RECLOSEABLE CONTAINER

Abstract: The invention relates to a resealable dispensing container of the type comprising a container body formed with at least one dispensing opening (7), and a flexible sealing flap (8) having a seizable (14) cover portion (9) which is adapted either to be removably secured, by adhesion (11) to the container body, over the dispensing opening (7) to cover this, or to be moved away from the container body, thereby exposing the dispensing opening (7), the sealing flap also having an attachment portion (10) which is adapted to retain the sealing flap (7) on the container body, when the cover portion (9) is moved away from said container body. The invention is characterised in that the sealing flap (8), when the cover portion (9) is secured over the dispensing opening (7), is bent or deflected round an edge (26) or an edge side of said container body (1) in an area (33) of the sealing flap (8) where the cover portion (9) passes into the attachment portion (10).

Description: RECLOSEABLE CONTAINER The present invention relates to a resealable dis¬ pensing container of the type comprising a container body formed with at least one dispensing opening and a flexibl sealing flap having a seizable cover portion which is adapted either to be removably secured, by adhesion to said container body, over the dispensing opening to cover this, or to be moved away from said container body, there- by exposing the dispensing opening, said sealing flap also having an attachment portion which is adapted to retain said sealing flap on the container body, when the cover portion is moved away from the container body. A dispensing container of the type described above, intended for wet wipers and the like, is disclosed in EP- Al-0,030,348. A dispensing container described in this document is shown in Fig. 1 in a perspective view in the accompanying drawings. The container in Fig. 1 comprises a flat, rectangular container body generally designated 1 and made of a liquid-impermeable sheet material. In order to form the container body 1, the sheet material is folded along two longitudinal edges 2, 3 of the body 1 and sealed by two end lines of weld 4, 5 and a longitudinal bottom line of weld (not shown). One main surface 6 of the con- tainer body 1 is formed with an elongate dispensing open¬ ing 7 through which e.g. wet wipers can be extracted one at a time from the container. The dispensing container also comprises a sealing flap generally designated 8. This comprises a seizable cover portion 9 and a smaller attach- ment portion 10. One sl. ς e of the cover portion 9 is pro¬ vided with a continuous adhesive layer 11 so as to be removably securable to said main surface 6 of the con¬ tainer body 1 and be able to cover the dispensing opening 7. To prevent the adhesive layer 11 from adhering to the contents of the dispensing container, for example said wet wipers, when the sealing flap 8 is closed, the cover por¬ tion 9 carries, via the adhesive layer 11, a non-adhesive member 12. The non-adhesive member 12 can advantageously be made of the part of said sheet material, which is left as the dispensing opening 7 is punched. In Fig. 1, the non-adhesive member is not connected with the container body 1. The above-mentioned EP-A-0,030,348 further discloses a variant of the dispensing container shown in Fig. 1. This variant is illustrated in Fig. 2 in the accompanying drawing, where the same parts as in Fig. 1 have been given the same reference numerals. The design is the same as in Fig. 1, except that the non-adhesive member has the shape of a tongue 12a which is integral with the container body 1. This solution promotes the positioning of the tongue 12a in the dispensing opening 7 when the sealing flap 8 is closed. EP-Al-0,030,348 also discloses a variant in which the container body 1 further comprises an internal partition for forming two separate spaces for e.g. wet wipers in one space and dry wipers in the other. In this embodiment, the container body is provided with a further dispensing opening and a further sealing flap. In resealable dispensing containers of this type it is important that the sealing flap 8 can be closed and opened a great number of times, without the sealing flap 8 or the container body 1 being damaged. It is also important that each time the sealing flap 8 is closed by adhesion to the container body 1, it takes a predetermined position relative to the container body. This is particularly important if the dispensing container accommodates moist contents, such as wet wipers, since an incorrect, not tight positioning of the closed sealing flap 8 can damage the contents. If the sealing flap is provided with a non-adhesive member, for example the mem¬ ber 12, 12a in Figs. 1 and 2, it is still more important that the sealing flap 8 is correctly positioned each time it is closed, since, as mentioned above, the non-adhesive member 12, 12a is made of the same liquid-impermeable sheet material as the container body 1 and, thus, promotes the liquid sealing of the dispensing opening 7. Such an