INFLATABLE CUSHIONING WEB

• US 20190308791A1
• Filed: 12/15/2017
• Published: 10/10/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 12/15/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sealed Air Corporation US (Sealed Air)
• Original Assignee: Sealed Air Corporation US (Sealed Air)
• Inventors: Bates, Andrew, Sperry, Laurence, Curneen, Amy
• Granted Patent: US 10,894,652 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: B31D 5/0073 including pillow forming
• CPC Class Codes: B65D 31/14 Valve bags, i.e. with valves for filling
• CPC Class Codes: B65D 81/052 filled with fluid, e.g. inflatable elements

Abstract

An inflatable web (10) includes a top film (30) heat sealed to a bottom film (32) to define sealed regions (40) and non-sealed regions (214). The non-sealed regions include inflatable regions (216) that are inflatable through one or more inflation ports. The top film (30) may have a color that differs from the color of the bottom film (32) to create a visual contrast between the sealed regions (40) and the adjacent non-sealed regions (214) when the web is viewed from the top film side. The ratio of the surface area of the inflatable regions (216) to the total surface area of the inflatable web is at least 50% and at most 95%.

Claims

1. An inflatable web having a longitudinal direction and a transverse direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction, the web comprising:

a top film heat sealed to a bottom film to define sealed regions and non-sealed regions, the sealed regions having the top film heat sealed to the bottom film, the non-sealed regions having the top film not heat sealed to the bottom film, the non-sealed regions further comprising inflatable regions being inflatable through one or more inflation ports, wherein;

the top film either (i) is colorless by not comprising colorant or (ii) comprises a top film mixture of thermoplastic polymer and one or more top film colorants dispersed therein to provide a top film color;

the bottom film comprises a bottom film mixture of thermoplastic polymer and one or more bottom film colorants dispersed therein to provide a bottom film color;

the bottom film color differs from the top film color or top film lack of color to create a visual contrast between the sealed regions and the adjacent non-sealed regions when the web is viewed from the top film side;

the ratio of the surface area of the inflatable regions to the total surface area of the inflatable web is at least 50% and at most 95%;

each inflation row has a proximal end and a distal end;

each inflation row comprises a plurality of inflatable cells in fluid communication with each other via an interconnecting inflation channel between adjacent cells of the inflation row, each plurality of inflatable cells comprising a proximal inflatable cell at the proximal end of the inflation row, a distal inflatable cell at the distal end of the inflation row, and one or more intermediate inflatable cells between the proximal and distal inflatable cells;

the sealed regions define a peripheral seal boundary for each inflatable cell to define a peripheral shape of the inflatable cell;

the peripheral seal boundary of each of the intermediate inflatable cells accommodates two of the interconnecting inflation channels; and

one of the one or more inflation ports is at the proximal end of each inflation row to inflate the inflatable region of the inflation row.

2. The inflatable web of claim 1 wherein:

the non-sealed regions further comprise non-inflatable regions that are not inflatable through the one or more inflation ports; and

the sealed regions visually contrast with the adjacent non-inflatable regions when the web is viewed from the top film side.

3. The inflatable web of claim 1 wherein:

the top film comprises the top film mixture of thermoplastic polymer and one or more top film colorants dispersed therein to provide the top film color; and

the bottom film color differs from the top film color to create a visual contrast between the sealed regions and the adjacent non-sealed regions when the web is viewed from the top film side.

4. The inflatable web of claim 1 wherein:

the top film is colorless by not comprising colorant;

the bottom film color differs from the top film'"'"'s lack of color to create a visual contrast between the sealed regions and the adjacent non-sealed regions when the web is viewed from the top film side.

5. The inflatable web of claim 1 wherein a ratio of the surface area of the inflatable regions to the total surface area of the web is one or more of:

at most any one of 90%, 85%, 80%, or 75%;

or

at least any one of 60%, 70%, or 80%.

7. The inflatable web of claim 1 wherein a ratio of the surface area of the sealed regions to the total surface area of the web is one or more of:

at least any one of 10%, 15%, 20%, and or 25%;

or

at most any one of 45%, 40%, 35%, 30%, or 25%.

11. The inflatable web of claim 1 wherein the CIELAB total color difference between the top film and the bottom film is one or more of:

at least any one of 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, 80, 90, and or 100;

or

at most any one of 120, 100, 90, 80, 70, and 50.

13. The inflatable web of claim 1 wherein:

each of the top and bottom films has a given total transmittance; and

the difference between the total transmittance of the top film and the total transmittance of the bottom film is one or more of;

at least any one of 5, 10, 15, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, or 70 percentage points;

or

at most any one of 70, 60, 50, 40, 30, 20, or 10 percentage points.

18. The inflatable web of claim 1 wherein each inflation row comprises a plurality of intermediate inflatable cells between the proximal and distal inflatable cells of the inflation row.

19. The inflatable web of claim 18 wherein the peripheral shape of the plurality of intermediate inflatable cells of a respective inflation row of the plurality of inflation rows is asymmetrical relative to at least one of (a) a line extending in the transverse direction through the middle of the inflatable cell and (b) a line extending in the longitudinal direction through the middle of the inflatable cell.

20. The inflatable web of claim 18 wherein the plurality of intermediate inflatable cells of two adjacent inflation rows of the plurality of inflation rows have corresponding peripheral seal boundaries that are spaced apart.

21. The inflatable web of claim 18 wherein the peripheral shape of the plurality of intermediate inflatable cells of the respective inflation row of the plurality of inflation rows is asymmetrical relative to at least one of:

a line extending in the transverse direction through the middle of the inflatable cell;

a line extending in the longitudinal direction through the middle of the inflatable cell;

or

both (a) a line extending in the transverse direction through the middle of the inflatable cell and (b) a line extending in the longitudinal direction through the middle of the inflatable cell.

27. The inflatable web of claim 18 wherein at least two of the plurality of intermediate inflatable cells of the respective inflation row of the plurality of inflation rows have differing peripheral shapes.

6. (canceled)

8-10. -10. (canceled)

12. (canceled)

14-17. -17. (canceled)

22-26. -26. (canceled)

28-35. -35. (canceled)

36. An inflatable web having a longitudinal direction and a transverse direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction, the web comprising:

(i) a top film heat sealed to a bottom film to define sealed regions and non-sealed regions, wherein;

the sealed regions have the top film heat sealed to the bottom film;

the non-sealed regions have the top film not heat sealed to the bottom film;

the non-sealed regions further comprise;

inflatable regions being inflatable through one or more inflation ports; and

non-inflatable regions that are not inflatable through the one or more inflation ports;

the ratio of the surface area of the inflatable regions to the total surface area of the inflatable web is at least 50% and at most 95%;

the sealed regions comprise graphic image portions defining one or more graphical images formed by the visual contrast between the graphic image portions of the sealed regions and the adjacent non-inflatable regions of the non-sealed regions;

the sealed regions and the inflatable regions of the non-sealed regions define a plurality of inflation rows;

each inflation row has a proximal end and a distal end;

each inflation row comprises a plurality of inflatable cells in fluid communication with each other via an interconnecting inflation channel between adjacent cells of the inflation row, each plurality of inflatable cells comprising a proximal inflatable cell at the proximal end of the inflation row, a distal inflatable cell at the distal end of the inflation row, and one or more intermediate inflatable cells between the proximal and distal inflatable cells; and

(ii) one of the one or more inflation ports is at the proximal end of each inflation row to inflate the inflatable region of the inflation row;

wherein;

the top film either (i) is colorless by not comprising colorant or (ii) comprises a top film mixture of thermoplastic polymer and one or more top film colorants dispersed therein to provide a top film color;

the bottom film comprises a bottom film mixture of thermoplastic polymer and one or more bottom film colorants dispersed therein to provide a bottom film color; and

the bottom film color differs from the top film color or top film lack of color.

37. The inflatable web of claim 36 wherein each inflation row comprises a plurality of intermediate inflatable cells between the proximal and distal inflatable cells of the inflation row.

39. The inflatable web of claim 36 wherein the top film comprises the top film mixture of thermoplastic polymer and one or more top film colorants dispersed therein to provide the top film color.

53. The inflatable web of claim 36 wherein:

the sealed regions define a peripheral seal boundary for each inflatable cell to define a peripheral shape of the inflatable cell;

the peripheral seal boundary of each of the intermediate inflatable cells accommodates two of the interconnecting inflation channels; and

the peripheral seal boundary of one or more of the plurality of inflatable cells circumscribes a portion of the non-inflatable regions and one or more graphic image portions of the sealed regions.

54. The inflatable web of claim 36 wherein:

the sealed regions define a peripheral seal boundary for each inflatable cell to define a peripheral shape of the inflatable cell;

the peripheral seal boundary of each of the intermediate inflatable cells accommodates two of the interconnecting inflation channels;

the peripheral seal boundary of one or more of the inflatable cells defines a corresponding concave non-inflatable region located outside of and delineated by the peripheral seal boundary of the inflatable cell; and

one or more graphic image portions of the sealed regions defining graphical images formed by the visual contrast between the graphic image portions of the sealed regions and the adjacent concave non-inflatable region.

55. The inflatable web of claim 36 wherein the plurality of intermediate inflatable cells of two adjacent inflation rows of the plurality of inflation rows have corresponding peripheral seal boundaries that are spaced apart.

56. The inflatable web of claim 36 wherein at least two of the plurality of intermediate inflatable cells of the respective inflation row of the plurality of inflation rows have differing peripheral shapes.

59. The inflatable web of claim 36 wherein the peripheral shape of the plurality of intermediate inflatable cells of at least one of the plurality of inflation rows differs from the peripheral shape of the plurality of intermediate inflatable cells of another of the plurality of inflation rows.

38. (canceled)

40-52. -52. (canceled)

57-58. -58. (canceled)

60-61. -61. (canceled)