Hinged Vial Cap with Integrated Desiccant for Moisture Protection
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional vials for test strips are difficult to handle, prone to cap loss, and fail to maintain moisture protection when test strips are vertically stacked, leading to potential damage and degradation, especially when the vial is nearly empty.
Innovation Solution
A vial design featuring a cap with a hinge that stays open, a mold to guide and hold the stack of strips upright, and a desiccant compartment at the bottom to maintain humidity protection, allowing easy strip withdrawal and preventing cap loss.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If the cap is made detachable for easy opening and closing, then the ease of operation is improved, but the risk of cap loss increases and moisture protection is compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The cap is merged with the vial body through a hinge connection, creating a unified structure that cannot be accidentally lost while maintaining easy opening and closing functionality. The hinge allows the cap to rotate between open and closed positions while remaining permanently attached to the vial body.
Solution Approach 2:
The hinge introduces dynamic movement capability to the cap, allowing it to rotate freely between open and closed positions. This dynamic connection provides ease of operation similar to a detachable cap while ensuring the cap remains attached to prevent loss and maintain moisture protection.
2Volume of stationary object
If the test strips are arranged vertically in a stack, then the space utilization is improved, but the strips tend to stand inclined when nearly empty causing damage to the upper end
Solution Approach 1:
The mold provides localized support structures (upright rims) at specific positions within the vial to maintain the vertical orientation of test strips. These localized features ensure strips remain upright when the vial is nearly empty, preventing damage to the upper ends while maintaining vertical stacking for space efficiency.
3Ease of operation
If a narrow opening is formed to allow only one strip to pass through, then the ease of withdrawal is improved, but the opening blocks easily when strips break
Solution Approach 1:
The mold extends above the stack of strips, creating an additional dimensional space for strip withdrawal. This allows strips to be removed from the top of the mold rather than through a narrow opening, eliminating blockage issues while maintaining easy withdrawal of single strips.
4Reliability
If the desiccant compartment is added to the cap, then the moisture protection is improved, but the overall height of the vial increases considerably
Solution Approach 1:
The cap serves multiple functions: it provides closure for the vial, contains the desiccant compartment for moisture protection, and includes a hinge mechanism for easy opening and closing. By combining these functions in a single component, the need for additional height is eliminated.
Solution Approach 2:
The desiccant compartment is nested within the cap structure, utilizing the cap's internal volume to house the desiccant. This nesting arrangement allows moisture protection functionality to be integrated into the existing cap without increasing the overall height of the vial.
Data Source
AI summary
The present invention relates to a vial (10) for receiving goods (30) in a leak-proof arrangement, with a body (14) and a cap (12) connected via a hinge (16), the vial including a mold (26) for receiving lamellar goods (30), with the mold having a height which is less than the length of lamellar goods wherein a cavity (40) is formed between said mold receiving the stack of lamellar goods and the container body which cavity (40) receives desiccant material (44).