US3592380A - Cushioned shipping bag - Google Patents

Abstract

The present disclosure relates to a cushioned shipping bag in which an enclosure for shipping objects subject to being damaged or otherwise undesirably affected by movement in the mails, parcel post, express shipments and the like may be placed in a container which will protect them through its construction from such injury. The bag is padded so that a filler is between two layers of flexible sheet material, particularly kraft paper forming a sleeve, one end of which is sealed and the other end of which is open for receipt of the article to be shipped. The bag along one side adjacent the edge thereof is provided with a tearsheet to permit ready opening thereof. This tear strip is desirably positioned adjacent the edge of the bag and adjacent the sleeve point or the junction point of the side of the tube.

Description

United States Patent [72] Inventor George Gerard Point Pleasant, NJ. [2|] Appl. No. 828,651 [22] Filed May 28, 1969 [45] Patented July 13, i971 [73] Assignee Jiffy Manufacturing Co.

Hillside, NJ.

[54] CUSHIONED SHIPPING BAG 5 Claims, 5 Drawing Figs.

[52] US. Cl 229/66, 229/51, 229/55 [51] Int. Cl 865d 5/54,

B65d 5/70, B65d 23/00 [50] Field of Search .i 229/66, 62, 55, 51

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,952,398 9/1960 Gerard 229/55 3,055,575 9/1962 Gerard ABSTRACT: The present disclosure relates to a cushioned shipping bag in which an enclosure for shipping objects subject to being damaged or otherwise undesirably affected by movement in the mails, parcel post, express shipments and the like may be placed in a container which will protect them through its construction from such injury. The bag is padded so that a filler is between two layers of flexible sheet material, particularly kraft paper forming a sleeve, one end of which is sealed and the other end of which is open for receipt of the article to be shipped. The bag along one side adjacent the edge thereof is provided with a tearsheet to permit ready opening thereof. This tear strip is desirably positioned adjacent the edge of the bag and adjacent the sleeve point or the junction point of the side of the tube.

' PATENTEUJUU 3am INVENTOR GEORGE GERARD U m n m X J 5 WM 0. H m z 5 w 0 F 2 MU ,1 z 5 a 2 6 2 Tu \vnfl 2 I; v m C NJ G l. I F. 1 .H F D D 4 @J, ATTORNEY CUSHIONED SHIPPING BAG The present invention relates to a padded shipping bag and particularly one for shipping articles such as books, plasticware and other articles subject to damage or injury in the mail, parcel post, express or other handling.

It is among the objects of the present invention to provide a simple durable bag subject to change in dimension and size, which can be readily made from paper materials and be provided with ready opening means available along the side of the bag.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a shipping bag which will be readily formed out of paper stock and which may be made in tubular form, sealed at one end and open at the other to receive material to be shipped and at the same time will provide at one side thereof opening means permitting ready opening of the bag.

Still further objects and advantages will appear in the more detailed description set forth below, it being understood, however, that this more detailed description is given by way of illustration and explanation only and not by way of limitation, since various changes therein may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the scope and spirit of the present invention.

In accomplishing the above objects it has been found most satisfactory, according to one embodiment of the present invention, to form the bag of a paper sleeve which has been filled with a stuffing material, such as cut paper or paper waste, or even cloth or rag waste. Desirably, the paper enclosure has an inside, relatively smooth lighter weight paper layer and an outside, relatively thicker and tougher paper member, which are sealed together along the edges so as to hold the stuffing or packing material in position therebetween.

The stuffing and packing material is desirably provided with spaced adhesive connections to the interior of the faces of the interior and exterior sheets and is omitted along the edges or ends as well as at the place where the sleeve is overlapped. The sleeve overlap is desirably adjacent one longitudinal edge of the bag and it is spaced from such edge a sufficient distance to permit the convenient introduction of a tear string which will rip through both the inner paper layer and the outer paper layer at a place where stuffing has been omitted, to permit of the overlap.

This tear string should commence slightly beyond one end of the overlapping seal at one end of the bag and terminate short of the other end of the bag.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS With the foregoing and other objects in view, the invention consists of the novel construction, combination and arrangement of parts as hereinafter more specifically described, and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein is shown an embodiment of the invention, but it is to be understood that changes, variations and modifications can be resorted to which fall within the scope of the claims hereunto appended.

In the drawings wherein like reference characters denote corresponding parts throughout the several views:

FIG. 1 is a top plan view of the complete bag as fixed for shipment in commerce or through the post.

FIG. 2 is a front elevational view of the other side of the finished package.

