Storage Bags with Grip Flanges

This application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. § 119 (e) to U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 63/644,161, filed May 8, 2024, which is expressly incorporated by reference herein.

Reclosable plastic storage bags are used to hold and store many different items. These storage bags are often used for their food-safe properties and low cost to manufacture. M any such storage bags include a storage pouch with a closure along one side. The closure allows for repeated closing and opening of an entryway into the storage area of the storage pouch.

M any storage bag closures are made up of two flanges each having mating locking features that hold the entryway closed when engaged with one another. Many closure mechanisms have been developed for storage bags including slider closures, zipper closures, and press-to-close closures.

Storage bags with press-to-close closures are closed by pressing down and sliding a finger along the closure to mate the locking features. These storage bags are opened by grabbing the flanges at the top of the bag and pulling the mating locking features apart. Depending on a consumer's size of fingers and thumbs, including dexterity and if the flanges/hands are wet, they may have issues properly grabbing the flanges in order to open the bag.

Plastic storage bags according to the present disclosure include a storage pouch and a press-to-close closure. The storage pouch has a front panel and a back panel that define a storage area. The front and back panel of the storage pouch are free from one another along one side to provide an entryway into the storage area. The press-to-close closure selectively closes off the entryway into the storage area.

In illustrative embodiments, the press-to-close closure includes a front flange coupled to the front panel of the storage pouch and a back flange coupled to the back flange of the storage pouch. Each of the front flange and the back flange have a base strip, a lock feature, and gripping features arranged between the lock feature and a free end of the base strip.

In In illustrative embodiments, the gripping features include ridges that extend both from an interior side of the base strip and an exterior side of the base strip at the same and/or overlapping location. This feature can form generally + shapes, diamond shapes, or other suitable shapes at intervals along the base strip. The ridges can more specifically have shark fin, rectangle, trapezoid, t-shape, triangle, polygon, crescent, or any other suitable geometric shape.

In illustrative embodiments, the gripping features can include beads located at the free end of the base strips included in the front and back flanges. The beads can be enlarged relative to the ridges so as to provide further grip for a user along with an indication that the end of the flange has been reached. Enhancements made to the features on the flanges of the closure, including ridges and beads, allow consumers to firmly grip the flanges and open the bag.

Additional features of the present disclosure will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon consideration of illustrative embodiments exemplifying the best mode of carrying out the disclosure as presently perceived.

An illustrative plastic storage bagis adapted to store various items and is reclosable so as to allow for multiple uses as suggested in. The storage bagincludes a storage pouchand a press-to-close closure. The storage pouchdefines a storage area in which items can be kept. The press-to-close closureis arranged along a top edge of the storage pouch.

The storage pouchincludes a front panel, a back panel, and a gusseted flooras shown in. The back panelis welded along left and right sides to the front panel. The gusseted floorinterconnects the front paneland the back panelalong a bottom edge of the storage bag. Due to this construction, the pouchis configured to stand up for filling when the gusseted floor is expanded as suggested in.

The press-to-close closureof the plastic storage bagselectively seals off entry into the storage area of the pouchas suggested in. The closureincludes a front flangeand a back flangethat can be engaged and disengaged from one another. Each of the front flangeand the back flangeextends from a corresponding one of the front panelor back panelof the storage pouch.

The illustrative front flangeand back flangeare each made up of a base strip, a series of male/female locking features,, and gripping features. When the front flangeis engaged with the back flangeto close off access to the storage area of the pouch, the male locking featuresare inserted into the female locking featuresto resist movement of the front flangeaway from the back flange.

In the embodiment of, the gripping featuresinclude ridgesthat provide purchase for the fingers of a user grasping the front and back flanges,of the closureas suggested in. The ridgesextend both from an interior side of the base stripand an exterior side of the base stripat the same location between the bottom and top of the base strip. The results of this geometry is a general + shape being generated by the base stripand each set of ridges.

In the illustrated example, each ridgehas a shark fin shape with a curved top side, a flat bottom sideperpendicular to the flange,, and a filletthat extends from the flange,to the flat bottom side. The filletforms an obtuse angle with both the flange,and the flat bottom sideof the ridge. The illustrated filletextends from the flange,about one-fourth to one-third of the overall height of the ridgefrom the flange,. In other examples, it is contemplated that the ridgesmay have other suitable shapes such as rectangle, trapezoid, t-shape, triangle, polygon, or crescent.

When being filled or otherwise used, the closurecan be rolled down to hold the opening into the bagopen as suggested in the embodiment of. The + shape created at the base stripand each set of ridgesprovide reinforcement for the flanges,to support rolling and unrolling of the closurewhile remaining structurally sound.

