Flexible reclosable enclosure with flap

Abstract

A reclosable enclosure includes a body having a front panel and a back panel secured to each other and forming a cavity therebetween to store contents. The body includes a flap that extends from a top end of the body. The reclosable enclosure includes a zipper assembly coupled to an interior surface of at least the front panel. The zipper assembly includes a first profile strip and a second profile strip that form a reclosable zipper to selectively close the cavity. The flap blocks access to the reclosable zipper and is sealed to at least one of the front panel or the second profile strip in an intact state of the flap. The flap defines one or more lines of weakness to permit irreparable separation of a sub-flap from a remainder of the flap to access the reclosable zipper.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A reclosable enclosure comprising:
 a body including a front panel and a back panel secured to each other and forming a cavity therebetween to store contents, the body including a flap that extends from a fold at a top end of the body to a distal edge of the flap; and   a zipper assembly coupled to an interior surface of at least the front panel, the zipper assembly comprising a first profile strip and a second profile strip that form a reclosable zipper to selectively close the cavity, wherein the first profile strip is secured to the flap at a first permanent seal that is spaced apart from the top end of the body,   wherein a distal segment of the flap extends from the first permanent seal to the distal edge and is sealed to a flange of the second profile strip of the zipper assembly, wherein at least a portion of the flange of the second profile strip projects beyond a top edge of the front panel.   
     
     
         2 . The reclosable enclosure of  claim 1 , wherein the distal edge of the flap defines a line of weakness to permit irreparable separation of the flap from the front panel of the enclosure. 
     
     
         3 . The reclosable enclosure of  claim 2 , wherein the line of weakness is configured to extend a length along a portion of the flange of the second profile strip of the zipper assembly. 
     
     
         4 . The reclosable enclosure of  claim 1 , wherein the distal segment of the flap is sealed to the flange of the second profile strip by a frangible seal member disposed on the second profile strip of the zipper assembly. 
     
     
         5 . The reclosable enclosure of  claim 4 , wherein the frangible seal member is disposed on the portion of the flange of the second profile strip that projects beyond the top edge of the front panel. 
     
     
         6 . The reclosable enclosure of  claim 1 , wherein the top edge of the front panel is positioned to abut against the distal edge of the flap to form a seam. 
     
     
         7 . The reclosable enclosure of  claim 1 , wherein the distal edge of the flap does not overlap the front panel of the body. 
     
     
         8 . The reclosable enclosure of  claim 1 , wherein the distal segment of the flap defines one or more lines of weakness to permit irreparable separation of a sub-flap from a remainder of the distal segment. 
     
     
         9 . The reclosable enclosure of  claim 8 , wherein the sub-flap is configured to block access to the reclosable zipper in an intact state and permits access to the reclosable zipper when separated from the remainder of the distal segment. 
     
     
         10 . The reclosable enclosure of  claim 1 , wherein the first profile strip of the zipper assembly is permanently sealed to the flap and is configured to move with movement of the flap when the cavity is selectively opened. 
     
     
         11 . The reclosable enclosure of  claim 1 , wherein the second profile strip of the zipper assembly is permanently sealed to the interior surface of the front panel at a second permanent seal. 
     
     
         12 . A method comprising:
 forming one or more lines of weakness in a flap of one or more sheets of film material;   mounting a zipper assembly to the one or more sheets, the zipper assembly including a first profile strip and a second profile strip that form a reclosable zipper, the first profile strip secured to an interior surface of the flap at a first permanent seal;   folding and sealing the one or more sheets to form an enclosure that includes a front panel and a back panel and defines a cavity therebetween to hold contents, wherein folding and sealing the one or more sheets causes the flap to extend from a fold at a top end of the enclosure to a distal edge of the flap and overlap a portion of the front panel, wherein the reclosable zipper selectively closes the cavity; and   sealing a distal segment of the flap, which extends from the first permanent seal to the distal edge, to a flange of the second profile strip of the zipper assembly, wherein at least a portion of the flange of the second profile strip projects beyond a top edge of the front panel.   
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 12 , wherein the distal edge of the flap defines a line of weakness to permit irreparable separation of the flap from the front panel of the enclosure. 
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 13 , wherein the line of weakness extends a length along a portion of the flange of the second profile strip of the zipper assembly. 
     
     
         15 . The method of  claim 12 , further comprising sealing the distal segment of the flap to the flange of the second profile strip by a frangible seal member disposed on the second profile strip of the zipper assembly. 
     
     
         16 . The method of  claim 15 , wherein the frangible seal member is disposed on the portion of the flange of the second profile strip that projects beyond the top edge of the front panel. 
     
     
         17 . The method of  claim 12 , wherein the first profile strip of the zipper assembly is permanently sealed to the flap by the first permanent seal, and further comprising moving the first profile strip of the zipper assembly with movement of the flap when the cavity is selectively opened. 
     
     
         18 . A reclosable enclosure comprising:
 a body including a front panel and a back panel secured to each other and forming a cavity therebetween to store contents, the body including a flap that extends from a fold at a top end of the body to a distal edge of the flap; and   a zipper assembly coupled to an interior surface of at least the front panel, the zipper assembly comprising a first profile strip and a second profile strip that form a reclosable zipper to selectively close the cavity, wherein the first profile strip is secured to the flap at a first permanent seal that is spaced apart from the top end of the body,   wherein a distal segment of the flap extends from the first permanent seal to the distal edge and is sealed to a flange of the second profile strip of the zipper assembly by a frangible seal member, and   wherein at least a portion of the flange of the second profile strip projects beyond a top edge of the front panel, the frangible seal member disposed on the portion of the flange of the second profile strip that projects beyond the top edge of the front panel.   
     
     
         19 . The reclosable enclosure of  claim 18 , wherein the distal edge of the flap does not overlap the front panel of the body. 
     
     
         20 . The reclosable enclosure of  claim 18 , wherein the first profile strip of the zipper assembly is permanently sealed to the flap and is configured to move with movement of the flap when the cavity is selectively opened.