"IMPROVED FABRIC BULK BAG SYSTEM"

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS Priority of Provisional Patent Application No. 61/160,743 filed March 17, 2009; Provisional Patent Application No. 61/177,044, filed May 11, 2009; and Provisional Patent Application No. 61/181,941, filed May 28, 2009; all incorporated herein by reference, is hereby claimed.

STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT

Not applicable REFERENCE TO A "MICROFICHE APPENDIX" Not applicable

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to fabric bulk bags. More particularly, the present invention relates to a fabric bulk bag which incorporates novel features including, but not limited to, the overall configuration of the bag; a pot belly portion of the bag intermediate a pair of sleeves for receiving plastic inserts, internal baffles within the bag. 2. General Background of the Invention

Over the years, throughout the history of the fabric bulk bag industry, improvements in fabric bulk bags have been made in order to provide a safer and more durable product, capable of containing and transporting numerous types of materials. With the change in the composition and strength in fabric design, bags have been designed which allow greater flexibility in the materials and the sewing techniques utilized in their construction.

The Applicant herein has obtained numerous patents on improvements in bulk bag designs which have benefitted the bulk bag industry over the years. There have been other modified designs over the years, and improvements made in bulk bags, as set forth below and in the Information Disclosure Statement filed herewith.

However, this application includes features in bulk bags which heretofore were unknown and are novel in the industry. These features as disclosed herein will elevate the bulk bag industry to new levels of safety and utility for various industries which utilize fabric bulk bags to transport their products.

The following US Patents are incorporated herein by reference : TABLE

PATENT NO. TITLE ISSUE DATE

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The improved bulk bag system of the present invention solves problems in the art in a simple and straightforward manner. What is provided is a bulk bag design of the type wherein a fabric bulk bag having a plurality of walls, a floor portion and a top portion, all defining a bulk storage space therein. The new design includes a floor portion having a pot belly portion and a pair of sleeves on both sides of the pot belly portion for accommodating inserts for receiving tongs of a forklift; the sleeve openings designed to allow a broader opening into which the inserts are engaged, but which secure the insert within each sleeve when product is poured into the bag; one or more darts formed in the upper end of the wall portions of the bag to define a reduced diameter at the top of the bag for stabilizing the bag contents; baffles formed within the bag, the baffles extending down the corners of the sidewalls and defining openings for allowing product to fill the space within the baffled area with product to further stabilize the bag.

For purposes of this application the term "pinch" is defined as using as little as two layers of fabric at any point in the sew line. If it is put in the area of the lift loops, it is unknown how many layers will be involved but only two are necessary for this invention to be effective. The terms "stacker seam" or "dart" may also be used to define the pinch of fabric, which is labeled as item 20 in the drawing Figures and discussed in the specification and claims. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS

For a further understanding of the nature, objects, and advantages of the present invention, reference should be had to the following detailed description, read in conjunction with the following drawings, wherein like reference numerals denote like elements and wherein:

Figure 1 illustrates an overall view of the preferred embodiment of the improved bulk bag of the present invention; Figure 2 illustrates an overall view showing the internal baffle system within the improved bulk bag of the present invention;

Figure 3 illustrates a top view of the improved bulk bag of the present invention;

Figure 4 illustrates a partial view of the bulk bag of the present invention taken along lines 4-4 in Figure 3;

Figures 5 and 6 illustrate cross-section views of the bulk bag of the present invention as bulk material is being poured thereinto;

Figure 7 illustrates a side view of the improved sleeve design for receiving the inserts in the pot bellied portion of the bulk bag of the present invention; Figure 8 illustrates a bottom view of the sleeve design as illustrated in Figure 7;

Figure 9 illustrates a bottom view of the sleeve design in Figure 8 showing the funnel opening in the sleeve design of the bulk bag of the present invention; Figure 10 illustrates a front view of an alternative sleeve opening design of the bulk bag in the present invention . DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

As was stated earlier, in general, the improved bulk bag of the present invention incorporates features in the overall bag which together define a new and very much improved bulk bag design. First, the bag includes a pot bellied feature of the type disclosed in US Patent No.

7,571,370, issued September 22, 2009, by the same inventor, and which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. The design includes a pair of sleeves on either side of the pot bellied portion of the bag, each sleeve which would receive a plastic insert for allowing the tongs of a forklift to be inserted therein. The sleeve openings are designed to allow a broader opening into which the inserts are engaged, but which secure the insert within each sleeve when product is poured into the bag. There are one or more darts formed in the upper end of the wall portions of the bag to define a reduced diameter at the top of the bag for stabilizing the bag contents. Further there are included baffles formed within the bag interior, the baffles extending down the corners of the sidewalls and defining openings for allowing product to fill the space within the baffled area with product to further stabilize the bag What is provided is a bulk bag design of the type wherein a fabric bulk bag having a plurality of walls, a floor portion and a top portion, all defining a bulk storage space therein. The new design also includes a bottom of the bag which allows the bag to rest securely on a surface, and defines a more stable and secure bag upon which other filled bags may be stacked during warehousing of the filled bags. These, and other features, will be described in detail, as set forth in Figures 1 through 10 that will follow.

