Packs of Plastic Bags and Racks for Suspending The Packs of Plastic Bags

Abstract

A pack of bags is disclosed having folded sides being folded in the back towards the middle portion thereof to form a gap therebetween. The pack of bags maybe enveloped by a sleeve. The pack of bags with or without the sleeve is suspended form a rack by inserting a hooks or hooks of the rack in the opening or openings at the disposable upper portion of the pack. The rack has an extension that abuts the upper middle portion of the back of the pack of bags in the gap formed between the folded sides and biases the back towards the front to facilitate the removal of bags.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to dispensing assemblies for dispensing plastic bags and, more particularly, to packs of plastic bags suspended from racks. Still more particularly, the present invention relates to a dispensing assembly that includes packs of plastic bags with the two sides folded towards the middle section of the bags forming a gap therebetween and racks having an extension for biasing the back of the upper middle portion of the folded packs of plastic bags in the gap to facilitate the removal of an individual bag from the front of a pack of bags.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

In supermarkets, department stores, fast food restaurants, and other retail outlets, there is frequently the need for consumers or store employees to place items in bags to facilitate handling and purchase. For example, produce bags are dispensed directly to customers to allow the customer to bag the produce as it is chosen for purchase. Also, in deli or meat departments, store employees place the selected meats or other deli products in bags (or other packaging) for the consumer. At fast food restaurants, especially when an order is made “to go,” the employee places the food in a plastic bag to facilitate handling and prevent spilling or leaking In the prior art, there are a number of designs for dispensing bags for these purposes.

Roll mounted produce bags are commonly found in modem grocery stores and supermarkets. These bags are designed for customers to use when purchasing fresh produce. The bags currently available are difficult for customers to use for several reasons. First, the bags tend to cling together due to excessive static and are difficult to separate from the roll. Second, it is difficult to tell the open end of the bag from the closed end of the bag. Third, the individual bags are difficult to open, as the sides tend to cling together. Fourth, some roll bags are “tn-folded” and require two hands to unfold and open fully.

Also, the prior art teaches plastic bag dispenser packs of produce bags or the like, wherein the bag packs are hung on, for example, plastic tab members. The pack of plastic bags includes a disposable upper portion connected to the lower plastic bag. A perforation is made between the upper portion and the lower plastic bag. The upper portion is attached to the plastic tab member. When a customer wants to use a plastic bag, he pulls on the lower plastic bag and tears it away from the upper portion at the perforation. These plastic bags suffer from many of the same shortcomings as plastic bags on rolls. Additionally, with these bag dispensing systems it frequently requires two hands to pull the bag down and open it. Further, often more than one bag is removed, resulting in wasted bags.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,732,833, herein incorporated by reference, commonly owned by applicant, discloses a dispensing assembly for supporting packs of plastic bags. The packs of plastic bags include a disposable upper portion connected to the lower bag portion. A perforation is made between the disposable upper portion and the lower bag portion. When a customer wants to use a plastic bag, he pulls on the lower bag portion and tears it away from the disposable upper portion at the perforation While these plastic bags are suitable and cost-effective for a number of situations, in other situations these plastic bags suffer from some shortcomings. For example, with these bag dispensing systems it frequently requires two hands to pull the bag down and open it. Also, often more than one bag is removed, resulting in wasted bags.

U.S. Pat. No. 6,264,059 commonly owned by applicant, discloses a “bag shield” for facilitating the removal of only one bag at a time from the stack and for maintaining a “billboard effect” of the bags in the stack. This product has not been commercially successful for two reasons: (1) The bag shield must be removed to add additional packs of plastic bags to the rack and then the bag shield must be placed back on the rack over the additional packs of plastic bags. The present invention avoids the shortcomings. (2) In a grocery store or other retail store, the space a product occupies is an important consideration. The billboard effect of the '059 patent requires a larger “footprint” (i.e., it is less desirable than the product(s) of the present invention because it takes up more space).

U.S. Pat. Nos. 8,210,354 and 8,590,706 disclose packs of plastic bags plastic bags having sleeves enveloping the packs of plastic bags. Those packs are wide thereby occupying large space when suspended from a rack.

