X-ray Transparent Baggage Container With One-Piece Foam Base
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing baggage containers for airport sorting systems are not robust enough for transport processes involving shocks and accelerations, and they require unloading and reloading for X-ray examinations, which increases treatment costs and manufacturing complexity.
Innovation Solution
A container with a one-piece base body made of X-ray transparent foam material, providing increased robustness and homogeneity in X-ray transmission, and featuring a flat bottom surface for efficient conveyor system integration, along with a holding structure for enhanced stability and protection against centrifugal forces.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If a container with separate transport area and floor area components is used, then the container can be assembled from multiple parts, but manufacturing effort and assembly complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the transport area and floor area into a single integral base body component. This eliminates the need for separate components and assembly operations, directly reducing manufacturing effort and assembly complexity while maintaining all necessary functional areas.
2Reliability
If a container with multiple components is used, then assembly is possible, but interfaces between components create relative movements during transport
Solution Approach 1:
By combining the transport area and floor area into one integral base body, the patent eliminates interfaces between these components. This prevents relative movements and power transmission issues at interfaces during transport, significantly improving reliability and robustness.
3Reliability
If a container with component interfaces is used, then assembly is flexible, but x-ray transmission homogeneity is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The integral base body design eliminates interfaces that would disrupt x-ray transmission. The continuous, homogeneous structure of the single-component base body ensures uniform x-ray transmission across the entire container bottom area, improving security examination quality.
4Strength
If a heavy container material is used, then load-bearing capacity increases, but weight increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs composite material construction for the base body, combining materials with high strength-to-weight ratios. This achieves the necessary load-bearing capacity for baggage transport while minimizing the overall weight of the container.
5Productivity
If a container requiring unloading and reloading for X-ray examination is used, then security examination can be performed, but treatment costs increase
Solution Approach 1:
The container uses homogeneous, x-ray transparent materials throughout the base body structure. This allows x-ray examinations to be performed on containers that remain loaded with baggage, eliminating unloading and reloading operations and significantly improving examination efficiency.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The container achieves low manufacturing effort, high load-bearing capacity, efficient X-ray transparency, and reduced costs by minimizing interfaces and using lightweight, recyclable materials, while maintaining stability and safety during transport and examination.
Implementation Method 1
Due to the high resilience of the foam, the container can absorb high-energy shocks occurring during these transport processes or be subjected to heavy loads without irreversible deformations occurring
Implementation Method 2
A container has already been proposed in WO 03/026976 A1 which is suitable for an examination based on X-ray radiation... In order to keep the treatment costs low for such examinations, it is advantageous to provide a container of the type described above which has sufficient transparency for X-rays
Data Source
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AI summary
The invention relates to a container for transporting items of luggage in a sorting system at an airport by means of a conveyor system for conveying the items of luggage, having a bed region (12) for coupling to a conveyor unit of the conveyor system and a transport region (18), which is supported by the bed region (12) and is provided to receive an item of luggage to be transported, wherein the bed region (12) and the transport region (18) are each produced from an x-ray transparent material. To provide a generic container which can be produced with a low expenditure, is robust with regard to the above-mentioned transport processes and is as homogeneous as possible with regard to the x-ray transparency, the bed region (12) and the transport region (18) are formed from a base body (26), which is produced in one piece and from an x-ray transparent material, wherein the base body is formed from a foam preform. The invention also relates to a sorting system for items of luggage at an airport.