Smoking Article Package Recess Tab Locking Mechanism
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional clam-shell packages for smoking articles fail to securely retain the inner shell in the closed position due to insufficient frictional engagement and lack of tactile feedback, leading to partial opening issues.
Innovation Solution
The package features a recess and tab mechanism where a resilient tab from the inner shell contacts a recess on the outer shell when closed, providing secure retention and an audible click for confirmation, enhancing the locking mechanism.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If frictional engagement between sidewalls is used to retain the inner shell, then the structure remains simple, but the retention strength is insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
A tab extending from the inner shell acts as an intermediary element that engages with a recess in the outer shell. This tab-recess mechanism provides positive mechanical retention between the inner and outer shells, overcoming the insufficient frictional engagement while maintaining relative structural simplicity.
2Loss of information
If no locking mechanism is provided, then the device complexity is low, but there is no tactile feedback to confirm closed position
Solution Approach 1:
The tab-recess locking mechanism provides tactile feedback through the engagement of the tab with the recess. When the inner shell is closed, the tab snaps into the recess, creating a perceptible click or resistance that confirms the closed position to the user, thereby eliminating uncertainty without requiring complex additional mechanisms.
3Force
If a spring mechanism is used to urge the inner shell into closed position, then the closing force is improved, but the spring may fail and the inner shell is not securely locked
Solution Approach 1:
The tab extending from the inner shell serves as a mechanical intermediary that engages with the recess in the outer shell to provide secure locking. This positive mechanical engagement replaces or supplements the spring mechanism, ensuring reliable retention without depending on spring functionality.
Solution Approach 2:
The locking function is extracted from the spring mechanism and implemented through the dedicated tab-recess feature. This separation of functions allows the spring to provide closing force while the tab-recess provides secure locking, with the tab acting as the primary retention element.
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 ensures the inner shell is securely held in the outer shell, preventing partial opening and providing a tactile indication of the closed position, thus enhancing user confidence and product integrity.
Implementation Method 1
the tab extending from the corresponding sidewall, the sidewall of the outer shell and/or the sidewall of the inner shell is resiliently deformable, so that said tab extending from the corresponding sidewall, the sidewall of the outer shell and/or the sidewall of the inner shell resiliently deforms when the inner and outer shells are pivoted towards the closed position
Data Source
Figure 1
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Figure 3
AI summary
A package for smoking articles comprising an inner shell (2) and an outer shell (1), the inner shell defining a space for smoking articles and the outer shell defining a cavity to receive the inner shell, the inner and outer shells being hingedly connected such that they pivot relative to each other from a closed position in which the inner shell is received in the outer shell and an open position in which the inner shell extends from the outer shell, wherein the outer shell includes a sidewall that overlaps a sidewall (13) of the inner shell when the inner and outer shells are in their closed position, a recess (56) being formed in the sidewall of one of the inner or outer shells and a tab (60) extending from a corresponding sidewall of the inner or outer shell such that, when the inner and outer shells are in their closed position, the tab locates in said recess.