CONTAINER

Abstract: A container (1) has a flexible wall portion with one opening (2) covered by a resealable cover (3). The cover is held at its ends (5) to the wall and includes a return bend (7) to reduce the risk that sealing and opening of the bag will tear the wall portion.

Description: CONTAINER The invention relates to a container with a resealable cover and in particular to one to contain a foodstuff or the like. A container having at least one flexible wall formed of a material such as a plastics film, an opening being present in the wall for access to the contents of the container, a cover overlying the opening, is disclosed in EP-A 0249337. The cover includes means to indicate if the contents of the container have been tampered with. It is one object of this invention to provide a container having an opening covered by a resealable cover of this type which cover can be sealed and unsealed many times without allowing the flexible wall to be damaged, e.g. torn. According to one aspect of the invention there is provided a container having at least one flexible wall portion, an opening being present in the flexible wall portion, a cover overlying the opening, one side of the cover being in permanent sealing engagement with the underlying part of the flexible wall on one side of the opening, the opposite side of the cover being in resealable sealing engagement with the underlying part of the flexible wall on the said opposite side of the opening, restraining means being present to prevent repeated release and sealing of the cover to the flexible wall from causing damage t the flexible wall. Preferably the opening is an elongate slit or the like in one face of the flexible container wall but stops short of the edges thereof. Typically the flexible wall of the container is formed of a plastics material prone to tearing and is usually a plastics but may be other materials. The wall may be single or multiple ply. The restraining means is preferably provided by an increase in the effective length of an edge of the cover in the region at the end of the slit opening, where repeated release and sealing of the container is most likely to generate stresses likely to cause tears or rips in the flexible wall. Most preferably the cover is formed of a material having high resistance to tearing; an example of a suitable material is low density polyethylene. The increase in effective length can be provided by a deformation in an edge of the cover, e.g. a return indentation or the like. The cover may be made of preformed shape, e.g. by stamping or punching out from a wide length or from a length of tape. In order that the invention may be well understood one embodiment will now be described by way of example only v/ith reference to the accompanying diagramatic drawings, in which: Figure 1 is a front elevation of one bag; Figure 2 is the front elevation of the cover thereof; Figure 3 is a perspective view of the top of the opened bag; Figure 4 is a front elevation of another cover. The same reference numerals are used where possible to describe the different embodiments. As shown in Figure 1, a bag or like container of the invention is of rectangular shape as seen in plan and has a transverse slit 2 across the front face towards the top end. The length of the slit 2 is less than the width of the front face of the bag 1 by distance of about 5 mm at each side. The slit has an upper edg 2A and a lower edge 2B. A cover 3, shown separately in Figure 2, overlies the slit 2 and is formed of low density polyethylen film having a high tear resistance. The cover 3 has rectangular main body portion 4 having two integral earlike sid portions 5. The body portion 4 is dimensioned to be almost a wide as the width of the front face of the bag 1 and to exten perhaps 50 mm in height. The top and bottom edges 4A, 4B of th body 4 are outwardly curved, as shown. The upper part of th side portions 5 stand proud of the top edge 4A and merg therewith in a return bend 7, increasing the effective length o the edge. The top edge 4A includes a centrally located extensio which comprises an adjacent strip 8 and a remote smaller strip 9. The longitudinal sides of the strip 8 are perforated at 10 for ease of tearing, as will be explained later. The underside of the cover (apart from the strip 8) has a coating of contact pressure sensitive adhesive and the cover 3 is held thereby over the slit 2. A portion of the cover directly below the strip 8 is devoid of adhesive and this "dry" area enables the user, after removing strip 8, to grip the cover in order to open the bag. When in place the body 4 of the cover 3 extends over the slit 2 and beyond the ends thereof and across the peripheral margins of the slit 2 towards the top and bottom of the bag, so sealing it all around. The portion of the body 4 above the slit edge 2A is designated 4C and the portion below the slit edge 2B is designated 4D. The cover is dimensioned so that the return 7 at each end of the body 4 is adjacent the respective end of the slit 2 and the side portion 5 extends from the front wall and is folded around to the rear wall. The container may be made from flat film which is slit by means of a die cut and the cover or label is then applied onto the film and over the slit using conventional automatic label dispensing equipment. Both the slit and the application of the cover over the slit is accomplished while the film is flat and before it passes into the form, fill and seal (FFS) wrapper apparatus. A bag of the invention is made from a continuous length of such flat film. The film is folded around a tubular form and the overlapping longitudinal edges are joined together, e.g. heat sealed to form a flap 6 on the rear wall. A transverse heat seal closes the bottom of the bag. Product is then poured into the tube filling the bag. The bag is then pulled downward one bag length and is then sealed transversely sealing the top of the filled bag and the bottom of the next bag while cutting free the filled bag from the continuous length of the film. When the bag is first placed on a retail store counter, the customer can see that the bag has not been tampered with because the strip 8 is intact. When the purchaser buys the bag he ca tear the strip 8 away along the perforations 10, leaving th strip 9 in place. He can en pull on the exposed edge 4A of th cover portion 4C to detach _t from the underlying wall portion t gain access to the contents of the bag. The slit 2 opens, an the slit edge 2A lies against the rear wall of the bag, while th lower edge 2B is held to the underside of the cover 3 portion 4D as shown best in Figure 3. Contents are then removed or replace as required. The bag is resealed by pushing the cover portion 4 back to contact the front wall of the bag and adhere to it. The wall of the bag has a tendency to tear as a result of the repeated opening and resealing but the extra length of the return bend 7 prevents stresses generated in this step from contacting the wall of the bag in any region where such stresses can do damage. Because the cover is formed of relatively tear resistant material it is able to absorb such stresses, in addition to diverting their effect by the increase in effective length. In this way, the ends of the slit 2 are shielded from the stresses induced during the unsealing step which stresses could otherwise cause the bag wall to tear. Figure 4 shows an alternative design of a cover in the form of a portion of tape which has an external means of increasing the effective length to contain stresses. The means comprises two inwardly extending edge recesses, one at each end of the length. The invention is not limited to the embodiment shown. The bag may be of any shape, and the opening need not be a slit. The opening may extend longitudinally along the bag.

