PACKAGING UNIT FORMED

TECHNICAL FIELD The present disclosure relates to a method of forming a packaging unit and a packaging unit formed for disposable hygiene articles as defined in the appended claims. The unit comprises a foldable sheet of a plastic film with edge zones comprising adhesive coated and adhesive- free portions in a complementary manner such that the adhesive coated portion is arranged to be in contact with at least an adhesive-free portion on the inner surface of the sheet when the sheet is folded.

BACKGROUND ART

Disposable hygiene articles, such as sanitary napkins and panty liners, are normally packaged individually in e.g. an easy wrap or a single wrap. Individual packages facilitate hygienic carrying of single articles for future use, e.g. in a handbag. The edges of the individual packages can be sealed by means of adhesive, ultrasonic welding or heat welding. Further, the packaging units are often used both as a means for packaging an unused article and for disposal of the used article.

It is desirable that used articles of this kind can be disposed of discretely and hygienically. This may be particularly important when the user lacks the possibility to dispose of the used article immediately after the used article has been replaced, e.g. when there is no waste bin available in the toilet area. In this case, the user may need to put the used article in e.g. the handbag or backpack, which requires that the package is tightly sealed in order to avoid staining and at least partly spreading of odour. The disposal problem has been an object of quite an intensive investigation, and several solutions have been suggested. WO 88/10219 discloses a packaging unit which is formed by folding an elongated sheet of material provided along the mutually parallel edges thereof with a continuous or broken narrow coating of pressure-sensitive adhesive by means of which the container part is held together, with adhesive surfaces lying against and bonding to adhesive surfaces. The packaging unit further comprises a lid coated at least partially with a pressure-sensitive adhesive so as to enable the lid to be refastened to the outside of the container part. Such a packaging unit thus has very strongly sealed side seams where the adhesive-coated surfaces are in contact with each other, and a resealable lid providing a tightly sealed disposal package. However, since the adhesive-coated surfaces are in contact with each other, it is impossible to unfold the sheet completely for positioning of a used item, which thus has to be inserted into the rather limited container part. This may be disadvantageous, since a used hygiene article often becomes more bulky than before use, making it difficult to insert it into the container part. WO2015/060755 discloses the use of silicone release agent to adjust the adhesive strength of an adhesive bond between two adhered surfaces. However, the use of silicone during manufacture leads to an increased amount of units in the manufacturing equipment and thus to a process which requires complicated simultaneous control of several units and substances. Also, silicone as such may be difficult to handle during manufacture and especially during operational disturbances since silicone can easily spread in the manufacturing equipment and is difficult to remove. Therefore, there is a need for a simplified manufacturing process while it is still also possible to adjust the adhesive strength of an adhesive bond between two adhered surfaces. Furthermore, despite prior art solutions, there is a need for a packaging unit which can be used both for packaging a new hygiene article and for sanitary keeping and disposing of a used hygiene article, and which is aesthetically appealing.

SUMMARY

The inventors of the present disclosure have been faced with the above-mentioned problem of providing a simplified process, while keeping the capability to adjust the adhesive strength of an adhesive bond between two adhered surfaces. Normally, when an adhesive is to be applied to a film surface, the surface needs to be pre-treated to improve wetting and adhesion of the adhesive coating to the surface. Therefore, the surface is pre-treated for example by corona, plasma and/or mechanical treatment, such as micro-perforation, of the surface.

However, the pre-treatment improves also the adhesive strength between the adhesive and the pre-treated surface, whereby it was noted in the WO2015060755 that a film surface, which is in contact with the adhesive needs to be treated with a silicone-based release agent to decrease the adhesive strength between the surfaces and thereby enable opening of a package with adequate force so that the risk for breakage of the film is reduced.

The inventors of the present disclosure surprisingly found that by using a silicone-free printing ink it is possible to adjust the adhesive strength of an adhesive bond between two adhered surfaces, while a simplified process can be provided since the same printing ink, which is used for overall printing of the package, can be used to reduce adhesive strength of an adhesive bond between an adhesive-free portion and an adhesive coated portion. Therefore, there is a possibility to obtain a manufacturing method for a packaging unit with reduced amount of steps, whereby e.g. the total energy need can be decreased. Thereby, decreased adhesive strength of an adhesive bond between two adhered surfaces can be provided while it is possible to provide additional visual information to the package, which improves the aesthetical appealing and/or informative content of the product.

Thus, the present disclosure relates to a method of forming a packaging unit for disposable hygiene articles from a sheet of plastic film. The sheet has an outer surface and an inner surface, which is pre-treated to improve wetting and adhesion of a coating and/or printing ink on the surface. The method comprises arranging the sheet to be foldable along at least one folding axis. In the method a portion of edge zones of the sheet are coated on the inner surface with a resealable pressure sensitive adhesive. A complementary portion of the edge zones on the inner surface are left adhesive-free. By this is meant that when the sheet is folded along the folding axis, the adhesive coated portion is arranged to be in contact with the complementary adhesive-free portion on the opposing inner surface of the sheet when the sheet is folded. It is essential that an adhesive coated surface is in contact with the adhesive- free surface and not with another adhesive coated surface. In the present method adhesive strength of an adhesive bond between the complementary adhesive-free portion and the adhesive coated portion is reduced by providing the adhesive-free portion with a silicone-free printing ink in a printed pattern, the pattern having a size corresponding to at least 40% of the size of the adhesive coated portion. By size is meant the total surface area of the printed pattern and/or the adhesive coated pattern. Suitably, the shape of outer boundaries of the complementary adhesive-free portion is the same as or larger than the shape of the outer boundaries of the adhesive coated portion. The coverage of the printed pattern is arranged such that the size, i.e. the area covered by the printed pattern, is at least 40% of the size of the adhesive coated portion. In this way, the adhesive strength of an adhesive bond between the complementary adhesive-free portion and the adhesive coated portion is reduced sufficiently. Suitably, the size, i.e. the area covered by the printed pattern, can be from 50% to 100% of the size of the adhesive coated. The size and shape of the adhesive coated portion can be the same or substantially the same as the size and shape of the complementary adhesive-free portion.

The method may further comprise arranging the sheet such that at least a first longitudinal region and a second longitudinal region are formed when the sheet is folded along the at least one folding axis. Further, a longitudinally extending side edge portion in the side edge zone of the first region of the sheet may be coated with an adhesive coating, and a printing pattern in the complementary adhesive-free portion of a longitudinally extending side edge portion in the side edge zone of the second region of the sheet may be printed with the silicone-free printing ink. Alternatively or additionally, the method comprises coating a longitudinally extending side edge portion in the side edge zone of the second region of the sheet with an adhesive coating, and printing a printing pattern with the silicone-free printing ink in the complementary adhesive-free portion of a longitudinally extending side edge portion in the side edge zone of the first region of the sheet. In the method the sheet is then folded about the folding axis, such that the edge portion carrying adhesive in said first region is brought in contact with the complementary adhesive-free edge portion in said second region.

