Cuff-First Glove Dispenser With Perforated Apertures
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing dispensers for gloves face challenges such as difficulty in grasping gloves when the box is full, glove clumping, and contamination risks due to the need for users to insert their hands deep into the dispenser.
Innovation Solution
A dispenser design featuring a box with perforated lines for tearable dispensing apertures, two stacks of unfolded gloves oriented cuff-first, and a static internal separator to allow separate dispensing from opposing apertures, reducing manufacturing complexity and costs.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If gloves are dispensed from a vertical dispenser, then gloves can be easily accessed, but gloves clump together at the bottom and require deep hand insertion
Solution Approach 1:
The patent inverts the traditional dispensing orientation by dispensing gloves cuff-first instead of finger-first. This inversion allows gloves to be dispensed horizontally from a stack where the cuff end protrudes through the aperture, enabling users to grasp the cuff without inserting hands deep into the dispenser, thus reducing contamination risk while maintaining ease of access
Solution Approach 2:
The patent transitions from vertical dispensing to horizontal dispensing by changing the orientation dimension. Gloves are arranged in a horizontal stack with cuffs aligned at one end, and the aperture is positioned to allow cuff-first removal. This dimensional change eliminates the need for deep hand insertion while preventing glove clumping
2Quantity of substance
If a dispenser is completely or nearly full of gloves, then storage capacity is maximized, but it becomes difficult to grasp a single glove without dispensing additional gloves
Solution Approach 1:
The patent creates a localized dispensing region at the aperture where a single glove cuff protrudes. The aperture is sized and positioned to expose only the cuff portion of the top glove in the stack, allowing users to grasp exactly one glove without affecting the rest of the full stack, thus enabling easy single glove retrieval even when the dispenser is completely full
3Ease of operation
If users must insert hands deep into the dispenser to retrieve gloves, then gloves can be dispensed, but contamination of gloves and dispenser interior occurs
Solution Approach 1:
The patent inverts the traditional dispensing method by making the cuff end (rather than the finger end) the leading portion that protrudes through the aperture. This inversion allows the entire glove except the cuff to remain protected within the dispenser, eliminating the need for deep hand insertion and preventing contamination of both the glove interior and dispenser interior
Solution Approach 2:
The cuff portion of the glove serves as an intermediary element that extends through the aperture boundary. By making the cuff the protruding element, it acts as a safe interface between the user's hand and the sterile glove interior, allowing grasping without direct contact with the protected finger portion and minimizing contamination risk
4Reliability
If additional components like resilient materials are added to bias gloves toward the aperture, then dispensing reliability improves, but manufacturing complexity and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent enables the glove stack itself to perform the function of biasing toward the aperture through its own structural properties. The horizontal stacking arrangement with cuffs aligned at one end creates natural weight distribution and friction characteristics that maintain cuff protrusion without requiring additional resilient materials or biasing mechanisms, thus achieving reliable dispensing while minimizing device complexity
Solution Approach 2:
The patent extracts the biasing function from separate components (like resilient materials) and integrates it into the basic structural arrangement of the glove stack and aperture positioning. By removing the need for additional biasing components and relying on the inherent properties of the horizontal stack configuration, the system achieves reliable dispensing with reduced manufacturing complexity
Data Source
AI summary
A dispenser for disposable gloves includes a box having a plurality of faces, and two stacks of unfolded gloves disposed in the box and a static internal separator positioned between each stack of gloves. The box has 5 perforated lines on at least two opposing faces. The perforated lines are tearable providing a respective dispensing aperture on each opposing face. Each stack of gloves is orientated in the box so that the cuff of the gloves is positioned adjacent to the dispensing aperture for dispensing cuff-first through said dispensing aperture.