Beverage Container With Internal Bag And Through Holes
Solution Overview
Problem
Metal containers for beverages are heavy, bulky, and pose safety risks due to residual pressurized gas, requiring complex and costly maintenance and sanitation, and do not efficiently discharge gas after use.
Innovation Solution
A container comprising an external keg and a compressible internal bag made of plastic, where the internal bag is connected to the external keg via through holes allowing air to escape, simplifying the delivery system and ensuring safe disposal without the need for complex sanitation processes.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If metal containers are used for beverage delivery, then durability and reusability are improved, but weight and bulk increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The container is divided into two separate components: an external rigid keg providing structural durability and an internal flexible bag containing the beverage. This segmentation allows the heavy metal keg to be replaced with a lighter plastic structure while maintaining strength, and the flexible inner bag can be collapsed when empty, reducing bulk and weight for return trips.
Solution Approach 2:
The internal flexible bag is nested within the external rigid keg, with the bag's opening secured to the keg's inner surface. This nested configuration provides the durability of the outer keg while allowing the inner bag to be compressed and collapsed as beverage is dispensed, significantly reducing the volume and weight of the returnable component.
2Strength
If metal containers are used, then structural strength is improved, but manufacturing and maintenance costs increase
Solution Approach 1:
The container employs composite construction combining a rigid plastic external keg with a flexible plastic internal bag. This composite material approach maintains the structural strength needed for transport and handling while using less expensive plastic materials instead of expensive metal fabrication and specialized sanitation processes.
Solution Approach 2:
The internal flexible bag is designed as a disposable or limited-life component that can be easily replaced, while the external keg is reused. This approach reduces maintenance and sanitation costs compared to metal containers that require expensive washing and sanitizing operations after each use.
3Quantity of substance
If pressurized gas is introduced into carbonated beverages, then carbonation is achieved, but foam formation and extraction difficulty increase
Solution Approach 1:
The flexible internal bag contains the carbonated beverage and can be directly connected to dispensing equipment. As beverage is dispensed, the bag collapses inward, maintaining pressure equilibrium and preventing excessive foam formation. The flexibility of the bag allows it to adapt to pressure changes without creating the foam problems associated with rigid metal containers.
4Stability of the object's composition
If pressurized gas remains in the container after delivery, then container integrity is maintained, but safety risks increase
Solution Approach 1:
The flexible internal bag is completely removed and discarded after the beverage is dispensed, taking with it any residual pressurized gas. This extraction of the gas-containing component eliminates the safety hazard of trapped pressurized gas in the container, while the external keg remains as a safe, empty shell for return and refilling.
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 solution provides a lightweight, safe, and cost-effective container that efficiently discharges gas, reducing transportation burdens and operational risks, while allowing for easy recycling and disposal without the need for extensive washing and sanitizing.
Implementation Method 1
Solutions are also known in which the beverage is contained in the internal container and the delivery thereof is performed by introducing pressurized air between the external container and the internal container, so as to cause compression and collapse of the internal container, and therefore the delivery of the pressurized beverage.
Data Source
Figure 1~3
Figure 4~6
AI summary
A set of preforms to make a container (10) for beverages comprises an external preform (112) and an internal preform (114), each intended to form respectively an external keg (12) and an internal bag (14) of the container (10). The internal preform (114) is associated internally with the external preform (112) so as to define with the external preform (112) a hollow space (13) and also has at least one through hole (40), made in a neck portion (28) thereof.