U.S. patent application number 10/189013 was filed with the patent office on 2003-02-06 for bag or bag-forming material of a synthetic material for vacuum preservation of articles, particularly of foodstuffs.
This patent application is currently assigned to NUOVA POLIVER DI ODDONE COLOMBA & C.S.n.c.. Invention is credited to Malaspina, Alberto.
Application Number | 20030024847 10/189013 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 11459114 |
Filed Date | 2003-02-06 |
United States Patent
Application |
20030024847 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Malaspina, Alberto |
February 6, 2003 |
Bag or bag-forming material of a synthetic material for vacuum
preservation of articles, particularly of foodstuffs
Abstract
The bag consists of two walls made from sheets of a multi-layer,
synthetic material, welded together along part of the perimeter.
One of the walls has two or three rectilinear, longitudinal rough
stripes on its inner surface, obtained by hot-printing and
extending substantially along the full length of the bag. The
stripes are obtained by pressing a welding bar, coated with a
rough, non-adhesive material, such as teflon cloth, against the
multi-layer sheet forming the wall of the bag.
Inventors: |
Malaspina, Alberto; (Ovada,
IT) |
Correspondence
Address: |
MODIANO & ASSOCIATI
Via Meravigli, 16
MILANO
20123
IT
|
Assignee: |
NUOVA POLIVER DI ODDONE COLOMBA
& C.S.n.c.
|
Family ID: |
11459114 |
Appl. No.: |
10/189013 |
Filed: |
July 5, 2002 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
206/524.8 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B31B 2160/10 20170801;
B31B 70/81 20170801; B31B 2155/00 20170801; B31B 2170/20 20170801;
B31B 70/008 20170801; B31B 70/64 20170801; B65D 33/01 20130101;
B29C 59/02 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
206/524.8 |
International
Class: |
B65D 081/20 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Aug 3, 2001 |
IT |
TO2001A000772 |
Claims
What is claimed is:
1. A bag of a synthetic material for vacuum preservation of
foodstuffs, comprising two walls joined along a peripheral welding
line, wherein at least one of said walls has, on its inner surface,
at least one rough stripe extending longitudinally and obtained by
hot-printing.
2. The bag of claim 1, wherein said at least one rough stripe
extends substantially along the full length of the bag.
3. The bag of claim 1, wherein said at least one rough stripe is
substantially rectilinear.
4. The bag of claim 1, wherein said at least one wall is provided
with three of said rough stripes.
5. The bag of claim 1, wherein said at least one rough stripe is
obtained by pressing a welding bar having a welding surface coated
with a rough, non-adhesive material, against the inner surface of
said at least one wall.
6. The bag of claim 5, wherein said rough, non-adhesive material is
a teflon cloth.
7. The bag of claim 6, wherein said teflon cloth has preferably 5
to 20 meshes/cm.
8. The bag of claim 6, wherein said teflon cloth has 12
meshes/cm.
9. The bag of claim 1, wherein the wall provided with rough stripes
consists of a multi-layer sheet in which at least the most internal
layer is compatible with foodstuffs.
10. The bag of claim 9, wherein said most internal layer is made of
polyethylene.
11. The bag of claim 1, wherein the wall provided with rough
stripes comprises an outer, multi-layer sheet and an inner,
single-layer sheet made of a food-compatible material.
12. The bag of claim 11, wherein said inner, single-layer sheet is
polyethylene.
13. The bag of claim 11, wherein said single-layer sheet is welded
to the multi-layer sheet along the rough stripes.
14. A tube of a synthetic material for vacuum preservation of
articles, comprising two walls joined along opposite lateral
welding lines, wherein at least one of said walls has, on its inner
surface, at least one rough stripe extending longitudinally and
obtained by hot-printing.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0001] This invention relates to a bag or bag-forming material of a
synthetic material for the vacuum preservation of articles,
particularly foodstuffs in the home.
[0002] Nowadays, bags are widely used in the home for protection
and preservation of vegetables, meat, cheese and other foodstuffs
in refrigerators. These bags consist of two walls of a synthetic
material, joined by weldings along three edges. The walls are
generally multi-layer sheets made of polyethylene, which material
is compatible with foodstuffs but is permeable to gases. Such bags
are generally closed by means of knots, clips or the like.
[0003] Recently, the practice has become widespread of creating a
vacuum in the bag containing the foodstuffs, in order to improve
the preservation of foodstuffs subjected to a high risk of
deterioration. The walls of the bags (which are welded along three
edges) consist of several layers of different materials comprising
an inner layer of polyethylene, which material is compatible with
foodstuffs but permeable to gases, and a layer of a material that
is impermeable to gases, such as polyamide. Therefore, the air is
extracted from the bag by means of a vacuum bell, then the bag is
hermetically sealed also along the fourth edge defining the mouth,
by means of a hot weld.
[0004] Such operation cannot be performed in the home, because the
air extraction is hindered by the mutual adhesion of the inner
surfaces of the bag, which will prevent its areas which are far
from the mouth from being completely emptied, and will allow air
pockets to survive. Successively, such pockets will spread all over
the bag so that the purpose of preventing contact between the
foodstuffs and the air will be not achieved.
