IML Tube with Locking Plug for Adjustable Dispensing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing containers for storing and dispensing flowable materials, such as personal care products, face challenges with fixed egress openings, brittleness, and cost inefficiencies due to multi-material construction, which affects their usability and environmental sustainability.
Innovation Solution
A container designed with a single-piece, In-Mold Labelled (IML) structure made from polypropylene, featuring a pivotable lid with a plug that can be securely locked, allowing for adjustable egress openings and enhanced durability, manufactured through single injection moulding to reduce weight and costs.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If containers are made from hard plastic material to reduce cost, then manufacturing cost is reduced, but the containers become brittle and break easily upon impact
Solution Approach 1:
The container is made from a blend of polypropylene (PP) and ethylene-propylene rubber (EPR) materials. This composite material combines the cost-effectiveness and rigidity of PP with the flexibility and impact resistance of EPR, allowing the container to pass drop tests while maintaining economical manufacturing
Solution Approach 2:
The material composition is adjusted by incorporating 5-20% EPR into the PP matrix. This parameter change in material formulation transforms the brittle characteristics of pure hard plastic into a ductile, impact-resistant material that can withstand drops from 1 meter height
2Ease of operation
If containers are made from soft plastic material to improve squeezability, then dispensing ease is improved, but the containers break easily upon impact
Solution Approach 1:
The PP-EPR composite provides optimal balance by maintaining the squeezability needed for dispensing while the rubber component absorbs impact energy, preventing breakage during drops. The material is neither too hard nor too soft, achieving both operational ease and durability
3Reliability
If containers are made from multi-material construction to optimize performance, then functional properties are improved, but manufacturing cost and complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The container is designed as a unitary single-piece structure formed by one-shot injection molding. This segmentation approach eliminates the need for separate components and assembly steps, reducing manufacturing complexity while maintaining the optimized PP-EPR material properties for reliable performance
4Ease of manufacture
If egress opening size is fixed to simplify design, then manufacturing simplicity is improved, but adaptability to different flowable materials is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The container incorporates a removable plug component that can be selectively positioned to create different egress opening configurations. This dynamic adjustment capability allows the same container design to accommodate various flowable materials with different viscosities and flow rates, enhancing versatility without complicating the base manufacturing process
Data Source
AI summary
A container is in the form of an In-Mold Labelled (IML) tube comprises a housing 302 and a lid. The lid comprises a base portion 305 to which a cap portion 307 of the lid is pivotally mounted by a hinge to allow the cap portion 307 to transition between open and closed position. A plug is inserted and attached to at least partially or fully seal an aperture formed at the base portion 305. The plug has at least one orifice 314 functioning as an egress opening through which a flowable material stored in the housing 302 can dispense. The housing 302 and lid are made as a single piece by a single injection moulding process. The plug is more rigid than each of the housing 302 and the lid for allowing the plug to lock with the lid firmly.