JPH0591911A - Plastic made zipper capable of rejoining and provided with structure for retaining slider in joined position - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: To provide the feeling that a slider is securely closed when the slider comes in the position where a zipper is closed by placing the clamping structure apart from the mutually locking male and female members, and also by enabling engagement at the time when the slider is situated in the moving end part where a flexible plastic belt-shaped bodies are closed. CONSTITUTION: In a reclosable plastic fastener, extrusion-molded belt-shaped bodies 14, 15 are provided with outwardly extended projected parts 14p, 15p, and the projected parts 14p, 15p are formed in such a shape that they are received inside the notch parts 21n, 22n which are formed in the lower sides of the sidewall parts 21, 22 of a slider 10. The respective end parts of the notch parts 21n, 22n are expanded in the end part 10a of the slider 10, and are formed to have funnel-shaped openings so that projecting parts 14p, 15p are received into the notch parts 21n, 22n when the slider 10 reaches the moving end part where a fastener 11 is closed. Thus, when the slider 10 reaches the moving end in the direction the fastener is closed, the projecting parts 14p, 15p are received into the notch parts 21n, 22n, so that the positive proof that the bag is closed is given to the user.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

The present invention relates to a fastener structure for a thermoplastic bag. The present invention particularly relates to a fastener structure of the type known as a zipper.

Conventional metal zippers have tabs on their sliders. Folding this tab will lock the zipper and prevent it from opening. Such features are not provided in plastic zippers, although plastic zippers with sliders are known.

A plastic zipper has a profile and is provided with a pair of rib members and groove members with sliders for opening and closing the reclosable interlocking rib members and groove members. Includes male and female fastener members. In making the bag of thermoplastic film, a pair of these male and female fastener members extend along the mouth of the bag, and the male and female members are flexible in any suitable manner for the bag of thermoplastic film. The wall part is designed to be attached. These members may be integral edges of the wall, or may be extruded separately and then attached to the wall along the mouth of the bag. A method for continuously forming such a fastener on a thermoplastic film is disclosed in US Pat. No. 3,462,462.
No. 332. US Pat. No. 3,259,951
In U.S. Pat. No. 6,096,865, an example of a thermoplastic bag is disclosed in which the fastener members are separately extruded and then attached to the wall along the mouth of the bag. The U.S. Patent also discloses a slider and flexible closure strip adapted to be joined by such a slider to form an airtight closure.

The slider for opening and closing the reclosable fastener is adapted to be attached to the zipper by end attachment or by means of relative transverse orientation. An example of a fastener in which a slider is mounted on the end side is disclosed in US Pat. No. 3,259,951. In some cases, the slider is formed of multiple parts and attached to the zipper. Installation would be simplified if the side pieces were folded and held when the slider was formed in one piece and attached to the zipper.

Thermoplastic bag fasteners in which the fastener structure is opened and closed by a slider and which is provided with a latching structure that cooperates to provide a positive sense of closure when the slider reaches the closed position of the zipper. It is an object of the present invention to provide a structure.

In accordance with one aspect of the present invention, a separation comprising recloseable interlocking male and female profile members having complementary cross-sectional shapes such that they are each closed by pressing together. A pair of flexible plastic strips with possible fastener means extending the entire length, a slider across the strips for closing the recloseable male and female members, and the slider being flexible. Latch means for holding the slider in a closed position when it reaches its closed moving end along the plastic strip, the latch means comprising the slider and the flexible plastic strip. Of at least one of the above, the slider has the above-mentioned slider and the above-mentioned slider is spaced apart from the interlocking male and female members. Fastener structures of thermoplastic bags and the like is engageable when in the moving end closed circumferential bands of FLEXIBLE plastic is provided.

The cooperating latching structure preferably comprises a notch-like structure in the slider and a cooperating protrusion structure in at least one of the flexible plastic strips.

Desirably, the slider is provided with a pair of the notch-like structures for cooperating with the protrusion structures in both the flexible plastic strips. The slider is preferably made of plastic.

According to another aspect of the invention, a pair of opposing side walls forming an open mouth at one end of the bag and disposed along the mouth to open and close the mouth. Also provided is a thermoplastic bag comprising the fastener structure described above.

A description will be given below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Figure 1
1 shows a fastener structure including a plastic slider 10 and a plastic recloseable fastener 11 having a certain outer shape. The slider 10 and fastener 11 are particularly suitable for thermoplastic bags,
The slider 10 is shown attached to the fastener at the upper edge or mouth of the thermoplastic bag B in FIGS. Bag B may be formed of any suitable thermoplastic film, such as polyethylene, polypropylene, or similar material.

A pair of flexible plastic strips 14 and 15 respectively have rib members and groove members 16 and 17, respectively.
A pair of separable plastic means of reciprocable, interlocking male and female profiles in the form of a pair extending at full length to form a fastener 11, joined at the bottom and having an upper edge. The flexible plastic sheets 12 and 13 of FIG. Band 1
4 and 15 may be extruded separately and attached to each side of the mouth of the bag, or strips 14 and 15 may be extruded integrally with the sides of the mouth of the bag. The strips 14 and 15 include tracks 18 and 19 having a profile extending parallel to the rib and groove members 16 and 17 over their entire length.
6 and 17 have complementary shapes to be closed by pressing both members together with slider 10.

The cross-sectional shapes of the male and female members having the rib members and the groove members 16 and 17 to be engaged with each other may be of any type, but the type disclosed in WO 91-13564 is used. preferable.

