Fiber Molded Body Sidewall Profile for Easy Unstacking

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Solution Overview

Problem

Molded parts made of fibrous material face difficulties in being stacked and unstacked easily without damage due to strong adhesion and friction between fibers, leading to increased force requirements and potential damage.

Innovation Solution

A three-dimensional shaped body with a circumferential side wall featuring a degressive profile from the edge region to the bottom region, reducing contact area by varying cross-sections and incorporating undercuts and stacking shoulders to minimize friction and adhesion.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Productivity

If molded parts made of fibrous material are stacked to reduce transport space, then storage efficiency is improved, but the fibrous material causes strong adhesion and friction at contact points, requiring considerable force for unstacking and potentially causing damage

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvestorage efficiencyVSAvoidunstacking ease
Core Design Contradiction:
ProductivityVSEase of operation

Solution Approach 1:

The side wall of the molded part features a degressive profile where the cross-section decreases from the edge region toward the bottom region. This curved, tapered geometry reduces the contact area between stacked molded parts, minimizing friction and adhesion forces at the contact zones, thereby enabling easy unstacking while maintaining storage efficiency

Inventive Principle:
Principle #14Spheroidality (Curvature)

2Manufacturing precision

If molded parts are designed with identical dimensions for uniformity, then manufacturing consistency is improved, but the large contact surface area between identical parts increases friction and adhesion, making stacking and unstacking difficult

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvedimensional consistencyVSAvoidstacking ease
Core Design Contradiction:
Manufacturing precisionVSEase of operation

Solution Approach 1:

While maintaining overall dimensional consistency for manufacturing uniformity, the invention introduces a local geometric variation through the degressive side wall profile. This localized change in cross-sectional area reduces the contact surface area at critical zones, thereby reducing friction and adhesion without compromising the overall uniformity and interchangeability of the molded parts

Inventive Principle:
Principle #3Local quality

Data Source

PatentEP4667377A1Three-dimensional molded body and method for producing three-dimensional molded body of fiber-containing material
Publication Date: 2025.12.24 KIEFEL GMBH
  • EP4667377A1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP4667377A1 patent drawingFigure 2
  • EP4667377A1 patent drawingFigure 3

AI summary

A three-dimensional shaped body (10) made of fibrous material and a method for producing a three-dimensional shaped body (10) made of fibrous material are described, wherein the shaped body (10) has a circumferential side wall (14) that surrounds an interior of the shaped body (10), wherein the side wall (14) has a degressive profile at least section by section from an edge region (16) to a bottom region, wherein the cross-section of the side wall (14) in the bottom region is smaller than the cross-section in the edge region (16).