RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present invention is a continuation of U.S. Provisional Application No. 63/216,707 filed on Jun. 30, 2021, the entire disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates generally to a bag separating device and more specifically to a plastic grocery bag separating device.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Grocery stores, clothing stores, and supermarkets are big business and there are countless technological advancements that occur in the consumer commerce industry to make things more efficient, such as the use of barcode scanning for pricing, conveyor belts at the check-out line, and the ubiquitous use of payment cards.

One (1) system that is increasingly common to see at check-out lines for the aforementioned stores, among others, is the use of the self-check-out line, where the consumer scans their item at the cash register and then administers payment when the scanning is complete. This system, although having some minor flaws, greatly increases the flow of customers through the store and allows the store to reduce their daily staff.

One (1) of the drawbacks to a self-check-out lane is at the end, when the items that have been purchased must be bagged. Often times, the bags are plastic and the come either interwoven or crimped together, where a pulling force on an outermost bag is the way to separate that bag from the stack. Plastic bags are notorious for static cling and the electrostatic attraction between two (2) adjacent plastic bags is another force that must be overcome when separating the bags. The present invention addresses this problem by providing a user the ability to easily carry a device that helps to separate a single bag from the stack when it is time to place their items in the bag.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The principles of the present invention provide for a bag separator has a first end portion which is adapted to contact an individual bag during a separation process, a center portion which has a first side, a second side, a first end and a second end, a second end portion which is adapted to be supported by a support structure—the second end portion is an extended portion of the second end of the center portion, a post which extends from the first end portion, and a notch which is disposed on a midpoint of the second end portion—the notch of the second end portion accepts the post from the first end portion.

The center portion may include a plurality of rounded corners. The center portion may include a plurality of anti-snag corners. The first side and the second side of the center portion may each include a perimeter border disposed therearound. A first logo may reside on the first side of the center portion. The first logo may serve as a gripping element when the bag separator is in use. A second logo may reside on the second side of the center portion. The second logo may serve as a gripping element when the bag separator is in use. The center portion may be 0.188 in. in thickness at the first end of the center portion to facilitate grasping the bag separator. The center portion may be 0.188 in. in thickness at the second end of the center portion to facilitate grasping the bag separator. The center portion may be generally rectangular shaped.

The second end portion may include a pair of angled walls, a first angled wall that extends minimally outward at a rearward angle from the first side of the center portion, and a second angled wall that extends minimally outward at the rearward angle from the second side of the center portion. A plurality of flanged sections may extend rearwardly from a plurality of distal edges of the angled walls and the angled walls and the flanged section have a width coextensive with the center portion and the flanged section are oriented in a plane parallel with the center portion. An aperture may be disposed on each of the flanged sections that are aligned with each other to enable the bag separator to be suspended from the support structure.

A proximal end of the post may be permanently affixed to the notch. The proximal end of the post may be removably attached to the notch. The post may be coextensive with the width of the second end portion when inserted within the notch. The post may be cylindrical shaped that extends outwardly away from the center portion. A pommel may be disposed on a distal end of the post. A rubber cover may be removably attached on the first end portion covers the pommel and a part of the post.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The advantages and features of the present invention will become better understood with reference to the following more detailed description and claims taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which like elements are identified with like symbols, and in which:

FIG. 1 is a top perspective view of the bag separator, according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a top perspective view of the bag separator with the cover feature installed, according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a bottom perspective view of the bag separator, according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a side elevation view of the bag separator with the cover feature installed, according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 5 is a top plan view of the bag separator with the cover feature installed, according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the cover feature, according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 7 is a front elevation view of the bag separator with the cover feature installed, according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 8 is a rear elevation view of the bag separator with the cover feature installed, according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention; and

FIG. 9 is an environmental view of the bag separator in an exemplary method of use, according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention.

DESCRIPTIVE KEY

5 bag separator

10a first end portion

10b center portion

10c second end portion

11 top side

12 bottom side

13a first logo

13b second logo

14 pommel

15 post

16 flanged section

17 aperture

18 angled wall

19 notch

20 cover

21 opening

30 user

40 stack of bags

41 individual bag

50 checkout line

51 bagging area

DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The best mode for carrying out the invention is presented in terms of its preferred embodiment, herein depicted within FIGS. 1 through 9. However, the invention is not limited to the described embodiment, and a person skilled in the art will appreciate that many other embodiments of the invention are possible without deviating from the basic concept of the invention and that any such work around will also fall under scope of this invention. It is envisioned that other styles and configurations of the present invention can be easily incorporated into the teachings of the present invention, and only one (1) particular configuration shall be shown and described for purposes of clarity and disclosure and not by way of limitation of scope. All of the implementations described below are exemplary implementations provided to enable persons skilled in the art to make or use the embodiments of the disclosure and are not intended to limit the scope of the disclosure, which is defined by the claims.

