EP0592299B1 - Reclosing process for a small flexible package or packaging bag, manufacturing arrangement and use of this arrangement - Google Patents

Abstract

Reclosing method and device for a flexible package or packaging bag enclosing, in an envelope (e), a relatively rigid product (b) which can, preferably, be extracted from it in fractions, whilst retaining a relatively stable geometric shape in the filled section of the said envelope. The emptied section of the envelope (e) is trapped by crumpling and/or folding it over itself in a relatively rigid lid whose shape and size are paired with those of the section which has remained full and over which the said lid is fitted in order to cap it and close it. <IMAGE>

Description

The invention relates to a reclosing method a flexible package or sachet, one package for its implementation and the use of such packaging, especially for foodstuffs.

In response to the wish expressed by the consumers to have flexible packaging that can be easily closed after a first opening are appeared on the market, in particular in the field of food products, lockable packaging zipper, with self-adhesive label sensitive to pressure, clamp, etc ... some of which are described in FOOD & DRUG PACKAGING, Vol. 56, N ° 2, February 1992, pp. 20-22, 26, 30, 34, 36. If the achievements presented are satisfactory, some are costly too high to be used with consumer goods (zipper) or inconvenient use when they cannot be directly associated with the packages or sachets they must be fitted (clamps) or even an implementation sometimes delicate (adhesive means constituting the envelope of the package or reported on this envelope). Even a relatively simple device, like that described in DE-U-8 902 977, is still too "complicated" insofar as it has two parts, know a clean ring and cover to cooperate with the ring to close a package or sachet flexible.

The problem therefore arises, therefore, of provide a process for reclosing a package or sachet flexible packaging and a device for its implementation work which overcomes the drawbacks of the devices known.

It is, in this regard, an object of the invention of provide a method and an implementation device extremely simple that do not grow in a way considerable consumption of packaging materials.

It is, again, an object of the invention of provide such a method and a device for its implementation work which when applied to packages or sachets of susceptible food products to see their quality deteriorate over time, allow to favor the conservation of said products.

It is also an object of the invention to provide a method and a device for its implementation suitable for being combined with packets or sachets flexible packaging without having to be modified packaging and / or manufacturing techniques said packages or sachets.

It is also an object of the invention of provide a method and a device which allow many openings and closings of the package or bag to which they apply and, furthermore, allow these hygienically multiple openings and closings.

It is, finally, an object of the invention to provide a method and a device which do not influence unfavorably the appearance and / or presentation of packaging to which they apply but, on the contrary, make it more attractive to consumers.

A method according to the invention is defined by claim 1.

In the above and in the following "form and combined dimensions "of the cover and the part filled with the package or sachet should be understood as meaning, on the one hand, that the cross-sectional shape transverse of the cover is substantially that of the filled part of the package or sachet, without that there is necessarily identity of form, and that, on the other hand, the dimension of this cross section is substantially equal or very slightly higher than that of the filled part so that the cover can be maintained on the latter when it is reported on her by styling it.

So, for example for a form package general cylindrical enclosing products like round cookies, can the cover be sectional circular right and a very circumference length slightly higher than that of cookies or, in variant, with a polygonal cross section of a very perimeter slightly longer than the length of the straight section (perpendicular to the cylinder axis) of the part filled with the package or sachet on which the lid is simply held down.

A package according to the invention is defined by claim 2.

According to another characteristic of the invention, the height of the cover is substantially equal to the thickness of one or more products that contains the sachet or package, so that the device can be used until said package or bag is almost empty.

According to the invention, also, the skirt of the cover has a shape similar to that of the package or bag and an inner perimeter substantially equal to the length of the straight section of the package or bag packaging with which it is associated.

The cover skirt is advantageously provided means facilitating or contributing to the fixing of the cover on the part that remains filled with the package or packaging bag with which it is associated.

In one embodiment, said means are constituted by elastic legs which, in their unsolicited condition, protrude inside of the cover skirt.

In a variant, said means are formed by legs resulting from cuts of the skirt and which are provided at the end thereof away from the bottom of the cover.

In an advantageous embodiment, the bottom of the cover is trimmed, on the whole or a part of its internal surface, an adhesive sensitive to pressure which contributes to maintaining the cover on the package or sachet packaging.

A use according to the invention is defined by claim 9.

It is also part of the invention a flexible package or sachet, especially for food products, comprising a device as defined above.

