This disclosure relates to the construction and manufacture of plastic bags. Specifically, the present disclosure relates to improvements in the construction and manufacture of drawstring trash bags.
Drawstring trash bags, which incorporate drawstrings into the bag design, are a popular alternative to twist-tie or flapped trash bags. Conventional drawstring trash bags include a pair of drawstrings enclosed within hems running along an opening of the trash bag. The ends of the drawstrings are physically joined to the bag by seals welding the drawstrings to the panels of the bag allowing users to pull the drawstrings through access cut-outs in the respective hems. The pulled drawstrings may then be tied together to securely close the bag while also providing a convenient handle for carrying the bag.
Conventional drawstring trash bags suffer from being able to be secured in place when pulled over an upper rim of a receptacle. As a result, when trash is placed into the receptacle, the force on the bag as the trash falls into the bag and the overall weight of the trash already in the bag tends to pull the sides of the conventional trash bag into the trash can.
It is known to utilize elastic materials for the drawstrings, or drawstrings which otherwise exhibit elastic-like properties, for securing the bag on a trash receptacle. It is further known to utilize the elastic drawstrings in combination with multiple seals to provide a reduced opening in the bag.
One aspect of the disclosure provides a bag including first and second panels continuously joined along a first side edge, a second side edge and a bottom edge. A top portion of the respective first and second side panels defines an opening of the bag. A first hem of the first panel and a second hem of the second panel each extend along the top portion of the bag from the first side edge to the second side edge. A first drawstring is enclosed within the first hem and a second drawstring is enclosed within the second hem. The first and second drawstrings each having a respective first end adjacent to the first side edge and a respective second end adjacent to the second side edge. A first short seal is provided to weld the first panel, the second panel, the first end of the first drawstring, and the first end of the second drawstring together. A second short seal is provided to weld the first panel, the second panel, the second end of the first drawstring, and the second end of the second drawstring together. The first short seal is located proximate to the first side edge of the bag and the second short seal is located proximate to the second side edge of the bag. A first reduced opening seal is provided to weld the first panel, the second panel, the first drawstring, and the second drawstring together. The first reduced opening seal is located adjacent to the first side edge and includes a convex polygonal shape.
Implementations of the disclosure may include one or more of the following features. In some implementations, the first reduced opening seal is located adjacently inward from the first short seal. In some implementations the convex polygonal shape of the first reduced opening seal includes a six-sided parallelogram. The six-sided parallelogram includes a body portion that is a quadrilateral, a first end portion extending from the body portion in a direction toward the top portion of the bag, and a second end portion extending from the body portion in a direction opposite from the first end portion and toward the bottom edge of the bag. The first and second end portion each including two respective sides each formed by an angle from the body portion toward a respective end portion apex. In some implementations, each of the first and second end portions include a width that is less than a width of the body portion.
In other implementations, the convex polygonal shape of the first reduced opening seal includes an equiangular polygon. In even yet another implementation, the convex polygonal shape of the first reduced opening seal includes a triangular polygon.
Implementations of the disclosure may further include a second reduced opening seal provided to weld the first panel, the second panel, the first drawstring, and the second drawstring together. The second reduced opening seal is located adjacent to the second side edge and comprising the convex polygonal shape. In some implementations, the second reduced opening seal is located adjacently inward from the second short seal. In some implementations the convex polygonal shape of the second reduced opening seal includes a six-sided parallelogram. In other implementations, the convex polygonal shape of the second reduced opening seal includes an equiangular polygon. In even yet another implementation, the convex polygonal shape of the second reduced opening seal includes a triangular polygon.
In some implementations the convex polygonal shape of at least one of the first and second reduced opening seals includes an indicia including at least one of letters, numbers and symbols that are visible when the bag is placed over an upper rim of a trash receptacle. In some implementations, the indicia includes a recycling symbol. In some implementations, the indicia is embossed within an inside of at least one of the first and second reduced opening seals to provide an improved tactile feel when a consumer grips the bag.
The details of one or more implementations of the disclosure are set forth in the accompanying drawings and the description below. Other aspects, features, and advantages will be apparent from the description and drawings, and from the claims.
The following figures are provided by way of example and are not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure.
Like reference symbols in the various drawings indicate like elements.
