US 5,683,340 AGranted

Method of making easy open thermoplastic bag

AssigneeTenneco Plastics Company

InventorsWilliam P. Belias, Edward M. Bullard, Carl R. Letendre

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Abstract

There is provided a thermoplastic film bag having at least two integral members that facilitate opening the bag. The bag is manufactured from a flattened tube of thermoplastic material which may be distinctively severed along independent phase shifted sinusoidal oscillating paths down the center of the collapsed tube. The bag may have two opposed tie members which are offset from the vertical center axis of the bag and from each other. The tie members may be grasped and pulled apart to facilitate the easy opening of the bag. The tie members may then be tied together to form a strong member by which the bag may be picked up and carried. In alternate embodiments the shape of the integral tie members can be modified to create a bag having only the easy open feature with no tie members. A method for making the bag is also described.

Claims8

Dependent claims

A method for making a web of interconnected thermoplastic bags, comprising the steps of:

supplying a flattened tube of thermoplastic film traveling in a longitudinal direction parallel to an axis of said tube, said flattened tube having opposing top and bottom sides;
providing first and second cutting means, at least one of said cutting means oscillating in a transverse direction that is generally perpendicular to said longitudinal direction;
using said first and second cutting means to cut said respective top and bottom sides along respective cutting paths so as to divide said tube into two halves, said first and second cutting means being constructed such that said first cutting means only cuts said top side and said second cutting means only cuts said bottom side, each of said halves including a top layer, a bottom layer, and a straight-folded longitudinal edge joining said top and bottom layers, said top and bottom layers of each of said halves including respective mouth edges opposing said straight-folded longitudinal edge and formed by said respective cutting paths, at least one of said mouth edges being skewed, said cutting paths being substantially non-superposed with each other such that at least one portion of said mouth edge of said top layer does not overlap said mouth edge of said bottom layer and at least one portion of said mouth edge of said bottom layer does not overlap said mouth edge of said top layer;
and
forming pairs of transverse heat seals at bag-width distance apart in each of said halves.

2 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.