My invention relates to a package such as a package for consumer products. In particular, my invention relates to a package having a multi-piece handle positioned over a reclosable opening of the package.
Consumer products are sold in packaging of various shapes, sizes, and materials of construction. Some of these products do not fit in conventional shopping bags when purchased at a store. By way of example, these products may be too large for a bag, too heavy, or a combination of both. For example, a stand mixer is a heavy product (weighing approximately twenty-five pounds) that is typically sold in a cardboard box approximately sixteen inches by twenty inches by twelve inches. Bulky packages are particularly the norm at so-called warehouse or club stores such as Costco Wholesale, BJ's Wholesale Club, or Sam's Club. In these stores, products are typically sold in bulk, which results in large packages for many types of products. For example, paper towels or tissue products may come in packages containing eight rolls or more. An eight count package of paper towels is approximately twenty-two inches by twelve inches by twelve inches. Consumers desire a convenient way to carry and to move these products, for example, from the store to home.
One way to facilitate the movement of these products is to integrate handles into the packaging. For example, a cardboard box may have perforations in the side of the box that allow a section to be punched out and used as a hand hold.
Another way to facilitate movement is to attach handles to the package, with a pressure sensitive adhesive. One such handle is described in U.S. Patent Appln. Pub. No. 2012/0145733. This handle has a dog-bone or an hour-glass shape that is narrower at a grip portion and wider at an attachment portion. Another such handle is described in U.S. Pat. No. 8,032,986. This handle is built from three main layers. In its initial condition, a flexible handle is folded between a top layer and a bottom layer. The top layer has a hole through which the flexible handle may be unfolded and used to carry a package. The hole is covered with a protective plastic covering while the flexible handle is in the folded state. Each of the layers is connected to the other layers with a pressure sensitive adhesive, and the bottom layer is attached to a package through a pressure sensitive adhesive. Still another handle is described in U.S. Pat. No. 7,621,397. This patent describes a band that completely or partially encircles a package. The band itself may serve as a handle, or a strap may be attached to the bands to serve as the handle. Yet another handle is a carry handle available from 3M Company of St. Paul, Minn. This handle is a single strap of plastic with a paper backing. Each end of the strap can then be attached to a package using a pressure sensitive adhesive.
While packages incorporating the handles described above are useful for moving the packages, they have disadvantages for subsequent storage of the products. With products purchased in bulk at a club store, for example, consumers often desire to store the products in the original packaging and take out a single product as needed. The original packaging can provide a convenient way to keep the products together and to protect the products from dirt or damage. The handles described above, however, get in the way of removing the product from the package, and consumers are required to remove the handles. Frequently, removing the handles tears a hole in the side of the package and the package thus no longer protects the products contained inside. There is, therefore, a need for an improved package with a handle that allows a consumer to access products within the package.
In one aspect, my invention relates to a package having, in general, a package body and a handle for carrying the package. The package body has at least one face and a reclosable opening on the at least one face. The handle is positioned over the reclosable opening and has a first strap, a second strap, and a connection portion. The first strap includes a first end and a second end. The first end of the first strap is attached to a face of the package body. The second strap includes a first end and a second end. The first end of the second strap is attached to a face of the package body and is disposed opposite to the first end of the first strap. The connection portion is located on the second end of the second strap and is detachably engaged to the second end of the first strap.
In another aspect, my invention relates to a package having, in general, a package body and a handle for carrying the package. The package body has at least one face and a reclosable opening on the at least one face. The handle is positioned over the reclosable opening and has a first strap, a second strap, and a connecting strap. The first strap includes a first end and a second end. The first end of the first strap is attached to a face of the package body. The second strap includes a first end and a second end. The first end of the second strap is attached to a face of the package body and is disposed opposite to the first end of the first strap. The connecting strap is (i) detachably engaged to the second end of the first strap and (ii) detachably engaged to the second end of the second strap.
These and other aspects of my invention will become apparent from the following disclosure.
I will now describe my invention with reference to the attached figures depicting several exemplary preferred embodiments of my invention.
To aid in understanding my invention, the description uses the terms top, bottom, end, and side, for example, to describe various faces of a package body. Those skilled in the art will recognize that these terms can be used interchangeably. For example, a top can also be a side or an end, and vice versa.
First Embodiment
In this embodiment, the package 1000 contains a rolled paper product 1200 such as paper towels or bathroom tissue. Those skilled in the art will recognize, however, that my invention may be adapted to contain any suitable product. The rolled paper product 1200 is typically aligned into two or more rows and then wrapped in the plastic. The top face 1110 and bottom face 1112 of the plastic are then folded and glued. The paper may be packaged using any suitable method known to those skilled in the art such including the method described in U.S. Patent Appln. Pub. No. 2013/0008135 (the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference in its entirety). Further, any suitable automated bagger, bundler, or overwrapper known in the art such as an Ultraflow wrapper manufactured by Paper Converting Machine Company of Green Bay, Wis. or a Casmatic wrapper manufactured by Fabi Perini of Lucca, Italy may be used for my invention.
