EP0816252B2 - Package for biological liquids having peelable film for introducing a tube - Google Patents

Abstract

The sachet (1) for packaging biological liquids is made of two sheets of thermoplastic material which are welded by a welding cord (2) delimiting a pocket (3). The upper part of the pocket is extended by a filling conduit (4) which has a widened cone (5). Holes (6) are made near the two longitudinal edges which serve to place the sachet on a packaging machine. Welding zones (7,8) hold the two sheets against each other and avoid their separation in the packaging machine. One of the two sheets has, in its upper part, a wax peeling zone (9). After filling, the sachet is sealed in a sealing zone (10) inside the peel off zone near to the upper part of the conduit.

Description

The present invention relates to a packaging bag of biological liquid substances.

By way of illustration, the present invention will first be described with reference to the veterinary field, for the packaging of animal semen or any other biological liquid intended for artificial insemination.

This type of sachet, also called sachet-dose, is well known in the art and has been the subject of FR-B-2 667 504 and EP-A-718 191. The bags described in these references allow a volumetric filling fast, safe from air and contaminations, as well as the coupling of the bag and tube or probe before insemination with a maintenance and sealing reliably ensured and a natural emptying of the complete bag to protected from air and contaminations, provided that they are properly opened. However difficulties related to the opening of the bags are frequently encountered which pose problems during their use.

For use with this type of sachet, which comprises a filling conduit extended usually by an introduction and centering cone, for recovering or emptying its contents, an opening is made in the bag at the location of said conduit, and inserting the free end of a probe or tube into an opening made.

Two techniques are currently known for opening such a bag.

• nécessité d'avoir recours à un outil de découpe,
• obligation de nettoyer l'outil de découpe à chaque ouverture du sachet si on veut conserver la stérilité ou la non-contamination du contenu,
• risques de blessures pour l'utilisateur,
• manipulations compliquées,
• en cas de découpe non correcte, l'introduction de la sonde ou du tube sera difficile, voire impossible.

The first is the opening by incision which is practiced in the case of a bag without precut. In this case, it is necessary to use a cutting or incising tool, such as a pair of scissors or a stylus. This technique has the following drawbacks:

• need to use a cutting tool,
• obligation to clean the cutting tool at each opening of the bag if we want to preserve the sterility or non-contamination of the contents,
• risk of injury to the user,
• complicated manipulations,
• in case of incorrect cutting, the introduction of the probe or tube will be difficult or impossible.

• déchirabilité, liée à la prédécoupe, du film de matière thermoplastique constituant le sachet,
• une déchirabilité constante ne peut être obtenue, de ce fait l'introduction de la sonde ou du tube, permettant de récupérer ou vider le contenu, sera difficile voire impossible.

In the case of a pouch with precut, the packaging machine must be equipped with a blade or a tool to perform in the film a pre-cut tear initiation. This technique, which requires the presence of a pre-cutting station on the machines with the need to regularly replace the blade or the precut tool, has the following drawbacks:

• tearability, related to the precut, of the thermoplastic film constituting the bag,
• a constant tearing can not be obtained, therefore the introduction of the probe or the tube, to recover or empty the contents, will be difficult or impossible.

An object of the present invention is to provide a bag, intended for the packaging of liquids, in particular biological liquids, which can be opened in a simple and reliable manner, without having to use any tool or object and without compromising the integrity thermoplastic film constituting the bag.

Another object of the invention is a biological fluid packaging bag capable of providing liquid tightness upon introduction of an insemination probe as well as reliable retention of the probe.

The present invention responds to these objects and overcomes the above problems. It provides a bag, intended for the packaging of biological liquids, which can be opened simply and reliably, without having to use any tool or object and without compromising the integrity of the thermoplastic film constituting the bag while ensuring a liquid tightness during the introduction of an insemination probe and a good guidance of the probe.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent in the light of the description below.

