Technical Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to packaging and in particular to packaging that can be resealed after use.

Background to the Invention

In many situations, packaging is provided in which, upon removal of a product from the packaging through an opening, a second product is presented to the user for removal. In situations where the product concerned consists of a wet or moist article, it is desirable to provide a means of preventing the article from drying after opening the packaging. This is commonly achieved by resealing the packaging using an adhesive cover. This solution may not be adequate in environments where a high level of hygiene is required as there is a risk of contamination to the remaining products when the user comes into contact with the adhesive cover each time the packaging is used. In addition, it is very easy for an article to be partially removed from the packaging which then lies partially outside of the packaging and is prone to dehydration and affecting the ability for the adhesive cover to successfully re-seal the opening of the packaging. These problems are particularly relevant where the product is a medical or surgical product such as a medical or surgical wipe, for example.

It is an aim of preferred embodiments of the present invention to provide packaging that at least partially overcomes at least one problem of the prior art. Summary of the Invention

According to a first aspect of the present invention there is provided packaging comprising a container body having at least one resealable closure, the container body comprising a lower portion in which at least one product is located in use, and an upper portion adjacent to the closure, the upper portion being separated from the lower portion by a partition having at least one opening through which a product located in the lower portion may be at least partially withdrawn into the upper portion, in use; wherein the partition is formed by sealing together at least two portions of the container body. The at least two portions of the container body may be sealed together by any- suitable method, which may be by heat welding or crimping, for example.

The integral partition, formed from a wall or walls of the container itself, avoids the use of peripheral components such as inserts and adhcsives, and ensues a fluid-tight seal between the upper and lower portions, when desired. In some embodiments the partition is integrally formed from the container body by heat welding, heat sealing or crimping together at least two portions of the wall or walls of the container body.

In some embodiments, the container body is constructed from a flexible material or laminate, thereof, for example any suitable plastics material such as polyethylene. polystyrene, polyethylene terephthalate. polyvinyl chloride or any combination thereof. In other embodiments, the container body is constructed from a rigid material, for example metal or plastics. In further embodiments, the container body may be constructed using a combination of both flexible and rigid materials. The container body may comprise at least one wall forming the container body. There may be a continuous wall, which may form a cylindrical or tubular wall, for example. In other embodiments there may be a plurality of walls forming the container body, which may include side walls and a base. In another embodiment, the container body has a pouch configuration where the container body comprises at least two panels which are suitably attached along its edges.

In some embodiments, at least one resealable closure may be provided within at least a portion of a wall of the container body. In other embodiments, there is provided a resealable closure along at least a portion of an edge of the container body. In further embodiments, there may be provided resealable closures along at least one edge of the container body and within at least one portion of the wall of the container body. The presence of at least one resealable closure on the container body reduces the possibility of contamination of a product in a partially withdrawn position between the upper portion and the lower portion. In some embodiments, the partition at least partially spans the container body- between the upper and lower portions. In another embodiment, the partition spans the entire extent of the container body between the upper and lower portions. The partition may be positioned horizontally. In some embodiments, the partition comprises a downwardly directed slope in at least part of the body of the partition. In further embodiments, the partition comprises a shoulder member comprising a downwardly- directed slope from the at least one opening to at least one edge of the body of the partition. In other embodiments the partition is formed by sealing together at least two portions of one or more walls of the container body. In some embodiments, there is at least one gap between the partition and the container body so as to allow excess moisture to drain from the upper portion.

The lower portion may be of the same volume as, larger in volume than or smaller in volume than, the upper portion of the packaging. In an embodiment, the lower portion is larger in volume than the upper portion so as to maximise the amount of product within the packaging whilst minimising the material used to form the packaging. In some embodiments, the lower portion comprises at least 60% of the total volume of the container body. In other embodiments, the lower portion comprises at least 70% of the total volume of the container body. In further embodiments, the lower portion comprises at least 80% of the container body.

There may be provided a removable section of the container body which, in use, can be removed in its entirety to allow access to the resealablc closure. In an embodiment, the removable section may be removed by cutting along its length by any suitable method, for example using scissors. In another embodiment, the removable section may be removed by tearing along a line of perforations provided along its length. The perforations may be provided by any suitable method, for example laser perforation.

