Rigid Bottle Ring Carrier for Curbside-Recyclable Multipacks
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional container carriers, particularly plastic ring carriers, are not fully curbside recyclable, contributing to environmental waste, and there is a need for a recyclable solution that can form multipacks of beverages with 4, 6, 8, and/or 12 capacities using 100% curbside recyclable materials like HDPE or PET.
Innovation Solution
A container carrier made from 100% curbside recyclable rigid PET or HDPE plastics, featuring injection-molded ribs and struts, with retention tabs and frangible connections, to securely hold containers and facilitate easy separation for recycling.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If flexible plastic ring carriers are used for unitizing containers, then operational efficiency and cost-effectiveness are improved, but curbside recyclability deteriorates because 60%+ consumers cannot recycle flexible plastics
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the material parameter from flexible plastic to rigid plastic (HDPE or PET), which fundamentally alters the recyclability parameter while maintaining the carrier's functional properties. This material substitution enables the carrier to be accepted in curbside recycling programs while preserving operational efficiency.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs composite construction by combining rigid plastic material with specific structural features (ribs, struts, retention tabs) to create a carrier that achieves both operational efficiency and curbside recyclability. The rigid plastic base material provides recyclability, while the structural composite design maintains functional performance.
2Object-generated harmful factors
If rigid plastic carriers made from 100% curbside recyclable materials are used, then curbside recyclability is improved, but manufacturing complexity increases due to injection-molded ribs and struts
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the carrier structure into distinct functional elements (ribs, struts, retention tabs, flaps) that are all integrated through injection molding. This segmentation allows complex functionality to be achieved through a single manufacturing process, reducing overall manufacturing complexity despite the sophisticated structure.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent merges multiple structural features (ribs, struts, retention tabs, flaps) into a single injection-molded component. This consolidation achieves complex functionality through one manufacturing operation, eliminating the need for separate assembly steps and reducing overall manufacturing complexity.
3Ease of operation
If retention tabs and frangible connections are designed into the carrier, then ease of container separation is improved, but manufacturing precision requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the separation mechanism from permanent attachment to controlled detachment through frangible connections. By designing connections that break at specific force thresholds, the system achieves easy separation without requiring high manufacturing precision, as the separation force is controlled by material properties rather than dimensional tolerances.
Solution Approach 2:
The frangible connections are designed to break intentionally during the separation process, allowing the retention tabs to be discarded or reused independently from the main carrier structure. This approach prioritizes ease of operation over manufacturing precision, as the low-cost retention tabs can be manufactured with standard tolerances.
Data Source
AI summary
A container carrier and an associated package of unitized bottle within a container carrier includes a plurality of rings, each ring engaged with a respective bottle. A plurality of retention tabs extend inwardly from each ring of the plurality of rings toward a center of the ring, wherein the plurality of retention tabs are engaged with a neck of the respective bottle. A plurality of flaps extend outwardly from each ring, such that a flap of each ring connects a corresponding adjacent flap of an adjacent ring, wherein the respective ring remains with the respective bottle from the package following removal from the package.