Alternatively or additionally the edge portion carrying adhesive in said second region is brought in contact with the complementary adhesive-free edge portion at said first region. Thus, both side edge portions in the first region may be provided with adhesive or be adhesive free while both side regions in the second region are in a complementary manner adhesive- free or coated with adhesive. Alternatively, one edge zone in each region is coated with adhesive and one is adhesive free in a complementary manner, i.e. so that when the sheet is folded, an adhesive coated portion is brought in contact with an adhesive-free portion.

The method may further comprise providing an inner edge portion and an outer edge portion in the respective side edge zone at an inner surface of the sheet in the respective first longitudinal region and second longitudinal region. Further, in the respective first longitudinal region and second longitudinal region one of the inner edge portion and outer edge portion is coated with adhesive coating, such that the other of said inner edge portion and said outer edge portion of said side edge zone is adhesive-free. The sheet is then folded about the at least one folding axis, such that the edge portion carrying adhesive in said first region is brought in contact with the adhesive-free edge portion in said second region, and the edge portion carrying adhesive in said second region is brought in contact with the adhesive-free edge portion at said first region. In this way, it is possible to provide adhesive coating extending along both the first region and the second region, whereby the package can be effectively closed and re-closed.

In the present method the packaging unit may be provided with more than one folding axis. Thus, according to one embodiment the method further comprises arranging two folding axes to the sheet such that a first longitudinal region, a second longitudinal region and a third longitudinal region are formed when the sheet is folded along the two folding axes. Further, longitudinally extending side edge portions in the side edge zones of the respective first region and third region of the sheet are coated with an adhesive coating, and a printing pattern with a silicone-free printing ink can be printed in the complementary adhesive-free portions of longitudinally extending side edge portions in the side edge zones of the second region of the sheet. The sheet is then folded such that the inner surface of the sheet in either the third region or the first region is brought in first contact with the inner surface of said second region such that the edge portion carrying adhesive in said first region or third region is brought in contact with the adhesive-free edge portion in said second region. By "in first contact" is in this application meant that either the first region is folded towards the second region and subsequently the third region is folded against the first region, whereby the first region is in first contact with the second region, or vice versa. This means that the third region could be first folded towards the second region and subsequently the first region could be folded towards the third region, whereby the third region is in first contact with the second region. Thus, the order in which the unit is folded can be varied. Furthermore, the outer surface of said first region or third region, which region has the inner surface in the first contact with the inner surface of the second region, is brought in contact with the inner surface of the region which is not in first contact with the inner surface of the second region. This folding method is generally called "E-fold" and provides a space saving effectively closable and re-closable packaging unit. According to a variant, the method may comprise arranging two folding axes to the sheet such that a first longitudinal region, a second longitudinal region and a third longitudinal region are formed when the sheet is folded along the two folding axes. To be able to provide adhesive along the length of each of the longitudinal regions, the method may further comprise arranging longitudinally extending inner edge portions and outer edge portions in the respective side edge zones at an inner surface of the sheet in the respective first longitudinal region, a second longitudinal region and a third longitudinal region. Suitably, the inner edge portion and outer edge portion are arranged on both side edge zones, in parallel and next to each other, i.e. without an intermediate space in between the portions. Alternatively, there may be an intermediate space arranged between the inner edge portion and outer edge portion. Adhesive coating can then be coated on the longitudinally extending inner edge portions in the respective first and third regions and the longitudinally extending outer edge portions in the second region, while complementary outer edge portions in the respective first and third regions and the complementary inner edge portions in the in the second region are left adhesive-free. A printing pattern is then printed with a silicone-free printing ink in the complementary adhesive-free portions. Alternatively, the pattern for adhesive coated and adhesive-free areas may be mirror imaged, meaning that the longitudinally extending outer edge portions in the respective first and third regions and the longitudinally extending inner edge portions in the second region are coated with adhesive coating, while complementary inner edge portions in the respective first and third regions and in the outer edge portions in the second region are left adhesive-free, and a printing pattern is printed with a silicone-free printing ink in the complementary adhesive-free portions. Subsequently, the sheet is folded such that the inner surface of the sheet in either the third region or the first region is brought in first contact with the inner surface of said second region such that the edge portions carrying adhesive in said first region or third region are brought in contact with the adhesive- free edge portions in said second region and the edge portions carrying adhesive in said second region are brought in contact with the adhesive-free edge portions at said first region or said third region. Thus, the outer surface of said first region or third region, which region has the inner surface in the first contact with the inner surface of the second region, is brought in contact with the inner surface of the region which is not in first contact with the inner surface of the second region. In this way, the adhesive coating may extend along the length of each region. The adhesive coated longitudinally extending side edge portions and/or the printed longitudinally extending side edge portions in the respective side edge zones at an inner surface of the sheet in the respective first, second and third longitudinal regions may extend substantially along the whole length of the the respective first, second and third longitudinal regions. However, alternatively if it is desirable, the adhesive coating does not extend along the whole length of the sheet. Instead, the longitudinal side edge portions with the adhesive coating extend up to but not including transversal edge zones. Vice versa, adhesive coating in transversal edge zones normally extend up to but not including the longitudinally extending side edge zones. The method may further comprise providing on the outer surface of the sheet an adhesive- free portion adapted to be attached to the adhesive coated portion on the inner surface of the sheet and providing the adhesive-free portion with a silicone-free printing ink in a printed pattern. In this way, the adhesive bond may be reduced also between the inner surface and outer surface, whereby breakage of the package unit when it is opened is further reduced. Also, the outer surface of the sheet can be pre-treated to improve wetting and adhesion of a coating and/or printing ink. The pre-treatment can be performed by means of corona treatment, plasma treatment and/or mechanical treatment, preferably micro-perforation. The pre-treatment may be a combination of several pre-treatment methods.

Different types of silicone-free printing inks can be used in the method. According a variant, the printing ink can be transparent or comprise a pigment providing the printed pattern visible in day light. The printed pattern can be provided by means of a contact printing process including at least one of flexography, gravure, lithography, offset and silk screen printing, and/or by means of non-impact printing, preferably inkjet printing. Thus, the method of the present disclosure is flexible. Suitably, the printing of the inner surface and the outer surface are performed in a common printing process step. Therefore, an energy saving manufacturing method can be obtained.

