U.S. patent application number 11/491726 was filed with the patent office on 2007-02-08 for plastic bag with cinching means and methods of using same.
Invention is credited to Terry Gebhardt.
Application Number | 20070031067 11/491726 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 37717659 |
Filed Date | 2007-02-08 |
United States Patent
Application |
20070031067 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Gebhardt; Terry |
February 8, 2007 |
Plastic bag with cinching means and methods of using same
Abstract
A bag for carrying items is provided having side panels, a
bottom and at least one handle created integrally with at least one
of the side panels. At least one opening is formed in one of the
side panels opposite from the at least one handle. In the use of a
bag created using the teachings of the present invention, the
handle portion is fed through the at least one opening in a side
panel, causing the closing, or cinching, of the bag such that the
contents are better maintained therein. The bag is grasped by the
cinched handle and carried or attached to a hook or other means to
maintain the bag generally immobilized during transportation. The
bag of the present invention provides the added feature of helping
to maintain the required temperature of the contents by
withstanding the flow of heat by closing the bag as well as aiding
in the preventing of spillage.
Inventors: |
Gebhardt; Terry; (Kilgore,
TX) |
Correspondence
Address: |
WELSH & KATZ, LTD
120 S RIVERSIDE PLAZA
22ND FLOOR
CHICAGO
IL
60606
US
|
Family ID: |
37717659 |
Appl. No.: |
11/491726 |
Filed: |
July 24, 2006 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
|
60701828 |
Jul 22, 2005 |
|
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Current U.S.
Class: |
383/7 ; 383/10;
383/77 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B65D 33/243 20130101;
B65D 33/06 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
383/007 ;
383/010; 383/077 |
International
Class: |
B65D 33/10 20060101
B65D033/10; B65D 33/16 20060101 B65D033/16; B65D 33/08 20060101
B65D033/08 |
Claims
1. A bag for carrying items comprising: a first side panel and a
second side panel configured to create an enclosure having a
bottom, and a top opening; at least one of the first side panel and
second side panel comprising a handle portion having means to
facilitate carrying the bag; at least the other one of the first
side panel and second side panel comprises an opening in the panel,
such that the handle of the other of the at least one of the first
side panel or second side panel can be placed through the opening
and pulled to cinch the bag and allow the use of the handle portion
to carry the cinched bag.
2. The bag of claim 1, wherein the first side panel and second side
panel are configured to form a flat bottom for the bag.
3. The bag of claim 1, wherein both the first side panel and second
side panel comprise handles.
4. The bag of claim 3, wherein both the first side panel and second
side panel comprise openings in their respective panels.
5. The bag of claim 1, wherein the bag is designed to carry
specific packages, the first side panel and second side panel
define a bottom portion, and the opening in the panel is generally
placed at a point on the panel, above the bottom portion of the
panel, equivalent to the sum of the height of the packages to be
carried therein plus three quarters of the width of the packages to
be carried therein.
6. The bag of claim 1, wherein the opening in the panel is produced
by punching the panel with a specifically shaped die.
7. The bag of claim 6, wherein as the opening is punched into the
panel the material punched-out remains attached to the panel.
8. A bag for carrying items comprising: a first side panel and a
second side panel configured to create an enclosure having a
bottom, and a top opening; the first side panel and second side
panel each comprising a handle portion having means to facilitate
carrying the bag; the first side panel and second side panels both
comprising a cinching opening in their respective panels, such that
the handle of one of the first side panel or the second side panel
can be placed through the cinching opening in the other of the
first side panel or second side panel and pulled to cinch the bag
and allow the use of the handle portion to carry the cinched
bag.
9. The bag of claim 8, wherein the first side panel and second side
panel are configured to form a flat bottom for the bag.
10. The bag of claim 9, wherein the bag is designed to carry
specific packages, the first side panel and second side panel
define a bottom portion, and the cinching opening in each of the
panels is generally placed at a point on each panel, above the
bottom edge of the panels, equivalent to the sum of the height of
the packages to be carried therein plus three quarters of the width
of the packages to be carried therein.
11. The bag of claim 8, wherein the opening in the panel is
produced by punching the panel with a specifically shaped die.
12. The bag of claim 11, wherein as the opening is punched into the
panel the material punched-out remains attached to the panel.
13. A method of using the cinch bag of the present invention
including the steps of: providing a bag having a first side panel
and a second side panel, wherein at least one of the first side
panel and second side panel includes a handle; providing an opening
on at least the one of the first side panel and second side panel
opposite the side panel having a handle; taking the at least one
side panel having a handle and pushing the handle through the
opening in the other side panel and subsequently pulling the handle
and panel having a handle through the opening so as to cinch the
bag.
