Plastic Container Finish Merging Threads and Gripping Indentation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional plastic containers with nonremovable closures require unnecessary additional material due to a prominent ledge for handling, making them less material efficient and environmentally suitable.
Innovation Solution
A finish configuration for plastic containers featuring a threaded portion with merged helical and flat threads, a transfer bead, and a gripping indentation without a separate ledge, optimizing material usage and environmental impact.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If a prominent ledge is included in the finish portion to facilitate handling, then automated robotic handling is improved, but plastic material usage increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the gripping indentation function with the existing transfer bead structure, eliminating the need for a separate prominent ledge. The gripping indentation is formed as an integrated feature of the transfer bead, combining two functional elements into one structure, thereby reducing material usage while maintaining handling capability.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent extracts the prominent ledge feature from the finish portion design, removing the unnecessary additional plastic material. The gripping function is maintained through the transfer bead structure itself, which is a existing element, rather than adding a separate ledge component.
2Shape
If a prominent ledge with vertical sidewall is included, then gripping indentation is defined, but material efficiency decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The gripping indentation is merged with the transfer bead structure, eliminating the need for a separate vertical sidewall ledge. The indentation is formed by the geometry of the transfer bead itself, reducing material usage while maintaining the necessary gripping function.
3Reliability
If helical thread merges into flat thread, then closure engagement is improved, but manufacturing precision requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The helical thread and flat thread are merged into a continuous thread structure without interruption. The helical thread transitions smoothly into the flat thread, creating a unified thread form that provides reliable closure engagement while avoiding the need for separate thread sections that would require additional precision alignment.
Data Source
AI summary
A finish portion for a plastic container includes a threaded portion having at least one helical thread and a substantially flat thread positioned beneath the helical thread. The helical thread is merged into the flat thread. A transfer bead is positioned beneath the threaded portion and a gripping indentation is defined between the threaded portion and the transfer bead for facilitating automated conveyance. The gripping indentation may be shaped so that no separate ledge is defined between the threaded portion and the transfer bead. The gripping indentation may have a height that is at least about 0.085 inch. The finish portion has a maximum thread diameter and a maximum height, and a ratio of the maximum thread diameter to the maximum height may be at least about 2.3.