The present disclosure relates to web material for packaging.
The written disclosure herein describes illustrative embodiments that are non-limiting and non-exhaustive. Reference is made to certain of such illustrative embodiments that are depicted in the figures, in which:
Certain embodiments disclosed herein relate to web material that may be used in forming bags and other packaging structures. The web material may be supplied in rolls and is often introduced and fed through various machines and systems during the manufacturing and processing of bags and other packaging structures. In some instances, for example, the webs may be introduced to systems that may print color and/or indicia onto a surface of the material and/or may provide the material with other or further desired characteristics. The web material may also be introduced into systems that may laminate or add additional layers of material onto the web. Additional features and/or characteristics may also be added to the web material through various processes including, for example, score line formation to provide the material with controlled tearing, addition of zipper closures, etc.
Web materials can be used for mass-producing bags or other packaging structures. Accordingly, in some instances, web material may include repeated segments. Each segment may comprise one or more components that may be used to form one or more bags or packaging structures. These components may include, for example, one or more front panels, one or more back panels, and two or more side panels or gussets. The repeated segments may be positioned adjacent to one another along the machine direction of the web.
In many instances, multiple rolls of web material are used to manufacture and process the various components of a bag or packaging structure. For example, a first web may be used to print or process the front and back panels while a second web may be used to print or process the side panels or gussets. The panels disposed on the separate webs may then be cut out or otherwise removed from the webs, and the individual panels may be adhered or otherwise joined together to form an individual bag or other packaging structure.
The present disclosure is directed to web materials from which all web-material components used in the formation of individual bag or packaging structures are obtained. For example, in some embodiments, each segment of a web may be configured to form one or more bags or packages. In certain of such embodiments, a single web material may include front and back panels as well as side panels or gussets, all of which can be used to form a single bag or packaging structure, two bags or packaging structures, or any other suitable number of bags or packaging structures. In some embodiments, a single segment is configured to be cut in such a manner as to form the various components (e.g., panels, gussets, etc.) of one or more bags without any waste, such that the segment is entirely reconfigured for inclusion as various components of the bag. In other embodiments, a single segment may provide for significantly reduced or minimal waste, with most of the material from cut portions being formed into one or more bags or packages, and with only minimal portions of material that are cut being discarded or recycled.
Using a single web material that includes each of the web-material components, such as individual panels, that are used to form a bag or packaging structure can have one or more advantages. For example, it can be easier to maintain consistent colors and/or indicia when printing on a single web, as compared with printing on multiple webs. In other or further instances, manufacturing and production costs may be reduced when using a single web material due to, for example, lower printing set-up costs and/or fewer waste scraps. Laminating costs and other processing costs may also be reduced when working with a single web material.
Some embodiments comprise individual web materials in which individual panels (e.g., front panels, back panels, and side panels or gussets) are efficiently arranged in patterns thereby eliminating or reducing the amount of material that is trimmed and wasted during the manufacturing and processing of bags and other packaging structures.
In some embodiments, a single web material may be divided into two webs following printing, laminating, or other processing steps. For example, the portion of the web material comprising the front and back panels may be divided from the portion of the web material comprising the side panels or gussets. The two separate web materials may then be used for further fabrication and production of the bags or packaging structures.
Various types of bags or packaging structures may be formed in accordance with the present disclosure. In some embodiments, a single web may comprise the panels used to form flat bottom bags or packages. In other embodiments, a single web may comprise the panels used to form fold over bottom bags or packages. In yet other or further embodiments, a single web may comprise the panels used to form sealed bags or packages. As can be appreciated from the present disclosure, additional types of bags or packaging structures may also be formed in accordance with the present disclosure.
Embodiments may be best understood by reference to the drawings. It will be readily understood that the components of the present disclosure, as generally described and illustrated in the drawings herein, could be arranged and designed in a wide variety of different configurations. Thus, the following more detailed description of the embodiments is not intended to limit the scope of the disclosure, but is merely representative of possible embodiments of the disclosure. While the various aspects of the embodiments are presented in drawings, the drawings are not necessarily drawn to scale unless specifically indicated. In some cases, well-known structures, materials, or operations are not shown or described in detail.
As discussed above, in some embodiments, the web 100 may be divided into two web materials during the manufacturing processes. Accordingly, as shown in
The web material 100 may be of any suitable variety. For example, in various embodiments, the web material 100 comprises one or more polymers or copolymers of one or more polyolefins, such as polyethylene, polyethylene terephthalate, polypropylene, ethylene vinyl acetate; one or more polymers or copolymers of one or more polyamides such as nylon; cellophane; paper materials; and/or combinations, blends, laminations, or other suitable arrangements thereof. In some embodiments, the web material 100 may comprise polyethylene and polyethylene terephthalate blends. In other embodiments, the web material 100 may comprise nylon and polyethylene blends. Any other suitable materials (e.g., materials known in the art and packaging industry) also may be used in accordance with the present disclosure.
