Abstract:
Envelope seal strip are disclosed. An example envelope includes a flap that is rotatable about a hinge between an open position and a closed position of the envelope. The example envelope includes a first adhesive layer disposed on an inner surface of the flap and a sealing strip having a second adhesive layer. In the open position, the sealing strip is releasably coupled to the first adhesive layer via the second adhesive layer. To secure the flap in the closed position, the first adhesive layer and the second adhesive layer enable the sealing strip to decouple from the first adhesive layer, the hinge enables the flap to rotate about the hinge to cause the first adhesive layer to adhere to a second wall, and the second adhesive layer enables the sealing strip to adhere to the second wall and an outer surface of the flap.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
       [0001]    This patent arises as a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/677,741, filed on Nov. 15, 2012, and claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 61/560,198, filed Nov. 15, 2011, which are incorporated herein by reference in their entireties. 
     
    
     FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE 
       [0002]    The present subject matter relates generally to a sealing strip that can be used with an envelope. 
       BACKGROUND 
       [0003]    Known envelope flaps often have a moisture activated adhesive, but could also include a removable barrier over the adhesive (so called peal and stick), or any other included adhesive. Prior to the traditional adhesive strip, flaps were sealed with an external binding connected to both the flap and adjacent side to bind the flap closed. This binding could be melted wax or something similar. An affixable seal (e.g. a foil piece with adhesive included on one side), and/or a sticker type item has also been used to seal (or double seal in conjunction with included flap adhesive) envelope flaps. U.S. Pat. No. 2,367,440 describes a self-sealing paper envelope. Also, U.S. Pat. No. 5,429,576 describes a reusable adhesive envelope having a pressure sensitive adhesive, which is initially covered by a release liner. Upon removing the release liner the adhesive on the flap may be secured to the protective strip to close the flap, which may be opened and closed numerous times. 
         [0004]    Traditional envelopes, particularly postal mailing envelopes, are configured to have a ship to and return to address printed on the envelope or affixed to the envelope (e.g., through an adhesive or a receiving window). Return addresses are often printed on pre-printed affixable labels, since unlike the ship to address, the return address text does not often change. By rule, these are typically affixed in a particular area (e.g., the upper left corner of the front side or center top of the reverse side). 
         [0005]    Users of envelopes will sometimes double seal an envelope to ensure it does not open during transit, or otherwise increase the closure seal. A deficiency of the most common included adhesive, i.e., moisture activated adhesives, is that a heavy humidity, heat, or other environmental condition can weaken or even release the closure seal, thereby opening the envelope during transit. A user may apply some tape or a sticker across the flap and adjacent side in order to deter this deficiency of just the flap adhesive alone. U.S. Pat. No. 913,987 describes an envelope where projecting tongues adapted to fold over the sealing flap after the latter is folded and sealed, and thus firmly secure the sealing flap and prevent it from being opened. U.S. Pat. No. 3,702,171 describes an envelope with superimposed strips aligned to be partially lifted and placed back down on the flap to seal the envelope. 
         [0006]    It is desirable to provide an improved sealing arrangement. 
       SUMMARY 
       [0007]    In one embodiment, an envelope is provided that can have first and second walls that cooperatively enclose a pocket space and define therebetween an envelope opening to the pocket space. The envelope can include a closure flap pivotally associated with the first wall and pivotable to a closed position against the second wall. In the closed position, the closure flap can overlap the second wall in an area of overlap and can close the envelope opening. The envelope can include a sealing strip releasably adhered to the envelope in a first location outside of the area of overlap. The sealing strip can be removable from the first location and placeable in a second location in which it overlaps the closure flap in the closed position and an adjacent portion of the second wall. The sealing strip can include an adhesive capable of adhering to the closure flap and the adjacent portion of the second wall for securing the closure flap in the closed position, which can be permanent or temporary. 