Thus, there are a number of shortcomings with the known rolls of plastic bags and other bag dispensing systems. A common problem with dispensing produce bags is providing one bag to the consumer in a convenient, simple, and reliable fashion. Further considerations relate to ease of replenishing the supply, uniformity of dispensing, ease of opening, and case of filling. Another problem is that packs of bags in sleeves suspended from a rack have large surface area.

A need has arisen for a bag dispensing system which easily dispenses one (and only one) bag which can easily be opened and filled and which occupies smaller space than that occupied by the flat bags.

The present invention(s) relates to packs of plastic bags which are used in grocery stores, retail stores, fast food restaurants, etc. to dispense plastic bags to hold the items purchased.

The present inventive product(s) is advantageous over known bag dispensing systems. It provides bag dispensing systems wherein the user is led to remove one bag instead of many bags from the system. Further, it provides bag dispensing systems for easy opening and filling of the bags which occupies smaller space than that occupied by the flat bags.

These and other advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following description and drawings.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

A pack of bags is disclosed comprised of individual bag units have a disposable upper portion, a lower bag portion with a serration therebetween. The bags are stacked on top of each other with their sides being folded in the back towards the middle portion thereof to form a gap therebetween. The disposable upper portion of the bags including the folded portion thereof are connected by applying heat through heated blunt rods through the disposable upper portion. A hole or holes are provided in the disposable upper portion to receive hooks from a rack.

In an alternative embodiment a sleeve covers at least a portion of the two sides of the pack of folded plastic bags with front and back walls having openings. The top of the sleeve and the disposable upper portion of the bags including the folded portion thereof are connected by applying heat through heated blunt rods through the top of the sleeve and the disposable upper portion. A hole or holes are provided in the top portion of the sleeve and the disposable upper portion to receive hooks from a rack.

According to the present invention, the pack of bags with or without the sleeve is suspended form a rack by inserting a hooks or hooks of the rack in the opening or openings at the disposable upper portion of the pack. The rack has an extension that abuts the upper middle portion of the back of the pack of bags in the gap formed between the folded sides and provides a stop when one presses on the front of the bags and biases the back towards the front to facilitate the removal of bags.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

For a detailed description of the preferred embodiment of the invention, reference will now be made to the accompanying drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 is a rear perspective view of a pack of plastic bags in accordance of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a front perspective view of the pack of plastic bags of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a front perspective view of a pack of plastic bags of FIG. 1 with a sleeve in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a rear perspective view of the pack of plastic bags of FIG. 3 in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a rack in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 6 is a rear perspective view of the rack of FIG. 5 with a pack of plastic bags of FIG. 4 in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 7 is a rear perspective view of the rack of FIG. 5 with a pack of plastic bags of FIG. 3 in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of another rack in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 9 is a rear perspective view of the rack of FIG. 8 with a pack of plastic bags of FIG. 4 in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 10 is a perspective view of another rack in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 11 is a rear perspective view of the rack of FIG. 10 with a pack of plastic bags of FIG. 4 in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 12 is a front perspective view of another rack with a pack of plastic bags of FIG. 3 in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 13 is a front perspective view of another rack in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 14 is a front perspective view of another rack in accordance with the present invention; and

FIG. 15 is a front perspective view of another rack in accordance with the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Referring now to FIG. 1 there is shown the back of a folded pack of bags 20 wherein a number of individual bag units are joined together to form pack of bags 20. Each of the individual bag units has a back wall 19 with a disposable upper portion 21 and a lower bag portion 22 with a serration 23 between the disposable upper portion 21 and the lower bag portion 22. In forming the pack 20, the individual bag units are stacked on top of each other. In order to reduce the width of pack of bags 20, side portions 25 and 26 are folded over the back of pack of bags 20 towards the center portion of pack of bags 20 to form a gap 27 between folded side portions 25 and 26. In the folded position, the disposable upper portions 21 of folded side portions 25 and 26 are disposed over the disposable upper portion 21 of the unfolded portion and are joined together by well known techniques such as by inserting heated blunt rods through the disposable upper portions 21 to melt the disposable upper portions 21 together about the points of insertion. Holes 30 for hanging on a rack may be cut out of the disposable upper portions 21 or formed with the use of heated blunt rods.

