The present invention relates to packaging. More particularly, the present invention relates to a method, apparatus and system for a heat sealing device for use with manual closure bags.
Heat sealing devices are used with plastic bags, such as demonstrated by the FOOD SAVERĀ® device. One of the problems with a FOOD SAVERĀ® and similar type devices is that the bags used for heat sealing are specially designed for that purpose and cannot be used for other purposes. That may be advantageous to the manufacturer so that they can profit from add-on sales from the bags, but it is a significant inconvenience for the consumer.
Therefore, it is a primary, object, feature, or advantage of the present invention to provide a method, apparatus and system for a heating sealing device for use with manual closure bags.
It is a further object, feature or advantage of the present invention to improve upon the state of the art.
Another object, feature or advantage to the present invention is to provide an method, apparatus and system for making a long-term storage bag out of an every day, re-usable, manual closure bag.
A further object, feature or advantage of the present invention is to provide a method, apparatus and system for heat sealing that is convenient and inexpensive for consumers.
Yet another object, feature or advantage to the present invention is to provide a method system and apparatus for heat sealing that provides for a long-term storage ability.
A still further object, feature or advantage to the present invention is a method, system and apparatus for sealing a manual closure bag that has been air evacuated.
Another object, feature, or advantage of the present invention is to provide a heat sealable and reusable bag.
One or more of these and/or other objects, features or advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the specification and claims that follow.
The present invention provides a method, system and apparatus for a heating sealing device using manual closure bags. According to one aspect of the invention a method of providing storage within a manual closure bag includes providing the manual closure bag and then heat sealing the manual closure bag.
According to another aspect of the present invention a method for sealing a bag is provided. The method includes receiving a top portion of the bag in a slot of a compact rotary heat sealing device and then heat sealing the top portion of the bag as a rotatable member of the compact rotary heat sealing device rotates.
According to another aspect of the invention, an apparatus for heat sealing a bag includes a body having a slot for accepting a bag, the bag having a first side and an opposite second side, and a manual closure for closing the bag. The apparatus also includes a heating element disposed within the body for heat sealing the first side to the second side of the bag above the manual closure while the bag is positioned within the slot. The apparatus may be adapted for mounting beneath a kitchen cabinet or kitchen counter. Preferably the apparatus is adapted for rotary feed. The apparatus may include a rotatable member disposed within the body such as a rotary drum, roller, or belt. The rotatable member may have a heat sealing strip to provide the heating element.
According to another aspect of the present invention a sealing device for heat sealing a plastic bag is disclosed. The sealing device includes a body having a slot for accepting a bag. There is a rotatable member disposed within the body. There is also a means for heat sealing the bag operatively connected to the rotatable member and structurally adapted for heat sealing a bag as the rotatable member rotates.
According to another aspect of the present invention a compact rotary heat sealing device includes at least one rotatable member for drawing a bag through the device and a means for heat sealing the bag. A switch, such as a manual switch or a sensor switch may be used to activate a motor and thereby rotate the at least one rotatable member. The at least one rotatable member may include two opposing rotatable members such as two opposing drums, rollers, or belts.
According to another aspect of the present invention a system includes a plastic bag having a first side operatively connected to a second side and a manual seal for manually sealing a plastic reusable bag. The plastic bag has an opening approximate top end and area between the manual seal and the opening. The system also includes an apparatus for heat sealing the plastic bag along at least a portion of the area between the manual seal and the opening.
According to another aspect of the present invention, a manual closure bag is provided. The manual closure bag includes a first side operatively connected to a second side to form a plastic bag having an opening along a top of the bag. The manual closure is positioned between the top of the bag and a bottom of the bag. There is an extended area between the manual closure and the top of the bag to provide sufficient room for heat sealing the manual closure bag without interfering with the manual closure.
According to another aspect of the present invention a method of evacuating air from a container is provided. The method includes providing a device comprising a housing and a nozzle having a first end attached to the housing and a second end extending from the housing for placing within the container without requiring the container to come in contact with the housing. The method further includes inserting the nozzle into the container, evacuating air from the container, sealing the container with a first reusable manual seal, and heat sealing the container.