[0005] In order to overcome such drawback, it has been proposed to
form bubbles or embossed crests, forming a network of grooves, on
one of the walls of the bag, so that the air will be always allowed
to find a way towards the mouth, where suction takes place.
Although this is an effective method, the extra operations needed
for this treatment require high precision and considerably increase
the cost of the bag.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0006] The main object of the present invention is therefore to
provide a bag of a synthetic material for vacuum preserving
foodstuffs, which will avoid the drawback of the trapped air
pockets and which, at the same time, has low manufacturing costs,
i.e. substantially similar to the costs of conventional bags.
[0007] Another object of the invention is to provide a bag having a
high flexibility and shape adaptability with respect to the article
contained in it.
[0008] A further object of the invention is to provide a bag which
can be manufactured on conventional assembly lines, without a need
for complex extra equipments.
[0009] The above-mentioned objects and advantages, and other that
will become apparent below, are achieved by the invention with a
bag of a synthetic material having the features recited in claim
1.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0010] The invention will now be described in more detail, with
reference to some preferred but not exclusive embodiments shown by
way of non limiting example in the attached drawings, wherein:
[0011] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a bag according to a first
preferred embodiment of the invention;
[0012] FIG. 2 diagrammatically shows a process for manufacturing
the bag according to the invention;
[0013] FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a second embodiment of a bag
according to the invention.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
[0014] With reference to the Figures, a bag 10 has two walls 12, 14
which are hot welded along a peripheral line 20. Each wall is made
of a multi-layer synthetic material known per se, consisting of
three or more alternating layers of polyamide and polyethylene. The
inmost layer is usually made of polyethylene, which material is
compatible with foodstuffs and is easy to weld, while one or more
of the remaining layers are made of polyamide, which imparts the
bag a high mechanical strength and provides it with an effective
air leak barrier.
[0015] According to the invention, at least wall 12 has three
hot-printed, rough stripes 16a, 16b, 16c on its inner surface,
which are substantially rectilinear and extend longitudinally,
preferably over the full length of the bag.
[0016] Although the number of three rough stripes is the most
advantageous for bags having common sizes (e.g. about 20
cm.times.30 cm), their number can be changed, two stripes or only a
single stripe being sufficient in the case of long and narrow bags.
Also the width of each stripe can be changed, preferably in the
range 0.5 cm to 2 cm.
[0017] The stripe can be printed, as shown in FIG. 2, by pressing
the wall between a welding bar 22, having a welding surface is
coated with a rough, non-adhesive material 24 such as a close-mesh
teflon cloth, and a smooth counterbar 28. The teflon cloth
preferably has 5 to 20 meshes/cm, and more preferably 12
meshes/cm.
[0018] In a second embodiment of the bag, shown in FIG. 3, a
single-layer, a polyethylene sheet 118 is coupled to wall 112 of
the bag, and is joined to wall 112 by means of three rough stripes
116a, 116b, 116c similar to rough stripes 16a, 16b, 16c. The hot
imprints forming the stripes are obtained by welding a single-layer
sheet 118 to multi-layer sheet 112. Such stripes (the two sheets
being welded along them) can be obtained by using the same welding
bar (coated with a rough, non-adhesive material) shown with
reference to the preferred embodiment.
[0019] This approach provides an increased protection of the outer
walls against possible micro-fissures which could arise during the
impact of the welding bar, particularly in the case of very thin
walls and/or walls with only few polyamide layers.
[0020] The rough stripes have been found to effectively prevent
sticking or adherence between parts of the bag, and therefore
forming of air pockets. Such bags can be made by an easy and cheap
process, which is simple to be executed on a conventional plant for
mass production of conventional bags.
[0021] Moreover, since teflon, as well as welding bars, are
commonly used for making the peripheral weldings of the walls, the
process uses devices, materials and technologies that are common
and well known in the field.
[0022] A further advantage of the invention is that the stripes do
not significantly stiffen the wall of the bag, which therefore
retains a high flexibility and shape adaptability with respect to
the article contained in it.
[0023] The preferred embodiments of the invention which have been
described above can be changed in different ways, as will be
evident for the person skilled in the art, and particularly the
materials and the sizes can be varied.
[0024] For example, although the stripe is preferably rectilinear,
it may be differently shaped, e.g. S-shaped. Similarly, the stripe
may extend only over a longitudinal portion of the bag, rather than
over its full length. Materials and sizes can be different from
what has been shown, depending on requirements.
[0025] Instead of a bag sealed at one end, a bag-forming material
may also be marketed, similar to the above described bag, i.e.
comprising a tube made of two elongated walls welded together at
opposite sides, one of the wall being hot-printed as taught above.
A roll of 5 to 10 meters of such a tube is provided to the user,
who will cut a desired length of the tube and seal it at one end to
form the bag, then at the opposite end after insertion of an
article and extraction of air.
[0026] The disclosures in Italian Patent Application No.
TO2001A000772 from which this application claims priority are
incorporated herein by reference.
* * * * *