14. The method of using the cinch bag of claim 13, including the
steps of continuing to pull the handle and panel having the handle
through the cinching opening such that the bag is closed and the
contents are contained therein.
15. The method of using the cinch bag of claim 14, including the
steps of carrying the cinched bag by the handle that has been
pulled through the cinch opening.
16. The method of using the cinch bag of claim 14, including the
steps of attaching the bag by its handle to an appropriate
protuberance in the interior of an automobile for
transportation.
17. The method of using the cinch bag of claim 13, wherein each of
the handle is a handle portion and a handhold opening is formed on
the handle to aid in grasping the bag.
18. A method of using the cinch bag of the present invention
including the steps of: providing a bag having a first side panel
and a second side panel, wherein each of the first side panel and
second side panel includes a handle portion having a handhold
opening for grasping the handle; providing a cinching opening on at
least the one of the first side panel and second side panel
opposite the side panel having a handle; taking one side panel
having a handle and pushing the handle through the opening in the
other side panel and subsequently pulling the handle and panel
having a handle through the opening so as to cinch the bag; and
continuing to pull the handle and panel having the handle through
the cinching opening such that the bag is closed and the contents
are contained therein.
19. The method of using the cinch bag of claim 18, including the
steps of carrying the cinched bag by the handle that has been
pulled through the cinch opening.
20. The method of using the cinch bag of claim 18, including the
steps of attaching the bag by its handhold opening to an
appropriate protuberance in the interior of an automobile for
transportation.
21. The method of using the cinch bag of claim 20, including the
steps of providing an elongated protuberance in an automobile
whereon multiple bags can be attached by their handhold openings
for transportation.
Description
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0001] The present invention concerns a plastic bag of the type
used by restaurants, including fast-food restaurants, and other
take-out food establishments, to package food that will be removed
from the premises by the patron and the method of using the bag.
More particularly the present invention concerns a plastic bag
having an opening made in at least one panel through which the
handle from one panel of the bag may be inserted to provide a
closed carrying receptacle.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] As long as there have been restaurants that offer patrons
the ability to carry food home with them, including leftovers from
a meal eaten at the restaurant or meals ordered to go, there has
been a need for appropriate packaging to aid in the transportation
of the food. The assignee of the present invention has developed
and patented an appropriate bag for such uses. That bag, which is
sold under various trademarks including the WAVE BAG.RTM. and the
ORIGINAL WAVE BAG.RTM., both of which are owned by the assignee of
the present invention, is also the subject of a U.S. Pat. No.
4,717,262 (hereinafter, the '262 patent), which is incorporated
herein as though set out in full and which is also assigned to the
assignee of the present invention. The '262 patent has been copied
by many and is now one of the most popular food carry bags of all
time.
[0003] The prior art contains a number of illustrations of bags of
this type, which are usually formed from tubular film stock made
from a suitable thermoplastic material such as polyethylene, as
well as methods and machines for making such bags. See, for
instance, Platz et al. U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,606,822 and 3,669,347,
Goglio U.S. Pat. No. 3,381,886, Ackley et al. U.S. Pat. No.
3,743,172, Hanson U.S. Pat. No. 3,924,521, McCutcheon Sloan et al.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,321,354, Ackley et al. U.S. Pat. No. 3,738,565,
Ferrell U.S. Pat. No. 4,262,581, Weis et al. U.S. Pat. No.
3,509,799, LaFleur U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,003,907, 3,143,277, and
3,853,664, LaFleur et al. U.S. Pat. No. 3,915,077 and Hummell U.S.
Pat. No. 4,526,565.
[0004] One object of the present invention is to provide a flat
bottom bag formed from tubular film stock that may be conveniently
made from polyethylene or the like. Such bags are typically made of
one piece plastic film construction and are defined by a pair of
side panels that are joined together at the bottom of the bag by
being in one piece relation with a continuous gusset that extends
between the bag ends. The side panels of such bags being joined
together along the ends of the bag by heat seals that extend
normally of the bag bottom. The bag side panels, which are free of
each other across the top of the bag, define the open end of the
bag.
[0005] While the bag that is the subject of the '262 patent is
popular and works well to carry foods from a restaurant, there
remain some issues in the use that have needed addressing.
