Reclosable Bag Zipper With Deformable Venting Passageways
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing closure mechanisms for flexible bags are complex, expensive, and inefficient, requiring difficult maneuvers for air removal and often failing with liquids, leading to poor performance and limited reusability, which hinders consumer acceptance of vacuum storage.
Innovation Solution
A recloseable pouch with a closure mechanism featuring a female and male element that deforms to create a venting passageway, allowing easy air removal and sealing, even with liquids, using a spring-biased design and intermittent deformed portions for effective sealing and venting without the need for external appliances.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If complex closure mechanisms with multiple components are used to enable venting and sealing, then venting capability is improved, but device complexity and manufacturing cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The closure mechanism is segmented into distinct functional zones along the zipper slider: a sealed portion for maintaining closure integrity and a venting portion with deformable walls that can be compressed to create venting passageways. This segmentation allows the single slider to perform both sealing and venting functions through different physical mechanisms in different regions.
Solution Approach 2:
The venting portion of the slider incorporates deformable walls that change their physical state from a sealed configuration to an open configuration through mechanical compression. When force is applied, the deformable walls collapse to create passageways, and when force is released, they return to their original sealed state. This parameter change enables reversible venting without additional components.
2Ease of manufacture
If traditional closure mechanisms are used, then manufacturing simplicity is maintained, but ease of operation for air removal deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The closure mechanism incorporates self-service features where the act of closing the bag simultaneously creates the venting capability. The deformable walls in the venting portion are designed to be compressed by the natural closing motion or by slight additional pressure, automatically creating the venting passageway without requiring separate user actions or external appliances.
Solution Approach 2:
The slider design incorporates dynamic elements where the deformable walls can transition between sealed and venting states based on applied force. This dynamic behavior allows the closure mechanism to adapt its function based on user input, providing ease of operation for air removal while maintaining manufacturing simplicity through a single integrated component.
3Reliability
If specialized appliances with heating elements are used for sealing, then sealing effectiveness is improved, but device complexity and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The closure mechanism replaces thermal sealing systems with a purely mechanical sealing approach. The interlocking teeth and keeper structure provide reliable sealing through mechanical force and geometry alone, eliminating the need for heating elements, thermal fields, and associated control systems. This substitution maintains sealing effectiveness while dramatically reducing device complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The sealing function is extracted from the slider component and transferred to the interaction between the zipper teeth and the bag material itself. The keeper structure provides the necessary mechanical constraint, while the deformable walls in the venting portion provide selective opening capability. This extraction eliminates the need for integrated heating elements and complex sealing systems.
4Ease of operation
If hooks are pressed insufficiently, then ease of operation is maintained, but reliability of venting path creation deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The deformable walls in the venting portion are designed with curved or rounded geometries that facilitate controlled collapse under compression. The curved structure allows gradual deformation from the sealed to venting state, providing tactile feedback to the user and ensuring reliable venting path creation without requiring excessive force. The geometry naturally guides the deformation process.
Solution Approach 2:
The deformable walls are pre-configured with structural features that anticipate the compression force during closing. The walls include reinforcement elements or specific geometric configurations that ensure they will collapse reliably to create venting passageways when compressed, while still allowing easy operation. This beforehand preparation ensures consistent venting performance across multiple uses.
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 easy and effective venting and sealing of flexible bags, allowing for repeated use and reliable operation with liquids, improving user experience and reducing the need for expensive appliances.
Implementation Method 1
the closure mechanism has a spring-biased design and intermittent deformed portions for effective sealing and venting
Implementation Method 2
the closure mechanism has a spring-biased design and intermittent deformed portions for effective sealing and venting
Data Source
AI summary
A recloseable pouch defining an interior including a first wall, a second wall opposing and partially sealed to the first wall to form an opening, and a closure mechanism for selectively sealing the opening. The closure mechanism includes a female closure element having first and second spaced legs extending from the first wall that are substantially symmetric about a longitudinal centerline and defining female sealing surfaces. The closure mechanism also includes a male closure element including a proximal base portion extending from the second wall, a neck portion forming male sealing surfaces to engage the female sealing surfaces, and a distal head portion. The male closure element has a plurality of intermittent deformed portions so that upon inserting the proximal base portion into the female closure element, the female closure element deflects and, in turn, fluid is allowed to flow past the closure mechanism via the adjacent intermittent portions.