Perfect multi-plastic bag holder

Abstract

A conforming to the human hand rigid gadget to protect shoppers hands from the puncturing plastic handles of conventional carry out plastic bags (supermarket, department stores, etc) while heavy with contents, attachable and detachable at will, in the form of a tubular gadget with a longitudinal opening, to introduce the handles of the plastic bag(s) being carried, long enough to conform to the lower perimeter of the plastic bag(s) handles and able to sustain several bags carrying merchandise without breaking. Its thickness, also in conformity with the holding hand for a for a pleasant holding. For the same purpose a variation of the above gadget would be an elongated rounded tool, like a small stick made out of any strong material, long enough to permit the hanging of conventional (supermarket or department stores) plastic bags with merchandise, several bags in some instances, on both sides of the grabbing hand and built in the shape or with the necessary guards to prohibit the slipping and falling of such bags.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

“The Perfect Multi-Plastic Bag Holder”.

A simple solution to a common bothersome nuisance to shoppers: Hurtful hands. Through out history, bags of different types and materials have been used by humans to carry different items. Nowadays, same principle applies, there are different types of bags for different type of uses. Taking this into consideration my invention is aimed specifically to be an accessory to the type of shopping and plastic bags given at supermarkets, department stores and retail businesses in general to carry out merchandise.

In reference to the conventional plastic bags in use nowadays in retail places . . . obviously they are a good solution to carry out merchandise specially considering that they are cheap to manufacture, so cheap per unit that stores do not charge for them . . . they give them away for free with the merchandise; also, so flat that almost occupy no volume and when the contents are light and have to be carried a short distance they are okay, but many times the bag or bags get heavy; stuff like sweaters, towels, bath robes, etc. weigh a lot, and adding to this that most of the time is very difficult to find a parking space close to the entrance of malls specially in Christmas season or sales events, that is when my invention is much needed.

In regards to grocery bags used in supermarkets, normally employees of the supermarket bag and put the groceries in carts for the convenience of the customers that just have to push the carts through out the parking lot close to their cars and unload the groceries. To this point everything is fine but when they get home they have to unload and carry the groceries by hand since there are no supermarket carts available to carry the groceries for them and if we take into consideration that millions of people live in big complexes of apartments all over the country; in New York, San Francisco, Atlanta etc. in different floors of the building and the parking space assigned to them is in many instances very far from the apartment or condominium the obvious conclusion is that all these people will benefit immensely with my invention that is fully described next.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Anyone familiar with shopping in supermarkets and/or department stores have experienced the common, unpleasant and in many instances painful sensation given to the hands by conventional plastic bags with heavy contents; such unpleasantness is obviously the result of the sharp, narrow edge of the bags' pressure at the point of contact with the hand. My invention solves the painful sensation in the fingers by simply increasing the point of contact between user's fingers and the plastic bag(s). As we know the point of contact is crucial. While carrying medium to heavy stuff the thin plastic edges turn almost razor blade sharp and because it is kind of elastic it also squeezes the fingers together causing unnecessary pain. My invention is of the outmost importance specially for the benefit of women because they are bigger shoppers than men and also have more delicate skin and fingers.

The problem, obviously has many possible solutions being the cost of the gadget an important issue secondary just to the accomplished pleasantness; so, my invention is geared to take care of the cost problem the cheapest way possible because I want the supermarkets and department stores to offer the relief tools for free as an accessory to the bags to the customers that request them.

I am plenty aware that there are different wrap around synthetic materials with velcro in the market used most commonly in gym and duffle bags handlers but there are two problems inherent to put this wrap around bands to the plastic bags: one is that these malleable materials do not work too well in this thin edged plastic bags; the carrier still feels and unpleasant sensation, maybe because by not been rigid enough they still squeeze the fingers, and a second problem is that sewing velcro to the material adds to its cost, making it too expensive for retail businesses to give them away and if customers have to buy them most probably they won't like to spend money in something that works deficiently, and is useless as soon as they get home.

My invention is the answer to such dilemma. Two simple tools; both are so cheap to manufacture (just a few cents per unit), that businesses can afford to give them away and either of them works excellent. One gadget would be in the form of a small channel, rounded in the outside as in FIG. 1 of the drawings, made out of rigid and strong material, over an inch thick and just long enough to accommodate the bottom edge of the plastic handles located on top of the bag, bordering over the hole where the carrier introduces the grabbing hand. Such handles after being inserted into the gadget will sink and rest at its bottom. A variation would be an elongated tool, like a little stick less than six inches long made out of plastic, wood, strong foam or any other strong material. Such tool for better functioning shall have a neck close to both ends or a protuberance at its ends to secure the bags so they do not fall down. Either of these gadgets can hold several nylon bags with merchandise at the same time.

DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 of the drawings is the tool of my invention in the shape of a rounded channel with a longitudinal opening 1 to introduce the thin, sharp grabbing handles of the plastic bag(s) to make them harmless to the hand holding the gadget.

FIG. 2 is a variation of tool of FIG. 1, an elongated gadget in the form of a stick, with just enough room on both sides of the holding hand to sustain bags with merchandise, with a narrowing 2 near both ends to secure the bags in place so they do not slip or fall down.

