Carrier Including Handle and Attachment

This non-provisional application claims the benefit under 35 U.S.C. § 119 (e) to U.S. Provisional Application No. 63/653,514, filed on May 30, 2024, which is hereby expressly incorporated by reference into the present application.

Many products are packaged in sealed packages. Some packages include handles which are fixed to the package by adhesives such as glue dots or adhesive tape. Adhesives often lose their adherence when temperatures rise, so the packages using adhesives to secure the handles are sensitive to high temperature. Further, it is difficult to affix permanently using adhesives to packages containing cool or cold products (e.g., products that must be refrigerated). Glue dots do not adhere well to refrigerated or moist packaging. Thus, adhesive handles are also sensitive to low temperatures. Often multiple pieces of adhesive tape must be used to secure the handle and the products. For example, two pieces of adhesive tape may secure the handle to two packages and an additional piece of adhesive tape may be fixed to the bottom of the two packages to prevent the adhesive tape securing the handle from being dislodged by ordinary movement from transporting the two attached packages.

Further, attaching handles using adhesives to soft packaging is difficult to automate and applying the handles using adhesives by hand is labor intensive and costly. Handles attached by adhesives are also not reliably reusable.

Other methods of connecting packages together also exist with additional flaws. For example, heat shrink wrap can attach packages together, but it is unattractive and can obscure writing on the packages. Tensioned plastic bands are also unattractive and can obscure portions of the package by covering or crimping/wrinkling the packaging. Equipment for fused tops on gusseted pouches currently do not exist for liquid filled pouches. Heat sealing two or more pouches/packages together makes them unstable, unattractive and incompatible with existing packaging machines. A plastic strap that is heat sealed to the top of one or more pouches has also been tried. However, this method is difficult to automate and is unattractive. Further, none of these methods are reusable.

Some packages do not attach handles and instead have holes placed in them for a person to grasp the bag. This is generally done by having a significant amount of material extend beyond a sealed portion containing the product with the hole placed in the material extending beyond the sealed portion. This results in inefficient use of the material.

Thus, there have not been options for handles for sealed bags of products which are efficient in the use the material of the bag, insensitive to temperature, attractive and reusable.

The present application provides a carrier which includes a handle and attachment for one or more sealed bags or other objects. The carrier may be made of inexpensive materials and is reusable. The attachment may be inserted through one or more slits in a material forming the sealed bag requiring far less material to extend beyond the sealed portion of the bag than would be necessary to create a handle from the material. The carrier does not rely on adhesives and may be made of a material which is significantly less heat sensitive than adhesives which are currently used to attach handles to bags.

Some example embodiments allow for multiple packages to be secured together. Securing multiple packages together provides several advantages such as increased material storage density (i.e., how many individual package units you can fit on a pallet), significant reduction in plastic material, environmental and social governance (ESG) gains, premium shelf appeal, and reduced shipped weight.

The carrier may include a handle; and at least one prong attached to the handle, the at least one prong being attached to the handle such that a first portion of the prong extends in a first direction from an attachment point to the handle and a second portion of the prong extends in a second direction from the attachment point, the second direction being opposite the first direction. When the carrier is not under tension, a gap between the handle and the first portion of the prong exists.

Example embodiments shown in the drawings are intended only as examples. Changes and variations may be made based on the principles discussed below.

shows a carrierwith two attachmentsand two prongson each attachment.shows a side view of a carrierwith two attachments. The carriermay include a handleextending between the two attachments. The handlemay have dimensions which are suitable for a human hand to grasp the handle. The handlemay split into multiple shanksto attach to each prongof the attachmentsuch that there is a gapbetween each prongin the attachment. Each shankon a first side of the handle may extend parallel to the other shanks on the first side of the handle. Each shankon a second side of the handle may extend parallel to the other shanks on the second side of the handle. The shanks being parallel causes the lines where the prongs attach to the shanksto be parallel which causes force to be distributed evenly along the prong attachment lines when the carrieris attached to an object and under tension (e.g. being lifted).

