Abstract:
A twist tie and dispensing system provides for the dispensing of single twist ties attached together end-to-end in a semi continuous ribbon having spaced separation points that permit separation of individual twist ties at a predetermined tension. Twist ties may be dispensed through an aperture that engages with obstructions placed periodically on the ribbon to cause pulling of the twist tie through the aperture to impart the necessary separating tension when the obstruction is reached so that one twist tie at a time may be dispensed.

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
     This application claims the benefit of U.S. patent application 61/288,058 filed Dec. 18, 2009 and hereby incorporated by reference. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates generally to a twist tie fastener. More particularly, the present invention relates to twist ties that provide improved dispensing and storage. 
     Twist ties are used for various fastening and closing purposes by wrapping the twist tie around material to be bundled and twisting the ends of the twist tie together. 
     A common form of twist tie provides a ductile wire enclosed in a paper or plastic ribbon extending along the wire. The ribbon increases the surface area of the wire making it easier to handle and less likely to pull through or cut the bundled material. 
     Such twist ties have advantageous properties that have led to widespread use in a variety of applications. First, wire twist ties are readily applied using either manual or high-speed mechanical operations. Second, multiple fastening and unfastening cycles do not significantly affect the fastening capability of the wire twist ties. Third, twist ties are functional over a wide range of temperatures without a significant reduction in fastening capability. 
     There are many food-packaging applications where twist ties play an important role because twist ties enable consumers to quickly and intuitively access and reseal a product numerous times. In one important application, twist ties are used to seal plastic produce bags as may be provided at a grocery store. To seal the bag, material of the bag adjacent to the open end is gathered and the twist tie is wrapped around the gathered material until end portions of the twist tie are adjacent to each other. The end portions are then twisted relative to the remainder of the twist tie to fasten the twist tie onto the package. 
     When twist ties are used in a retail environment, for example for closure of produce bags at a grocery store, they may be provided to the consumer in a loose bundle, for example in a dish or cup. This can lead to waste when twist ties are spilled or multiple twist ties are inadvertently taken. 
     One alternative to this approach, commercially available under the trade name of Twist Ease, joins many twist ties at their ends along a spine, like matches in a matchbook. Each twist tie can be removed, one at a time, with a slight pull. The remaining ties are held in place so that only one is taken at a time reducing messes and spills. See, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,217,500. 
     This latter approach entails the cost of assembling the twist ties together at their ends with a releasable glue material and requires a special stand to properly support the spine against the force of removing each tie. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention provides a semi-continuous reel or bundle of twist ties releasably attached end-to-end to be dispensed through an aperture. Slight deformations in the twist ties or normal friction between the aperture and the assembly of twist ties causes a separation of the ties as each tie is pulled through the aperture. Because only a single tie is presented at a time, the possibility of grabbing multiple ties is reduced. The aperture may be part of a box or similar container, holding the unused ties in a sanitary environment. The box may fit in a special stand or be used free standing on a table or the like, and may have advertising or other information printed thereon. 
     Specifically then, the present invention provides a twist tie assembly having a series of twist ties each comprising a ductile wire extending along a length and attached to a flexible strip also extending along the length and on either side of the wire by a distance, wherein the twist ties are releasably attached end-to-end to form a ribbon separable at junctions between ends of the twist ties by a predetermined tension applied across the junction by a user pulling on a twist tie. 
     It is thus a feature of at least one embodiment of the invention to provide a method of single-dispensing of twist ties by a consumer. 
     The twist ties may be releasably attached end-to-end by continuations of only portions of the flexible strip across the junctions. 
     It is thus a feature of at least one embodiment of the invention to provide twist ties that may be separated with very low forces, for example, with normal forces of dispensing. 
     The continuations of portions of the flexible strip may be portions at opposed edges of the ribbon perpendicular to the length. 
     It is thus a feature of at least one embodiment of the invention to provide maximum torsional resistance in the junction while preserving a low tensile breaking point. By displacing the connected portions of the flexible strip to outer edges of the ribbon, greater effective torsional resistances are obtained. 
     The wire may be partially or fully cut at the junctions. 
     It is thus a feature of at least one embodiment of the invention to provide twist ties that may be separated by hand without special equipment or cutters. 
     Each twist tie may further include an obstruction to catch on a slot sized to freely pass the twist ties along their length but for the obstruction. 
