Tamper-evident, tear-open resealable package

Abstract

A tamper-evident package utilizes a transparent resealable adhesive structure such as a tape or a label to cover the closure opening. Upon a first opening of the package frangible portions of the package front between adjacent arcuate cuts and slits defining the opening are torn. This tearing distorts the packaging film so that re-registration of the opposing lateral edges upon reclosing is not possible. This results in a package which is visually tamper-evident. The tamper-evident condition can be enhanced by graphics or other printing on the front of the package in the area of the closure to make the misalignment of a resealed closure viewed through the transparent structure more visually apparent. In one embodiment of the invention a series of arcuate cuts are centered laterally and are flanked on the right and left sides by two continuous wavy slits which form a portion of the closure opening.

Claims

1. A package, comprising; a package having a front, a back, and top and bottom edges defining upward and downward longitudinal directions, said package also having opposing left and right side edges defining a lateral direction; a laterally extending tear-open closure for opening and closing the package moveable from an open position to a closed position for providing access to contents within the package through the closure when open, said closure having a series of arcuate cuts comprising two laterally extending longitudinally spaced rows of individual unconnected arcuate cuts, each cut defining a continuous arc with an apex and two free ends; a transparent adhesive structure for holding the closure in the closed position; wavy slits through the package front on either later side of the series of arcuate cuts, all being part of the closure; and graphics printed on the package front in the area of the series of arcuate cuts to enhance the visual evidence of the closure being previously opened.

2. The package of claim 1 wherein a facing direction of each of said cuts is defined by the pointing direction of its apex and wherein the cuts of one row all point in one longitudinal direction opposite the pointing direction of all the cuts of the other row, said rows being longitudinally staggered thereby defining a series of laterally extending alternating upward pointing and then downward pointing unconnected cuts.

3. The package of claim 2 wherein the ends of longitudinally adjacent cuts overlap.

4. The package of claim 1 having manually frangible portions of the package front located between adjacent cuts which rupture when the package is first opened.

5. The package of claim 1 wherein a prior opening of the package closure is evident after it is closed and resealed by the adhesive structure.

6. The package of claim 4 wherein the series of cuts are centered between opposite sides of the package.

7. The package of claim 1 wherein a central longitudinally extending tab portion of the adhesive structure is adhesively deadened to facilitate its manual grasping.

8. The package of claim 7 wherein the adhesive structure is located across the package front, wraps around the sides of the package, and is adhered to a back side.

9. The package of claim 1 wherein the cuts are substantially identical except for their orientation.

10. The package of claim 9 wherein the cuts each have a longitudinal axis.

11. The package of claim 9 wherein the longitudinal axes of the series of arcuate cuts are parallel.

12. The package of claim 9 wherein each arcuate cut is symmetrical about its longitudinal axis.

13. The package of claim 12 wherein the adhesive structure is adapted to function equally well with either moist or dry package contents.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

(1) FIGS. 1 and 2 are top right front isometric views of prior art packaging.

(2) FIG. 3 is a top right front view of a preconstruction layout of one embodiment of the invention.

(3) FIG. 4 is a close-up view of the tear-open cut pattern.

(4) FIGS. 5 and 6 are top right front isometric views showing a package of the invention before and after the first package opening.

(5) FIGS. 7 and 8 are right side sectional views of the package of the invention in the closed and open positions respectively.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

(6) As defined herein the terms “upward”, “downward” and “longitudinal” define the direction between the top and bottom edges of the package and the terms “lateral” and “laterally” define the direction extending between the opposing sides of the package. Referring now to FIG. 3, a pre-construction layout of the elements of one embodiment of the invention is shown. Film 31 has a piece of transparent pressure sensitive adhesive reseal structure 33 affixed across it extending laterally. The adhesive structure includes a pull tab 35 projects upward from the main body of the pressure sensitive reseal feature. The adhesive on the backside of the pull tab 35 is deadened so that it may be easily grasped by the user. The pressure sensitive adhesive reseal structure 33 extends laterally beyond fold lines 36 which define the sides of the package when constructed so that end portions 34 of the adhesive reseal structure 33 wrap around the sides of the package and the side of the structure which is coated with a pressure sensitive adhesive attaches to the back when fully formed for stronger attachment. The reseal structure may be a label or a tape composed of a polymeric backing and a pressure sensitive adhesive on either side of the backing.

