GB2308087A - Plastic bag opening device - Google Patents

Description

OPENER FOR A PLASTIC BAG The present invention relates to an opener for a plastic bag.

Plastic bags which are supplied on a roll are frequently difficult to open. In particular, thin walled plastic bags are widely used, such as in supermarkets and hospitals, and also as bin liners. The bags are frequently supplied in tightly wound rolls, and the walls of the bags are often held together by electrostatic force, and are consequently difficult to separate, even by the healthy, let alone by the elderly and infirm.

It is known to provide an opener for a plastic bag comprising two relatively-moveable arms, each arm having an end portion, in use a plastic bag for opening being sandwiched between the two end portions. In particular, Swedish application SE9203134A discloses a sprung arc with rubber suckers at its ends, the rubber suckers sliding over each other in use so as to open a bag positioned between the suckers. This known opener has a number of disadvantages. In particular, it is of a complex construction, and rubber suckers only to adhere to plastic which is reasonably stiff, and so is unsuitable for use with modern thin plastic bags.

In a first aspect, the present invention provides an opener for a plastic bag comprising two relatively-moveable arms, each arm having an end portion, in use a plastic bag for opening being sandwiched between the end portions, and the end portions being moveable apart from each other in a direction substantially perpendicular to the plane of the plastic bag so as to open the bag.

The present invention in a preferred embodiment advantageously enables even this plastic bag to be opened simply and quickly.

The arms are preferably arms of a resilient spring, in particular, a plastic strip taking a u-shaped profile. The spring is preferably approximately the length of an adult human thumb so as to conventionally fit in the hand for manual operation.

Each end portion preferably comprises a tacky adhesive pad, the pads are opposing such as to contact opposite sides of a bag placed between the arms of the opener.

The arms of the opener are pressed together so that the end portions contact opposite sides of a bag to be opened. When the end portions move apart, adhesion between a wall of the plastic bag and the respective end portion in contact with the wall causes the bag to open. In particular, there can be an adhesive force between an adhesive pad of an arm end portion and the wall of the bag. The adhesive can be tacky, such that the adhesive force is releasable, and preferably, no substantial adhesive residue is left on the bag wall. The adhesive pad can include a thin layer of resilient foam coated on one side with a low energy adhesive for releasable adhesion to a bag wall and on the opposite side with a high energy adhesive for permanent fixing to an opener arm.

The end of at least one arm can include at least one projecting portion against which a user's finger or thumb can abut so as to effect a relative movement of the end portions of the arm in a direction substantially tangential to the plane of a bag to be opened. In particular, one end portion can include raised wall portions adapted to accommodate a user's thumb therebetween, such as wing portions. Alternatively, an end portion can include an abutment to lateral movement of a finger, such as a ridge portion. Preferably, one end portion can include the raised wall portions and the other end portion can include said abutment, the raised wall portions and the abutment being directed outwards. By sideways movement between thumb and forefinger the walls of the bag can be rucked up so as to be easier to open.

In a second aspect the present invention relates to an opener for a plastic bag comprising two relatively-moveable arms, each arm having an end portion, the end portions in use contacting opposite sides of a plastic bag and the end portions being relatively-moveable so as to open the bag, in which at least one end portion comprises an adhesive pad. Preferably each end portion comprises an adhesive pad and the adhesive pads are preferably opposing. The adhesive is preferably of low to moderate surface energy. The adhesive is preferably tacky.

The adhesive preferably provides releasable adhesion to the plastic bag. An adhesive pad preferably comprises a resilient foam layer having a high energy adhesive on one side for permanent fixture to the corresponding opener arm, and a lower energy adhesive on the other side for releasable adhesion to the plastic bag in use.

A preferred embodiment of the present invention will now be described, by way of example, and with reference to the drawings, in which: Figure 1 is a side view of the preferred opener; and Figure 2 is a front view of the preferred opener showing a users digits in one mode of operation.

The opener 2 consists of a flattened plastic strip bent into a spring 4 having a u-shaped profile. The spring 4 is approximately the length of a person's thumb. Besides metal, the spring 4 could be made of plastic or any other material having the necessary mechanical properties of bendability and resilience.

The spring 4 provides two arm portions 6, 6. At the end portion 8 of each arm portion 6 there is an adhesive pad 10.

The pads are directed inwards being positioned on the inside surfaces of the arms 6. Each pad consists of an adhesive material on its front surface having low to moderate surface energy. That is to say, the adhesive is tacky rather than sticky, such that the force of attraction between the adhesive and a plastic bag with which it contacts in use, exceeds the force of attraction between the two contacting walls of a closed plastic bag. Appropriate tacky adhesives are well known to the skilled man, and have been used for example to hold sheets of paper onto photographic easels.

The spring 4 is manually pressable so as to contact the two adhesive pads 10 to opposing walls of a closed bag placed therebetween. The spring 4 is resilient in that it is spring biased to an open position. As the spring biasing to the open position generally exceeds the force holding the walls of the bag together, releasing the spring acts to open the bag.

