Abstract
Below is the cumulation of work by a group of my peers and I over the course of several weeks, where we brainstormed and designed an innovation
Engineering Proposal: Expando-Lid
Tylor, Gary, Daphne, Reuben
Department of English, The City College of New York
ENGL 21007: Writing for Engineering
Professor Sara Jacobson
April 25th, 2021
Contents
Introduction………………………………………………………………………………………..3
Failed Innovations…………………………………………………………………………………3
Conception…………………………………………………………………………………………5
Components……………………………………………………………………………………….6
Conclusion………………………………………………………………………………………………….8
References…………………………………………………………………………………………………..9
Introduction
Lids have always been known to be part of a container, a vital part of it that keeps its items safely secured. The lid should be latched onto the container tightly, but also be lifted with ease. They were first found within pottery that dates to 3100 BC. Nowadays, most containers are sold with a lid (Figure 1)
. Our innovation’s main goal is to cover food containers of varying sizes using an expandable lid. This creation is intended for the general audience. Everyone needs reusable lids for their containers. For instance, when you lose a lid for a certain container or do not have time to find it, you can use our creation as it is applicable to many sizes of the container. Also, if one is tired of buying many disposable cups that will be costly in the long run, you can opt for the option of our reusable lid in which only takes a simple wash after every use. This repurposable lid is ingenious, convenient, and efficient. If you buy this lid, it may be all you need. The lid, Expando-Lid, is made with safe materials using acrylic plexiglass and clear polyester film.
Failed Innovations
When looking at the subject of lids that can conform to variable containers, the vast majority of results found are those made out of silicone. As shown in figure 2, a simple search finds a web page on the website for Walmart, that has pages of “super stretch lids.” The issue here is that most of them primarily use silicone. The silicone allows the lids to have a certain base coverage but then be able to expand to other diameters. One of the main problems here is evident as soon as one presses on any individual product; the technology is limited. Every one of these entries lists at least half a dozen different sizes of lid, all of which vary about an inch or so from the next one in size. In attempting to solve one problem by creating lids that can fit various sizes, they have just created a different category of sizes that one would have to keep track of. Additionally, all these products come with this list of instructions in regard to how to specifically apply the cover, what environments it should be applied in, what kinds of shapes work, etc. It is an equal exchange of convenience and annoyance.
In addition to this is just the innate problems that come with silicone (figure 3)
. It is expensive to produce, and thus costs more on the consumer. Not to mention that ever so slightly annoying feeling of stickiness when touching silicone. That kind of stickiness that is not too much of a problem to go out of your way to fix, but still just that tiny little bit irritating. Additionally, there is the added concern of the chemicals in silicone that may get into the food when the material is constantly put from cold to hot temperatures (SIMTEC, 2016). These are small issues, but the little things stack up to the point where someone would want to propose an alternative.
Conception
The concept of this innovation was a tough process, involving a great deal of brainstorming and research. The main issue during the conception of this project was the actual concept of the innovation itself. Our first attempt was to try and think of something that had never existed before and would improve the daily lives of people during the quarantine. We were also thinking of enhancing the quality of life of those who sit in front of the computer all day, since many do during the pandemic. Some examples of such include, a heated mouse pad (Figure 4)
and a heated desk, but we soon realized that these things had already been built and commercialized, on online markets such as Amazon. We tried a few other ideas but realized that most innovations that we thought of had already been conceived, built, and sold, so therefore we moved onto the best thing, improving on already existing designs.
There are many more ideas that our group thought of throughout daily nuances, but these devices had already existed. We were then forced to eliminate the ideas one by one, and instead we moved onto imagining improvements that could be made of existing creations. One such example would be a rotating backpack (Figure 5)
, but it has already been made. We ultimately decided on an expanding lid that would be able to fit on any container size. The idea came from the fact that most Tupperware and containers all have varying differences in their circumferences, which means that either come with their own custom sized lid or are forced to go with no lid at all. A possible solution to this would be saran wrap. At first, we ran into an issue where everyone had their own version of the innovation, that differed from each other, but this would be quickly sorted out as time went by. The confusion arose from the versatility of the innovation as the possible applications were massive.
