CA2002096A1 - Reclosable package - Google Patents

Reclosable package

Info

Publication number
CA2002096A1
CA2002096A1 CA 2002096 CA2002096A CA2002096A1 CA 2002096 A1 CA2002096 A1 CA 2002096A1 CA 2002096 CA2002096 CA 2002096 CA 2002096 A CA2002096 A CA 2002096A CA 2002096 A1 CA2002096 A1 CA 2002096A1
Authority
CA
Canada
Prior art keywords
film
package
product
hermetic seal
reclosable
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Abandoned
Application number
CA 2002096
Other languages
French (fr)
Inventor
Robert Walter Quattlebaum
Michael Douglas Esakov
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
Cryovac LLC
Original Assignee
WR Grace and Co Conn
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by WR Grace and Co Conn filed Critical WR Grace and Co Conn
Publication of CA2002096A1 publication Critical patent/CA2002096A1/en
Abandoned legal-status Critical Current

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  • Package Closures (AREA)
  • Packages (AREA)
  • Containers And Plastic Fillers For Packaging (AREA)

Abstract

Abstract of the Disclosure A reclosable package includes a hermetic seal and an adhesive strip located either outside or inside the hermet-ic seal.

4/891004.4/SPECFLDR

Description

Reclosable Package Field of the Invention The present invention relates to reclosable packag-ing, and more particularly to reclosable packaging for food products wherein the package is hermetically sealed and also includes an adhesive openable/reclosable strip.

Background of the Invention Many products, especially food products, are pack-aged in flexible or semi-rigid packaging materials made from polymeric films or laminates. In the case of food products such as luncheon meats, frankfurters, and the like, it is often desirable to use a portion of the contents and store the remainder in the refrigerator for later use.

Hermetic sealing of packaging materials for food applications is well known in the art. Because these packag-es are typically opened by a knife or other implement, they are not easily opened and are not reclosable.

Much effort has been directed towards the produc-tion of easy open packages where incompatible sealants or other systems are used to produce a package which can be opened without the use of a knife or other implement. Howev-er, such packages often are too easily opened, and the struc-tural integrity and safety of the contained food product is therefore jeopardized.

4/891004.4/SPECFLDR

Even in the case of many easy open packages, these packages are often not reclosable and therefore do not pro-vide the possibility of use of a portion of the contained product, and storage and later use of the remainder of the product.

It is therefore desirable to provide the combina-tion of package integrity and product safety associated with a hermetic seal, and a reclosable feature which allows the end user to store unused portions of the package once opened for later use.

Attempts have been made even in this area to pro-vide such a combination. U. S. Patent No. 4,782,951 (Griesbach et al) discloses a reclosable package having inter-locking closure strips positioned outside of a hermetic seal or seal area. The hermetic seal is of the easy open type so as not to destroy the integrity of the package or closure strips on opening.

Such a combination suffers from the requirement of using interlocking closure strips which require either a complex extrusion of the closure strips during production of the package material, or the separate step of applying the strips as discrete components to the packaging material prior to the final packaging operation. Additionally, such closure strips can be relatively expensive to use in these packaging applications.

It is therefore also desirable to provide a reclosa~le package which includes a hermetic seal, and a means of opening and reclosing the package to preserve unused portions of the contained product, but without the necessity of utilizing relatively expensive interlocking closure strips, or complicating the extrusion process by incorporat-ing the closure strips into the extrusion steps.

4/891004.4/SPECFLDR

Summary of the Invention In one aspect of the present invention, a reclosable package comprises a first film; a second film; a product placed on the first film; a hermetic seal located around the periphery of the package, and sealing the first and second films together in the seal area; and an openable and reclosable adhesive strip bonded to and between the first and second films, and located along one side of the package, substantially parallel to and spaced apart from a relevant portion of the hermetic seal.

