Integral Screw Cap Closure for Hermetic Sterilization Sealing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional closure systems for containers used in water cascade sterilization are prone to tampering, require complex manufacturing processes, and often fail to maintain a hermetic seal due to non-uniform thickness and material limitations, leading to inefficiencies and potential contamination risks.
Innovation Solution
A unified, integral closure system comprising a screw cap with an annular wall, internal thread, sealing formation, and tamper-evident band, manufactured as a single unit using a polypropylene copolymer, which ensures a reliable hermetic seal and tamper-proof mechanism, resistant to high temperatures and external forces.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If conventional multi-component closure systems are used, then manufacturing flexibility is maintained, but device complexity and potential for seal failure increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines the housing, seal, and tamper-evident assembly into a single integrally formed closure system. This eliminates the need to assemble multiple separate components, reducing device complexity while maintaining manufacturing flexibility through injection molding or similar processes. The integral design ensures consistent sealing performance without the alignment and assembly variations inherent in multi-component systems.
2Ease of manufacture
If conventional closure systems with non-uniform thickness are used, then manufacturing is easier, but hermetic seal reliability deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements varying wall thicknesses at specific locations within the closure system to optimize both manufacturing and sealing performance. The thicker regions provide structural strength and uniform sealing contact, while thinner regions reduce material usage and manufacturing complexity. This localized quality variation ensures reliable hermetic sealing without the need for uniformly thick-walled construction.
3Ease of manufacture
If conventional closure systems are used, then initial manufacturing cost is lower, but contamination risk increases due to seal failure
Solution Approach 1:
The patent integrates the seal as an inherent part of the closure system housing rather than using a separate seal component. This integral design eliminates potential failure points associated with seal installation and ensures consistent sealing performance, thereby reducing contamination risk. The tamper-evident features are also integrated, providing enhanced protection without requiring additional separate components.
4Ease of operation
If conventional multi-part closure systems are used, then ease of assembly is maintained, but tamper resistance deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent incorporates pre-formed tamper-evident features and sealing structures within the integrally formed closure system. The tamper-evident bands and breakable linkages are built into the housing during manufacturing, ensuring that any attempt at tampering is immediately detectable. This preliminary integration of security features maintains ease of assembly while significantly enhancing tamper resistance compared to systems that rely on separate assembled components.
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 integrated design enhances manufacturing efficiency, maintains hermetic seals throughout sterilization processes, and reduces the risk of contamination by ensuring the closure system remains intact and functional, thus ensuring the sterility of pharmaceutical and surgical solutions.
Implementation Method 1
The sealing formation is configured to form a seal with the open end of the container
Implementation Method 2
manufactured as a single unit using a polypropylene copolymer, which ensures a reliable hermetic seal and tamper-proof mechanism, resistant to high temperatures and external forces
Data Source
AI summary
A closure system for a screw top container intended to contain a pharmaceutical or surgical medium comprises: a screw cap including a main body comprised of an annular wall with an internal thread for cooperating with an external thread adjacent an open end of the container, the body having a first open end for receiving the open end of the container and a second end closed by an end disc; a sealing formation within the main body for forming a seal with the open end of the container; and a tamper-evident band connected to the screw cap at the open end of the main body by at least one severable linkage, wherein the screw cap, sealing formation and tamper-evident band are integrally formed as a single unit for maintaining a hermetic seal with the container throughout a terminal sterilisation process.