The flexible package body 1100 shown in
A reclosable opening 1300 is any suitable opening in the package body 1100 that may be opened and then closed. This definition not only includes resealable openings (as discussed below), it also includes openings known in the art that are re-closed using an external clasp or tape. In the embodiment shown in
The package 1000 shown in
The handle 1400 may be made from any suitable material known to those skilled in the art. As may be seen in
As shown in
The second strap 1420 has a connection portion 1424 on one end of the strap. This connection portion 1424 is detachably engaged to one end of the first strap 1410. In the preferred embodiment, the connection portion 1424 has a pressure sensitive adhesive applied to the plastic layer 1402 of the second strap 1420. Those skilled in the art will recognize, however, that any suitable detachable connection may be used, including a hook and loop closure or mechanical clasps such as buttons or snaps. Another suitable detachable connection may include die cutting the ends of the first and second straps 1410, 1420 to have complementary shapes, allowing the ends of the first and second straps 1410, 1420 to engage with one another. As shown in
When pressure sensitive adhesive is used, the connection portion 1424 does not have paper backing and the pressure sensitive adhesive may be applied to the exposed plastic layer 1402 of the second strap 1420, as shown in
The second strap 1420 may also include a tab 1426, as shown in
The handle 1400 may also be used to close the reclosable opening as shown in
In the first embodiment as described in the foregoing paragraphs and illustrated in the figures described therein, each strap is generally a flat strip of material having a length, LFS (first strap length), LSS (second strap length), a width W, and a thickness T, as shown in
The connection portion 1424 is sized to prevent the two straps from becoming detached from the weight of the package 1000 when a user carries the package 1000 using the handle 1400. When a pressure sensitive adhesive is used, those skilled in the art will recognize that the strength of a connection between the first strap 1410 and second strap 1420 is a function of the surface area of the connection portion 1424 and the tack of the pressure sensitive adhesive for the material selected for the handle 1400. The connection portion 1424 length LC is preferably from about one inch to about twenty-four inches, more preferably, from about two inches to about ten inches, even more preferably, from about three inches to about six inches.
The first 1410 and second 1420 straps may be attached to the flexible package body 1100 by any suitable means known to those skilled in the art, including a pressure sensitive adhesive or mechanical clasps. In this embodiment, the portion of each strap that attaches to the flexible package body 1100, an attachment portion 1412, 1422, does not have paper backing Instead, a pressure sensitive adhesive is applied directly to the plastic layer 1402 of each strap 1410, 1420 and the attachment portions 1412, 1422 are attached directly to the package body 1100. When pressure sensitive adhesive is used to attach each strap to the package body 1100, the surface area of the attachment portion 1412, 1422 shown in
Those skilled in the art will recognize that the total length of the handle 1400 and the corresponding first strap length LFS and second strap length LSS are determined based upon the size of the package body 1100. The total length of the handle 1400 should be long enough to span one face of the package body 1100 (e.g., top face 1110 shown in
Second Embodiment
The package 2000 of a second embodiment of my invention, as shown in
Similar to the first embodiment, the handle 2400 of the second embodiment may also include one or more tabs 2432 on the connecting strap 2430 to assist in detaching the connecting strap 2430 from either the first strap 2410 or the second strap 2420. The tabs 2432 may be positioned on either end of the connecting strap 2430, or both, as shown in
Third Embodiment
Those skilled in the art will recognize that my invention is not limited to flexible package bodies 1100, 2100. The handles 1400, 2400 of my invention may be suitability used on other package bodies such as a rigid package body 3100.
The package 3000 shown in
The package 3000 of the third embodiment is shown in
Other Embodiments
Those skilled in the art will recognize that the package body of my invention is not limited to a rectangular prism described in connection with the embodiments above. Either handle 1400, 2400 described in connection with the first embodiment or described in connection with the second embodiment may be used on package bodies having other geometries. Such examples are discussed below in more detail.
A package 5000 may have a package body 5100 with only one face, such as the spherical package body 5100 shown in
Those skilled in the art will recognize that my invention is applicable to any other suitable package geometries. For example, the package body 6100, 7100, 8100 may be a triangular based pyramid shown in
While I have described my invention in terms of a multi-piece handle 1400, 2400, certain advantageous benefits may be achieved by implementing my invention using a handle comprising a single strap. The single strap may have two attachment portions to attach the strap to a package body. At least one of these attachment portions may utilize an adhesive that may be removed and reattached to the package body without tearing it. With such a handle, a reclosable opening (e.g., reclosable opening 1300, see
Although I have described my invention in certain specific exemplary embodiments, many additional modifications and variations would be apparent to those skilled in the art in light of this disclosure. It is, therefore, to be understood that this invention may be practiced otherwise than as specifically described. Thus, the exemplary embodiments of the invention should be considered in all respects to be illustrative and not restrictive, and the scope of the invention to be determined by any claims supportable by this application and the equivalents thereof, rather than by the foregoing description.
The invention can be used as a package for consumer products, including paper products such as paper towels and bathroom tissue. Thus, the invention is applicable to the consumer products and paper products industry.
This application is based on U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 62/013,627, filed Jun. 18, 2014, which is incorporated herein in its entirety.
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