Typically, the bags made in accordance with the teachings of the
'262 patent have two handles which are integral with the side
panels of the bag. The bags, which have a flat bottom, permit the
bag to remain erect when placed on a flat surface, allowing for the
easy placement of food therein and subsequently its easy removal
thereafter. However, because of this design, the handles typically
remain open and apart when standing allowing for the heat from the
food to more easily escape and when carried the user must make sure
that a hand is within both handles so that the bag does not open
allowing its contents to spill. Further, often times, once such bag
is placed in an automobile for transportation home the bag will
open, and as a result of a sharp turn or other maneuver may allow
the contents to spill out, unless the handles are held throughout
the trip.
[0006] It would be advantageous to have a bag that could be grasped
with one hand, through one handle so that product is kept
therewithin. Further, it would be advantageous to have a bag
wherein the opening to the contents of the bag could be closed off
so that the contents could better maintain their temperature and so
that foreign objects would be kept out. Also, it would be
advantageous if such a bag could be maintained closed, without the
use of extraneous ties, so that after leaving a restaurant, or
other packaging location, the bag could be held closed during
transportation; as well as attached to a location in a vehicle, so
that the bag can remain mostly immobile during transportation.
[0007] Other objects and advantages of the present invention will
become apparent as the description proceeds.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0008] In accordance with the present invention, a bag for carrying
items comprising two side panels configured to create an enclosure
having a bottom, and a top opening is provided. At least one of the
side panels comprises a handle, of a type permitting the easy
portability of a bag and its contents. Further, at least the other
side panel comprises an opening such that the handle can be placed
through the opening and pulled so as to cinch the bag shut and
allow the use of the handle portion to carry the cinched bag.
[0009] In a preferred embodiment of the bag the panels are
configured to form a flat bottom for the bag, such as the bag found
in U.S. Pat. No. 4,717,262 which is owned by the assignee of the
present invention and is incorporated here by reference. The bag,
in a preferred embodiment has two handles, one on each of the side
panels. And in another preferred embodiment, both panels comprise
openings in their respective panels, such that the bag can be
cinched from either direction.
[0010] In one embodiment of the bag it is designed to carry
specific packages and the height of the opening in the panel (or
panels) is specifically set at an optimal location. The location is
determined, generally in this embodiment by the proportions of the
height and width of the item to be carried. In one embodiment the
opening is placed above the bottom edge of the bag at a height
equivalent approximately to the sum of the height of the package(s)
to be carried plus three quarters of the width of the package(s) to
be carried. It will be understood by persons having ordinary skill
in the art that different ratios can be used to achieve similar
results and that the placement of the opening can be made in
accordance with different factors, including the strength of the
materials used to create the bag and the weight of items placed in
the bag, as well as others.
[0011] In another embodiment of the invention, the material
punched-out remains attached to the panel so that in the
manufacturing process no extra waste is created. This can be
accomplished by punching the bags with a sharpened die, during the
manufacturing process, in such a manner that the cut is not
entirely circumferential. Such an operation would create a flap of
material that remains attached to the body of the bag. It will be
understood that an entirely circumferential cut can be made leaving
no such flap. Advantageously, the flap of material can provide
additional friction helping to maintain the handle and panel,
inserted into the cinching opening, in place until removal is
desired. It will further be understood that there are various
methods to producing the cinching opening that are contemplated
herein, including cutting, melting, laser engraving and others
known by persons having ordinary skill in the art, without
departing from the novel scope of the present invention.
[0012] It will be understood that the present invention includes a
novel method of use. In the use of the device of the present
invention, a bag is provided as described above. The user opens the
bag and places an item of food, typically the food is in a separate
container, such as a Styrofoam or cardboard package, within the
bag. The user then takes one side panel having a handle and pushes
the handle through the cinching opening in the other side panel and
subsequently pulls the handle and side panel through the opening so
as to cinch the bag; continuing to pull until the bag is tightly
cinched around the interior container.
[0013] The cinch bag can then be carried by the handle that has
been pulled through the cinch opening while maintaining the bag
closed to keep the food from shifting about and helping to maintain
its desired temperature. It will be sent that the food so
encapsulated is ideally situated to be transported in an
automobile. Prior art bags that are open have the flaw that when
transported in a vehicle the bag tends to fall over when the
vehicle stops or accelerates or turns corners. Because the present
invention allows for the food to be enclosed, or cinched, within
the bag and creates a single handle, that handle can be attached to
an appropriate protuberance in the interior of an automobile, such
as an automatic gear shifter or a window crank, for
transportation.
[0014] In a further embodiment, a user such as a fast-food delivery
company can include a bar or other means within an automobile, to
hang several bags of food conveniently for multiple deliveries.