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary perspective corner view of the bag, showing the position of the beginning of the tear strip, upon an enlarged scale as compared to FIGS. 1 and 2.

FIG. 4 is a transverse sectional view upon an enlarged scale as compared to FIG. 2, upon the line 4-4 of FIG. 2.

FIG. 5 is a fragmentary detailed sectional view upon an enlarged scale as compared to FIG. 2, upon the line 55 of FIG. 2.

Referring to FIGS. 1 to 5, the bag forms a rectangular package A having the top longitudinal edge B where the overlap C takes place, forming the flattened bag structure best shown in FIG. 4. The bag itself consists of an inner, relatively smooth layer of material D, which may have a smooth inside face and a roughened outside face facing the packing E, and an outside relatively heavy paper layer F which is desirably one and one-half or two times stronger than the inside layer D.

The inside layer D and the outside layer F may be tightly compacted fibrous kraft paper or other relatively heavy paper materials, of about one one-hundred-twenty-eighth to one one-hundred-sixty-fourth of an inch in thickness, with the inside layer D being one-half as thick as the outside layer F.

The packing material E may consist of finely divided paper material or paperwaste, or even cotton waste or fabric waste. At the ends G and H the stuffing or packing material E is desirably omitted and the inside and outside layers D and F maybe directly adhesively connected together. This absence of packing material may also take place in the overturned parallel ends .I and K. It will be noted that the inside parallel ends J and K are folded so as to extend in the same direction, with the end J being of shorter length and terminating before the end K, which end K is adhesively connected at L to the outside face or outside paper layer F.

The tear string or tear strip M is desirably of a tough plastic material, such as a strip of nylon or a plastic ribbon, and it commences under the tab R which extends under the corner P of the overlap G, which is not adhesively connected and protects the end from inadvertent detachment.

This tear strip M is desirably placed under four layers of paper material, as indicated at 20, 21, 22 and 23, as indicated best at the top of FIG. 4. This tear strip M will form a bulge Q in the upper sidewall short of the overlap at L but immediately adjacent the edge B. The covering layers 20, 21, 22 and 23, although devoid of any filler or packing material E, are lightly adhesively connected together and they will readily tear when the tab R carrying the tear strip M is pulled from under the corner P of FIG. 3 and then torn in the direction indicated by the hand S in FIG. 3.

The tearing desired is accomplished by compressing the edge of the bag to form the bulge Q, as indicated in the upper right-hand comer of FIG. 4, or may be accomplished by slowly serrating or piercing the layers 20 to 23 on each side of the tear strip M. The tear strip M is sealed adhesively below the entire length of the package, but it will be noted that it commences short of the edge 24 and under the flap P, but it does not terminate until it reaches the edge 25 at the normal open end of the package before filling.

The package, as indicated in FIG. 1, consists of a forwarding address at 26, a return address at 27, postage at 28, and the extended end portion 29 is folded in and may be stapled or otherwise sealed at 30 after a book or other object to be sent through the mails, as indicated at 31, is placed therein.

It will be noted that the sealing or padding material is equally spaced around the tubular member that forms the shipping container at 32, 33 and 34 in FIG. 4, where it may be held in position by light adhesive attachment, and decreases and terminates at 35, where the layers 22 and 23 may be sealed against each other and overlap beyond the edge 35 with the outer layers 22 and 23 terminating at 36.

On the rear of the bag as indicated at FIG. 2 there will be an overlap G terminating at 37, which is permanently in position, with the folded over flap 29 being held in position by staples or other sealing means to holdthe book or other object 31 in position. 0n the back of the envelope as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3 there may be an indication at 38 of how the tab R can be removed from the pocket T under the flap and pulled along the edge B to open the bag without at the same time opening the packing or stuffing material and permitting it to soil the floor or place where the bag is opened.

The multiple arrows 39, as shown in FIG. 2, together with the pointing hand or indication 40, show the direction in which the tear should be made to open the bag. Both ends G and H are devoid of packing material at theoverlap and the overlap itself will protect the edges of the book or other object in the bag; as is true also of the overlap portion C which forms the tubular enclosure.

' and H at the ends ofthe back, which are unstuffed.

In connection with the sheet material in the inside layer D and the outside layer F, this may be laminated and particularly inwardly faced by a thin layer of a plastic material, such as polyvinyl chloride or polyethylene, which may be roller coated thereon or laminated thereon, having a thickness less than 50 percent and desirably less than 25 percent of the inside and outside layers.

