Drug decocting container
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Solution Overview
Problem
Traditional Chinese medicine decocting machines are inefficient, requiring long times, high costs, and large decocting amounts, which hinders the popularization of traditional medicine due to complex operations and low extraction rates of effective ingredients.
Innovation Solution
A drug decocting container with a thin-walled inner pipe supported by a high-strength outer pipe, featuring a baffle system and a filter piece, allows for efficient extraction and separation of ingredients, reducing pressure on the filter and enhancing flow speed, while being disposable to prevent residue contamination.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If a thin-walled inner pipe is used to reduce cost and enable disposable use, then the cost is reduced and residue contamination is prevented, but the pipe strength is insufficient to withstand high-pressure extraction
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs a composite structure consisting of an inner pipe and an outer pipe made of different materials. The inner pipe can be made of disposable materials like plastic or paper, while the outer pipe provides structural strength. This composite approach allows the thin-walled inner pipe to fulfill its function of preventing residue contamination while the outer pipe compensates for the strength deficiency, enabling the system to withstand high-pressure extraction.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements a nested structure where the inner pipe is placed inside the outer pipe. The inner pipe handles the extraction process and can be disposed of after use, preventing residue contamination. The outer pipe serves as a reusable container that provides mechanical strength and structural support. This nesting arrangement resolves the contradiction by allowing each component to optimize for its specific function.
2Productivity
If high-pressure extraction is used to improve extraction rate of effective ingredients, then the extraction rate increases, but the pressure on the filter piece increases causing blockages
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the filtering function into multiple stages using a multi-layer filter structure. The filter piece is segmented into several layers with different pore sizes and filtering capabilities. This segmentation allows the first layer to capture large particles while subsequent layers handle finer particles, distributing the pressure load across multiple filtering stages rather than concentrating it on a single filter, thereby preventing blockages during high-pressure extraction.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs porous materials with controlled pore structures in the filter piece and potentially in the pipe walls. These porous materials allow selective passage of liquids and dissolved substances while retaining solid particles. The porous structure provides multiple flow paths that prevent clogging by distributing the flow evenly and allowing trapped particles to be flushed through during the extraction process.
3Ease of operation
If traditional decocting procedures are used to maintain simplicity, then the operations remain simple, but the time consumption is too long and the decocting amount is large
Solution Approach 1:
The patent utilizes hydraulic principles by applying high pressure to the liquid during the extraction process. This high-pressure hydraulic extraction dramatically accelerates the dissolution and extraction of effective ingredients from the herbal materials, reducing the decocting time from traditional hours to minutes, while maintaining operational simplicity through automated pressure control.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes key parameters of the extraction process, specifically increasing pressure and potentially temperature, to accelerate the extraction kinetics. By modifying these physical parameters, the extraction rate of effective ingredients is dramatically improved, reducing the time required from traditional long decoction times to rapid extraction cycles, while the device maintains ease of operation through standardized procedures.
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 achieves a significantly higher extraction rate of effective ingredients within shorter times, reducing operational costs and improving decocting efficiency, with extraction rates up to 2.95-14.55 times higher than traditional methods, and preventing blockages during high-pressure extraction.
Implementation Method 1
the strength of the outer-layer container is larger than that of the inner-layer container for supporting the inner-layer container and controlling the deformation of the inner-layer container
Implementation Method 2
the cover body is hermetically connected with the inner-layer container to form a sealed cavity
Implementation Method 3
a filter piece is arranged at the liquid outlet in the inner-layer container
Implementation Method 4
Decoction pieces are separated by the multistage baffles, thereby reducing the pressure of the decoction pieces on the filter piece and improving the flow speed of the extract
Data Source
AI summary
A drug decocting container comprises a cover body (1), an inner-layer container, and an outer-layer container. The inner-layer container is em-bedded in the inner part of the outer-layer container, the strength of the outer-layer container is larger than that of the inner-layer container, and the outer-layer container supports the inner-layer container and controls deformation of the inner-layer container. The cover body (1) is connected with the inner-layer container in a sealing way to form a sealed cavity, and a liquid inlet and a liquid outlet are provided on the sealed cavity. An inner pipe (3) is supported by a high-strength outer pipe (2) in the drug decocting container, such that the wall thickness of the inner pipe (3) can be thin, thereby reducing costs of the inner pipe (3), providing a condition for disposable use of the inner pipe (3), and preventing drugs from influencing each other by residues in the inner pipe (3) so as to affect the quality of a beverage while decocting different drugs. Decoction pieces are separated by multi-stage baffle plates (4), thereby reducing pressure of the decoction pieces on a filter piece (5), and increasing the flowing speed of extract liquor.