Patent · US Expired

Method of detecting heat seal breaks and package thereof

US5727684A · kind A · utility

17Cited by
16References
14Claims
0Family size

Assignee

Inventors

Key dates

Filing dateAug 28, 1996
Grant dateMar 17, 1998
Priority date
Expiry dateAug 28, 2016

Classification

  • Technology area (CPC Y)Emerging Cross-Sectional Technologies
  • CPC primaryY10S206/807
  • WIPO fieldHandling
  • WIPO sectorMechanical engineering

Abstract

An apparatus and associated method which detects breaks and irregularities in a sealing arrangement, especially in heat-sealed, sterile packages by providing a standardized verification bar on the package adjacent a color coded sealing area. The verification bar may indicate examples of a proper seal, an underseal, and an overseal, as well as common seal problems such as bubbles, hairline voids and regular coextensive voids. The package which is especially useful as a sterilization pouch can be visually inspected both by the user of the package contents just prior to use and by the vendor of articles in the packages post assembly of the article into the sealed and sterilized package.

Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.