The advantages and objectives mentioned above in connection with the method are also obtained by a packaging unit for disposable hygiene articles formed according to the method described above. The unit comprises a sheet of plastic film, the sheet having an outer surface and an inner surface, which is pre-treated to improve wetting and adhesion of a coating and/or printing ink on the surface. The sheet comprises edge zones, both longitudinal and transverse. The zone or zones may have an adhesive coated portion on the inner surface of the sheet, coated with a resealable pressure sensitive adhesive, and a complementary portion which is adhesive-free. When the sheet is folded along a folding axis, the adhesive coated portion or portions is/are arranged to be in contact with the complementary adhesive-free portion or portions on the inner surface of the sheet. The adhesive-free portion or portions is silicone-free and comprises a silicone-free printing ink in a printed pattern having a size corresponding to at least 40% of the size of the adhesive coated portion.

The definitions regarding the terms common to the method and product have been explained above in connection with the method and further in the detailed description which are herein referred to.

The packaging unit may further comprise a first longitudinal region and a second longitudinal region which are formed when the sheet is folded along the at least one folding axis. The unit may comprise a longitudinally extending side edge portion in the side edge zone of the first region or the second region of the sheet coated with an adhesive coating, and a longitudinally extending side edge portion in the side edge zone of the other of the first region or the second region of the sheet which is adhesive-free. The adhesive coated and adhesive-free side edge portions are arranged such that when the sheet is folded about the at least one folding axis the side edge portion with adhesive coating is brought in contact with the complementary adhesive-free edge portion. The adhesive-free edge portion is provided with the silicone-free printing ink in a printed pattern.

The packaging unit may be formed so that it comprises an inner edge portion and an outer edge portion in the first region and the second region, respectively. One of the inner edge portion and the outer edge portion in the first region can be provided with a resealable pressure sensitive adhesive coating and the other of said inner edge portion and said outer edge portion of said first region is then left adhesive-free. In a similar manner, one of said inner edge portion and said outer edge portion of said second region can be coated with the adhesive, and the other of the inner edge portion and the outer edge portion of the second region is left adhesive-free in a complementary manner to the edge zone of the first region. This means that when said sheet is folded about the folding axis, the adhesive coated edge portion in the first region is brought in contact with the adhesive-free edge portion in the second region, and the edge portion carrying adhesive in the second region is brought in contact with the adhesive-free edge portion in the first region, wherein the adhesive-free edge portions in at least one of said first and said second regions is provided with the silicone- free printing ink in a printed pattern. By providing the adhesive-free and adhesive coated portions in such overlapping manner, effective adhesion can be provided along a substantial length of the edge zones of the unit, while breakage of the unit is avoided due to the printed pattern.

The sheet may have two folding axes dividing the sheet into a first region, a second region and a third region. The sheet is arranged to be folded along the folding axes with the first, second and third regions in an overlapping configuration. The side edge portions of the edge zone in the third region may comprise a portion coated with adhesive and an adhesive-free printed portion which correspond to adhesive-coated and adhesive-free printed side edge portions of the side edge zone in the first region. The adhesive-coated and adhesive-free printed side edge portions in the first region and the second region are complementary to the side edge portions of the edge zone in the second region, such that a chessboard pattern of adhesive is formed along each of said longitudinal edges. In this way, an adhesive coating can be provided along the side edge zones up to the whole length of the side edge zones.

The printed pattern in the adhesive-free portion has a size corresponding to at least 40% of the size of the complementary adhesive coated portion, but may preferably have a size corresponding to 50% to 100% of the size of the complementary adhesive coated portion. The size could also be larger than the size of the complementary adhesive coated portion. In this way, sufficient reduction of the adhesive bond between the adhesive coated and adhesive- free portions can be obtained. The sheet may have a substantially rectangular shape and may comprise longitudinal edges, transverse edges and corner portions. Suitably at least one of the transverse edge zones is additionally provided with adhesive coating. In this way, the packaging unit may be closed along the longitudinal edges and the transverse edge, whereby the hygiene or absorbent product inside the package may be very well protected. The transverse edge zone in the first region in the inner surface can be provided with an adhesive coated portion and the transverse edge zone of the second region may comprise an adhesive-free portion in a complementary manner to the adhesive coated portion in the transverse edge zone of the first region, or vice versa, such that when the sheet is folded about the folding axis, the adhesive coated transverse edge portion is brought in contact with the adhesive-free transverse edge portion. The adhesive-free transverse edge portion is provided with a silicone-free printing ink in a printed pattern. Thus, the adhesive coating may be provided in a flexible way in different patterns. According to an aspect, the transverse edge zone in the first region or the third region can be provided in the inner surface with an adhesive coated portion and the opposite longitudinal region can be provided on the outer surface at a region where the adhesive coated portion is brought in contact with the outer surface, and adhesive-free complementary portion provided with a silicone-free printing ink in a printed pattern. By opposite longitudinal region or regions is meant in this application the region which is on the opposite side of the sheet, e.g. the first region is opposite of the second region and the first region is also opposite of the third region.

The plastic sheet of the present disclosure may comprise or consist of many different plastic materials. Suitably, the sheet is a polyethylene film, which is easy to process during the manufacture, economic and well-functioning for the purpose. The thickness of the sheet can be from 10-40 μιη, preferably 10-25 μιη as measured by means of a micrometer screw gauge. The thinner the sheet is, the less material there is to be disposed of. However, if the sheet is thinner than 10 μιη, it may be difficult to handle during the manufacture and use.

The sheet may be pre-treated by means of corona treatment, plasma treatment and/or mechanical treatment, preferably micro-perforation. In this way, the adhesion of the adhesive coating and/or the printing ink can be improved. The printing ink is suitably solvent based, whereby for example drying time of the ink can be minimized. Also, the outer surface of the sheet may comprise a printed pattern. In this way the aesthetical and/or informative appearance of the packaging unit may be improved.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Examples according to the present disclosure will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Fig. 1 shows an example of a packaging unit according to the present disclosure in an open state;

Fig. 2 shows the packaging unit of Fig. 1 when closed; Fig. 3 shows another example of a packaging unit according to the present disclosure in an open state;

Fig. 4 shows the packaging unit of Fig. 3 when closed;

Fig. 5 shows a further example of a packaging unit according to the present disclosure in an open state; and Fig. 6 shows the packaging unit of Fig. 5 when closed.

