Abstract:
A new bandage package having a loosely packaged carrier material with a plurality of bandages attached. The package allows the bandages to be kept sterile when opening the package by allowing the carrier to fall freely to a sterile surface without the user touching the carrier.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
       [0001]    This application is a Divisional of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/793,874 filed Mar. 11, 2013, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. 
     
    
     BACKGROUND 
       [0002]    1. Field of the Invention 
         [0003]    The present invention relates to adhesive bandage packages, and more particularly a packaging system for a plurality of bandages to facilitate removal of the plurality of bandages from the packaging. 
         [0004]    2. Description of the Related Art 
         [0005]    Adhesive bandages have been used for years to apply to wounds on the human body. They have been used extensively in connection with surgical procedures to cover needle pricks from administering various drugs. In a surgical environment, the medical professionals must take care to keep the environment sterile. One requirement is to wear gloves. When wearing gloves it is difficult to remove traditional bandages from packaging and apply to the human body. To apply the bandage, it is a common occurrence for the medical professional to remove a glove in order to allow the bandage to be more easily applied to the wound. The problem with this is that the person who is applying the bandage is now potentially exposed to blood borne diseases when applying the bandage and it is also easier for the bandage to become contaminated by contact with the finger. 
         [0006]    When the glove is removed to open the packaging and apply the bandage, the sterility of the bandage is easily compromised during this process. Moreover, it is often difficult to remove a bandage that has been applied to the human body. In the past, bandages have typically been packaged one at a time for use in an operating room environment rather than in packages containing multiple bandages. This does not present a problem if there is only one puncture to cover, but if there are multiple punctures, it takes significant time to open six or eight bandage packages, for example. Referring now to  FIG. 1  and  FIG. 2 , an example of an adhesive bandage package  100  as it exists currently in the art is illustrated. The bandage package has outer packaging  110 ,  120  that is peeled apart as shown in  FIG. 2  to reveal bandages  130 ,  140 . The bandages  130 ,  140  are stuck to a backing material and then sandwiched between the outer packaging  110 ,  120 . The user must typically insert a finger nail between the bandages  130 ,  140  and the backing material to remove the bandages from the backing material. This is difficult to do while wearing gloves. 
         [0007]    Adhesive bandage packaging as it currently exists also typically uses excessive packaging material that increases the cost of manufacturing the bandage as well as the corresponding waste. For example, bandages typically have a backing material on the bandage itself and then are wrapped in a wrapper for distribution to the end user. 
         [0008]    Thus, there is a need for an improved bandage and packaging system that will allow a medical professional to easily open a bandage package and remove the bandage for application to the patient while wearing gloves. There is a need for bandages that can be more easily removed when they are no longer needed. There is also a need for a packaging design that minimizes waste and is inexpensive to manufacture. 
       SUMMARY 
       [0009]    Disclosed in this application is a new bandage package having a loosely packaged carrier material with a plurality of bandages attached. The package allows the bandages to be kept sterile when opening the package by allowing the carrier to fall freely to a sterile surface without the user touching the carrier. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0010]      FIG. 1  is a top view of a prior art adhesive bandage package. 
           [0011]      FIG. 2  is a top view of a prior art adhesive bandage packaged in an open configuration. 
           [0012]      FIG. 3  is a top view of an opened adhesive bandage package in accordance with an embodiment of the invention. 
           [0013]      FIG. 4  is a top view of an opened adhesive bandage package in accordance with an alternate embodiment of the invention. 
           [0014]      FIG. 5  is a top view of an opened adhesive bandage package with a separate carrier material in accordance with an alternate embodiment of the invention. 
           [0015]      FIG. 6A  is a side view showing the joining of an adhesive material and non-adhesive material in accordance with an embodiment of the invention. 
           [0016]      FIG. 6B  is a top view of a strip showing the joined adhesive material and non-adhesive material in accordance with an embodiment of the invention. 
           [0017]      FIG. 7  is a flow diagram showing the application of cushions to the strip in accordance with an embodiment of the invention. 
           [0018]      FIG. 8  is a flow diagram showing the application of white paper to the strip in accordance with an embodiment of the invention. 
           [0019]      FIG. 9  is a flow diagram showing the cutting of individual bandages from the strip in accordance with an embodiment of the invention. 
           [0020]      FIG. 10  is a flow diagram showing the packaging of individual bandages in accordance with an embodiment of the invention. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0021]    Referring now to  FIG. 3 , a top diagram of an open bandage package in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention is illustrated. A top outer covering  310  is peeled back from a lower outer covering  320  to expose four bandages  330 . Each of the bandages  330  also contains a tab  330 B. The tab  330 B does not contain any adhesive on the backside of it and thus is not adhered to the lower outer covering  320 . However, the adhesive portion of the bandage  330  is adhered to the lower outer covering  320 . By using the outer covering  320  of the packaging as a backing material instead of using an additional backing material as is typical with current bandage packages, waste can be avoided and the cost of production decreased. 
         [0022]    To remove the adhesive bandages  330 , the user simply grabs the tab  330 B and pulls the adhesive bandage away from the outer covering  320 . Because the tab  330 B is not adhered to the lower outer covering  320 , the user can easily grab the tab  330 B while wearing gloves. The lower outer covering  320  can be secured to the top outer covering  310  with pressure sensitive adhesive in the shaded border area  340  or in any other manner known in the art. 