[0015] A more detailed explanation of the invention is provided in
the following description and claims and is illustrated in the
accompanying drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0016] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a bag made in accordance
with the teachings of the present invention.
[0017] FIGS. 1A-1D are views of alternative cinching openings that
can be used in accordance with the teachings of the present
invention.
[0018] FIG. 2 is a schematic representation of a preliminary step
in the method of utilizing the cinching feature of the device of
the present invention.
[0019] FIG. 3 is a schematic representation of another step in the
method of utilizing the cinching feature of the device of the
present invention.
[0020] FIG. 4 is a schematic representation of another step in the
method of utilizing the cinching feature of the device of the
present invention and then grasping and holding the closed bag.
[0021] FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a bag made in accordance
with the teachings of the prior art.
[0022] FIG. 6 is a partial perspective, view of the interior of a
vehicle showing one embodiment of a bag made in accordance with the
teachings of the present invention, in use.
[0023] FIG. 7 is another partial perspective, view of the interior
of a vehicle showing on embodiment of a bag made in accordance with
the teachings of the present invention, in second use.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE ILLUSTRATIVE EMBODIMENT
[0024] While the present invention is susceptible of embodiment in
various forms, there is shown in the drawings a number of presently
preferred embodiments that are discussed in greater detail
hereafter. It should be understood that the present disclosure is
to be considered as an exemplification of the present invention,
and is not intended to limit the invention to the specific
embodiments illustrated. It should be further understood that the
title of this section of this application ("Detailed Description of
the Illustrative Embodiment") relates to a requirement of the
United States Patent Office, and should not be found to limit the
subject matter disclosed herein.
[0025] Referring to FIG. 1, a bag 10 is shown having at least two
side panels 12, 14, joined together by forming end panels 16 and
18. An opening 20 into which things, such as food products 21 (see
FIG. 2), can be placed is shown having been created by the
configuration of the side panels along with the front and back
panels. Panels 12 and 14 comprise handle portions 12h and 14h,
respectively. Handle openings 12o and 14o respectively are formed
in the upper regions of side panels on handle portions 12h and 14h.
A bottom 22 is formed, in a manner well known in the art, and most
succinctly expressed in the assignee of the present invention's
patent, U.S. Pat. No. 4,717,262, entitled "Flat Bottom Plastic Bag
and Method of Making Same". A bag made in accordance with the '262
patent is illustrated in FIG. 5. It will be understood by persons
having ordinary skill in the art that any basic handle bag can be
incorporated into the present invention without departing from the
novel scope of the invention.
[0026] Suitable materials for forming the bag stock of one
embodiment of the present invention are considered to be materials
such as polyethylene, polypropylene, or their equivalents having a
thickness range of between 0.3 mils to about 0.6 mils, for example.
While the size of the bag formed in accordance with on embodiment
of the present invention may vary in accordance with the particular
usage for which the bag is intended, the invention contemplates
that the bag will be formed to comprise essentially two opposed
side panels that are continuously and integrally connected together
across the bottom of the bag by an imperforate gusset of pleat
configuration, and that are heat seal welded together along
transverse edges that extend normally of the gusset and form the
ends of the bag. The bag ends are substantially equal in length
height-wise of the bag, and above the upper portion of the bag side
edges, the bag side panels define curvilinear unattached edgings
that form the open end of the bag and that include congruent
convexly contoured parabolically shaped top edges that are centered
relative to the length dimension of the bag which are formed to
define congruently located apertures for forming handles for the
bag.
[0027] It will be seen that the side panels 12 and 14 each further
comprises an opening 24 in an appropriate location along panels 12
and 14. In a preferred embodiment, the opening 24 has an arcuate
shape, resembling somewhat a horseshoe. Persons having ordinary
skill in the art will recognize that the shape and location of
opening 24 can be modified, so as to accommodate different types of
bags and carrying needs, without departing from the novel scope of
the present invention. A number of such alternative openings 24 are
shown in FIGS. 1A-1D; however, it will be understood by persons
having ordinary skill in the art, that the figures are included for
illustrative purposes and are not meant to limit the scope of the
present invention. As shown, the shape of cinching openings 24 can
be arcuate, flattened, elongated or take the shape of a rectangle,
circle or other typical two-dimensional shapes. It will be
understood that the shapes of the openings can be made in
accordance with the desires of the end users and that the area of
the opening and not necessarily its shape will play a more
important role in the operation of the device of the present
invention.