incorrect positioning of the sealing flap 8 as it is closed, can occur if the sealing flap 8 is inad- vertently entirely pulled off from the container body, i.e. if the attachment portion 10 of the flap 8 comes off completely from the container body 1. An incorrect posi¬ tioning of the sealing flap 8 can also occur if the attachment portion 10 is damaged as the sealing flap is opened, so that only part of the attachment portion 10 is connected with the body 1. Moreover, the sealing flap 8 can, as it is opened, break in the area where the cover portion 9 passes into the attachment portion 10, i.e. the cover portion 9 can, by mistake, be fully detached from the attachment portion 10. Securing the attachment portion 10 to the container body 1 by means of a line of weld 13 in order to prevent the sealing flap 8 from entirely releasing the container body 1 is prior art. This solution does not, however, satisfy the above-mentioned requirements that the sealing flap 8 should allow closing and opening repeatedly, with no risk that the dispensing container is damaged. Now sup¬ posing, for example, that the sealing flap 8 is closed and the dispensing container is oriented as shown in Fig. 1. When the user seizes a gripping tab 14 having no adhesive layer and forming the end of the cover portion 9, in order to pull the cover portion 9 obliquely upwards to the left in Fig. 1, there is a great risk that both the container body 1 and the sealing flap 8 break at the line of weld 13, whereby the sealing flap 8 can possibly be fully detached from the container body 1. There is a particular¬ ly great risk that the container body 1 will break, since the comparatively thin sheet material forming the con¬ tainer body 1 is weakened adjacent the line of weld 8. Also the variant in Fig. 2, where the non-adhesive member is formed as a tongue 12a integral with the body 1, is not satisfactory, since excessive tractive force exerted on the seizable cover portion 9 will result in the sheet material being torn in the area where the tongue 12a connects with the container body 1. In order to solve the problems described above, there have been suggested a great number of constructions for securing the attachment portion of the sealing flap 8 to the container body. Some of the suggested prior art con¬ structions will now be briefly described with reference to Figs. 3, 4 and 5 so as to illustrate the prior art tech- nique. Fig. 3 shows a dispensing container according to the above-mentioned EP-Al-0,030,348 which has been improved according to EP-B1-221,168. Fig. 3 is a schematic top plan view of the sealing flap 8 and the cover portion 9 and the attachment portion 10 thereof. As in Figs. 1 and 2, the attachment portion 10 is secured by a transverse line of weld 13. A dashed line 15 indicates the contour of the dispensing opening 7, and the improvement consists in the ends of this non-closed contour line 15 ending in two out- wardly directed curves 15a, 15b. The two curves 15a, 15b are adapted to prevent the tongue 12a, without being damaged, from being pulled too far backwards toward the attachment portion 10. Since the tongue 12a and the seal¬ ing flap 8 are fixedly connected with each other via the adhesive layer 11, this solution will also limit the pulling off of the flap 8. However, this solution is not satisfactory either, since also in this case only a small amount of tractive force exerted on the sealing flap 8 is required to make the sheet break in the area where the tongue 12a connects with the container body 1. A further prior art structure is described in JP-U- 62 3,474 and is schematically illustrated in Fig. 4 which shows an exposed sealing flap 8 as seen from underneath. The lower side or the surface of the sealing flap 8 facing the container body 1 is provided with a first adhesive layer 11a extending over the cover portion 9, and a second adhesive layer lib extending over the attachment portion 10. A transverse, non-adhesive area 16 of the sealing flap 8 extends between the two adhesive layers 11a and lib. When the user has pulled off the sealing flap 8 so far that the first adhesive layer 11a of the entire attachment portion 9 has been detached from the container body 1, the user experiences a sudden reduction in tearing resistance, which is intended to make him stop loosening the sealing flap 8, before the attachment portion 10 begins to loosen. However, this solution as shown in Fig. 4 is not satisfac- tory either. Certainly, the risk is smaller than in Figs. 1-3 that any damage will result from the opening, but on the other hand the risk is so much the greater that the entire sealing flap is torn off from the container body 1, if one pulls too quickly and does not notice the sudden reduction in tearing resistance. If this happens, the flap 8 can inadvertently be mislaid or, if attached anew, it might be applied in an incorrect position so that the non- adhesive member, such as 12, 12a, if present, can be wrongly positioned relative to the dispensing opening 7. JP-A-61 205,977 discloses a variant which is shown