Fig. 7 shows a further example of a packaging unit according to the present disclosure in an open state; and

Fig. 8 shows the packaging unit of Fig. 7 when closed.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The present disclosure relates to a method of forming a packaging unit for a disposable hygiene article and to a packaging unit formed. The packaging unit can be used both for packaging a new hygiene article and for safe and sanitary disposing of a used hygiene article. The packaging unit of the present disclosure provides a possibility of forming a tightly sealed package both for a new and a used article. The aim is to maintain reclosability of the package and reduce the risk for breakage of the packaging unit when opening the package to release a new hygiene article. Furthermore, it is an objective to provide a method of forming the package in an easy and energy efficient way. It is also an object to keep a new article sanitary and clean prior to use. Also, it is an object to reduce the risk of opening of the package after disposal of a used hygiene article and therefore to reduce the risk for staining and odour. The packaging unit is easy to unfold and reseal, and is aesthetically appealing. By "plastic film" is meant a film material comprising polymeric material as a base material. The plastic film may be a single ply film by which is meant a single ply of a coherent material. The examples of single ply plastic films are e.g. plastic films comprising or being consisted of polyethylene, polypropylene, polyester, nylon, polyvinyl chloride and/or a bioplastic or biodegradable plastic. A single ply material may be a non-homogenous material such as a plastic film material comprising integrated layers or a nonwoven material having varying fibre composition in different parts of the material. A single ply material as used herein does not comprise materials having separable layers. The plastic film may also be a laminate by which is meant a packaging unit comprising at least two united separable plies of material that can be the same or different. In the context of the present disclosure, the laminate may for example be constituted of two separable plies of plastic film, a film and nonwoven, a film and metallic foil or the like. In case of laminate, suitably at least the surface of the sheet constituting the inner surface is a plastic film being consisted of polyethylene, polypropylene, polyester, nylon, polyvinyl chloride and/or a bioplastic or biodegradable plastic As used herein, the term "inner surface" refers to the surface of the packaging unit facing the product positioned inside the packaging unit, and the term "outer surface" refers to the surface opposite to the inner surface, i.e. the surface facing the ambient.

By "pre-treated surface" is meant that the surface of the film is treated to improve the wetting and adhesion of the adhesive coating on the surface. The pre-treatment may be performed by for example corona, plasma and/or mechanical treatment, such as micro-perforation of the surface. The film can be pre-treated by the manufacturer of the film or it can be pre-treated in connection with the manufacture of the packaging unit for the disposable articles.

By the term "silicone", is also referred to as "polysiloxane", by each of which is meant a polymeric substance comprising alternate silicon and oxygen atoms bound to organic groups. Silicone is a polymeric synthetic material having resistance to temperature and water and has good insulating and lubricating properties.

By the term "silicone-free printing ink" is meant a printing ink free of silicones. The silicone-free printing ink of the present disclosure is able to decrease the adhesive strength of an adhesive bond between two adhered surfaces. By providing a surface, e.g. an adhesive-free portion of an inner surface of a film, with a silicone- free printing ink in a printed pattern is meant that the printed pattern is produced by a printing process with printing equipment onto the surface. The printing process may be a contact printing process in which e.g. printing plate, cylinder, kliche or screen is involved. The contact printing process can be, but is not limited to e.g. at least one of flexography, gravure, lithography, offset and silk screen printing or combinations thereof. Also e.g. tampon printing may be conceivable. The printing method can alternatively or additionally be e.g. or a nonimpact printing process.

By the term "edge zone" is meant a portion of the packaging unit adjacent to the edges of the packaging unit. The width of an edge zone may be varied.

The term "inner edge portion" refers to the portion of the edge zone positioned towards the centerline of the packaging unit. The term "outer edge portion" refers to the portion of the edge zone positioned towards the edge of the packaging unit.

By the term "transverse cutting zone" is meant an area of the web of material where an incision is made in order to separate a piece of the web of material, thus forming a sheet for forming a packaging unit of the present disclosure.

By "resealable pressure sensitive adhesive" is meant adhesive which is a pressure-sensitive hotmelt adhesive with unlimited open time and said packaging unit being reclosable, meaning that the adhesive can bond to another substrate at any time. The adhesive used in the present disclosure may be a pressure-sensitive hotmelt adhesive, such as Lunatack< ^® >D656 BD 19 available from H. B. Fuller.

The present disclosure provides a method of forming a packaging unit, and a packaging unit formed by the method. The packaging unit is aimed for hygiene articles. The packaging unit and the method of forming a packaging unit substantially eliminate the drawbacks during the manufacture of the packaging unit discussed above and provide an improved appearance for the packaging unit while the risk for breakage of the package is low.

The packaging unit for hygiene articles according to the present disclosure is formed from a sheet of material having an inner surface and an outer surface. The inner surface comprises a longitudinally extending side edge zone on each longitudinal side of the sheet and a transversal edge zone on each transversal side of the sheet. Each of the side edge zones may comprise one, two or even more longitudinally extending parallel edge portions. By longitudinally extending portion is meant in this application a portion which has a longer extension in the longitudinal extension than in the transverse extension. By transversally extending is meant in this application a portion which has a longer extension in the transverse extension than in the longitudinal extension. Suitably, there are two parallel edge portions at least in in each longitudinal side edge zone of the sheet. The side edge zones may therefore comprise an inner edge portion and an outer edge portion.

The sheet has at least one folding axis, the folding axis dividing the sheet into a first region and a second region. In the method of the present disclosure a portion of the edge zones on the inner surface are coated with a resealable pressure sensitive adhesive coating and a complementary portion of the edge zones in the inner surface are left adhesive-free, such that when the sheet is folded along the folding axis, the adhesive coated portion is arranged to be in contact with an adhesive-free portion on the inner surface of the sheet. According to the present disclosure adhesive strength of an adhesive bond between the adhesive-free portion and the adhesive coated portion is reduced by providing the adhesive-free portion with a silicone-free printing ink in a printed pattern the pattern having a size corresponding to at least 40% of the size of the complementary adhesive coated portion. The adhesive-free portion is thus silicone-free. In this way, the packaging unit and the sheet will not break when the package is opened and can be re-closed, while an improved visual appearance for the unit can be provided.

