Food container with visual indication and related methods
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing food containers lack features that enhance aesthetic appeal and provide dynamic lighting effects to attract customers, particularly in luxury products like caviar, while ensuring secure and efficient integration of electronic components.
Innovation Solution
A food container with an integrated electronic device comprising a disc-shaped housing, a battery, a visual indicator, and a processor that activates the indicator based on ambient light or proximity sensors, enhancing visual appeal and providing dynamic lighting effects.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Illumination intensity
If electronic components are integrated into the food container, then aesthetic appeal and dynamic lighting effects are enhanced, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the electronic device with the lid structure by integrating the device housing into the lid body. The visual indicator is embedded in the lid's second major surface, and the processor, battery, and sensors are housed within the lid's internal cavity. This combining approach allows the lighting function to be enhanced while avoiding the complexity of separate electronic components scattered throughout the container structure.
Solution Approach 2:
The lid serves multiple functions: it provides structural closure for the food container, houses the electronic components (processor, battery, sensors), contains the visual indicator for aesthetic appeal, and incorporates sensors for environmental detection. This multi-functionality reduces overall device complexity by consolidating multiple roles into a single component rather than requiring separate elements for each function.
2Adaptability or versatility
If sensors are added to detect ambient light and proximity, then dynamic lighting effects are achieved, but manufacturing complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The sensor, processor, and visual indicator are pre-integrated into the lid assembly during manufacturing. The lid is designed with a built-in cavity that accommodates these components in their functional configuration before the final assembly with the housing. This preliminary integration simplifies the overall manufacturing process by reducing the number of separate assembly steps required for installing electronic components.
Solution Approach 2:
The electronic components (sensor, processor, battery) are nested within the lid's internal cavity, which itself is part of the lid structure. The device housing is nested within the lid, creating a compact integrated unit. This nesting approach allows multiple components to be housed efficiently within the existing lid geometry, avoiding the need for additional external mounting structures and simplifying assembly.
3Shape
If the visual indicator is embedded in the lid, then aesthetic appeal is enhanced, but the recess in the lid requires additional design
Solution Approach 1:
The lid's second major surface features a localized recess specifically designed to accommodate the visual indicator. This recess creates a sunken area that allows the indicator to be embedded flush with or slightly below the lid surface, providing a sleek aesthetic appearance. The local modification of the lid structure at this specific location enhances visual appeal without requiring complex changes to the overall lid geometry or adding excessive structural elements.
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 enhances the aesthetic appeal of luxury food products by providing dynamic lighting effects and ensures secure integration of electronic components, improving customer attraction and product visibility in low-light conditions.
Implementation Method 1
a battery carried within the device housing
Implementation Method 2
The visual indicator may comprise at least one light emitting diode (LED) carried by an external surface of the device housing
Implementation Method 3
The sensor may comprise an ambient light sensor, and the processor may be configured to activate the visual indicator when the ambient light sensor detects an ambient light value below a threshold value
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3
AI summary
A food container includes a housing defining a food receiving recess and having a closed first end and an open second end opposite the closed first end, and a lid to be received by the open second end of the housing and having opposing first and second major surfaces. The first major surface faces the food receiving recess, and the second major surface defines a recess. The food container also includes an electronic device to be received by the recess and having a device housing, a battery carried within the device housing, a visual indicator carried by the device housing and coupled to the battery, and a processor carried by the device housing and coupled to the battery and the visual indicator. The processor is configured to cause the visual indicator to generate a visual indication.