Food Product Tray Denesting Tabs for Easy Separation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing food trays face challenges in efficient nesting and separation, leading to space inefficiencies during transport and storage, and lack effective reinforcement to maintain structural integrity and prevent deformation.
Innovation Solution
A tray design featuring denesting tabs and reinforcement flaps that minimize nesting interference and enhance structural stability, combined with a configuration allowing efficient stacking and use of a lidding film for product preservation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Volume of moving object
If trays are designed for compact nesting to save space during transport and storage, then space utilization is improved, but nesting interference and separation difficulty increase
Solution Approach 1:
The tray is divided into multiple panels (front, back, end panels) and flaps (end flaps, reinforcement flaps) that can be independently positioned and folded. This segmentation allows the tray to be divided into nestable components while maintaining structural integrity, enabling compact nesting without excessive interference.
Solution Approach 2:
The tray design incorporates nested panels and flaps where end flaps fold over side panels, and reinforcement flaps fold over end panels. This nested configuration allows multiple trays to be stacked compactly while maintaining accessibility for separation through designated access openings.
2Strength
If reinforcement flaps are added to maintain structural integrity and prevent deformation, then tray strength is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The reinforcement flaps are integrated with the existing panel structure rather than being separate components. The flaps are formed from the same blank material and fold into place to work with the panels and end flaps, combining reinforcement function with the overall tray structure to avoid excessive complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The reinforcement flaps are pre-formed in the blank with fold lines and positioning features that allow them to be folded into their reinforcement positions during tray formation. This preliminary preparation ensures structural integrity is built-in during manufacturing rather than requiring additional assembly steps.
3Reliability
If end flaps are extended to form rims for lidding film support, then product preservation capability is improved, but nesting efficiency decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The end flaps are designed to be flexible and foldable rather than rigid and fixed. They can be folded over the side panels during nesting to reduce protrusion, yet remain capable of being positioned to support lidding films when the tray is in use, providing dynamic adaptability between storage and functional states.
Data Source
AI summary
A tray for holding at least one food product includes a plurality of panels extending at least partially around an interior of the tray, the plurality of panels including a bottom panel, a front panel, a back panel, at least one end panel, a plurality of end flaps foldably connected to a respective panel of the plurality of panels and cooperating to form a rim extending outwardly from the plurality of panels, and denesting features comprising at least one denesting tab extending from one of the front panel and the back panel and away from the at least one end panel.