REUSABLE BAG

Abstract

The present invention provides a reusable hag comprising a body portion having at least one side wall and a bottom wall defining a storage space therebetween with an opening at a top end of the body portion and at least one repair patch having an adhesive inner surface to enable the at least one repair patch to be applied over a tear in the reusable bag to enable the bag to be reused.

Description

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a reusable bag. In particular, but not exclusively, the present invention relates to a reusable bag for collecting and transporting items, such as products purchased in a grocery or retail store. However, it will be appreciated that the present invention has broader application and is not limited to that particular use.

BACKGROUND TO THE INVENTION

The environmental impact of single use plastic shopping bags commonly available in many supermarkets and shops is well known. Such plastic bags are utilised in large quantities and are usually intended for use as a disposable bag because the material with which they are made is too flimsy and tear easily, preventing repeated use. Furthermore, these plastic bags are often disposed incorrectly and result in polluting the environment. Accordingly, alternatives to plastic single use shopping bags and methods of reducing the environmental impact of shopping bags are keenly sought after.

One solution in many supermarkets and shops has been the adoption of reusable bags, including reusable bags that can be purchased from the retailer at a cost to the consumer. The reusable bags are generally made of a durable fabric material which can be reused many times. A consumer simply brings the bag(s) with them to the supermarket or shop and the purchased goods are packaged into the bag(s) which the consumer has provided. The main disadvantages with these bags is that their manufacture can be expensive and labor intensive, which is often a deterrent for both retailers and consumers to adopt such an alternative option. Accordingly, there remains a need for less expensive, more useful, and more environmentally friendly reusable bags.

In this specification, the terms “comprises”, “comprising” or similar terms are intended to mean a non-exclusive inclusion, such that a reusable bag that comprises a list of elements does not include those elements solely, but may well include other elements not listed.

OBJECT OF THE INVENTION

It is a preferred object of the present invention to provide a reusable bag, that addresses or at least ameliorates one or more of the aforementioned problems of the prior art and/or provides a consumer with a useful or commercial choice.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Generally, embodiments of the present invention relate to a reusable bag.

According to one aspect, although not necessarily the broadest aspect, the present invention resides in a reusable bag comprising:

a body portion having at least one side wall and a bottom wall defining a storage space therebetween with an opening at a top of the body portion; and

at least one repair patch having an adhesive inner surface to enable the at least one repair patch to be applied over a tear in the reusable bag to enable the bag to be reused.

Preferably, the at least one repair patch is the same colour as the reusable bag.

Suitably, the at least one repair patch can be provided on an outer surface of the body portion of the reusable bag until ready for use.

Suitably, the reusable carry bag comprises at least one direct repair patch.

Suitably, the direct repair patch is directly attached to the reusable bag via a lightweight glue adhesive which is applied to an inner surface of the direct repair patch and/or the outer surface of the reusable bag to hold the direct repair patch on the body portion of the bag until ready for use.

Suitably, the reusable carry bag comprises at least one indirect repair patch.

Suitably, the indirect repair patch is indirectly attached to the reusable bag via an adhesive strip of which a first adhesive side of the adhesive strip is attached to the outer surface of the reusable bag, and a second smooth side of the adhesive strip is adapted to enable an adhesive inner surface of the indirect repair patch to be releasably attached thereto to hold the indirect repair patch on the body portion of the bag until ready for use.

Suitably, a removable sealing layer can be applied to the adhesive inner surface the indirect repair patch to provide a seal for the adhesive until the Indirect repair patch is required for use.

Suitably, the indirect repair patch(s) can be provided separate to the reusable bag and stored in a pocket provided on an interior of the reusable bag.

Suitably, at least one handle, and preferably a pair of handles is provided for carrying the reusable bag.

