Food Container With Segmented Permeable Lids
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional food containers fail to effectively manage the different respiration rates of various food products, leading to inadequate preservation and packaging efficiency when multiple types are packaged together.
Innovation Solution
A food container design featuring multiple receptacles with lids of varying permeability, allowing for tailored gas transmission rates to meet the specific needs of each food product, along with a hinge for reconfigurable stacking and a separator member to facilitate airflow, ensuring optimal preservation and packaging flexibility.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If a single lid with uniform permeability is used for multiple food products, then the container structure is simple, but the respiration needs of different food products cannot be met
Solution Approach 1:
The lid is divided into multiple portions, with each portion having a different permeability rating tailored to the specific respiration needs of the food product it covers. This segmentation allows each food product to receive customized gas transmission rates while maintaining a unified container structure.
Solution Approach 2:
Different portions of the lid are assigned different permeability properties based on the local requirements of each food product. High-respiration products receive high-permeability lid portions, while low-respiration products receive low-permeability portions, creating localized quality variations that match product-specific needs.
2Productivity
If multiple food products with different respiration rates are packaged together, then packaging efficiency is improved, but product preservation deteriorates due to inadequate gas exchange control
Solution Approach 1:
The container body is segmented into multiple receptacles, each capable of holding a different food product. Each receptacle is paired with a corresponding lid portion having matched permeability, enabling simultaneous packaging of multiple products with customized gas exchange control for each.
Solution Approach 2:
The permeability parameter of each lid portion is specifically adjusted to match the respiration rate of its corresponding food product. This parameter customization ensures optimal gas exchange for each product type while maintaining efficient multi-product packaging.
3Volume of stationary object
If receptacles are stacked to save space, then storage efficiency is improved, but airflow to food products deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
Airflow channels are introduced as intermediary pathways between stacked receptacles. These channels allow gas to permeate through the lid portions and reach food products in lower receptacles, maintaining necessary airflow for respiration while preserving the space-saving stacked configuration.
Solution Approach 2:
Airflow is redirected from horizontal movement to vertical movement through the stacked receptacles via the airflow channels. This dimensional change in gas flow path enables effective ventilation in the vertical dimension while maintaining compact horizontal stacking.
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
The solution ensures prolonged product freshness by matching permeability with the respiration rates of different food products and allows for versatile packaging configurations, enhancing storage and transportation efficiency.
Implementation Method 1
Each portion has a permeability, and the first portion has a permeability different than the second portion
Implementation Method 2
The at least one separator member is configured to separate the stacked receptacles for facilitating air flow
Data Source
AI summary
A food container includes a body having a first and second receptacle. A first food product is contained in the first receptacle. A second food product is contained in the second receptacle. A lid includes two portions coupable to the body, a first portion configured to enclose the first receptacle and a second portion configured to enclose the second receptacle. Each portion has a permeability, and the first portion has a permeability different than the second portion.