US2992768A

US2992768A - Carrier bags and boxes

Info

Publication number: US2992768A
Application number: US770174A
Authority: US
Inventors: Gatward Harry Frederick
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1958-07-04
Filing date: 1958-10-28
Publication date: 1961-07-18
Anticipated expiration: 1978-07-18

Description

July 18, 1961 H. F. GATWARD CARRIER BAGS AND BOXES 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Oct. 28, 1958 INVENTOR HARRY 7T GATWARD BY 5 A T TORNEYS July 18, 1961 H. F. GATWARD CARRIER BAGS AND BOXES 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Oct. 28, 1958 INVENTOR HARRY FT @ATk/ARD g9 ATTORNE Y8 July 18, 1961 H. F. GATWARD CARRIER BAGS AND BOXES 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed Oct. 28, 1958 INVENTOR HARRY 7. GATh ARD y y H ATTORNEYS nit-6d States P rser CARRIER BAGS AND BOXES 7 Harry Frederick Gatward, 72 Tottenham Court Road,

' Londou W. 1, England Filed Oct. 28, 1958, Ser. No. 770,174 laims priority, application Great Britain July 4, 1958 2 Claims. (Cl. 229-54) This invention relates to carrier bags composed of paper or other comparatively thin material, which bags are usually stiifened or reinforced at the mouth, or boxes composed of stiffer materials such as cardboard.

In some cases such carrier bags are not provided with any special form of closure flap for sealing the bag at the mouth, but in other cases special overlapping flaps are provided which are superimposed when the bag is closed. In the case of boxes it is the usual practice to provide superimposed flap-like portions which are held in their superimposed position to maintain the box closed.

The chief object of the present invention is to provide improved closure means for such carrier bags or boxes which will more effectively maintain the bag or box closed at the mouth and also provide a convenient carrying handle. I

A carrier bag or box in accordance with the present invention has one or more string or like carrying handles so associated therewith that the tension in the handle or handles under the weight of the contents of the bag or box holds the mouth of the bag or box closed.

It is proposed in carrying out the invention to provide the mouth of the bag or box with one or more registering holes through which one or both extremities of the string or like carrying handle can be passed, the extremity or extremities of the handle carrying a T tag or its equivalent which can be easily threaded through the registering holes and will then assume a position in which it cannot be withdrawn thereby holding the mouth of the bag or box closed under the tension in the carrying handle.

Referring to the accompanying drawings:

FIGURES 1 to 4 illustrate one form of carrier bag in accordance with the present invention;

FIGURES 5 and 6 illustrate a modified construction;

FIGURES 7 to 8, 9 to 10, 11 and 12 illustrate four further alternative forms.

" l Referring in the first case to FIGURES l to 4, the

which the extremities of the handle are passed, each exp when the ba'g'is closed.

carrier bag illustrated is of the box type, i.e. the bag when opened out to receive a garment or article of clothing or other commodity, is of substantially rectangular box-like shape, such a bag being particularly pleasing to the eye and not being so liable to crease the article or articles contained therein.

The bag is indicated generally by reference numeral 1, the bag being internally stiffened at the mouth by means of a rectangular stiffening member 2 and a second stiifening member 3 associated with the opposite side of the bag, which second stiffening member has its corners cut oif at an angle of 45.

The bag is formed with longitudinally arranged crease lines 4 and with additional crease lines 5, shown more clearly in FIGURE 3.

The arrangement is such that the bag can be distributed in the flat condition shown in FIGURES 1 and 2, but can be opened out into the positions shown in FIG-

URES

3 and 4 by the retailer when packing the bag with the commodity which has been sold, the bag when opened out being of rectangular box like form.

FIGURES 1 and 2 illustrate opposite sides of the bag and it will be seen that in FIGURE 1 the front side of the bag is formed with two holes 6 through which is passed a string or like carrying handle 7, and with two holes 8 which are more widely spaced apart and through tremity carrying a device generally known in the trade as a T tag 9. Such a device usually takes the form of a length of metal bent into the form of a tube and encircling the extremity of the string handle, the string handle emerging from the tube at its centre so that the tube normally lies at right angles to the handle, but can be moved into alignment therewith so that it can be easily threaded through the holes which have been formed in the bag during manufacture.

As will be seen clearly from FIGURE 2, the opposite side of the bag is formed with a slot 10, the extremities of which are of considerably less width and terminate in holes 11. The same side of the bag as is formed with the slot is also formed with two holes 12 for a purpose hereinafter referred to.

Referring now to FIGURES 3 and 4, in FIGURE 3 that portion of the mouth of the bag which is provided with the rectangular reinforcement 2 has been turned downwardly and the edges of the bag adjacent the month have been folded inwardly, only the flap like part carrying reinforcement 3 now projecting in an upward direction. The lip part of the handle 7 has been threaded through slot 10 and in course of turning the upwardly projecting flap into the position shown in FIGURE 4, the two T tags are passed upwardly through the holes 12 and the string handle drawn upwardly into a position in which the handle enters the holes 11. This has the effect of drawing the upstanding flap downwardly into a position in which it lies in facial engagement with the lower flap, thereby holding the mouth of the bag closed, the tension in the handle when the bag is laden and being carried, assisting in this process.