         [0008]    The exemplary envelope can also include a release layer on the first location configured for providing the releasable adhesion and allowing removal of the sealing strip. The sealing strip can include a tape with a layer of the adhesive. The sealing strip can also include a weakened region dividing the strip into a sealing portion and a grasping portion. The weakened region can be configured for facilitating manual separation of the sealing and grasping portions. The weakened area can include perforations, notches, or any number of other weakening features. The sealing strip can be provided on an envelope or separate from an envelope, e.g., on a base layer. 
         [0009]    The weakened area can include a line of perforations extending across the strip of tape, and/or at least one notch on at least one lateral side of the adhesive strip arrangement. The exemplary notch can help initial a tear in the weakened area for removal of the grasping portion. The exemplary weakened area can be configured to hold the sealing and grasping portions together when pulled in a first direction, and configured for facilitating manual separation of the sealing and grasping portions when pulled in a second direction. The exemplary weakened region can be configured to hold the sealing and grasping portions together when the sealing strip is removed from the base layer, and further configured for facilitating manual separation of the sealing and grasping portions when the sealing portion is adhered to the another substrate. 
         [0010]    The exemplary sealing strip can be a tape elongated in a longitudinal axis, and the weakened region can extend laterally across the tape. The exemplary grasping portion can be different in appearance than the sealing portion. This can include the grasping portion including instructions on how to remove the grasping portion from the sealing portion. Further, the exemplary sealing portion can include printed indicia on the side opposite the adhesive layer, such as a postal address or company logo. 
         [0011]    The exemplary base layer can include a release layer configured for providing a low-adhesion with the adhesive layer thereby facilitating the releasably adhering the sealing portion to the base layer. This exemplary release layer can include a wax layer. The exemplary base layer can be sprayed onto the base layer substrate in certain exemplary embodiments, or applied in any other manner, e.g., any other automated manner. The base layer, and another substrate can form different parts of a common substrate (e.g., an envelope). 
         [0012]    Additional advantages and novel features of the examples will be set forth in part in the description which follows, and in part will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon examination of the following description and the accompanying drawings or may be learned by production or operation of the examples. The advantages of the concepts may be realized and attained by means of the methodologies, instrumentalities and combinations particularly pointed out in the appended claims. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0013]    The drawing figures depict one or more implementations in accord with the present concepts, by way of example only, not by way of limitations. In the figures, like reference numerals refer to the same or similar elements. 
           [0014]      FIG. 1  is a view of an envelope with a removable sealing strip, according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention; 
           [0015]      FIG. 2  is the same view of the envelope according to  FIG. 1 , with the closure flap illustrated in the closed position; 
           [0016]      FIGS. 3A to 3E  each include an exemplary removable sealing strip, with different exemplary weakened areas  39  attached an exemplary tear-off portion, according to other exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure; 
           [0017]      FIG. 4  is an exemplary envelope with a removable sealing strip, including a differently appearing grasping tip and printed indicia sealing portion, according to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention; 
           [0018]      FIG. 5  is another exemplary envelope with a removable sealing strip; and 
           [0019]      FIG. 6  is another view of the exemplary envelope of  FIG. 5 , with the exemplary envelope closed. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0020]    Referring to  FIG. 1 , an exemplary embodiment can include an envelope  100 . Envelopes can be formed, for example, from a blank that is folded and glued or otherwise affixed along certain edges (e.g., two or three out of four edges in a rectangular envelope). The blank can be die cut from a single sheet, and have at least two walls that define an inner pocket therebetween. For example, envelope  100  includes a first wall  101 , which in this view is substantially hidden by second wall  102 . From the perspective illustrated in  FIG. 1 , first wall  101  can be referred to as the front wall, and second wall  102  can be referred to as the back wall. First wall  101  can be connected to a sealing flap  104  via hinge  103 . Hinge  103  can be a living hinge, and/or a fold of a continuous structure that forms both the sealing flap  104  and the first wall  101 . Likewise, the second wall  102  can be a continuous structure with the first wall  101 , via a hinge along bottom edge  111 , while side edges  112  and  113  can be affixed together, e.g. via a permanent adhesive. The first and second walls  101  and  102 , along with the sealed edges  111 ,  112 , and  123  can define a pocket  115  and pocket opening  116 . 
