Insulated Polymeric Container Blank with Localized Deformation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing insulated containers made from polymeric materials face challenges in maintaining insulative characteristics while allowing for localized plastic deformation without fracturing, which is crucial for forming containers with specific structural features like foldable designs.
Innovation Solution
The use of insulative cellular non-aromatic polymeric materials that enable localized plastic deformation by creating regions with varying densities, allowing for permanent shape change without fracturing, and are used to form containers through a process involving folding and gluing of a blank sheet with specific fold lines and flaps.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If localized plastic deformation is applied to enable foldable container designs, then the container can be formed with specific structural features, but the polymeric material may fracture and lose insulative properties
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies localized plastic deformation to specific regions of the blank (such as fold lines and creases) while maintaining the original structure in other areas. This allows foldable designs to be created without compromising the insulative properties of the entire container, as only localized areas undergo deformation.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes physical parameters of the polymeric material through controlled plastic deformation, including density variations and thickness reductions in deformed regions. These parameter changes enable the material to accommodate foldable structures while maintaining overall structural integrity and insulative performance.
2Ease of operation
If the polymeric material is made thinner to allow deformation, then folding becomes easier, but the insulative characteristics are compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The blank is designed with non-uniform thickness where thinner regions are strategically placed at fold lines and creases to enable deformation, while thicker regions are maintained in areas requiring insulative performance. This local variation in thickness resolves the contradiction between foldability and insulation.
Solution Approach 2:
The blank is divided into distinct regions with different thickness characteristics - thinner segments at deformation zones and thicker segments at insulative zones. This segmentation allows each region to fulfill its specific function without compromising the other.
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
This approach allows for the creation of insulated containers with reduced creasing and buckling, maintaining insulative properties while enabling the formation of containers with desired structural features like foldable designs without compromising the material's integrity.
Implementation Method 1
enabling localized plastic deformation in at least one selected region of the body to provide a plastically deformed first material segment
Data Source
AI summary
A blank made of a polymeric material is provided and used to form at least a portion of a container. The blank is folded to establish a base and a side wall included in the container.