Bag-supporting frame apparatus which is mountable on a substrate, and method of using same

A bag-supporting frame apparatus for mounting on an edge portion of a substantially horizontal panel portion of a substrate, the apparatus comprising:

• a bag-supporting portion configured to support an open end portion of a flexible plastic bag of a predetermined size thereon, the bag-supporting portion comprising:
• a substantially horizontally-extending outer loop portion which is unobstructed around a periphery thereof to receive said bag thereon and
• a downwardly-extending short portion integrally attached to and extending downwardly from the outer loop portion at each end thereof, where a projecting catch is defined by a catch angle formed between the outer loop portion and the downwardly-extending short portion at each end of the outer loop portion, and where the outer loop portion is sized and configured to support the open end portion of the flexible plastic bag thereon and to maintain the plastic bag in an open-mouth condition when the open end portion is stretched thereover;
• a pair of spaced-apart gripping portions for contacting the substrate and holding the apparatus in place on the substrate, each of the gripping portions including an upper horizontal section, a lower substrate-contacting arm, and a joining segment interconnecting the upper section and the lower arm;
• and
• a pair of connecting portions respectively disposed between and interconnecting the bag- supporting portion and the gripping portions;
• wherein a lower end of each downwardly-extending short portion is disposed below a corresponding end of the outer loop portion to which the downwardly-extending short portion is attached;
• wherein the connecting portions extend upwardly from a portion of the frame apparatus proximate the lower end of the downwardly-extending short portions, and wherein the frame apparatus is configured such that the bag-supporting portion is suspended at a level below the gripping portion.

A bag-supporting frame apparatus for mounting on an edge portion of a substantially horizontal substrate, the apparatus comprising:

• a bag-supporting portion configured to support an open end portion of a flexible plastic bag of a predetermined size thereon, the bag-supporting portion including:
• a horizontally extending outer loop portion having three sides, and defining a rectangle with one open side, the outer loop portion sized and configured to support the plastic bag thereon in an open-mouthed condition;
• a downwardly-extending short portion attached to each end of the outer loop portion at the open side thereof, each downwardly-extending short portion cooperating with the attached corresponding end of the outer loop to form a catch angle,
• a projecting catch defined by the catch angle between the outer loop portion and each of the short portions;
• a pair of spaced-apart gripping portions for contacting the substrate and holding the apparatus in place on the substrate, each of the gripping portions being a mirror image of the other, and including an upper horizontal section, a lower substrate-contacting arm, and a first vertical joining segment interconnecting the upper section and the lower arm;
• and
• a pair of connecting portions interconnecting the bag-supporting portion and the gripping portions, each connecting portion including a first substantially vertical connecting segment extending upwardly from a portion of the frame apparatus proximate a lower end of one of the downwardly-extending short portions, and including a second substantially vertical connecting segment disposed parallel to the first substantially vertical joining segment of the gripping portion,
• wherein the frame apparatus is configured such that the bag-supporting portion is suspended at a level below the lower substrate-contacting arms of the gripping portions, and the projecting catches are located at a position below the gripping portions.