GB-A-0 642 351 discloses a container or packaging formed of a thermoplastic sheet, the enclosed internal space of which is defined by two parts of sheets hermetically sealed after a thin layer has been interposed therebetween. of a different material, for example a strip of waxed paper, so that the weld can be easily opened without destroying the thermoplastic material.

The package described, designed to contain solid bodies such as fruits, various foods, sponges, sterile medical articles, is not intended to contain liquids. It is particularly suitable for containing tobacco. The system described does not allow, if it contains a liquid, to provide a seal during the introduction between the two welded sheets of a probe or other means of sampling.

DE-A-2 647 399 discloses a container for containing drinks such as milk or fruit juices. The package described therein is composed of a container in which is inserted a flat-shaped flexible hose formed in a flexible synthetic sheet adhering to its wall. In one embodiment, two tabs welded seals protect the opening. To remove the drink contained in the container, the tabs are spaced apart and the straw is introduced through a hole. There is no seal between the container and the straw when introducing the straw. The flexible pipe closes when the straw is removed so that the liquid remaining in the container is not soiled by external elements but the closing of the valve does not provide any liquid tightness. The opening opening can be closed using the described valve system, but it is simply to avoid soiling.

According to the present invention, there is provided a biological liquid bag of packaging according to claim 4.

The sealing and peelable material is, for example, a wax The sealing and peelable material may be deposited during the manufacture of the thermoplastic sheet. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the sealant and peelable material must be inert with respect to the liquid to be packaged in the bag.

According to a preferred embodiment, the two sheets of thermoplastic material have a vertical offset, for example about 2 to 3 mm, relative to each other in said upper part.

The bags may be manufactured and filled in a manner known per se, for example using a machine of the type described in FR-A-2,673,987 or EP-A-718,191.

The bag containing a liquid, is then sealed in a sealing zone within the peelable zone, in the vicinity of the upper portion of the conduit substantially transversely to the axis thereof.

When closing the bag, after filling, the bag is soldered. For example, a welding electrode (thermal or thermal pulse welding) melts the sealing and peelable material, thereby sealing the bag. It should be noted that the seal corresponds more to a bonding than to a welding because the sealing material alone is melted and not the sheets of thermoplastic material. One sheet of thermoplastic material adheres to the other in the closure area by the sealing material which serves as a binder.

The sealing zone preferably has the cross-sectional shape of a triangle. The base of the triangle and the sealing surface provide a high mechanical strength and therefore a good seal. The top of the triangle allows to exert a progressive effort of opening, so to have a bag easily "peelable".

The sealing zone may also advantageously have the transverse shape of an inverted V. This shape makes it possible to avoid the concentration of stress in the angles and makes it possible to produce solder resistances for pulse welding.

The present invention authorizes the opening of the bag in the desired zone, that is to say the zone delimited by the zone of peelability and the shape of the welding electrode, by manually separating the two sheets of thermoplastic material.

Another advantage of the present invention is that since the operator does not have to cut or tear the sheet of thermoplastic material, the conduit allows good guidance for the introduction of a probe, a tube, a catheter, a syringe, an insemination gun tip, etc.

The pouch of the invention may contain any liquid substance from the moment when it is chemically and biologically compatible with the thermoplastic sheet used.

According to a particularly advantageous embodiment of the invention, the sachet contains a liquid that can be used for artificial inseminations, which is, for example, animal semen, a medium or a diluter.

• la Figure 1 est une vue en coupe transversale d'un sachet non scellé extrait d'une bande de sachets;
• la Figure 2 est une vue en coupe transversale d'un sachet scellé;
• la Figure 3 est une vue en coupe transversale d'un sachet scellé, avec une forme en variante de la zone de scellage.

The present invention will now be described in more detail with reference to the appended figures, showing a bag that can be used more particularly for the packaging of liquid doses intended for artificial insemination, in which:

• Figure 1 is a cross-sectional view of an unsealed bag taken from a web of bags;
• Figure 2 is a cross-sectional view of a sealed pouch;
• Figure 3 is a cross-sectional view of a sealed pouch, with an alternative shape of the sealing zone.