• la figure 1 est une vue schématique, en perspective, d'un paquet ou sachet d'emballage préalablement à sa première ouverture et auquel est associé un dispositif selon l'invention ;
• la figure 2 est une vue en perspective du paquet ou sachet ouvert après qu'ait été extraite une partie de son contenu ;
• la figure 3 est une vue schématique du paquet refermé par mise en oeuvre du procédé et à l'aide d'un dispositif selon l'invention ;
• la figure 4 est une vue en perspective montrant, pour une autre réalisation, un paquet ou sachet auquel est associé un autre dispositif selon l'invention;
• la figure 5 est une vue analogue à celle de la figure 3 pour cette autre réalisation ;
• la figure 6 est une vue schématique en perspective, et avec arrachement, illustrant l'utilisation de deux dispositifs du type montré sur la figure 6 ;
• la figure 7 est une vue schématique en perspective et avec arrachement d'une variante de réalisation d'un dispositif selon l'invention ;
• la figure 8 est une vue analogue à celle de la figure 7, mais pour encore une autre réalisation ;
• la figure 9 est une vue analogue à celles des figures 3 et 5, mais pour encore une autre forme de réalisation.

The invention will be better understood from the following description, given by way of example and with reference to the appended drawing, in which:

• Figure 1 is a schematic perspective view of a package or sachet packaging prior to its first opening and which is associated with a device according to the invention;
• FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the package or sachet opened after part of its contents have been extracted;
• Figure 3 is a schematic view of the package closed by implementation of the method and using a device according to the invention;
• Figure 4 is a perspective view showing, for another embodiment, a package or bag with which is associated another device according to the invention;
• Figure 5 is a view similar to that of Figure 3 for this other embodiment;
• Figure 6 is a schematic perspective view, with parts broken away, illustrating the use of two devices of the type shown in Figure 6;
• Figure 7 is a schematic perspective view with cutaway of an alternative embodiment of a device according to the invention;
• Figure 8 is a view similar to that of Figure 7, but for yet another embodiment;
• Figure 9 is a view similar to those of Figures 3 and 5, but for yet another embodiment.

Reference is first made to FIGS. 1 to 3 which illustrate a method according to the invention for reclosing a package or sachet of flexible packaging and a first embodiment of a device for its implementation. As clearly visible in these figures, a flexible packaging package or bag S comprises an envelope e in one or more thickness (s) of paper, plastic film, if necessary a metallic foil and / or, sometimes corrugated paper. The package or sachet S, of generally cylindrical shape in the embodiment described and shown, encloses products such as round cookies, b , stacked one above the other and which give the packaging a cylindrical geometric shape, relatively stable, -before opening it as shown in Figure 1-, only after opening in part R thereof which remains filled after extraction of one or more cookie (s) b .

According to the invention, said package or packaging bag S is associated with a cover, 10, relatively rigid, of combined shape and size those of the packaging prior to its opening or those of part R which remains filled with said packaging. The cover 10, which is constituted by a bottom 11 and a skirt 12, is made of any material suitable such as cardboard, plastic, sheet of metal or thin metal alloy of the kind of those used for the manufacture of boxes packaging for beverages.

The shape and dimensions of the skirt 12 are combined with those of the packaging S, or of the part R thereof which remains filled after the package or sachet has been opened and one or more biscuit (s) b have been removed, "combined shape and dimensions" being understood to mean that the shape of the cross section (perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the packet or bag) of the cover is, here, substantially circular or , as a variant and as shown in the drawing, is of polygonal contour, the internal circumference of the skirt 12 (in the case of a circular cross section) or the internal perimeter of the contour (in the case of a polygonal cross section) being very slightly greater than the circumference of a cross section (perpendicular to the longitudinal axis) of the package or bag S.

As also shown in the figures, the height h of the cover, -measured perpendicular to the bottom 11-, is substantially equal to the thickness of one or a few cookies b .

To close the package or sachet S, after it has been opened and one or more cookies b have been removed, it is enough to imprison, -crumpling it and / or folding in on itself, the part of the envelope e corresponding to the product (s) removed from the bag S, FIG. 2, by enclosing it in the cover 10 which is attached to the part remained filled with R of the package or sachet S, until the cover covers said part and is held there, by simple pressing, FIG. 3.

When the package or sachet S is so closed it resumes its general cylindrical shape original, -but with a shorter length-, and can, under these conditions, be easily transported without risk of opening.

We also note that conservation products, especially food products like cookies, enclosed in a package or sachet as well closed is up to five times longer than that of products kept in an unsealed or poorly sealed bag closed.

The implementation of the method and the device according to the invention are extremely easy, do not require no modification of the production lines of the package or bag S, the cover 10 being most simply attached, by fitting, on one end of the package, figure 1, after making the latter on a packaging line.

In the embodiment according to FIGS. 4 and 5, the package or sachet S ′ encloses products b ′ with a square outline and the cover 15 is then also of square cross section. It additionally comprises, at the end of its skirt 16 opposite the bottom 17, lugs like 18 resulting from cutouts 19 of said skirt which facilitate the fixing and the maintenance of the cover 15 on the part that remains filled, R ′, of the package or bag S ', Figure 5, trapping the emptied part of the envelope e' .

Two devices 15 _a and 15 _b , of the type which have just been described, can be associated with each other to form a box allowing the transport and the conservation of a certain number of products b 'extracted from the packaging, figure 6, thus giving the process and the device of the invention an additional commercial appeal.

