Single-Material Push-Through Blister Lidding for Moisture Protection
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current push-through blister packs face issues with structural integrity, recyclability, and ease of use, particularly for moisture-sensitive drugs, due to the combination of plastic and aluminum materials, which lead to pinholes, punctures, and increased waste, and designs like peelable openings are bulky and difficult for seniors or those with impaired motor function.
Innovation Solution
A single-material blister pack using a cavitated polymer film with micro-voids and micro-crystallinity, made from thermoplastic materials like PET, PVC, or PETG, with additives to create internal brittleness, allowing for easy rupture without external weakening, and featuring a recyclable, child-resistant design.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Object-affected harmful factors
If hard-tempered aluminum foil is used for the lidding film, then moisture barrier protection is improved, but the risk of pinholes, punctures, and tears during transportation and handling increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the material parameter from aluminum foil to plastic film with modified molecular structure (incorporating inorganic additives and incompatible polymers), transforming the lidding film from brittle to having controlled internal brittleness that prevents pinholes and punctures while maintaining moisture barrier properties
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates a composite plastic material by incorporating inorganic additives (such as silica, talc, mica, titanium dioxide) and incompatible polymers into the plastic matrix, forming a composite structure that provides both moisture barrier protection and resistance to physical damage
2Ease of operation
If external weakening of the plastic lid film via micro-perforation or mechanical weakening is applied, then dispensability is improved, but moisture can enter through created pores and sealing issues occur
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the weakening mechanism from external (micro-perforation) to internal (controlled brittleness through additive incorporation), allowing the film to rupture cleanly from the inside out without creating persistent pores that would allow moisture ingress
Solution Approach 2:
The patent converts the potential harm of a strong plastic lid that won't break into a benefit by incorporating additives that create controlled internal brittleness, enabling easy rupture for dispensing while maintaining overall structural integrity and moisture barrier properties
3Object-affected harmful factors
If aluminum-based lidding foil is used, then moisture barrier is improved, but recyclability is worsened due to combination of plastic and aluminum materials
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the aluminum material from the blister pack structure and replaces it entirely with plastic material, eliminating the multi-material combination that prevents recycling while maintaining the essential moisture barrier function through the plastic matrix and additive system
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates a homogeneous plastic structure for both the cavity and lidding film, allowing the entire blister pack to be made from the same material class (thermoplastic polymers), which simplifies recycling processing and enables single-stream recycling
4Ease of manufacture
If plastic material is used for both cavity and lid, then recyclability is improved, but the lid does not break easily and physical damage to the tablet occurs during dispensing
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by incorporating inorganic additives and incompatible polymers specifically into the lidding film portion of the plastic material, creating localized internal brittleness in the lid area that enables easy rupture, while the rest of the blister pack maintains the strength and flexibility needed for protection and recyclability
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 solution provides a robust, recyclable, and user-friendly blister pack that maintains structural integrity and reduces waste, ensuring effective drug protection and ease of use for all ages, while maintaining packaging efficiency.
Implementation Method 1
A cavitated polymer film, produced by compounding with additives such as inorganic additives and/or incompatible polymers which creates discontinuity in the polymer matrix during the film forming process
Implementation Method 2
plastic films with micro-voids/micro-cavities in the film matrix, which will break the internal walls to propagate the internal rupture necessary to break the film
Data Source
AI summary
Provided is a single material plastic push-through blister pack for food and pharmaceutical packaging and a method of making thereof. The blister package may be produced by thermoforming polymer films for the cavity and a cavitated polymer film made from the same class of polymer comparatively lower thickness for the substrate or lid. To facilitate the push through breaking, the polymer film used as the lidding film may be modified to a microcavitated film by creating micro-voids/cavities and micro-brittleness within the polymer matrix. These micro-voids/cavities, and/or embedded microcrystalline particles present in the polymer matrix of the lidding film, may create internal cracks in the film by application of a small external force, which may then result in rupturing of the lid film to dispense a product from the cavity of the blister pack.