Further features and forms of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In order that the invention may be readily understood and put into practical effect, reference will now be made to embodiments of the present invention with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein like reference numbers refer to identical elements. The drawings are provided by way of example only, wherein:

FIG. 1 shows a front perspective view of a reusable bag according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 shows a perspective view of an inner side of the reusable bag of FIG. 1 showing a tear and a repair patch applied thereover;

FIG. 3 shows a side perspective view of the reusable bag of FIG. 1; and

FIG. 4 shows a perspective view of an interior of the reusable bag of FIG. 1.

Skilled addressees will appreciate that elements in the drawings are illustrated for simplicity and clarity and have not necessarily been drawn to scale. For example, the relative dimensions of some of the elements in the drawings may be distorted to help improve understanding of embodiments of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to a reusable bag. For convenience sake, the reusable bag will be described herein as a reusable carry bag for collecting and transporting items, such as products purchased in a grocery or retail store. The present invention can also be applied to a reusable container in the form of a cardboard box which will operate in the same manner. It will be appreciated that variations may need to be made as required.

Referring to FIG. 1, a reusable carry bag 100 is provided in accordance with embodiments of the present invention. According to some embodiments of the invention, the reusable carry bag 100 is made of a paper or cardboard material. In an alternate embodiment, it is envisaged that the material may have a protective coating applied to one or both sides of the material to protect the bag from exposure to liquids, spills, condensate, wet weather or the like. However, it is envisaged that any suitable material such as plastic, biodegradable non-woven materials could also be adopted.

The reusable bag 100 comprises a body portion 110 for carrying one or more items therein. According to some embodiments, the body portion comprises at least one side wall 111 and a bottom wall 112. The side wall(s) 111 and bottom wall 112 are joined together along their adjacent edges 113 to define a storage space therebetween with an opening 120 at a top of the body portion 110. A preferred box-like shape for the reusable bag 100 is illustrated in FIG. 1 comprising four side walls 111. In an alternative embodiment, it is envisaged that the side walls 111 and bottom wall 112 of the body portion 110 may be integrally formed together from a single piece of material.

The reusable bag 100 is sized to hold the contents of a conventional grocery shopping bag. However, as will be apparent to those skilled in the art, the body portion 110 can have various shapes and sizes depending on the intended use of the end product. It is envisaged that one skilled in the art can design any number of body configurations according the present invention bearing in mind the limitations and advantages of the materials used and the intended use of the reusable bag.

The reusable carry bag 100 comprises at least one repair patch 200. The at least one repair patch 200 is preferably the same colour as the reusable bag 100. It will be acknowledged that the repair patches can be provided in any suitable shapes or sizes to repair different sections of the bag for example, vertical and horizontal strips and corner patches. Referring to FIG. 1, the reusable carry bag 100 comprises at least one direct repair patch 210. The at least one direct repair patch 210 can be provided on an outer surface 101 of the body portion 110 of the reusable bag 100. The direct repair patch 210 is directly attached to the reusable bag 100 via a lightweight glue adhesive which is applied to an inner surface 211 of the direct repair patch 210 and/or the outer surface 101 of the reusable bag 100 to hold the direct repair patch 210 on the body portion 110 of the reusable bag 100 until ready for use. Due to the properties of the lightweight glue adhesive, to use the direct repair patch 210, the direct repair patch 210 can simply be pulled away from the body portion 110 of the reusable bag 100 and be attached to another position on the body portion 110 over a tear or rip 102 in the bag to repair the reusable bag 100 and thus, enable the bag 100 to be reused multiple times instead of being thrown away, as illustrated in FIG. 2.