In addition, in the illustrated embodiment of, two of the gripping featuresare arranged substantially equidistantly from the storage pouchas suggested at referenceso as to contact one another when the closureis closed. In this way, the flanges,are discouraged from coming into contact and are spaced apart so that a user can grip the flanges,and pull them apart to disengage locking features,. In addition, the equidistant gripping featuresatcreate a full hoop around the opening into the pouchwhen the closureis rolled down to hold the open the bag.

A second press-to-close closureis shown in. The closureis adapted to selectively close a plastic storage bag like the exemplary bagin.

The press-to-close closureincludes a front flangeand a back flangethat can be engaged and disengaged from one another. Each of the front flangeand the back flangeextends from a corresponding front panel or back panel of a storage pouch.

The illustrative front flangeand back flangeare each made up of a base strip, a series of male/female locking features,, and gripping features. When the front flangeis engaged with the back flangethe male locking featuresare inserted into the female locking featuresto resist movement of the front flangeaway from the back flange.

In the embodiment of, the gripping featuresinclude primary ridgesand final ridgesthat provide purchase for the fingers of a user grasping the front and back flanges,. The primary ridgesare located between the male/female locking features,and an associated final ridgeas shown in. The final ridgesare located at a free edge of the flanges,.

The primary ridgesextend both from an interior side of the base stripand an exterior side of the base stripat the same location between the bottom and top of the base strip. The results of this geometry is a general + shape being generated by the base stripand each set of primary ridges. In the illustrated example, each ridgehas a shark fin shape with a curved top side and flat bottom side. In other examples, it is contemplated that the ridgesmay have other suitable shapes. Unlike the primary ridges, the final ridgesat the free end of the base stripextends only from the interior side of the base strip.

When being filled or otherwise used, the closurecan be rolled down to hold the opening into the bagopen as suggested in the embodiment of. The + shape created at the base stripand each set of ridgesprovide reinforcement for the flanges,to support rolling and unrolling of the closurewhile remaining structurally sound.

In addition, in the illustrated embodiment of, two sets of the gripping featuresare arranged substantially equidistantly from the storage pouch as suggested at referenceso as to contact one another when the closureis closed. In this way, the flanges,are discouraged from coming into contact and are spaced apart so that a user can grip the flanges,and pull them apart to disengage locking features,. In addition, the equidistant gripping featuresatcreate a full hoop around the opening when the closureis rolled down to hold the open the bag.

A third press-to-close closureis shown in. The closureis adapted to selectively close a plastic storage bag like the exemplary bagin.

The press-to-close closureincludes a front flangeand a back flangethat can be engaged and disengaged from one another. Each of the front flangeand the back flangeextends from a corresponding front panel or back panel of a storage pouch.

The illustrative front flangeand back flangeare each made up of a base strip, a series of male/female locking features,, and gripping features. When the front flangeis engaged with the back flangethe male locking featuresare inserted into the female locking featuresto resist movement of the front flangeaway from the back flange.

In the embodiment of, the gripping featuresinclude ridgesand beadsthat provide purchase for the fingers of a user grasping the front and back flanges,. The primary ridgesare located between the male/female locking features,and an associated beadas shown. The beadsare located at a free edge of the flanges,.

The primary ridgesextend both from an interior side of the base stripand an exterior side of the base stripat the same location between the bottom and top of the base strip. The results of this geometry is a general + shape being generated by the base stripand each set of primary ridges. In the illustrated example, each ridgehas a shark fin shape with a curved top side and flat bottom side. In other examples, it is contemplated that the ridgesmay have other suitable shapes.

The beadsextend both inwardly and outwardly from the base strip and are enlarged in a height dimension along the base stripwhen compared to the ridgesas shown in. The beadscan have a height dimension of about at least twice that of the ridgesand can have a width dimension about the same as the ridges. Further, in the example, the beadof the back flangehas a height dimension along the base stripof about twice the height of the beadincluded in the front flange. In this way, the beadsprovide an identifiable final protrusion along the base strip.

A fourth press-to-close closureis shown in. The closureis adapted to selectively close a plastic storage bag like the exemplary bagin.

The press-to-close closureincludes a front flangeand a back flangethat can be engaged and disengaged from one another. Each of the front flangeand the back flangeextends from a corresponding front panel or back panel of a storage pouch.

The illustrative front flangeand back flangeare each made up of a base strip, a series of male/female locking features,, and gripping features. When the front flangeis engaged with the back flangethe male locking featuresare inserted into the female locking featuresto resist movement of the front flangeaway from the back flange.

