Tamper-Evident Package With Break Tab And Transparent Lid
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Solution Overview
Problem
There is a need for a tamper-evident package that clearly indicates whether the package has been opened, particularly for products like foods or personal care items, as existing tamper-evidence devices may not provide a visible or reliable indication of opening.
Innovation Solution
A tamper-evident package design featuring a container with a flange and a flexible lid, where an area of weakness in the flange forms a break tab that is initially unbroken and visually discernible, allowing the lid to be peeled open and resealed, with a transparent region to show the break tab's condition, and using a combination of permanent and pressure-sensitive adhesives for secure sealing and reattachment.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a tamper-evidence device is added to the package, then the ability to indicate whether the package has been opened is improved, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The flange is segmented into a break tab portion and a detachable region portion, with the break tab being a separate breakable connection between them. This segmentation allows the break tab to serve as a distinct tamper-evidence feature that can be visually inspected for breakage, providing reliable indication of opening while maintaining a relatively simple overall package structure.
Solution Approach 2:
The break tab is pre-formed during manufacturing as an integral part of the flange structure, with the breakable connection already in place before the package is sealed or used. This preliminary formation of the tamper-evidence feature eliminates the need for additional components or assembly steps, thereby improving reliability without significantly increasing device complexity.
2Loss of information
If a break tab is made visually discernible, then the tamper-evidence indication is improved, but the manufacturing precision requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The break tab is designed with a localized area of weakness that is specifically engineered to break at a predetermined location. This localized feature concentrates the manufacturing precision requirements to a small, critical area rather than requiring high precision across the entire flange structure, making the break tab visually discernible while managing manufacturing complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The breakable connection is pre-formed during the flange manufacturing process using standard forming techniques. By establishing the area of weakness during initial manufacturing rather than requiring post-processing or assembly, the patent achieves visual discernibility of the break tab status without imposing excessive precision requirements on subsequent manufacturing steps.
3Ease of operation
If the lid is made peelable and resealable, then the ease of operation is improved, but the reliability of tamper-evidence may worsen
Solution Approach 1:
The flange is divided into a break tab and a detachable region, where the break tab serves as the tamper-evidence feature and the detachable region allows for lid removal and resealing. This segmentation ensures that the tamper-evidence function and the ease of operation function are separated into distinct structural elements, allowing the break tab to reliably indicate opening status even as the lid is repeatedly opened and closed.
Solution Approach 2:
The breakable connection is pre-formed in the flange before the lid is attached or before any opening operations occur. This preliminary establishment of the tamper-evidence feature ensures that its integrity is not compromised by subsequent lid peeling or resealing operations, maintaining reliability while allowing ease of operation.
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 package effectively indicates if it has been opened through a visible break tab and allows for secure resealing, ensuring the contents remain fresh and providing a reliable tamper-evident feature.
Implementation Method 1
pressure-sensitive adhesive is disposed on one of the marginal region of the upper structure and the underlying surface of the lower structure for re-adhering the marginal region to the underlying surface so as to close the opening in the lid
Data Source
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AI summary
A tamper- evident package (100) includes a flexible lid (120) sealed to a flange (118) of a container. A localized region of the flange defines a break tab (160) that can be broken to detach a small portion, such as a corner, of the flange from the rest of the flange, in order to begin peeling back the lid to open the package. The lid is affixed to the detachable portion of the flange in a manner effectively preventing the lid from being detached from it. At least that part of the lid overlying the break tab can be sufficiently transparent that the broken or unbroken condition of the break tab can be seen through the lid from an upper side thereof. The break tab thereby serves to indicate whether the lid has been at least partially peeled back.