The individual bag units generally include a back sheet and a front sheet which are sealed around the sides and bottom to form the lower bag portions 22. The back sheet includes serration 23 between the lower bag section 22 and the disposable upper portions 21. The lower bag section 22 of the bag is attached to the disposable upper portion 22 with the serrated line.

Referring now to FIG. 2, there is shown the front of pack of bags 20 hanging from a rack 33 through hooks 35A and 35B inserted in holes 30. There is shown the front of pack of bags 20 wherein there is shown that the front sheet of an individual bag unit does not have a disposable upper section but terminates just below serration 23 to form a bag opening 31. The individual bag units formed with opening 31 allows a product to be placed in a bag while the bag remains attached to the pack of plastic bags 20 such that the user may then use two hands to remove the bag from the pack of plastic bags 20 and seal the bag. The front sheet of the bag is not attached to the upper disposable section and remains open, although, in use, it is not readily visibly apparent that the front of the bag is open.

In an alternative embodiment a header (not shown) may be placed about the disposable upper portion 21. The header and the disposable upper portions 21 are joined together in any suitable way; preferably, the header is joined to the disposable upper portions 21 by inserting heated blunt rods through the header and the disposable upper portions 21 to melt the header and the disposable upper portions 21 together about the points of insertion. The insertion of the heated blunt rods serve to melt the plastic immediately adjacent to the header and the disposable upper portions 21 at the points of insertion to join together the header and the disposable upper portions 21 of the individual bag units. Any shape of blunt heated rods would be suitable for this purpose. The header is formed by cutting a flat, generally rectangular plastic piece and folding the rectangular plastic piece longitudinally in half to substantially cover the disposable upper portions 21.

Referring now to FIG. 3, there is shown an alternative embodiment of the present invention suspended from a rack 337 having hooks 39A and 39 B received in apertures 30A. There is shown the front of a sleeve 40 made of plastic material that envelops a pack of bags 20A similar to pack of bags 20 previously described having folded portions 25A and 26A forming a gap 27A in the back thereof (not shown in FIG. 3 but shown in FIG. 4). The front wall of the individual bag units form an opening 31A (not shown) at the top of lower bag portion 22A.

Sleeve 40 covers at least a portion of the two sides of pack of plastic bags 20A. Sleeve 40 is preferably made of plastic material and is thicker and stronger than that of the bags. It can have different color or a substantially different appearance than the bags. Sleeve 40 has a front wall 42 and a back wall 44 connected to each other along top 46, bottom 48 and sides 50 and 52. Top 46 is placed about disposable upper portion 21A and is joined therewith, as previously described, by well known techniques such as by inserting heated blunt rods through the disposable upper portions 21A and top 46 to melt top 46 and the disposable upper portions 21A together about the points of insertion. Holes 30A for hanging on a rack may be cut out of top 46 and the disposable upper portions 21A or formed with the use of heated blunt rods.

The center portion of front wall 42 has an opening 54 and the center portion of back wall 44 has an opening 56 (not shown in FIG. 3 but shown in FIG. 4).

As shown in FIG. 3, sleeve 40 covers at least a portion of the two sides of pack of plastic bags 20A. Sleeve 40 prevents persons from grabbing several bags from the side of pack of plastic bags 20A when only one bag is needed. If sleeve 40 were not present, several plastic bags could have been torn from pack of plastic bags 20A, resulting in the waste of several bags. In most cases, several packs of plastic bags 20A are stacked together on a rack (not shown). As noted, the center portion of both front wall 42 and back wall 44 of pack of plastic bags 20A is open via opening 54 and opening 56 (not shown in FIG. 3 but shown in FIG. 4), respectively, This provides that, once all the plastic bags have been removed from the front pack of plastic bags, the person can reach through and remove plastic bags from the second pack of plastic bags, and so forth, without any need for removing the empty packs of plastic bags. Sleeve 40 both reduces waste and reduces the store manpower required to reload the rack to provide plastic bags to customers.

Referring now to FIG. 4, there is shown the back of packs of plastic bags 20A having folded portions 25A and 26A forming a gap 27A therebetween and being enveloped by sleeve 40.