In another aspect of the present invention, a meth-od for making a reclosable package comprises applying an adhesive strip along one side of a first film; placing a product on the first film; covering the product and first film with a second film; and hermetically sealing the first and second films together around the periphery of the pack-age, the adhesive strip located substantially parallel to and spaced apart from a relevant portion of the hermetic seal, and between the first and second films.

In still another aspect of the present invention, a reclosable package comprises a tubular film; a product insert-ed into the interior of said tube; a longitudinal hermetic seal; a transverse hermetic seal at either end of the tube;
and an openable and reclosable adhesive strip bonded to and between adjoining surfaces of the tubular film, substantially parallel to and spaced apart from the longitudinal hermetic seal.

In yet another aspect of the present invention, a method of making a reclosable package comprises indexing a film downwardly in a vertical form/fill/seal machine; apply-ing an adhesive strip to the inner surface of the film; form-ing the film into a tube; longitudinally sealing the tube;
inserting the product into the tube; and transversely sealing the tube at both ends to reduce a package having a hermetic 4/891004.4/SPECFLDR

longitudinal seal, hermetic transverse seals, and an adhesive strip.

Brief Description of the Drawings Figure 1 is a plan view of a reclosable package in accordance with the present invention.

Figure 2 is a plan view of an alternate embodiment of the inventive package.

Figure 3 is a partially schematic cross-sectional view of the package of Figure 1.

Figure 4 is a partially schematic cross-sectional view of the alternate embodiment of Figure 2.

Figure 5 is a plan view of still another embodiment of the invention.

Figure 6 is a plan view of yet another embodiment of the invention.

Figure 7 is a partially schematic perspective view of a thermoforming system in connection with the present invention.

Figure 8 is a partially schematic perspective view of a vertical form/fill/seal system in connection with the present invention.

Description of the Preferred Embodiments Referring to Figure 1 a package 10 includes a first film 12 (see Figure 3~ and a second film 14. Packaging films especially for food applications are well known in the art, and vary according to the desired end use properties includ-4/891004.4/SPECFLDR

ng heat sealability, abuse resistance, shrinkability, op-tics, and other considerations.

When a suitable film 12 and film 14 are selected, these may be used in various processes such as thermoforming or vertical form/fill/seal operations, in connection with the present invention, to provide a package having a reclosable feature and a hermetic seal. Figure 1 shows a food product 16 packaged within films 12 and 14 and having a hermetic seal 18 around the periphery of the package.

An adhesive strip 20 is located on one side of films 12 and 14 i.e. towards one end of the final package, and in the case of Figure 1 is located between a relevant portion 19 of the hermetic seal 18, and the food product 16.

Upon opening the package, ~he hermetic seal 18, at relevant portion 19 is preferably a peelable hermetic seal which can be peeled back, and through adhesive strip 20 to gain access to food product 16.

Food product 16 is depicted in Figure 2 in general fashion, but can be for example luncheon meats, frankfurters, and other food products, often in discrete portions, which may be used in part with the remainder resealed by closing the package back along adhesive strip 20. In this way, the advantages of both a reclosable seal 20 and a hermetic seal 19 are obtained.

Figure 2 shows an alternate embodiment of the inven-tion in which the adhesive strip 20 is located outside of the hermetic seal 18 and its relevant portion 19. Put different-ly, the relevant portion 19 of hermetic seal 18 of Figure 2 is located between the adhesive strip 20 and the food product 16.

The adhesive strip 20 may be applied by various means and in various ways to either the first film 12 or 4/891004.4/SPECFLDR

second film 14, or both. Typically it will be applied in a substantially linear way along a relatively narrow portion of one side of the film 12 or 14, or both. Also typically, the adhesive strip 20 will be substantially parallel to a rele-vant portion 19 of the hermetic seal 18, i.e. that portion of the hermetic seal 18 closest to the adhesive strip 20.