There may be provided a handle, which may comprise an aperture within a portion of the container body. In some embodiments, there may be a handle attached to at least one portion of the container body. In some embodiments, the handle comprises a grip portion, and the grip portion may comprise at least one indent in a portion of the container body, or may comprise a tacky or friction-increasing material coated or applied thereon, such as rubber, for example. In other embodiments the container may comprise a means of hanging the packaging such as a Euroslot aperture for example, or the handle may serve as the means of hanging the article. in a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a packaging according to the first aspect of the present invention including a product located within the container body of the packaging. The product may be located within the lower portion of the container body.

In some embodiments, the packaging comprises a plurality of products. Each product may be identical to all other products within the packaging. In another embodiment, the packaging may house at least two different products. The product may comprise a moist product. In some embodiments the moist product comprises wipes. The wipes may comprise medical, surgical, antibacterial or antifungal wipes or any other suitable wipe for household, industrial or commercial cleaning or anti-infective purposes.

In other embodiments, the product may comprise a dry product, for example, the products may be disposable towels made from an absorbent material.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a blank from which embodiments of the packaging of the first and second aspects of the present invention may be produced, the blank comprising a container body, the container body comprising a front panel and a rear panel, the front panel and rear panel being separated by a middle section wherein a first surface of a resealable closure and a second surface of a resealable closure arc located on opposite sides of a fold line within the middle section. The blank may comprise a partition comprising at least one opening, the partition being formed by sealing at least two portions of the container, such as at least a portion of the front panel and rear panel, for example, and being arranged to separate the front and rear panels into an upper section and lower section. In some embodiments the partition at least partially spans the width of the front panel or the rear panel. In other embodiments the partition spans the entire width of the front panel or the rear panel. At least a portion of the partition may comprise a downwardly directed slope. In further embodiments the partition comprises a shoulder member comprising a downwardly directed slope from the at least one opening towards the container body.

In some embodiments the partition comprises gaps between at least a portion of the partition and the container body.

In an embodiment the middle section comprises two lines of perforations, which may be located substantially equidistant on either side of a centre fold line. There may be provided at least one transparent section of the blank. In one embodiment there is provided at least one transparent section in the front panel. In a second embodiment there is provided at least one transparent section in the rear panel. In a third embodiment there is provided at least one transparent section in the front panel and at least one transparent section in the rear panel. A transparent section may be provided so as to enable a user to view the position of a product inside of the packaging and in doing so minimise the possibility of contamination when in use. According to a fourth aspect of the present invention there is provided a method of manufacturing a packaging of the first and second aspects of the present invention from a blank of the third aspect of the present invention, comprising the steps of:

(a) folding the fold line of the middle section, to bring together the front panel and the rear panel;

(b) sealing peripheral side edges of the front panel to the corresponding edges of the rear panel to form an open container body.

(c) sealing the open container body to form a sealed container; and

(d) forming a partition comprising at least one opening between the front and rear panels to form an upper section and a lower section of the packaging having at least one aperture therebetween.

The seals may be formed using any suitable method, for example heat sealing. Steps (c) and (d) may be performed in any order.

The joining of the front panel to the rear panel allows the first surface of the resealable closure and the second surface of the resealable closure to be attached providing a resealable closure within a section of the formed container body.

Upon forming the partition, the partition divides the formed container body into an upper portion and a lower portion. In some embodiments, an enclosed product or products is/are placed within the lower portion of the enclosure before folding of the blank, or before or after sealing the edges of the front and rear panels. In some embodiments the enclosed product is placed in the open container body after step (b) and before step (c). Detailed Description of the Invention

In order that the invention may be more clearly understood an embodiment thereof will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, of which:

Figure 1 is a plan view of an embodiment of a blank of the invention which may be used to form an embodiment of the packaging of the present invention. Figure 2 is a perspective view of a preferred embodiment of the packaging of the present invention with a front section cut away so as to illustrate the inside of the packaging.

Figure 3 is a side cross-sectional view of the embodiment shown in

Figures 1 and 2. Figures 4 A-4D are side cross-sectional views of the embodiment shown in

Figures 1 to 3 illustrating the operational use of the packaging.

An embodiment of a packaging blank 2 of the invention is shown in Figure 1. The blank 2 comprises a rear panel 6 and a front panel 4 each consisting of an upper section 8, 8' and a lower section 10, 10' respectively. The front panel 4 comprises side edges 26, 26' and a base edge 26" and the rear panel 6 comprises corresponding side edges 28, 28' and base edge 28". The front panel 4 and rear panel 6 are separated by a middle section 12 comprising two lines of perforations 14, 14 ^' located equidistant on cither side of a fold line 16. A first surface 30 of a resealable closure, and a second surface 32 of a resealable closure are located on opposite sides of the fold line 16. Figure 1 also shows the eventual location of a partition comprising two areas 18, 18' located on the front panel 4 and the rear panel 6, the partition areas 18, 18' spanning the panels 4, 6 with gaps 20 between the partition areas 18, 18' and the respective panel edges 26, 26', 28, 28' which will be formed as described hereafter. The upper section 8' of the front panel 4 is transparent in part so as to provide a viewing window 22.