         [0021]    Sealing flap  104  can include a free edge  114  that defines a border line between the flap  104  and an adjacent portion of the second wall  102  while in the closed position. The sealing flap  104  can pivot (e.g., about 180.degree. from alignment extending from the first wall to the closed position via hinge  103 ), into contact with an overlap area  106  of the second wall  102 . Overlap area  106  is outlined with dashed lines in  FIG. 1 , while in  FIG. 2  the sealing flap  104  has been pivoted into the closed position, coving overlap area  106 . Once pivoted, the sealing flap  104  closes the opening  116 . The closure flap  104  can include an adhesive layer  108 , such as a moisture activated glue strip, an adhesive with a removable cover strip, or other suitable adhesive arrangement. Other variations are possible for other exemplary envelopes. 
         [0022]    The envelope  100  includes a first location  120  with a sealing strip  110  temporarily or removably adhered thereto. The sealing strip  110  can be made from a single or multi-layer film including plastic and/or paper material such as a plastic laminated paper film. The first location  120  is preferably located outside of the area of overlap  106  in a position different than the necessary position to seal the flap  104  to the second wall  102 . Preferably, the sealing strip  110  in the first location  120  is positioned so that it needs to be completely removed from the envelope  100  and then repositioned over the flap  104  and second wall  102  in a second location  130  to seal the flap  104  in the closed position. 
         [0023]    The sealing strip  110  can be removable from the first location  120 , being detachable from the portion of the envelope  100  to which it is removably attached to in the first location  120 , and placeable in a second location  130  overlapping the closure flap  104  in the closed position and an adjacent portion of the second wall  102 . This second location  130  is illustrated with a dashed line in approximately the center of the overlap area  106  border, although alternatively the user can select another suitable placement for the second location  130 . The second location  130  can include any suitable area, size, or orientation that overlaps the closure flap  104  in the closed position and an adjacent portion of the second wall  102 . 
         [0024]    The sealing strip  110  can include an adhesive capable of adhering to the closure flap  104  and the adjacent portion of the second wall  102  for securing the closure flap  104  in the closed position. This adhesive can cause a removable bond with the surface material at the first location  120  and a permanent or semi-permanent bond with the second location  130 , in which the bond at the second location  130  is significantly stronger than with the surface at the first location  120 . This can be accomplished in any number of ways. For example, the first location  120  can include a surface structure or material that causes the adhesive to form a tacky bond, while still being removable, and the second location  130  can include a surface structure or material that causes the same adhesive to form a more permanent bond. The second location  130  can be a paper-based material, or any other suitable material. The first location  120  can include a different a suitable material affixed to the envelope  100  surface, which can include a release layer or of a release material, which can be applied, for example, as a laminated layer, sprayed-on layer, or by another suitable process. The release layer can be provided, for example, with a tape having a non-stick or semi-stick surface, wax paper, sprayed on wax or other release layer, plastic, or other suitable materials. One embodiment can form envelope  100  in a pre-existing way, and then add (e.g., by machine automation) the semi-stick second area  120 , e.g., by automated application of one or more tape strips or spray application of a wax material. 
         [0025]      FIGS. 3A to 3E  illustrate various exemplary embodiments of an adhesive strip arrangement that includes a release layer  320 , and a sealing strip  351  having a grasping portion  340 , a sealing portion  350 , and a weakened region  345  connecting the grasping  340  and sealing  350  portions. The sealing strip  351  can be of similar construction to the sealing strip  110 , described in  FIGS. 1-2 , but includes a grasping portion  340 . The sealing portion  350  can include an adhesive layer permanently associated with the sealing strip  351 . The sealing strip  351  can be releasably adhered to the release layer  320 , e.g., at the sealing portion  350 . The release layer  320  can be selected such that the adhesive layer of sealing portion  350  makes a temporary or otherwise removable bond with release layer  320 . The release layer  320  can be directly on an envelope, or in other embodiments, on another structure, such as a base layer, or in yet other embodiments, can be separate from other structures. 
