WO1999018001A1

WO1999018001A1 - Security bag

Info

Publication number: WO1999018001A1
Application number: PCT/GB1998/002998
Authority: WO
Inventors: Antony Jennings; Simon Rowe
Original assignee: Britton Security Packaging Limited
Priority date: 1997-10-07
Filing date: 1998-10-07
Publication date: 1999-04-15
Also published as: GB9721302D0; AU9357298A

Abstract

A security bag having an inner main pocket with an opening (16) having a tamper evident seal to retain the contents of the bag, and at least one outer pocket (26); characterised in that the outer pocket (26) has an opening (28) which is adjacent to the opening of the main pocket, in such a position that it can be closed by the same seal (4) as the main pocket.

Description

"Security Bag"

This invention relates to tamper evident bags, particularly, although not exclusively, to bags which are used for the transportation of valuable such as cash.

Bags having some kind of security seal, such as a flap over the opening which is specially made to provide evidence of tampering, are shown for example in O9104199 and O9300385.

It also known to provide such a security bag or container with an external transparent pocket, for retaining documents such as delivery notes. Usually, this comprises an additional transparent or translucent membrane formed on the outside of the bag, which is sealed to the bag on three sides, leaving one side open for insertion and removal of documents .

However, under some circumstances, it is necessary to attach additional identification material, such as a slip containing an identifying code number, which must remain with the bag until it is finally delivered to its destination. If such a slip is placed inside the open document retaining pocket, there is a risk that it will be accidentally removed, together with other documents, during the course of being handled at different stages.

Accordingly, a first aspect of the present invention provides a security bag having an inner main pocket with an opening having a tamper evident seal to retain the contents of the bag, and at least one outer sealable pocket whose opening is adjacent to the opening of the main pocket, in such a position that it can be closed by the same seal as the main pocket .

In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the outer surface of the bag may also be provided with a further open pocket for documents or other items which are intended to be freely accessible from outside the bag.

Preferably the seal is provided with a line of perforations which is so arranged that it is possible to open only one of the sealed pockets. The arrangement may also be such as to allow only one of the pockets to be sealed if required, i.e. by tearing off a part of the seal before use.

Preferably, the bag seal comprises a flap which is just wide enough to extend over the adjacent openings, but does not cover the entire area of the outer sealable pocket, which is made from a transparent or translucent material so that a label sealed in the pocket, can be read from the outside of the bag.

In one embodiment of the invention, the outer sealable pocket, and further open pocket are formed from a single sheet of material, by heat sealing it onto the bag at suitable positions.

Some embodiments of the invention will now be described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

Figure 1 is a plan view of a bag in accordance with the invention;

Figure 2 is an enlarged diagrammatic section through the bag of Figure 1, taken along the line II;

Figure 3 is a plan view of a bag according to a second embodiment of the invention;

Figure 4 is an enlarged diagrammatic section through th bag of Figure 3 taken along the line IV- IV,

Figure 5 is a plan view of a bag according to a third embodiment of the invention; and

Figure 6 is an enlarged diagrammatic section through the bag of Figure 5, taken along the line VI -VI.

Referring firstly to Figure 1, the bag 2 is formed with a security flap 4 at one end, covering the opening of the main pocket of the bag, whose upper edge is heat sealed to the bag along the dashed line 6. The underside of the flap 4 is formed with a tamper indicating seal which is covered by a protective strip (not shown) until the bag is ready to be sealed, and when the strip is removed, a self adhesive tamper indicating seal is formed at this end of the bag, in a known fashion.

The body of the bag is formed of three layers of material, as seen more clearly in Figure 2 in which the spaces between the layers are exaggerated for clarity. A first sheet of opaque plastics material 8 forms the rear surface of the bag, and has the flap 4 heat sealed to it at one end. A second, slightly shorter sheet of similar material 10 is heat sealed to the other end of the first sheet 8, at 12, and also along the longer side edges 14 (Figure 1) . This leaves an open end 16 at the flap end, which will of course be sealed by the flap 4, in use.

A third membrane of clear or translucent material 18, which is again of the same width as the membranes 8 and 10, but somewhat shorter than the upper membrane 10, is superimposed on the membrane 10 and is also attached by the heat seals along the edges 12 and 14.

In addition, however, an additional heat seal 20 is formed between the membranes 18 and 10 parallel to the opening of the bag, and a slit 22 in the membrane 18 extends across the bag, to the left of the heat seal 20 as shown in the drawings, so that the membrane 18 forms two separate document pockets, 24 and 26 as shown in Figure 1.