Figures 1 through 10 illustrate the preferred embodiment of the improved bulk bag of the present invention by the numeral 10. Turning first to the features of the bulk bag 10, reference is first made to Figure 1 where there is illustrated the bag 10 having a plurality of upright sidewalls 12 and top portion 14, an inlet spout 16 for pouring product into the interior 15 of bag 10 through opening 18, and a floor portion 19.

In Figure 1 the bag is shown having the one or more of a plurality of darts or stacker seams 20 formed at each corner 22 of the bag, although the darts 20 could be formed along any portion of the sidewall 12, so as to define a reduced diameter 30 of the upper portion 32 of the bag 10, for allowing the bag to be more stable when filled with product. The upper portion 32 is defined as the portion of the bag between the top portion 14 and the lowermost point 25 of the dart 20. The concept of the reduced diameter 30 and dart 20 feature is more clearly described in Patent Application Serial No. 11/379,436, by the same inventor, which is incorporated in its entirety herein by reference. As seen in Figure 1, there would be further provided a lifting loop 21 secured at the position of each dart 20.

In this improved bag design, when the side directed pressure hits the angled portion of the bag, caused by product within the bag, or another filled bag stacked upon it, there is provided a lift effect which stabilizes the lower bag. Furthermore, the dart or stacker seam in the sidewalls define a means for maintaining the fabric of the sidewalls in tension at all times, preventing the fabric from slipping down around the product in the bag. Additionally, the darts formed in the sidewalls define an upper surface when filled with product capable of supporting another filled bag thereupon. Finally, the stacker feature, in combination with the internal baffles which will be discussed below, allows the product to reach the corners of the baffled bag where ordinarily the baffle panels create obstructions which restrict product flow and prevent it from reaching the top corners.

The next improved feature involves internal baffles within the bag. In the art, some bulk bag designs include internal baffles to help maintain the rectangular shape of the bag when the bag is filled. However, one of the shortcomings is that baffles block the migration of dry bulk throughout the entire interior of the bulk bag, which results in the lower corners of the bag having voids which causes the filled bag to sag and even collapse due to the lack of bulk being contained throughout the interior of the bag.

To solve that serious problem in bulk bag design, reference is made to Figures 2 through 4 which describe a feature of the new bag 10 which allows dry product 33 to be poured into the interior 15 of the bag 10 and provide that the product 33 is able to easily flow or migrate into the four corners 22 of the bag 10 in order to provide a stable base for the filled bag, as will be seen in Figures 5 and 6.

Turning first to Figures 2 through 4, the internal baffle system incorporated into the bulk bag 10, which is also fully described in Provisional Patent Application No. 61/160,743 filed March 17, 2009 incorporated in its entirety herein by reference thereto. As seen first in Figure 2, within the interior 15 of the bulk bag 10 there would be provided a plurality of interior fabric baffle members 40, each baffle member 40 positioned at each corner 22 of the bag 10, so that each baffle member 40 straddles each corner 22 as illustrated. In the preferred embodiment, each baffle 40 would be a length of fabric which would be attached, more preferably through stitching 13 to each side wall 12, and would extend from the lowest most point 25 of each dart 20 downward to a point 27 near the floor portion 19 of the bag 10. Further, as seen in Figures 2 through 4, each baffle member 40 would include a plurality of openings 44, preferably circular in configuration, the function to be described more fully. Once the plurality of baffle members 40, preferably four in number, are in place, and dry product is poured into the interior 15 of bag 10, the product is able to migrate easily to the four corners 22 of the bag 10 by flowing through the upper flow space 42 between the upper wall of the bag 10 and the upper edge 43 of each baffle 40, as seen in Figures 5 and 6. Also, the product can also flow through the plurality of openings 44 in each baffle again to easily migrate to the corners 22 of the bag 10. Finally, the product is able to migrate through the lower flow space 46 defined by the lower edge 45 of each baffle member 44 and the floor portion 19, and fill the entire lower portion of each corner 22, which results in a filled bag 10 having a flat base 47 upon which the filled bag would rest.

As seen clearly in Figures 5 and 6, the dry bulk material 30 has flowed into all of the interior space 15 of the bag 10, in view of the fact that the baffles 40

(seen in phantom view) provide flow spaces above and below the edges of each baffle 40, including the openings 44, and when filled, as seen in Figure 6, the entire interior 15 of the bag is filled with bulk, including the reduced diameter upper portion 12 of the bag, leaving no voids in the bulk, which results in a stable bag which could stand upright a support other filled bags stacked thereupon .