         [0026]    The grasping portion  340  can be of the same or different material as sealing portion  350 , and preferably is provided without the adhesive layer associated with sealing portion  350 , or alternatively with a weaker adhesive or an arrangement of the adhesive that makes the grasping portion  340  easier to peel from the release layer  320  at the first location  120  than the sealing portion  350 . Alternatively, the surface of the release layer  320  at first location  120  can be different under the grasping portion  340  than the sealing portion  350  to enable easier peeling away of the grasping portion  340 . The grasping portion  340  can thereby be configured to provide a user a mechanism for removing the sealing portion  350  from the release layer  320 . Connecting the grasping portion  340  and the sealing portion  350  can be a weakened area  349 , which can be configured to facilitate a user removing grasping portion  340  from sealing portion  350  (e.g., after sealing portion  350  has been removed from release layer  320  and applied to a permanent location). 
         [0027]    The weakened area  349  can be configured in a number of ways.  FIG. 3A  illustrates one exemplary embodiment of a perforation line  345 , e.g., a repeating line of micro cuts configured to provide a weakened and severable bond between grasping  340  and sealing  350  portions.  FIG. 3B  illustrates another exemplary embodiment of a weakened area  349  configured with another perforation line  346 .  FIG. 3C  illustrates another exemplary embodiment of a weakened area  349  including a cut out notch feature  347 . This type of weakened area  349  can facilitate grasping portion  340  facilitating removal of sealing portion  350  from release layer  320  while being removable from the sealing portion  350 . A notch feature  347 , such as illustrated in  FIG. 3C , can be configured to provide a strong bond between the grasping portion  340  and sealing portion  350  when pulled in certain directions (e.g., perpendicular to the plane of release layer  320  or toward the notch feature  347 ), while providing a weak or destroyable bond when pulled in other directions (e.g., away from the notch feature  347 ).  FIG. 3D  includes a notch feature  347  at both lateral sides of the sealing strip  351 .  FIG. 3E  includes the exemplary notch features  347  at both lateral sides of the sealing strip  351 , along with a perforation feature  346  between those notch features. While not illustrated, another exemplary weakened area  349  can include a single notch feature  347 , such as illustrated in  FIG. 3C , and a perforation feature, such as illustrated in  FIG. 3E . These weakened areas  349 , e.g., perforation lines  345  and  346 , can be perpendicular to a longitudinal direction of the sealing strip  351 , can be straight, curved, or angled, and preferably extends from one lateral side to another. 
         [0028]    In conjunction with the relative weakened strength of the weakened areas  349 , an adhesive layer applied to sealing portion  350  can be selected and configured such that the weakened area  349  provides a bond strong enough to remove sealing portion  350  from release layer  320  when pulling on grasping portion  340 . In one embodiment, the grasping portion  340  can lack the adhesive layer associated with sealing portion  350  to facilitate removal by allowing a user to easily grasp the grasping portion  340  and pull the grasping portion  340  to remove the sealing portion  350  from the release layer  320 . In another embodiment, the adhesive layer can be selected and configured such that when permanently adhered (e.g., to the flap and adjacent portion of the wall of an envelope), the adhesive bond is strong enough to hold the sealing portion  350  while the grasping portion  340  is removed (e.g., torn off of the adhesive strip arrangement). 