     It is thus a feature of at least one embodiment of the invention to provide a feature that promotes a severing of the twist ties upon dispensing and/or that stabilizes the next twist tie to be grasped by the user. 
     The obstruction may be a bend formed in the twist tie to provide a hump extending perpendicularly from the length of the twist tie. 
     It is thus a feature of at least one embodiment of the invention to provide an obstruction that maybe introduced into conventionally manufactured twist ties and/or that does not interfere with use of the twist tie. 
     The series of twist ties may be rolled in a coil to provide center dispensing. 
     It is thus a feature of at least one embodiment of the invention to provide a coiling architecture that provides minimal or substantially constant back tension. 
     These particular objects and advantages may apply to only some embodiments falling within the claims and thus do not define the scope of the invention. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a dispensing system per the present invention in the environment of a grocery store showing a dispensing box for dispensing twist ties; 
         FIG. 2  is an exploded perspective view of the box of  FIG. 1  showing a center-pull coil of twist ties as dispensed through an aperture in one box wall; 
         FIG. 3  is a cross-section taken along line  3 - 3  of  FIG. 2  showing construction of the twist ties with a central wire sandwiched between two strips of flexible material; 
         FIG. 4  is a top plan view of the twist tie of  FIG. 3  showing a die cut severing the internal wire and a center portion of the flanking strips; 
         FIG. 5  is a perspective view of a length of interconnected twist ties showing positioning of obstructions along the length for providing controlled separation of the twist ties for single dispensing; and 
         FIG. 6  is a cross-sectional view taken along line  6 - 6  of  FIG. 2  showing catching of the obstruction against a slot of the aperture to cause separation of the ties. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     Referring now to  FIG. 1 , in one embodiment of the invention, a twist tie dispensing system  10  may be positioned adjacent to a point of use, for example a produce bin  12  in a grocery store. 
     The twist tie dispensing system  10  may provide for a twist tie container  14  supported by a stand  16  or the like to be at a convenient height for dispensing. The container  14  may, for example, be a reusable metal or clear plastic box or may be a disposable or reusable cardboard box placed in a retaining tray  19  or the like being part of the stand  16 . A front face  18  of the container  14  may hold a dispensing aperture  20  through which a twist tie  22  may extend to be grasped by a user and removed for use in sealing a produce bag or the like. 
     Referring to  FIG. 2 , the container  14  may hold a reel  24  of twist ties  22  joined in a semi continuous ribbon in a so-called “coreless” or center-pull coil allowing twist ties  22  to be pulled from the center of the reel  24  forward through the aperture  20  with minimal kinking. The aperture  20 , for example, may be a molded thermoplastic molded material inserted into a face  18  of the container  14  as will be described below. Alternatively, but not shown, the twist ties  22  may be wound around a reel having a center axle on which the reel may turn to allow the twist ties  22  to be unwound along a tangent to the reel as the reel rotates about the axle. 
     Referring now to  FIG. 3 , each twist tie  22  may include a center metallic wire  26 , for example, of ductile or “soft” iron or steel wire sandwiched between an upper and lower strip material  28  of paper or plastic. These strip materials  28  extend along a length of the wire  26  and perpendicularly on either side of the wire  26  to form wing portions  30  of predetermined dimension. The width of the strip materials  28 , for example, may be approximately 3/16 of an inch. The upper and lower strip material  28  may be glued together to hold the wire  26  centered between their edges according to techniques well understood in the art. 
     Referring now to  FIG. 4 , at periodic junctions  32  along the length of the twist ties  22 , for example every 4 inches, the twist ties  22  may be cut by a slot  34  severing the internal wire  26  and cutting through a portion of the upper and lower strip material  28  on either side of the internal wire  26 . The slot  34  may be such as to preserve uncut portions of the strip material  28  at edge regions  36  opposed across a width of the twist tie  22  retaining the twist ties  22  together across the junctions  32  against forces less than a predetermined separation force that would tear through these uncut portions of the edge regions  36 . 
     Referring now to  FIG. 5 , at points between the junctions  32 , deformable obstructions  38  may be formed in the twist tie  22 , for example humps formed by a sharp bend across the length of the twist tie  22  upward then downward again by an equal distance to provide an extension or embossment extending upward perpendicularly to the length of the twist tie  22 . In one embodiment, the location of the obstructions  38  may be such that they follow each junction  32  by approximately the amount of extension of the twist tie  22  desired from the aperture  20  as shown in  FIG. 1 , for example 2 inches. 