The bags 1 are intended to run in a packaging machine in the form of a strip having a succession of pockets formed along the strip initially stored in roll.

The bag 1, consisting of two sheets of welded thermoplastic material, has, in a vacuum, a substantially rectangular shape, the weld bead 2 delimiting a pocket 3 having the desired shape of the bag. The bag 3 is extended at its upper part by a conduit 4 extended by a flare or cone introduction and centering 5.

Equidistant holes 6 are formed near the two longitudinal edges of the strip, outside the pattern formed by the weld bead. These holes are used to drive the thermoplastic web and its support on a packaging machine.

Sealing areas 7 and 8 are provided to hold the two sheets of thermoplastic material against one another and to avoid their separation in the drive device of the packaging machine.

At least one of the two sheets of thermoplastic material has in its upper part a zone of peelability 9, obtained by the deposition of a sealing material and peel, such as wax.

Upon closure of the bag, after filling, the sealing and peelable material is melted locally in the sealing zone 10. The cross section of the sealing zone 10a in FIG. 2 is a triangle shape and in FIG. 3 an inverted V shape.

To open the bag, the operator manually separates the two sheets of thermoplastic material. The bag can thus be easily opened in the desired zone, delimited by the zone of peelability and the shape of the welding electrode. A probe or a tube can then be introduced into the opening with satisfactory guidance.

Although the invention has been described and illustrated more particularly with reference to the specific field of animal artificial insemination, it will be understood that one skilled in the art is able to make many variants without departing from the scope of the invention. 'invention. In addition, although the invention provides considerable advantages in the field of liquid packaging for animal artificial insemination, the liquid substances that can be packaged in the bag of the invention can not be limited to the veterinary field and also belong to the field of human medicine.

Claims (10)

1. A bag for packaging biological substances formed by two sheets of thermoplastic material which are welded by a weld bead delimiting a pouch to which there is connected at an end portion a conduit in the form of a tube permitting its content to be filled, recovered or emptied out, a peelability zone belonging to at least one of said two sheets closing off said tube, wherein

   - on the one hand, the bag for packaging biological substances is intended for use with an insemination probe capable of being introduced directly into the conduit in the form of a tube,

   - the condult in the form of a tube making it possible to afford

   - by itself alone sealing integrity around said insemination probe during the direct introduction of it into said conduit

   - it being guided during introduction

   - and, on the other hand, the peelability zone;

   - is arranged at the entry to the conduit, in order to afford sealing integrity for the bag;

   - is peelable by hand

   - and comprises a sealing and peelability material which forms part of said sheet, without additional support.
2. A bag according to claim 1 characterised in that said sealing and peelability material is a wax.
3. A bag according to one of claims 1 and 2 characterised in that said filling conduit is extended by a flared portion.
4. A bag according to any one of claims 1 to 3 characterised in that the two said sheets of thermoplastic material have a displacement with respect to each in said upper portion.
5. A bag according to claim 4 characterised in that said displacement is about 2 to 3 mm.
6. A bag according to any one of claims 1 to 5 containing a liquid characterised in that it is subjected to a sealing operation in a sealing zone in the interior of said peelability zone, in the vicinity of the upper portion of said conduit, substantially transversely with respect to the axis thereof.
7. A bag according to claim 6 characterised in that said sealing zone is in the shape of a triangle in cross-section.
8. A bag according to claim 6 characterised in that said sealing zone is in the shape of an inverted V In cross-section.
9. A bag according to any one of claims 6 to 8 characterised in that said liquid substance is a liquid substance which can be used for artificial insemination procedures.
10. A bag according to claim 9 characterised in that said liquid substance which can be used for artificial insemination procedures is selected from animal semen, media and diluents.

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