Waste Disposal Device Odor Sealing Pivot Axis
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing waste-disposal devices with tube-dispensing units lack effective mechanisms to retain odors within the disposal system, leading to inefficient odor containment and increased space usage due to suboptimal closing mechanism placement.
Innovation Solution
A waste-disposal device featuring a bin with a support ring for the tube-dispensing unit, a pivotally connected door that biases towards an oblique abutment surface to seal the bag, and a curved design that minimizes space usage while ensuring effective odor retention.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the closing mechanism is positioned lower in the bin, then it can effectively seal the bag, but it increases the overall space required for the mechanism
Solution Approach 1:
The pivot axis is repositioned from a vertical orientation to a horizontal orientation, changing the dimension in which the door operates. This allows the door to pivot horizontally at a higher position in the bin while still achieving effective sealing at the bottom, thus resolving the contradiction between sealing effectiveness and space requirements.
2Volume of moving object
If the door is positioned higher in the bin, then it reduces space usage, but it decreases the effectiveness of odor containment
Solution Approach 1:
By changing the pivot axis orientation to horizontal and positioning it higher in the bin, the door can operate in a different spatial dimension. The door extends downward from this higher pivot point to reach the sealing position at the bottom, maintaining odor containment effectiveness while reducing the vertical space required for the mechanism.
Solution Approach 2:
The door is designed with a curved surface that conforms to the cylindrical shape of the bin. This curvature allows the door to effectively seal against the curved wall of the bin at the bottom, ensuring odor containment effectiveness even though the pivot axis is positioned higher in the bin.
3Reliability
If the pivot axis is located below the annular component, then the door can effectively press the bag closed, but it increases the complexity of the mechanism
Solution Approach 1:
The pivot axis is repositioned from below the annular component to above it, changing the spatial arrangement of the mechanism. The door is designed to extend downward from this higher pivot point, allowing it to effectively press the bag closed against the abutment surface while simplifying the overall mechanism by eliminating the need for complex linkages that would be required if the pivot were below the annular component.
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 provides efficient odor containment and optimized space usage within the disposal device by ensuring the door is biased to a closed position, reducing the overall volume required for the closing mechanism while maintaining effective sealing of odorous waste.
Implementation Method 1
a door pivotally connected to the support by at least one pivot
Implementation Method 2
a biasing component is between the door and the bin, to bias the door to the closed position
Implementation Method 3
the abutment surface is oblique relative to a vertical axis of the bin to define a contact surface for the bag pressed by the door in the closed position
Implementation Method 4
the support has a ring body to support the annular component of the bag unit. the ring body defines an annular cavity for receiving the annular component of the bag unit
Data Source
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AI summary
A waste-disposal device for use with a bag unit of the type having an annular component from which a free end of tube extends to form a bag. The waste-disposal device comprises a bin having an open top end for accessing an inner cavity of the bin. A support is in the bin adjacent to the open top end and adapted to support the annular component of the bag unit for waste to be received in the bag of the bag unit extending in the inner cavity of the bin, by passing through a central opening thereof. A closing mechanism comprises a door pivotally connected to the support by at least one pivot and an abutment surface in the bin, a pivot axis of the at least one pivot being located at a same height or higher than a bottommost edge of the annular component of the bag unit when received in the support and when the bin has a bottom thereof on the ground. The door is pivotable between a closed position in which the door presses the bag toward the abutment surface to close the bag, and an open position in which the door is away from the abutment surface to open the bag.