         [0023]    The adhesive bandages  330  with tabs  330 B attached can be supplied in multiple configurations. Referring now to  FIG. 4 , an illustration of second embodiment of an opened adhesive bandage package is illustrated. As shown in  FIG. 4 , the adhesive bandage package  400  contains twelve adhesive bandages applied to the lower outer covering  420  of the adhesive bandage package  400 . The top outer covering  410  is peeled back to expose the twelve adhesive bandages  330 . A medical professional can then remove as many bandages as are needed for a particular procedure. In a sterile operating environment when a package such as those identified in  FIGS. 3 and 4  are used, the bandage packages cannot be reused in a second procedure if less than all of the bandages are consumed in the first procedure. Otherwise, the sterility of the second operating environment could be compromised. However, the medical professional can choose the size of the bandage package depending on the particular procedure that is being performed and the likely bandages that will be used in that procedure so as to avoid unnecessary waste. 
         [0024]    Referring now to  FIG. 5 , a top view of an open adhesive bandage package in accordance with an alternate embodiment of the invention is illustrated. The adhesive package  500  illustrated in  FIG. 5  is constructed in a similar manner to that of the packages shown in FIGS.  3  and  4 . However, instead of applying the bandages  330  directly to the lower outer covering  520 , the bandages  330  are instead applied to a carrier insert  530 . In operation, the user can peel back the top outer covering  510  while holding the bottom outer covering  520  and hold the packaging over a sterile operating tray at the same time. When opened in an inverted position, the sterile carrier insert  530  with the adhesive bandages  330  attached will fall out onto the tray without being touched by the user. It is a common procedure for medical professionals to open packages and drop them on the tray in this manner so as to preserve the sterility of the operating room environment. The user can then remove the adhesive bandages  330  in the same manner as they are removed as discussed with respect to  FIGS. 3 and 4  by holding the tab  330 B and pulling the bandage from the carrier insert  530 . 
         [0025]    By using the adhesive bandages described with respect to  FIGS. 3 ,  4 , and  5 , the medical professional can now easily open the packaging and remove the adhesive bandages and apply to a patient without frustration. This significantly reduces the temptation to remove a glove in order to apply a bandage, thus helping to protect the safety of both the patient and medical professional. Additionally, because the tab is part of the adhesive bandage itself, it can be used to remove the adhesive bandage when the patient is no longer in need of the bandage. This prevents the situation in which a bandage being in place for a significant length of time becomes very difficult to remove from the patient. 
         [0026]    Referring now to  FIGS. 6A-10 , a method of manufacturing the adhesive bandages in accordance with one embodiment of the invention is illustrated. A roll of non-adhesive fabric  610  is joined together with a roll of adhesive fabric  620  as shown in  FIG. 6A . The rollers  630  press the two materials together. The non-adhesive fabric roll  610  has a width A  650  as shown in  FIG. 6B . This roll is applied to one edge of the adhesive fabric strip from the roll  620  to form an adhesive/non-adhesive fabric combination  640 . The width of the adhesive fabric roll  620  is has a width B  660  as shown in  FIG. 6B . 
         [0027]    Referring now to  FIG. 7 , the application of protective cushion pads to the adhesive/non-adhesive fabric combination  640  is illustrated. A high speed pick and place machine is used to apply protective cushion pads  710  to a central portion of the exposed adhesive side of the adhesive fabric  730  located adjacent to where the non-adhesive fabric  740  was applied. The resulting strip  720  has an adhesive portion  730  and a non-adhesive portion  740  and cushion pads  710 . 
         [0028]    Referring now to  FIG. 8 , the application of a paper backing to the adhesive portion  730  is illustrated. A white paper roll  810  has a width  820  that is applied over the adhesive portion  730  of the strip  720 . The white paper roll contains a nonstick side which is glued to the fabric and a heat activated adhesive side that faces upward. Now the adhesive side of the fabric with adhesive is covered with fabric without adhesive and white paper. 
         [0029]    Referring now to  FIG. 9 , the bandage strip  830  is then placed through a rotary die cutter  910  to produce individual bandages  920 . Note that the die cutter is configured to cut a circle around the cushion  710  with a tab  930  remaining where the non-adhesive fabric was applied to the adhesive fabric. Using this process, the bandage  920  now has an adhesive on the circular portion outside of the non-adhesive cushion  710  and has a tab  930  with no adhesive on either side. 
         [0030]    Referring now to  FIG. 10 , the placement of the individual bandages into outer packaging material is illustrated. A high speed pick and place robot arm can be used for this to place the individual bandages  920  on the lower wrapper material  1020  and a upper wrapper material  1010  is placed on top of the bandages. Heat and pressure is then applied to the packaging to form a pouch in which the individual bandages will be held. In the heated roller press, the heat activates the adhesive between the white paper and the wrapping paper and will also activate the adhesive between the two wrapping papers. The adhesive used between the white paper and one side of the wrapping paper can be stronger than the adhesive used between the two wrapping papers and between the tab bandage and the white paper. Thus, the white paper essentially becomes part of the wrapping paper such that when the user peels the pouch to remove the tabbed bandage, the white paper will stay with the wrapping paper because the adhesion strength between the white paper and one side of the wrapping paper is stronger than the adhesion strength between the tabbed bandage and the nonstick side of the white paper. The continuous roll of tabbed bandages can then be perforated. There can be a single tabbed bandage per pouch or multiple bandages per pouch, depending on the needs of the end user. The bandages are then packaged, boxed and sterilized before they are shipped to the end user. 
         [0031]    While various embodiments have been described above, it should be understood that they have been presented by way of example only, and not limitation. Thus, the breadth and scope of a preferred embodiment should not be limited by any of the above described exemplary embodiments, but should be defined only in accordance with the following claims and their equivalents. For example, various sizes and shapes of bandages could be utilized, and various packaging materials, glue, paper, etc. could be used without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention.