Sterilizable, peelable pouch or tray assembly

• US 3,930,580 A
• Filed: 10/19/1973
• Issued: 01/06/1976
• Est. Priority Date: 10/19/1973
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: American Poultry Company Incorporated
• Original Assignee: American Poultry Company Incorporated
• Inventors: Goldberg, Edward M., Bazell, Seymour
• Primary Examiner(s): Lowrance, George E.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Bernstein, Bruce H.
• Application Number:
  US05/407,890
• Time in Patent Office: 809 Days
• Field of Search: 206/305, 206/364, 206/439, 206/498, 229/51 TS, 229/48 T, 229/55, 229/66
• US Class Current: 206/439
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2050/0065 Peelable cover
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2050/314 Flexible bags or pouches
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 50/30 Containers specially adapted for packaging, protecting, dispensing, collecting or disposing of surgical or diagnostic appliances or instruments for wound clamps A61B17/10; for ligaturing clips A61B17/122; packages or dispensers for surgical gloves or finger-stalls A61B42/40
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 50/33 Trays
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 25/002 Packages specially adapted therefor combined with means for introducing catheters, e.g. dispensers, A61M25/0113; catheter kit packages for surgical articles A61B50/30
• CPC Class Codes: B65D 75/30 Articles or materials enclosed between two opposed sheets or blanks having their margins united, e.g. by pressure-sensitive adhesive, crimping, heat-sealing, or welding

Abstract

A sterilizable, peelable pouch or tray for medical and surgical equipment. The pouch comprises two superimposed sheets, preferably of autoclavable plastic, interconnected by an edge-strip of folded-over plastic affixed to the exterior surfaces of the sheet. The strip extends around at least a portion of the perimeter of the sheet edges and serves to provide a readily separable interconnection between the sheets. The sheets are separated by merely peeling one sheet back, thereby ripping the folded-over strip at the juncture between the two sheets. The tray assembly is similar with an upper plastic sheet removably, peelably affixed to a lower formed plastic cardboard or metal tray by the perimeter strips.

Claims

1. A sterilizable, peelable, medical and surgical equipment-containing assembly which comprises:

a bottom member;

a plastic face sheet superimposed over the bottom member;

a continuous plastic strip folded over and sealed to the exterior surfaces of the bottom member and the plastic sheet on at least a portion of the perimetric edges of said sheet and said member to define a readily separable interconnection between the sheets separable solely at the juncture of the bottom member and the plastic face sheet, said strip having the properties of strength under tension and partability under shear;

means for initiating peeling of said face sheet from said bottom member solely at said juncture, positioned diagonally to the juncture of the top sheet and the bottom member; and

means for sealing the remaining perimeter of the sheets, said plastic sheet comprising a plastic that is resistant to transmission of liquid water, wherein the plastic sheet is separated from the first member by peeling said sheet from said member.

2. An assembly as in claim 1 wherein said bottom member is a plastic sheet.

3. An assembly according to claim 2 wherein at least one of said plastic sheets is transparent.

4. An assembly according to claim 2 wherein said sheets are elongated rectangular sheet and a pair of said continuous strips is positioned over and attached to both sides of the sheet.

5. An assembly according to claim 4 wherein the strips are heat-sealed to the sheets and the ends of the pouch are sealed by heat sealing.

6. An assembly according to claim 2 wherein the interior surface of one of said sheets has paper bonded thereto.

7. An assembly according to claim 2 wherein at least one of said sheets is porous to sterilizing vapors.

8. An assembly according to claim 1 wherein the interior surface of said first member has paper bonded thereto.

9. An assembly according to claim 1 wherein at least one of said sheet or said first member is porous to sterilizing vapors.

10. An assembly according to claim 1 wherein said means for initiating peel includes a score on the exterior of said sheet to facilitate opening of the sealed assembly.

11. An assembly according to claim 10 wherein a tab is positioned on the exterior of said scored sheet adjacent to the score.