The adhesive used in the adhesive strip 20 is pref-erably a green, i.e. uncured hot melt adhesive. Such adhe-sives are well known in the art. The adhesive is preferably applied by a nozzle or like dispensing means to the film during the packaging process. In this way, roll stock used in the packaging process will not be complicated by the pres-ence of the adhesive before the packaging steps are initiat-ed. However, the adhesive may also be applied as a discrete strip of material, for example a thermoplastic polymeric material, to which a hot melt or similar material has been applied.

Figures 3 and 4 show a cross sectional view of the packages of Figures 1 and 2, and the relationships among the various components of the package.

The films 12 and 14 of Figures 3 and 4 are depicted as monolayer films, and preferably comprise a heat sealable material which can be heat sealed at seal areas 18 to produce the finished package. Other types of films having for exam-ple radiation frequency sealability may also be used. Also, multilayer films are included within the scope of this inven-tion.

Referring to Figures 5 and 6, alternate embodiments of the invention include the use of multiple adhesive strips 20a and 20b. Using this feature of the invention, adhesives with preferential resistance to certain types of contami-nants, such as oil and water, may be used with effective-ness. Adhesive strip 20a of Figures 5 and 6 represents an adhesive with a preferential resistance to water. Adhesive 4/891004.4/SPECFLDR

~0()2096 ~crip 20b of Figures 5 and 6 represents an adhesive with a preferential resistance to oil. Of course, these may be reversed, or additional adhesive strips 20 may be used.

Referring to Figure 7, a thermoforming system is shown in a fragmentary partially schematic perspective view.
The system 30 includes a thermoforming machine 32 and cavi-ties 34 formed within a film 36 fed from a roll 38. As film 36 proceeds from right to left, cavities 34 are formed in the film. A source 40 of a hot melt uncured adhesive delivers the adhesive to nozzles 42 which ~pply the adhesive in a strip pattern 44 along the film 36 ~s it is advanced. A food product may then be placed in the formed cavities in film 36 and covered with a second film to produce a package like that depicted in Figures 3 and 4, but with a formed cavity in the lower film.

Figure 8 shows the use of the present invention in a vertical form/fill/seal system 50 in which film 52 is in-dexed around a mandrel 54 and a food product is introduced through a tube S6 in a sequence well known in the art. A
source of hot melt adhesive 58 introduces the adhesive to the interior of the tubular film as it is being formed. The tubular film is longitudinally sealed at 60 and transversely sealed at 62 to produce a package having a longitudinal her-metic seal, two transverse hermetic seals ~top and bottom of the finished package) and an adhesive strip located substan-tially parallel to and spaced apart from the longitudinal seal 60.

While the present invention has been described in terms of preferred embodiments, those skilled in the art will understand that modifications may be made after review of the specification and drawings. Such modifications are deemed to ~e within the scope of the claims that follow.

4/891004.4/SPECFLDR

Claims (22)

1. A reclosable package comprising:

a) a first film;

b) a second film;

c) a product placed on the first film;

d) a hermetic seal located around the periph-ery of the package, and sealing the first and second films together in the seal area; and e) an openable and reclosable adhesive strip bonded to and between the first and second films, and located along one side of the package, substantially parallel to and spaced apart from a relevant portion of the hermetic seal.
2. The reclosable package of claim 1 wherein the first film is a thermoformable film, and the product is placed in a product cavity formed in said film.
3. The reclosable package of claim 1 wherein the openable and reclosable adhesive strip is located between the relevant portion of the hermetic seal and the product.
4. The reclosable package of claim 1 wherein the relevant portion of the hermetic seal is located between the adhesive strip and the product.
5. The reclosable package of claim 1 wherein the hermetic seal is a peelable seal.

