Sliding Sleeve Tablet Dispenser Airtight Seal
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current tablet dispensing devices are not easily fabricable, assembleable, or handleable with one hand, and they fail to prevent direct contact with tablets and external contamination, while also not effectively preserving tablets from moisture and oxygen.
Innovation Solution
A tablet dispensing device with a tubular container body and a sliding sleeve that allows one-handed operation, features a tamper-evident mechanism, and includes sealing ribs for an airtight seal, along with a cap for preserving tablets from moisture and oxygen, and an active agent to maintain product quality.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If a traditional tubular container with dispensing opening is used, then tablets can be dispensed one by one, but direct contact between user fingers and tablets cannot be avoided
Solution Approach 1:
A dispensing tip is introduced as an intermediary component between the user's fingers and the tablets. The tip fits over the dispensing opening and allows users to push tablets out without their fingers directly contacting the tablets, thus eliminating direct contact contamination while maintaining ease of operation.
2Ease of manufacture
If the tubular container is open at both ends for easy filling, then filling is simplified, but tablets are exposed to external environment including moisture and oxygen
Solution Approach 1:
The container is designed to be pre-filled and sealed in a controlled manufacturing environment. The sealing mechanism (such as heat sealing or adhesive sealing) is activated before the product reaches the consumer, ensuring tablets are protected from moisture and oxygen exposure while maintaining ease of filling during manufacturing.
3Object-affected harmful factors
If a sealing mechanism is added to protect tablets from environment, then protection is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
A disposable cap or seal is used to close the dispensing opening after each use or when not in use. This simple, low-cost sealing solution provides adequate protection against environmental factors without requiring complex mechanical sealing mechanisms, thus balancing protection needs with device simplicity.
4Ease of operation
If the dispensing opening is made larger for easier tablet removal, then tablet ejection is facilitated, but tablet stacking and one-by-one dispensing becomes difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The dispensing opening is designed with non-uniform dimensions - sufficiently large in the radial direction to allow easy tablet ejection, but controlled in the axial direction to maintain tablet stacking. The dispensing tip may have specific geometric features that guide tablets out one at a time while maintaining ease of removal, thus achieving local optimization of different functional requirements.
Data Source
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Figure 3A~3B
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AI summary
A tablet dispensing device, comprising: a tubular container body including two extremities, a tubular side wall in between, the tubular side wall defining an internal dispensing space capable of receiving a tablet to be dispensed, and a tablet dispensing opening formed on the tubular side wall; a sleeve configured to slide longitudinally over the tubular side wall and between the two extremities, between a first position, in which the sleeve covers in an airtight manner the tablet dispensing opening, and a second position, in which the sleeve uncovers the tablet dispensing opening. This device is an improved device for the distribution of tablets.