     Referring now to  FIG. 6 , the aperture  20  may provide for a narrow slot  40  allowing free passage of the twist tie  22  therethrough along its length for lengths of the twist tie  22  free from the obstructions  38 . The slot  40  may be preceded by a wider slot  42  providing for free passage of the obstructions  38 . It will be understood that as the twist tie  22  is pulled from the container  14  as indicated by arrow  44  extending along the length of the twist tie  22 , the obstructions  38  will catch at the interface of slots  40  and  42 . This catching is sufficient to provide an increase in tension on the exposed portion of the twist tie  22  such as to cause a separation of the twist tie  22  at junction  32  outside of the container  14 . 
     An optional second obstruction  39  may be placed on each twist tie  22  between junctions  32  to prevent the ribbon from recoiling into the container  14  when a twist tie  22  is removed. This second obstruction  39  may pass through the slot  40  by deforming under a tension less than that which would cause separation of twist ties at the junctions  32 . 
     Alternatively or in addition, as shown, the wider slot  42  may be preceded by an inwardly extending cantilevered finger  43  directed downward into the wider slot  42  and toward the slot  40  so as to flex upward to allow the obstruction  38  to pass freely in a direction exiting the container  14  but to prevent retraction of the twist tie  22  into the container by means of the interference between the obstruction  38  and the finger  43 . In this way the finger  43  acts like an anti-kickback pawl holding an end of the twist tie  22  outside the container for access by a user after a previous twist tie section is removed and used. 
     A greater tension applied on the exposed twist tie  22  remaining after removal of the separated twist tie  22 , for example by a subsequent user, is sufficient to deform the obstruction  38  sufficiently to allow it to pass through the slot  40  so that this twist tie, too, may be retracted from the container  14  cueing yet another twist tie  22  with its obstruction  38  blocked by the interface between the slots  40  and  42 . 
     It will be appreciated that the slot  34  (shown in  FIG. 4 ) and the obstruction  38  (shown in  FIG. 5 ) may be formed in a single operation by a stamp or roller containing a die for cutting the slot  34  and forming the obstruction  38  and therefore that the ribbon of twist ties  22  may thus be pre-formed using conventional techniques and then passed through a device, for example including die rollers, providing the necessary cutting and forming operations. 
     The final twist ties in each reel  24  may be colored differently to provide a signal that the reel  24  must be replaced. 
     While the preferred embodiment describes an attachment of each adjacent twist tie  22  into a single ribbon by preserving portions of the flexible strips at the junctions  32 , it will be understood that other acceptable approaches include retaining the flexible strip material  28  fully intact and simply severing the wire  26  or partially severing the wire  26  together with an optional partially severing of the strip material  28 , or full severing of the twist ties  22  from each other and reattachment of them together in an end-to-end configuration by an adhesive or other attachment mechanism. It will be further understood that the obstructions may be implemented in an alternative manner, for example, by increasing the width of the strip materials at periodic locations or by applying adhesive dots or the like to a surface of the twist tie to provide the same function. 
     Certain terminology is used herein for purposes of reference only, and thus is not intended to be limiting. For example, terms such as “upper”, “lower”, “above”, and “below” refer to directions in the drawings to which reference is made. Terms such as “front”, “back”, “rear”, “bottom” and “side”, describe the orientation of portions of the component within a consistent but arbitrary frame of reference which is made clear by reference to the text and the associated drawings describing the component under discussion. Such terminology may include the words specifically mentioned above, derivatives thereof, and words of similar import. Similarly, the terms “first”, “second” and other such numerical terms referring to structures do not imply a sequence or order unless clearly indicated by the context. 
     When introducing elements or features of the present disclosure and the exemplary embodiments, the articles “a”, “an”, “the” and “said” are intended to mean that there are one or more of such elements or features. The terms “comprising”, “including” and “having” are intended to be inclusive and mean that there may be additional elements or features other than those specifically noted. It is further to be understood that the method steps, processes, and operations described herein are not to be construed as necessarily requiring their performance in the particular order discussed or illustrated, unless specifically identified as an order of performance. It is also to be understood that additional or alternative steps may be employed. 
     It is specifically intended that the present invention not be limited to the embodiments and illustrations contained herein and the claims should be understood to include modified forms of those embodiments including portions of the embodiments and combinations of elements of different embodiments as come within the scope of the following claims. All of the publications described herein, including patents and non-patent publications, are hereby incorporated herein by reference in their entireties.