Draw band closure bag

Claim 2

In a bag made from pliable sheet material and having at least one side edge, with a mouth at one end of the bag extending normal to said edge and defined by a lip portion thereabout and providing a tunnel: said lip portion having an opening from the tunnel at said one side edge; and a flat draw band comprising only flexible sheet material encompassing said mouth within said tunnel and having a manipulating portion at said opening adapted to be grasped to pull the draw band partially through the opening at said side edge of the bag and thereby draw said lip portion into puckered mouth-closing relation on that part of the draw band which remains in the puckered area; said draw band being initially connected but partially separated along a longitudinal line along one edge thereof with a strip of material enclosed within said tunnel and separable therefrom when the draw band is pulled through said opening as aforesaid.

Claim 3

In a bag according to claim 1, said strip of material comprising a second draw band, said bag having a edge opposite to said first-mentioned side edge and also providing an opening from the tunnel, said second draw band having a manipulating portion at said opposite side edge opening adapted to be grasped to pull the second draw band partially through that opening in cooperation with said first-mentioned draw band to facilitate drawing the lip portion into puckered mouth-closing relation and separation of the draw bands occurring when they are pulled in opposite directions.

Claim 4

In a bag according to claim 2, the material of the bag in said lip portion having areas thereof partially separated transverse to said longitudinal line to provide said openings, and said areas being respectively separable from said lip portion upon pulling said bands from the tunnel through said openings.

Claim 5

In a bag according to claim 3, said partially separated areas being offset relative to one another along the respective bag side edges and considered with respect to said mouth end of the bag.

Claim 6

In a bag according to claim 3, the respective ends of the draw bands opposite to the respective openings being fixedly secured to the bag edge adjacent to the opening through which the companion draw band is adapted to be pulled.

Claim 7

In a bag according to claim 5, the sheet material of the bag and of said draw bands being heat-sealable plastic material, said side edges being heat-sealed and said secured ends of the draw bands being heat-sealed into said side edges, respectively, and reinforcing heat seals securing said draw bands to the bag material at the tunnel along lines parallel and in spaced adjacency to the respective edges to which the draw bands are secured.

Claim 8

In a bag according to claim 1, double walls folded over at the bag mouth end and providing said tunnel and secured together at the opposite end of the bag to provide a bottom closure.

Claim 9

In a bag made from pliable sheet material and having opposite side edges and a mouth at one end defined by a lip portion thereabout and providing a tunnel: two parallel draw bands comprising flexible sheet material separably connected by tear connections in edge-to-edge coplanar relation in said tunnel; said draw bands secured initially to both of said side edges; the material of the bag in said lip portion having an area thereof partially separated at one edge in alignment with one of said draw bands while being solid and permanently retaining the other of said draw bands at such edge; and the material of the tunnel at the opposite side edge of the bag aligned with the other of said draw bands being partially separated while at such edge the bag material remains solid and permanently retains the one draw band in secured relation; said partially separated material and the respective draw bands with which aligned being adapted to be grasped and pulled away from the bag to leave a respective opening from the tunnel through which the aligned draw band is adapted to be pulled to draw the lip portion into puckered mouth-closing relation.

Claim 10

In a bag made from pliable sheet material and having opposite side edges and a mouth at one end defined by a lip portion thereabout and providing a tunnel: two parallel draw bands comprising flexible sheet material separably connected by tear connections in edge-to-edge coplanar relation in said tunnel; said draw bands secured initially to both of said side edges; the material of the bag in said lip portion having an area thereof partially separated at one edge in alignment with one of said draw bands while being solid and permanently retaining the other of said draw bands at such edge; and the material of the tunnel at the opposite side edge of the bag aligned with the other of said draw bands being partially separated while at such edge the bag material remains solid and permanently retains the one draw band in secured relation; said partially separated material and the respective draw bands with which aligned being adapted to be grasped and pulled away from the bag to leave a respective opening from the tunnel through which the aligned draw band is adapted to be pulled to draw the lip portion into puckered mouth-closing relation.

Claim 11

In a bag according to claim 8, said draw bands being made from common material different from the bag.

