CUSTOMIZABLE PACKAGING BAGS
A roll of heat sealable bags having markings on the bags to indicate the weight of a portion of bag material located between any two markings. A user can cut off any desired length of the roll to form a customized bag of a desired size. The user can then quickly determine the weight of the customized bag by visual inspection of the number of markings on the bag. After filling the bag with items to be packaged, the markings allow the user to determine an accurate weight of the contents of the bag by weighing the filled bag and subtracting the weight of the bag material from the overall weight of the bag plus contents.
The present invention refers generally to packaging bags and, more specifically, to packaging bags that can be cut into different sizes to form a customized bag of a desired size.
BACKGROUNDA variety of manufacturers produce packaging bags that can be heat sealed for storing items in bags. Typical bags may be sold as individual bags or as a roll that can be cut to form bags of varying sizes, as desired by the user. When a user cuts off a length of the roll corresponding to a desired bag size, the user heat seals one open end of the bag and then places items to be stored inside the bag enclosure. Once the items are inside, an opposing open end of the bag is heat sealed to complete the bag enclosure.
Often, heat sealable bags are used for vacuum packing items in the bag. For this purpose, a variety of vacuum sealers are commercially available. Vacuum sealers are typically capable of pulling a vacuum on the interior of the bag and then heat sealing the bag closed to maintain the vacuum. Because vacuum packing removes oxygen and inhibits bacterial growth, it is often used to store items, and especially food items, for extended periods of time. For instance, meat may be vacuum packed before freezing. Other items such as coffee, tea leaves, nuts, cheese, or smoked or cured meats may be vacuum packed to maintain freshness over extended periods of time.
Some vacuum packed items may be sold by weight for commercial purposes. When selling vacuum packed items, the seller may choose to sell bags of varying sizes and weigh each bag individually to determine the cost of each bag of product. To measure a precise weight of the contents of the filled bag, the weight of the bag itself must be known so that the bag weight can be subtracted from the overall weight of the filled bag. However, when using individual bags of varying sizes, there is no convenient way to know the weight of the bag.
Accordingly, a need exists in the art for a customizable bag designed such that a user can quickly and easily determine the weight of any individual bag regardless of the size of a particular bag.
SUMMARYAn objective of the present invention is to provide packaging bags or a roll of packaging bags having markings fixed upon the bags to indicate the weight of any portion of the bag material located between any two markings.
In one aspect, a roll of packaging bags has markings at spaced intervals along the length of the roll. A portion of the length of the roll can be cut off to form a customized bag of a desired size to accommodate varying quantities of items to be packaged within the bag. The markings correspond to the weight of the bag material located between any two markings. Thus, the weight of any particular bag can be determined by a quick visual inspection of the number of markings on the bag. Once items have been packaged in the customized bag, the weight of the contents of the bag can be easily determined by weighing the entire bag including the contents and then subtracting the weight of the bag material as indicated by the markings.
In a typical embodiment, the roll of bags comprises two superposed layers of flexible material that can be cut with scissors, a knife, or similar cutting tool. A desired portion of the roll is cut off corresponding to a desired bag size. The removed bag portion is open at both ends. The flexible material comprises thermoplastic such that the material can be heat sealed at both ends to form a sealed bag enclosure. A plurality of customized bags of varying sizes may be formed from the roll of bags.
In another aspect, individual bags are provided with markings at spaced intervals along the length of each bag. Individual bags have only one open end to be heat sealed to form the sealed bag enclosure. In this case, a portion of the bag can be removed to form a smaller bag, and the markings indicate the weight of the remaining bag material.
These and other features, aspects, and advantages of the present invention will become better understood with regard to the following description, appended claims, and accompanying drawings where:
In the Summary above and in this Detailed Description, and the claims below, and in the accompanying drawings, reference is made to particular features, including method steps, of the invention. It is to be understood that the disclosure of the invention in this specification includes all possible combinations of such particular features. For example, where a particular feature is disclosed in the context of a particular aspect or embodiment of the invention, or a particular claim, that feature can also be used, to the extent possible, in combination with/or in the context of other particular aspects of the embodiments of the invention, and in the invention generally.