in Fig. 5. Here, the sealing flap 8 comprises an attachment tongue 17 which, together with the portion 18 of the sealing flap 8 to the left of the line 19, forms the attachment portion 10 of the sealing flap 8. The attach- ment tongue 17 is enclosed by two parallel slits 20, 21 and a curved slit 22 connecting the ends of the parallel slits 20, 21. The other ends of the slits 20, 21 terminate in two small apertures 23, 24. When detaching the cover portion 9, the attachment tongue 17 will adhere, via an adhesive layer, to the container body, thereby preventing the sealing flap 8 from being entirely torn off. This solution is, however, not satisfactory either, since there is a great risk, if excessive tractive force is applied, that the flap 8 is torn in the extension of the lines 20, 21 in the area 18. The apertures 23, 24 serve to prevent such tearing, but they do certainly not provide full security. Problems and suggested solutions in connection with resealable dispensing containers of the type mentioned by way of introduction have now been discussed in respect of unintentional, complete detachment of the sealing flap 8 and undesired damages to the dispensing container. A further drawback of dispensing containers of the type mentioned by way of introduction, e.g. the dispens¬ ing container according to the above-mentioned EP-A1- 0,030,348, is that the user must use both hands to open and close the container, one to hold the container body and the other to seize and open or close the sealing flap. The present invention has been developed to solve the above problems, and a main object is to provide a reseal- able dispensing container of the type mentioned by way of introduction, in which the sealing flap can be closed and opened a great number of times, with no risk whatsoever that neither the sealing flap nor the container body will be damaged, and with no risk whatsoever that the sealing flap, when opened, will be completely detached from the container body, i.e. that the attachment portion releases the container body. To achieve this main object, the invention is charac¬ terised in that the sealing flap, when the cover portion is secured over the dispensing opening, is bent or deflected round an edge or an edge side of the container body in an area of the sealing flap where the cover por¬ tion passes into the attachment portion. The sealing flap can be bent round such a folding edge which is shown in, for example, Fig. 1 at reference numeral 2 or 3 and which forms an edge line between two substantially parallel main surfaces of the container body. In the case where the container body has a defined edge surface which, via two edge lines, connects with two main surfaces of the container body, the sealing flap can also be bent over the entire edge surface, so that the cover portion engages one main surface and the attachment portion engages the other. The term "edge or edge side" should also be considered to be included in the case where the sealing flap is bent in an area of the container body where this passes between the surfaces to which the cover portion and the attachment portion are secured, the tran¬ sition being smooth without one or more sharply defined edge lines. The novel and specific feature of the invention is that the sealing flap, when the cover portion has been entirely pulled off from the container body, thereby exposing the dispensing opening, will be substantially quite straight, especially in the area where the cover portion passes into the attachment portion. Thus, the sealing flap will not be folded sharply backwards in said area, as the flap is opened. Such backward folding is marked at reference numeral 25 in Figs. 1 and 2. According to the invention, the tractive forces acting upon the attachment portion will therefore only be directed in parallel with the attachment portion, not perpendicularly to the surface to which the attachment portion is secured. Precisely such tractive forces acting at right angles to the surface of the container body arise at the bending edge 25 of the prior art containers and cause the unde- sired detachment of the sealing flap or damage thereto. The inventive idea can also be expressed as follows. Both in the prior art technique and according to the invention there arises an angular change in the transition area between the cover portion and the attachment portion, as the sealing flap is opened. In prior art, this angular change occurs, however, from a straight closing position to a backwardly bent opening position, whereas the angular change according to the invention occurs from a forwardly bent closing position to a straight opening position. In order to demonstrate the significance of this dif- ference, a piece of adhesive tape can be applied to the surface of a table, and then, for removal, one end of the piece of tape is pulled. If this end is pulled in the direction of and over the piece of tape, this will easily be removed, but if the same end is instead pulled in the direction away from the piece of tape parallel to the sur¬ face of