The width of the gap may be chosen by the properties of the material to which the attachmentis designed to attach. For example, if a woven material such as canvas or burlap is the material of the sealed package, the gapmay be about 1 inch or greater such that the slits through which the prongsenter in the material are sufficiently distanced to not compromise the structure of the material and cause a tear in the material when the package is lifted by the handle. For materials which are uniform such as plastic packaging, a smaller gapmay be used (e.g., 0.5 inches). The width of the gapand width of the prongsmay be chosen based on the material of the package and the weight of the package. Also, the material of the carriermay be chosen based on the weight of the package. For example, for packages under about 20 pounds a carrier made of an inexpensive plastic such as softened polyethylene may be used. The use of inexpensive materials for the carrier compared to using additional material for forming handles or having non-reusable adhesively attached handles may reduce the cost of transporting packages. For packages of greater weight more durable plastics or even metal may be used based on the weight of the package.

The prongsmay be attached to the shanksat a pointin approximately the middle of the prong(e.g., within 10% of the total length of the prong from the middle). A first portionof the prongmay extend in a first direction from the point, and a second portionof the prongmay extend in a second direction, opposite the first direction, from the point. The prongmay thus form a barb like structure such that when the entire prongis inserted through a slit in the material of the package a gap exists between the first portion of the prongand the shankwhen the carrier is not under tension. The carriermay be made of a sufficiently flexible material such that the gap between the first portion of the prongand the shankcan be reduced or eliminated under tension without damaging the carrier. After insertion of the prong, when the handleis pulled upward the material of the package will enter the gap between the first portion of the prongand the shankand be supported by the prongsuch that the package can be lifted by the handle. The second portion of the prongprovides a guide for inserting the prongin a slit in the material and also prevents the attachmentfrom rotating relative to the slit in the material to prevent the package from sliding off or being bumped off the attachment.

The shape of the prongscauses the forces experienced by the packaging material to be shear forces and not tear forces, leveraging the strengths of most packaging material which are durable to shear forces. The prongsmay be flat in a first plane connected along a straight line in the first plane. The prongsmay have an oval shape in the first plane, or a square shape with rounded corners. Prongson opposite sides of the handlemay face each other. Facing each other may include being parallel to each other or within about 30 degrees of parallel to each other when the carrieris not under tension. The line of attachment for each prongmay be parallel or about parallel (e.g. within 10 degrees of parallel). The handleand the shankforming a (upside-down from the perspective of) ‘U” shape with the prongs on the interior of the ‘U’ shape. The attachmentincluding two or more prongsand thus multiple attachment points to also prevents carrierfrom rotating relative to the package. Thus, the handleis maintained in a vertical position for easy grasping and the stress on the packaging (from an angled lift where tension would be focused on a corner of the pointrather than the entire attachment point) is reduced. The reduction in movement also makes it unnecessary to attach packages along the bottom or in other places with adhesive tape. Thus, the process of securing the packages together may be simplified, reducing assembly time and cost.

The barb like structure allows for the prongsto be easily inserted through the packaging by a machine in an automated fashion. For example, the machine can punch slits in the packaging and then insert the prongsof the carrierthrough the slits to secure the carrierto the package. The prongsmay be attached to the shanksof the handlesuch that the prongscan rotate relative to the shanksof the handlesuch that the gap between the shanksof the handleand the first portion of the prongis capable of reducing in size under tension, such as when the prongsare pushed through a slit in the material of the packaging. The material of the packaging provides the force to provide tension on the prongsand shanksof the handles to cause the gap to decrease in size. After the prongsare through the slit the tension is released because the material is no longer providing a force on the prongs and handle and the gap is restored to its non-tensioned size.

Each attachmentmay be attached to a different package or alternatively, both attachments may be attached to the same package with the handleflexing to allow the attachments to be side by side on the package. The handlemay be designed with a curve specific to the size of the packages. Tension applied by the carrier'sinnovative design holds soft packaging straight upright as it would be presented in a single package display for improved display, product packaging information readability and marketing. Additionally, the carrieris ergonomic and elegant, adding to the premium appeal of the product being merchandised.

The prongsmay also be inserted into slits in other objects other than sealed packages so that the attachmentsattach to the other objects. For example, the carrier can be attached via slits on opposite side of a plastic, wood, or metal container (e.g., a storage bin, a kennel, or a crate) such that the carrierarches over the container and acts as a handle for the container.

