Rigid Coffee Capsule Lower Seal Design for Universal Machine Compatibility
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing coffee capsules require specific proportions to match the percolation chamber of beverage extraction machines, leading to leakage and poor quality coffee due to inadequate sealing, making it impossible to produce a universal capsule for multiple machine families.
Innovation Solution
A rigid coffee capsule design featuring a lower surface with a perpendicular internal annular edge and external annular edge of varying heights, allowing for deformation to achieve a perfect seal with the percolation chamber, regardless of proportional differences.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the coffee capsule is designed with fixed proportions to match a specific percolation chamber, then a good seal is obtained for that chamber, but the capsule cannot be used in other machine families with different proportions
Solution Approach 1:
The lower surface of the capsule is designed with flexible edges that can deform dynamically to adapt to different percolation chamber dimensions. The edges are capable of bending and flexing during insertion and sealing, allowing the same capsule design to work across multiple machine families while maintaining reliable sealing performance.
Solution Approach 2:
The capsule design incorporates parameters that allow for controlled deformation of the lower surface edges. By designing the edges with specific flexibility characteristics and height differences between internal and external edges, the capsule can change its effective sealing parameters to match different machine chamber proportions without compromising seal integrity.
2Reliability
If the capsule proportions are customized for each machine family, then optimal sealing is achieved, but production complexity and cost increase due to requiring multiple capsule types
Solution Approach 1:
A single capsule design with specifically engineered flexible edges serves multiple functions across different machine families. The universal design eliminates the need to produce and manage multiple capsule variants for different machine types, simplifying manufacturing while maintaining reliable sealing performance across all applications.
Solution Approach 2:
By designing the edges with inherent flexibility and specific geometric characteristics (different heights for internal and external edges), the capsule can adapt its sealing parameters automatically during use, eliminating the need for customized capsules for each machine family and reducing production complexity.
3Ease of manufacture
If the capsule uses a rigid lower surface design, then manufacturing is simple, but it cannot deform to achieve a perfect seal with percolation chambers of different proportions
Solution Approach 1:
While maintaining an otherwise rigid capsule body for manufacturing simplicity, the lower edges are designed with localized flexibility and different height characteristics. This local quality differentiation allows the edges to deform and adapt to different percolation chamber proportions while the rest of the capsule remains structurally simple and easy to manufacture.
Solution Approach 2:
The lower edges are designed with dynamic flexibility that allows them to bend and deform during insertion and sealing operations. This dynamic capability enables the rigid capsule to achieve perfect seals with chambers of varying proportions without compromising manufacturing simplicity.
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
Enables a universal coffee capsule that can be used across multiple beverage extraction machines without leakage, ensuring consistent coffee quality and simplifying production while maintaining cost-effectiveness.
Implementation Method 1
the lower surface (4) has a lower internal annular edge (5), which rises in height perpendicularly from the lower surface (4), and a lower external annular edge (6), which rises in height perpendicularly from the lower surface (4), being arranged coaxially and externally with respect to the lower edge (5), and whose height is less than that of the lower edge (5)
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
AI summary
Rigid capsule (1) for coffee or other soluble products; the capsule (1) is defined by a container (2) in plastic material closed at the top with an upper surface (3) and closed at the bottom with a lower surface (4); the lower surface (4) has a first lower internal annular edge (5), which rises perpendicularly from the lower surface (4), and a second lower external annular edge (6), which rises perpendicularly from the lower surface (4), is arranged coaxially and externally with respect to the first lower edge (5), and whose height is lower than the first lower edge (5)