The present invention relates to flexible moisture-barrier packages, sometimes called pouches, for packaging products which are sensitive to moisture. The invention also relates to methods of producing such packages.
Many products are sensitive to moisture and have shelf lives which are greatly influenced by the storage conditions of humidity, temperature, oxygen, etc. Various means have been developed to improve the storage conditions of such products and thereby to prolong their shelf life. For example, many packages include desiccants for absorbing moisture (water vapor), and/or gas absorbents for absorbing gases, in order to prolong the shelf life of the packaged product. In other techniques, nitrogen gas, argon gas, etc., is introduced into the package of the product, or air is withdrawn from the interior of the package to produce a vacuum therein. Humidity indicators are also introduced into the interior of the package to allow visual monitoring of the humidity within the package.
Metal foil, particularly aluminum foil, is widely used in flexible barrier packaging. The barrier properties of aluminum foil, both for moisture and for gases, are extremely high and very cost effective. However, aluminum foil of less than 20 microns includes small pinholes which substantially reduce the barrier level of such foils. Aluminum foils are also very sensitive to folding and cracking, which may substantially increase the permeability of the foil with respect to air, humidity (water vapor) and gases.
Transparent humidity-barrier films are also known including transparent polymer substrates having vacuum-coated moisture-barrier layers thereover, such as alumina, silicon oxides, etc. However, the barrier-capability of such films, particularly with respect to humidity, is significantly lower than that of aluminum foil barrier films.
Many constructions of packages have been developed to include desiccants for absorbing moisture and/or moisture indicators to indicate whether moisture has penetrated into the interior of the package. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,293,996 describes a package including separate compartments for humidity indicators and desiccants; whereas U.S. Pat. No. 5,875,892 describes a package in which a humidity indicator is secured to the package and viewable through a transparent window. Both types of packages require the introduction of the moisture indicator, at the time of producing the package which complicates the production process. Moreover, the production of such a package for use with one type of product, requiring a specific moisture indicator, would not be usable with respect to other products requiring a different type of moisture indicator and/or desiccant.
In addition, many products to be packaged are not only sensitive to moisture, but are also sensitive to static electricity and/or electromagnetic fields. Accordingly, it is desirable, in many applications, to include anti-static and/or electromagnetic (EMI) shielding properties to the packaging, to enable the packaging material to dissipate electrostatic charges. Such anti-static coatings are generally applied to the outer faces of the packages; since anti-static coatings are not easily bondable to polymers, and therefore present problems when applied to the inner faces of the two polymer sheets to be bonded together to form the package.
An object of the present invention is to provide a flexible moisture-barrier package having advantages in one or more of the above respects. More particularly, an object of the present invention is to provide a flexible moisture-barrier package which can be produced in volume and at low cost, which can be used for a wide variety of products requiring different moisture-indicators, desiccants, or the like, and which can use standard packing-making or pouch-making machines. Yet another object of the invention is to provide laminate containing a metal foil, particularly aluminum foil, layer providing a high moisture-barrier capability and a low sensitivity to folding and cracking. A further object is to provide a transparent-polymer multi-layer sheet also having a high moisture-barrier capability.
A still further object of the present invention is to provide a method of making such flexible moisture-barrier packages which method is susceptible for volume-production at low cost and can also be used for applying anti-static properties to the packages.
According to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a flexible package for a product sensitive to moisture, comprising: a front flexible sheet having moisture-barrier properties; and a back flexible sheet having moisture-barrier properties joined along its peripheral edges to the peripheral edges of the front flexible sheet except for one edge thereof to define a compartment allowing the introduction of the product and then the sealing of the package by bonding the unjoined edges; wherein at least a section of the front flexible sheet having moisture-barrier properties is optically transparent, such as to permit a moisture-indicator, a desiccant, a bar code label, and/or an RFID (radio frequency identification device) to be introduced with the product into the interior of the package before bonding the one edge of the two sheets, and to be optically observed through the transparent section after the package has been sealed by bonding said one edge.
According to further features in the described preferred embodiments, the back flexible sheet and the front flexible sheet are of an opaque material, particularly a laminate containing aluminum foil, having moisture-barrier properties, except for the transparent section of the front flexible sheet, which is of an optically transparent material having moisture-barrier properties.
In one described preferred embodiment, the transparent section of the front flexible sheet extends across the complete width of the front flexible sheet.
In a second described preferred embodiment, the transparent section of the front flexible sheet includes at least one transparent window formed in the front flexible sheet, the window being of smaller width and length than the width and length of the front flexible sheet. In the described embodiment, the transparent section of the front flexible sheet includes a plurality of windows such as to permit a moisture indicator, as well as a bar code label, and/or a radio-frequency identification device (RFID) also to be introduced with the product into the interior of the package before sealing and to be optically observed after sealing.
In a third described embodiment, the front flexible sheet is optically transparent for its complete surface area.
