Flexible Suction Cup with Support Members for Manual Vacuum Pump
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing manual vacuum devices for evacuating gases from containers, such as plastic storage pouches, often struggle with maintaining a gastight seal and efficient gas evacuation due to the collapse of flexible suction cups, which can obstruct gas flow and hinder effective vacuum creation.
Innovation Solution
A manual vacuum pump design featuring a flexible suction cup with support members that restrict its movement to prevent collapse, allowing for a gastight seal and unobstructed gas communication through a one-way valve, while a piston with a check valve facilitates gas flow and evacuation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a flexible suction cup is used to form a gastight seal with the container surface, then the seal quality is improved, but the suction cup collapses under pumping action which obstructs gas flow
Solution Approach 1:
The suction cup is divided into multiple functional zones: a flexible sealing portion that contacts the container surface to maintain the gastight seal, and a rigid support structure with radial support elements that prevent collapse. This segmentation allows different parts to perform different functions - the flexible portion maintains reliability while the rigid support ensures productivity by preventing obstruction of gas flow.
Solution Approach 2:
The suction cup employs composite construction combining flexible materials for sealing with rigid structural elements for support. The flexible sealing portion is made of elastomeric material that can conform to the container surface, while the radial support elements provide structural integrity to prevent collapse during pumping, thus resolving the contradiction between seal quality and evacuation efficiency.
2Adaptability or versatility
If the suction cup is made completely flexible to conform to container surfaces, then adaptability is improved, but structural stability deteriorates causing collapse
Solution Approach 1:
The suction cup structure is segmented into a flexible sealing portion that provides adaptability by conforming to various container surfaces, and a rigid support structure with radial support elements that provides structural stability. This segmentation allows the flexible portion to adapt to different surfaces while the rigid support prevents collapse, resolving the contradiction between adaptability and stability.
Solution Approach 2:
Different parts of the suction cup have different mechanical properties: the sealing portion is made flexible to provide local adaptability to container surfaces, while the support structure is made rigid to provide local structural stability. This local differentiation of material properties allows the suction cup to simultaneously achieve conformability and resistance to collapse.
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 enables efficient evacuation of gases from containers by maintaining a consistent seal and ensuring unimpeded gas flow, effectively preserving the vacuum within the container for extended storage periods.
Implementation Method 1
A check valve is disposed on the piston to allow gas to flow past the piston when the piston is reciprocated toward the evacuation end of the evacuation chamber
Implementation Method 2
A flexible suction cup is adapted to form a gastight seal with a surface and extends from the evacuation end of the evacuation chamber
Implementation Method 3
A plurality of support members extends from the evacuation end of the evacuation chamber to restrict movement of the flexible suction cup between the surface and the evacuation end of the evacuation chamber to prevent a portion of the suction cup from collapsing onto the surface
Data Source
AI summary
A gastight interface for an evacuation device includes a flexible suction cup adapted to form a gastight seal with a surface surrounding a valve disposed on a container and extending from an evacuation end of an evacuation chamber. The flexible suction cup has an aperture disposed therethrough for fluid communication with the evacuation chamber. A plurality of support members extends from the evacuation end of the evacuation chamber to restrict movement of the flexible suction cup between the surface and the evacuation end of the evacuation chamber, to allow fluid communication between an interior of the container and the evacuation chamber through the valve when the valve is in an open position, while the piston is being reciprocated between the closed end and the evacuation end. Each support member has a distal surface disposed outside of an outer perimeter of the flexible suction cup.