Foldable Plastic Container With Interlocking Side Wall Tabs
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Solution Overview
Problem
There is a need for a container that can safely transport and store goods while being stable, impact-resistant, and waterproof, and can be easily folded and stored in a space-saving manner.
Innovation Solution
A plastic board that can be folded into a folding container with pre-defined areas such as a bottom, side walls, and lid, where side wall tabs protrude outward to form a closed, waterproof structure, and the lid can be folded to cover the interior, allowing the container to be easily erected and stowed in a flat state.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a container is designed to be stable and impact-resistant, then protection capability is improved, but storage space efficiency deteriorates when not in use
Solution Approach 1:
The container is divided into a base and multiple side walls that can be folded together. The side walls are connected to the base via fold lines, allowing the container to be segmented into collapsible sections that can be flattened for compact storage while maintaining structural integrity when assembled for protection.
Solution Approach 2:
The container transitions from a static rigid structure to a dynamic foldable structure. The side walls are designed to be movable relative to the base through fold lines, enabling the container to dynamically change between an expanded protective state and a collapsed compact state for space-efficient storage.
2Reliability
If a container is designed to be waterproof, then protection capability is improved, but structural complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The waterproofing function is merged into the side wall structure itself rather than being a separate component. The side walls are designed to overlap and connect with each other and the base, creating integrated waterproof seals through the folding construction that prevents water penetration without requiring additional waterproofing layers or complex sealing mechanisms.
3Ease of operation
If a container can be easily folded for storage, then ease of operation is improved, but structural stability deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The container is segmented into modular sections (base and side walls) connected by fold lines, allowing easy folding for storage while maintaining stability when assembled. The segmentation enables simple manual folding operations while the interconnected geometry provides structural rigidity in the erected state.
Solution Approach 2:
The side walls are pre-configured with fold lines and connection geometries that guide the folding and erecting actions. The preliminary design of the fold lines and overlapping structures ensures that simple manual movements automatically produce the stable three-dimensional container form without requiring complex assembly procedures.
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3~4
AI summary
A plastic sheet, which can be folded into a collapsible container and which, in a top view of the unfolded plastic sheet (1), comprises at least the following areas of the collapsible container (20): a base (2), side walls (3, 4, 5, 6) which each project outwards from the base (2) along a base edge fold line (13), and side wall tabs (7, 8) which project laterally from the side walls (3, 4, 5, 6) along side wall fold lines (14), wherein the side wall tabs (7, 8) project outwards from the base (2) between each adjacent side walls (3, 4, 5, 6) and wherein the side wall tabs (7, 8) of adjacent side walls (3, 4, 5, 6) are each connected to each other via a tab fold line (15).