Even though the thickness of the outside layer is greater by a factor of one and one-half to two times, or sometimes by up to two and one-half to three times the thickness of the inside layer D, the thickness of the laminating or coating or plastic is desirably about l to 20 percent of the thickness of the layer to which is it attached.

The tab R usually is cut through the outer layers K and it will overlie the inner layers J, with the tear cord or strip M being positioned directly thereunder and extending to and terminating just short of the semicircular end of the tab R.

The paper outside layer' F may weight about 60 to 70 pounds per ream, while the paper on the inside may weigh 50 pounds. A ream is 500 sheets of paper having a size of 24 inches by 36 inches.

The adhesive connection may be also of plastic material, or it may be of bitumen or ordinary glue.

As many changes could be made in the above cushioned shipping bag, and many widely different embodiments of this and shipping generally having a flattened tubular construction with a side overlap forming the tubular construction and end invention could be made without departure from the scope of the claims, it is intended that all matter contained in the above overlaps, respectively, previously sealed and openfor insertion of the article and subject then to sealing after insertion, said tubular construction having an inside sheet linerand an outside protective sheet having substantially coterminous and juxtaposed, longitudinally directed first and second marginal flap portions, the heightwise extent of said first marginal flap portions being greater than the heightwise extent of said second marginal flap portions, substantially uniformly distributed stuffing material separating said inside and outside sheets, said overlaps being devoid of said stuffing material, the inside and outside sheets being in direct contact with one another at said overlaps, said flattened tubular construction, when said overlaps are completed, having an end closure edge and an inlet filling edge, said side overlap being defined by said flap portions, said second marginal flap portion being folded in parallel to engage one side of said bag, said first marginal flap portion being folded over and outwardly lapping said second flap portion and, in addition, a portion of said one side beyond said second flap portion, a strong adhesive connection effected between said portion of said first side and the side-adjacent portions of said first flap, a tear string assembly interposed between said first and second flap portions and extending from one end overlap to the other end overlap and having a cutout tab positioned inside of the first-mentioned end overlap, the juxtaposed portions of said sheets defining said first and second flap portions which surround said tear string assembly being lightly adhesively connected together.

2. The bag of claim I wherein said side overlap is disposed closely adjacent a longitudinal edge of said bag and forms a continuous mound along said edge.

3. The bag of claim 1, said inside sheet liner and said outside protective sheet being laminated with thin sheet plastic material on their interior faces. i

4. The bag of claim 1, said inside sheet liner being 25 to 65 percent of the thickness of the outside protective sheet.

5. The bag of claim 1, such inside sheet liner and said outside protective sheet being faced and coated with a plastic material having a thickness of 5 to 20 percent of the thickness of the inside liner and the outside protective sheet.

Claims (5)

1. A shipping bag for articles subject to damage in the mails and shipping generally having a flattened tubular construction With a side overlap forming the tubular construction and end overlaps, respectively, previously sealed and open for insertion of the article and subject then to sealing after insertion, said tubular construction having an inside sheet liner and an outside protective sheet having substantially coterminous and juxtaposed, longitudinally directed first and second marginal flap portions, the heightwise extent of said first marginal flap portions being greater than the heightwise extent of said second marginal flap portions, substantially uniformly distributed stuffing material separating said inside and outside sheets, said overlaps being devoid of said stuffing material, the inside and outside sheets being in direct contact with one another at said overlaps, said flattened tubular construction, when said overlaps are completed, having an end closure edge and an inlet filling edge, said side overlap being defined by said flap portions, said second marginal flap portion being folded in parallel to engage one side of said bag, said first marginal flap portion being folded over and outwardly lapping said second flap portion and, in addition, a portion of said one side beyond said second flap portion, a strong adhesive connection effected between said portion of said first side and the side-adjacent portions of said first flap, a tear string assembly interposed between said first and second flap portions and extending from one end overlap to the other end overlap and having a cutout tab positioned inside of the firstmentioned end overlap, the juxtaposed portions of said sheets defining said first and second flap portions which surround said tear string assembly being lightly adhesively connected together.

2. The bag of claim 1 wherein said side overlap is disposed closely adjacent a longitudinal edge of said bag and forms a continuous mound along said edge.

3. The bag of claim 1, said inside sheet liner and said outside protective sheet being laminated with thin sheet plastic material on their interior faces.

4. The bag of claim 1, said inside sheet liner being 25 to 65 percent of the thickness of the outside protective sheet.

5. The bag of claim 1, such inside sheet liner and said outside protective sheet being faced and coated with a plastic material having a thickness of 5 to 20 percent of the thickness of the inside liner and the outside protective sheet.

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