Claims: CLAIMS A container (1) having at least one flexible wall portion, an opening (2) being present in the flexible wall portion, a cover (3) overlying the opening (2), one side of the cover being in permanent sealing engagement with the underlying part of the flexible wall on one side of the opening (2), the opposite side of the cover being in releasable sealing engagement with the underlying part of the flexible wall on the opposite side of the opening characterised by restraining means (7) to prevent repeated release and sealing of the cover to the flexible wall from causing damage to the flexible wall. A container according to Claim 1 characterised in that the restraining means (7) is provided by an increase in the effective length of an edge of the cover (3) at a position which in use will overlie an end of the opening (2). A container according to Claim 2 characterised in that the increase in effective length is provided by a deformation in an edge of the cover such as a return indentation (7). A container according to any preceding Claim, characterised in that the cover is formed of a material having a high resistance to tearing, preferably a low density polyethylene . 5. A container (1) having at least one flexible wall portion, an opening (2) being present in the wall portion, a cover (3) overlying the opening, one side portion (4D) of the cover (3) being in permanent sealing engagement with the underlying part of the flexible wall on one side (2B) of the opening (2), the opposite side portion (4C) of the cover (3) being in releasable sealing engagement with the underlying part (2A) of the flexible wall opposite the said one side of the opening (2) characterised in that the cover (3) includes ear-like end portions (5) in permanent sealing engagement with the underlying wall beyond the ends of the opening ( 2 ) , the edge of the said releasable opposite side portion of the cover (3) being joined to the ear-like end portions by a return indentation (7). 6. A container according to any preceding Claim, characterised in that means (8) are present to provide evidence of any tampering with the cover (3) before the container (1) is first opened.

Inventors: FORMAN HAROLD, FORMAN, HAROLD
Applicants: BILGREY SAMSON AND COMPANY LIM, FORMAN HAROLD, BILGREY SAMSON AND COMPANY LIMITED, FORMAN, HAROLD
Application year: 1990
Main classification: B65D33
IPC codes: B65D27, B65D33