In the event that the walls of the bag are particular firmly stuck together, the end portions of the arm can be pressed to contact the bag and moved laterally in a direction which is substantially tangential to the plane of the closed plastic bag between the arms 6. This lateral movement has the effect of rucking up the walls allowing them to be opened more easily.

To aid this lateral movement, raised wing portions 12 are provided along the edges of one end portion 8, these wing portions 12 are outwardly directed, and in use the user's thumb abuts at least one wing portion, preferably the user's thumb fits in a groove formed by the raised wing portions. The other end portion includes a raised wall portion 14 having opposing convex sloping surfaces 16. The raised portion 14 has a height which is approximately equal to the width of an average human thumb. Whether used in the left or right hand, due to the innate symmetry of the opener, a lateral bag rucking-up action can readily be performed.

Because the adhesive pads 10 have adhesive of low surface energy, a wall of a plastic bag can easily be peeled off so that the bag is then ready for use. Preferably, the preferred opener can be re-used many times, in particular as the adhesive can be cleaned using water and detergent.

To ensure good contact between the surface of the adhesive pad and a plastic bag, the adhesive may have an underlying thin layer of resilient foam. So as to manufacture the preferred bag opener more easily, the low energy adhesive may be supplied coated on a resilient foam layer in large rolls with the appropriate pad shapes already die cut, and with high energy adhesive already attached on the other side of the foam layer for permanent attachment to the spring 4 of the opener 2.

To maximise customer appeal, the opener may have any of a variety of shaped and coloured housings into which the spring 4 is fitted. In particular, the opener 2 may have housings having a variety of bright colours and eye-catching designs, such as simulating items of fruit.

Claims (19)

1. An opener for a plastic bag comprising two relativelymoveable arms, each arm having an end portion, in use a plastic bag for opening being sandwiched between the el portions, and the end portions being moveable apart from each other in a direction substantially perpendicular to the plane of the plastic bag so as to open the bag.

2. An opener according to claim 1, in which the arms are manually pressable together so that the end portions contact opposite sides of a bag to be opened, and when released the end portions move apart, adhesion between a wall of the plastic bag and the respective end portion in contact with the wall causing the bag to open.

3. An opener according to claim 1 or claim 2, in which the arms are of a resilient spring.

4. An opener according to claim 3, in which the spring comprises a plastic strip taking a u-shaped profile.

5. An opener according to claim 3 or claim 4, in which the spring is approximately the length of an adult human thumb so as to fit in the hand for manual operation.

6. An opener according to any preceding claim, in which each end portion comprises an adhesive pad, the pads are opposing such as to contact in use opposite sides of a bag placed between the arms of the opener, in which when contacting there is an adhesive force between each adhesive pad of an arm end portion and the corresponding wall of the bag.

7. An opener according to claim 6, in which the adhesive pads comprise adhesive which is tacky, such that the adhesive force is releasable and no substantial adhesive residue is left on the bag wall.

8. An opener according to claim 7, in which each adhesive pad includes a thin layer of resilient foam coated on one side with a low energy adhesive for releasable adhesion to a bag wall and coated on the opposite side with a high energy adhesive for permanent fixing to one of the arms of the opener.

9. An opener according to any preceding claim, in which the end portion(s) of at least one of the arms include(s) at least one projecting portion against which a user's finger or thumb abut in use so as to effect a relative movement of the end portions of the arm in a direction substantially tangential to the plane of a bag to be opened.

10. An opener according to claim 9, in which the at least one projecting portion of an end portion comprises two raised wall portions adapted to accommodate a user's thumb therebetween.

11. An opener according to claim 9 or claim 10, in which the at least one projecting portion of an end portion comprises an abutment to lateral movement of a finger.

12. An opener according to claim 11 as dependent on claim 10, in which one end portion includes the raised wall portions and the other end portion includes said abutment, the raised wall portions and the abutment are directed outwards, such that by sideways movement between thumb and forefinger with the arms pressed together the walls of the bag can be rucked up so as to be easier to open.

13. An opener for a plastic bag comprising two relativelymoveable arms, each arm having an end portion, the end portions in use contacting opposite sides of a plastic bag and the end portions being relatively-moveable so as to open the bag, in which at least one end portion comprises an adhesive pad.

14. An opener according to claim 13, in which each end portion comprises an adhesive pad.

15. An opener according to claim 13 or claim 14, in which the adhesive pads are opposing.

16. An opener according to any of claims 13 to 15, in which the adhesive pads or pads comprise(s) adhesive of low to moderate surface energy.

17. An opener according to any of claims 13 to 16, in which the adhesive is tacky.

18. An opener according to any of claims 13 to 17, in which tne adhesive provides releasable adhesion to the piastic bag.

19. An opener according to any of claims 13 to 18, in which an adhesive pad comprises a resilient foam layer having a high energy adhesive on one side for permanent fixture to the corresponding opener arm, and a lower energy a adhesive on the other side for releasable adhesion to the plastic bag in use.