4/891004.4/SPECFLDR
6. The reclosable package of claim 5 wherein the hermetic seal has an opening force of between about 1/2 pound and about 6 pounds.
7. The reclosable package of claim 5 wherein the hermetic seal has an opening force of no greater than 6 pounds.
8. The reclosable package of claim 5 wherein the hermetic seal has an opening force of no less than 1/2 pounds.
9. The reclosable package of claim 1 wherein the product is a food product.
10. The reclosable package of claim 1 wherein the first and second films each comprise a polymeric heat seal-able layer.
11. The reclosable package of claim 1 wherein two or more openable and reclosable adhesive strips are bonded to and between the first and second films, and located along one side of the package, substantially parallel to and spaced apart from each other and the hermetic seal.
12. The reclosable package of claim 11 wherein at least one of the adhesive strips resists fat contamination.
13. The reclosable package of claim 12 wherein at least one of the adhesive strips resists water contamination.
14. A method for making a reclosable package com-prising:

a) applying an adhesive strip along one side of a first film;

b) placing a product on the first film;

4/891004.4/SPECFLDR

c) covering the product and first film with a second film; and d) hermetically sealing the first and second films together around the periphery of the package, the adhesive strip located sub-stantially parallel to and spaced apart from a relevant portion of the hermetic seal, and between the first and second films.
15. The method of claim 14 further comprising, before step (a), corona treating the first film on the film surface to which the adhesive strip of step (a) is applied.
16. The method of claim 14 further comprising thermoforming the first film to create a product cavity, and placing the product in the cavity, prior to step (C).
17. The method of claim 14 wherein the adhesive strip is applied by injecting the adhesive through a nozzle onto the film surface.
18. The method of claim 14 wherein the adhesive strip is located between the relevant portion of the hermetic seal and the product.
19. The method of claim 14 wherein the relevant portion of the hermetic seal is located between the adhesive strip and the product.
20. The method of claim 14 wherein two or more adhesive strips are applied along one side of the first film, substantially parallel to and spaced apart from each other.
21. A reclosable package comprising:

a) a tubular film;
4/891004.4/SPECFLDR

b) a product inserted into the interior of said tube;
c) a longitudinal hermetic seal;

d) a transverse hermetic seal at each end of the tube; and e) an openable and reclosable adhesive strip bonded to and between adjoining surfaces of the tubular film, substantially paral-lel to and spaced apart from the longitudi-nal hermetic seal.
22. A method for making a reclosable package com-prising:

a) indexing a film downwardly in a vertical form/fill/seal machine;

b) applying an adhesive strip to the inner surface of the film;
c) forming the film into a tube;

d) longitudinally sealing the tube;
e) inserting product into the tube; and f) transversely sealing the tube at both ends to produce a package having a hermetic longitudinal seal, hermetic transverse seals, and an adhesive strip.

4/891004.4/SPECFLDR
CA 2002096 1989-02-10 1989-11-02 Reclosable package Abandoned CA2002096A1 (en)

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
US30946289A 1989-02-10 1989-02-10
US309,462 1989-02-10

Publications (1)

Publication Number Publication Date
CA2002096A1 true CA2002096A1 (en) 1990-08-10

Family

ID=23198342

Family Applications (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
CA 2002096 Abandoned CA2002096A1 (en) 1989-02-10 1989-11-02 Reclosable package

Country Status (4)

Country Link
AU (2) AU4931490A (en)
CA (1) CA2002096A1 (en)
NZ (1) NZ232494A (en)
ZA (1) ZA90950B (en)

Cited By (2)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
EP2562097A1 (en) * 2011-08-25 2013-02-27 Mondi AG Packaging with seal zone
US10464728B2 (en) 2015-04-20 2019-11-05 Bemis Company, Inc. Peelable/resealable package with absorbent strip

Families Citing this family (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
AU704143B2 (en) * 1994-06-28 1999-04-15 Cryovac, Inc. Patch bag having supplemental seal

Cited By (2)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
EP2562097A1 (en) * 2011-08-25 2013-02-27 Mondi AG Packaging with seal zone
US10464728B2 (en) 2015-04-20 2019-11-05 Bemis Company, Inc. Peelable/resealable package with absorbent strip

Also Published As

Publication number Publication date
ZA90950B (en) 1990-11-28
AU4931490A (en) 1990-08-16
AU4629693A (en) 1993-12-09
NZ232494A (en) 1991-12-23

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