A device according to the invention can be used to close a plurality of same packages or packaging bags, thus limiting the consumption of packaging materials, consumption which can also be reduced by deleting, in the envelope constituting the packages or sachets, corrugated paper whose stiffness effect is then provided by the device of the invention.

The latter is not limited to the forms of realizations described and represented. So he can also include, to facilitate its attachment to the part remained filled with the package or sachet, and as shown in the embodiment of Figure 7, legs elastics 20 which, in the unsolicited condition, make protruding inside the skirt 21 of the cover 22.

A device according to the invention can also, as shown in FIG. 8, include a bottom 23 lined on part or all of its internal face with a pressure-sensitive adhesive, 24, which contributes equally well to its connection to the flexible package or sachet prior to opening, that is to say under the condition shown in FIG. 1, only when said package or sachet is closed again due to poor adhesion of said adhesive and of the folded and / or crumpled part of the envelope e .

The method and the device according to the invention also find application for packages or sachets of packaging of shapes other than those illustrated, for example shapes with a flat outline of the type of those illustrated in FIG. 9 where the package or sachet of flexible packaging, S '', enclosing cookies b '' is capped by a cover 25, the bottom 26 and the skirt 27 have a shape and combined dimensions of the part remained filled with the packaging on which said cover is fitted for style and close it.

Claims (10)

1. A method of using a relatively rigid lid (10, 15, 22, 25..) to close a flexible packaging bag or packet containing a relatively rigid product (b, b', b'') in an envelope (e, e'), which product can preferably be extracted in fractions while maintaining the full portion (R, R') of said envelope in a relatively stable geometrical shape imparted by the product, the method being characterized in that the portion of the envelope (e, e') that is emptied is completely imprisoned within the cover (10, 15, 22, 25..) by crumpling and/or folding down the envelope so as to close it, which lid is relatively rigid and comprises an end wall and a skirt whose inside outline is of shape and dimensions that are complementary to the still-full portion (R, R') on which said lid is directly engaged, and excluding any other means for covering or closing said portion.
2. Packaging containing at least one relatively rigid product enclosed in an envelope constituted by a flexible packaging bag or packet, said product preferably being capable of being extracted in fractions while retaining, in the full portion of said envelope, the relatively stable geometrical shape imparted by the product, the package further including a relatively rigid lid having an end wall and a skirt, and being characterized in that the shape and the size of the skirt are complementary to said geometrical shape of the full portion (R, R') of the envelope, so as to engage directly on said full portion (R, R') to the exclusion of any other means, such that the emptied portion of the envelope (e, e'), after being crumpled and/or folded down, can be held completely imprisoned so as to be enclosed within said lid.
3. Packaging according to claim 2, characterized in that the height (h) of the lid is substantially equal to the thickness of one or more product(s) (b, b', b'') contained by the packaging packet or bag (S, S', S'').
4. A packaging according to claim 2, characterized in that the skirt (12, 16, 27) of the lid (10, 15, 22, 25) is of a shape that is similar to said geometrical shape of the envelope, and of an internal perimeter that is substantially equal to that of the right section of said geometrical shape of the envelope.
5. Packaging according to any one of claims 2 to 4, characterized in that the skirt is provided with means (19, 20) facilitating or contributing to securing it on the still-full portion of the packaging bag or packet with which the lid is associated.
6. Packaging according to claim 5, characterized in that said means are constituted by resilient tabs (20) which, in their non-stressed condition, project into the inside of the skirt (21) of the lid (22).
7. Packaging according to claim 5, characterized in that said means are constituted by tabs (18) that are the result of forming cutouts (19) in the skirt (16) and that are provided at the end of said skirt that is remote from the end wall (17) of the lid (15).
8. Packaging according to any one of claims 2 to 7, characterized in that the end wall of the lid (23) is lined over all or a portion of its inside surface with a pressure-sensitive adhesive (24).
9. The use, for closing a flexible packaging bag or packet (S, S', S''), of a relatively rigid lid constituted by an end wall (11, 17, 23, 26) and a skirt (12, 16, 21, 27) of shape and dimensions that are complementary to those of said bag or packet (S, S', S'') containing at least one relatively rigid product giving the flexible package a relatively stable geometrical shape, the lid engaging directly on said bag or packet to the exclusion of any other means for covering or closing the empty portion of the bag or packet, which empty portion is completely imprisoned within the lid, by being crumpled and/or folded down so as to be closed.
10. Flexible packaging containing products, in particular foodstuffs, characterized in that, for reclosing purposes, it comprises a device constituted by a lid having an end wall (11, 17, 23, 26) and a skirt (12, 16, 21, 27) of inside outline having shape and dimensions that are complementary to those of the products such as biscuits or the like (b, b', b'') that give the flexible package a relatively stable geometrical shape, the lid being engaged directly on the outline of the flexible package around said products, to the exclusion of any other means for covering or closing it, and in such a manner that the emptied portion of the bag or packet can be completely imprisoned within the lid by being crumpled and/or folded down so as to be closed.

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