Automated Refurbishment of Child-Safe Pharmaceutical Containers
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Current child-safe prescription pill containers are designed for single use and are not suitable for refurbishment processes like high-temperature washing or sterilization, making them environmentally wasteful and unsuitable for reuse.
Innovation Solution
An automated system for refurbishing child-safe containers, comprising a wash/dry station, multi-axis robotic arm, container capping station, and output trays, which cleans, assembles, and tests the containers to ensure their child-safe functionality, allowing for multiple uses.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If single-use plastic containers are used for prescription pills, then child-safe functionality is achieved at low cost, but environmental waste increases and reuse is impossible
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a refurbishment system that recovers and reuses container components instead of discarding them. The system separates caps and container bodies, cleans them individually, and reassembles them for multiple uses, transforming a single-use disposable model into a reusable circular economy model while maintaining child-safe functionality
Solution Approach 2:
The patent divides the container into separable components (cap and container body) that can be independently processed. This segmentation allows each component to be cleaned and sterilized separately through the refurbishment system, enabling reuse while maintaining the integrity and child-safe features of each part
2Ease of manufacture
If disposable plastic containers are used, then manufacturing cost is reduced, but environmental sustainability deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the usage parameter from single-use to multiple-use by implementing a refurbishment system. Although the initial manufacturing cost may be slightly higher for reusable containers, the system extends their lifecycle through automated cleaning and sterilization, effectively reducing the cost per use and improving environmental sustainability
3Reliability
If high-temperature washing and sterilization are applied to single-use containers, then cleaning effectiveness is improved, but container integrity is compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by designing containers with enhanced durability and heat resistance before they enter the refurbishment cycle. The container components are manufactured to withstand the high-temperature washing and sterilization processes, ensuring they maintain structural integrity while achieving effective cleaning and sterilization
4Loss of substance
If reusable containers are implemented, then environmental waste is reduced, but manufacturing cost and complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements self-service through an automated refurbishment system that performs cleaning, sterilization, and assembly operations without manual intervention. The system uses robotic arms, automated drying mechanisms, and controlled environment chambers to maintain and refurbish containers, reducing the need for complex manual processes while enabling reusable container programs
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 system effectively refurbishes child-safe containers, enabling their reuse while maintaining the integrity of the child-safe features, thus reducing environmental waste and extending the life cycle of the containers.
Implementation Method 1
water jets for spraying pressurized cleaning solution and rinse agent
Implementation Method 2
drying components which may include fans and heaters
Data Source
AI summary
An automated refurbishment system for cleaning and testing recycled child-safe containers. The system takes in durable, child-safe container bodies and caps after usage, washes the container parts reduce an amount of contaminants, and then dries the washed parts. The system then assembles the child-safe container bodies to caps, and tests the assembled child-safe containers, to assess the functionality of the child-safe features. The clean and tested refurbished child-safe containers can then be reused to dispense controlled substances (e.g., pharmaceuticals). Specific modules of the system can be interchanged to allow compatibility with different styles and designs of child-safe containers. The refurbishment system facilitates the recycling and reuse of durable, child-safe containers as an alternative to the current practice of using single-use, disposable plastic child-safe containers to dispense prescription pills and other controlled substances.