the table, the adhesive layer of the piece of tape will effectively counteract the attempt at removal. The present invention has also been developed to solve the problem that the user must use both hands to open and close the prior art dispensing containers. According to the invention, this problem is solved by means of a dispensing container which, in addition to the above-mentioned features, comprises a suspension means, such as a hole in the container body or a hook or the like connected with the container body, said suspension means being arranged in such a manner that said edge or edge side, when the dispensing container is hung by the suspen¬ sion means, constitutes a lower horizontal edge or edge side of the container body, and a downwardly directed tractive force exerted on the sealing flap for exposing the dispensing opening does not move said edge or edge side from its horizontal direction. If the inventive dispensing container is provided with such a suspension means, it can be hung on a wall and be opened and closed by one hand only, which is a great advantage in many contexts. Other features and variants of the invention are described in the dependent claims. The invention will now be described in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings illustrating various embodiments. Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a prior art reseal- able dispensing container. Fig. 2 is a perspective view of a prior art variant of the dispensing container in Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a top plan view of a prior art sealing flap according to a third prior art embodiment. Fig. 4 is view from below of a sealing flap accordin to a fourth prior art embodiment. Fig. 5 is a top plan view of a sealing flap accordin to a fifth prior art embodiment. Figs. 6A, 6B and 6C illustrate a first embodiment of an inventive dispensing container in its closed state, seen in a perspective view from one side, in a perspectiv view from the other side and as a longitudinal section. Figs. 7A and 7B show part of the longitudinal sectio in Fig. 6C and illustrate how the dispensing container is opened. Fig. 7C is a perspective view corresponding to Fig. 7b, showing the dispensing container in its opened state. Figs. 8A and 8B are perspective views from either side of a second embodiment of an inventive dispensing container in its closed state. Fig. 9 is a perspective view of the dispensing con¬ tainer in Figs. 8A and 8B in its opened state. Figs. 10 and 11 are cross-sectional views of a hang¬ ing, closed dispensing container according to a third embodiment of the invention, containing wipers which are folded in two different ways. Fig. 12 illustrates a set of folded wipers of the type which can constitute the contents of the dispensing container shown in Fig. 11. In order to facilitate the understanding of the fol¬ lowing description, the reference numerals used in Figs. 1-5 will as far as possible be used to describe the embodiments of the invention. Figs. 6A and 6B are perspective views of a first embodiment of an inventive resealable dispensing container in its closed state. The container comprises a body 1 made of a liquid-impermeable sheet material which is folded along a terminal edge line 26 so as to form the container body. Fig. 6C which is a cross-sectional view of the same dispensing container illustrates how a first main surface 27 and a second main surface 28 of the container body 1 are formed by this folding along the line 26. Along its three other edges, the container body 1 is sealed by lines of weld 29, 30 and 31. Furthermore, a transverse line of weld extends in parallel with the end line of weld 31 and defines, together with the side lines of weld 29, 30 and the terminal edge 26, the periphery of the inner space of the container. Like the prior art dispensing container in Fig. 1, the dispensing container in Figs. 6A-6C is formed with a dispensing opening 7 which in Fig. 6A is marked by a closed, dashed line and which is also shown in Fig. 6C. Moreover, like the prior art dispensing container in Fig. 1, the dispensing container in Figs. 6A-6C comprises a flexible sealing flap generally designated 8, which is divided into a cover portion 9 and an attachment portion 10 and whose one side is provided with a continuous adhesive layer 11. Like in Fig. 1, the cover portion 9 is adapted to be removably attached, by said adhesive layer 11, to the main surface 27 of the container body 1 to cover the dispensing opening 7. The attachment portion 10 is also, like in Fig. 1, adapted to retain the sealing flap 8 on the container body 1, when the sealing portion 9 is moved away from the container body 1. However, what characterises the invention is that the cover portion 10 is not attached to the same main surface 27 as the cover portion 9, but to the second main surface 28. Thus, the sealig flap 8 is, in the area 33 (Fig. 6C) where the cover portion 9 passes into the attachment portion 10, bent round the edge line 26. The attachment portion 10 is secured to the second main surface 