Tamper Evident Closure Segmentation Prevents Ejection
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing tamper evident closures with caps and plugs fail to activate the tamper evident mechanism reliably due to unreliable attachment of the inner part to the container neck, especially under environmental stress and internal pressure, leading to potential ejection of the closure.
Innovation Solution
A tamper evident closure design where the cap's movement relative to the skirt, facilitated by a locking member with deformable and radially constrained components, ensures the cap remains attached and prevents ejection by engaging a locking mechanism that provides evidence of opening without relying on the plug's attachment to the container neck.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the inner part is attached to the container neck to activate the tamper evident mechanism, then the tamper evident feature activates reliably, but the closure may be ejected under internal pressure
Solution Approach 1:
The closure is divided into functionally independent parts: the plug (attached to container neck), the cap (with tamper evident mechanism), and the skirt. The plug remains attached to the container neck while the cap moves independently to activate the tamper evident mechanism, eliminating the conflict between reliable activation and prevention of ejection.
Solution Approach 2:
The plug acts as an intermediary element that remains attached to the container neck, while the cap with its locking member interacts with the plug to activate the tamper evident mechanism. This intermediary arrangement allows the tamper evident feature to activate without requiring the entire closure to be firmly attached to the neck.
2Strength
If the plug attachment force is increased to prevent ejection, then closure stability improves, but the tamper evident mechanism may not activate reliably under environmental stress
Solution Approach 1:
The closure system separates the attachment function (plug to container neck) from the tamper evident activation function (cap movement relative to plug). This segmentation allows optimization of each function independently: strong attachment for stability and independent cap movement for reliable mechanism activation.
Solution Approach 2:
The cap is designed to move dynamically relative to the plug during opening, with the locking member transitioning from a locked state to an unlocked state. This dynamic movement ensures the tamper evident mechanism activates reliably even under environmental stress, while the plug maintains static attachment to the container neck.
3Stability of the object's composition
If the cap is firmly attached to the container neck, then closure stability improves, but the cap cannot move to activate the tamper evident mechanism
Solution Approach 1:
The closure is segmented into the plug (firmly attached to container neck providing stability) and the cap (movable relative to plug for opening operation). This segmentation resolves the contradiction by assigning different functional roles to different components.
Solution Approach 2:
The cap is designed with dynamic movement capability relative to the plug, allowing it to move from the closed position to the opened position to activate the tamper evident mechanism, while the plug maintains static attachment to the container neck for stability.
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3
AI summary
A tamper evident closure (1) comprises a cap (20) having a plug (22), a skirt (30) and a locking member (40). The cap (20) and the skirt (30) have seats in which a first portion (41) and a second portion (42) of the locking member (40) are arranged. Upon first opening, as the cap (20) moves longitudinally away from the skirt (30), the lower edge (25) of the cap (20) passes over the first portion (41) longitudinally so that, upon reclosing the closure (1), the first portion (41) positions in an obstructive manner between the lower edge (25) of the cap (20) and the upper edge (33) of the skirt (30).