Angled Cut Lids on Continuous Sheet Material
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Solution Overview
Problem
The existing lidding systems for premade containers require separate handling of die-cut lids, which is time-consuming and inefficient, and result in significant waste material due to perpendicular cutting of lids from a sheet, leading to suboptimal material usage.
Innovation Solution
A row of lids is created from an unbroken sheet material where adjacent lids are cut at an angle different from perpendicular to the longitudinal direction, allowing for initial non-separation and final separation in a filling and sealing machine, reducing material consumption by optimizing the cutting angle.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If lids are die-cut and handled separately, then each lid can be individually placed on containers, but the process becomes time-consuming and inefficient
Solution Approach 1:
Multiple lids are merged into a single continuous sheet material structure, allowing them to be transported and positioned together as one unit rather than handled individually. The lids remain connected through the sheet material until the final sealing stage, enabling efficient bulk handling while maintaining individual lid functionality.
Solution Approach 2:
Lids are pre-positioned on the sheet material in their final arrangement pattern before the lidding process begins. This preliminary arrangement allows for efficient bulk transport and positioning of multiple lids simultaneously, eliminating the need for individual lid placement during the lidding operation.
2Ease of manufacture
If lids are cut perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the sheet material, then separation is simple, but significant waste material is generated
Solution Approach 1:
The cutting direction is changed from perpendicular (symmetric to the lid arrangement) to an angled direction that optimizes material utilization. This asymmetric cutting approach allows lids to be separated at angles that minimize the gap between adjacent lids, thereby reducing waste material while still enabling clean separation.
Solution Approach 2:
The cutting angle parameter is optimized to reduce material waste. By changing the cutting angle from 90 degrees to a specific optimized angle, the center-to-center distance between lids is reduced, maximizing material utilization while maintaining manufacturing feasibility.
3Ease of manufacture
If lids are arranged with larger center-to-center distance, then manufacturing is easier, but material consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The angular arrangement of lids on the sheet material creates an asymmetric pattern that optimizes space utilization. This asymmetric layout allows lids to be positioned closer together at optimized angles, reducing the center-to-center distance and thereby reducing the total quantity of sheet material required while maintaining manufacturability.
Data Source
AI summary
The present invention relates to a row of lids (1) defining an unbroken sheet material having a longitudinal direction, the sheet material being shaped so that the rim of the sheet material defines first rims section (3) of the lids (2) and so that second rims sections (4) of two lids (2) being adjacent to each other in the row of lids are defined by one cut in a direction being different from perpendicular to the longitudinal direction (5) of the sheet material.