EP3909886A1

EP3909886A1 - Closure label for packages of wet wipes or similar products and package

Info

Publication number: EP3909886A1
Application number: EP20382394.3A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Miguel Angel Mira Navarro
Original assignee: Inversiones Y Finanzas Pecolyt Torrellano SL
Current assignee: Inversiones Y Finanzas Pecolyt Torrellano SL
Priority date: 2020-05-13
Filing date: 2020-05-13
Publication date: 2021-11-17

Abstract

The present invention relates to a closure label for packages of wet wipes or similar products, and to a package, said closure label of the type intended for being incorporated in a package containing consumable products, mainly wet wipes or similar products susceptible to drying up upon prolonged contact with the air, comprising a single-layer laminar body made of a rigid material the structure of which is specifically designed to enable being used directly as a practicable closure of the pack which allows opening and resealing the mouth for pulling out the products as many times required. The invention also relates to a package with said label.

Description

OBJECT OF THE INVENTION

The present invention, a closure label for packages of wet wipes or similar products and a package, relates to a closure label of the type intended for being incorporated in a package containing consumable products, mainly wet wipes or similar products susceptible to drying up upon prolonged contact with the air, comprising a single-layer laminar body made of a rigid material the structure of which is specifically designed to enable being used directly as a practicable closure of the pack which allows opening and resealing the mouth for pulling out the products as many times required. The invention also relates to a package with said label.
The field of application of the present invention is comprised in the sector of packages and packs for consumer goods, focusing particularly on the area of industry dedicated to the manufacture of closure systems for said packages, particularly closure systems in the form of plastic labels for packages in the form of a plastic pouch according to the flow-pack system.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

As is known, packages for products such as wet wipes, which are incorporated in the package in stacks and are slowly pulled through a mouth so that they can be used, usually have a practicable or resealable closure system that allows opening and closing the pack so as to prevent, to the greatest extent possible, the still unused product from being in prolonged contact with the air and drying up.
Up until now, said closure has usually been constituted by a rigid plastic lid which is permanently fixed on the mouth of the package during the manufacture thereof. In addition to increasing the cost of manufacturing the package, this makes it uncommon to separate the different types of plastic materials forming it to correctly recycle same, therefore ending up in the refuse waste bin, and therefore not helping to protect the environment. Alternatively, packages having a resealable label arranged on the mouth of the package are known.
The objective of the present invention is, therefore, the development of an improved resealable closure system for said type of packages that allows solving the various drawbacks existing, i.e., ensuring and improving the air-tightness of the content of the package while at the same time allowing the label to be kept in the open position autonomously without a user holding it and to be closed by pushing same from its vertical position, ensuring the closure and air-tightness of the package upon contact with same.

DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION

The first object of the closure label for packages of wet wipes or similar products is a label according to claim 1.
Namely, the label object of the invention is a closure label for packages of wet wipes or similar products, preferably a flow-pack type package made of a flexible plastic material, formed from a flat laminar body of plastic material, preferably polyester, comprising a practicable central area for accessing the mouth of the package on which it is adhered, preferably arranged in the upper surface thereof, and on which the label is incorporated. Said central area is resealable, such that it allows being adhered to and detached from the surface of the package repeatedly.
Likewise, it has a hinged attachment arranged therein separating the practicable central area and a fixed area adhered to the package guaranteeing the attachment of the label thereto, and at least a first removable adhesive label incorporated below the label allowing the opening and closing of the central area multiple times to open and close the mouth of the package, keeping the fixed area adhered to the package. If the label has a safety or guarantee seal this will also be kept adhered to the package like the fixed area of the label.
The label, and preferably the central area thereof has a flap or tab on some of its sides to facilitate the opening and closure, or lifting or lowering of the mentioned central area. This flap or tab is preferably arranged on the side opposite the hinged attachment.
An articulation existing in the laminar body forming the label is to be understood as a hinged attachment, such that it allows the movement of a mobile part of the body with respect to a fixed part. Said hinged attachment has a perforation or cuts in the laminar body, combined with non-perforated parts which are bent upon lifting or opening and lowering or closing the mobile part with respect to the fixed part, i.e., the central area with respect to the fixed area of the label
Alternatively, the removable adhesive label is incorporated below the central area so as to allow the opening and closing of said central area multiple times whereas the fixed area and the guarantee seal, remain adhered to the package preferably by means of at least one second adhesive label that is more resistant than the first adhesive label.
Said label has a flat laminar body which is a rigid single-layer body (formed by a single layer), and where the hinged attachment is a perforation the design of which allows keeping the central area approximately perpendicular with respect to the fixed area or of the upper surface of the package when the label is open and allowing access to the mouth of the package providing access to the product contained therein. As mentioned, the laminar body is flat and rigid, and rigid must be understood to mean that it does not deform, particularly when it is arranged perpendicular with respect to the fixed , i.e., not bent, the laminar body remaining flat, without flexing or bending.
The main objective of this label is to achieve that it stays open, i.e., the central area thereof lifted, or open, with respect to the fixed area, at least 90° with respect to the surface of the mouth for accessing the interior of the package this surface coinciding with that of the package on which the label is arranged. By keeping the label, namely the central area thereof, in this position, access to the interior of the package with a single hand is facilitated, without having to hold the central area with one hand and accessing the interior with the other. In the case of having to clean babies, a situation in which having two free hands is complicated and taking into consideration that one hand is usually needed to hold the baby's legs, opening the package and keeping it open with the free hand while pulling the necessary product out of same, usually a wet wipe, is complicated.
In addition, the closure of the label on the package must be such that it ensures the air-tightness thereof when the label is closed. For this purpose, under the central area of the label there is arranged the removable adhesive label that is adhered on the surface of the package, allowing the movement of the label and therefore the opening of the package. It should be mentioned that the label is adhered to the package, closing the mouth, simply upon dropping down onto same, without the user having to press on the central area of the label for it to be adhered to the package. The weight of said rigid single-layer central area will achieve adhesion. In fact, due to the configuration of the central area of the label, a single layer of a rigid plastic material that is kept stretched out and flat without being bent in a vertical position, preferably polyester, it is possible to close the package from a vertical position of the central area by simply pushing same, such that the weight of the central area causes it to drop down to the surface of the package to which it is adhered, guaranteeing the air-tightness of the package and maintaining conditions of moisture of the product stored therein.
For the central of the label to form an angle of about 90° with the surface of the fixed area, the perforation of the hinge must present a specific configuration which allows a projection of the central area to fit with the corresponding recess in the fixed area. For example, said configuration comprises at least one cut determined by a curved line in the perforation determining a concave part or projection in the central area and a convex part or recess in the fixed area, such that when said central area is lifted, the curvature of the concave part or projection is downwards, and extends below the surface demarcated by the fixed area. Both central and fixed areas are attached through other parts of the sheet. By means of the preceding configuration, when the central area is lifted to open the label, with said label being separated from the fixed area by at least the mentioned curved cut, the concave part of the central area will contact the upper surface of the package, slightly pressing on it and ensuring the approximately vertical position of the central area with respect to the fixed , as well as with respect to the upper surface of the package. To close the label again, the central area is pushed towards the side opposite that of the opening, such that the weight of the central area causes it to drop down onto the mouth, covering said mouth and being adhered to the upper surface of the package. In the preceding description, a curved part in the perforation has been mentioned, but other geometric shapes are possible if, upon rotating the central area of the label, said parts project in the lower part, pressing on the upper surface of the package and ensuring the position of the central area by itself, i.e., without the help of agents or elements external to the label or package.
