Dual-Purpose Meat Packaging Tray with Grooved Base and Lid
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current case ready packaging for fresh meats, such as sausages, faces challenges in maintaining freshness, appealing to consumers, and providing flexible display and storage options while being compact for shipping and storage, especially for larger quantities that need to fit standard refrigerator units.
Innovation Solution
A package design featuring a rigid tray with a dual-purpose portion that can act as both a base and a lid, allowing for equal overall dimensions and flexible display configurations, with a grooved system for secure attachment and detachment, enabling the package to be used upright or on its sides and maintaining product freshness through controlled oxygen exchange.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Volume of moving object
If a rigid tray with dual-purpose portion is used, then the package can be stored and shipped compactly, but the package structure becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The dual-purpose portion serves multiple functions: it acts as a base when attached to the tray bottom for stable display, and as a lid when attached to the tray top for storage and protection. This multi-functionality reduces the need for separate components, enabling compact storage and shipping while maintaining structural integrity.
Solution Approach 2:
The grooved portion of the dual-purpose portion nests onto the peripheral wall of the tray, creating a secure fit. The grooved design allows the dual-purpose portion to be attached to different surfaces of the tray (bottom or top), enabling flexible configuration while maintaining a compact form factor for shipping and storage.
2Adaptability or versatility
If the dual purpose portion can be attached to multiple surfaces, then display flexibility is improved, but the attachment mechanism becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The dual-purpose portion is designed with a universal attachment capability through its grooved portion that can interface with the peripheral wall of the tray regardless of which surface it attaches to. This allows the same component to function as either a base or a lid, providing display flexibility without requiring multiple specialized attachment mechanisms.
Solution Approach 2:
The package is segmented into the tray portion and the dual-purpose portion, with the grooved interface allowing independent attachment to different surfaces. This segmentation enables the dual-purpose portion to be selectively positioned on the bottom or top of the tray, providing versatile display options while keeping the attachment mechanism simple and standardized.
3Device complexity
If the dual purpose portion serves as both base and lid, then the number of components is reduced, but the attachment and detachment operations become more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The dual-purpose portion is designed to perform both base and lid functions using the same grooved attachment mechanism. This universality reduces the total number of components needed while maintaining simple attachment and detachment operations through the standardized grooved interface that can engage with the tray peripheral wall in multiple configurations.
Data Source
AI summary
Disclosed is a package having a rigid tray and a dual purpose portion that can serve either as a base for the tray or a lid for the tray. The dual purpose portion has a first grooved portion sized to be retained by a base portion of the tray, and a second grooved portion sized to be retained by an upper lip portion of the tray.