Referring to Figures 1 and 2. in use, the blank 2 is folded along the fold line 16 of the middle section 12 to bring together the front panel 4 and the rear panel 6. The side edges 26, 26', of the front panel 4 are sealed to the corresponding side edges 28, 28', of the rear panel 6 using thermal sealant or heat welding. Upon sealing the front panel 4 to the rear panel 6 a container body is formed which is open at the edges 26", 28" of the front panel 4 and the rear panel 6. The lower section formed between lower sections 10, 10' of the open container is then filled with moist wipes. The open edges 26", 28" are then sealed to form a sealed container. An integral partition 1 18 is formed by sealing the partition area 1 8 on the rear panel 6 to the partition area 18' on the front panel 4 by crimping and heat welding. The formed partition 1 18 divides the formed enclosure into an upper portion 106 and a lower portion 108. . The joining of the front panel 4 to the rear panel 6 also brings together the first surface 30 of the resealable closure and the second surface 32 of the resealable closure to form a resealable closure 24, and the first line of perforations 14 and the second line of perforations 14- to form a single line of perforations 122. Figures 2 and 3 show an embodiment of the present invention showing packaging 100 formed from the blank 2 containing wet articles in the form of wipes 102. Figure 2 is a perspective view with a front section cut away so as to illustrate the inside of the packaging 100 and Figure 3 is a side cross-sectional view of the packaging 100. The packaging 100 comprises a container 104 within which the integral partition 1 18 separates the container 104 into an upper portion 106 and a lower portion 108.

The partition 1 18 comprises an opening 1 10 and a downwardly directed slope 1 12 from the opening 1 10 towards the edge of the container 104. The edge of the partition 1 18 is joined to the container 104 walls in part so that there is provided a gap 20 between the partition 1 18 and a portion of the first panel 4 and rear panel 6 of the container 104.

The packaging contains a resealable closure 24 located adjacent to a removable header section 1 14, the removable section 114 comprising the single line of perforations 122. Located on the container 104 within the upper portion 106 there is provided a viewing window 1 16 so that the user can view the product which has been partially withdrawn from the lower portion 108 to the upper portion 106.

There is provided an opening 120 through the upper portion 106 to allow for the transport of the packaging 100 by the user. The opening 120 is permanently sealed around its perimeter so that the upper portion 106 is not accessible through the opening 120.

The operational use of the embodiment shown in Figures 2 and 3 is now- described with reference to Figures 4A, 4B, 4C and 4D. The removable section 114 of the packaging is detached by tearing along the line of perforations 122 as shown in figures 4A and 413. The resealable closure 24 is opened to allow access to the product 102 which is located in the lower portion 108 of the packaging. The product 102 is removed from the enclosure by pulling the product 102 through the opening 1 10 in the partition 1 18 as shown in Figure 4C. Upon doing so, a second product 300 is partially removed from the lower portion 108 but retained in the upper portion 106 of the packaging as shown in Figure 4D. The resealable closure 24 can then be reclosed to prevent the product 300 retained in the upper portion 106 from contamination or from drying. Excess fluid retained in the upper portion 106 can drain along the partition 1 18 and through gaps 20 into the lower portion 108.

The container body 104 of the above embodiment may be constructed from a single, continuous panel, which may form a cylindrical or tubular wall, for example. Alternatively, there may be a plurality of walls forming the container body 104, which may include side walls and a base. The resealable closure 24 of the above embodiment may be provided within a portion of the wall of the container body 104. There may also be provided at least one other resealable closure either within a portion of the wall of the container body 104. or at least a portion of an edge of the container body 104.

The partition 1 18 of the above embodiment may span the entire extent of the container body 104 without gaps 20 between the partition 1 18 and the container body 104.

The lower portion 108 may be of the same volume as, larger in volume than or smaller in volume than, the upper portion 106. The packaging 100 as described above and illustrated by Figures 1 -4 may also comprise a handle attached to a portion of the container body 104. There may also be provided a grip portion in addition to, or as an alternative to the handle and/or the opening 120. The above embodiments are described by way of example only. Many variations are possible without departing from the scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.