According to a variant, one of the inner edge portion and the outer edge portion of the edge zone of the first region is provided with adhesive, and the other of the inner edge portion and the outer edge portion of the edge zone of the first region is adhesive-free. According to the present disclosure, one of the inner edge portion and the outer edge portion of the edge zone of the second region can be provided with adhesive, and the other of the inner edge portion and the outer edge portion of the edge zone of the second region can be adhesive-free in a complementary manner to the edge zone of the first region. In other words, when the sheet is folded about the folding axis, the edge portion carrying adhesive in the first region is brought in contact with the adhesive-free edge portion in the second region, and the edge portion carrying adhesive in the second region is brought in contact with the adhesive-free edge portion in the first region. Further, at least a section of the adhesive-free edge portion in at least one of the first and second regions is provided with the silicone-free printing ink in a printed pattern in order to be able to reduce the adhesive strength of the adhesive bond between the adhesive coated and adhesive-free portions. The pressure-sensitive adhesive used with the packaging unit is one which has a very high self- adhesion but which can be readily separated or released from other materials, such as plastic materials or paper which has been provided with silicone-free printing ink in a printed pattern. A major advantage of using silicone-free printing ink in a printed pattern is that a simple manufacturing process can be provided since a surface being able to control the adhesive bond between adhesive coated and adhesive-free surfaces can be provided in one common printing process used for printing the packaging unit. There is no need for separate varnishing, lacquering and/or silicone application units, and therefore also the use of non-impact printing devices, such as ink-jet devices is facilitated. Further, by the present disclosure, the advantages of the prior art packaging units are maintained, i.e. e.g. that the packaging unit can be completely unfolded when a new hygiene article is about to be taken out. The problems of prior art packages having adhesively sealed edges with adhesive-coated edge portions being in contact with each other and having too high adhesive strength of the adhesively sealed edges are avoided. Thus, tearing and breakage of the packaging unit are avoided during complete opening of the unit. As the adhesive-coated edge portions of the packaging unit of the present disclosure are not in contact with each other when the packaging unit is folded, the packaging unit can be readily opened and resealed, providing a tight disposal package. At the same time, the tensile strength of the adhesively sealed edges of the packaging unit using adhesive pattern described herein is sufficient to provide a tight package for both a new and a used article, and low enough to provide a readily-opened package. Providing a silicone-free printing ink in a printed pattern in the adhesive-free edge portions permits the provision of a packaging unit comprising an adhesive having adequate strength to keep the packaging unit tightly sealed prior to opening, while the packaging unit may still be opened without using unduly high forces, potentially destroying the packaging unit and making it unsuitable for disposal purposes, and at the same time strength sufficient to form a tight packaging unit when the packaging unit is resealed. Furthermore, the visual and/or informative content of the packaging unit can be improved while the unit will be easy to manufacture. The silicone-free printing ink in a printed pattern may be provided on one of the adhesive-free edge portions. The silicone-free printing ink in a printed pattern may also be provided on several of the adhesive-free edge portions, or on all of the adhesive-free edge portions of the packaging unit. The silicone-free printing ink in a printed pattern may form a coating covering the entire adhesive-free edge portion of the packaging unit. The pattern may be continuous or discontinuous and may contain for example text. The pattern may contain any shapes and/or abstract forms, may be an image, photographic image, text, geometrical shapes such as spiral, wave, zigzag, helix, or intermittent, such as lines, dots, crosses, stars, squares or may even full coverage coating or may be half-toned. Further, it is conceivable that the silicone-free printing ink in a printed pattern is arranged on a section of the adhesive- free edge portion. The area of the section covered with a release agent is at least 40% of the area of the corresponding adhesive-coated edge portion, preferably 40-100%, more preferably 40- 90% or 50-70% of the area of the corresponding adhesive-coated edge portion.

The geometrical shape of the sheet can vary depending on the type of the hygiene article to be packaged. The sheet may be circular, triangular, square, rectangular, or any other shape suitable for the hygiene article to be packaged. It is desirable, however, that the sheet has at least one axis of symmetry. The axis of symmetry may suitably correspond to a longitudinal axis of the sheet.

As mentioned above, the packaging unit comprises at least one folding axis. The folding axis extends in the transverse direction of the sheet. The number of folding axes may vary depending on how the packaging unit is intended to be folded. It is preferred that the packaging unit comprises between one and three folding axes.

The prevailing shape of the sheet of material for forming a packaging unit is square or rectangular. Such a sheet according to the present disclosure has side edges, referred to herein as longitudinal edges, transverse edges and corner portions, the edge zones of the first and second regions of the sheet of material being arranged along the longitudinal edges. The edge portions covered with adhesive, the adhesive-free portions carrying the silicone-free printing ink in a printed pattern are thus positioned along the longitudinal edges. In order to avoid that the edges of the sheet curl up or crinkle when the packaging unit is opened, the adhesive and/or the silicone-free printing ink in a printed pattern provided on the outer edge portions may be positioned at a distance from the longitudinal edges. This distance may be between 0.5-5 mm, preferably between 1-3 mm. Also, this distance may be 0 mm, meaning that the adhesive and/or the silicone-free printing ink in a printed pattern are provided such that they cover the entire outer edge portion all the way to the longitudinal edges. The width of the adhesive-covered edge portions may be varied depending on the adhesive strength desired. The wider the adhesive-covered edge zones, the stronger the sealing. The width of the adhesive-covered edge portions may be same or different in the different regions. The length of the adhesive-covered edge portions in each region may be equal to the length of each region, or may be 0.1-15 millimetres shorter than the length of each region. Further, at least one of the transverse edges of the packaging unit according to the present disclosure is preferably provided with adhesive. In order to facilitate opening, at least one of the corner portions may be free from adhesive such that a gripping tab is formed. Alternatively, the adhesive coating extends over the entire width of the sheet, and can be continuous or alternatively discontinuous. As mentioned above, one of the most common folding patterns for individually wrapped hygiene products is so called E-folding. In this case the sheet has two folding axes, dividing the sheet into a first region, a second region and a third region. The packaging unit may then be formed, wherein the sheet is folded along the folding axes with the first, second and third regions in an overlapping configuration. According to the present disclosure, when the sheet has two folding axes dividing the sheet into a first, a second and a third region, and the packaging unit is formed by E-folding, the edge portion of the edge zone of the third region being provided with adhesive corresponds to the edge portion of the edge zone of the first region being provided with adhesive, and is complementary to the edge portion of the edge zone of the second region being provided with adhesive. Thus, a chessboard pattern of adhesive is formed along each of the longitudinal edge zones. Also, at least a section of the adhesive-free portion in at least one of the regions of the packaging unit is provided with the silicone-free printing ink in a printed pattern.

The sheet for forming a packaging unit may be a single ply sheet of any suitable material known to the person skilled in the art, such as polyethylene film or nonwoven. The sheet may also be a laminate comprising at least two distinct layers. Laminates suitable for packaging of hygiene articles are assumed to be known to the person skilled in the art, and are not in any way limiting for the present disclosure.

