Breakable Locking Cap for Repeatable Container Sealing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing locking caps for containers lack repeatability in opening and assembly, making it difficult to reliably remove the cap and ensure a secure seal, particularly for pharmaceutical products that require complete access to the contents.
Innovation Solution
A locking cap design featuring a breakable part and a cage with alternating first and second bridges, flexible tabs, and an inclined opening tab that allows for easy transition between intermediate and locked positions using a low force, ensuring secure sealing and repeatable removal.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If a breakable deformable bridge is used in the inner ring to allow removal, then the cap can be removed to access the stopper, but the opening becomes non-repeatable and difficult to control
Solution Approach 1:
The invention divides the breakable structure into two separate components: a breakable part in the external body and a breakable zone in the cage. This segmentation allows each component to break independently and predictably, eliminating the non-repeatable deformation issue of a single deformable bridge while still enabling complete removal of the cap.
Solution Approach 2:
The breakable part and breakable zone are pre-configured in specific locations and orientations before use. The breakable part is positioned to break first upon pulling, and the breakable zone is designed to subsequently break at a predetermined location, ensuring repeatable and controlled opening behavior across multiple devices.
2Reliability
If the cage is tightly secured in the external body to ensure sealing, then the closure seal is reliable, but the assembly between inner and outer rings becomes non-repeatable
Solution Approach 1:
The cage acts as an intermediary component between the external body and the stopper. It provides a standardized interface with the external body through the breakable zone design, allowing for repeatable assembly while maintaining reliable sealing. The cage's structured breakable zone ensures consistent positioning and engagement.
3Strength
If the breakable zone is positioned far from the opening tab to ensure structural integrity, then the cage remains strong, but the force required to break the bridge increases
Solution Approach 1:
The breakable zone is designed with local quality variations: it has reduced thickness or modified material properties only in the specific region where breaking is needed, while the rest of the cage maintains full structural integrity. This allows the cage to be strong overall while requiring minimal force to break at the predetermined zone near the opening tab.
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 design enables reliable, ergonomic, and secure sealing with repeatable removal of the cap, allowing easy access to the container contents while maintaining a secure seal, even across variations in container height and size.
Implementation Method 1
the breakable part of the external body and the breakable zone of the cage are designed such that, when the cap is in the locked position on the container, the breakage of the breakable part and the breakable zone enables the cap to be removed from the container
Implementation Method 2
the opening tab being adjacent to the breakable zone, which is located on the second bridge, the application of a tensile force to the opening tab being capable of causing breakage in the breakable zone
Data Source
AI summary
The invention relates to a locking cap for a container comprising a neck, intended to block a stopper in the neck of the container and comprising: an external body having a breakable part, a cage that is configured to fit into and lock axially in the external body, and having a breakable zone, the cage further comprising: an upper ring, a plurality n of branches that are connected to the upper ring and define therewith a generally cylindrical shape, n/2 first bridges and n/2 second bridges, each interconnecting two adjacent branches, at least one opening tab, which is supported by a second bridge, which is inclined toward the outside of the cage and is oriented toward the upper ring, the opening tab being adjacent to the breakable zone, which is located on the second bridge.