US Patent 6948296 Dunnage material and process

A process of forming dunnage is disclosed. A chain of interconnected plastic pouches (38) are fed along a path of travel to a fill and seal station (24). The pouches (38) are sequentially opened as each pouch is positioned in the fill station. Each pouch is opened by directing a flow of air through a pouch fill opening (50) to separate a face (46) from a back (48) of each such pouch and continuing the flow of air through each such opening to inflate each opened pouch. Each such inflated pouch is then sealed to create hermetically closed and inflated dunnage units (56). Novel web and dunnage units are also disclosed.