As shown in FIG. 1, the slider 10 straddles the fastener 11 at the upper edge of the bag B to open and close the resealable fastener member 16 or 17 of the fastener 11. The slider 10 is formed from a single piece of molded plastic consisting of the separating fingers 9 and the interlocking complementary structures that move along the fastener 11 in FIG. Slider 10 may be molded of any suitable plastic such as nylon, polypropylene, polystyrene, Delrin or ABS.

In the preferred embodiment, the complementary structure comprises an inverted U-shaped member including a transversely supported member or body 20 on which the separating fingers 9 are suspended. The body 20 is U-shaped in itself and includes two integrally spaced, suspended legs 20a and 20b (not shown). The finger 9 is located between the legs 20a and 20b. The body 20 is adapted to move along the upper edges of the tracks 18 and 19 with the legs 20a, 20b straddling these members with the finger 9 in the position between the tracks 18 and 19. The body 20 is also a pair of hinged "wings" that fold into their final positions.
ng) ”or side walls 21 or 22.

The wings 21 and 22 are leg portions 20a and 20b.
Is hinged to the slider body 20 by a hinge structure arranged at the opposite ends of the. Wings 21 and 22
Has a central opening into which the legs 20a, 20b enter and the wings 21 and 22 are folded into their final position as shown in FIG. When the sidewalls 21 and 22 are in the folded position as shown in FIG. 1, the compression latch mechanism (not shown) is suspended in the legs 20a and 20b.
The side walls 21 and 22 are locked in the folded position with. In this mounted state, the shoulder portions 21c and 22c of the side wall portions 21 and 22 are located between the bottom portions of the fastener members 16 and 17 and prevent the slider 10 from being detached from the fastener 11 and rising. The foldable suspended side walls 21 and 22 define the open end 1 of the slider 10.
It extends from 0a to the closing end 10b.

Side walls 21 and 22 and suspended leg 20
a and 20b have a wider interval so that the rib member and the groove member 16 and 17 can be separated by the finger 9 which engages with the tracks 18 and 19 at the open end 10a of the slider 10. When the slider 10 moves in the closing direction from the position in FIG. 1 to the closed position in FIG. 2 at the closing end 10b of the rib member and the groove member 16 and 17,
Are sufficiently close together that they can be pressed together into a mutually locked state.

As shown in FIGS. 1-3, the extruded strips 14 and 15 are provided with protrusions 14p and 15p extending outwardly from the surface of the strips.
The protrusions 14p and 15p are shaped to be received in corresponding notches or recesses 21n and 22n formed in the lower portions of the side walls 21 and 22 of the slider 10. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, notches 21n and 22n are formed in opposing vertical surfaces of shoulders 21c and 22c.

The ends of the notches 21n and 22n widen at the open end 10a of the slider 10 as shown in FIG. 3 so that the slider 10 has the closed end of the fastener 11 as shown in FIGS. A funnel-shaped opening is formed so that the protrusions 14p and 15p can be inserted into the notches 21n and 22n when moving to the portion. Protruding part 14p
And 15p are spaced from the closed end of the fastener 11 so that when the slider 10 reaches the moving end of the fastener 11 in the closing direction, the protrusions 14p and 1p.
5p is received in the notches or recesses 21n and 22n. This provides the user with confirmation that the bag is indeed closed. If the fastener 11 is not provided with an end stop, the cooperating projections and notches will serve to hold the slider against removal from the bag over the closed end of the fastener.

The opposite ends of the fastener 11 are provided with end bodies 30 formed of that material to prevent the slider from slipping out of the bag past each end of the fastener. The fastener may extend a sufficient distance to engage 10. If the fastener 11 is provided with the end stop 30, the protrusions 14p and 15p are spaced from the closed end stop 30 of the fastener 11 and the fastener 11 in the direction in which the slider 10 closes. When reaching the moving end, the protrusions 14p and 15p are notched or recessed 21
n or 22n will be accepted.

While one type of cooperating latching structure has been shown with respect to sliders and plastic strips, the other is intended to perform the same function, ie, to give the person using the bag a sense of positive closure. It will be appreciated that cooperating latching structures are used. The protrusions and recesses to provide the cooperating latching structure described herein may be located in other locations than those described above.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a partial perspective view of a plastic bag having a fastener structure according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a side view of the fastener structure shown in FIG.

3 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line 3-3 in FIG.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 slider 11 fastener 14 strip | belt-shaped body 14p protrusion 15 strip | belt-shaped body 15p protrusion 16 rib member 17 concave groove member 21n notch (recessed portion) 22n notch (recessed portion)

Front Page Continuation (72) Inventor Eritsk Anthony St. Phillips 14450, Fairport, New York, New York, United States 24

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. Separable fastener means comprising recloseable interlocking interlocking male and female profile members having complementary cross-sectional shapes such that they are each closed together by pressing together and extending over their entire length. A pair of flexible plastic strips, a slider straddling the strips for closing the reclosable male and female members, and the slider along the flexible plastic strips. Latch means for holding the slider in the closed position when the closed travel end is reached, the latch means cooperating with the slider and / or the flexible plastic strip. And the slider is made of the flexible plastic and is spaced from the male and female members that interlock with each other. A fastener structure for a thermoplastic bag, characterized in that it is engageable when it is at the closed moving end of the strip. 2. The cooperating latching structure comprises a notch-like structure in the slider and a cooperating protrusion structure in at least one of the flexible plastic strips. The fastener structure according to Item 1. 3. A fastener structure according to claim 2, wherein a pair of said notch-like structures co-operate with projection structures on both said flexible plastic strips. 4. The fastener structure according to claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein the slider is made of plastic. 5. A pair of opposing sidewalls forming an open mouth at one end of the bag and a pair of said side walls arranged to open and close said mouth. 4. A thermoplastic bag comprising the fastener structure according to any one of 4 above.