Compostable Tie

Abstract

A tie composed of a compostable material can include an elongated strip having a head end and tail end with a body between the head end and the tail end. The tail end can be received in the head end to form a loop with the tie. Some structural modifications may be made to the tie to improve the manufacture, flexibility, and compostability of the tie.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION[0001]This application is a continuation application of U.S. Non-provisional patent application Ser. No. 12 / 712,565 filed Feb. 25, 2010 which claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 61 / 155,394 filed Feb. 25, 2009. The contents of these applications are incorporated by reference for all purposes as if set forth in their entirety herein.STATEMENT CONCERNING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT[0002]Not applicable.FIELD OF THE INVENTION[0003]This invention relates to ties.BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION[0004]Cable ties or zip ties are common household items typically sold in hardware stores that are used for not only tying bundles of cables, but for many other purposes. A typical tie is a plastic molded elongated strip that has an enlarged head at one end, a tapered tail at the other end, and a body of generally constant rectangular cross section in between. The head end has a hole with a pawl in it, and the body has ratchet teeth...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0009]Some structural modifications may be made to the tie to improve the manufacture, flexibility, and compostability of the tie. For example, the apertures may be strategically located to improve the rate of degradation of material upon composting the tie. The formation of apertures also removes unnecessary material from the tie for a cost savings. As compostable resins are not as flexible as nylon, the compostable tie may also be formed to include a series of living hinges that provides the tie with the flexibility to bend into a loop and with a reduced cross section which facilitates degradation.

[0010]Additionally, the tie may be formed with an aperture in the tail end of the body. This aperture makes it easier to get the tail started and inserted through the hole in the head end. In addition, the aperture provides a place to tie a string if there was a need for a string, or a place to hang the tie from, either in its straight condition, or after it is made into a loop. A label or tag may be attached to this aperture, such as the label for a particular variety of plant or flower.

[0011]In a preferred form, the aperture is provided in a shape that is generally the same shape as the outer periphery of the tie at the tail end. This shape can be used to create a relatively thin thickness of the plastic material of the tie between the outer periphery of the tail end and the aperture with the thin thickness of material being flexible itself, so it can flex inwardly into the aperture. Thereby inserting the tail end into the hole in the head is made easier.

Problems solved by technology

One of the downsides to nylon is that nylon does not quickly degrade or compost.

Although the size of ties is relatively small and, when disposed of, they do not constitute a particularly high volume in a landfill, a commercial compost factory, or a residential compost heap this inability to quickly break down or compost may be problematic.

However, once the tie is severed to unbundle the items, the severed tie often falls to the ground.

Given the small size of the severed tie, the tie is often lost or ignored rather than retrieved and thrown away.

As conventional ties do not break down, over time the fragments of severed ties may accumulate in a high use area such as a garden and prove difficult to clean up.

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