According to further features in the described preferred embodiments, the back flexible sheet includes a polymer substrate, a vacuum-coated moisture barrier layer thereover, and a metal foil of less than 20 microns over the moisture-barrier layer. The metal foil is preferably of aluminum, and the moisture-barrier layer is preferably a vacuum-coated metal or oxide. Such a construction has been found to effectively avoid the pinhole problem with aluminum foils, even when extremely thin foils are used. In the described preferred embodiments, the aluminum foil is less than 20 microns in thickness, preferably about six microns, but may even be less when thinner foils become available.
According to further features in the described preferred embodiments, the transparent section of the front flexible sheet is a multi-layer lamination including a first transparent polymer substrate having a first vacuum-coated moisture-barrier layer bonded to a second transparent polymer substrate having a second vacuum-coated moisture-barrier layer. It is contemplated that the multi-layer lamination may include even a third transparent polymer substrate having a third vacuum-coated moisture-barrier layer. Such a multi-layer construction produces a moisture barrier which is substantially superior to the single layer constructions heretofore used.
According to a still further feature included in a described preferred embodiments, the inner faces of the front and back flexible sheets are coated with an anti-static coating to dissipate electrical charges, and/or to provide electromagnetic shielding.
According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a flexible package comprising: a front flexible sheet having moisture-barrier properties; and a back flexible sheet having moisture-barrier properties joined along its peripheral edges to the peripheral edges of the front flexible sheet except for one edge thereof to define a compartment allowing the introduction of the product and then the sealing of the package by bonding the unjoined edges; wherein at least one of the flexible sheets includes a polymer substrate, a vacuum-coated moisture-barrier layer thereover, and a metal foil of less than 20 microns over the moisture-barrier layer.
According to a still further aspect of the present invention, there is provided a flexible package for a product sensitive to moisture comprising: a front flexible sheet having moisture-barrier properties; and a back flexible sheet having moisture-barrier properties joined along its peripheral edges to the peripheral edges of the front flexible sheet except for one edge thereof to define a compartment allowing the introduction of the product and then the sealing of the package by bonding the one edge; wherein at least one of the flexible sheets is a multi-layer lamination including a first polymer substrate having a first vacuum-coated moisture-barrier layer, bonded to a second polymer substrate having a second vacuum-coated moisture-barrier layer.
According to yet another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a flexible package, comprising: a front flexible sheet; and a back flexible sheet joined along its peripheral edges to the peripheral edges of the front flexible sheet except for one edge thereof to define a compartment allowing the introduction of the product and then the sealing of the package by bonding the one edge; wherein the inner faces of the front flexible sheet and back flexible sheet are coated with an anti-static and/or electromagnetic shielding coating to dissipate electrical charges.
The invention also provides a flexible sheet comprising a first polymer substrate having a first vacuum-coated moisture-barrier layer, bonded to a second polymer substrate having a second vacuum-coated moisture-barrier layer.
According to a still further aspect, the invention also provides a method of making flexible packages, comprising: feeding two flexible polymer sheets, each having a moisture-barrier layer, through a longitudinally-extending path, with a surface of each sheet facing a surface of the other sheet; bonding the two sheets together along longitudinally-spaced transverse lines to define a plurality of individual compartments each having an open end; and cutting the bonded sheets along longitudinally-spaced transverse cut lines to define a plurality of individual packages each having a compartment and an open end for inserting a product into the respective compartment; wherein the surfaces of the two sheets facing each other are coated with an anti-static coating and/or electromagnetic shielding before the two sheets are bonded together along the transverse bond lines, to thereby impart anti-static properties, and/or to provide electromagnetic shielding, to each of the packages.
In one described embodiment, the anti-static and/or electromagnetic shielding coating is applied to each of the facing surfaces except the outer margins to be bonded together, and the bonding is effected by intermittently activating a heating element extending transversely across the two flexible sheets.
In another described embodiment, the anti-static coating and/or electromagnetic shielding is applied over the complete surfaces of each of the facing surfaces of the two sheets; an adhesive is applied over the anti-static coatings only along the outer margins to be bonded together; and the bonding is effected by intermittently activating a heating element extending transversely across the two flexible sheets in the longitudinally-extending path.
In yet a third described embodiment, the anti-static coating and/or electromagnetic shielding is applied over the complete surface of each of the facing surfaces of the two sheets; a heat-activatable adhesive is printed over the anti-static coating of at least one sheet, only along the outer margin to be bonded to the other sheet; and the bonding is effected by feeding the two sheets between heater rollers for activating the heat-activatable adhesive.
As will be described more particularly below, a flexible package constructed in accordance with the foregoing features of the invention can be produced with a high degree of moisture barrier properties, and with anti-static and/or electromagnetic shielding, properties if desired, can be manufactured in volume and at low cost, and can also accommodate different types of moisture indicators, desiccants, bar codes and/or RDIF's whenever desired to be introduced into the package, without changing the production apparatus or method. In addition, the invention permits the humidity indicators, desiccants, etc. to be applied to the product being packaged, rather than to the package itself, which provides a number of other important advantages.
Further features and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the description below.