If desired, the sheet for forming a packaging unit according to the present disclosure may be opaque in order to disguise the contents of the packaging unit, which is particularly important if the used article wrapped into the packaging unit of the present disclosure cannot be disposed immediately after replacement. Further, the outer surface of the sheet may additionally comprise print, which may be beneficial for attracting the user's attention and improving the user's mood. The sheet of material forming a packaging unit according to the present disclosure may comprise an odour-inhibiting or odour-neutralising substance. Such a substance may be applied in any suitable manner known to the person skilled in the art, e.g. as coating, activatable microcapsules, impregnated patches or the like. It is conceivable that the sheet for forming a packaging unit according to the present disclosure may be stretchable or expandable, which may be advantageous if the hygiene article is greatly deformed during use, and may thus be difficult to wrap without deforming the packaging unit.

The printing inks used in the present disclosure are silicone-free. The ink may be water-based or solvent based. Preferably the ink is solvent-based to reduce drying time of the ink. Silicone is often used as defoamer in printing inks. However, suitable inks for the present method are silicone-free, which are known in the art. For example, silicone may be replaced by silicone-free defoamers, such as BYK-016 from the company BYK ^® or TEGO ^® Foamex 831, Wet 500 or Wet 505, especially suitable for flexographic and gravure printing inks, and TEGO ^® Airex 920, suitable for radiation curing inkjet inks, flexo, silk screen and litography/offset inks. The pattern can be provided by using any suitable printing method including at least one of flexography, gravure, lithography, offset and silk screen printing, and/or by means of non-impact printing, preferably inkjet printing. The printing of the inner surface and the outer surface are suitably performed in a common printing process step. This means that same printing inks are used for printing both surfaces, and the printing ink is dried, when needed, in one step. The printing may be performed by the manufacturer of the film before rolling up the film and delivering the film to the manufacturing process for the packaging unit. Alternatively, the provision of the silicone-free printing ink in a printed pattern can be performed during the manufacture of the packaging unit. It should be noted that when a packaging unit comprising at least two folding axes, i.e. at least three regions, is folded, the adhesive-covered edge portions of the first region are brought into contact with the adhesive-free portions of the second region, and the adhesive-covered portions of the second region are brought into contact with the adhesive-free portions of the first region. The subsequently folded third region is folded over the outer surface of the first region forming a lid, and the adhesive-covered edge portions of the third region are thus brought into contact with the adhesive-free outer surface of the first region. In this particular case, the folding order may be reversed, i.e. the adhesive-covered edge portions of the second region are brought in contact with the adhesive-free portions of the third region, and the adhesive-covered portions of the third region are brought in contact with the adhesive-free portions of the second region. The lid may be formed by folding the first region over the outer surface of the third region. The adhesive pattern according to the present disclosure thus has the advantage of giving the user the possibility to fold the packaging unit in any order, and still obtain a liquid tight and odour-reducing package, ensuring that the used article is disposed of in a discrete and hygienic manner. Further, when the packaging unit of the present disclosure is used for disposal, the user may choose to roll up the packaging unit instead of folding it.

During the manufacture the packaging units can be formed of a web of material by cutting the web into sheets of appropriate size. The web of material suitably has a longitudinal direction running along a longitudinal central axis and a transverse direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction, and comprises a plurality of transverse cutting zones arranged along a respective central cutting axis running in the transverse direction of the web. The transverse cutting zones are positioned at a distance from each other in the longitudinal direction of the web. Each of said transverse cutting zones comprises a central portion and a first and a second peripheral portion arranged on either side of the central portion in the transverse direction. At least a section of each of the transverse cutting zones of the web is provided, e.g. by printing silicone-free printing ink in a printed pattern.

When the web of material according to the present disclosure is intended to be used for manufacturing E-folding packaging units comprising two folding axes as described above, several options are available for arranging the silicone-free printing ink in a printed pattern. Firstly, the section of the transverse cutting zone being provided with the silicone-free printing ink in a printed pattern may be arranged in the central portion of the transverse cutting zone, or in one or both of the peripheral portions of the transverse cutting zone. Further, the section of the transverse cutting zone provided with a silicone-free printing ink in a printed pattern may be arranged along the entire extension of the transverse cutting zone in the transverse direction of the web. In this case, the section provided with the silicone-free printing ink in a printed pattern in the central portion of the transverse cutting zone is displaced in the longitudinal direction of the web in relation to the sections provided with a silicone-free printing ink in a printed pattern in the first and second peripheral portions of the transverse cutting zone. When a packaging unit manufactured from the web according to this embodiment is folded, the sections provided with the silicone-free printing ink in a printed pattern will not overlap.

In cases when the web of material is intended to be used for manufacturing packaging units comprising one folding axis as described above, the section of the transverse cutting zone being provided with the silicone-free printing ink in a printed pattern may be arranged along the entire extension of the transverse cutting zone in the transverse direction such that the section provided with the silicone-free printing ink in a printed pattern comprises a first part and a second part. The first part of the section provided with the silicone-free printing ink in a printed pattern is displaced in the longitudinal direction in relation to the second part of the section provided with the silicone-free printing ink in a printed pattern. The displacement point is positioned at the intersection of the longitudinal central axis and the central cutting axis. When a packaging unit manufactured from the web according to this embodiment is folded, the sections provided with the silicone-free printing ink in a printed pattern will not overlap.

The web of material may be provided with adhesive in at least a section of the transverse cutting zone being free from the silicone-free printing ink in a printed pattern. Thus, adhesive may be arranged in a complementary manner as mentioned earlier, i.e. the sections of transverse cutting zones not carrying the silicone-free printing ink in a printed pattern may carry adhesive. The web according to the present disclosure may be made of any material suitable for manufacturing packaging units, i.e. a plastic film, a nonwoven, a laminate, or any other material known to the person skilled in the art. The dimensions of a web of material of the present disclosure may vary depending on the size of the packaging units to be manufactured. Most typically, the web of material is in the form of a roll having a length of several hundred meters in the longitudinal direction, and a width in the transverse direction of 10-50 cm, preferably 15-40 cm, more preferably 17-32 cm (170 to 320 mm).

The dimensions of the transverse cutting zone may vary depending on the size of the packaging unit to be manufactured, and on the adhesive strength required. The transverse cutting zone may have a width in the longitudinal direction of the web of 0,5-5 cm, preferably 1-4 cm, more preferably 1.2-3 cm. The length of the transverse cutting zone in the transverse direction of the web equals the width of the web of material in the transverse direction of the web, which can vary from 10-50 cm, preferably 15-40 cm and more preferably 17-32 cm (170 to 320 mm).

