Tamper-Proof Spout Ring with Segmented Breakaway Design
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional tamper-proof spout units require strong force to open and often obscure the breakage of the tamper-proof ring, making it difficult to visually confirm if the seal has been broken, which can lead to issues in determining the commercial value of products.
Innovation Solution
A spout unit design featuring a tamper-proof ring with an easy-to-break portion and a ratchet mechanism, supported by tamper-proof ring supports that maintain the ring's position and reduce friction, allowing easy visual confirmation of breakage without excessive force required for opening.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If a tamper-proof ring with a thin fragile portion is used in conventional spout units, then the breakage of the seal can be visually confirmed, but strong force is required to open the spout and the breakage is often obscured
Solution Approach 1:
The tamper-proof ring is segmented into a thick portion and a thin fragile portion, creating a clear visual distinction between the intact and broken states. The thick portion remains attached to the cap body while the thin fragile portion breaks away, providing unambiguous visual confirmation of seal breakage without requiring excessive opening force.
Solution Approach 2:
Different portions of the tamper-proof ring have different thicknesses and material properties. The thin fragile portion is specifically designed to break easily under normal opening force, while the thick portion maintains structural integrity. This local variation in quality ensures both ease of operation and clear visual indication of seal status.
2Measurement precision
If the tamper-proof ring is made thin and fragile for easy breakage detection, then visual confirmation of opening is improved, but the ring may break too easily or become obscured during the opening process
Solution Approach 1:
The tamper-proof ring is divided into functional segments: a thick portion that maintains structural reliability and a thin fragile portion that provides reliable breakage indication. This segmentation ensures that the ring breaks consistently at the intended location while maintaining overall reliability.
Solution Approach 2:
The tamper-proof ring is pre-positioned and pre-oriented on the cap body before use, ensuring that the thin fragile portion is correctly aligned to break away during normal opening operations. This preliminary positioning guarantees reliable and consistent breakage indication every time the spout is opened.
3Device complexity
If conventional tamper-proof rings are used without positioning supports, then the structure is simpler, but the breakage of the ring is obscured and difficult to visually confirm
Solution Approach 1:
The thin fragile portion of the tamper-proof ring is extracted as a separate functional element that breaks away from the main ring structure. This extracted portion provides clear visual confirmation of breakage by separating from the cap body, maintaining relative structural simplicity while improving visual indication.
Solution Approach 2:
The tamper-proof ring utilizes contrast in physical appearance between the thick and thin portions, where the broken thin portion creates a visible change in the overall structure. This physical contrast serves similarly to color change by providing immediate visual differentiation between sealed and opened states.
4Ease of operation
If strong force is applied to open conventional spout units, then the seal can be opened, but unnecessary force application may damage the product or container
Solution Approach 1:
The tamper-proof ring's thickness parameter is varied along its circumference, creating a thin fragile portion that requires minimal force to break. This parameter change ensures the spout can be opened with normal, safe force while still providing secure sealing when closed.
Solution Approach 2:
The potential harm of excessive opening force is converted into a benefit by designing the thin fragile portion to break at a predetermined low force threshold. This ensures that any attempt to open the spout, whether accidental or intentional, will result in visible breakage without requiring damaging levels of force.
Data Source
AI summary
A spout unit having a tamper-evident function so that it is easy to determine visually that a sealed cap is opened when the cap is unsealed, wherein strong force is not needed to open while modification of moderate curve in convex from an easy-to-break portion of a tamper-proof ring is corrected when the spout is sealed with the cap, is provided. A spout unit comprising a spout20 having a cylindrical opening 21 and a cap 2 which seals the opening of the spout, wherein the cap 2 has a tamper-proof ring 10 connected to a lower end portion of the cap 2 via an easy-to-break linking piece; wherein the tamper-proof ring has an easy-to-break portion 14, which breaks by tension applied in the circumferential direction of the ring, and a claw part engageable with a ratchet provided at the spout side; and wherein a tamper-proof ring support 45 is provided at least at two points around the opening of the spout, in which the tamper-proof ring support is in partial contact with undersurface of the tamper-proof ring upon screwing the cap and has a height to maintain a position of the tamper-proof ring in horizontal direction at a constant level.