Zipper equipped bags and method of and means for manually filling and separating them

Claim 1

Integrally serially connected top fillable bags wherein each bag has closed bottom and side edges and reclosable zipper means extending across the top of each bag with upstanding front and rear pull flanges extending above said zipper means, and comprising: said bags being partially separated by slots along their adjacent sides, the slots extending from said pull flanges continuously a substantial distance down past the zipper means so that adjacent bags are freely separate at the location of the zipper means and a lateral pull on one bag is not translated to an adjacent bag at the zipper means; respective continuous strips integrally connecting the tops of the front and rear pull flanges of all of said bags and thereby connecting the bags in a continuous series; said connecting strips having protruding guide ribs extending continuously along their upper edge portions for supporting the connected bags, so that the connected bags can be slidably drawn through supporting jaws serving also as bag top filling separators; and said strips being removable from the tops of said pull flanges so that the bags are separated from one another by virtue of said slots upon removal of said strips.

Claim 10

A method of filling and separating top fillable serially conected bags which are closed along their bottom and sides and have reclosable zippers along their upper end portions with front and rear pull flanges extending above the zippers, the bags being partially separated from one another along their adjacent sides by separations, which extend upwardly past said zippers and to the tops of the pull flanges and between the ends of the pull flanges, there being respective continuous integral strips connecting said tops of said front and rear pull flanges and thereby connecting the bags to one another in series, the upper portions of the connecting strips having cohtinuous protruding guide ribs therealong for supporting the connected bags, the method comprising: slidably engaging said ribs in supporting and separating jaw means at a filling station; relatively sliding said ribs in said jaw means and thereby moving and aligning said bags seriatim into said filling station; as each bag is in the filling station effecting separation of said pull flanges by means of said jaw means and thereby opening the top of the bag by pulling said zipper of the bag open; filling contents into the bags in the filling station; advancing the connected bags and thereby moving the filled bag away from the filling station and advancing a succeeding bag into the filling station for opening and filling; closing the zipper of the filled bag; and separating the connecting strips from the tops of the pull flanges of the filled bag at a level at or below the top of said separations to sepatate the filled bag from the remaining connected bags.

Claim 11

A method of filling and separating top fillable serially conected bags which are closed along their bottom and sides and have reclosable zippers along their upper end portions with front and rear pull flanges extending above the zippers, the bags being partially separated from one another along their adjacent sides by separations, which extend upwardly past said zippers and to the tops of the pull flanges and between the ends of the pull flanges, there being respective continuous integral strips connecting said tops of said front and rear pull flanges and thereby connecting the bags to one another in series, the upper portions of the connecting strips having cohtinuous protruding guide ribs therealong for supporting the connected bags, the method comprising: slidably engaging said ribs in supporting and separating jaw means at a filling station; relatively sliding said ribs in said jaw means and thereby moving and aligning said bags seriatim into said filling station; as each bag is in the filling station effecting separation of said pull flanges by means of said jaw means and thereby opening the top of the bag by pulling said zipper of the bag open; filling contents into the bags in the filling station; advancing the connected bags and thereby moving the filled bag away from the filling station and advancing a succeeding bag into the filling station for opening and filling; closing the zipper of the filled bag; and separating the connecting strips from the tops of the pull flanges of the filled bag at a level at or below the top of said separations to sepatate the filled bag from the remaining connected bags.