Contact Lens Package Arms for Single-Touch Transfer
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional contact lens packaging requires multiple touches and manipulations, leading to unsanitary and cumbersome handling, with a high risk of lens damage and contamination, and lacks a convenient single-touch mechanism for lens transfer.
Innovation Solution
A contact lens package design featuring a recessed well and extendable arms that use surface tension to lift and retain the lens, allowing for single-touch transfer without inverting or dropping the lens, made from materials like polypropylene and compatible with existing solution chemistry.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If conventional packaging with a molded plastic base and cavity is used, then the contact lens can be stored in the package, but the user must fish the lens out with a finger and flip it, requiring multiple touches and manipulations
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an intermediary transfer mechanism (a rod or applicator) between the lens and the user's finger. The lens is first transferred to this intermediary device, which then delivers the lens to the eye, eliminating the need for the user to directly touch and manipulate the lens with their fingers, thus reducing contamination risk while maintaining ease of operation
Solution Approach 2:
The packaging design allows the lens to be delivered directly to the eye through a self-contained mechanism. When the user opens the package, the lens is automatically positioned and delivered to their eye without requiring manual handling, making the system self-serving and eliminating multiple touches
2Ease of operation
If the lens is manually handled multiple times for transfer and orientation, then the lens can be positioned correctly, but the process becomes cumbersome and mechanically stressful to the lens
Solution Approach 1:
The intermediary rod or applicator serves as a protected transfer medium. The lens is transferred to this rod which is designed to support the lens gently, avoiding mechanical stress. The rod then delivers the lens to the eye without requiring the user to manually handle it, reducing cumulative mechanical stress that could cause tearing or distortion
Solution Approach 2:
The packaging mechanism automatically positions and delivers the lens to the eye without requiring manual manipulation. The lens is held in place by the packaging structure and delivered directly, eliminating the cumbersome manual handling process that causes mechanical stress to the lens
3Object-affected harmful factors
If a single touch package is designed to lift the lens out of solution, then the handling process becomes sanitary and simple, but the package structure becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple functions into the packaging structure itself. The package base, lid, and transfer mechanism are integrated into a single unified structure. The rod or applicator is incorporated directly into the packaging, eliminating the need for separate components and reducing overall structural complexity while achieving single-touch lens delivery
Solution Approach 2:
The packaging structure serves multiple functions: it stores the lens in solution, provides the transfer mechanism, and delivers the lens to the eye. The rod or applicator acts as a multi-functional element that contacts the lens, transfers it, and positions it, reducing the need for additional separate components and simplifying the overall structure
4Reliability
If the package uses materials approved by regulatory bodies and compatible with solution chemistry, then safety and compatibility are ensured, but material selection and manufacturing constraints increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent specifies particular material parameters and properties that must be met for regulatory compliance. By defining these parameters (such as material composition, purity, and chemical compatibility), the design guides manufacturing processes to produce products that meet regulatory requirements while maintaining ease of manufacture through standardized material selection
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 package facilitates consistent single-touch lens transfer with a high success rate, reducing contamination risks and lens damage, while maintaining ecological and cost considerations, and compatibility with regulatory standards.
Implementation Method 1
There is surface tension between the contact lens and at least one of the arms, i.e., an arm above the lens, such that the contact lens such that the lens is retained and presented for transfer on the arm when the package is in an opened state
Data Source
AI summary
The present invention relates to improved contact lens packages comprising arms and methods of use. A contact lens package (100) houses a contact lens (138) and packaging solution and is configured to lift via arms (134, 144) the contact lens out of the packaging solution when the lid (106) is removed.