Patent Publication Number: US-2004047522-A1

Title: Laundry bag

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0001] 1. Field of the Invention  
       [0002] This invention relates to laundry bags in general but more specifically to laundry bags used in institutions such as hospitals and the like.  
       [0003] 2. Description of the Prior Art  
       [0004] Laundry bags are well known in hospitals and several patents for such bags have been obtained over the years. U.S. Pat. No. 4,120,335 by Mitchell elequently gives a background of the requirements, and shortcomings of current laundry bags. It is true that because of the rough handling and the frequent reuse of laundry bags in the health care industry, strong and resilient bags are a must. Besides durability, a persistent problem with bags using a draw string to close the bag opening is that the draw string gets caught, mangled, jammed and stuck so that the bag cannot be opened. Workers are instructed to simply cut the string and throw the bag over for repairs instead of wasting time trying to unmangle the string.  
       [0005] Of course, those bags with the cut strings can&#39;t be readily reused and have to be sent out for repairs, which engenders additional costs. It would therefore be a great advantage to have a bag which does not have a bag opening mechanism which can be subject to jamming or inoperability.  
       [0006] Some of the prior art describes bags having a flap which serves as closure means some of the flaps described are sown on their side in order to, when in an opened configuration, serve as means to hold the bag to a support frame and when flipped over, procure a tight sealing of the opening. The drawback of such a system is that it can quite often jam if the bag is too tightly filled and can be harder to open than drawstring bags which, as described earlier, only require their drawstring to be cut.  
       [0007] Moreover, the way seams are sown together also affects the durability of the bags, therefore, a better, more reliable laundry bag is needed.  
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0008] The present laundry bag uses an innovative extension fold in the bag that folds upon itself when the cover flap is closed. This insures a tight seal that blocks even the tiniest pieces of clothing from escaping the bag. The flap is maintained in the closed position by attachments, thus effectively keeping the bag shut.  
     
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERED EMBODIMENT  
     [0009]FIG. 1 perspective view of the bag in an opened configuration and empty.  
     [0010]FIG. 2 a  perspective view of the bag in an opened configuration and full.  
     [0011]FIG. 2 b  perspective view of the bag on a rack.  
     [0012]FIG. 3 a  perspective view of the bag in a closed configuration and full.  
     [0013]FIG. 3 b  perspective view of an alternate attachment configuration.  
     [0014]FIG. 4 front elevation showing details of the hook stitching. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT  
     [0015] A laundry bag ( 10 ) is comprised of a fillable part ( 12 ) a fold ( 14 ) flap ( 16 ) at least one attachment ( 18 ) and at least one complementary attachment receptacle ( 20 ) a hook ( 22 ) and at least one pocket ( 24 ). The fillable part ( 12 ) is comprised of two panels ( 30 ) and ( 30 ′) sown together using several parallel rows of stiches ( 32 ) including overlock stitches and all stiches, running on both sides plus the bottom, are made on the inside of the bag for a clean exterior finish. An extra piece of fabric ( 34 ) running across the width of the panel ( 30 ) insures proper anchoring and durability of the attachment receptacles ( 20 ). To ensure durability, straps ( 28 ) are sown into the entire length of the flap ( 16 ) so that the attachments ( 18 ) won&#39;t give way.  
     [0016]FIG. 2 a  Industry regulations limit the weight of the contents in the bag ( 10 ) and it is therefore very unusual for the contents to reach or exceed the height of the fold ( 14 ). At any rate, users of the bag ( 10 ) should know that the fold works best when the two opposing sides ( 26 ) and ( 26 ′) that constitute it are to mate in order for the fold ( 14 ) to work properly. The simple action of closing the flap ( 16 ) and attaching it using the attachment ( 18 ) and attachment receptacles ( 20 ) insures that the laudry bag ( 10 ) is properly shut.  
     [0017]FIG. 2 b  In order to facilitate in the filling of the laundry bag ( 10 ), various types of mouting rack exist in the industry which conform to standard laundry bag sizes. The rack ( 26 ) shown here is for illustrative purpose only to indicate the workings of the pockets ( 24 ).  
     [0018]FIG. 3 a  The laundry bag ( 10 ) filled and closed.  
     [0019]FIG. 3 b  It should be understood, as shown in this figure, that one attachment ( 18 ) can equally be used as more than two can also be used.  
     [0020]FIG. 4 The hook ( 22 ) which is used for hanging the laundry bag ( 10 ) upside down when emptying is sown just above the stiches ( 32 ) used in joining the panels ( 30 ) and ( 30 ′) together. In order to add additional durability to the hook&#39;s ( 22 ) attachment to the laundry bag ( 10 ), an additional row of stiches ( 34 ) runs across the bottom ( 38 ) of the laundry bag ( 10 ) and across the ends of the hook ( 40 ). In order to reinforce the bottom of the bag ( 38 ), yet another row of stiches ( 36 ) runs across the bottom of the bag ( 38 ) just under the ends of the hooks ( 40 ).