The term “comprises” and grammatical equivalents thereof are used herein to mean that other components, ingredients, steps, etc. are optionally present. For example, an article “comprising” components A, B, and C can contain only components A, B, and C, or can contain not only components A, B, and C, but also one or more other components.
Where reference is made herein to a method comprising two or more defined steps, the defined steps can be carried out in any order or simultaneously (except where the context excludes that possibility), and the method can include one or more other steps which are carried out before any of the defined steps, between two of the defined steps, or after all the defined steps (except where the context excludes that possibility).
In a preferred embodiment, the present invention is directed generally to individual bags or a roll of bags having markings along a length of the bags for indicating the weight of a portion of the bag material located between any two markings. The bags are made of a flexible material that can be cut with scissors, a knife, or similar cutting tool to form customized bags of varying sizes. Once a customized bag has been formed, the markings allow a user to easily determine the weight of the customized bag based on the number of markings positioned between each end of the bag, regardless of the size of any particular bag. By determining the weight of the bag, the weight of the contents of the bag can then be easily determined after packaging simply by weighing the entire bag including the contents and then subtracting the weight of the bag as determined according to the markings. Thus, the user does not have to weigh each customized bag before filling the bag to determine the weight of the contents. Bags having markings in accordance with the invention are particularly advantageous when packaging and selling items by weight. For instance, a quantity of loose items such as coffee grinds or tea leaves can be weighed quickly and accurately while taking into account the weight of the bag itself. Customized bags of varying sizes holding various quantities of such items may then be sold according to a precise weight measurement.
Turning now to the drawings,
As shown in
The roll 10 is used to create a plurality of individual bags 12. To create an individual bag, a length of the roll 10 is cut off from the end of the roll 10 to form a customized bag portion 12 of a desired size.
As shown in
As shown in
The example bags 12 shown in
In a preferred embodiment, as shown in
In another preferred embodiment, as shown in
It should be noted that
It is understood that versions of the invention may come in different forms and embodiments. Additionally, it is understood that one of skill in the art would appreciate these various forms and embodiments as falling within the scope of the invention as disclosed herein.
Claims
1. A heat sealable bag, wherein the bag has markings at spaced intervals along a length of the bag, said markings configured to indicate the weight of bag material located between any two markings.
2. The bag of claim 1, said bag comprising two superposed layers of flexible material comprising thermoplastic, said bag having two opposing sides and two opposing ends, wherein the two layers are sealed together along each opposing side, wherein at least one end is open such that a sealed bag enclosure can be formed by heat sealing the at least one open end, and wherein the markings are fixed on at least one layer of material.
3. The bag of claim 1, wherein the markings are staggered.
4. The bag of claim 1, wherein the markings are configured in increments of about one gram of bag material weight.
5. A roll of heat sealing bags, wherein the roll has markings at spaced intervals along a length of the roll, said markings configured to indicate the weight of bag material located between any two markings.
6. The roll of bags of claim 5, said roll comprising two superposed layers of flexible material comprising thermoplastic, said roll having two opposing sides and two opposing ends, wherein the two layers are sealed together along each opposing side, wherein at least one end is open such that a plurality of individual sealed bag enclosures can be formed by cutting off a length of the roll to form a customized bag portion having two open ends and heat sealing each open end of the bag portion, and wherein the markings are fixed on at least one layer of material.
7. The roll of bags of claim 5, wherein the markings are staggered.
8. The roll of bags of claim 5, wherein the markings are configured in increments of about one gram of bag material weight.
9. A bag, comprising two superposed layers of flexible material, said bag having two opposing ends, wherein at least one end is open, wherein the size of the bag can be customized by cutting the superposed layers to remove a portion of the material, wherein at least one layer has markings fixed at spaced intervals along a length of the bag, said markings configured to indicate the weight of the remaining portion of the bag.
10. The bag of claim 9, wherein the markings are staggered.
11. The bag of claim 9, wherein the markings are configured in increments of about one gram of bag material weight.
Type: Application
Filed: Dec 18, 2015
Publication Date: Jun 22, 2017
Inventor: Patrick Alan Tatom (Conroe, TX)
Application Number: 14/975,212