Reusable Wine Bottle Stopper with Volute-Cavity Extraction
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current wine bottle closures, such as cork, synthetic cork, and screw caps, face issues like quality variability, contamination, difficulty in extraction, and the need for costly machinery modifications, leading to waste and perceived low-quality products.
Innovation Solution
A wine bottle closure featuring a rigid plastic body with compressible elastomeric O-rings and a volute-cavity for easy extraction, maintaining compatibility with existing machinery and providing superior sealing and collectability.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If cork stoppers are used, then natural sealing capability is improved, but quality consistency and reliability deteriorate due to TCA contamination and variable cork quality
Solution Approach 1:
The invention changes the material parameters from natural cork to a composite system of rigid plastic body with elastomeric O-rings. This parameter change eliminates TCA contamination while maintaining sealing reliability through the elastomeric properties of the O-rings that can deform to seal against the bottle neck.
Solution Approach 2:
The stopper uses a composite structure combining rigid plastic body material with elastomeric O-ring material. This composite approach provides the structural integrity needed for insertion while the elastomeric rings provide the sealing function, achieving reliable sealing without the contamination issues of natural cork.
2Productivity
If synthetic cork stoppers are used, then availability and consistency are improved, but long-term sealing reliability deteriorates due to oxidation after two years
Solution Approach 1:
The invention changes the material composition from oxidizable synthetic cork to oxidation-resistant rigid plastic with elastomeric O-rings. This parameter change maintains high availability for closure while preventing the oxidation degradation that occurs with synthetic cork after two years.
3Adaptability or versatility
If cork stoppers are used, then traditional wine closure perception is improved, but ease of extraction deteriorates requiring proper positioning and risking disintegration
Solution Approach 1:
The stopper is segmented into a rigid body portion and separate elastomeric O-ring sealing elements. This segmentation allows the O-rings to be positioned on grooves where they can be easily engaged by extraction tools, eliminating the positioning problems associated with solid cork stoppers.
Solution Approach 2:
Different parts of the stopper have different local qualities: the rigid body provides structural integrity for insertion, while the elastomeric O-rings in specific groove locations provide sealing and facilitate easy extraction. This local differentiation of properties solves the extraction difficulty problem.
4Reliability
If screw-cap closures are used, then cost and reliability are improved, but consumer perception of quality deteriorates and tamper resistance is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The stopper design provides multiple functions: it maintains the traditional cork appearance and insertion method for consumer acceptance, while incorporating elastomeric sealing elements for reliable sealing and easy extraction. This multi-functionality allows it to replace both cork and screw-cap closures.
5Reliability
If cork stoppers are used, then natural sealing expansion is improved, but waste increases due to disintegration and fragments during extraction
Solution Approach 1:
The composite structure of rigid plastic body with elastomeric O-rings eliminates the disintegration problem of natural cork. The O-rings remain intact during extraction, preventing fragments from contaminating the wine, while still providing effective sealing through elastic deformation.
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 quick, reliable, and tamper-resistant wine bottle closures that reduce waste, maintain quality, and enhance consumer perception, while being recyclable and marketable independently.
Implementation Method 1
a body made of rigid plastic material and compressible elastomeric 'O'-rings
Data Source
AI summary
A rigid stopper (10) made of bisphenol-free polycarbonate and silicone synthetic materials, particularly for a wine bottle (48), comprises a cylindrical body (12) and two opposing faces (16, 18), and at least two compressible-elastomeric “O”-rings (22, 24) seated in corresponding circumferential grooves (26, 28) on a side (14) of the body (12). The faces (16, 18) are comprised of foramen (42, 44) respectively which communicate with a volute-cavity (40) for the purpose of accepting a cork-screw-extractor. The volute-cavity (40) is comprised of a partition (46) at a central-plane (56) for the purpose of preventing wine from leaking through the volute-cavity (40). “O”-rings (22, 24) are compressively forced into a mouth (50) of a bottle (48) positioning either face (16) or face (18) flush with the mouth (50) thereby providing adequate compressive force in maintaining position of the stopper (10). Stopper (10) having longitudinal symmetry about a central plane (56), either face (16) or (18) of stopper body (12) maintains compatibility with random orientation of the stopper (10) in “corking” process of packaging.