FIG. 3 depicts gadget of figure one in the action of being grabbed by the carrier's hand while holding two bags: a shopping bag 3 and a plastic bag 4 whose handles were previously inserted inside through the elongated opening. The point is that the gadget can hold bags of different denominations inside.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Customers carrying merchandise in conventional plastic bags, the type of bags given by supermarkets, department stores and retail businesses in general experience a very unpleasant and many times painful sensation in the hand in the place where the fingers sustain the bag or bags with heavy contents. This is due to the plastic handles squeezing the fingers together while making contact in one thin, straight line along the fingers of the grabbing hand. My invention takes care of this painful sensation in a very simple way; by expanding the contact of the hand to a broader, rounded and firmer area versus a linear and elastic point of contact.

Two different gadgets are the solution; either of them works just fine. Let us start by explaining tool of FIG. 1 of drawings: it is made in the shape of a rounded channel, of strong and rigid material: wood, plastic, strong foam, etc, just long enough to be able to accommodate the plastic grabbing handles on top of the plastic bag (s). The shopper easily introduces the twin handles of each bag through the longitudinal opening 1 of as many bags being carried. The only limitation in the number of bags would be the added weight and bulk to the extent of impairing the walking of the carrier. The hand of a person carrying such bags without the gadget would experience a extreme discomfort but if the tool is present a surprisingly pleasant feeling, specially when its outside (the part that the hand grabs) is covered with open cell foam. In an instant you put it on and in an instant you take it off, it is that simple and a surprisingly positive particular peculiarity of this channeled tool is that even when the shopper disengages the hand it remains in place, it does not fall to the ground as expected, this is due to the plastic handles expansion in the tubular interior keeping the tool in place.

Also, an undeniable advantage of this affixable multi-bag holder protector gadget over permanently fixed to the bag hand protectors is a precious premium space saving because a hand can not grab too many tubular tools at the same time; such would be the case if each bag had a tubular fixed grasping, so it is easy to see that having just one tool doing the job is the perfect solution.

It has not existed or exists in the market a tool with the characteristics of the tool of my invention such as its ability to be attached or detached at will, with the ability of a single tool being able to hold at the same time several bags with heavy contents and in doing so, protecting the hand or hands of the carrier. Whoever experiences shopping with this gadget will never want to carry heavy bags without it, specially a gadget that is covered with foam in the outside that is just unbelievably comfortable.

Same situation in the case of tool of FIG. 2 an elongated gadget like a stick made out of material strong enough to sustain the weight of heavy bags without braking or much bending; any tool bigger than six inches would be redundant and unnecessary. The hand of the carrier grabs the middle of the gadget and several bags with merchandise can be hanged and carried on both ends of the stick. Of course the limit would be adding too many bags as to impair walking due to the excessive bulk and weight. The narrowing 2 close to both ends of the gadget serves the purpose of securing the plastic bags in place. So they do not slip and fall or slip in the direction of the hand causing discomfort to the carrier. In the drawings the narrowing 2 serves as a guard but it could be any other means functioning as a guard.

I am very aware that there are wrap around bands with velcro material used more frequently in duffle and gym bags, but to use them in these plastic supermarket/department store nylon bags have two inherent problems: one, such wrap around materials do not work well with these plastic bags . . . when the contents are heavy they can not compare in comfort to the rigid gadgets as the ones of my invention. This was an obvious conclusion after several and different experiments done with various flexible and rigid materials and gadgets. Besides wrap around materials per se are too costly specially when velcro is added. So, It is too costly for the retail places like supermarket and department stores to give them for free and if the customers have to pay for them most likely they would not want to spend any money in something that does not work well and will be discarded and thrown away as soon as they get home. For these reasons I consider my gadgets definitely and without question, the perfect solution. The feeling is incredible and the cost is just cents per unit; very much affordable for the retail stores to give away for the benefit of the general shopping public.

Claims

1. I claim that my invention intended to benefit supermarket, department stores and retail businesses shoppers in general consists of an attachable/detachable, rigid or semi rigid tool that conforms to the palm and fingers of a semi-closed hand, with a lengthwise split end to end, a more appropriate description would be a tool in tubular form with a longitudinal opening, such opening for the purpose of introducing (engaging and disengaging) the handles of one or several standard plastic bags, (the ones given at supermarkets, department stores and retail outlets in general to carry out merchandise) protecting this way shoppers from the puncturing plastic handles that being thin and elastic when carrying weight turn razor blade sharp, very unpleasant even hurtful to the hands of the carrier, such gadget's longitudinal size just long enough to conform to the bottom perimeter of the handles of such conventional plastic bags, its thickness also in conformation to the hand for a pleasant grabbing

2. The attachability and detachability of tool of claim 1 to plastic and shopping bags through out a longitudinal opening in any shape or form.

3. Tool of claim 1 that instead of a longitudinal opening is in tubular form and has a means to assemble and disassemble longitudinally (two elongated hemispheres), to hold inside the plastic handles at will.

4. Tool of claim 1 where foam or any other soft material, contoured or not, is added to the outside of the gadget for more pleasant handling in consideration to women shoppers with more delicate fingers.

5. Tool of claim 1 where the longitudinal opening widens at one or both ends for easier inserting of the bags' handles.

6. The attaching and detaching of tool of claim 1 through out any means.

7. Tool of claim 1 by no means restricted to covering just conventional plastic bags but also covering its use in other type of bags, suitcases, bundles or utensils with sharp handles.

8. A variation of tool of claim 1 in the form of a little stick made out of any material strong enough to support bags with merchandise hanging on both ends while the carrier's hand is grabbing its middle section, with built in means to prohibit the nylon bags to slip or fall to the ground.

9. A tool blending specifications of claims 1 and 6 in one single gadget.

10. A tool where the hand grabbing and the suspension of the bags are in different connected means.