Closure With Segmented Skirt for Carbonated Beverage Sealing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing closures for carbonated liquids are either too heavy due to material usage, leading to high production costs and environmental impact, or they fail to withstand internal pressure and deformation, resulting in leakage and product loss.
Innovation Solution
A lightweight closure design with a balanced deformation tolerance, featuring a segmented outer skirt and internal sealing means with a blend that interacts with the top deck to adjust and maintain a secure seal under pressure, incorporating a tamper band with frangible bridges for reduced weight and enhanced performance.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Weight of moving object
If material usage is reduced to lower weight and cost, then production cost and environmental impact improve, but the closure fails to withstand internal pressure and deformation
Solution Approach 1:
The outer skirt is divided into multiple segments that can deform independently under internal pressure. This segmentation allows the closure to maintain structural integrity while using less material, as each segment can flex and adjust to pressure changes without compromising the overall seal or requiring excessive material for rigidity.
Solution Approach 2:
The closure employs controlled deformation parameters where the outer skirt is designed to deform within specific limits under internal pressure. By changing the structural parameters to allow controlled flexibility rather than rigid resistance, the closure maintains reliability with reduced material usage, balancing weight reduction with pressure resistance.
2Reliability
If the sealing lip is arranged obliquely to receive the container opening, then sealing capability improves, but the sealing lip becomes rigid and cannot adjust in lateral direction
Solution Approach 1:
The sealing lip is designed with dynamic characteristics, allowing it to deform and adjust laterally in response to application forces and container variations. The oblique arrangement provides the primary sealing geometry, while the material flexibility enables lateral adaptation, combining geometric precision with dynamic adaptability for reliable sealing.
Solution Approach 2:
The sealing lip utilizes flexible material properties to enable lateral adjustment while maintaining the oblique geometric arrangement for sealing. The flexibility of the sealing lip material allows it to conform to slight variations in container opening dimensions while preserving the effective sealing geometry.
3Force
If extensive deformation is applied to press the sealing lip against the container mouth, then sealing force increases, but the outer shell breaks due to stress cracking
Solution Approach 1:
The outer skirt is segmented to distribute the deformation forces across multiple independent sections rather than concentrating stress in the outer shell. This segmentation allows the sealing lip to be pressed against the container mouth with sufficient force while the segments absorb and distribute the stress, preventing stress cracking in the outer shell.
Solution Approach 2:
The segmented outer skirt acts as an intermediary structure between the sealing lip and the outer shell. It provides the necessary deformation capacity to generate sealing force while protecting the outer shell from excessive stress that would cause cracking, effectively mediating the force transmission.
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 closure achieves a significant reduction in weight while maintaining high performance by allowing controlled deformation, preventing leakage and pressure loss, even under extreme conditions, thus offering improved environmental compatibility and operational efficiency.
Implementation Method 1
A lightweight closure design with a balanced deformation tolerance
Implementation Method 2
internal sealing means with a blend that interacts with the top deck to adjust and maintain a secure seal under pressure
Data Source
AI summary
The present disclosure relates to a closure, especially a closure for packages for liquids such as beverages. In particular the invention relates to a closure for containers for carbonated liquids such as soft drinks. The closure comprises an outer shell with a reduced weight and a sealing means which actively compensates the deformation of the outer shell to avoid loss of performance.