In their function, the baffles hold the side walls under tension preventing them from rounding outward and define a filled bag having a more squared or cubed shape. Furthermore, any product contained within the bag that is above the lowest portion of the dart will always be maintained inside the perimeter of the product below it, thus eliminating the ability of the product to move outside its own main support column that is contained in the bag below the dart. In the preferred embodiment, the internal baffles are sewn more than 7 inches (17.78 centimeters) below the top of the bag to allow for greater product height variability while maintaining stacking safety.

Figures 7 through 10 illustrate how the improved bulk bag 10 also solves the problem of the difficulty in placing inserts into sleeves in a bulk bag which are on either side of a potbellied bag, of the type disclosed and claimed in US Patent No. 7,571,370, issued September 22, 2009, by the same inventor, and incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. The improvement in the sleeves as will be discussed in regard to Figures 7 through 10, and disclosed herein, is the ability of each sleeve to have an increased size opening for easily sliding each insert into the sleeves, yet when bulk material is poured within the bag, the bulk material which flows into the pot bellied portion of the bag forces the walls of the pot belly portion against each sleeve, which tightly engages each insert within each sleeve, and prevents the inserts from sliding out of the sleeves when the tynes of a forklift are driven into each sleeve in order to transport the filled bag. Turning first to Figures 7 and 8, there is illustrated in partial view in Figure 7 the lower portion of a filled bulk bag 10 showing a pot-belly portion 50 and a pair of sleeves 54, one on each side of the pot ^¬ belly portion 50, and each containing a structural insert 56, preferably made of a plastic type material, capable of receiving the tyne of a forklift therethrough. As seen in Figure 8, there is illustrated the underside 60 of a bulk bag 10 where there is illustrated in phantom view the stitchline 58 which engages each sleeve 54 to the bottom of the bulk bag, along the pot belly portion 50, but wherein the stitchline 58 does not extend along the entire length of the sleeve 54, which results in the unattached portion 59 of each sleeve 54, to define a opening 55 of greater diameter than the stitched portion of the sleeve 54. This great diameter defines a funnel portion 62 which serves to guide each insert 56 into each sleeve 54 rather easily, and avoid it jamming against the sleeve opening when inserted.

Figure 10 illustrates a front view of an alternative means to stitch the sleeve 54 to the bag 10, wherein the interior edge 57 of each sleeve 54 is stitched past the corner 51 of the pot-belly portion 50, at point 61, which again results in the sleeve 54 having a larger opening to receive each insert 56 into each sleeve 50 with ease. In either design, when the inserts 56 are in place, and bulk material is poured into and fills the interior 15 of the bag 10, the material in the pot-belly portion 50 forms pressure against the interior wall of each sleeve 54, thus forcing each sleeve 54 to tighten around each insert 56, assuring that the inserts 56 stay in place when the tynes of the forklift are inserted therethrough.

In the preferred construction, the potbelly portion and the two sleeves are constructed as a separate unit added to the bottom of the bag and the functioning of the pot belly portion and the two sleeves as a single unit restricts the outward movement of the sleeves from the forces of the product within the bag. Furthermore, the attachment point between the pot belly and the two sleeves is a few inches (1 inch = 2.54 centimeters) from the bottom corner of the pot belly toward the center of the pot belly portion which provides a more concise forming of the size of the sleeve to the size of the channel so that there is provided a tight relationship between the pot belly portion, the sleeve and the channel within the sleeve. Also, the attachment point between the pot belly and the two sleeves is offset a distance from the bottom corner of the pot belly toward the center of the pot belly portion.

The following is a list of parts and materials suitable for use in the present invention. PARTS LIST

Part Number Description

10 bulk bag

12 sidewalls

13 stitching

14 top portion

15 interior

16 inlet spout

18 opening

19 floor portion

20 darts/stacker seams

21 lifting loops

22 corner

25 lowermost point

27 point

30 reduced diameter

32 upper portion

33 product

40 baffle members

42 upper flow space

44 openings

43 upper edge

45 lower edge

46 lower flow space 47 f l at base

50 pot-belly portion

51 corner 54 sleeves 55 opening

56 insert

57 interior edge

58 stitchline

59 unattached portion 60 underside

61 point

62 funnel portion

All measurements disclosed herein are at standard temperature and pressure, at sea level on Earth, unless indicated otherwise. All materials used or intended to be used in a human being are biocompatible, unless indicated otherwise.

The foregoing embodiments are presented by way of example only; the scope of the present invention is to be limited only by the following claims.