The present invention provides for a device that may be used in conjunction with manual closure bags. In particular, the present invention includes a heat sealing device for use with plastic bags and especially manual closure bags. Preferably, although it is not required, the heat sealing device is a compact rotary device. The heat sealing device of the present invention allows one to make a long-term storage bag out of an everyday bag, including a re-usable manual closure bag.
Preferably, the bags have an extended area above the seal. The heat sealing device can be used with the extended area type of bag or current every-day resealable bags to seal an area above the manual closure. This provides for long-term storage ability. In addition, the heat sealed area can be cut off if desired and the ability to manually close the bag is still maintained. Thus, a bag of the present invention is reusable.
Although preferably a slot is used, the present invention contemplates that another form of an opening could be used. Preferably the heat sealing device 10 is a compact rotary heat sealing device. In such a preferred embodiment, internally there is at least one rotary drum, roller, or belt. For example two rollers can be used that may have a heat sealing strip on them. The present invention contemplates that other sealing methods can be used as the bag moves through the device such as lasers, electrostatic, chemical, heated elements, or others. The compact rotary design allows for any size bag to be heat sealed as the bag is sealed as it passes through the device. The present invention also contemplates that rollers or other automated feeding mechanisms would not be necessary as the bag could simply be manually fed through the device. The use of rollers or other similar feeding mechanisms tend to provide more control and more consistent results. For example, two opposing rotary drums/rollers/belts (or other rotatable members) working together cause the bag to be drawn through the device. As the bag is drawn through the rotating sealing element, preferably, the top portion of the bag is sealed. Additional guides roll/rollers can be used to help feed and align the bag as it is heat sealed may appropriate in particular designs.
The present invention contemplates numerous advantages. For example, when the compact rotary feed device is used, the device allows for the heat sealing of any size bag without taking up too much space. Heat sealing of the top portion of a closure type bag or a plain bag prevents the bag from being accidentally opened. Heating a closure type bag or a plain bag after air evacuation can greatly improve the long-term vacuum holding capabilities of the bag. The heat sealing device of the present invention can also be used to make custom size open ended bags out of one or more pieces of plastic.
The device itself may also include a switch that starts the device. The switch could be a manual switch or a sensor switch (such as an optical switch) that senses the bag as it is placed in the opening of the device and starts the drive motor and seal element.
Along with sealing any size bag, different thickness of material could be sealed by varying the speed at which the bag is fed, the pressure, and/or the temperature. The present invention also contemplates that the device may have multiple sealing strips for extra protection. The heat sealing device of the present invention can be combined within the same housing as an air evacuator, a FOODSAVER device, a can opener, or other appliance. The disclosure of the air evacuator of U.S. Pat. No. 7,086,211 to Bassett et al. is herein incorporated by reference in its entirety. The heat sealing device can be a counter-top model, under-the-cabinet model, under-the-counter top or wall-mounted. Preferably the device is AC powered due to the heat sealing power demands.
Other features of the device 200 include a power button 226. In addition, there is an indicator such as a sigh 228 for determining the level within a separation chamber within the device 200. Although a sight is shown, the present invention contemplates that other types of indicators can be used, including electronic indicators to display or indicate the fill level of the separation chamber, where used. A compact rotary heat sealing device 10 is shown at the bottom of the device 200. There is a slot 26 provided so that a user may slide a plastic bag or other container through the heat sealing device 10.
Although the specific embodiments of heat sealing device have been described herein, the present invention is not to be limited to these embodiments. The present invention contemplates numerous variations in the heat sealing device, the plastic bag, and the method of use. These and other variations are well within the spirit and scope of the present invention.
This application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. § 119 of a provisional application Ser. No. 60/755,219 filed Dec. 30, 2005, which application is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety. Although priority is not claimed, this application includes subject matter described in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/426,323, which is a divisional of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/681,598, now U.S. Pat. No. 7,086,211, all of which are hereby incorporated by reference in their entireties.
Number | Date | Country | |
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60755219 | Dec 2005 | US |