Removable Fiber Band with Window for Cutlery Stacks
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional cutlery dispensers face issues with jamming, re-loading, and maintaining a reliable supply of disposable cutlery, and existing bands fail to securely hold stacks during storage and transit while being removable from dispensers without disturbing the loaded cutlery.
Innovation Solution
A removable band made of fiber-based material with an adhesive that forms a continuous loop by overlapping ends, featuring a window configuration that allows for secure stacking and easy removal, using a pressure-sensitive adhesive to maintain the band's integrity during transport and storage.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If conventional bands are used to hold cutlery stacks, then the cutlery is securely confined during storage and transit, but the bands cannot be removed without disturbing the cutlery stack or requiring time-consuming disassembly
Solution Approach 1:
The band is segmented into a body portion and an end portion that can be separated. The end portion is detachably connected to the body, allowing the band to be split into manageable sections for easy removal from the cutlery stack while maintaining secure confinement during storage and transit.
Solution Approach 2:
The end portion is extracted as a separate detachable component from the main band body. This extracted portion can be removed from the body to facilitate band removal from the cutlery stack without disturbing the confined cutlery, resolving the contradiction between secure confinement and easy removal.
2Productivity
If conventional cutlery dispensers are used, then cutlery can be dispensed to consumers, but pieces of cutlery frequently get jammed within the dispenser requiring time-consuming attention and disassembly
Solution Approach 1:
The band transitions from a static conventional design to a dynamic design where the end portion can be detached from the body. This dynamic capability allows the band to be quickly removed and repositioned to resolve jamming issues without requiring complete disassembly of the dispenser, thus maintaining productivity while reducing time loss.
Solution Approach 2:
When jamming occurs, the end portion of the band can be discarded (removed) to access and resolve the jammed cutlery, then a new end portion can be attached to recover the band's full functionality. This discarding and recovering approach minimizes downtime while maintaining cutlery dispensing productivity.
3Ease of manufacture
If conventional bands are used, then cutlery stacks are held together during storage, but the bands require time-consuming disassembly and exposing contents to the surrounding environment
Solution Approach 1:
The end portion is extracted as a detachable component that can be removed from the band body during loading. This allows the band to be quickly opened and repositioned around the cutlery stack within the dispenser without requiring complete disassembly, thus simplifying manufacturing/loading while minimizing environmental exposure of the cutlery contents.
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 band effectively holds cutlery stacks together during storage and transit, simplifies loading into dispensers, and allows for easy removal without disturbing the cutlery, reducing jamming and re-loading challenges while minimizing adhesive residue on the cutlery.
Implementation Method 1
an adhesive can be disposed at least partially over the window. The adhesive can be configured to adhere a portion of the first end of the body to a portion of the second end of the body when the ends of the body overlap to form a continuous band
Data Source
AI summary
A removeable band for confining a stack of cutlery pieces. The band can include a body having a first end and a second end. The body being an elongated strip of fiber-based material. A window can be formed through the body, and an adhesive can be disposed at least partially over the window. The adhesive can be configured to adhere a portion of the first end of the body to a portion of the second end of the body when the ends of the body overlap to form a continuous band.