Additionally, the rigid single-layer label, object of the present invention, may present, preferably on each side of the tab, although it may also be positioned on a single side thereof, a safety seal guaranteeing that the label has not been opened, i.e., they show that the package is tamper-proof. Said seals preferably consist of two parts preferably made of the same material as the rigid label and are attached thereto by means of perforated attachment lines and adhered to the package by means of an adhesive label, such that upon pulling on the tab the label is separated from the two seals but the seals remain adhered to the surface of the package. If the label is separated from the seals upon grabbing a package, it would be confirmed that the label has been opened or tampered with. The pressure generated between the central area of the label and these seals contributes to maintaining air-tightness when the label is closed. These guarantee seals may be adhered to the package by means of a second adhesive label or an adhesive label different from the already mentioned first and second adhesive labels.
The label therefore has three areas, a fixed area at one end, a practicable central area or movable area, and tamper-proof seals at the end opposite the end of the fixed area. The fixed area and the practicable area are attached by a perforation which, as mentioned above, allows the practicable area to be arranged in two positions, a closed position, i.e., on the mouth of the package covering it, and an open position, i.e., approximately vertical with respect to the fixed or mouth or surface of the package where it is arranged. When the label is arranged approximately vertical, the angle formed between the central area of the label and the fixed area thereof is preferably between 75° and 105°.
During the manufacture of the package, the rigid single-layer label is arranged on a surface thereof, preferably the upper surface, which is flat and made of a material that is more flexible than that of the label, and where there is arranged a perforation determining the mouth, which is usually elliptical or oval-shaped. The adhesion of the label to the package is performed by means of at least a first adhesive label arranged in the lower surface of the label, guaranteeing the attachment between both, and such that the practicable central area of the label is arranged on the perforation determining the mouth of the package. The fixed area of the label and the tamper-proof seals thereof can be adhered to the package by means of a second adhesive label that is more resistant than the first adhesive label.
The label is preferably made of a transparent material which allows seeing the design and decoration of the surface on which it is adhered. Likewise, the label may present different shapes, for example, rectangular (like that shown in the figures), square, circular, or elliptical, among others. Likewise, the label may present the hinge for displacement of the central area anywhere on the perimeter of said central area.
Therefore, after arranging the label on the package, to achieve the first opening thereof, the tab or flap must be pulled on to separate same from the safety seals. As the practicable central area of the label is lifted, being separated from same, when it pivots with respect to the fixed area through the hinge, the perforated mouth of the package, which is separated from the rest of the package by breaking the perforation and said perforated area retaining the shape of the mouth adhered to the central area of the label, is achieved. By continuing to lift or pull on the central area of the label, the latter is positioned and kept at an approximately perpendicular position, between 75° and 105°, more preferably between 75° and 95°, and even more preferably between 75° and 90°, with respect to the fixed area, or mouth, due to the configuration of the hinge between the fixed area and the practicable area. The content of the package can thereby be accessed through the mouth without the label getting in the way or hindering access, and it is not necessary to hold said central area once the label is open, the user therefore having both hands free.
It should be pointed out that the label, and particularly the practicable central area, preferably does not have a perimeter surround around same.
The preferred material of the package can be selected from polyethylene (PE), polystyrene (PS), polypropylene (PP), polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polyvinyl alcohol (EVOH), or a mixture thereof, or other similar products; the material of the label can be, for example, polystyrene (PS) or polypropylene (PP), among others, or mixtures of these or others, and the first adhesive label is preferably a removable adhesive label that allows being adhered and detached.
A second object of the invention is a package according to claim 9, namely, a package for wet wipes or similar products, comprising a package with a mouth for pulling out wipes or similar products, and a label with the features discussed above, and where the practicable central area of the label is positioned on the mouth of the package.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

