Tamper-evident container with reclosable fastener and method for making

Abstract

An improved, tamper-evident container having a reclosable zipper-type fastener useful for providing access to the interior of the container is disclosed. The reclosable fastener is characterized by a pair of mating sealing strips wherein each one of the pair is attached to a common surface of the container. The container is further characterized by the provision of a security seal to provide a tamper-evident closure for the container until it is initially opened.

What is claimed is:  
     
         1 . In an improved tamper-evident container formed at least in part from a flexible material wherein access to the interior of the container is provided by an aperture formed through the flexible material, the improvement in combination therewith comprising a reclosable, zipper-type fastener attached to said container in sealing relation to said aperture, said fastener comprising: a pair of mating, reclosable sealing strips, each of said strips comprising a strip base segment attached to a common surface of said flexible material; each of said strips further comprising a second segment integral with its corresponding base segment and free from said common surface; one of said strips comprising a male fastener part and the other of said strips comprising a female fastener part in receiving relation to said male part; and said aperture comprising a removable portion of said flexible material formed in juxtaposed relation to said second segments.  
     
     
         2 . An improved container as in  claim 1  wherein each of said sealing strips is attached to an inside surface of said flexible material.  
     
     
         3 . An improved container as in  claim 2  wherein said male fastener part is formed at the juncture of one of said base segments and its corresponding second segment and said female fastener part is formed on the other of said second segments.  
     
     
         4 . An improved container as in  claim 1  wherein said removable portion is defined by a plurality of cuts formed through said flexible material.  
     
     
         5 . An improved container as in  claim 4  wherein said cuts comprise a plurality of perforations and at least one slit having a longitudinal dimension greater than any one of said perforations.  
     
     
         6 . An improved container as in  claim 1  wherein each of said sealing strips is attached to an inside surface of said flexible material and one of said second segments is attached to a second surface of said flexible material opposite said common surface.  
     
     
         7 . An improved container as in  claim 6  wherein said second surface is an opposed inside surface of said flexible material.  
     
     
         8 . An improved container as in  claim 7  wherein said female fastener part is formed on said one second segment and wherein said male fastener part is formed on the other of said second segments.  
     
     
         9 . A method for attaching a reclosable zipper-type fastener to a flexible material from which a container is made so as to provide a tamper-evident reclosable seal, said method comprising the steps of: 
 (a) selecting a segment of flexible material to be used for forming a container;    (b) forming a plurality of cuts through said segment to define a removable portion;    (c) selecting a reclosable zipper-type fastener comprising a pair of mating, reclosable sealing strips;    (d) cutting said fastener to a predetermined length sufficient to overly said removable portion;    (e) sealing opposed distal ends of said strips at each end of said length by the application of heat and pressure;    (f) placing said sealed fastener adjacent said flexible material in overlying relation to said cuts; and    (g) attaching said sealed fastener to said flexible material by forming a perimeter seal around said removable portion between said fastener and said flexible material such that said perimeter seal is continuous around the perimeter of said sealed fastener.