Radially Expanded Screw Capsule for Manual Gripping
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Solution Overview
Problem
Screw stopper capsules lack sufficient manual grippability and diversity in shape, often requiring high torque for opening and are mechanically weak, especially in cylindrical forms.
Innovation Solution
A screw stopper capsule design featuring a metallic shell with a radially expanded part and a cylindrical part of equal thickness, facilitating manual gripping and rotation, while maintaining mechanical strength and allowing for non-cylindrical shapes, which can be manufactured industrially at high speed.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If a cylindrical metallic shell is used for the capsule, then the manufacturing process is simple and industrially viable, but the manual grippability is insufficient and high torque is required for opening
Solution Approach 1:
The shell structure is modified locally by adding an expanded part with external deformations (such as ridges, grooves, or flutes) to specific regions of the cylindrical shell. This localized modification improves manual grippability and torque application without fundamentally changing the overall cylindrical structure, maintaining manufacturing simplicity while enhancing operability.
Solution Approach 2:
The expanded part of the shell introduces asymmetric features (non-uniform deformations, ridges, or flutes) that break the perfect cylindrical symmetry. These asymmetric elements provide better finger engagement and leverage for unscrewing, improving manual operation while the base cylindrical form remains intact for manufacturing efficiency.
2Ease of operation
If the metallic shell is radially expanded to improve gripping, then manual handling is facilitated, but mechanical strength may be compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The radial expansion is applied locally to specific portions of the shell rather than uniformly throughout. The expanded part contains the deformation to controlled regions, allowing improved gripping surfaces while maintaining the structural integrity and thickness of the main shell body, thus preserving mechanical strength.
Solution Approach 2:
The shell is pre-formed with the expanded part and associated external deformations during the manufacturing process, before the capsule is assembled and used. This preliminary shaping ensures that the structural weaknesses are compensated for in design, and the shell maintains adequate strength for its mechanical functions while providing improved gripping features.
3Adaptability or versatility
If non-cylindrical shapes are introduced to differentiate capsules, then product diversity is achieved, but industrial manufacturing at high speed becomes difficult
Solution Approach 1:
Non-cylindrical differentiation is achieved through asymmetric external deformations (flutes, ridges, patterns) applied to the shell surface, rather than changing the fundamental cylindrical geometry. These surface-level asymmetric features provide shape diversity and brand differentiation while the basic cylindrical form factor remains compatible with high-speed industrial manufacturing processes.
Solution Approach 2:
The shape differentiation is implemented through localized external deformations on specific portions of the shell surface, rather than redesigning the entire shell geometry. This approach allows for diverse capsule appearances and gripping characteristics while maintaining the overall cylindrical structure that enables efficient industrial production.
Data Source
AI summary
The screw capsule includes two parts, a) an insert with a so-called internal head and an internally-threaded skirt a metallic shell, including an external head and an external skirt, the capsule being typically provided with a sealing element, a tamper-protection element and a member for first opening, characterised in that the external skirt includes at least one piece, typically cylindrical, of height, diameter corresponding to the neck for sealing and at least one radially-expanded section, of height, within a circle of diameter D2>D1, such as to form an annular radial cavity. The above offers the advantage that the expanded section particularly facilitates the manipulation of the capsule (1) and the rotation thereof with relation to the neck for opening/closing the container by unscrewing/screwing up the capsule on the neck.