28 of the container body 1 by the adhesive layer 11 only, but it will be appreciated that this secur¬ ing can be supplemented with or replaced by a transverse line of weld 13 or the like. Fig. 6C also illustrates a non-adhesive member 12 of the same design as in Fig. 1 and having the same function. Figs. 7A and 7B illustrate schematically how the sealing flap 8 in Figs. 6A-6C is opened, and Fig. 7C is a perspective view of the opened container. In Fig. 7A, a tractive force F has been applied by the user to the gripping tab 14 of the cover portion 9, and the non- adhesive member 12 has been entirely removed from the dispensing opening 7. In this position, the sealing flap is folded through about 180° at reference numeral 25, like in Figs. 1 and 2. However, the opening procedure is not completed at this stage. By applying further force in the direction of the arrow F, the entire folded area 33 of the sealing flap 8 will be pulled off from the container body at the fold line 26. Fig. 7B shows the position of the sealing flap 8 in relation to the container body 1, when the opening proce¬ dure is completed. At this stage, the sealing flap 8 is quite straight, and the tractive force F applied to the gripping tab 14 will not strive to pull the adhesive layer 11 perpendicularly away from the second main surface 28 of the container body 1 at the attachment portion 10, i.e. straight downwards in Fig. 7B. Figs. 8A, 8B and 9 are perspective views of a second embodiment of the invention. This embodiment distinguishes from the one shown in Figs. 6A and 6B in two essential respects. First, the dispensing opening 7 extends up to the fold line 26. Secondly, the non-adhesive member is designed as a tongue 12a integral with the container body 1, like in the embodiment in Fig. 2, the tongue 12a con¬ necting with the container body substantially along the fold line 26. Thirdly, a second transverse line of weld 34 extends between the end line of weld 31 and the transverse line of weld 32. The second transverse line of weld 34 defines, together with the first-mentioned transverse line of weld 32, an intermediate portion 35 of the container body 1. The purpose is to make it possible to hang up the dispensing container in holes 36 and 37 in that the container body 1 can be folded along the two transverse lines of weld 32 and 34. A third embodiment of the invention is illustrated in Figs. 10 and 11. Here the container body 1 is made of a comparatively rigid material and comprises, instead of said edge line 26, an edge surface 26' which, via two edge lines 38 and 39, defines the two main surfaces 27 and 28 of the container body 1. In this embodiment of the inven- tion, the sealing flap 8 extends all the way round from the first main surface 27 to the second main surface 28. It should be especially observed that the intended func¬ tion is not achieved if the attachment portion 10 engages the end surface 26' only, since a downward tractive force in Figs. 10 and 11 would imply that the attachment portion 10 would then easily be pulled away from the end surface 26'. Figs. 10 and 11 also illustrate how the dispensing container is hung via the above-mentioned holes 36 and/or 37 on a wall-mounted hook 40. Figs. 10 and 11 show two different ways of arranging folded tissues 41, such as wet wipers, in the dispensing container. At present, the alternative shown in Fig. 11 seems to be most preferred, the wiper 42 positioned adjacent the main surface 28 having a gripping edge 43 which becomes visible and seizable, when the sealing flap 8 is opened. Fig. 12 illustrates a set of such folded wet wipers 41. The invention has now been described by means of some embodiments, but it will be appreciated that the inventive idea is applicable to many other types of container, with¬ out deviating from the scope of protection defined in the appended claims. The dispensing container can be formed with two or more dispensing openings and, in that case, it is quite possible that a coherent sealing flap can be used to open and close more than one dispensing opening. In particular, it is conceivable to have one dispensing opening in one main surface 27 of the body 1 and one dispensing opening in the other main surface 28 of the body, as is, per se, previously known, and in that context use one and the same sealing flap for the two dispensing openings. The func¬ tions of the attachment portion and the cover portion would then be reversed, depending on which dispensing opening is to be opened or closed. Further, the non-adhesive member 12 and 12a can be excluded, if desired. Finally, a case is also conceivable where the dis¬ pensing opening is positioned in an end surface of the container body. Thus, in the embodiment shown in Figs. 10 and 11, the dispensing opening 7 could be positioned in the end surface 26' instead of in the main surface 27, in which case the attachment portion 10 would still extend on the main surface 27. Also a combination where the dispensing opening 7 is positioned both in the main surface 27 and the end surface 26' is possible.

