Abstract:
A food packet and preferably a chewing gum packet for holding the chewing gum sticks in the packet after the initial opening and a method for forming the packets.

Description:
This application is a continuation, of application Ser. No. 08/203,069, filed Feb. 28, 1994 now abandoned. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to cartons or packets of food products and to methods for making such cartons or packets. More specifically, this invention relates to such cartons or packets that are well suited for holding sticks of chewing gum. 
     Chewing gum is commonly sold in small packets, in which a number of sticks of chewing gum are wrapped and enclosed in a packing or wrapping material. Typically, the packet is opened by removing or opening a top portion or cover of the packet. For instance, the packet may be opened by pulling a narrow tear strip that extends around a top portion of the packet to separate that top portion from the rest of the packet. That top portion is then removed, providing access to the individual chewing gum sticks in the packet. A disadvantage of this conventional prior art procedure is that after the top portion of the packet is removed, the chewing gum sticks may slide out of the packet and scatter in, for instance, the pocket or purse of the person carrying the packet. 
     Prior art chewing gum packets are disclosed, for example, in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,118,849, 1,329,056, and 1,132,781. U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,118,849 and 1,329,056 disclose chewing gum packets having top covers that are separated from the bodies of the packets either by removing a tear strip or by tearing along a perforated line. U.S. Pat. No. 1,132,781 discloses a chewing gum packet having a top flap that can be selectively opened and closed. This top flap is formed by a separate strip of material that is prefolded and then inserted into the gum package. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to a food packet and to a method for forming a food packet. The food packet includes a wrapping material, food products, and an adhesive. The wrapping material forms an interior, and the food products are disposed in that interior. The adhesive is applied on the wrapping material and engages the food products to hold those products releasably in the interior of the wrapping material after that material is opened. Preferably, the wrapping material includes a removable portion to provide access to the interior of the wrapping material, and a tear strip is provided to help remove that removable portion. 
     The packet of this invention may be used with a variety of food products. In a preferred embodiment, for instance, the food products are sticks of chewing gum. 
     Preferably, the adhesive is applied on an inside surface of a bottom panel formed by the wrapping material, and for example, the adhesive may be applied along areas of that inside surface that are adjacent the left and right edges of that bottom panel. Also, preferably, the adhesive is a heat reactivatably adhesive, and is reactivated when the wrapping material is wrapped around the food products. 
     To form the food product, a supply of the wrapping material is provided, and the adhesive is applied to a first side of that wrapping material. A plurality of the food products are positioned on that first side of the wrapping material. A plurality of the food products are positioned on that first side of the wrapping material; and the wrapping material is folded about the food products to form a packet enclosing the food products, and with the adhesive engaging those food products to hold those products releasably in the packet. 
     As mentioned above, the adhesive is preferably a heat reactivatable adhesive, and the adhesive is reactivated when the wrapping material is wrapped around the food products. In particular, with the preferred wrapping procedure, various edges or edge portions of the wrapping material are overlapped and then heat sealed together to form panels of the packet, and preferably the adhesive is reactivated by the heat that is applied to connect together those overlapping portions of the wrapping material. 
     Further benefits and advantages of the invention will become apparent from a consideration of the following detailed description given with reference to the accompanying drawings, which specify and show preferred embodiments invention. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1 is a bottom perspective view of a packet embodying the present invention. 
     FIG. 2 is a bottom perspective view of the packet, with a top portion thereof removed. 
     FIG. 3 is a plan view of a wrapping material that may be used in making a packet in accordance with this invention. 
     FIG. 4 shows a first stage of a procedure for forming the packet. 
     FIG. 5 illustrates an intermediate stage of the packet forming procedure. 
     FIG. 6 shows a still later stage of the procedure for forming the packets. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     FIG. 1 illustrates packet 10 comprising wrapping material 12, food products 14, and adhesive 16, and preferably the packet further comprises tear strip 20. Generally, wrapping material 12 forms an interior 22, and food products 14 are disposed in the interior of the wrapping material. Adhesive 16 is applied on wrapping material 12 and engages food products 14 to hold those products releasably in interior 22 of the wrapping material after the wrapping material is opened. Preferably, wrapping material 12 includes a movable cover or removable portion 24 to provide access to interior 22 of the wrapping material, and tear strip 20 is provided to help remove that removable portion 24. 
     Preferably, adhesive 16 is applied on an inside surface of a bottom panel 26 formed by wrapping material 12. For example, the adhesive may be applied along areas 16a and 16b of that inside surface that are adjacent the left and right edges of that bottom panel. Adhesive 16 may comprise any suitable adhesive, and preferably the adhesive is a reactivatable adhesive. Even more preferably, adhesive 16 is a heat reactivatable adhesive and is reactivated, in a manner discussed in detail below, when wrapping material 12 is wrapped around food products 14. 
     In the preferred embodiment of packet 10 illustrate in FIG. 1, wrapping material 12 is formed into the shape of a hollow box or cube, and includes bottom and top panels 26 and 30, left and right side panels 32 and 34, and front and back panels 36 and 40. With this preferred embodiment, removable portion 24 is a top portion of the wrapping material. 
