Evacuable Container With External Evacuation Strip
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Solution Overview
Problem
Vacuum evacuation of containers with flexible sidewalls can cause deformation, leading to complex and costly manufacturing processes due to the need for air evacuation channels, which restricts the utility of production lines.
Innovation Solution
The use of a flow channel chamber with check valves allows for resealable evacuation of containers by creating a path for gas to escape through flow channels and apertures, preventing re-entry of air and maintaining a gastight seal.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If air evacuation channels are embossed onto interior surfaces of the container, then gas evacuation is improved, but device complexity and manufacturing cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The invention extracts the evacuation channel structure from the container wall itself and relocates it to a separate evacuation strip that is applied to the exterior surface. This separates the evacuation function from the container structure, simplifying the container design while maintaining effective gas evacuation through the strip's channels.
Solution Approach 2:
The evacuation strip acts as an intermediary component between the container and the vacuum source. It provides the evacuation channels and check valve mechanism externally, mediating the gas evacuation process without requiring complex internal channel structures in the container wall.
2Reliability
If evacuation channels are integrated into the container, then gas evacuation is improved, but ease of manufacture deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The invention segments the evacuation system into separate components: the container and the evacuation strip. The strip can be manufactured independently with embossed channels and check valves, then applied to the container exterior. This segmentation allows standard manufacturing processes to be used for both components without requiring complex integrated tooling.
Solution Approach 2:
By extracting the evacuation channels from the container wall and placing them in a separate applied strip, the container can be manufactured using simple forming processes, while the evacuation functionality is provided by the separately manufactured strip that is attached afterward.
3Adaptability or versatility
If flexible sidewalls are used in the container, then adaptability is improved, but reliability deteriorates due to deformation and sealing failures
Solution Approach 1:
The evacuation strip with its check valve mechanism serves as an intermediary that prevents direct contact between the vacuum source and the flexible container walls. The check valve maintains a gastight seal while allowing controlled evacuation, preventing the deformation and sealing failures that would occur with direct vacuum application to flexible walls.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention extracts the sealing function from the flexible container walls and relocates it to the evacuation strip's check valve mechanism. This separates the flexible adaptive walls from the sealing requirement, allowing the walls to remain flexible while the check valve provides reliable sealing under vacuum conditions.
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
This solution enables efficient and cost-effective vacuum evacuation of containers, maintaining freshness of contents while simplifying the manufacturing process and preventing container deformation.
Implementation Method 1
A check valve is disposed in fluid communication with the at least one exterior aperture and the flow channel chamber to allow resealable evacuation of the container through the flow channel chamber and the at least one interior aperture
Implementation Method 2
Flow channels are disposed on at least one of the first and second chamber walls... allowing gas to escape through flow channels and apertures
Implementation Method 3
Vacuum evacuation of a container may be used to preserve freshness of food or other perishables within an interior of the container
Data Source
AI summary
An evacuable container includes a first side wall having an interior surface and an exterior surface. The first side wall includes an aperture between the interior surface and the exterior surface. A second side wall has an interior surface and an exterior surface. The second side wall is connected to the first sidewall such that the interior surfaces of the first and second side walls form an interior of the container. A sheet has a first surface and a second surface. The first surface faces the exterior surface of the first side wall. The sheet is sealingly attached to the exterior surface of the first side wall so as to form a flow chamber between the first side wall and the sheet. The sheet includes (i) a plurality of flow channels disposed on the first surface, and (ii) an aperture between the first surface and the second surface. A check valve is disposed in fluid communication with the aperture in the sheet. An evacuation path can be formed from the interior of the container to an exterior of the container through the aperture in the first side wall, the flow chamber, the aperture in the sheet, and the check valve.