Claims: CLAIMS 1. A resealable dispensing container comprising a container body (1) formed with at least one dispensing opening (7) and a flexible sealing flap (8) having a seizable (14) cover portion (9) which is adapted either to be removably secured, by adhesion (11) to said container body (1), over the dispensing opening (7) to cover this, or to be moved away from said container body (1), thereby exposing said dispensing opening (7), said sealing flap also having an attachment portion (10) which is adapted to retain said sealing flap (7) on the container body (1), when said cover portion (9) is moved away from said con- tainer body (1), c h a r a c t e r i s e d in that the sealing flap (8), when the cover portion (9) is secured over said dispensing opening (7), is bent or deflected round an edge (26) or an edge side (26') of said container body (1) in an area (33) of said sealing flap (8) where said cover portion (9) passes into the attachment portion (10). 2. The dispensing container according to claim 1, c h a r a c t e r i s e d in that, when the cover portion (9) is secured over the dispensing opening (7), said cover portion (9) and said attachment portion (10) are adhered each to one of two mutually substantially parallel main surfaces (27, 28) of the container body (1). 3. The dispensing container according to claim 1 or 2, c h a r a c t e r i s e d in that said attachment portion (10) is attached to said container body (1) by adhesion only. 4. The dispensing container according to claim 3, c h a r a c t e r i s e d in that the removable adhesion of the cover portion (9) to said container body (1), and the adhesion of said cover portion (10) to said container body (1) are provided by means of an adhesive layer (11) applied to the sealing flap (8). 5. The dispensing container according to any one of the preceding claims, c h a r a c t e r i s e d in that the container body is made of a sheet material or the like, and that the sealing flap (8) is bent round an edge (26) of the container body (1), which is formed by foldin the sheet material. 6. The dispensing container according to claim 5, c h a r a c t e r i s e d in that the removable adhesion of said cover portion (9) to the container body is pro- vided by means of a continuous adhesive layer which is applied to the surface of said cover portion (9) facing the container body (1) and which, so as not to adhere to the contents of said container, supports a non-adhesive member (12) in the form of a tongue (12a) integral with said sheet material and coherent with said container body (1) along a line which is parallel to and slightly spaced from said edge of the container body (1). 7. The dispensing container according to any one of the preceding claims, c h a r a c t e r i s e d by a suspension means, such as one or more holes (36, 37) formed in the container body (1) or a hook or the like connected to the container body (1), said suspension means being arranged so that, when the dispensing container is hung by said suspension means, said edge (26) or edge side (26') constitutes a lower horizontal edge (26) or edge side (26') of the container body (1), and so that a down¬ ward tractive force (F) applied to the sealing flap (8) for exposing the dispensing opening (7) does not move said edge (26) or edge side (26') from its horizontal direc- tion. 8. The dispensing container according to any one of the preceding claims, c h a r a c t e r i s e d by con¬ tents of wipers, preferably wet wipers, which are arranged in the container and which are successively extractable one by one through said dispensing opening (7). 9. The dispensing container according to claim 8, c h a r a c t e r i s e d in that a wiper (41) among said wipers, which is positioned adjacent the dispensing open¬ ing (7), comprises a gripping edge (42) which becomes visible through said dispensing opening (7), after the sealing flap (8) has been opened.

Inventors: ANDERSSON LARS, ANDERSSON, LARS
Applicants: PAXAN AB
Application year: 1990
Main classification: B65D75
IPC codes: B65D75