The terms “a” and “an” herein do not denote a limitation of quantity, but rather denote the presence of at least one (1) of the referenced items.

Referring now to FIGS. 1-8, the present invention is a bag separator 5 that is capable of being carried by or on a user 30 so that it is readily available when it is necessary to separate an individual bag 41 from a combined stack of bags 40. Such stacks of bags 40 are commonly associated with a bagging area 51 of a checkout lines 50 at grocery stores or supermarkets, either a manned checkout line 50 or a self-service checkout line 50. The stacks of bags 40 are typically crimped together or interwoven, and a pulling or other separating force on the desired individual bag 41 is necessary to separate that individual bag 41 from the combined stack of bags 40. The bag separator 5 in an exemplary embodiment has overall dimensions of approximately three and forty-two thousandths' inches (3.042 in.) in total length and one-half inch (½ in.) in width.

The bag separator 5 includes a first end portion 10a capable of contacting the desired individual bag 41 during a separation process, a center portion 10b, and a second end portion 10c that is capable of being supported by a support structure. The center portion 10b includes a first side 11, a second side 12, a first end and a second end and is generally rectangular with rounded or anti-snag corners. Both the first side 11 and second side 12 have a perimeter border therearound. A first logo 13a resides on the first side 11 and a second logo 13b resides on the second side. The logos 13a, 13b may also serve to function as a gripping element, as the center portion 10b is what will typically be gripped by a user 30 when the bag separator 5 is being used. The center portion 10b is preferably one hundred eighty-eight thousandths of an inch (0.188 in.) in thickness at its greatest, located at the first end portion 10a and second end portion 10c.

The first end portion 10a includes a post 15. The first end of the center portion 10b, immediately adjacent the first end portion 10a, includes a notch 19 located at a midpoint thereof, which accepts the post 15 of the first end portion 10a. A proximal end of the post 15 can be permanently affixed or removably attached to the notch 19. The post 15 is preferably a cylindrical feature of approximately one-half inch (½ in.) in length and extends outwardly away from the center portion 10b. The outer diameter of the post 15, when inserted within the notch 19, is coextensive with the width of the second end portion 10c. Located at the distal end of the post 15 is a pommel 14 that is relatively disc-shaped. A rubber cover 20 is capable of removable attachment on the first end portion, and totally covers the pommel 14 and the majority of the post 15. The cover 20 is preferably a dome-shaped element that has an opening 21 and a closed end, although other shapes and sizes are appreciated. The opening 21 of the cover 20 attaches over the first end portion 10a and abuts the first end of the center portion 10b. The cover 20 is capable of gripping onto a portion of the desired individual bag 41 to remove it from the stack of bags 40, and also can facilitate the opening of the individual bag 41 itself. In some embodiments, the first end portion 10a (i.e., the post 15 and pommel 14) can be an integral part of the center portion 10b.

The second end portion 10c is an extended portion of the second end of the center portion 10b. The second end portion 10c includes a pair of angled walls 18, a first angled wall that extends minimally outward at a rearward angle from the first side 11 and a second angled wall that extends minimally outward at a rearward angle from the second side 12. A flanged section 16 extends rearwardly from the distal edges of the angled walls 18. The pair of angled walls 18 and flanged section 16 have a width coextensive with the center portion 10b and the flanged section 16 is oriented in a plane parallel with the center portion 10b. The second end portion is fully solid so as to enable a single aperture 17 to be formed within the flanged section 16. The aperture 17 enables the bag separator 5 to be suspended from a hook, a key chain, or other similar type of support structure.

Referring now to FIG. 9, an environmental view of the bag separator 5 in an exemplary method of use, is herein described. A user 30 is shown here gripping the center portion 10b of the bag separator 5 to wield the first end portion 10a to contact an individual bag 41 from a stack of bags 40, such as that typically found in a bagging area 51 of a checkout line 50. The cover 20 contacts a portion of the individual bag 41 and with a force applied thereon in a separating manner from a stack of bags 40, is able to separate the individual bag 41 therefrom. Although not shown, the pair of apertures 17 are capable of receiving a keyring or other similar type of fastener to be suspended from a support structure, typically worn by the user 30 for convenience.

The foregoing descriptions of specific embodiments of the present invention have been presented for purposes of illustration and description. They are not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise forms disclosed, and obviously many modifications and variations are possible in light of the above teaching. The embodiments were chosen and described in order to best explain the principles of the invention and its practical application, to thereby enable others skilled in the art to best utilize the invention and various embodiments with various modifications as are suited to the particular use contemplated.