The handlesmay be used to suspend attached packages across a bar or other similar structure. Thus, packages can be vertically stored or displayed without crushing each other. Because there is no need to secure the bottom of the packages using the carrier, the packages can be easily lifted on and off the bar.

shows a carrierwith two attachmentsand three prongson each attachment. The carriermay include any number of prongson each attachment. For example, each attachment may include three or four or five prongs. Having multiple prongshelps to disperse the load of carrying the package over a greater area and reduce the risk of tearing the material of the package. This eliminates the need in most circumstances of reenforcing the material of the package and reduces cost of manufacture. If the material of the package is not sturdy enough for two prongsto hold the package without tearing, three or four prongsmay allow the package to be lifted without tearing or overly stretching the material. The area of the attachmentthat bears on the edge of the slot in the pouch/package material may also be carefully radiused to reduce stress and tear propagation.

shows a carrierwith four attachments. The four attachmentsare arranged with two attached to each of two handles. Each handleand directly attached attachmentsmay be called a carrier strap. The handlesmay be secured by a pinpassing through the two handlesor another mechanism for securing objects together. Any number of handlesmay be attached via the pin. Each attachmentmay be about 90 degrees from each adjacent attachment(e.g., within about 9 degrees of 90 degrees). The carrierwith four attachmentsmay attach to four different packages or may attach to four sides of an object. The handlesmay be able to rotate relative to the pinsuch that the angle between attachmentscan be changed. The carrierwith four attachmentsmay form a carrousel effect for four packages attached to the carrier.

shows a carrierwith six attachments. The six attachmentsare arranged with two attached to each of three handles. The handles may be secured by a pinpassing through the three handlesor another mechanism for securing objects together. The six attachmentsmay be arranged with a larger gap between two adjacent attachments, compared to the distance between two other adjacent attachments, to allow a human hand to more comfortably fit through to grasp the handles. The handlesmay be able to rotate relative to the pinsuch that the angle between the attachments can be changed. The carrierwith six attachmentsmay attach to six different packages or may attached to six sides of an object. Carriersmay also have any number of attachments. For example, for lifting a large cylinder a carrier withattachments may be used to distribute the weight over a greater number of prongsand handles. The number of attachmentsmay be chosen based on the weight and durability of the materials of the carrier and the package/container/object.

shows a carrierwith one attachment. The handleof the carriermay form a loop, ring, or tee and secure to itself to make lifting using the handle more comfortable to a human hand than lifting using a strap.

shows a first side view of an attachmentattached to a sealed bag.shows a second side view of an attachmentattached to a sealed bag.shows a side of a sealed bagthrough which the prongsexit the sealed bagwhen the attachmentis secured to the sealed bag.shows a side of a sealed bagthrough which the prongsare inserted to secure the attachmentto the sealed bag. The sealed bagmay be an example of a sealed package. The sealed bagincludes material above the sealed portion of the bag. The material above the sealed portion includes horizontal slitsthrough which the prongsare inserted then pulled up. Thus, the prongssecure the sealed bagsuch that the sealed portion is not punctured, and the bag can be lifted by the handle. The amount of material above the sealed portion may be minimal. For example, the amount of material may be about 0.5-1 inch. This is far less material than would be needed to form a handle above the sealed portion out of the material of the bag. To remove the carrier, the prongscan be pushed downward and toward the shanksand brought upward through the slits. Thus, the carrier can be reused. In some embodiments, the second portionof the prongmay be sharp and durable enough so that the prongcan be pushed through the material of the sealed package to form slits in the material.

shows an attachmentwith one prongand including a stopper. In this example, the prongis mounted such that the first portion of the prongextends away from the direction of the curvature of the handlerather than toward the inside of the curvature of the handle as shown in. The attachment includes only one prongand the attachment also includes a stopper. The stoppermay be connected to the handleat a pointabout in the middle of the stopper (e.g., within about 10% of the total length of the stopper from the middle of the stopper). The stopperfunctions to prevent the attachmentfrom going too far through the slitwhich may result in prongslipping through the slitor bouncing with great enough force to damage the material of the package.

As is demonstrated by the example embodiments. The carriermay reusably attach to packages, containers, or objects through slits to allow the packages, container, or objects to be carried using the handle. The carriermay allow the amount of material used in a package outside of the sealed portion to be reduced while the attractiveness and utility of the packages is improved. Also, the carriermay also be made of inexpensive materials which reduce the cost of transporting packages.