carrier bag, a stack of carrier bags and a mounting arrangement therefor

Abstract

A carrier bag comprising a body having a closed base, closed sides and an open mouth opposite the base, handles extending from the open mouth away from the base, an attachment means extending from or separably connected to the handles and arranged separably to connect the handles together and two mounting member receiving formations, one on each side of the bag, arranged respectively to receive a mounting member of a mounting arrangement. A carrier bag comprising a body having a closed base, closed sides and an open mouth opposite the base, handles extending from the open mouth away from the base, an attachment means extending from or separably connected to the handles and arranged separably to connect the handles together, the attachment means comprising a loop of flexible material extending through apertures in the handles. A carrier bag comprising a body having a closed base, closed sides and an open mouth opposite the base, handles extending from the open mouth away from the base, two mounting member receiving formations, one on each side of the bag, arranged respectively to receive a mounting member of a mounting arrangement, the mounting member receiving formations each comprising a cut or an aperture at a point on the body between the mouth and the base and being formed so as not to create an area of weakness in the body that may cause a failure upon filling or carrying.

1 - 41 . (canceled) 
   
   
       42 . A carrier bag comprising a body having a closed base, closed sides and an open mouth opposite the base, handles extending from the open mouth away from the base, an attachment means extending from or separably connected to the handles and arranged separably to connect the handles together and two mounting member receiving formations, one on each side of the bag, arranged respectively to receive a mounting member of a mounting arrangement. 
   
   
       43 . A carrier bag according to  claim 42 , in which the attachment means has a first condition in which it retains the handles a first maximum distance apart and a second condition in which the handles are not retained said first maximum distance apart. 
   
   
       44 . A carrier bag according to  claim 42 , in which the attachment means has a first condition in which it retains the handles a first maximum distance apart and a second condition in which it retains the handles a second maximum distance apart, greater than the first. 
   
   
       45 . A carrier bag according to  claim 42 , in which, the attachment means has a first condition in which it retains the handles a first maximum distance apart and a second condition in which it does not retain the handles together. 
   
   
       46 . A carrier bag according to  claim 44 , in which the attachment means has a single cut, fold, frangible line or appropriate formation or a plurality of cuts, folds, frangible lines or appropriate formations to effect the change from the first condition to the second condition. 
   
   
       47 . A carrier bag according to  claim 44 , in which the attachment means comprises a piece of material separably connected to the handles, the material including at least one zigzag fold therein. 
   
   
       48 . A carrier bag according to  claim 47 , in which the bag is initially arranged in the first condition and the zigzag fold is non-permanently secured in that configuration, for example by gluing. 
   
   
       49 . A carrier bag according to  claim 44 , in which the attachment means comprises a series of concertina cuts through the attachment means. 
   
   
       50 . A carrier bag according to  claim 49 , in which the concertina cut attachment means is held in the first condition by small frangible lands of bag material not cut through by the concertina cuts. 
   
   
       51 . A carrier bag according to  claim 42 , in which the attachment means comprises a piece of bag material separably attached at opposite ends thereof to respective handles of the bag. 
   
   
       52 . A carrier bag according to  claim 42 , in which the attachment means comprises two pieces of bag material, each piece being separably attached at one end to the respective handle and at the opposite end thereof to each other or to an intermediate piece of material. 
   
   
       53 . A carrier bag according to  claim 42  in which the attachment means comprises a portion of each handle extending towards the other handle, said handle portion being separably attached to the other handle portion or to an intermediate piece of material. 
   
   
       54 . A carrier bag according to  claim 42 , in which a tab of material extends from the open mouth from a position intermediate the handles to the attachment means. 
   
   
       55 . A carrier bag according to  claim 54  and where the attachment means comprises two pieces of bag material, each piece being separably attached at one end to the respective handle and at the opposite end thereof to each other or to an intermediate piece of material, or where the attachment means comprises a portion of each handle extending towards the other handle, said handle portion being separably attached to the other handle portion or to an intermediate piece of material in which, the tab comprises the intermediate piece of material. 
   
   
       56 . A carrier bag according to  claim 42 , in which the mounting member receiving formations comprise respective mounting member receiving cuts provided adjacent to the sides of the body of the bag and are formed in such a way as to allow the area between the cut and the outer edge of the bag to be deformed in an outward motion to become wider than that of the width of the main body of the bag. 
   
   
       57 . A carrier bag according to  claim 56 , in which the mounting member receiving cuts are formed so as not to initiate a tear of stretched weakness in any direction other than that between the said mounting member receiving cut feature to the adjacent closest side edge of the bag face. 
   
   
       58 . A carrier bag according to  claim 56 , in which the mounting member receiving cut/s are perforated, curved, straight or return inwardly on themselves. 
   
   
       59 . A carrier bag according to  claim 56  in which the mounting member receiving cut/s or perforated cut/s intersect the outer edge of the bag side wall, or are perforated to the edge of the side wall in order to facilitate the intentional fracture of the feature to allow the mounting members to break through the solid body of the bag between the feature and the side wall. 
   
