Glove Dispensing System with Sealed Extraction and Biocidal Coating
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing methods for packing and dispensing disposable gloves fail to adequately protect them from contamination, particularly in medical and diagnostic settings, where a significant percentage of gloves are found to be contaminated, and do not easily accommodate mass production packaging.
Innovation Solution
A waterproof plastic container with a sealed design, where the cuff of the glove is positioned near the opening hole, and the internal surface is coated with a biocidal substance, attached to a rack tilted at an angle, allowing gravity-assisted glove extraction without hand insertion, reducing contamination risk.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If gloves are dispensed from open boxes placed close to water sources, then accessibility and ease of operation are improved, but contamination risk increases significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The system divides the glove storage into multiple sealed containers (first container for sterile gloves, second container for non-sterile gloves) rather than using a single open box. This segmentation allows different contamination levels to be maintained separately while both being easily accessible.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention uses disposable sealed containers that are discarded after use, eliminating the need to sterilize and reuse containers. The containers themselves are inexpensive and single-use, maintaining sterility without requiring complex cleaning protocols.
2Ease of manufacture
If traditional open box packaging is used, then ease of manufacture and mass production are improved, but glove contamination occurs frequently
Solution Approach 1:
The invention uses flexible plastic bags as containers that can be easily sealed and manufactured. These thin-film containers are simple to produce in mass quantities while providing effective barriers against contamination when properly sealed.
Solution Approach 2:
Gloves are pre-packaged in sealed containers before distribution. The sealing action is performed in advance during manufacturing, ensuring sterility is established before the gloves reach the user, eliminating the need for final-minute sterilization procedures.
3Ease of operation
If hands are inserted into boxes to extract gloves, then grip and extraction are facilitated, but contamination of gloves occurs
Solution Approach 1:
The sealed container acts as an intermediary between the user's hand and the gloves. Instead of direct contact between hand and glove, the user opens the sealed container and extracts the glove without inserting the hand inside the container, breaking the contamination pathway.
Solution Approach 2:
The glove is extracted from the sealed container rather than the hand being inserted into the container. The container is opened and the glove is pulled out, reversing the extraction sequence to maintain sterility while preserving ease of access.
4Quantity of substance
If multiple gloves are stored together in open boxes, then storage efficiency is improved, but cross-contamination between gloves increases
Solution Approach 1:
Multiple gloves are nested together within a single sealed container, similar to dolls in a Matryoshka box. The gloves are stacked or nested in a compact arrangement that maintains sterility through the sealed container while maximizing storage capacity.
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 effectively reduces the risk of glove contamination and facilitates mass production packaging by ensuring gloves are extracted by the cuff only, minimizing exposure to impurities and water, thereby decreasing hospital infection and diagnostic error risks.
Implementation Method 1
The internal surface of the container is coated with a biocidal substance
Implementation Method 2
placing at least one glove in the container made of waterproof material, preferably plastic
Implementation Method 3
The container for at least one glove is attached to a rack tilted at an angle relative to the ground where the opening hole for extracting gloves is oriented downwards and towards the ground
Data Source
AI summary
Implementations of a glove dispensing system may include a flexible bag having a sealed first end and a sealed second end, the sealed first end opposite the sealed second end, a first plurality of openings extending through the first sealed end, a second plurality of openings extending through the second sealed end, and a reclosable sealed opening extending through a sidewall of the flexible bag. A plurality of gloves may be included within the flexible bag. A cuff of a glove of the plurality of gloves may be exposed through the reclosable sealed opening when the reclosable sealed opening is in an open configuration. Implementations of a glove dispensing system may include a rack coupled to the flexible bag. The rack may include a plurality of springs configured to stretch the flexible bag between the sealed first end and the sealed second end of the flexible bag.