In the case of FIGURES 5 and 6, two such handles are provided, but only handle 7 is used to secure the upper flap in its closed position, the second handle 7a being merely an additional handle which may be fitted for ease of carrying and for the more uniform distribution of the weight of the bags contents over the reinforced top, particularly in the case of a comparatively large bag.

Referring now to FIGURES 7 and 8, an alternative form of carrier bag is illustrated and in this case the bag is of the type in which the two sides of the bag adjacent the mouth are brought together into facial engagement The bag is preferably reinforced at the mouth, either by means of cardboard reinforcing members or by folding the material of the bag inwardly so that the bag adjacent the mouth is of double thickness.

It will be seen in this case that each side of the bag adjacent the mouth is formed with a series of holes, 8, both sets of holes registering when the bag is closed.

The carrying handle 7 in this case consists of a comparatively long length of string or other flexible material which is threaded through the holes in a zig-zag manner, the tags 9 on the extremities of the handle preventing the handle being pulled through the registering holes under the weight of the bags contents.

The slack centre part of the string is use-d as a carrying handle, the tension in the string serving to hold the two sides of the bag firmly together in facial engagement adjacent the mouth.

As in the construction previously described, the bag is formed with longitudinal crease lines 4 so that the bag is of the gusset type.

In FIGURES 9 and 10 a more simple construction is shown wherein both sides of the bag adjacent the mouth are formed with two holes, which holes are brought into correct register when the extremities of the handle have been passed through the holes in the opposite side of the bag and the handle has been tensioned as in FIGURE 10,

Patented July 18, 1961 the weight of the contents serving to maintain the mouth of the bag closed when the bag is being carried in a laden condition.

As in the case of FIGURES 7 and 8., it is preferred to provide the mouth of the bag with an internal or other type of reinforcement, whilst the holes may also 'be reinforced if desired 'by means of washer-like stiffening members 13.

The string or like handle as in the previously described constructions is provided at its extremities with T tags or equivalent members which can be easily threaded through the registering holes and will then prevent return movement, the length of the tubular part of the tag being greater than the hole diameter.

Instead of using two pairs of registering holes as in FIGURES 9 and 10, a single hole may be provided in each bag side which holes will be brought into register by passing both ends of the string handle therethrough. If desired the holes may take the form of a slot instead of being of the circular formation shown, but in such a case the length of the tubular or other bar-like part of the T tag will necessarily have to *be greater than the length of the slot.

FIGURE 11 is a fra-gmental perspective view of a carrier bag of the kind usually provided with a pair of string handles 7. In this case, however, the extremities of each handle carry a T tag 9 and each edge of the bag is formed with four holes 8 which may if necessary be reinforced' with washer-like stifiening members 13. The handles may be arranged for example as shown, or the T tags on one or both handles may be passed through the holes which are not being used in the opposite edge of the bag in which case the tension in the handles will hold the mouth of the bag firmly closed.

In the case of FIGURE 12 the mouth of the bag is folded over to bring four pairs of holes 8 previously formed in the bag, accurately into register in which case the T tags 9 on the single string or like handle are threaded through to hold the mouth of the bag closed in folded over position.

Although in the foregoing description reference has been made to the use of a T tag, it is within the scope of the invention to employ any otherdevice having the same eifect, namely of *being easily insertable through the holes or slots, but effectively preventing accidental removal. Such a device may be of barbed arrow shape, in which latter case the barb-like parts will prevent accidental withdrawal.

Furthermore, in the case of the construction shown in 4 FIGURES 1 to 4, although both ends of the handle are provided with T tags, only one end may he so fitted, in

which case the registering holes in the superimposed flaps may occupy a central position. It is, however, preferred from the point of view of security to employ a construction shown in FIGURES 1 to 4.

I claim: 7

l. A carrying container comprising a bag having an open month, said mouth including side and end portions fold'able inwardly and upon each other to close said mouth, stiffening members on said side portions, one of said side portions having openings formed therethrough, the other side portion having a slot and openings therein, a string-like carrying handle having tags on the ends disposed when the mouth is closed so that the tags engage the upper of the side portions and the string passes through said openings and forms a loop passing through the slot to provide a carrying handle the openings in the upper of the side portions being in alignment with openings in the lower of the side portionsfa plurality of the string-like carrying handles being provided for more uniformly distributing the weight of the contents of the container over the closed mouth.

2. A carrying container comprising a bag having an open month, said mouth including side and end portions foldable along fold lines inwardly and upon each other to close said month, one of said side portions having a pair of openings adjacent its fold line and a second pair inwardly spaced from said fold line, the other side portion having openings and a slot therein registering with the said pairs of openings respectively when the sides are folded, a string-like carrying handle having tags on the ends disposed when the mouth is closed so that the tags engage the outer surface of the upper of the side portions adjacent said first pair of openings and the string passes through said pairs of registered openings inwardly and passes through the second pair of openings and the registering slot outwardly to form a combined handle and closure locking means.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,349,654 Bergen Aug. 17, 1920 1,690,046 Ament Oct. 30, 1928 1,905,982 Duvall Apr. 25, 1930 2,385,576 Israel Sept. 25, 1945 2,660,294 Young Nov. 24, 1953 2,836,344- Gatward May 27, 1958