Patent ID: 8376016

Claim:
A horn and anvil combination, said horn and anvil combination being particularly adapted for use in ultrasonic welding of thin work pieces comprising a plastic film, for improved integrity in the packaging of solids and liquids with narrow welds to reduce per-package film-material usage and costs: said horn comprising: a plurality of energy directors, said plurality of energy directors being regularly spaced in a first direction and in an orthogonal second direction to form a grid pattern, each of said plurality of energy directors comprising a generally flat and rectangular-shaped plateau surface with each side of said rectangular-shaped plateau surfaces transitioning into an angled side surface creating a first, a second, a third, and a fourth angled side surface for each said plateau surface; each of said angled side surfaces of each said plateau surface are connected with another side surface of an adjacent plateau surface, except at an outer periphery of said horn; said anvil comprising: a plurality of energy directors being regularly spaced in a first direction and in an orthogonal second direction to form a grid pattern, each of said plurality of energy directors comprising a generally flat and rectangular-shaped plateau surface with each side of said rectangular-shaped plateau surfaces transitioning into an angled side surface creating a first, a second, a third, and a fourth angled side surface for each said plateau surface; each of said angled side surfaces of each said plateau surface are connected with another side surface of an adjacent plateau surface, except at an outer periphery of said anvil; and wherein said energy directors of said horn and said energy directors of said anvil are configured for alignment during the welding of said thin plastic film, whereby said side surfaces of said horn plateaus interlock with said side surfaces of said anvil plateaus in a repetitive three-dimensional pattern in both said first direction and said second direction, for improved weld integrity permitting substantially narrower welds to reduce per-package film-material usage and costs.