[0028] In a preferred embodiment, cinching opening 24 is made so
that a flap of material 24f remains when the opening is formed. It
will be understood that by leaving a flap of material attached to
the respective panel 12, 14, less waste is created in the
manufacture of bag 10. Further, and advantageously, the remaining
flap 24f provides added friction in maintaining the cinching or
closing of the bag as will be described in greater detail
below.
[0029] In an alternative embodiment, not shown, a bag having a
configuration similar to those previously shown, but having a
single handle opening can be made wherein the other side panel is
extended but has no handle opening; and comprises a cinching
opening 24, as shown in FIG. 1. In such an embodiment, the handle
panel of the bag is threaded through the cinching opening formed in
the extended panel, in the manner described above, to cinch the bag
and provide the needed handle. As the bag will be carried by a
single handle, as expressed in the present invention, there is need
only to form a handle opening on a second side panel, thereby
providing a stronger more resilient panel and bag.
[0030] Referring now to FIGS. 2 through 4, a method of using the
bag of the present invention is presented schematically. In FIG. 2,
a user opens bag 10 (typically by holding one handle 14 and
swinging the bag so that air pressure causes the bag to unfold) and
places a box of food (or other products) within the opening 20 of
bag 10. The bag 10 and food item 21 are then placed upright (either
held by a handle or placed on a surface on bottom 22) and one of
the handle portions (12h or 14h) is pushed into the cinching
opening 24 in the panel opposite the handle pushed (FIG. 3). Once
pushed into opening 24, the handle portion 12h (as shown in FIG. 3)
is pulled through thereby closing the opening 20 of bag 10. As most
clearly shown in FIG. 4, handle 12h is pulled through opening 24 in
panel 14, so that the user can grasp the bag 10 by handle 12h to
carry the bag and its contents in a closed configuration. Clearly,
when desired, panel 12 can be pulled in an opposite direction
freeing it from opening 24 to open bag 10 for access thereto.
[0031] Referring again to FIG. 3, in one embodiment the placement
of cinching opening 24 within panel 12, 14 can be done based on an
approximate formula based on the size of a package to be placed
therein. In FIG. 3, a box of food having a height H and a width W
will be placed in bag 10. In such a situation, where that
particular size package will be used for a particular merchant or
user, cinching hole 24 can be placed at a height h above bottom
edge 22e in accordance with the equation h equals the sum of the
height of box 21 plus 3/4 of the width of box 21 (h=H+3/4W). It
will be understood that in situations where varying sizes of
packaging will be used, the placement of cinching hole 24 can be
made to accommodate such variety. A number of different variations
of bag sizes with cinching hole placements can be made without
departing from the novel scope of the present invention. It will be
seen that placement of the cinching hole can generally be made at a
height generally between one half and seven eighths of the side
panel height h, without departing from the novel scope of the
present invention.
[0032] Referring to FIGS. 6 and 7 a perspective view, partially cut
away, of an automobile interior 40 is shown, to illustrate one use
of the bag 10 of the present invention. Any person who has taken
carryout food from a restaurant in an automobile will recognize an
inherent problem with carryout bags of the prior art (FIG. 5).
Typically, such bags do not remain closed and tend to tip over or
fall when the automobile is accelerated, decelerated or turned.
Often times food can be thrown from the bag onto the automobile
interior staining expensive fabrics and making a mess. As
illustrated, when the bag 10 of the present invention is in its
closed, cinched configuration (see FIG. 4) food is prevented from
being removed from the interior 20 of the bag. In this
configuration the bag is ideally situated to be carried in an
automobile, or other transportation device, without being held in
the hands of the user. As illustrated in FIG. 6, such a bag 10 can
be attached to any interior protuberance such as a window crank 42
or automatic gear shift lever 44, fixing the closed bag to the
interior of the car so that it need not be held during
transportation.
[0033] As shown in FIG. 7, this use of the device can be expanded
for the use of delivery personnel having multiple food deliveries
to make. A group of bags 10 can be attached to a rack 46 designed
to hold multiple bags of food in a delivery vehicle 41. Rack 46 can
be easily installed within the delivery vehicle 41 to hold food
bags conveniently and securely while transported. It will be
understood by persons having ordinary skill in the art that various
modifications to the vehicle rack 46, or other means to hold bags
10, can be made without departing from the novel scope of the
present invention.
[0034] Although an illustrative embodiment and some alternatives,
of the invention has been shown and described, it is to be
understood that various modifications and substitutions may be made
by those skilled in the art without departing from the novel spirit
and scope of the invention.
* * * * *