 1 has a width that can be up to 300 mm, and the length D of the transverse connection lines 15, which will normally all be of the same length, is selected to assume a value in the range of 140-300 mm, inclusive.

The two plastic foil layers 4, 5 preferably each has a uniform thickness in the entire longitudinal direction of the web 1, and the thickness of each plastic foil layer 4, 5 is selected to be in the range of 3-30 micrometres; preferably the one plastic foil layer 4 has the same thickness as the second plastic foil layer 5. Preferably, the foil layers 4, 5 are made of thermoplastic, in particular easily biodegradable thermoplastic.

The web 1 can be manufactured in an initial procedure step, wherein an oblong and relatively wide plastic foil is mechanically and continuously folded longitudinally, so that the two longitudinal and parallel edges of the plastic foil are brought into alignment with each other. After this folding, a folding line appears, which constitutes the first of said two continuously extending longitudinal connection lines 10, the second longitudinal connection line 11 subsequently being formed by a local linear welding/melting together of the two foil layers 4, 5, provided by use of a heated tool that is pressed against the folded plastic foil 1 where said two longitudinal edges flush with each other, or possibly displaced, so that the second connection line 11 is positioned slightly inwards towards the centre of the web 1.

Alternatively, two separate foil pieces 4, 5 in an initial procedure step can be brought into contact with each other, one being placed upon the other, to be welded together along their edges for formation of the two parallel longitudinal connection lines 10, 11; the connection lines 10, 11 can in this case possibly also be formed, so that they are slightly displaced inwards towards the centre of the web 1.

In a third, preferred production method, the material web 1 is formed on the basis of a flat and oblong flexible tubular sheath formed from a thin thermoplastic foil, which is processed as described below. The edges of this flat oblong sheath may thereby be understood as connection lines 10, 11 between two foil layers as described in this text, and wherein the two longitudinal parallel connection lines 10, 11 are thus not formed by carrying out any welding in the longitudinal direction of the web.

In a subsequent procedure step, said transverse connection lines 15 are, as described above, produced by carrying out a local linear welding/melting together of the two foil layers 4, 5, all the way between the two longitudinal connection lines 10, 11.

By means of a number of transverse perforated/perforation lines 8, including in the form of rows of through-going holes through the two foil layers 4, 5 formed in connection with the manufacturing of the web 1, the web 1 can, for later use, be divided manually by tearing along the perforated lines 8 for providing a corresponding number of individual units or protective bags 2, wherein two successive perforated lines 8 define a first end A and a second end B, respectively, of a unit/protective bag 2. Each individualized unit or protective bag 2 is thereby defined by two plastic foil layers 4, 5 lying on top of each other, and which are connected along two parallel longitudinal connection lines 10, 11 in the longitudinal direction of the unit 2, which connection lines A, B, as shown, extend all the way between the two ends A, B, between the perforated lines 8. Immediately at the first end A, each unit 2 has one of the transverse connection lines 15, which, as described, extends continuously transverse to the unit 2, all the way between the two longitudinal connection lines 10, 11.

Preferably, the transverse connection lines 15 and transverse perforated lines 8 of the web 1, each extend along a straight line that extends perpendicularly to the longitudinal connection lines 10, 11; however, it is within the scope of the invention that the transverse connection lines 15 and the transverse perforated lines 8 each can extend along straight lines that extend at another angle relative to the longitudinal connection lines 10, 11, or along curved or differently shaped lines.

Along the two longitudinal connection lines 10, 11 and transverse connection line 15 of each unit 2, a section of the circumference of a pocket 40 is defined between the two plastic foil layers 4, 5. Access to this pocket 40 is provided via a narrowed opening 20 at the second end B of the unit 2; the width V, where it is smallest, of this opening 20 is generally selected to have a value in the range of 80 mm to 200 mm, inclusive, measured in the direction perpendicular to the longitudinal connection lines 10, 11.

