US2329360A - Package openable by tearing - Google Patents

Description

sept 14,' 1943 1 .'sALF1sBERG 2,329,360

PACKAGE OPENABLE BY TEARING Filed Nov. 29, 1941 Patented Sept. 14, 1943 PACKAGE OPENABLE BY TEARING Leroy L. Salfisberg, South Orange, N. J., assigner V `to Ivers-Lee Company, Newark, N. J., a corporation of Delaware Application November 29, 1941, Serial No. 420,931

2 Claims.

This invention relates in general to packages of the type that comprises superposed layers of packaging material that form between them a commodity-containing compartment which is openable by tearing of the layers of packaging material inwardly from one edge of the package to the compartment.

More particularly, the invention contemplates such a package wherein at least o-ne margin of the commodity-containing compartment is formed by a sealing fiange in which the edge portions of the layers of packaging material are scaled together and which is to be torn transversely inwardly from its edge to said compartment for opening the package; and especially the invention is directed to a package of this character formed of material which it is difficult to start tearing from an edge, particularly from the edge of the sealed flange.

There are several materialsof this general nature, one of which is Pliolm which is a rubber halide. An attempt to tear a sheet of "Pliof-llm inwardly from the edge results in a stretching of the sheet and it is almost impossible manually to start a tear; and this is especially true where it is attempted to tear through the edge of two layers of Plioiilm that have been fused together to form a sealing flange for a package.

Packages of this general character are highly desirable and are Widely used inmodern packaging, especially of pharmaceutical products such as tablets, powders and pastes, and accordingly one object of my invention is to provide a package of this character that shall embody a novel and improved structure to facilitate opening of the package by tearing of the packaging material.

Another object is te provide such a package wherein the sealing flange shall comprise a novel construction and combination of zones wherein the layers of material are sealed together and other zones wherein said layers are unsealed, whereby opening of the package by tearing shall be facilitated and at the same time a secure closing and sealing f the commodity-containing pocket shall be ensured.

Other objects, advantages and results of the combination will appear from the following description in conjunction with the accompanying drawing in which,

Figure 1 is a plan view of one form of package embodying my invention.

Figure 2 is an enlarged transversely vertical sectional view on the linev 2--2 of Figure 1.

Figure 3 is an enlarged sectional view on the line 3-3 of Figure 1, and

Figure 4 is an enlarged fragmentary perspective View showing the manner of opening the package.

Specifically describing the illustrated embodiment of the invention, the package is shown as comprising two layers or sheets A and B of packaging material of the general character above described, for example Pliolm, said sheets or layers being arranged in superposed relation to each other and forming between them a commodity-containing compartment C.

If desired the layers A and B may be formed of a single sheet of material folded upon itself, but as shown, the two layers initially are separate from each other.

At least one margin of the commodity-containing compartment C is formed by a sealing flange in which the edge portions of the layers A and B are sealed together and the package is to be opened by tearing the layers A and B through said sealing flange.

As shown, the commodity-containing compartment C is bounded, or all margins thereof are formed, by a sealing flange D wherein the sheets A and B are fused or adhesively secured together at their abutting faces as at l and preferably interdigitated or corrugated as at 2.

T0 facilitate opening of the package the layers A and B are unsealed at one or more zones 3 which lead inwardly from the corresponding edges of the package to points spaced from the corresponding margins of the compartment C, these unsealed zones 3 being surrounded, except at the edges of the package, by the sealed zones of the ange. In each unsealed zone 3 is a slit or notch 4 which extends through al1 of the layers A and B inwardly from the edges -0f the layers and terminates short of the inner end of the corresponding zone.

The zones 3 constitute .tear-initiating zones and preferably are of a visually different character from the sealed zones of the flange D, so that the tear-initiating zones can be easily and quickly visually identified. As shown, this visual contrast is produced by the roughened surfaces of the sealed zones and the smooth surfaces of the tear-initiating zones.

In opening the package, the flange is gripped at opposite sides of the slit 4 of one of the tearinitiating zones so as to tear the layers'of material in said zones in continuity with the slit as shown in Figure 4. The slit makes it relatively the tearing action is continued into and through the sealed zone between the inner end of the unsealed zone and the corresponding margin oi' the compartment C. and then transversely of the compartment so as to open the latter. The initiating of tearing action in the unsealed zones facilitates the tearing of the layers through the sealed zones in an unexpected manner which is in sharp contrast to simply forming a slit or notch in the edge of a sealed zone of the ange D.

Where the package is formedof Plioiilm, the layers are fused together under heat and pressure to form the sealing zones but the tearinitiating zones are -unheated and unpressed. The heating and pressing of the "Plioil1m to form the sealing :Bange changes the character of the material so that it is\practically impossible to tear through the sealed zones of the layers even when a slit or notch is iirst cut in the edge of said zone, but where the tear is started in the tear-initiating zcne'3, the tear may be relatively easily continued through the sealed zone into the compartment. Accordingly there appears to be an action and result where the tearing through the sealed zone constitutes a continuation of a tear through the unsealed zone, that is different from the action and result incident to starting a tear through the sealed zone from a notch or slit.

It will be understood by those skilled in the art that the invention may be embodied in many different shapes and types of packages and packages formed of different materials, and also that the form and location of the tear-initiating zones may be modified and changed as may be desirable in different types of packages, all without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is:

1. A package comprising superposed layers of packaging material which it is diillcult to start tearing from an edge, said layers forming between them a commodity-containing compartment one margin of which is formed by a sealing flange in which the edge portions of said layers of packaging material are sealed together and interdigitated and which is to be torn transversely inwardly from the edge to said compartment but is more diiilcult to tear than the unsealed portions of said layers, there being a tear-initiating zone in said sealing flange leading inwardly from said edge to a point spaced from said compartment in which said layers are smooth and unsealed, and said zone having a slit extendingv through all of said layers inwardly from said edge and terminating short of the inner end of said zone, where- 2. A package as described in claim 1 wherein said layers of packaging material are Pliolm and are sealed under heat and pressure, and said unsealed tear-initiating zone of said layers has been unheated.

LEROY L. SALFISBERG.

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