Abstract:
A multi-compartment reclosable bag that includes closures that effectively separate the compartments&#39; contents and reduces accidental mixing is described. In addition, perforations in the bag facilitate selective dispensing of a portion of the bag&#39;s contents. The reclosable bag includes first and second panels joined along their side edges. An upper closure comprises a male profile having opposing first and second barbs. The first barb is substantially longer than the second barb. An intermediate closure is positioned between the upper closure and a bottom edge of the bag. The intermediate closure comprises a male profile having opposing third and fourth barbs. The third barb is substantially longer than the fourth barb. The first barb is oriented downwardly and the third barb is oriented upwardly for reducing accidental opening of the closures.

Description:
TECHNICAL FIELD 
     The present invention relates generally to disposable bags, and more particularly, to a multi-compartment reclosable bag with asymmetrical closures that limit accidental opening of the compartments. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     Advances in the design and manufacturing of reclosable bags have resulted in reclosable bags being used in various industries, including medicine, jewelry, food packaging, and retail. For example, reclosable bags are widely used in transporting medical specimens. Typical reclosable bags include a reclosable closure (commonly referred to as a zipper) for temporarily securing the bag&#39;s contents within a single compartment. 
     Other types of reclosable bags include multiple compartments. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,637,061 issued to Riese includes two chambers with upper and intermediate interlocking fasteners. For this device, a manufacturer thermally seals the fasteners and gripper flaps to a folded plastic sheet. Sealing side edges of this folded sheet forms the bag. Closing the upper fastener seals the bag, while closing the intermediate fastener forms two compartments within the bag. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 5,288,415 issued to Chen Wu et al. describes a multi-compartment bag. A first reclosable compartment with pores filters liquid from an inner compartment to an outer compartment that surrounds the inner compartment. Using a centrifuge traps larger materials remain within the inner compartment. In contrast, smaller biological agents move from the inner compartment to the outer compartment where they can be dispensed. 
     Despite the development in the area of reclosable bags, conventional multi-compartment bags remain susceptible to accidental opening of the closures, which can result in unwanted mixing of the compartments&#39; content. In addition, conventional solutions do not selectively dispense the contents of the bag. Thus, a need still exists for a reclosable bag that avoids accidental opening and facilitates selective dispensing of the bag&#39;s contents by a user. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention meets the needs described above in a multi-compartment reclosable bag with asymmetrical closures. The invention is a reclosable bag comprising first and second panels joined along their side edges. An upper closure comprises a male profile having opposing first and second barbs. The first barb is substantially longer than the second barb. An intermediate closure is positioned between the upper closure and a bottom edge of the bag. The intermediate closure comprises a male profile having opposing third and fourth barbs. The third barb is substantially longer than the fourth barb. The first longer barb is oriented downwardly and the third longer barb is oriented upwardly for reducing accidental opening of the closures. 
     In another form, the invention is a reclosable bag comprising first and second panels joined along their side edges. The invention also includes an upper closure. An intermediate closure is positioned between the upper closure and a bottom edge of the bag. This closure divides the bag into an upper compartment and a lower compartment. At least one of the first and second panels is perforated in the lower compartment for dispensing contents from the bag. 
     In another form, the invention is a dispenser bag for selectively dispensing aggregate material comprising first and second panels joined along their side edges. An upper closure comprises a male profile having opposing first and second barbs. The first barb is substantially longer than the second barb. An intermediate closure is positioned between the upper closure and a bottom edge of the bag. The intermediate closure comprises a male profile having opposing third and fourth barbs. The third barb is substantially longer than the fourth barb. The first barb is oriented downwardly and the third barb is oriented upwardly for reducing accidental opening of the closures. Closing of the intermediate closure divides the bag into an upper compartment and a lower compartment for receiving the material. At least one of the first and second panels is perforated in the lower compartment. 
     The invention includes uniquely designed closures that more securely separate the compartments&#39; contents and reduce accidental mixing. In addition, the invention includes an unperforated upper compartment that can store aggregate material and a perforated lower compartment. When desired, a user can open a closure between these compartments to move some of the aggregate material to the perforated lower compartment, from which it can then be dispensed using the perforations. For example, the non-perforated compartment can include potpourri, which maintains its freshness as long as it is in a sealed compartment. By transferring a portion of the potpourri to the perforated compartment, the scent can disperse. However, the portion of the potpourri stored within the sealed upper compartment remains fresh until dispersal is desired. 