The opening 20 is more particularly demarcated by weldings 25, 30, which locally connect the two foil layers 4, 5, and which together with the two longitudinal connection lines 10, 11 and transverse connection line 15 of the unit 2, demarcate the unit 2 pocket 40. The two foil layers 4, 5 are not connected to each other on the inside of the pocket 40, i.e. nowhere in the area between the weldings 25, 30 and the transverse connection line at the first end A of the unit 2.

The weldings 25, 30 defining the opening 20 are preferably linear and extend perpendicularly from each side of the two longitudinal connection lines 10, 11 at the same distance from the perforated line 8, thereby forming rectilinear connection lines 25, 30 that can have the same length, such as shown in FIG. 1. In an embodiment (not shown), the opening 20 can, however, be demarcated to one side by a single such linear welding 25, originating from the one longitudinal connection line 10 and on the other side by a part of the second longitudinal connection line 11 itself.

FIG. 2 shows how the end connection lines 25, 30, shown in FIG. 1, can have a rounded section 25′, 30′ at the opening 20, with the width V of the opening marked as the distance, where this is smallest, between the rounded sections 25′, 30′ measured perpendicularly to the two longitudinal connection lines 10, 11. As mentioned above, this width V, where it is smallest, is generally determined to have a value in the range of 80 mm to 200 mm, inclusive, measured in the direction perpendicular to the longitudinal connection lines 10, 11.

FIG. 3 shows how the weldings 25, 30 can be configured as isolated islands formed at a distance from the two longitudinal connection lines 10, 11, with the width V of the opening marked as the distance where this is smallest, between the two isolated islands 25, 30, measured perpendicularly to the two longitudinal connection lines 10, 11. One of the islands 30, which in a second embodiment is displaced in the direction straight up towards the first end A, is illustrated by a dashed line to show how the said width V also in this case is defined as the distance measured perpendicularly to the two longitudinal connection lines 10, 11.

The drawings also show an image of a hand H, which can be printed on each unit 2, and which serves to illustrate how each unit 2 can advantageously be used, namely as a protective bag, the pocket 40 with suitable dimensioning of the units 2 being adapted in size to be able to accommodate most of or the whole of a person's hand, preferably an adult's hand, which is inserted through the opening 20, normally with the fingers close together. As the width V of the opening 20 is selected to be in the said range, the unit 2 will normally be retained to the hand, so the unit 2 cannot easily fall off when the user spreads his or her fingers in the pocket 40. The hand H is printed before the web 1 is rolled up.

As shown, each perforated line 8 is preferably arranged immediately next to and along a transverse connection line 15 belonging to an adjacent unit 2. The length L of each unit 2 measured between the two ends A, B in parallel with the longitudinal connection lines 10, 11, which normally also corresponds to the length of the two longitudinal connection lines 10, 11 of each unit 2, is preferably selected to have a value in the range of 160-400 mm, which typically will be slightly more than the length of the pocket 40, measured in parallel with the longitudinal connection lines 10, 11, so that a person's hand can be accommodated in the pocket 40 as described above.

The unit 2 can be used by a person for gripping around objects that should not be touched directly by a person, e.g. fresh food in a supermarket or the pistol at a petrol station. It should be noted that one of the two foil layers 4, 5 can be selected to have a larger thickness, selected within the thickness range mentioned initially, than the thickness of the second foil layer, which is also selected within this thickness range. In this case, a roll of the material web 1 can be accompanied by an instruction, showing the user how to apply the unit 2 on the hand, so that the thicker layer faces the palm of the person's hand.

After use of the unit/protective bag 2, it can easily be crumpled up and be disposed of.

The printed hand H can possibly be symbolized, meaning that the print shows a symbolized hand, wherein the two outermost fingers are identical, more particularly, wherein the shown hand H is symbolized as being symmetrical around the middle finger. This can for example be selected in an embodiment, wherein the two foil layers 4, 5 are transparent, and wherein this symbolized hand H is printed on the one foil layer 4 only, so that it can be seen through the second transparent foil layer 5. A person putting on the protective bag 2 is thus not given an impression that the protective bag 2 will necessarily have to be oriented in a specific manner.