Claim 12

In a bag according to claim 8, said draw bands being parallel to the tunnel end of the bag, and said partially separated bag portions being offset relative to one another considered with respect to said bag end.

Claim 13

In a bag according to claim 8, the bag material and said draw bands being of heat-fusible material, the material of the bag being heat-sealed along said side edges and said draw bands being secured to said side edges by the heat-sealing, and respective tacking seals impressed across each of said draw bands securing it to the bag material adjacent to the side edge seams and serving as auxiliary securing means for the draw bands.

Claim 14

In a bag according to claim 8, double walls of the sheet material folded over at the bag mouth end and providing said lip and secured together at the opposite end of the bag to provide a bottom closure and said double walls providing said tunnel at said lip.

Claim 15

In a bag according to claim 8, the bag material being integral in said lip portion providing a gusset inwardly relative to said tunnel within said mouth, said gusset having a line of elongated perforations with intervening spaced narrow tear connections enabling opening of the gusset for access into the bag by breaking said connections.

Claim 16

In a bag made from heat-sealable plastic material provided with a mouth at one end defined by a lip portion thereabout and providing a tunnel, and having opposite side edges formed with heat-seal seams: a pair of flat draw bands of flexible plastic heat-sealable sheet material encompassing said mouth within said tunnel in coplanar relation to one another and having longitudinal edges contiguous to one another separated by perforations and intervening narrow tear connections; said draw bands being secured in heat-seal relation in the side edge heat-seal seams; material of said lip portion at said tunnel aligned with one of said draw bands at one of said edges being partially separated in line with said one of said draw bands to provide a draw band opening when separated from the material of the bag while the remaining draw band remains in fixed relation to such edge; and material of the bag aligned with said remaining draw band at the opposite edge of the bag being partially separated from the material of the bag to define an opening from the bag through that edge while said one draw band remains permanently secured at that edge; whereby the partially separated material at the respective edges and the draw bands with which aligned are adapted to be grasped and pulled to separate the partially separated material and pull the respective draw bands outwardly through the resulting openings and relative to one another to separate the connections along the contiguous edges of the draw bands and to draw said lip portion into puckered mouth-closing relation on those parts of thE draw bands which remain in the puckered lip portion.

Claim 17

In a bag made from heat-sealable plastic material provided with a mouth at one end defined by a lip portion thereabout and providing a tunnel, and having opposite side edges formed with heat-seal seams: a pair of flat draw bands of flexible plastic heat-sealable sheet material encompassing said mouth within said tunnel in coplanar relation to one another and having longitudinal edges contiguous to one another separated by perforations and intervening narrow tear connections; said draw bands being secured in heat-seal relation in the side edge heat-seal seams; material of said lip portion at said tunnel aligned with one of said draw bands at one of said edges being partially separated in line with said one of said draw bands to provide a draw band opening when separated from the material of the bag while the remaining draw band remains in fixed relation to such edge; and material of the bag aligned with said remaining draw band at the opposite edge of the bag being partially separated from the material of the bag to define an opening from the bag through that edge while said one draw band remains permanently secured at that edge; whereby the partially separated material at the respective edges and the draw bands with which aligned are adapted to be grasped and pulled to separate the partially separated material and pull the respective draw bands outwardly through the resulting openings and relative to one another to separate the connections along the contiguous edges of the draw bands and to draw said lip portion into puckered mouth-closing relation on those parts of thE draw bands which remain in the puckered lip portion.

Claim 18

In a bag according to claim 14, including respective tacking seals impressed across each of said draw bands securing it to the bag material adjacent to the side edge seams and serving as auxiliary securing means for the draw bands.

Claim 19

In a bag according to claim 14, double walls of the sheet material folded over at the bag mouth end and providing said lip and secured together at the opposite end of the bag to provide a bottom closure and said double walls providing said tunnel at said lip.

Claim 20

In a bag according to claim 14, the bag material being integral in said lip portion providing a gusset inwardly relative to said tunnel within said mouth, said gusset having a line of perforations with intervening spaced narrow tear connections enabling opening of the gusset for access into the bag by breaking said connections.