Referring to FIG. 3, the reusable carry bag 100 comprises at least one indirect repair patch 220. The at least one indirect repair patch 220 can be provided on an outer surface 101 of the body portion 110 of the reusable bag 100. The indirect repair patch 220 is indirectly attached to the reusable bag 100 via an adhesive strip 230 of which a first adhesive side 231 of the adhesive strip 230 which is attached to the outer surface 101 of the reusable bag 100, and a second smooth side 232 of the adhesive strip 230 is adapted to enable an adhesive inner surface 221 of the indirect repair patch 220 to be releasably attached thereto to hold the indirect repair patch 220 on the body portion 110 of the bag 100 until ready for use. To use the indirect repair patch 220, the indirect repair patch 220 can be pulled away from the adhesive strip 230 and attached to another position on the body portion 110 over a tear or rip in the bag to repair the reusable bag 100 and enable the bag 100 to be reused multiple times instead of being thrown away. In a further embodiment, a removable sealing layer 240 can be applied to the adhesive inner surface 221 of the indirect repair patch 220 to provide a seal for the adhesive until the indirect repair patch 220 is required for use. In this embodiment, the indirect repair patch(s) 220 can be provided as separate pieces to the reusable bag 100 instead of being attached to the bag 100 and stored in a pocket 140 provided on an interior of the reusable bag 100, as illustrated in FIG. 4. The repair patches 210, 220 will also provide additional structural integrity and strength for the reusable bag 100.

According to some embodiments, at least one handle, and preferably a pair of handles 130 is provided for carrying the reusable bag 100. The pair of handles 130 is attached by an end of the pair of handles 131 to the top end 114 of the body portion 110. The pair of handles 130 can be attached via an adhesive, stitching or any other suitable fastening means enabling permanent attachment. In a further embodiment of the present invention, it is envisaged that the handles 130 could have an adjustable length to be shorter or longer as required.

In a further embodiment, it is envisaged that the reusable bag 100 could have at least one printable area 150 for displaying a company logo 151, advertising or any other suitable information.

Hence, the reusable bag provides a solution to the aforementioned problems of the prior art by providing a reusable carry bag for collecting and transporting items, such as products purchased in a grocery or retail store. The present invention enables a consumer to easily repair the bag/container and enable it to be reused without having to throw it away. The present invention is cheap and easy to manufacture in comparison to reusable bags currently in the market and can be readily adopted by retailers and consumers.

The reference to any prior art in this specification is and should not be taken as, an acknowledgment or any form or suggestion that the prior art forms part of the common general knowledge in any country.

Throughout the specification the aim has been to describe the invention without limiting the invention to any one embodiment or specific collection of features. Persons skilled in the relevant art may realize variations from the specific embodiments that will nonetheless fall within the scope of the invention.

Claims

1. A reusable bag comprising:

a body portion having at least one side wall and a bottom wall defining a storage space therebetween with an opening at a top end of the body portion; and

at least one repair patch having an adhesive inner surface to enable the at least one repair patch to be applied over a tear in the reusable bag to enable the bag to be reused.

2. The reusable bag of claim 1, wherein the at least one repair patch is the same colour as the reusable bag.

3. The reusable bag of claim 1, wherein the at least one repair patch can be provided on an outer surface of the body portion of the reusable bag until ready for use.

4. The reusable bag of claim 1, wherein the reusable carry bag comprises at least one direct repair patch.

5. The reusable bag of claim 4, wherein the direct repair patch is directly attached to the body portion of the reusable bag via a lightweight glue adhesive which is applied to an inner surface of the direct repair patch and/or the outer surface of the reusable bag to hold the direct repair patch on the body portion of the bag until ready for use.

6. The reusable bag of claim 1, wherein the reusable carry bag comprises at least one indirect repair patch.

7. The reusable bag of claim 6, wherein the indirect repair patch is indirectly attached to the reusable bag via an adhesive strip of which a first adhesive side of the adhesive strip is attached to the outer surface of the reusable bag, and a second smooth side of the adhesive strip is adapted to enable an adhesive inner surface of the indirect repair patch to be releasably attached thereto to hold the indirect repair patch on the body portion of the bag until ready for use.

8. The reusable bag of claim 6, wherein a removable sealing layer can be applied to the adhesive inner surface the indirect repair patch to provide a seal for the adhesive until the indirect repair patch is required for use.

9. The reusable bag of claim 8, wherein the at least one indirect repair patch is provided separate to the reusable bag and stored in a pocket provided on an interior of the reusable bag.

10. The reusable bag of claim 1, wherein at least one handle, and preferably a pair of handles is provided for carrying the reusable bag.