The invention is herein described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein:
and
It is to be understood that the foregoing drawings, and the description below, are provided primarily for purposes of facilitating understanding the conceptual aspects of the invention and possible embodiments thereof, including what is presently considered to be a preferred embodiment. In the interest of clarity and brevity, no attempt is made to provide more details than necessary to enable one skilled in the art, using routine skill and design, to understand and practice the described invention. It is to be further understood that the embodiments described are for purposes of example only, and that the invention is capable of being embodied in other forms and applications than described herein.
With reference to
Because of the sensitivity to moisture of the product 20 to be packaged, the product, or the interior of the package 10, is provided with a humidity indicator 21 and also with a desiccant 22 for absorbing humidity within the package. Product 20 illustrated in
The flexible package 10 illustrated in
The back flexible sheet 30 is made of an opaque sheet material having high moisture-barrier properties. A preferred construction for the back flexible sheet 30, including a laminate containing aluminum foil, is described below with respect to
The front flexible sheet 40 is made of three strips, namely upper and lower strips 40a, 40b, joined to intermediate strip 40c. The upper and lower strips 40a, 40b are also of an opaque material, whereas the intermediate strip 40c is of an optically-transparent material having moisture-barrier properties, to enable visually observing the product 20 within the package, and particularly the humidity indicator 21, the bar-code label 23 and/or the RFID 24 carried by the product. The optically-opaque sections, 40a, 40b of the front flexible sheet 40 are also preferably of the laminate containing aluminum-foil construction illustrated in
Thus, as shown in
At a point downstream of supply roll 55 supplying the back flexible sheet 30, another heat sealing bar 57 is provided to bond the front flexible sheet 40 to the back flexible sheet 30 along a longitudinal edge. Slightly further downstream of supply roll 55, another heat-sealing bar 58 extends transversely of the two sheets and is intermittently activated to bond them together along longitudinally-spaced transverse bond lines. Slightly further downstream, a cutter blade 59 periodically cuts the bonded sheets along transverse cut lines, to produce the individual packages 10 having the three bonded edges 11, 12 and 13 with the fourth edge open to permit introduction of the products being packaged.
As one example, aluminum layer 31 may be aluminum-foil of less than 20 microns, preferably 6 microns, in thickness; the substrate 33 may be a polyester such as PET (polyethylene teraphtalate) or polypropylene; the vacuum-deposit barrier layer 34 may be a vacuum-coated metal or oxide, such as alumina silicon dioxide, aluminum oxide, indium/tin oxide, etc.; sealing layer 35 may be polyethylene or polypropylene; and the two adhesive layers 32, 36 may be a polyurethane solvent based adhesive.
As indicated earlier, the same multi-layer aluminum-foil construction may also be used for the two strips 40a, 40b of the front flexible sheet 40.
Thus, as shown in
The two transparent sealing layers 41, 49 may be polyethylene or polypropylene; the two transparent polymer substrates 43, 46 may be a polyester resin, such as PET; the two transparent barrier layers 44, 47 may be a vacuum-coated metal or oxide, such silicon dioxide, aluminum oxide, indium/tin oxide, etc.; and the adhesive layers 42, 45 and 48, may be a polyurethane adhesive.
It is also highly desirable to provide packages with anti-static properties, in order to prevent the build-up of static charges, and/or to provide electromagnetic shielding.
Anti-static and/or electromagnetic shielding properties may be provided in such a package by coating the inner surfaces of the two flexible sheets with an anti-static coating, such as a polyaniline, indium tin oxide nano-particles, Baytron® and alike. However, such anti-static coatings do not bond well to each other, and therefore the use of such coatings can present problems in bonding the two flexible sheets along their peripheral edges in order to produce the compartments for receiving the products to be packaged.
As illustrated in
One way of producing the construction illustrated in
Another way of producing the configuration illustrated in
In this case, however, the anti-static and/or electromagnetic shielding coating would be continuously applied to the inner faces of both sheets, or a polymer having anti-static and/or electromagnetic shielding properties would be used for the inner face; and a heat-activatable adhesive would be applied to the outer margins of one sheet (or both sheets) serving as the bond lines for producing the compartments in the respective packages 510. Thus, as shown in
An example of the heat-activated adhesive used in the method illustrated in
Examples of vacuum coated transparent polymers are Techbarier® of Mitsubishi plastics of Japan.
Examples of antistatic and/or electromagnetic shielding is polyaniline of Panipol, Finland, Baytron® of H.C Starck of Germany and Indium tin oxide nano-particles of Degussa, Germany.
While the invention has been described with respect to several preferred embodiments, it will be appreciated that these are set forth merely for purposes of example, and that many other variations, modifications and applications of the invention may be made.
Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind | 371c Date |
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PCT/IL2006/001466 | 12/20/2006 | WO | 00 | 10/22/2008 |
Number | Date | Country | |
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60751601 | Dec 2005 | US | |
60754864 | Dec 2005 | US | |
60763268 | Jan 2006 | US |