Claims

1. A protective bag comprising: two foil layers connected along two longitudinal parallel connection lines of the same length, which length is selected to be in the range of 160-400 mm, inclusive, wherein each bag at a first end has a transverse welding line, connecting the bag's two foil layers all the way between the bag's two longitudinal connection lines,wherein the transverse welding line has a length selected to be in the range of 140-300 mm, inclusive,wherein the two longitudinal parallel connection lines extend to a second end of the bag opposite the first end,wherein each bag at the second end has an opening to a pocket between the two foil layers,wherein the pocket extends from the transverse welding line to the opening and from the one longitudinal connection line to the second longitudinal connection line,wherein the opening is demarcated by the two foil layers and i) by discrete weldings, connecting the two foil layers at the second end, orii) by two transverse welding lines, connecting the two foil layers and each originating from a respective one of the two longitudinal connection lines, oriii) by one transverse welding line, connecting the two foil layers and originating from one of the two longitudinal connection lines, and by the second one of the two longitudinal connection lines,wherein the width of the opening, where this is smallest, measured in the direction perpendicular to the longitudinal connection lines, is narrowed by said discrete weldings or by said transverse welding line or lines, and is selected to be in the range of 80-200 mm, inclusive, andwherein the thickness of each of the two foil layers is selected to be in the range of 3-30 micrometres.

2. A protective bag according to claim 1, wherein at least the one foil layer carries a print that symbolizes or shows a hand, with the wrist at the opening.

3. A protective bag according to claim 2, wherein the foil layers are transparent, so that the hand is symbolized or shown by a print on the one foil layer and can be seen through the second foil layer.

4. A web consisting of two foil layers of a thermoplastic material, with transverse perforated lines, which between the two foil layers and in the longitudinal direction of the web define a number of successive units, each of which has a first end and a second end, and which are intended for being individualized by division of the web along the transverse perforated lines, wherein the two foil layers of each unit are connected along two longitudinal parallel connection lines with the same length, which length is selected to be in the range of 160-400 mm, inclusive,wherein each unit at the first end has a transverse welding line, connecting the unit's two foil layers all the way between the unit's two longitudinal connection lines, andwherein the second end of each unit is defined by one of said transverse perforations,wherein the transverse welding line has a length selected to be in the range of 140-300 mm, inclusive,wherein each unit at the second end has an opening to a pocket between the two foil layers,wherein the pocket extends from the transverse welding line to the opening and from the one longitudinal connection line to the second longitudinal connection line,wherein the opening is demarcated i) by discrete weldings, connecting the two layers orii) by two transverse welding lines, connecting the two layers and each of which originates from a respective one of the two longitudinal connection lines, oriii) by one transverse welding line, connecting the two layers and originating from one of the two longitudinal connection lines, and by the second one of the two longitudinal connection lines,wherein the width of the opening, where this is smallest, measured in the direction perpendicular to the longitudinal connection lines, is narrowed by said discrete weldings or by said transverse welding line or lines, and is selected to be in the range of 80-200 mm, inclusive, andwherein the thickness of each of the two foil layers is selected to be in the range of 3-30 micrometres.

5. A web according to claim 4, wherein at least one foil layer carries a print that symbolizes or shows a hand with the wrist at the opening.

6. A web according to claim 5, wherein the foil layers are transparent, so that a hand symbolized or shown by a print on one foil layer can be seen through the second foil layer.

7. A web according to claim 4, wherein the longitudinal connection lines extend in the longitudinal direction of the web.

8. A web according to claim 4, wherein the length of each longitudinal connection line is larger than the length of the transverse welding line.

9. A web according to claim 4, wherein one foil layer is thicker than the second foil layer.

10. A unit provided by division along the perforations of a web according to claim 4.