A portion of the members thought it would be more suited to commercial use and a portion for home use. The functionality also could vary as there was a more flexible silicon or rubber-based option or a more still metal and acrylic one. After debating for a while to figure out which material the innovation would be produced with, we went through several iterations of different synthetic and natural materials such as silicon and acrylic fabric but ended up deciding on polyester as the main one. Our group also decided on how the invention would function and that is by having adjustable flaps on the edges that would allow the lid to fit on any circular shape with ease. This design is aimed mostly at consumers rather than businesses as it allows the user essentially put a lid on any of their circular bowls or containers and prevents leaks and spills.
Components
Our product, the Expando-Lid, has a simple design which consists of three main parts that fits together to make our final product. The first part is a rounded trapezoid, and its purpose is to clip onto the container and slide along the base allowing it to attach onto containers of any size, drawn in figure 6. It is constructed with acrylic plexiglass (Figure 7), made to be washable and prevents spills from happening around the edges. The trapezoid fits snugly on to the base of the lid, with a little clip on the bottom. This clip is made to align with the circular shape of the lid to fit and used to hold on to containers, bowls or even cups of any size. There are six pieces of trapezoids of the same size, one for each leg of the base. This could be made easily in a factory by putting the acrylic into a mold and allowing it to cure and dry. Based on the many factors that affect the curing process, such as heat, humidity, or air flow, the curing process could take a few days. Also, this acrylic material costs cheaper than the silicone material.
The next component of the innovation is made of clear polyester film (Figure 8). This allows the lid to fill in the spaces as the trapezoids leave the center. This film blocks any spillage of liquids like soup when it is being stored. This film will be cut to a ten-inch diameter and built into the base and trapezoids, allowing the blockage of anything escaping. Since the material is flexible it could adjust to the shapes that people choose to use this innovation on. The lid should be able to attach onto oval containers such as a bowl of chipotle. Also, when mass produced, the polyester is a cheap material.
The final piece of the lid is the base, made from acrylic as well. The base of the lid allows everything to work and fit together. This piece consists of eight extension slides molded into a circular shape. The movement of the lid allows it to fit the cup sizes from three inches to ten inches in diameter. The design is made so that the rounded trapezoids would fit into a small circle with each piece fitting together perfectly. When this product is being put together the trapezoids would go snugly on to the base stopping any spills from happening.
Conclusion
After a long conception process, we, as a group, decided to improve on the lid innovation that has already been made. There is an existing stretchy lid made of primarily silicone. However, we found through research that silicone may not be the best material for Tupperware storing foods. We opted for using acrylic plexiglass and clear polyester film as a better alternative. As shown in figure 9, our product, Expando-Lid, has a sliding mechanism that will be able to fit containers of varying sizes and keep the contents fresh and secured. It has a reusable design after a quick wash. It is inventive, suitable, and renewable.
References
Lim, G. (2021). Figure 6 [Image]. https://media.discordapp.net/attachments/824284287586926672/836000355547742248/image1.jpg?width=327&height=436
Lim, G. (2021). Figure 9 [Image]. https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/824284287586926672/835997726239621120/image0.jpg
Mind Shift. Figure 5 [Image]. https://www.amazon.com/Mind-Shift-Gear-Rotation-180/dp/B00I40YHL6
Orblue. Figure 2 [Image]. https://www.walmart.com/ip/Orblue-Silicone-Stretch-Lids-6-Pack-Multi-Sized-Reusable-Lids/175572318
Orblue. Figure 3 [Image]. https://www.walmart.com/ip/Orblue-Silicone-Stretch-Lids-6-Pack-Multi-Sized-Reusable-Lids/175572318
PET. Figure 8 [Image]. https://www.professionalplastics.com/spetcl.020×24.000×48.000
Pyrex. Figure 1 [Image]. https://www.kroger.com/product/images/large/front/0007116003285
SIMTEC, . (2016, September 22). SIMTEC Silicone Parts. Pros and Cons of Silicone Elastomers | SIMTEC Silicone. Retrieved April 10, 2021, from http://www.simtec-silicone.com/pros-cons-silicone-elastomers/
TAP Plastics. Figure 7 [Image]. https://www.tapplastics.com/product/plastics/cut_to_size_plastic/acrylic_sheets_cast_clear/510
Xiaohong. Figure 4 [Image]. https://www.amazon.com/Universal-USB-Hand-Warmer-Mouse/dp/B08JK1XDP3/