         [0029]    The exemplary adhesive strip arrangement can be configured in any number of sizes, shapes, or materials. For example, the sealing strip  351  can be elongated in a longitudinal axis with a grasping portion  340  at a distal end, can be round with a protruding grasping portion, or can be another shape capable of overlapping two adjacent areas. The grasping portion  340  can be made from a continuous material with the sealing portion (and a weakened area therebetween), or can be made from one or more different materials. The grasping portion  340  should be large enough to allow a user to grasp it and remove the sealing portion  350 , and can otherwise be other suitable sizes or shapes. For example, the grasping portion  340  can be one sixteenth of an inch to one quarter of an inch, or any other size, e.g., one eighth of an inch. The scaling portion  350  can be one half an inch or smaller to other suitable sizes able to fit within release layer  320 , e.g., two to three inches. 
         [0030]    The grasping portion  340  can also be configured with a different appearance (e.g., color) or with printed instructions to remove and/or on how to remove the grasping portion  340 . For example,  FIG. 4  illustrates an exemplary embodiment of an exemplary envelope  100 , with a release layer  320  and an sealing strip  351  with a sealing portion  350 , weakened area  349 , and grasping portion  340 , which is shown with hashed lines to designate a separate color and/or appearance. The sealing portion  350  can also include printed indicia  370 , such as a mailing address on the side obverse to the associated adhesive layer. Preprinted return addresses could be provided as sealing strip  110  or  351 , a company logo, or any other printed indicia. 
         [0031]      FIG. 5  illustrates an exemplary envelope  500  having a flap adhesive  508 . The flap adhesive  508  can be situated on the flap  504  for adhering to second wall  502  when the flap  504  is closed. The sealing strip  510  has its own layer of adhesive  512 , which is releasably adhered to adhesive  508 , preferably as a temporary (releasable) tacking adhesion. When positioned over adhesive  508 , the sealing strip  510  can act as the protective strip to the flap adhesive  508 . When the sealing strip  510  is removed from the flap adhesive  508 , the sealing strip  510  has sufficient adhesive qualities to create a secure bond to a second area of the envelope. The flap adhesive  508  can be disposed directly on the flap  504  or on a base layer  520  which retains the flap adhesive  508  when the sealing strip  510  is peeled away therefrom. In  FIG. 5 , the sealing strip  510  is disposed in a first location on the inner surface of the flap  504  (based on the position of this surface when the flap is closed), and is not in a position from which it can be partially peeled and reattached to seal the flap  504  closed, although other embodiments can use other arrangements. 
         [0032]      FIG. 6  illustrates a second area across the closed flap  504  and second wall  502  for receiving the sealing strip  510 . One or more adhesives can be selected to ensure sealing strip  510  creates a removable bond with flap adhesive  508  while at the same time capable of forming a more permanent or permanent bond with other areas (e.g., the area of second wall  502  in alignment with closed flap adhesive  508 , and any area of cross-over between flap  504  and second wall  502 ). 
         [0033]    All of the references specifically identified in the detailed description section of the present application are expressly incorporated herein in their entirety by reference thereto. The term “about,” as used herein, should generally be understood to refer to both the corresponding number and a range of numbers. Moreover, all numerical ranges herein should be understood to include each whole integer within the range. Moreover, various adhesives and/or bonds are described as temporary and/or permanent. These can relate to a general relative strength between the two, whether the bond would cause structural damage if removed, whether the adhesive can be reused after a previous use, or any number of other relative strength distinctions between permanent, semi-permanent, temporary, and/or removable. In the case of paper envelopes, a permanent adhesion would typically remove a layer of paper along with the strip as it is pulled off. References to more permanent adhesion indicates a noticeably stronger adhesion that a temporary adhesion. Also, exemplary envelopes can be of any size, shape, and/or material, including standards sizes configured to receive one or more standard sized papers, e.g., letter, legal, A4, etc. 
         [0034]    While illustrative embodiments of the invention are disclosed herein, it will be appreciated that numerous modifications and other embodiments may be devised by those skilled in the art. For example, the features for the various embodiments can be used in other embodiments. Therefore, it will be understood that the appended claims are intended to cover all such modifications and embodiments that come within the spirit and scope of the present invention.