Embodiments of the web material 100 may vary in thickness. For example, in various embodiments, the web material 100 may have a thickness of from about 1 mil to about 8 mils, from about 2.5 mils to about 5.5 mils, or from about 3 mils to about 5 mils. Other suitable thicknesses are also contemplated.
As shown in
Each panel (e.g., 210, 220 and 230) comprises at least four edges. For example, each front panel 210 comprises at least two side edges 212, a top edge 218, and a bottom edge 216. Similarly, each back panel 220 comprises at least two side edges 222, a top edge 228, and a bottom edge 226; and each side panel or gusset 230 comprises at least two side edges 232, a top edge 238, and a bottom edge 236.
The panels 210, 220, and 230 that are within the segment 205 may be arranged in efficient patterns to aid in minimizing or eliminating waste when cutting and trimming the individual panels 210, 220, and 230 during the manufacturing process. For example, in the illustrated embodiment of
As further illustrated in the embodiment of
The two back panels 220 also may be disposed in similar fashion. The two back panels 220 are disposed adjacent one another along the machine direction MD2 of the segment 210. Accordingly, the two back panels 220 are disposed such that a side edge 222 of one back panel 220 is adjacent to and/or abuts a side edge 222 of an adjacent back panel 220. This pattern may then be repeated in each segment 205 along the machine direction MD2 of the web material 200.
As further shown in
In some embodiments, such as the illustrated embodiment, the front panels 210 may optionally comprise flaps 240. The flaps 240 may be disposed adjacent to the front panels 210 along the transverse or cross direction CD2 of the segment 205. In some embodiments, the flaps 240 may be disposed adjacent the bottom edge 216 of the front panels 210. In other embodiments, the flaps 240 may be disposed adjacent the back panels 220. For example, the flaps 240 may be disposed adjacent to the bottom edge 226 of the back panels 220.
In some embodiments, the flaps 240 may be integral with either the front panels 210 or back panels 220. For example, in the illustrated embodiment of
The side panels 230 may be disposed adjacent one another along the transverse or cross direction CD2 of the segment 205. In the illustrated embodiment, four side panels or gussets 230 are disposed adjacent to one another along the transverse or cross direction CD2 of the segment 205, such that a side edge 232 of one side panel or gusset 230 is adjacent to and/or abuts a side edge 232 of an adjacent side panel or gusset 230.
In the illustrated embodiment, the four side panels or gussets 230 are disposed adjacent to the two back panels 220 along the transverse or cross direction CD2 of the segment 205. Accordingly, a side edge 232 of one of the side panels 230 is disposed adjacent to and/or abuts the bottom edges 226 of the back panels 220. Alternatively, in other embodiments the side edge 232 of one of the side panels 230 may be disposed adjacent to and/or abut the top edges 228 of the back panels 220.
In yet other embodiments, the side panels or gussets 230 may be disposed adjacent the front panels 210 along the transverse or cross direction CD2 of the segment 205. In such instances, a side edge 232 of one of the side panels 230 may be disposed adjacent to and/or abut the bottom edges 216 of the front panels 210. In yet other embodiments, a side edge 232 of one of the side panels 230 may be disposed adjacent to and/or abut the top edges 218 of the front panels 210. In other embodiments, the side panels or gussets 230 may be disposed adjacent the flaps 240.
As shown in
In the illustrated embodiment, the edges of the panels 210, 220, 230 are shown spaced from each other, such that portions of web material 200 are positioned between the panels. When the panels 210, 220, 230 are removed from the web material 200, such as, for example, by cutting, the remnant portions can be discarded or recycled. In other embodiments, adjacent edges of the panels 210, 220, and adjacent edges of the panels 220 with a panel 230 may overlap, abut, be collinear, or otherwise coincide with one another such that a single cut line can separate a panel 210, 220 or 220, 230 from its adjacent panel. Stated otherwise, the various components (e.g., panels) that are to be removed from the segment 205 may be contiguous to one another. Such an arrangement may reduce material waste during a manufacturing process. Such an arrangement may also complicate the manufacturing process, in some instances, due to alignment of the boundaries of printed regions on the web material 200 with the cutting mechanism that is providing the unitary lines of cutting (e.g., blades, lasers, etc.).
As can be appreciated, arranging the panels 210, 220, and 230 disposed on the segment 205 in an efficient manner may further comprise accurately determining the dimensions of each of the panels 210, 220, and 230. For example, efficiently arranging the panels 210, 220, and 230 on a single web material 200 may benefit from having the length of the side panels or gussets 230 directly relate to the widths of the front panels 210 and back panels 220. Accordingly, the dimensions of each of the panels 210, 220, and 230 and the corresponding bag may be formed according to embodiments disclosed herein.
