Self-Centering Dissolution Vessel Shoulder Geometry
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current vessel centering systems for dissolution testing are bulky and require multiple components to account for manufacturing tolerances in glass vessels, leading to inconsistent alignment and increased apparatus size, which is undesirable for pharmaceutical laboratory space and efficiency.
Innovation Solution
A vessel design with a cylindrical section and annular shoulder that is coaxially disposed about the central axis, allowing the vessel to be self-centering within an aperture without additional alignment tools, ensuring concentricity and reducing the footprint of the apparatus.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If traditional vessel centering systems are used to account for manufacturing tolerances, then alignment reliability is improved, but device complexity and apparatus size increase
Solution Approach 1:
The vessel is designed with self-centering features including an annular flange with centering geometry and a conical section that automatically align the vessel with the aperture when the vessel is placed in the holder. This eliminates the need for separate alignment tools or complex adjustment mechanisms, allowing the vessel to center itself through its own geometric features.
Solution Approach 2:
The centering geometry is pre-formed as an integral part of the vessel structure during manufacturing. The annular flange with its specific geometric features and the conical section are built into the vessel before use, so that alignment is achieved automatically upon placement without requiring any preliminary adjustment or additional alignment components during the dissolution testing setup.
2Manufacturing precision
If multiple centering components are used to accommodate manufacturing tolerances, then alignment precision is improved, but the footprint of the apparatus increases
Solution Approach 1:
The centering features are merged directly into the vessel structure itself. The annular flange with its centering geometry and the conical section are integrated as single components of the vessel, eliminating the need for separate centering rings, alignment tools, or additional positioning components that would otherwise occupy space in the apparatus.
Solution Approach 2:
The self-centering geometry is nested within the existing vessel structure. The conical section and annular flange features are incorporated into the vessel wall and flange structure, allowing the centering function to be achieved without adding external components or increasing the overall footprint of the dissolution testing apparatus.
3Measurement precision
If additional alignment tools are used to ensure concentricity, then measurement precision is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The vessel's own geometric features (annular flange with centering geometry and conical section) serve as the alignment reference, eliminating the need for external alignment tools. The vessel itself provides the centering function through its pre-formed geometric features, achieving precise concentricity without additional measurement or alignment instrumentation.
Data Source
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AI summary
A vessel (200) includes a cylindrical section (210), a bottom section (226), and a shoulder (230). The shoulder extends from an outside vessel surface and is concentric with an inside vessel surface relative to a central axis (202) of the vessel. The vessel may be mounted at a dissolution test apparatus by inserting the vessel in an aperture such that the shoulder abuts an inside edge of a vessel support member defining the aperture. The concentric shoulder enables the vessel to be centered in the aperture, or relative to an instrument inserted in the vessel along the central axis. The shoulder may support the vessel at the aperture, or the vessel may include an annular flange above shoulder and the flange may support the vessel.