Monolithic Vial Strip With Integrated Penetrable Stoppers
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing vial packaging for fluid products, particularly in the pharmaceutical and cosmetic industries, faces challenges in manufacturing efficiency, convenience, and versatility due to separate assembly requirements and material restrictions for containment bodies and applicator elements, which complicates the use of sterile fluids.
Innovation Solution
A strip of vials with containment bodies made in a single monolithic plastic material and stoppers made of penetrable material, where the stoppers are integrated during manufacturing using a forming mold that allows for easy assembly and ensures sterility, overcoming the need for separate assembly and material compatibility issues.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If applicator elements and containment bodies are made separately and assembled, then manufacturing flexibility is improved, but assembly complexity and time increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines the applicator element and containment body into a single monolithic piece made from the same material through injection molding. This eliminates the separate assembly step while maintaining manufacturing flexibility, as the entire component can be produced in one process without requiring multiple assembly operations.
2Ease of manufacture
If applicator elements and containment bodies are made from the same material, then assembly is simplified, but material selection versatility is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses injection molding technology to produce the entire applicator-containment body assembly from a single material in one manufacturing process. This approach simplifies assembly while maintaining material versatility, as different materials can be selected based on the specific application requirements without compromising the integrated design.
3Productivity
If vials are produced in strips with temporary associations, then production efficiency is improved, but separation complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent produces multiple vials in a strip configuration with temporary associations between adjacent vials through weakened-section connection lines. This allows efficient production while enabling easy separation by the user through simple tearing at the connection lines, maintaining both productivity and ease of operation.
Data Source
Figure 1~1a
Figure 2~3
Figure 4~5
AI summary
The strip (1) of vials for fluid products, particularly for medical, pharmaceutical, cosmetic, food products or the like, comprises a plurality of vials (2), each of which comprises: - a containment body (4) for an injectable fluid product having an elongated direction (D); - a first end (4a) able to define a dispensing mouth (5) of the fluid product; and - a second end (4b) opposite the first end (4a); wherein the containment bodies (4) are made in a single monolithic body made of a first material and are joined together along the weakened-section connection lines (3), and wherein said dispensing mouths (5) consist of a stopper (24) made of a second penetrable material able to be crossed by a drawing element for drawing the fluid product.