Thus, a manufacturing method for providing a web of material for forming packaging units for hygiene articles, may comprise the steps of: a) providing a pre-treated web of material having a longitudinal direction running along a longitudinal central axis and a transverse direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction, the web running in machine direction (MD) such that the longitudinal direction of the web coincides with the MD, the web comprising a plurality of transverse cutting zones, each of the transverse cutting zones being arranged along a central cutting axis running in the transverse direction of the web, the transverse cutting zones being positioned at a distance from each other in the longitudinal direction of the web; b) providing at least a section of a portion of each of the transverse cutting zones of the web with a silicone- free printing ink in a printed pattern in the transverse direction of the web; c) providing the remaining portions of each of the transverse cutting zones of the web with adhesive in the transverse direction of the web; and d) cutting the web through the transverse cutting zones along the central cutting axes. The step b) can be performed already during the pre-treatment of the web material. Alternatively, the step b) can be performed during the above-mentioned method of providing the web of material. The steps b) and c) may take place in any order.

The packaging unit of the present disclosure is now further described with reference to the examples presented in the attached drawings. It should be noted that the examples are not exhaustive but different features presented above and in connection with individual drawings are not limited to the specific embodiments shown in the drawings, but instead may be combined with any embodiment within the scope of the attached claims.

Fig. 1 depicts an example of a packaging unit 1 for hygiene articles. The packaging unit is formed from a sheet 100 of plastic film material having an inner surface 2 and an outer surface 3. At least the inner surface 2 is pre-treated to improve wetting and adhesion of a coating and/or printing ink on the surface as described above. The sheet 100 is arranged foldable along at least one folding axis 9 as shown in Fig. 1. The sheet comprises a first longitudinal region 10 and a second longitudinal region 11. The longitudinal direction of the packaging unit is indicated by the central line L. The inner surface comprises an edge zone 4 on the respective longitudinal side of the sheet 100. The inner surface further comprises an edge zone 4' on the respective transversal edge of the sheet 100. The transversal direction is indicated by T in Fig. 1. A portion 6 of the edge zones 4, i.e. longitudinal edge zones, and optionally of the edge zone 4', i.e. transversal edge zone 4', on the inner surface 2 is coated with a resealable pressure sensitive adhesive. The adhesive coating is indicated by reference sign 12. Another portion 7 of the edge zones 4, i.e. longitudinal edge zones, and optionally the other of the edge zones 4', i.e. transversal edge zone 4', on the inner surface 2 is left adhesive -free. Thus, a complementary portion of the edge zones 4 and/or 4' on the inner surface 2 is adhesive- free, indicated by the reference sign 22. The adhesive coated and adhesive-free portions are arranged such that when the sheet 100 is folded along the folding axis 9, the adhesive coated portions 6 and 15 are arranged to be in contact with adhesive-free portions 7 and 18 on the inner surface 2 of the sheet 100. According to the present disclosure, the adhesive strength of an adhesive bond between the adhesive-free portion 22 and the adhesive coated portion 12 is reduced by providing the adhesive-free portion with a silicone-free printing ink in a printed pattern. The pattern should have a size corresponding to at least 40% of the size of the complementary adhesive coated portion. In this way, it is assured that the strength of the adhesive bond is sufficiently reduced. The adhesive coated pattern can be arranged in many ways. For example, the adhesive coated portions 7 and 15 in the first portion 10 may be adhesive free and the adhesive-free portions in the second region 11 may be adhesive-coated. Alternatively, only one of the side edge portions 6 in the first region may be adhesive coated and the other can be adhesive-free. The side edge portions in the second region 11 are then arranged such that the side edge portion in the second region, which is on the same side of the adhesive coating in the first region, is adhesive free and vice versa. Thus, the adhesive coating pattern is in itself very flexible, but it is essential that the adhesive-coated portion is attached against and adhesive-free and printed portion when the unit is folded.

By size is meant the total surface area of the printed pattern and/or the adhesive coated pattern in an edge portion. The printed pattern may be continuous or may comprise individual small printed patterns. The size of the printed pattern is in that case a sum of an area of the printed individual patterns in contact with the complementary adhesive coated portion.

Generally, the printing ink can be transparent or may comprise a pigment providing the printed pattern visible in day light. Fig. 2 shows the packaging unit described in Fig. 1 when the packaging unit is folded along the folding axis 9. Thus the adhesive-coated portions 6, 15 come into contact with the adhesive- free portions 7, 18. Corner portions 20 are adhesive free so that air can be evacuated from the package. According to an alternative embodiment, also the corner portions comprise adhesive coated portions. Fig. 3 shows another example of the packaging unit according to the present disclosure. The packaging unit comprises an inner edge portion 5, 8 and an outer edge portion 6, 7 in respective first region 10 and second region 11. The packaging unit 1 also comprises opposed transverse edge portions 4' as described above in connection with Fig. 1. The sheet has a folding axis 9, wherein the folding axis divides the sheet into the first region 10 and the second region 11. As shown in Fig. 3, the outer edge portion 6 of the edge zone 4 of the first region 10 is provided with adhesive 12, while the inner edge portion 5 of the edge zone 4 of the first region 10 is adhesive- free as indicated by the reference sign 22. Further, the inner edge portion 8 of the edge zone 4 of the second region 11 is provided with adhesive 12, while the outer edge portion 7 of the edge zone 4 of the second region 11 is adhesive-free and provided with a silicone-free printing ink in a printed pattern. Of course the adhesive-coated pattern could be provided mirror imaged, i.e. portions provided with adhesive in Fig. 3 could be adhesive-free and vice versa.

Also, the transverse edge portion 4' of the first region 10 is provided with adhesive 12 on the left hand side of the longitudinal central line L, while the transverse edge portion 4' of the second region 11 is adhesive-free on the left hand side of the longitudinal central line L. In a complementary manner the transverse edge portion 4' of the second region 11 is provided with adhesive 12 on the right hand side of the longitudinal central line L, while the transverse edge portion 4' of the first region 10 is adhesive-free on the right hand side of the longitudinal central line L. The adhesive pattern could be mirror-imaged, or of course, the transverse edges 4' could have a similar adhesive coating pattern as in Fig. 1 and the adhesive coating pattern described in Fig. 3 could be used in the embodiment of Fig. 1. Thus, the adhesive pattern in the first region 10 is complementary to the adhesive pattern of the second region 11. This in turn means that, when the sheet is folded about the folding axis 9 as shown in Fig. 4, the edge portions 6 carrying adhesive in the first region 10 are brought in to contact with the edge portion 7 carrying the release agent 22 in the second region 11 , the edge portions 8 carrying adhesive 12 in the second region 11 are brought in contact with the adhesive-free edge portions 5 in the first region 10, and the transverse edge portion 4' carrying adhesive 12 in the first region 10 is brought in contact with the adhesive-free transverse edge portion 4' in the second region 11. As can be seen from Fig. 4, the width of the sealing area corresponds to the sum of the widths of the adhesive portions 6, 8. Such a sealing ensures a tight package for both a new and a disposed article.

