Folded Egg Carton Structure With Hooked Partition Wall Assembly
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing egg cartons lack efficient and cost-effective methods for forming a stable, secure structure that maintains separate storage areas for eggs or other items, and existing carton forming machines are cumbersome and inefficient.
Innovation Solution
A carton design featuring a main body with fold lines and slots for partition walls, which are engaged by hooks to maintain a 'W' shape, combined with a carton forming machine using molds and a folding bar to simplify assembly, ensuring a secure and efficient formation process.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If partition walls are used to create separate storage areas, then storage organization is improved, but assembly complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The partition walls are divided into modular sections with standardized hooks at regular intervals, allowing the same wall to be configured in multiple ways to create different storage compartments. This segmentation enables versatile storage organization while maintaining consistent, simple assembly procedures.
Solution Approach 2:
The partition walls incorporate self-aligning hooks that automatically engage with corresponding slots in the carton body during assembly. This self-service mechanism eliminates the need for complex alignment procedures or additional fastening steps, reducing assembly complexity while maintaining organized storage areas.
2Stability of the object's composition
If hooks are added to partition walls for engagement, then structural stability is improved, but manufacturing complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The hooks are integrated directly into the partition wall structure during the molding process, combining the partition wall and attachment features into a single manufactured component. This merging eliminates separate manufacturing steps for attaching hooks, reducing manufacturing complexity while providing the structural stability needed for secure engagement.
Solution Approach 2:
The hooks are designed with optimized dimensions and engagement forces that allow them to be molded as integral features of the partition wall. By carefully controlling the geometric parameters of the hooks, the design achieves adequate structural stability without requiring additional manufacturing processes or assembly steps.
3Manufacturing precision
If a folding bar mechanism is used in the forming machine, then folding precision is improved, but machine complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The folding bar acts as an intermediary tool that temporarily supports the carton body during the folding operation. By providing a fixed reference surface and support point, the folding bar enables precise folding without requiring complex positioning systems or multiple actuators, thus improving folding precision while keeping the machine relatively simple.
Solution Approach 2:
The folding bar mechanism replicates the final folded configuration of the carton during the forming process. By using the folding bar to establish the correct geometric relationship between carton panels, the system achieves high folding precision through geometric copying rather than through complex control systems or multiple measurement devices.
Data Source
AI summary
An egg carton and method and apparatus for forming an egg carton. A main body of the egg carton may be made of a single sheet of material and folded or otherwise bent to form the majority of the carton's interior space. Partition walls may be engaged with slots formed in the main body to define separate storage areas of the interior space as well as help hold the main body in the desired configuration. Hooks on the sides of the partition walls may engage with openings in the main body to secure the main body to the partition walls.