Bag closure device and methods of fabricating the same

A bag closure device comprising

• elongate male and female members each having a wall which is generally U-shaped in cross-sectional configuration so as to establish an interior space which is generally cylindrical in configuration;
• said wall of each of said male and female members terminating in a pair of opposing, separated edge regions which define therebetween a slot extending the axial length thereof and being of a dimension which is less than the cross-sectional dimension of said generally cylindrical space;
• said wall of each of said male and female members also being formed of a resilient, shape-retaining material means which permits said opposing edge regions to be resiliently displaced relative to one another so as to facilitate the entry of said male-member into said generally cylindrical space of said female-member, whereby said male and female members are frictionally nestable with one another so as to capture, and thus close, a bag therebetween;
• said bag closure device further comprising means which facilitate separation of said male and female members from said nesting relationship to permit said bag to be reopened;
• wherein
• said separation facilitating means includes a pair of separation tabs each associated with a respective edge region of said male and female members so as to facilitate the manual separation of said male and female members from said nested relationship.

A bag closure device comprising:

• elongate male and female members each having a wall which is generally U-shaped is cross-sectional configuration so as to establish an interior space which is generally cylindrical in configuration;
• said wall of each of said male and female members terminating in a pair of opposing, separated edge regions which define therebetween a slot extending the axial length thereof and being of a dimension which is less than the cross-sectional dimension of said generally cylindrical space;
• said wall of each of said male and female members also being formed of a resilient, shape-retaining material means which permits said opposing edge regions to be resiliently displaced relative to one another so as to facilitate the entry of said male member into said general cylindrical space of said female-member, whereby said male and female members are frictionally nestable with one another so as to capture, and thus close, a bag therebetween, wherein
• said bag closure device further comprises pairs of outwardly turned flanges joined to respective said edge regions of said male and female members, wherein each flange of said male-member is in juxtaposed relationship to a respective flange of said female-member when the said male and female members are in said nesting relationship, and means which facilitate separation of said male and female members from said nested relationship to permit said bag to be reopened, and wherein
• said separation facilitating means is provided by a relieved portion formed in one of said flanges of said male and/or female member so as to expose a corresponding portion of the other of said flanges of said male and/or female members in juxtaposition therewith.

A method of fabricating a bag closure device of the type having frictionally nestable male and female members, comprising the steps of:

• (a) extruding a plastic material along an extrusion axis which lies within a substantially planar extrusion path so as to form a unitary bag closure preform having a pair of generally U-shaped elongate male and female members integrally interconnected to one another by a substantially planar central region which is substantially coplanar to said planar extrusion path, wherein each of said generally U-shaped male and female members extends essentially parallel to said extrusion axis and includes a pair of opposing spaced-apart edge regions which extend along said extrusion axis so as to define therebetween a slot which extends along a linear extent of said male and female members, respectively, said slot of one of said male and female members being oriented in a first direction relative to said extrusion plane, and said slot of the other of said male and female members being oriented in a second direction, opposite to said first direction, relative to said extrusion plane;
• (b) forming a region of reduced thickness in said central region between and parallel to said linear extent of said oppositely oriented male and female members so that said male and female members are hingeably connected to one another by means of said reduced thickness region to permit the same to be folded into frictional nestable relationship with one another;
• (c) forming a graspable handle integral with said male and female members by removing a registerable pair of sections from said central region so as to form a corresponding pair of openings therethrough, whereby said openings register with one another when said male and female members are folded into said nestable relationship thereby providing a graspable handle;
• and then
• (d) severing said preform in predetermined discrete lengths so as to form individual ones of said bag closure device.

A method of fabricating a bag closure device of the type having frictionally nestable, generally U-shaped elongate male and female members from a plastic material comprising the steps of:

• (a) extruding plastic material along an extrusion axis to form a substantially uniform continuous elongate preform of predetermined length, the preform having a generally U-shaped wall which defines between opposing ends thereof a continuous concave interior surface and a continuous convex exterior surface, said preform terminating in a pair of opposing spaced-apart edge regions which extend axially along said extrusion axis and which define therebetween a slot extending the axial length of said preform;
• and then
• (b) removing opposing wall sections of the preform so as to establish a flexible connecting portion which extends axially along said extrusion axis, said step of removing said opposing wall sections including forming opposing open regions in said generally U-shaped wall of said preform at a location between said opposing ends of said preform such that each of said opposing open regions extends (i) along a predetermined axial length of said preform and, (ii) circumferentially along axially spaced-apart edges from a respective one of said edge regions to an axially extending upper edge, wherein said connecting portion is established between said axially extending upper edges defined by said opposing open regions by virtue of a flexible section of said generally U-shaped wall which remains when said opposing wall sections are removed, whereby said male and female members are established are interconnected by said connecting portion.