Patent ID: 6068584
Filing Date: 2000-05-30
Classification: B65D,Y10S

Abstract:
The method of forming a stack of plastic T-shirt bags with each bag formed by front and back walls secured together along their side and bottom edges, the sides of each of the walls being folded inwardly towards each other to form gussets, said bag walls having an upper centrally located cut-out to define a bag mouth, the portions of the bag walls on each side of the cut-out being secured along their top edges to comprise handles; and a promotional strip disposed in abutment with at least one gusset extending up to the upper edge of a handle, said strip being of a length coinciding with the length of the bag walls, and being secured at its opposite ends to the bottom edges of the walls and the top edge of the at least one gusseted handle, said strip being detachable from the gusseted side edge; said method comprising the steps of:(a) providing a continuous extent of plastic tubing;(b) causing said tubing to be flattened and moved in a first direction;(c) providing a continuous extent of a plastic promotional strip formed of a plastic material compatible with the plastic tubing for sealing therewith;(d) causing said strip also to move in said first direction and in abutment with a side edge surface of the flattened plastic tubing;(e) further moving said tubing and said abutting promotional strip into a gusset forming station where an edge of the tubing wall is folded inwardly to form a gusseted side edge and to dispose the promotional strip in abutment with said gusseted side edge;(f) further moving the tubing with the promotional strip disposed in abutment with the gusseted side edge to sealing, cutting and stacking stations, where the tubing and strip are cut into predetermined lengths, heat-sealed together at their top and bottom edges, and then stacked as a predetermined number of blanks; and(g) subjecting the stack of blanks to a die cutter to cut out centrally located bag mouths from the upper portions of the stacked blanks, each said bag mouth being bordered laterally by a pair of upwardly extending gusseted bag handles at least one of which handles has, a promotional strip in abutment with the gusseted side edge which extends below the handle to the lower edge of the bag.