Container Safety-Latch With Rotatable Sleeve And U-Shaped Pin
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing safety latches for containers are often expensive, difficult for adults to operate, aesthetically unappealing, and not child-proof, failing to effectively secure items like medicines and cannabinoid products from children.
Innovation Solution
A container with a safety-latch mechanism featuring a rotatable outer sleeve and U-shaped pin configuration that requires complex manipulation to open, utilizing elastic deformation and magnetic or spring-loaded locking mechanisms to prevent children from accessing the contents.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a simple latch mechanism is used, then the container is easy to open, but children can easily access the contents
Solution Approach 1:
The latch mechanism uses a rotatable outer sleeve that changes the operational state dynamically. The sleeve can rotate between locked and unlocked positions, transforming a static latch into a dynamic system that requires active manipulation to change states, thereby preventing accidental opening by children while remaining operable by adults.
Solution Approach 2:
The latch is divided into multiple functional components: an outer sleeve, an inner sleeve, a pin, and a lip. Each component has a specific function, and their coordinated interaction creates a multi-step opening process that is difficult for children but manageable for adults, resolving the contradiction between security and ease of operation.
2Reliability
If a complex safety-latch mechanism is used, then child-proof security is improved, but the device becomes more expensive and difficult to manufacture
Solution Approach 1:
The latch mechanism employs nested sleeves where the inner sleeve is positioned within the outer sleeve. This nesting arrangement allows multiple functional elements to be integrated in a compact space, reducing the overall number of separate parts and simplifying manufacturing while maintaining the complex operational sequence required for child-proof security.
Solution Approach 2:
The outer sleeve serves multiple functions: it acts as a protective cover, a rotational control element, and a structural support for the latching mechanism. By making the outer sleeve multi-functional, the design reduces the need for additional separate components, thereby simplifying manufacturing while achieving reliable child-proof security.
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 safety-latch effectively prevents children from opening the container by requiring dexterity that small children do not possess, ensuring secure storage of hazardous items.
Implementation Method 1
The inner member 52 is elastically deformable, wherein when the inner member is deformed by a user, it will go back to its original shape once the deforming force is removed.
Implementation Method 2
In another embodiment, a magnet may be attached to the outer sleeve 48 and a magnet may be attached to the base 18.
Data Source
AI summary
A container with a safety-latch, the container comprising: a lid; a base rotatably attached to the lid; a lip located on the lid; a base pin attached to the base; an outer sleeve rotatably attached to the base pin; a U-shaped pin rotatably attached to the outer sleeve, and configured to removably attach to the lip; where the outer sleeve and U-shaped pin are difficult for a child to manipulate in order to remove the U-shaped pin from the lip.