Movable Anvils Form Hinges in Expandable Material Moulds
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional methods for forming collapsible boxes from expandable materials like EPS, EPP, and EPLA result in products that occupy significant space when empty, are economically inefficient for storage and transport, and often compromise the integrity of the material at hinge regions due to inherent weaknesses, requiring complex machinery and processes.
Innovation Solution
A mould system with movable anvils that apply linear or rotary compression to form hinges within the expandable material during the moulding process, allowing for the creation of a collapsible container with enhanced strength and reduced thermal inefficiencies, while maintaining the material's integrity and allowing for efficient use of platen space.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If conventional moulding methods are used to form boxes from expandable materials, then the boxes assume a specific three-dimensional shape with dimensional accuracy, but they occupy a predetermined volume even when empty, requiring significant storage space
Solution Approach 1:
The box is designed with collapsible sides that can transition between an expanded three-dimensional configuration for use and a collapsed flat configuration for storage. This dynamic structure allows the box to change its volume significantly while maintaining manufacturing precision during the moulding process through the use of moulds that form the collapsible structure with hinges and fold regions.
2Ease of manufacture
If fold regions or hinges are created in the blank during the moulding process or by compression, then the blank can be folded into a box structure, but the inherent weakness in the hinge region compromises the integrity of the product
Solution Approach 1:
The hinge regions are formed with locally differentiated properties through the moulding process. The moulds create fold regions with specific density and structural characteristics that differ from the rest of the blank, providing the necessary flexibility for folding while maintaining sufficient strength. The local quality of the hinge region is optimized to balance foldability with structural integrity.
3Strength
If a two-step process is used to form strengthened hinges with compressed material, then the hinge strength is improved, but the process complexity and machinery requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The moulding process and hinge formation process are merged into a single integrated operation. The moulds directly form the collapsible structure with strengthened hinges in one step, eliminating the need for a separate compression step. This is achieved by designing the moulds to apply compression forces at the hinge regions during the initial moulding process, thereby strengthening the hinges while maintaining process simplicity.
4Ease of manufacture
If larger moulds with larger surface areas are used to form flat blanks, then the fold regions can be formed, but the thermal efficiency of the moulding process is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of forming flat blanks with large surface areas that require large moulds, the invention forms three-dimensional collapsible structures directly in the mould. This dimensional change allows the use of smaller, more thermally efficient moulds while still achieving the necessary fold regions and hinges. The collapsible sides and fold regions are formed within the three-dimensional space of the mould cavity, reducing the mould surface area required.
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 solution enables the production of stronger, more robust collapsible containers with improved space efficiency and reduced material stress, maximizing the number of products per moulding cycle and minimizing the need for separate tooling and steps, thus addressing the economic and storage challenges of conventional methods.
Implementation Method 1
the formation of a box or similar packaging product generally requires controlled expansion of the material within a mould
Implementation Method 2
The movable anvils are caused to penetrate into the material in the mould chamber to form the one or more hinges in the container
Data Source
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AI summary
There is disclosed a mould for forming a collapsible container from an expandable material, the container comprising, when assembled, at least a base and a two pairs of a side walls extending at right angles from opposing sides of the base, the mould comprising: a first mould member and a second mould member movable with respect to each other between an open and a closed moulding position to define a mould cavity; a control means for delivering expandable material into said mould cavity and for delivering steam to facilitate expansion of the expandable material within said mould cavity to form said container; and a plurality of anvils mounted on a rear surface of at least one of the first mould member and/or second mould member, each anvil being movable so as to be extended into the mould cavity so as to form one or more hinges in the expandable material at predetermined locations within the mould cavity; wherein the mould cavity defined by the first mould member and the second mould member is a three-dimensional representation of an inside-out configuration of the assembled container.