(7) Beneath the adhesive reseal structure 33 in the center of the film between the side fold lines 36 a series of slits 37 and cuts 41 define a closure 32 in the closed position and which provides a package opening through which contents of the package can be removed when portions of the package front are separated along the slits and cuts and the closure is in an open position as seen in FIG. 8. The closure 32 comprises right and left side wavy slits 37 and a series of arcuate cuts 41 in the center. For reasons later described, the film preferably has a printed-on graphic such as the word “OPEN” in the area of the arcuate cuts seen in this figure.

(8) Referring to FIG. 4, the pattern of the series of arcuate cuts 41 that lies in the area of the printed word “OPEN” seen in FIGS. 3, 4, and 6 is shown. The series of cuts 41 comprise two laterally extending longitudinally spaced opposite facing rows of individual identical arcuate cuts. Here we see that each arcuate cut such as cuts 40 and 42 has a facing direction defined by the pointing direction of its apex. The cuts are longitudinally staggered and alternate in upward and then downward pointing directions of their respective apexes. One exemplary longitudinal axis of cut 42 is shown as A-A. The cuts in the series 41 are substantially identical and are geometrically symmetrical about their axis. Frangible portions 44 of the package front are located between adjacent cuts.

(9) Referring now to FIGS. 5 and 6, we see depictions of the package constructed from the layout show in FIG. 3 before and after it is first opened respectively. The package 70 has top and bottom edges 51 and 52 and a front 75 and a back 76. When first opened, the user pulls tab 35 having adhesive deadening material 71 tearing the package material of the front 75 of the package apart that resides between adjacent cuts of the centrally located series of arcuate cuts 41. The attachment of the adhesive reseal structure 33 such as a tape or a label is strengthened by portions 34 which wrap around to the back side of the package 76 as more clearly seen in FIGS. 7 and 8. Other portions of the package front are non-destructively separated along the continuous wavy slits 37 on either side of the arcuate cut series. This provides the reclosable opening in the package as seen in FIG. 8 necessary to access its contents. In FIG. 6 we see the package reclosed and resealed. Here, the manually frangible portions of the package front located between adjacent cuts of cut series 41 are torn apart around and through the printed word “OPEN” which when resealed distorts its depiction so that the act of prior package opening is visibly evident through the transparent adhesive reseal structure 33. Because only a small portion of the closure needs to be forcibly torn, only a relatively small force is needed. This, in combination with the novel shape of the cuts, permits the desirable use of a lighter gage film material and a package that is easier to open.

(10) The opening process is further depicted in FIGS. 7 and 8. As seen in FIG. 7 the constructed package forms front and back panels 75 and 76. Pull tab 35 has deadening material 71 applied to its back surface to allow manual grasping. With the tear open closure in the closed position, the main body of the adhesive structure 33 which is preferably a resealable transparent adhesive structure having adhesive 72 covers the various closure slits and cuts shown here as cut 73. Side portions 34 of the reseal structure 33 wrap around and are adhered to the back 76 of the package 70. As the tab is grasped and pulled downward the adhesive structure 33 starts to peal from the front panel 75. When the separation point of the peal crosses the above described series of arcuate cuts the adherence of the reseal structure either a tape or pressure sensitive label to the panel just below the cuts is sufficient to tear the panel material between the cuts to create a package opening through which its contents can be removed. FIG. 8 shows the package of FIGS. 3-7 in its open condition with the tear open closure moved to the open position. Here we see the material of the package front panel 75 destructively torn apart at the mouth of the opening 77 between separated parts of the front panel.

(11) From the above description of the invention it can readily be seen that the objects of the invention have been achieved. While only one embodiment of the invention is depicted in the drawings and described above there can be variations in dimension and proportionality. Furthermore the means of production can be any suitable means available to the art at that time.

(12) Many modifications to the preferred embodiment may be possible without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention which shall be defined only by the following claims and their legal equivalents.