Sterile surgical drape and method

Claim 1

AN INTERIORLY STERILE PACKAGE CONTAINING A STERILE SURGICAL DRAPE FOR USE IN THE OPERATING ROOM, SAID PACKAGE BEING IN SEALED CONDITION FOR HANDLING BY NON-STERILE PERSONNEL WITHOUT CONTAMINATING THE CONTAINED STERILE SURGICAL DRAPE COMPRISING IN COMBINATION, AN INTERIORLY STERILE ENVELOPE OF SYNTHETIC PLASTIC MATERIAL IMPERMEABLE TO TRANFER OF CONTAMINATING BACTERIA THERETHROUGH, A STERILE SURGICAL DRAPE WITHIN SAID PACKAG, AT LEAST ONE END OF SAID ENVELOPE BEING FOLDED UPON ITSELF IN A PLURALITY OF FOLDS AND BEING STERILIZED ON BOTH THE INSIDE AND OUTSIDE THEREOF, SAID PLURALITY OF FOLDS BEING SPACED AXIALLY FROM SAID DRAPE TO PROVIDE AN INTERMEDIATE SECTION OF ENVELOPE BETWEEN SAID FOLDED END AND SAID RAPE, SAID END IN THE UNFOLDED CONDITION THEREOF EXTENDING SUBSTANTIALLY BEYOND SAID CONTAINED STERILE SURGICAL DRAPE AND PROVIDING AN INTEGRAL PROTECTIVE EXTENSION FREE OF CONTAMINATION, AN INTERIORLY STERILE SEALING MEMBER OVERLYING AND ENCLOSING SAID STERILE FOLED END TO ISOLATE THE SAME FROM OUTSIDE CONTAMINANTS IN THE SEALED CONDITION OF SAID ENVELOPE, SAID SEALING MEMBER BEING WIDER THAN THE WIDTH OF SAID FOLDED END TO PROVIDE SEALED EDGE PORTIONS EXTENDING LATTERALLY THEREOF, MEANS FORMING A SEAL BETWEEN SAID SEALING MEMBER AND SAID ENVELOPE IN SAID INTERMEDIATE SECTION, TAB MEANS PROVIDED ALONG ONE EDGE OF SAID SEALING MEMBER FOR RUPTURING THE SEALED EDGE PORTIONS AND SAID SEAL MEANS THEREBY EXPOSING SAID FOLDED END, SAID FOLDED END BEING UNFOLDED BY MOVEMENT OF SAID DRAPE WHEN ADVANCED OUTWARDLY THROUGH SAID PROTECTIVE EXTENSION BY PRESSURE APPLIED TO THE OPPOSITE END OF SAID ENVLOPE, SAID PROTECTIVE EXTENSION SURROUNDING SAID DRAPE DURING ADVANCE OF SAID DRPAE THERETHROUGH AND PROVIDING A STERILE PROTECTIVE AREA BETWEEN THE EXPOSED PORTION OF SAID SEALING MEMBER AND ENVELOPE FOR DELIVERY OF SAID DRAPE TO THE SURGEON IN FULLY MAINTAINED STERILE CONDITION.