   
       60 . A carrier bag according to  claim 56  in which the bag has gusset formations extending along the side edges thereof and the mounting member receiving cuts are formed through the gussetted portions. 
   
   
       61 . A carrier bag according to  claim 42 , in which a central mounting member receiving formation, such as a cut or aperture, is provided in the attachment means for the correlating location of the means on the associated central hook mounting of a common mounting and dispensing fixture. 
   
   
       62 . A carrier bag comprising a body having a closed base, closed sides and an open mouth opposite the base, handles extending from the open mouth away from the base, an attachment means extending from or separably connected to the handles and arranged separably to connect the handles together, the attachment means comprising a loop of flexible material extending through apertures in the handles. 
   
   
       63 . A carrier bag according to  claim 62 , in which the mouth of the bag has a piece of material detachable from the rest of the bag wherein is provided a cut/s or aperture/s through which the loop of material extends. 
   
   
       64 . A carrier bag comprising a body having a closed base, closed sides and an open mouth opposite the base, handles extending from the open mouth away from the base, two mounting member receiving formations, one on each side of the bag, arranged respectively to receive a mounting member of a mounting arrangement, the mounting member receiving formations each comprising a cut or an aperture at a point on the body between the mouth and the base and being formed so as not to create an area of weakness in the body that may cause a failure upon filling or carrying. 
   
   
       65 . A carrier bag according to  claim 64  having no other bag mounting features or formations. 
   
   
       66 . A mounting/dispensing arrangement for the carrier bag of  claim 64 , in which the mounting/dispensing arrangement comprises protruding features so formed as to project through the cut/s or aperture/s with a temporary retention means. 
   
   
       67 . A mounting/dispensing arrangement according to  claim 66 , in which the protrusions are not longer than the depth of the capacity of the mounting/dispensing arrangement. 
   
   
       68 . A mounting/dispensing arrangement according to  claim 66 , in which as the selected bag is pulled away from the mounting/dispensing arrangement, the outermost face of the bag is detached over the retention means, the innermost face is retained until such a time that the movement of the bag away from the dispenser demands that the bag material is removed until the bag is completely detached from the mounting/dispensing arrangement. 
   
   
       69 . A stack of bags comprising a plurality of carrier bags in accordance of  claim 42 . 
   
   
       70 . A stack of bags comprising a plurality of carrier bags in accordance with  claim 62 . 
   
   
       71 . A stack of bags comprising a plurality of carrier bags in accordance with  claim 64 . 
   
   
       72 . A stack of bags according to  claim 71 , in which an insert is arranged through each of the cuts or apertures to facilitate handling and loading of the bags. 
   
   
       73 . A stack of bags according to  claim 72 , in which the insert remains with the bag stack whilst presented to the mounting/dispensing arrangement and remains integral to the bag stack until the bag stack is completely depleted by the user removing the bags sequentially from the mounting/dispensing arrangement. 
   
   
       74 . A stack of bags according to  claim 72 , in which the insert is formed as one of a tube, plate, strip, or loop of suitable material such as injection moulded plastic, PE, PP, paper/card, string, rope, cotton or other suitable material or form. 
   
   
       75 . A carrier bag stack mounting arrangement for a stack of bags comprising a frame, a pair of mounting members extending from the frame and arranged to be received in respective mounting member receiving formations in a stack of bags to be mounted on the mounting arrangement, the mounting members being spaced apart by a first width, a curved plate arranged between the mounting members and a mounting tongue extending from the plate and having a second width, less than the first width. 
   
   
       76 . A carrier bag stack mounting arrangement according to  claim 75 , in which a further pair of mounting members is provided extending from the frame, the further pair being spaced apart by a third width, greater than the second width. 
   
   
       77 . A carrier bag stack mounting arrangement according to  claim 76 , in which the first and third widths are substantially equal. 
   
   
       78 . A carrier bag stack mounting arrangement according to  claim 76 , in which the first and third widths are approximately equal to the width of the bags to be mounted. 
   
   
       79 . A carrier bag stack mounting arrangement according to  claim 75 , in which the tongue is formed in two parts, spaced apart from each other. 
   
   
       80 . A carrier bag stack mounting arrangement according to  claim 79 , in which the space between the tongue parts is sufficiently wide to allow a tab of material on each bag, which extends from the open mouth position intermediate the handles to the attachments means, therebetween. 
   
   
       81 . A retrofitting part for a carrier bag stack mounting arrangement, the part comprising a curved plate having a fastening formation at one edge thereof to enable the part to be fastened to an existing carrier bag stack mounting arrangement and a tongue extending from the plate, the plate being wider than the tongue. 
   
   
       82 . A retrofitting part for a carrier bag stack mounting arrangement, the part comprising an elongate body having mounting members extending transversely from opposite ends thereof.