Flexible Container With Integral Dispensing Spout
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional rigid containers for fluent products are expensive to produce, require significant materials, are difficult to decorate, prone to damage, and challenging to resize, leading to inefficiencies in manufacturing and user experience.
Innovation Solution
Flexible containers made from materials that can be easily formed into stand-up configurations with integrated dispensing systems, using structural support frames and gussets to maintain integrity while reducing material usage and enabling easier decoration and resizing.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If rigid containers are used for fluent products, then structural integrity is maintained, but production cost increases and material usage increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies flexible containers made from thin film materials instead of rigid structures. The flexible container includes a body formed from flexible material with integrated dispensing features, eliminating the need for expensive rigid manufacturing processes while maintaining sufficient structural integrity through the flexibility and conformability of the material.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the physical state and properties of the container material from rigid to flexible. By using flexible materials that can be easily formed and sealed, the production cost is reduced while the material parameters are optimized to provide adequate strength for containing and dispensing fluent products.
2Strength
If rigid containers are used for fluent products, then structural integrity is maintained, but material usage increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses thin flexible film materials to construct the container body, which significantly reduces material consumption compared to rigid containers. The flexible material forms a thin-walled structure that is sufficient for containing fluent products while minimizing material usage and waste.
3Reliability
If rigid containers are used for fluent products, then durability is maintained, but ease of decoration decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The flexible container surface provides an ideal substrate for decoration methods such as printing, labeling, or direct graphic application. The flexibility of the material allows for easier application and conformability of decorative elements compared to rigid surfaces, while the durable flexible material maintains product protection and container integrity.
4Strength
If rigid containers are used for fluent products, then structural integrity is maintained, but adaptability decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs flexible materials that can be dynamically adjusted and reformed into different container sizes and shapes. This adaptability allows the same manufacturing process to produce various container configurations by simply changing the forming parameters, unlike rigid containers that require complete tooling changes for resizing.
Data Source
Figure 1A
Figure 1B
Figure 1C
AI summary
A flexible container (2000) comprises: a multiple dose product volume for a fluent product; a structural support frame including a folded leg of a gusset on a top of the container, wherein the structural support frame supports the product volume in a stand-up orientation; a dispenser (2060) for dispensing fluent product (2051), formed by a tear-open opening in a sealed leg of the gusset in the top of the container; and a flow channel in fluid communication with the product volume and the dispenser. Externally compressing the container allows to dispense the fluent product through the flow channel the dispenser, and the dispenser, in stand-up position of the container, is situated higher than an uppermost portion of the structural support frame.