Flexible Jacket Collapsible Liquid Container
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing collapsible and reusable liquid containers require manual intervention for collapsing and reassembling, posing safety risks and inefficiencies in filling and emptying processes due to rigid outer shells or complex metal mesh structures.
Innovation Solution
A container design featuring a flexible, tubular jacket made of laminar material that can be easily folded, surrounding an inner bag, which remains upright due to hydrostatic pressure and collapses automatically when empty, eliminating the need for manual handling and providing protection against damage.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If rigid box-shaped shells are used to sustain the full container, then structural strength is improved, but manual intervention is required for collapsing and reassembling
Solution Approach 1:
The container is divided into three main segments: rigid base, rigid lid, and flexible jacket. This segmentation allows the rigid parts to provide structural strength while the flexible jacket enables automatic collapsing without manual intervention.
Solution Approach 2:
The jacket is made from a flexible laminar material that can fold on itself like a textile or bellows. This flexible shell replaces the rigid walls of traditional box-shaped containers, enabling automatic collapsing when the inner bag is emptied while still providing protection during transportation.
2Ease of operation
If reticular metal mesh shells are used to confine the inner bag, then collapsibility is improved, but manual checking and guiding of metal rings is required
Solution Approach 1:
The invention replaces complex metal mesh structures with a simpler flexible laminar jacket that naturally collapses without requiring manual guiding of metal rings. The jacket's material properties enable automatic folding when the inner bag is emptied.
Solution Approach 2:
The flexible jacket is designed to automatically collapse and fold on itself when the inner bag is emptied, without requiring manual intervention to guide metal rings or check the positioning of mesh components. The system serves itself through the inherent properties of the flexible material.
3Productivity
If the container is designed to collapse automatically, then productivity is improved, but the jacket material must be flexible and foldable
Solution Approach 1:
The jacket is constructed from flexible laminar materials such as polyvinyl chloride (PVC) with thickness between 1-5mm, which can be folded like textiles or bellows. This material choice enables automatic collapsing functionality while maintaining structural integrity during transportation.
Solution Approach 2:
The jacket can be constituted by a single layer or several coupled layers of polymeric materials, creating a composite structure that combines flexibility for collapsing with sufficient strength for protection. The multi-layer construction optimizes both collapsibility and durability.
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
Enables safe, efficient, and automated transition between filled and empty states, reducing bulk and handling difficulties, while ensuring the inner bag is protected and easy to replace, facilitating safer and faster operations.
Implementation Method 1
in the filled configuration, the inner bag holds upright the container thanks to the hydrostatic pressure the liquid applied in its inside
Implementation Method 2
the addressee flows pressurized air in the outer shell to squash the bag and thereby achieve the complete ejection of the fluid initially contained
Data Source
AI summary
A container (1) for liquid is described, comprising a base (2), a lid (3), a jacket (4) and an inner bag (5). The jacket extends (4) between the base (2) and the lid (3), defining with them a closed inner volume. The inner bag (5) is interchangeably positioned in the inner volume and can be filled with a liquid. In the filled configuration, the inner bag (5) holds upright the container; in the emptied configuration the inner (5) bag is bent on itself and the container is collapsed with the lid (3) close to the base (2) or in abutment thereon. The jacket (4) is a tubular member made of a laminar material that can be bent on itself like a textile, for example a band that can be bent like bellows. This feature allows switching easily from the upright configuration to the collapsed or bent one, without the need—as in solutions of the known art—to overturn rigid parts, disassemble envelopes or guide the rings defining the metal meshes.