For example, in some embodiments, the height of bag made according to the present disclosure may be defined by the following equation:
H=N×W+D Equation (I)
where “H” represents the desired height of the bag, “N” represents the total number of bags or packaging structures that may be formed from the individual panels (e.g., 210, 220 and 230) disposed within one segment 205 of the web 200, “W” represents the desired width of the bag, and “D” represents the distance from the top of the bag to the start of side panels or gussets 230. In the embodiment shown in
As noted above, the “N” in Equation (I) represents the total number of bags or packaging structures that may be formed from the individual panels (e.g., 210, 220 and 230) disposed within one segment 205 of the web 200. For example, the segment 205 depicted in
As noted above, the “W” in Equation (I) represents the desired width of the bag. As shown in
As noted above, the “D” in Equation (I) represents the distance from the top of the bag to the start of side panels or gussets 230. In some embodiments, this is the difference between the height of the front panels 210 (or back panels 220) and the height of the side panels or gussets 230. In some embodiments, D may be between about 0.2 inches and about 2.5 inches. In other embodiments, D may be between about 0.4 inches and about 2 inches. In some embodiments, D may be equal to about 0.4 inches. In other embodiments, D may be equal to about 1.75 inches. Accordingly, the length of D may vary depending on the desired characteristics of the bag. For example, bags that include a zipper closure may have a D that is relatively longer as compared to bags that do not include a zipper closure.
The length of each repeated segment 205 also relates to the size of the panels (e.g., 210, 220, and 230) that may be disposed within each individual segment 205. Accordingly, in some embodiments, the length of each repeated segment 205 may be characterized by the following equation:
L=N×W Equation (II)
The “L” in Equation (II) represents the length of each segment 205 along the machine direction MD2 of the web 200. The length of the segment 205 further defines the print repeat as adjacent segments 205 are repeated along the machine direction MD2 of the web 200. The “N” and “W” in Equation (II) are the same variables N and W described above with respect to Equation (I).
In some embodiments, it may be desirous to determine the volume of the bag that will be formed by adhering or otherwise joining the individual panels (e.g., 210, 220, and 230) that are disposed on each segment 205. Accordingly, in some embodiments, the volume of the bag to be formed may be characterized by equation (III):
V=H×W×GW Equation (III)
The “V” in Equation (III) represents the volume of the bag to be formed by adhering or otherwise joining the individual panels (e.g., 210, 220, and 230) disposed on each segment 205. The “H” and “W” in Equation (III) are the same H and W variables described above with respect to Equation (I). The “GW” in Equation (III) represents the width of the side panels of gussets 230.
Illustrative panel dimensions calculated using the above mentioned equations are set forth below in Table 1.
As further shown in
As further shown in
As further shown in
The web 300 may further be cut or otherwise divided along line 304 to form two webs, a first web comprising the front panels 310 and back panels 320 and a second web comprising the side panels or gussets 230.
As further shown in
As further shown in
A web material, and corresponding segment thereof, from which the bag 680 is formed may be similar to the webs and segments discussed above with respect to
The present disclosure also relates to methods of manufacturing bags using a single web material. At an initial stage, a single roll of web material may be obtained. A print pattern for the web material may be configured such that the print pattern is repeated along a longitudinal direction of the web material. In some embodiments, the print pattern may comprise one or more front panels, one or more back panels, and two or more side panels. The one or more front panels may be disposed lengthwise along a transverse direction of the web material, the one or more back panels may be disposed lengthwise along the transverse direction of the web material, and the two or more side panels may be disposed lengthwise along the longitudinal direction of the web material.
The print pattern further may be configured such that a top edge of one or more front panels is disposed adjacent to a top edge of one or more back panels. In some embodiments, the two or more side panels may be disposed adjacent one another along the transverse direction of the web material such that a first side edge of a first side panel is disposed adjacent to a first side edge the second side panel and a second side edge of the first side panel may be disposed adjacent to a bottom edge of one or more back panels along the transverse direction of the web material. The side panels or gussets may also be oriented such that they are upside down relative to the unwinding direction of the web material.
Color and/or indicia may be printed on the web material. The web material may further be laminated and/or subjected to additional processing and manufacturing steps. In some embodiments, the web material may be divided into to a first web material and a second web material. In some embodiments, the first web material may comprise one or more front panels and one or more back panels, and the second web material may comprise two or more side panels. The individual panels may then be cut out of the first and second web materials. For example, at least one front panel and at least one back panel may be cut from the first web material, and at least two side panels may be cut from the second web material. The individual panels may thereafter be adhered or otherwise joined together to form a bag or packaging structure.
Without further elaboration, it is believed that one skilled in the art can use the preceding description to utilize the invention to its fullest extent. The claims and embodiments disclosed herein are to be construed as merely illustrative and exemplary, and not a limitation of the scope of the present disclosure in any way. It will be apparent to those having ordinary skill in the art that changes may be made to the details of the above-described embodiments without departing from the underlying principles of the disclosure herein. In other words, various modifications and improvements of the embodiments specifically disclosed in the description above are within the scope of the appended claims. The scope of the invention is therefore defined by the following claims.