The silicone-free printing ink in a printed pattern in the adhesive-free areas 22 can be applied as an essentially continuous pattern, intermittent pattern or the pattern may have any shape or form and can illustrate different symbols, can contain text or be a reproduction of a photograph. Most commonly, the packaging unit for individual packaging of disposable hygiene articles is a rectangular sheet. In the embodiment of Fig. 5 and 7, the sheet 100 comprises two folding axes, two longitudinal edges and two transverse edges. The folding axes are depicted by reference signs 9 and 309 and the axes divide the packaging unit into a first region 10, a second region 11 and a third region 312. Each of the regions comprises an inner edge portion 5, 8 and 308 and an outer edge portion 6, 7 and 307. As shown in Fig. 5 and 7, the outer edge portions 6 and 307 of the first and third regions 10, 312, respectively, are provided with adhesive 12, while the inner edge portions 5 and 308 of the first and third regions,

respectively, are adhesive-free. The inner edge portions 8 in the second region 11 are coated with the adhesive coating and the outer edge portions 7 are adhesive free. Thus, the adhesive pattern of the second region 11 is complementary to the adhesive pattern of the first and third regions 10, 312, thus forming a chessboard pattern. Of course, the adhesive pattern could be arranged mirror imaged, meaning that the adhesive coated portions could be adhesive free and vice versa.

When the sheet with the chessboard adhesive pattern is e-folded about the two folding axes 9, 309 as shown in Fig. 6 and 8, the outer edge portions 6 of the first region 10 or the outer edge portions 307 of the third region 312 carrying adhesive 12 are brought in contact with the outer edge portions 7 of the second region 11 carrying the silicone-free printing ink in a printed pattern, depending on which of the first and the third regions 10, 312 is brought in first contact with the second region 11. Consequently, the inner edge portions 8 carrying adhesive 12 in the second region 11 are brought into contact with the adhesive-free inner edge portions 5 of the first region 10 or the adhesive-free inner edge portions 308 of the third region 312. As can be seen from Fig. 6 and 8, the width of the sealing area corresponds to the sum of the widths of the adhesive portions 5, 8. It should be noted that the order in which the packaging unit is folded is irrelevant. For example, the packaging unit may be first folded about the second folding axis 309, bringing the third region 312 in first contact with the second region 11, sealing the outer edge portions 307, 7 and the inner edge portions 8, 308. The packaging unit is then subsequently folded around the first folding axis 9, bringing the first region 10 in contact with the outer surface of the third region 312, thus sealing the packaging unit, as shown in Fig. 6.

In Fig. 5 and 7 it has been further illustrated that an adhesive coated area 15 is coated on the edge portion 4' of the first region 19 and an area 18 including a silicone-free printing ink in a printed pattern is printed on the outer surface 3 of the third region 312 parallel and in contact with the second folding axis 309. When the unit is folded first about the second folding axis 309 and then about the first folding axis 9 the adhesive coated edge portion 15 is arranged to be in contact with the printed area 18 as shown in Fig. 6 and 8. The folding order may also be reversed, but in that case the adhesive coated area 15 should be moved to the transversal edge zone 4' of the third region 312 and the area 18 with a silicone-free printing ink in a printed pattern should be moved to the outer surface of the first region 10 parallel and in contact with the first folding axis 9. Then, when the first region 10 is brought in first contact with the second region 11, the third region 312 provides a lid for the packaging unit and the adhesive coated area 15 is brought in contact with the adhesive-free printed are on the outer surface of the first region. However, the area 18 may also be omitted from the outer surface, e.g. in case the outer surface is not pre-treated as described above. Also, it could be possible to provide an adhesive coated area 15 in both transversal edge portions 4', as shown in Fig. 7. In the example shown in Fig. 7 and 8 the transversal adhesive coated area 15 in the first region 10 extends continuously along the whole width, i.e. transversal extension of the sheet. The embodiment shown in Fig. 7 is adapted to be folded first along the second folding axis 309, and thus the adhesive coated area 15 in the transversal edge portion 4' in the third region has a transversal length that does not coincide with the longitudinal edge portions 4 so that the adhesive coated area 15 will not come into contact with the adhesive coated portions 8. If the sheet is to be folded first along the first folding axis, the adhesive coated are 15 in the first region 10 should be shorter as while the adhesive coated region 15 in the third region 312 could extend continuously along the whole width, i.e. transversal extension of the sheet. Of course the adhesive coated areas 15 could each have a same length up to the longitudinal edge portions 4. Also, as shown in Fig. 7, the adhesive coated areas 6 and 307 and the printed adhesive-free areas 5 and 308 can extend up to the respective transversal adhesive coated areas 15, but could be shorter as shown in Fig. 5 or alternatively extend all the way to the transversal edges of the sheet. In this way, a flexible product can be provided and the consumer may freely choose how to roll up the package after use.

The flexibility of the packaging unit of the present disclosure is a great advantage, since when the packaging unit of the present disclosure is used for disposal, the user does not have to fold the packaging unit in any particular order to be able to obtain a tightly sealed package. The packaging unit will provide a tight and hygienic package regardless of the folding order. In case there are two folding axes, the outer surface 3 of the sheet 100 may also be provided with an adhesive-free portion adapted to be attached to an adhesive coated portion on the inner surface 2 of the sheet and the adhesive-free portion is in that case suitably provided with a silicone-free printing ink in a printed pattern.

In order to facilitate the opening of the package, the adhesive-covered portions can be positioned such that at least one of the corner portions of the packaging unit is adhesive-free, thus forming a gripping tab that is gripped by the user upon opening the package.

Alternatively, an adhesive-free portion is arranged on the transversal edge zone providing a lid for the package. Further it is possible to provide the adhesive coating in a continuous manner along the sides of the sheet without adhesive-free portions. Moreover, the adhesive-free portions can serve as an evacuation opening when the packaging unit is sealed.

It should be noted that when the packaging unit according to the present disclosure is used for disposal, the user can choose to roll up the packaging unit and the soiled article positioned on it rather than folding it.

Although the present disclosure has been described with reference to various embodiments, those skilled in the art will recognize that changes may be made without departing from the scope of the disclosure. It is intended that the detailed description be regarded as illustrative and that the appended claims including all the equivalents are intended to define the scope of the disclosure.