Pressure-Driven Viscous Liquid Bottle Refilling
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing liquid transfer devices face difficulties in refilling viscous liquids like dishwashing liquid or oil due to small duct diameters and potential blockage from backflow, especially when the bottle is nearly full.
Innovation Solution
A method and system using a liquid transfer device with manually deformable containers that utilize external pressure to create a pumping action, combining rotation and axial translation to facilitate the transfer of viscous liquids by alternating pressure and release, allowing a single passage for both liquid and air flow.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If small diameter ducts are used in the liquid transfer device, then the device can be attached to the bottle neck, but the viscosity of the liquid makes flow through the ducts difficult or impossible
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies pneumatic principles by introducing a separate air duct that allows air to flow from the bottle to the refill simultaneously with liquid transfer. This pneumatic pathway creates pressure differential that drives viscous liquid flow through the liquid duct, overcoming the flow resistance caused by small duct diameter and high viscosity.
Solution Approach 2:
The transfer device is segmented into separate liquid and air pathways (two distinct ducts). This segmentation allows independent optimization of each flow path - the liquid duct can be small for bottle attachment while the air duct provides the necessary pressure differential to drive liquid flow, resolving the contradiction between small size and flow capability.
2Reliability
If the bottle is nearly full, liquid is likely to go back up the air ducts and obstruct them, perturbing or blocking the resumption of flow
Solution Approach 1:
By segmenting the transfer device into separate liquid and air ducts, the patent prevents liquid from entering and obstructing the air duct. The liquid duct handles only liquid flow while the air duct handles only air flow, eliminating the harmful backflow obstruction effect and ensuring reliable flow resumption.
Solution Approach 2:
The separate air duct acts as an intermediary pathway that mediates the pressure balance between bottle and refill without being contaminated by liquid. This intermediary air pathway allows pressure equalization while preventing direct liquid contact with the air flow path, thus preventing obstruction.
3Productivity
If external pressure is exerted on the manually deformable container, then liquid transfer is facilitated, but the container structure must withstand the pressure variation
Solution Approach 1:
The patent utilizes parameter changes in the container - specifically its deformability - to facilitate liquid transfer. By making the container manually deformable, external pressure can be applied to increase internal pressure and drive liquid flow, while the container's elastic properties allow it to withstand and recover from pressure variations without structural damage.
Solution Approach 2:
The container is designed with flexible, deformable walls that can elastically expand and contract in response to external pressure. This flexible shell structure allows the container to withstand pressure application for efficient liquid transfer while maintaining structural integrity through elastic recovery, preventing permanent deformation or failure.
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
Effectively transfers viscous liquids by increasing internal pressure to force liquid into the bottle and releasing pressure to aspirate air, preventing blockages and ensuring seamless refilling without gravity dependence.
Implementation Method 1
exerting external pressure on the manually deformable container or on one of the two manually deformable containers for the purpose, on the one hand, of causing a transfer of liquid from the refill to said at least one bottle to be refilled
Implementation Method 2
the increase in internal pressure has the consequence of directly causing the transfer of liquid, through the passage, into the bottle(s) to be refilled by simple internal hydrostatic pressure in the refill
Implementation Method 3
releasing the external pressure exerted in order to aspire (by reduced pressure) liquid which is present in the refill to transfer it into the bottle
Implementation Method 4
releasing the external pressure exerted in order to aspire (by reduced pressure) liquid which is present in the refill
Implementation Method 5
a liquid transfer device comprising at least two parts which are, on the one hand, mounted in rotation relative to one another around the axis Z and, on the other hand, bonded in axial translation along the axis Z
Data Source
AI summary
The invention relates to a method for refilling a bottle with liquid, in a system (10) comprising, vertically:a liquid refill (12) and a bottle (14) to be refilled, which is or are produced in the form of a manually deformable container,a device (16) for transferring liquid, arranged between the refill (12) and the bottle (14) and comprising two parts (18, 20), a first part (18) being attached to the refill (12),the method comprising:rotating one part relative to the other part in order to bring them into a first rotational position in which they jointly define a passage for the liquid from the refill to the bottle,applying external pressure to a manually deformable container with a view to transferring liquid from the refill (12) to the bottle (14) through the liquid passage,rotating one part relative to the other into a second rotational position in which the passage of liquid is obstructed.