     In view of the foregoing, it will be appreciated that a multi-compartment reclosable bag with asymmetrical closure according to the present invention avoids the drawbacks of prior systems. The specific techniques and structures employed by the invention to improve over the drawbacks of the prior systems and obtain the advantages described herein will become apparent from the following detailed description of the embodiments of the invention and the appended drawings and claims. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1A is a perspective view of a reclosable bag illustrating a first embodiment of the invention. 
     FIG. 1B is a cross-sectional view of an upper closure portion of the bag of FIG. 1A illustrating a double barbed male profile and a female profile within the upper closure. 
     FIG. 1C is a cross-sectional view of a lower closure portion of the bag of FIG. 1A illustrating a double barbed male profile and a female profile within the lower closure. 
     FIG. 2A is a perspective view of a perforated reclosable bag illustrating a second embodiment of the invention. 
     FIG. 2B is a cross-sectional view of a lower closure portion of the bag of FIG. 2A with a gusset that forms an attached lip. 
     FIG. 3A is a side view of the bag of FIG. 2A illustrating suspension of the bag when the closures are sealed. 
     FIG. 3B is a side view of the bag of FIG. 3A illustrating dispensing of the articles in the bag. 
     FIG. 4 is a front view of a reclosable bag illustrating a third embodiment of the invention. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS 
     In describing the embodiments of the present invention, specific terminology is employed for the sake of clarity. The invention, however, is not intended to be limited to the specific terminology so selected. 
     FIG. 1A is a perspective view of a reclosable bag  100  illustrating a first embodiment of the invention. The reclosable bag  100  includes a front panel and a rear panel connected along the side edge  103  and the side edge  104  by heat sealing. These panels can be formed from a single sheet of laminated material that includes nylon, polyethylene, polypropylene, or some other suitable polymer. In addition, these panels can include decorative designs that make the bag  100  more appealing. For example, the panels&#39; design could include cartoon characters easily recognizable by children. In addition, the thickness of these panels can vary depending upon the application. For example, the panels can be 2-mil, 4-mil, 6-mil, or some other suitable thickness. 
     The bag  100  also includes two closures  110 ,  120  extruded from the same sheet of material that forms the panels with side edges  103 ,  104 . Closing an intermediate closure  120  can separate the bag  100  into an upper compartment  130  and a lower compartment  135 . The closure  110  and the closure  120  comprise a zipper having mating male and female profiles, or locking elements. FIG. 1B is a cross-sectional view illustrating a double barbed male profile  150  and a female profile  160  within the upper closure  110 . To seal the upper closure  110 , a user inserts the double barbed male profile  150  into the female profile  160 . The double barbed male profile  150  includes a barb  152  and a barb  154  positioned opposite of each other. Once inserted, the female profile  160  captures the barb  152 , which seals the upper closure  110 . 
     The asymmetrical design of this double barbed male profile creates a sturdy seal. The barb  154  is substantially longer than the barb  152 . In addition, the longer barb  154  points towards a lower portion of the upper compartment  130 . Objects stored within the upper compartment  130  can exert a force on the upper closure  110 . The force can result from either the objects&#39; weight or bag expansion from the objects&#39; presence. Positioning the longer barb  154  towards a lower portion of the upper compartment  130  helps counteract the impact of these forces. The additional length creates a distance labeled “A” that must be overcome before the barb  154  is free from the female profile  160 . Because the closure  110  is made from a heavy-duty material, the male profile  150  and female profile  160  remain somewhat resistant to bending. To overcome the distance A and the resistance to bending, a greater force is needed to open the closure  110  from inside the upper compartment  130 . In contrast, orienting the shorter length barb  152  towards the lips  138  results in a user exerting little effort in pulling apart the lips  138 . Thus, the asymmetrical design of the closure  110  facilitates easy deliberate opening by a user, while minimizing accidental opening from the inside of the upper compartment  130 . 
     FIG. 1C is a cross-sectional view illustrating a double barbed male profile  170  and a female profile  160  within the lower closure  120 . The double barbed male profile  170  is also asymmetrical and includes opposing barb  172  and barb  174 . The barb  172  is substantially longer than the barb  174 . Like the barb  154 , the longer barb  172  is oriented towards the upper compartment  130 , which reduces accidental opening of the closure  120  from the inside of the upper compartment  130 . Orienting the shorter barb  174  towards the lower compartment  135  facilitates easy opening from the bottom of the bag  200 . Thus, the weight of articles stored in the compartment  130  generally does not force the closure  120  open. But a user can easily open the closure  120  as described with reference to FIGS. 2A-2B. 
