Beverage Container Latch With Convex Arched Sliding Surfaces
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing mechanisms for opening and reclosing beverage container lids suffer from friction issues, leading to reliability problems, potential damage, and contamination from abrasive particles, while also being complex and costly to produce.
Innovation Solution
A mechanism featuring convex arched sliding surfaces and hatching elements that reduce friction by allowing the latch to move away from the lid's bottom surface, incorporating distancing elements and a sealing/actuating element, made of plastic, to facilitate easy opening and reclosing with reduced structural complexity.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a latch mechanism is used to open and reclose the outflow opening, then the container can be emptied and reclosed, but friction between the latch and the lid's bottom surface causes reliability problems, potential damage, and contamination from abrasive particles
Solution Approach 1:
The sliding surfaces are designed with a convex arch curvature instead of being flat. This curved geometry allows the hatching elements to roll or glide more smoothly along the arch, reducing friction and wear between the latch and lid components while maintaining the sealing function.
Solution Approach 2:
The sliding surfaces are positioned at different heights relative to the lid's bottom surface, creating a three-dimensional arrangement. The hatching elements move along the convex arch in a path that elevates them above the flat bottom surface during operation, reducing contact friction and preventing particle generation.
2Reliability
If multiple structural elements are used in the mechanism to ensure proper function, then reliability improves, but manufacturing complexity and costs increase
Solution Approach 1:
The hatching elements are integrated directly into the latch body as a unified component rather than being separate parts. The sliding surfaces are formed as integral features of the lid structure. This merging reduces the number of discrete elements while maintaining the mechanism's reliability through the combined functional design.
Solution Approach 2:
The convex arch sliding surfaces serve multiple functions: they guide the hatching elements during latch movement, reduce friction through their curved geometry, and maintain proper positioning of the latch relative to the opening. This multi-functionality reduces the need for additional specialized components.
3Reliability
If the latch contacts the bottom surface of the lid in the closed position, then sealing is achieved, but friction and wear occur during opening and reclosing operations
Solution Approach 1:
The convex arch curvature of the sliding surfaces ensures that the hatching elements follow a rounded path during latch movement. This curved motion reduces sliding friction and prevents the generation of abrasive particles that would occur with flat, sliding contact surfaces.
Solution Approach 2:
The design accepts that the latch must contact the lid for sealing but converts the potentially harmful sliding friction into a beneficial rolling or gliding motion along the convex arch. This transformation maintains the sealing function while eliminating the harmful abrasive particles.
Data Source
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AI summary
A mechanism for opening and reclosing the outflow opening for emptying a container, especially a beverage container, incorporating a latch to open and reclose the said outflow opening in the container lid, where the latch is fitted with hatching elements connected slidingly to the container lid, and where the lid features technical means suitable for moving the lid, characterised in that it contains at least one pair of sliding surfaces (3, 103), each of them incorporating at least one section in the shape of a convex arch, where moving on the said pair of sliding surfaces (3, 103) when shifting the latch (6, 106) is at least one pair of hatching elements (7, 107), and where ends (3a, 3b, 103a, 103b) of the sliding surfaces (3, 103) are positioned at different heights with respect to the bottom surface of the lid (1, 101) around the opening (2, 102), so that the end (3a, 103 a) of each sliding surface (3, 103) from which the movement of the latch (6, 106) starts towards the opening of the outflow opening (2, 102) is positioned higher than its other end (3b, 103b).