     The food products 14 of the packet 10 shown in FIG. 1 have flat, thin shapes, and these food products are substantially identical to each other. Inside packet 10, products 14 are arranged one behind another, between front and back panels 36 and 40 of wrapping material 12. In addition, each of the food products 14 extends upward from bottom panel 26 of packet 10, and laterally extends substantially completely across the packet, between left and right side panels 32 and 34. Further, each of the food products 14, specifically lower edges thereof, engages both of the adhesive areas 16a and 16b on bottom panel 26. 
     Packet 10 may be used with a variety of different types of food products. Preferably, however, food products 14 are sticks of chewing gum, and each stick includes a foil cover or wrapper. 
     As mentioned above, tear strip 20 may be provided to help remove removable portion 24. In particular, tear strip 20 is attached to the inside surface of wrapping material 12 and transversely extends around the inside perimeter of the wrapping material, adjacent and spaced from top panel 30. A small portion 20a of the tear strip 20 extends outside wrapping material 12, allowing a user to grip the tear strip. 
     With reference to FIGS. 1 and 2, in use, a consumer grips tear strip 20 and pulls it away from wrapping material 12, separating top portion 24 thereof from the rest of the wrapping material. That top portion 24 is then removed, forming top opening 42; and the consumer may remove food products from packet 10 by firmly pulling those products out of the packet, through top opening 42. Any food products not pulled out of packet 10 are firmly held therein by adhesive 16, helping to ensure that the food products do not slide or inadvertently fall out of the packet. 
     Wrapping material 12 and tear strip 20 may be made from any suitable materials. For example, wrapping material 12 may be made of a flexible packing material such as paper, and one face or side of the wrapping material may be plasticized. Alternatively, wrapping material 12 may be made of a thermal plastic film. Tear strip 20 may be glued to wrapping material 12 by a conventional process, and the tear strip is made of a material that is stronger than the wrapping material, so that as the tear strip is torn away from packet 10, the wrapping material tears away with the tear strip. 
     FIGS. 3-6 illustrate a procedure that may be used to form packet 10, and in particular, to wrap food products 14 in wrapping material 12. Generally, in accordance with this procedure, a supply of wrapping material 12 is provided, and adhesive 16 is applied to a first side of that wrapping material. A plurality of food products 16 are positioned on that first side of wrapping material 12; and wrapping material 12 is folded about food products 14 to form a packet enclosing the food products, with adhesive 16 engaging those food products to hold those products releasably in the packet. Preferably, the packet is provided with a removable portion to facilitate providing access to food products 14 in the packet. 
     Preferably, adhesive 16 is applied onto an area of wrapping material 12 that extends along and is slightly spaced from a first longitudinally extending edge 12a of the wrapping material. Also, wrapping material 12 is folded about food products 14 so that adhesive 16 is on the bottom panel of the formed packet, and in particular, so that the adhesive extends along the left and right edges of that bottom panel. 
     Furthermore, preferably adhesive 16 is a reactivatable adhesive, and in particular, a heat reactivatable adhesive; and the adhesive is reactivated when wrapping material 12 is wrapped around food products 14. To elaborate, with the preferred wrapping procedure, various edges or edge portions of wrapping material 12 are overlapped and then heat sealed together to form bottom and top panels 26 and 30 of packet 10, and preferably the adhesive is reactivated by the heat that is applied to connect together these overlapping portions of the wrapping material. Any suitable heating procedure may be employed to connect together these overlapping portions of wrapping material 12 and to reactivate adhesive 16. 
     In the above-described process for forming packet 10, preferably the packet is provided with the removable portion by adhering tear strip 20 to the first side of wrapping material 12, parallel to and adjacent a second longitudinally extending edge 12b of that wrapping material. As previously mentioned, tear strip 20 may be formed of any suitable material and may be attached to wrapping material 12 using a conventional adhesive. 
     Preferably, packets 10 are formed on a continuous automated basis; and in this procedure, wrapping material 12 is continuously supplied from a source thereof. For example, that source may be roll of wrapping material 12 that is continuously unwound. Adhesive 16 may be continuously applied to wrapping material 12 as that material is unwound from the supply roll. Alternatively, adhesive 16 may be applied to wrapping material 12 before it is wound onto the supply roll, in which case, the adhesive is on the wrapping material when that material is unwound from the supply roll. Similarly, tear strip 20 may be continuously applied to wrapping material 12 as it is unwound from the supply roll, or the tear strip may be applied to the wrapping material before it is wound onto that supply roll. 
     With this continuous process, wrapping material 12 is transversely cut at regular intervals to form sections of the wrapping material. Each of these sections is then wrapped around a respective group of food products 14, in the manner discussed above, to form a packet 10. 
     While it is apparent that the invention herein disclosed is well calculated to fulfill the objects previously stated, it will be appreciated that numerous modifications and embodiments may be devised by those skilled in the art, and it is intended that the appended claims cover all such modifications and embodiments as fall within the true spirit and scope of the present invention.