To complete the description of the present invention and to help understand its features, a set of illustrative and non-limiting drawings is attached to the present specification as an integral part thereof.

Figure 1 shows a perspective view of a package made of a flexible material on which a label according to the present invention is arranged.
Figure 2 shows a perspective view of the package of Figure 1 with the label open, with the practicable central area arranged approximately perpendicular with respect to the fixed area and with respect to the surface of the package.
Figure 3A shows an enlarged diagram of the hinge of the label with its central area lifted with respect to its fixed area.
Figure 3B shows a diagram of the section of the previous figure according to section plane AA.

PREFERRED EMBODIMENT OF THE INVENTION

Figures 1 and 2 show a label according to the present application, for a resealable label of a flexible package (10). The label is adhered on an upper surface of the package (10) at least by means of a first non-permanent adhesive label
Namely, the label is a flat, rigid single-layer sheet of a preferably transparent plastic material and has a partially perforated area (40) as a hinged attachment, splitting the label into a fixed area (21) and a practicable central area (20). Said hinged attachment (40) allows, due to its configuration, keeping the central area (20) in an approximately perpendicular position with respect to the fixed area (21) when the label is lifted or opened, i.e., allowing access to the mouth (15) of the package (10) (see Figure 2). The angle between the fixed area (21) and the central area (20) is preferably between 75° and 105°, more preferably between 75° and 95°, and even more preferably between 75° and 90°. This feature allows more readily accessing the content of the package (10) without the label interrupting access to the interior of the package (10) when said label drops down onto the mouth (15), with the user therefore being able to use both hands without having to use one to hold the central area (20) of the label.
The central area (20) of the rigid single-layer label preferably has a tab (25) to facilitate the opening and closing of the central area (20). This tab (25) is preferably arranged on a side of the central area (20) opposite to where the hinged attachment is positioned. On each side of the tab (25) there is arranged a safety or tamper-proof seal (30) guaranteeing that the central area (20) of the label has not been opened, thereby ensuring the air-tightness of its content. Said seals (30) consist of two parts made of the same material as the central area (20) of the label attached to said central area (20) by means of perforated attachment lines and adhered to the package (10), such that upon pulling on the tab (25) the central area (20) of the label is separated from the two seals (30) which remain adhered to the package (10). The fact that the central area (20) of the label is separated from the seals (30) would confirm that the label has already been opened.
The label thereby has a fixed area (21) separated from a practicable central area (20) by a hinged attachment (40) formed by a perforation in the rigid single-layer sheet forming the label. The label remains attached on the surface of the package (10) by means of at least a first non-permanent adhesive label which allows adhering and separating the central area (20) of the package repeatedly without losing its adhesive properties. Likewise, it is possible to use a second adhesive label, which is more resistant than the first adhesive label to be separated from the package, in order to attach the fixed area (21) and the seals (30) to the package (10).
After the adhesion of the label to the package (10) during the process of manufacturing same, covering the perforated mouth (15) thereof, the user will pull on the tab (25), separating it from the seals (30). During the separation of the central area (20) from the surface of the package (10), the part of the package (23) covering the mouth (15), will be adhered to the lower surface of the practicable central area (20), thereby clearing the mouth (15) so as to access the content inside the package, usually wet wipes. If the user continues to pull on the flap (25), the central area (20) continues to pivot with respect to the hinged attachment (40) until, due to the configuration thereof, said central area (20) reaches a given approximately perpendicular position with respect to the fixed area (21) of the label. The central area (20) will form an angle between 75° and 105° with said fixed area (21), preferably between 75° and 95°, and more preferably between 80° and 90°. The central area (20) will be kept in that position exclusively due to the configuration of the hinged attachment (40), and due to the rigidity of the plastic material forming the single-layer sheet of the label, it is prevented from bending, being kept flat at all times, especially when it is positioned in an approximately perpendicular position with respect to the fixed area (21). This hinged attachment formed by a perforation in the flat, rigid single-layer sheet is designed for the central (20) of the label to be positioned approximately perpendicular with respect to the surface of the fixed area (21), as observed in Figure 3A and 3B. For this purpose, the perforation of the hinge has a cut (41) determined by a preferably curved line (41) in the perforation determining a projecting or concave part (42) in the central area (20) and a recessed or convex part (43) in the fixed area (21), such that when said central area is lifted (20) the curvature of the projecting or concave part (42) is downwards. Both the central area (20) and the fixed area (21) are attached through other parts (44) of the label. By means of the preceding configuration, when the central area is lifted (20) in order to open the label, said label being separated from the fixed area (21) by at least the mentioned curved cut (41), the projecting or concave part (42) of the central area (20) will contact the upper surface of the package (10), slightly pressing on it and ensuring the approximately vertical position of the central area (20) with respect to the fixed area (21), as well as of the upper surface of the package (10). To close the label again, the central area (20) is pushed towards the side opposite that of the opening, such that the weight of the central area (20) causes it to drop down onto the mouth (15), covering said mouth (15) and being adhered to the upper surface of the package (10).
The label is preferably transparent to enable seeing the upper surface of the package, preventing having to decorate the label. Likewise, the label may present different shapes, that is, rectangular, square, circular, elliptical, triangular, etc.
A second object of the invention is a package, namely, a package for wet wipes or similar products, comprising a flow-pack type package preferably made of a flexible plastic material, with a mouth for pulling out wipes or similar products, and a label with the features discussed above, and where the practicable central area of the label is positioned on the mouth of the package.

Claims

Closure label for packages of wet wipes or similar products, formed from a laminar body of plastic material, comprising:
- a practicable central area (20) for accessing the mouth (15) of a package (10) to which the label is incorporated,

- a hinged attachment (40) separating the practicable central area (20) and a fixed area (21) adhered to the package (10), and

- a first removable adhesive label incorporated in the lower part at least in the central area (20) which allows the opening and closing of said central area (20) multiple times to open and close the mouth (15) of the package (10),
characterized in that furthermore:
- the laminar body is a rigid single-layer body, and

- the hinged attachment (40) is a perforation in the laminar body which allows keeping the central area (20) in an approximately perpendicular position with respect to the fixed area (21) in the raised position of the central area (20) with respect to the fixed area (21).
Label according to claim 1, characterized in that the central area (20) comprises a flap or tab (25) on one of its sides.
Label according to claim 2, characterized in that it comprises on at least one of the sides of the flap or tab (8) a safety or guarantee seal (30).
Label according to any of the preceding claims, characterized in that the hinged attachment has a cutting line (41) with at least one projecting or concave part (42) and one recessed or convex part (43) such that when the central area (20) is arranged in the approximately perpendicular position with respect to the fixed area (21), the projecting or concave part (42) extends below the surface demarcated by the fixed area (21).
Label according to any of the preceding claims, characterized in that in said open position the central area (20) forms an angle with the fixed area (21) between 75° and 105°, preferably between 75° and 95°, and more preferably between 80° and 90°.
Label according to any of the preceding claims, characterized in that it comprises a second adhesive label between the fixed area (21) and the package (10).
Label according to any of the preceding claims, characterized in that it comprises a second adhesive label between the guarantee seals (30) and the package (10).
Label according to any of claims 5 or 6, characterized in that the second adhesive label is more resistant than the first adhesive label.
Package for wet wipes or similar products, characterized in that it comprises:
- a package with a mouth for pulling out wipes or similar products, and

- a label according to claim 1, wherein the practicable central area (20) is positioned on the mouth (15) of the package (10).