Trapezoidal Pourable Container Production Without Waste
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing containers for pourable food products made from a single continuous web of packaging material are typically parallelepiped in shape, which can be unergonomic and do not guarantee optimal pourability, and attempting to create non-parallelepiped shapes from such webs results in significant waste material.
Innovation Solution
A method to produce non-parallelepiped shaped containers from a single continuous web of packaging material without waste, involving the creation of trapezoidal front and rear walls, inclined side seals, and specific crease lines to form containers that are ergonomic and facilitate easy dispensing, while minimizing material waste by cutting perpendicular to the web's longitudinal edges.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If containers are made from a single continuous web of packaging material, then production efficiency is improved, but the shape is limited to parallelepiped which reduces ergonomics and pourability
Solution Approach 1:
The continuous web is divided into multiple containers through transverse crease lines that create foldable sections. Each container is formed by folding along these crease lines, allowing the continuous material to be segmented into individual ergonomic units without breaking the continuous production flow
Solution Approach 2:
The container design uses asymmetric trapezoidal shapes with inclined walls rather than symmetric parallelepipeds. The front and rear walls have different inclinations, creating an asymmetric form that improves ergonomics and pourability while still being formed from continuous web material
2Ease of operation
If non-parallelepiped shaped containers are produced from continuous web, then ergonomics and pourability are improved, but significant waste material is generated
Solution Approach 1:
Crease lines are pre-formed on the continuous web before the containers are separated. This preliminary folding structure ensures that when the containers are cut and separated, they automatically assume their final ergonomic shape without requiring additional material or creating waste from trimming
Solution Approach 2:
The method maintains continuous material flow throughout the forming process. The web is continuously fed, folded, and sealed without interruption, and containers are separated only after formation. This continuous process eliminates the start-stop nature of individual container production and prevents material waste
Data Source
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AI summary
A method for producing without waste containers for pourable products comprising the steps of: - providing a continuous web (N) of packaging material, comprising: two longitudinal edges (B1, B2) parallel to each other, and a plurality of zones (Z1, Z2) consecutive to each other along the extension of the web (N), each being intended to form a container (1); - making first crease lines (7, 8) on the web (N), in order to define, in each zone (Z1, Z2): a first portion (70) intended to form the rear wall (50) of the container (1), a second portion (80) intended to form the front wall (5) of the container (1); and a third portion (90), interposed between the first portion (70) and the second portion (80), intended to form the top wall (3) of the container (1); - folding the web (N) on itself and filling the continuous tube (I) with a pourable product; - sealing the continuous tube (I) and separating the formed packages by cutting the continuous tube (I) perpendicularly to the longitudinal edges (B1, B2); - defining the final shape of each container (1), by folding the corresponding package at the first crease lines (7, 8). In particular, the first crease lines (7, 8) are made in such a way that the first portion (70) and the second portion (80) of each zone (Z1, Z2) are trapezoidal in shape.