The ends of the drawstrings 30 and 32 may be anchored to upper corners of the bag 10 to make the drawstrings 30 and 32 useful. As used herein, the term “upper corners” refer to a first upper corner whereat the first side edge 14 and the first and second panels 12, 13, respectively, intersect; and a second upper corner whereat the second side edge 16 and the first and second side panels 12, 13, respectively, intersect. To anchor the drawstrings 30 and 32 to the first upper corner, a first short seal 40 is provided to weld the first and second panels 12, 13, respectively, and the respective first ends of the drawstrings 30 and 32 together. In the illustrated example, the first short seal 40 is located adjacent to, and inward from, the first side edge 14. To anchor the drawstrings 30 and 32 to the second upper corner, a second short seal 42 is provided to weld the first and second panels 12, 13, respectively, and the respective second ends of the drawstrings 30 and 32 together. In the illustrated example, the second short seal 42 is located adjacent to, and inward from, the second side edge 16. The short seals 40 and 42 must be sufficiently strong enough to securely hold the ends of the drawstrings 30 and 32 together while a user pulls the drawstrings 30 and 32 through centrally-located cut-outs 80. Here, as the drawstrings 30 and 32 are pulled through the cut-outs 80, the opening 20 of the bag 10 closes, securing the trash and debris within the bag 10.
Exemplary implementations of the present disclosure are directed toward utilizing first and second reduced opening seals 50 and 51 to reduce the opening 20 of the bag 10. Each of the first and second reduced opening seals 50 and 51 has a polygonal shape formed by straight line segments. Specifically, each of the reduced opening seals 50 and 51 has a convex polygonal shape. As used herein, the term “convex polygonal shape” refers to a polygon that is indicative of having interior angles that are all less than 180°. When combined with the drawstrings 30 and 32 having elastic properties, the reduced opening 20 of the bag 10 can be stretched to overlap the upper rim of a trash receptacle. Each of the reduced opening seals 50 and 51 are located within the first and second hem regions 22, 24, respectively, welding the drawstrings 30 and 32 and the panels 12 and 13 together in a similar manner as the short seals 40 and 42. In some implementations, the first reduced opening seal 50 is positioned proximate to—and adjacently inward from—the first short seal 40. In other implementations, the first reduced opening seal 50 is positioned adjacent to the first side edge 14. In some implementations, the second reduced opening seal 51 is positioned proximate to—and adjacently inward from—the second short seal 42. In other implementations, the second reduced opening seal 51 is positioned adjacent to the second side edge 16.
Referring to
A number of implementations have been described. Nevertheless, it will be understood that various modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the disclosure. Accordingly, other implementations are within the scope of the following claims.
This U.S. patent application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application 61/842,728, filed on Jul. 3, 2013. The disclosure of this prior application is considered part of the disclosure of this application and is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.
Number | Name | Date | Kind |
---|---|---|---|
3010640 | Kugler | Nov 1961 | A |
3029853 | Piazze | Apr 1962 | A |
3738567 | Ruda | Jun 1973 | A |
5265962 | Ogawa et al. | Nov 1993 | A |
6966697 | Patridge et al. | Nov 2005 | B2 |
7458925 | Turvey | Dec 2008 | B2 |
1022906 | Bertrand et al. | Sep 2011 | A1 |
8157444 | Broering et al. | Apr 2012 | B2 |
20100040309 | Wood | Feb 2010 | A1 |
20100046860 | Kent et al. | Feb 2010 | A1 |
20100111452 | Ross | May 2010 | A1 |
20100247002 | Ross | Sep 2010 | A1 |
20110064333 | Ross | Mar 2011 | A1 |
20110075952 | Mallory | Mar 2011 | A1 |
Number | Date | Country |
---|---|---|
2727869 | Sep 2011 | CA |
19636511 | Mar 1998 | DE |
Entry |
---|
Machine translation of German Document No. 196 36 511 specification. Translated on May 26, 2015. |
Machine translation of German Document No. 196 36 511 claims. Translated on May 26, 2015. |
Canadian Office Action for the related application No. 2,855,465 dated Jun. 22, 2015. |
Number | Date | Country | |
---|---|---|---|
20150016754 A1 | Jan 2015 | US |
Number | Date | Country | |
---|---|---|---|
61842728 | Jul 2013 | US |