In this embodiment, the gripping featuresinclude ridgesand beadsthat provide purchase for the fingers of a user grasping the front and back flanges,. The primary ridgesare located between the male/female locking features,and an associated beadas shown. The beadsare located at a free edge of the flanges,.

The primary ridgesextend both from an interior side of the base stripand an exterior side of the base stripat the same location between the bottom and top of the base strip. The results of this geometry is a general + shape being generated by the base stripand each set of primary ridges. In the illustrated example, each ridgehas a shark fin shape with a curved top side and flat bottom side. In other examples, it is contemplated that the ridgesmay have other suitable shapes.

The beadsextend both inwardly and outwardly from the base strip and are enlarged in a height dimension along the base stripand in a width dimension extending away from the base stripwhen compared to the ridgesas shown in. The beadscan have a height dimension of about at least twice that of the ridgesand can have a width dimension about twice that of the ridges. In this way, the beadsprovide an identifiable final protrusion along the base strip.

A storage bagincorporating the closuredescribed above is shown in. In this design, the closuremay be rolled over and down along the sides of a storage pouchso as to facilitate filling of the storage pouchwith a liquid or other material. The inwardly/outwardly extending ridgesand beadsprovide purchase for the fingers of a user on the outside of the bagwhen pinched. Moreover, the ridgesand beadsprovide purchase for the fingers of the user reaching under the closureto move the flanges,back to their original position as shown in. Finally, the + shape created at the ridgesand the enlarged beadsprovide reinforcement for the flanges,to support rolling and unrolling of the closurewhile remaining structurally sound.

A fifth press-to-close closureis shown in. The closureis adapted to selectively close a plastic storage bag like the exemplary bagin.

The press-to-close closureincludes a front flangeand a back flangethat can be engaged and disengaged from one another. Each of the front flangeand the back flangeextends from a corresponding front panel or back panel of a storage pouch.

The illustrative front flangeand back flangeare each made up of a base strip, a series of male/female locking features,, and gripping features. When the front flangeis engaged with the back flangethe male locking featuresare inserted into the female locking featuresto resist movement of the front flangeaway from the back flange.

The gripping featuresinclude ridgesthat provide purchase for the fingers of a user grasping the front and back flanges,of the closureas suggested in. The ridgesextend both from an interior side of the base stripand an exterior side of the base stripat the same location between the bottom and top of the base strip. In this illustrative embodiment, each ridgehas a triangular shape with a base along the base strip and a point spaced apart from the base strip. The results of this geometry is a general diamond cross-sectional shape being generated by the base stripand each set of ridges.

When being filled or otherwise used, the closurecan be rolled down to hold the opening into the bag open as suggested in the embodiment of. The diamond shape created at the base stripand each set of ridgesprovide reinforcement for the flanges,to support rolling and unrolling of the closurewhile remaining structurally sound.

A sixth press-to-close closureis shown in. The closureis adapted to selectively close a plastic storage bag like the exemplary bagin.

The press-to-close closureincludes a front flangeand a back flangethat can be engaged and disengaged from one another. Each of the front flangeand the back flangeextends from a corresponding front panel or back panel of a storage pouch.

The illustrative front flangeand back flangeare each made up of a base strip, a series of male/female locking features,, and gripping features. When the front flangeis engaged with the back flangethe male locking featuresare inserted into the female locking featuresto resist movement of the front flangeaway from the back flange.

The gripping featuresinclude ridgesthat provide purchase for the fingers of a user grasping the front and back flanges,of the closureas suggested in. The ridgesextend both from an interior side of the base stripand an exterior side of the base stripat overlapping locations between the bottom and top of the base strip. In this illustrative embodiment, each ridgehas a triangular shape with a base along the base strip and a point spaced apart from the base strip. The point of each ridgeis spaced apart from the point of an opposed ridgewhile the base of each ridgeoverlaps with a portion of the base of an opposed ridge.

When being filled or otherwise used, the closurecan be rolled down to hold the opening into the bag open as suggested in the embodiment of. The shape created at the base stripand each set of ridgesprovide reinforcement for the flanges,to support rolling and unrolling of the closurewhile remaining structurally sound.

Some storage bags in the market do have ridges to aid in grabbing of flanges, however these ridges are only on one side of the flange, preventing a secure grip. Also, bags in market to not have a bead at the end of each flange, which provides an added feature & defense for fingers/thumbs from slipping off the flange while trying to open a bag. Thus, designs in line with the teachings of this disclosure provide advantages to a user.