Break-away Tip with Recessed Junction and Fixed Orifice
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Solution Overview
Problem
Break-away nozzle tips in containers are prone to premature breakage from accidental impacts, can leave jagged edges that scratch users, and often deform the dispensing orifice, making it difficult to control product flow.
Innovation Solution
A one-piece container closure with a flexible, impact-resistant break-away tip that absorbs drops without fracturing, features a recessed break-away junction to prevent jagged edges, and keeps the orifice separate from the break-away point to maintain a fixed size.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If the break-away junction is made to coincide with the orifice to enable easy breakage, then the tip can be readily broken away, but the orifice becomes difficult to control in size and shape due to deformation at the fracture point
Solution Approach 1:
The tip is segmented into two distinct functional zones: the break-away junction optimized for easy fracture and the orifice maintained at a fixed, controlled location. This segmentation allows the break-away junction to be positioned away from the orifice, enabling independent optimization of both breakage ease and orifice precision without mutual interference
Solution Approach 2:
The orifice is extracted from the break-away junction and positioned at a fixed location on the tip. This extraction separates the functions of product dispensing (orifice) and tip removal (break-away junction), allowing the orifice to maintain its precise size and shape while the break-away junction is optimized for easy fracture
2Manufacturing precision
If the tip is made rigid to maintain orifice shape, then the orifice remains stable, but the tip becomes prone to premature breakage from accidental impacts
Solution Approach 1:
The tip exhibits local quality variations with different regions having different mechanical properties. The orifice region maintains rigid, precise geometry for stable product dispensing, while the break-away junction is designed with optimized geometry and material properties to facilitate easy fracture. This local differentiation allows the tip to simultaneously maintain orifice stability and resist accidental breakage
3Ease of operation
If the break-away junction is positioned at the tip end for easy access, then breakage is convenient, but jagged edges are created that can scratch or cut user skin
Solution Approach 1:
The recessed break-away junction acts as an intermediary structure that absorbs the fracture process away from the user-contact zone. By positioning the break-away junction recessed from the tip end, the design creates a spatial buffer that prevents jagged fracture edges from reaching the user's skin, while still maintaining convenient breakage accessibility
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 closure effectively resists accidental impacts, allows easy breakage by users, and ensures a smooth nozzle edge and precise product dispensing without orifice deformation.
Implementation Method 1
The tip is capable of absorbing the impact of an industry-standard drop test and remaining in place without causing the break-away junction to fracture
Implementation Method 2
the molded material for making the closure tip is flexible enough to absorb an impact but stiff enough to transmit a force applied by a user to the side of the tip to the break-away junction
Data Source
AI summary
A closure for a container, the closure including a spout having a dispensing nozzle and a tip attached to the spout at a break-away junction. The break-away junction is recessed from the nozzle such that a user is protected from rough or jagged edges that may be created when the tip is broken away from the spout. The spout also has an orifice that is smaller than the dispensing nozzle for controlling the rate or amount of product dispensed from the container, the orifice remaining intact when the tip is broken away from the spout. The tip is sufficiently flexible to absorb an impact, such as from the container being dropped, but is sufficiently stiff that a user can fracture the break-away junction by applying sideways force to the tip. The closure may be attached to the container by a cap body or may be formed integrally with the container.