GB2170341A - Hanger tabs - Google Patents

Abstract

Hanger tabs 11 are adhered together to form the pad 10, with each hanger tab comprising a sheet 12 having a reinforcing strip 22 at one end and a coating 18 of pressure sensitive adhesive by which the sheet may be adhered to a package 20, and having an opening 26 through the sheet and reinforcing strip so that the hanger tab may be positioned over a hook 28 to suspend the package 20 from the hook. The reinforced part may be easily grasped to peel a tab from the pad. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Hangertab pad Technical Field This invention relates to hanger tabs comprising a strip of polymeric material having a coating of pressure sensitive adhesive by which the hanger tab may be adhered to a package, and through opening so thatthe hangertab may be positioned over a support pin orhookto suspendthe packagefromthe hook.

BackgroundArt U.S. Patents No's. 3,869,333 and 3,884,443 describe hanger tabs of the type described above which typically may be used to hang packaged commercial products from a rack in a store. Hanger tabs ofthe type described in these patents, however, are difficult to apply to packages, either because they have individual liners that must be either removed or disposed of, or because they are sold side by side on a continuous liner that occupies an inappropriate amount of space and also must ultimately be disposed of. Also, such tabs are not in a convenient form so that a predetermined number of them can be included in an overwrap containing a number of packaged products (e.g., 24 video cassettes) that a merchant may wish to hang from a display rack.

Disclosure ofthe Invention The present invention provides a plurality of hanger tabs in the form of a pad so that the hangertabs are collected in a compact form that can be easily packed with a number of packages to which they may be applied, while the individual hanger tabs can easily be peeled from the pad as they are needed without leaving a liner that must be disposed of until the entire pad has been used.

Hangertab pads according to the present invention comprise a plurality ofhangertabs each including (1 ) a flexible sheet having a coating of pressure sensitive adhesive on a first or frontsurface, which coating of adhesive adheres the sheet to a second or back surface of a sheet included in an adjacent hangertab in the pad; and (2) a reinforcing strip adhered bythe adhesive over a portion of the sheet and extending to adjacent one of its edges. The reinforcing strips allow a userto easily grasp a hangertabto separate and peel it from the rest of the pad and to adhere the separated tab to a package, and the sheet and reinforcing strip have a through opening which will receive a pin or hook from which the hanger tab and the package to which it is adhered may then be suspended.

BriefDescription ofthe Drawings The present invention will be more thoroughly explained with reference to the accompanying drawing where like numbers referto like parts in the several views, and wherein: Figure lisa perspective view of a hanger tab pad according to the present invention; Figure 2 is an enlarged fragmentary edge view illustrating a hangertab being manually separated from the pad shown in Figure 1; and Figure 3 is a perspective view of a hangertab from the pad of Figure 1 suspending a fragment of a package from a fragment of a support pin or hook.

Detailed Description Referring now to the drawing, there is shown in Figures 1 and 2 a hangertab pad according to the present invention generally designated by the referencenumeral 10.

The hangertab pad 10 comprises a plurality of hangertabs 11 each comprising a rectangularsheet 12 having peripheral edges ofaboutthesameshape and size as the other sheets 12 in the pad 10, which sheet 12 (Figure 2) has first and second opposite major surfaces 14 and 16, a coating 18 of pressure sensitive adhesive on its first surface 14 by which coating 18 the hanger tab 11 is adhered to the adjacent hangertab 11 along the second surface 16 of its sheet 12 and by which coating 18the hangertab 11 may be adhered to a package 20 (Figure 3), and a coating of low adhesion backsize on its second surface 16 that the hanger tabs 11 may be peeled apart.Each hangertab 11 also includes a reinforcing strip 22 adhered to the coating 18 of pressure sensitive adhesive over a minor part of the sheet 12 and extending to adjacent a peripheral edge 23 of that sheet 12. The hangertabs 11 in the pad 10 are disposed with their peripheries generally aligned and with the first and second surfaces 14 and 16 ofthe sheets 12 of adjacent hangertabs 11 opposed to each other with the coatings 18 of pressure sensitive adhesive on major parts of the sheets 12 releasably adhering the hanger tabs 11 together while the reinforcing strips 22 separate the minor parts of the sheets 12 to facilitate manual engagement and separation of the hanger tabs 11 from the rest of the pad 10.The hangertabs 11 each have a circular opening 26 through its sheet 12 and reinforcing strip 22 (preferably generally centrally located on the reinforcing strip 22 as illustrated}, which opening 26 may receive a support pin or hook 28 from which a package 20 to which one ofthe hangertabs 11 is attached can then be suspended, as is shown in Figure 3. A liner 24 only about the size of one of the hanger tab 11 is positioned against the coating 18 of adhesive on the bottom hangertab 11 in the pad to protect that coating 18 of adhesive priorto use.