Sleeve 40 has back wall 44 connected along top 46, bottom 48 and sides 50 and 52 and envelopes pack of bags 20A. This center portion of back wall 44 has an opening 56 which allows a person to retrieve a bag from a second pack of plastic bags once all the bags are removed from the front pack of plastic bags, and so forth, without the need for removing the empty packs of plastic bags.

According to the present invention, packs 20 without a sleeve and packs 20A with a sleeve are suspended from a rack that has hooks inserted in the opening or openings in disposable upper portions 21 or 21A of the packs 20 or 20A and an extension that abuts the rear portion of packs 20 or packs 20A in the middle section thereof in gap 27 or 27A and biases the middle section towards the front.

Referring now to FIG. 5, there is shown rack 50 having hooks 52 and 54 and 52A and 54A and extension 56 between hooks 52 and 54 and extension 56A between hooks 52A and 54A. Referring now to FIG. 6, there is shown the back of pack 20A of FIGS. 3 and 4 suspended from hooks 52 and 54 of rack 50 received in holes 30A. Extension 56 abuts the back of pack 20A in the upper middle portion thereof in gap 27A and provides a stop and biases the back of pack 20A towards the front. Referring now to FIG. 7, there is shown the front of pack 20A of FIGS. 3 and 4 suspended from hooks 52 and 54 of rack 50 received in holes 30A. When one tries to remove a single bag by grabbing it at the top portion, extension 56 (shown in FIG. 6) abuts the back of pack 20A in the upper middle portion thereof and provides a stop to prevent the front of pack 20A from being pushed thereby facilitating the easy removal of the bag b y pressing and pulling on an individual bag.

Referring now to FIG. 8, there is shown rack 60 having hooks 62 and 64 and extension 66 between hooks 62 and 64. Referring now to FIG. 9, there is shown the back of pack 20A of FIGS. 3 and 4 suspended from hooks 62 and 64 of rack 60 received in holes 30A. Extension 66 abuts the back of pack 20A in the upper middle portion thereof in gap 27A and biases the back of pack 20A towards the front. When one tries to remove a single bag by grabbing it at the top portion, extension 66 abuts the back of pack 20A in the upper middle portion thereof and prevents the front of pack 20A from being pushed thereby facilitating the easy removal of the bag.

Referring now to FIG. 10, there is shown rack 70 having hooks 72 and 74 and extension 76 between hooks 72 and 74. Referring now to FIG. 11, there is shown the back of pack 20A of FIGS. 3 and 4 suspended from hooks 72 and 74 of rack 70 received in holes 30A. Extension 76 abuts the back of pack 20A in the upper middle portion thereof in gap 27A and biases the back of pack 20A towards the front. When one tries to remove a single bag by grabbing it at the top portion, extension 76 abuts the back of pack 20A in the upper middle portion thereof and prevents the front of pack 20A from being pushed thereby facilitating the easy removal of the bag.

Referring now to FIG. 12, there is shown the front of pack 20A of FIGS. 3 and 4 suspended from hooks 82 and 84 of a rack 80 received in holes 30A. When one tries to remove a single bag by grabbing it at the top portion, extension 86 extending from rack 80 (not shown) abuts the back of pack 20A in the upper middle portion thereof and prevents the front of pack 20A from being pushed thereby facilitating the easy removal of the bag.

Referring now to FIG. 13, there is shown rack 90 having hooks 92A and 92B extending from a horizontal member 93 being supported by a riser 98 and an extension 94 below attached to riser 98. When a pack of bags 20 or 20A according to the present invention is suspended from rack 90, extension 94 is suitably positioned and at an angle so as to abut the back of the pack of bags in the upper middle portion thereof in the gap 27 or 27A formed between the folded portions and to place a stop and to bias the back of pack of bags 20 or 20A towards the front when one presses the front of the pack of bags to remove a bag. Rack 90 maybe attached to a horizontal surface such as the top of a table, a counter or the like through riser 98 and a base 96.