     FIG. 2A is a perspective view of a perforated reclosable bag  200 , or dispenser bag, illustrating a second embodiment of the invention. The bag  200  includes a hang hole  205  for effectively suspending this bag during storage or dispersal. Within this bag, the upper compartment  230  can contain some type of loose aggregate material  240 . This material could be seeds, potpourri, fertilizer, mothballs, powder, pellets, or some other suitable material. 
     The bag  200  also includes lips  225  for opening the intermediate closure  220 . A manufacturer forms these lips by forming a permanent fold in the front and rear panels of the bag  200 . Thus, the bag  200  includes integrated closures  110 ,  120  and integrated lips  225  that form a unitary structure. FIG. 2B is a cross-sectional view of the closure  120  with lips  225 . As shown, the closure  120  includes the male profile  170  and the female profile  160 . The lips  225  are formed as gussets below the closure  120 . By pulling both lips  225  apart, a user can open the closure  120  easily. After opening this closure, the material  240  flows from the upper compartment  230  to the lower compartment  235 . 
     The lower compartment  235  includes numerous perforations  237  used in dispensing the aggregate material  240 . The perforations  237  can be randomly arranged throughout the lower compartment  135 . For example, a front panel can include perforations while the back panel does not. Alternatively, the lower compartment could be partially perforated or unperforated. In addition, these perforations can be various shapes and sizes. For example, small perforations can facilitate a slow dispensing of birdseed that flows into the lower compartment  235 . 
     Turning now to FIG. 3A, FIG. 3A is a side view of the bag  200  illustrating suspension of the bag  200  when the closures  110 ,  120  are sealed. As described with reference to FIG. 2A, the bag  200  can include a hang hole  205 . To suspend the bag  200 , a fastener such as a nail, screw, peg, hook or some other suitable device can connect the bag  200  to a board or tree, for example. Because the bag  200  includes the articles  240  and is suspended, the weight of the articles exerts considerable force on the upper closure  110  and the lower closure  120  illustrated in FIG.  2 A. The asymmetrical nature of the double barbed male profiles  170 ,  172  shown in FIG. 1B causes the upper closure  110  and the lower closure  120  to remain sealed as shown in FIG.  3 A. FIG. 3B is a side view of the bag  200  illustrating dispensing of the articles  240  in the bag  200 . A user can open the lower closure  120  using the lips  225 , which allows the content of the bag  200  to flow freely to the upper compartment  230  to the lower compartment  235 . Some of the articles  240  that flow into the lower compartment  235  flow from the bag  200  through the perforations  237 . In this manner, the articles  240  previously stored in the upper compartment  235  can be selectively dispensed. 
     FIG. 4 is a side view of a multi-compartment bag  400  illustrating a handle  410  for carrying the bag  400 . The size shape and position of the handle  410  can vary depending upon design constraints. For example, using the bag  400  as a disposable lunch kit for school children can warrant making the handle  410  small, sturdy and thin. In addition to the handle  410 , the bag  400  includes compartments  420 - 440 . The size of these compartments can vary depending upon uses. For the above example, the compartment  420  can be sized for a sandwich and the compartment  430  can be sized for some chips. In contrast, the compartment  440  can be sized for snacks such as carrots, raisins, or grapes. Using this bag, a mother can effectively store a child&#39;s lunch in a single disposable bag, for example. 
     Like the bag  200 , the bag  400  includes closures  110 ,  120  that form the compartments  420 - 440  when closed. Because the bag  400  includes three compartments, two of the closures  120  are used. Since the closures  110 ,  120  include an asymmetrical design, the accidental opening from the inside of each of the compartments in the bag  400  is minimized. Though not shown, lips  225  can be used with the compartments  430 ,  440 . In addition, any one of these compartments could include perforations. 
     In view of the foregoing, it will be appreciated that present invention provides a multi-compartment reclosable bag. This bag includes closures that create sturdy seals and hinder accidental opening the bag. In addition, perforations in the bag facilitate selective dispensing of a portion of the bag&#39;s contents. A multi-compartment bag with asymmetrical closures can be used in various storage applications involving prepackaged salads and disposable lunch containers. When used in dispensing, the invented bag creates several advantages by limiting human contact with the aggregate material. For example, lawn care workers can avoid direct contact with a potentially harmful fertilizer stored in the upper compartment and dispensed in the perforated lower compartment. In addition, cleaning up birdseed after filling the birdfeeder is simplified by using the invented bag for dispensing. 
     It should be understood that the foregoing relates only to the exemplary embodiments of the present invention, and that numerous changes can be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the following claims.