Slitted Liner Dispensing Closure for Flow Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing dispensing closure assemblies for flowable materials are limited by the size and configuration of the opening created by the liner, restricting the volume and flow rate of material dispensing, necessitating a solution that allows for efficient and controlled dispensing.
Innovation Solution
A dispensing closure assembly featuring a resiliently deformable liner with slits that deforms to create an opening upon increased pressure, allowing for controlled flow and returning to a sealed position when pressure is removed, combined with a closure system including a sloping annular wall and skirt for efficient material dispensing.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a small opening is used in the liner, then the container remains sealed when not in use, but the flow rate and volume of material dispensing is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The liner is designed to be dynamically deformable, transitioning from a sealed state with minimal opening to an open state with large dispensing area. The liner deforms in response to container compression, allowing the opening size to vary dynamically based on applied pressure, thus resolving the contradiction between maintaining a seal and enabling high flow rate.
Solution Approach 2:
The physical state of the liner changes from rigid/sealed to flexible/open based on applied pressure. The liner's deformability parameter allows it to transition between different configurations, changing the opening size from minimal to maximal, thereby enabling both reliable sealing and high productivity as needed.
2Productivity
If a large opening is created in the liner, then the flow rate of material dispensing increases, but the container cannot remain sealed when not in use
Solution Approach 1:
The liner transitions dynamically between sealed and open states. During normal storage, the liner maintains a sealed configuration with minimal opening. When the container is compressed during dispensing, the liner deforms to create a large opening, enabling high flow rate. The system thus achieves both sealing reliability and high productivity at different operational stages.
Solution Approach 2:
The liner alternates between sealed and open states in response to periodic compression and release during dispensing operations. This periodic deformation allows the system to maintain sealing capability when not in use while enabling high flow rate during active dispensing, resolving the contradiction between these two requirements.
3Productivity
If the liner is made highly deformable to create large openings, then the flow rate increases, but the liner may not return to its original sealed position
Solution Approach 1:
The liner is constructed as a flexible thin film with specific elastic properties that allow it to deform significantly under compression to create large openings for high flow rate, while simultaneously possessing sufficient elastic recovery to return to its original sealed configuration when compression is released, thus maintaining sealing reliability.
Solution Approach 2:
The liner's material composition and structural design incorporate inherent elastic recovery properties that cushion and counteract the deformation forces. This beforehand prepared elastic structure ensures that after the liner deforms to create large openings for high productivity, it automatically returns to its sealed position, maintaining both flow rate and sealing capability.
4Productivity
If the opening size is increased for efficient dispensing, then the volume of material dispensed increases, but the control over flow rate becomes difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The liner's deformation provides automatic feedback control of the opening size based on the applied compression force. When the user compresses the container, the liner deforms proportionally to the applied force, creating an opening size that naturally corresponds to the dispensing needs. This elastic feedback mechanism enables intuitive flow control without complex mechanisms, resolving the contradiction between volume dispensed and ease of control.
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 efficient and controlled dispensing of flowable materials by increasing the opening size and flow rate in response to pressure, while ensuring a secure seal when not in use, thus addressing the limitations of existing systems.
Implementation Method 1
a resiliently deformable liner having one or more slits defining a plurality of flaps, the resiliently deformable liner positioned between the closure and the container; where upon the application of manual pressure to the container, the resiliently deformable liner deforms from an undeformed position to an actuated position, creating an opening adjacent to the flaps
Implementation Method 2
an annular wall sloping horizontally and vertically away from the dispensing portion... configured so that the closure guides the liner to adopt a configuration having an opening of a sufficient size and configured to enable the dispensing of the flowable material from the container at an acceptable rate and volume
Data Source
AI summary
The present invention relates to provides a dispensing closure assembly for connection to a container, the assembly including a closure member attachment to a container and a flow control member for controlling the flow of material from the container in response to increased pressure inside the container, where the flow control member having one or more slits, so that upon an increase of pressure inside the container, the flow control member deforms to create at least one opening adjacent to the slits thereby allowing a flowable material to be dispensed from the container. The invention further relates to a flow control member that can return to its undeformed configuration to provide a resealing system.