As will be seen from Figure 2, the opening 22 of the larger document pocket 24 is accessible from outside the bag, even after the bag has been sealed, but the opening 28 (Figure 2) of the second, smaller document pocket 26, is situated below the edge of the flap 4, and thus, when the flap is sealed to the bag, the smaller document pocket opening 28 will be sealed at the same time as the bag opening 16.

Although, in the illustrated construction, the document pockets are both illustrated as being formed from the same sheet of material 18, it will be appreciated that the two sheets could be quite separate, and indeed, the relative dimensions of the two pockets could be quite different to that shown, or the open pocket could be on the reverse side of the bag. If necessary, the second pocket 26 could also be much larger.

In addition, although the illustration of Figure 2 shows the rear panel 8 of the bag, the front panel 10, and the flap (4) as separate sheets, they could alternatively be formed from a single long strip which is folded over at each end to form the closed end of the bag (12) , and the flap (4) respectively. Alternatively the panels (8) and (10) could be formed from a single folded sheet, and the sealing flap (4) attached subsequently. In either case the transparent sheet 18 can then be heat sealed onto the assembly in the usual way.

It will be appreciated that the facility to include a label in the sealable document pocket 26, which is sealed at the same time as the contents, provides an additional level of tamper evident security. In order to further improve the security of the seal, part of the label itself may also be arranged to be contacted by the seal of the flap when the flap is closed, so that it will be damaged if an attempt is made to open the seal . Such an arrangement is illustrated in Figures 3 and 4 in which the construction of the bag is the same as that of the first embodiment of Figures 1 and 2, but in addition, a specially shaped security label 30 is provided to be placed in the second document pocket . This has a projecting portion, such as a central tab (32), which extends out of the pocket so as to be contacted by the adhesive (34) of the flap (4) . Thus it is likely to be damaged if an unauthorised attempt is made to open the seal, particularly if the label is made of a material which easily tears or delaminates, or if the junction of the label and the tab is perforated. The back of the whole label, or at least its main body, may also be made self-adhesive, so that it is secured in the pocket on insertion.

The same basic construction may also be applied to a bag having only one external pocket which needs to be sealed in a tamper-indicating fashion, so that its contents cannot be removed until the bag reaches its intended destination. Figures 5 and 6 illustrate a general type of "multi- compartment" bag in which the main body of the bag is formed from a long folded strip 36, forming a shorter front wall 46, while a central membrane 38 divides the interior into two pockets, although of course there could be more than two. The inner, lower pocket as seen in figure 6 comprises a main pocket, while the upper pocket as seen in this figure, can be used for identifying documents or the like. A sealing strip 40 is provided with adhesive on its lower surface except for a finger-lift region along the right-hand edge 42, and a line of perforations 44 which is so positioned that, as shown, only the lower pocket can be opened by tearing the perforations. It will also be appreciated that, by shifting the position of the line of perforations to the left as seen in the drawings, the seal could be arranged so that only the outer pocket could be opened by tearing the perforations, or so that a part of the strip could be removed before sealing to allow the outer pocket to remain open. It will also be appreciated that, if more than two pockets are required, the bag can be formed from a corresponding number of different layers, with different degrees of overlap, and the sealing strip will then be provided with correspondingly positioned lines of perforations .

Claims

CLAIMS :

1. A security bag having an inner main pocket with an opening (16) having a tamper evident seal to retain the contents of the bag, and at least one outer pocket (26) ; characterised in that the outer pocket (26) has an opening (28) which is adjacent to the opening of the main pocket, in such a position that it can be closed by the same seal (4) as the main pocket .

2. A security bag according to claim 1 in which the seal comprises a flap (4) which is wide enough to extend over the main pocket opening (16) and the outer pocket opening (28) , but does not cover the entire area of the said outer pocket .

3. A security bag according to claim 1 or claim 2 in which the said sealable outer pocket is transparent or translucent .

4. A security bag according to any of claims 1 to 3 , in which there are a plurality of outer pockets formed from a single sheet of material which is heat-sealed onto the outside of the bag at suitable positions.

5. A security bag according to any of claims 1 to 3 comprising a plurality of pockets which are selectively sealable by means of a sealing strip having suitably positioned lines of perforations.

6. A security bag according to any preceding claim in which the main pocket of the bag is formed from a single long strip of material which is folded over to form the closed end (12) of the main pocket.

7. A security bag according to any of claims 1 to 3 in which there are a plurality of outer pockets formed from separate sheets of material, on opposite sides of the bag.

8. A security bag according to any preceding claim, further comprising a security label (30) which is adapted to fit in the sealable outer pocket and has a portion (32) which projects out of the pocket so that it is contacted by the adhesive (34) of the sealing flap (4) and is therefore damaged when the seal is opened.

9. A security bag according to claim 7 in which the label (30) is self-adhesive.