Referring now to FIG. 14, there is shown rack 100 having hooks 102A and 102B attached to a base 106 and an extension 104 below attached to base 106. When a pack of bags 20 or 20A according to the present invention is suspended from rack 100, extension 104 is suitably positioned and at an angle so as to abut the back of the pack of bags in the upper middle portion thereof in the gap 27 or 27A formed between the folded portions and to place a stop and to bias the back of pack of bags 20 or 20A towards the front when one presses the front of the pack of bags to remove a bag. Rack 100 maybe attached to the end of a horizontal surface via base 106.

Referring now to FIG. 15, there is shown rack 110 having hooks 112A and 112B attached to a base 116 and an extension 114 below attached to base 116. When a pack of bags 20 or 20A according to the present invention is suspended from rack 110, extension 114 is suitably positioned and at an angle so as to abut the back of the pack of bags in the upper middle portion thereof in the gap 27 or 27A formed between the folded portions and to place a stop and to bias the back of pack of bags 20 or 20A towards the front when one presses the front of the pack of bags to remove a bag. Rack 110 maybe attached to a vertical surface via base 116.

All patents and publications referred to herein are hereby incorporated by reference in their entireties.

Having described the invention above, various modifications of the techniques, procedures, materials, and equipment will be apparent to those skilled in the art. It is intended that all such variations within the scope and spirit of the invention be included within the scope of the appended claims.

Claims

1. A pack of plastic bags, comprising: a plurality of stacked bag units, each bag unit comprising a front wall, a back wall, sealed sides, a sealed bottom, and an opening;an unfolded portion having a front and a back and an unfolded portion top section, a first folded portion having a first folded portion top section and a second unfolded portion having a second folded portion top section, the first and second folded portions being folded over the back of the unfolded portion; andwherein the unfolded portion top section, the first folded portion top section and the second folded top section are joined to form a junction.

2. A pack of plastic bags according to claim 1 wherein the junction has at least one aperture.

3. A pack of plastic bags according to claim 1 wherein the first folded portion and the second folded section form a gap therebetween.

4. A pack of plastic bags according to claim 3 wherein the gap has a bottom formed by a part of the back of the unfolded section.

5. A pack of plastic bags according to claim 1 wherein the plurality of stacked bag units comprises a front bag unit and a back bag unit.

6. A pack of plastic bags according to claim 1 wherein the back wall has a back wall disposable upper portion and a back wall lower portion.

7. A pack of plastic bags according to claim 6 wherein the back wall includes a serration between the back wall disposable upper portion and the back wall lower portion.

8. A pack of plastic bags according to claim 1 further including a plastic sleeve, the plastic sleeve covering at least a portion of the first folded portion, at least a portion of the second folded portion and at least a portion of the unfolded portion.

9. A pack of plastic bags according to claim 8 wherein the plastic sleeve retains the first and second folded portions in a folded position.

10. A pack of plastic bags according to claim 8 wherein the plastic sleeve includes at least a partial front sheet so as to expose a portion of the front of the unfolded section.

11. A pack of plastic bags according to claim 8 wherein the plastic sleeve includes at least a partial back sheet.

12. A pack of plastic bags according to claim 8 wherein the plastic sleeve is connected to the junction.

13. A dispensing assembly for dispensing plastic bags, comprising: a rack;a pack of plastic bags having an unfolded portion having a front and a back and an unfolded portion top section, a first folded portion having a first folded portion top section and a second unfolded portion having a second folded portion top section, the first and second folded portions being folded over the back of the unfolded portion; andwherein the unfolded portion top section, the first folded portion top section and the second folded top section are joined to form a junction which is removably connected to the rack.

14. A dispensing assembly according to claim 13 further including a member abutting the back of the unfolded section.

15. A dispensing assembly according to claim 14 wherein the first folded portion and the second folded section form a gap therebetween and the member abuts the back of the unfolded section through the gap.

16. A dispensing assembly according to claim 14 wherein the member provides a stop for the pack of plastic bags when pressure is applied to the front of the pack of the plastic bags.

17. A dispensing assembly according to claim 13 further including a hook and wherein the junction has an aperture for receiving the hook.

18. A dispensing assembly according to claim 13 further including a plastic sleeve, the plastic sleeve covering at least a portion of the first folded portion, at least a portion of the second folded portion and at least a portion of the unfolded portion.