In one preferredembodimentthesheets 12 with their coatings 18 & of pressure sensitive adhesive and backsize are pieces 10 centimetres long and 3 centimeters wide ofthetape commercially designated No.375availablefrom Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company, St Paul, Minnesota, which tape has a 1.6 mil biaxially oriented polypropylene backing coated with an aggressive synthetic rubber resin adhesive; and the reinforcing strips 22 are pieces 2 centimeters long by 3 centmeters wide of about 3.5 mii thick cross laminated white high density polyethylene film such as that commercially de signated "Valeron" (RTM) availablefrom Van Leer Plastics, Houston,Texas.

The present invention has now been described with reference to one embodimentthereof. It will be appreciated by those skilled in the artthat many modifications can be made in hanger tab pads according to the present invention without departing from the spirit of the invention. Forexample,the sheets may be of any suitable tough flexible material, may have a shape otherthan rectangular (e.g., generally rectangularwith rounded corners or an overall generally oval shape) and may or may not all be ofthe same size. The coatings of pressure sensitive adhesive preferably extend over all, but could extend over only parts of the sheets.The term "pressure sensitive adhesive" as used herein includes any suitable cold sealing adnesive even if it might not be included in a strict definition ofthatterm. The reinforcing strips may be of any tough web-iike material such as paper,film, orwoven or non-woven fabric, andthe reinforcing strips in each pad may or may notall be of the same size and may be disposed at different relative locations on various sheets in the pad (as at different ends of the pad for different sheets). The reinforcing strips may extend to any position adjacent the edge 23 ofthe sheet 12, such as aligned with, slightly past or not quite to that edge.

The latter extension may provide exposed adhesive coated edges (e.g., 1/32 inch wide) on the sheets that may adhere togetherto help hold the pad together priorto use, but may be easily separated by flexing the portions ofthe pad including the reinforcing sheets.

Also the openings in the hangertabs may be other than round, such as triangular with rounded inner corners, T-shaped, oval or otherwise elongate. Thus, the scope ofthe present invention should not be limited to the structure described in the specification, but only to the structures recited in the claims and their equivalents.

Claims (3)

1. A plurality of hangertabs each comprising a flexible sheet having first and second opposite major surfacesand an openingthroughthesheet; anda coating of pressure sensitive adhesive on the first surface ofthe sheet, characterized by the feature that saidtabs (11) comprise a reinforcing strip (22) adhered to a portion ofthe sheet (12) and extending to adjacent a peripheral edge of the sheet (12), with said reinforcing strip (22) having an opening (26) aligned with the opening (26) through said sheet (12); the sheets (12) in said hangertabs (11) being adapted so that said coatings (18) of adhesive will adhere to said second surfaces (16) but can be easily peeled away and being disposed with the first and second surfaces (14,16) of adjacent sheets (1 2) opposed to each other with the pressure sensitive adhesive coatings (18) on portions of said sheets (12) adhering the sheets (12) togethertoform a pad (TO) white said reinforcing strips (22) separate the other portions ofthe sheets (12) to facilitate manual separation of one of the hangertabs(11)fromthe pad pad (10), which tab (11) may then be adhered to a package (20) and positioned over a support pin (28) received in the opening (26) to suspendthe package (20) from the pin (28).

2. A hangertab pad according to claim 1 further characterized by the feature that said reinforcing strips (22) are adhered to said sheets (12) by said coatings (18) of pressure sensitive adhesive and extend across minor portions of said sheets (12).

3. A hangertab pad substantially as herein de scribed with reference to the accompanying drawings.