Co2 Cap Reimagined

I was having lunch one day at my friend’s pizza parlor and my friend was complaining to me about the Caps that come on the CO2 Cylinders. I decided this was a great opportunity and shortly after set out to address these problems and redesign these Caps completely. The original design of the most common CO2 Cap consisted of a part with a simple plastic cap on one end and a ring on the other end. The ring would slide over the threaded end of a CO2 cylinder to keep it attached to the cylinder when the Cap was off. Then when the cylinder was filled the Cap (hanging from the threaded end) would be bent over and slid over the threads. A fiber Washer was needed with every bottle refill so these Washers were being tied onto the Caps with a Rubber Band. This was something that was very labor intensive for the gas companies. They literally have a man sitting at a station in the shop tying these Washers on all day. This was expensive and tedious. The number 1 complaint from both the gas companies and the end users was the Rubber Bands. They would often break and the Washer be lost during delivery and storage. The Rubber Bands, when intact, were difficult to untie, especially while wearing gloves. When a Rubber Band would fail and the Washer was lost the gas companies would have to send a driver out just to replace a 1-cent part. The gas companies also complained about not being to tell if the gas cylinder had been used or not. It wasn’t just theft that they cared about but also knowing if the cylinder was empty or full or somewhere in between. The FDA has also recently passed new rules regarding Caps being tamper resistant and Washers being clean. Furthermore, many convenience stores have a high turn-around rate for their employees and this often caused much confusion in identifying which CO2 cylinders had been used. I went to work to fix these problems.

The CO2 Cap was redesigned to house the Washer in a cup shaped area opposite the existing thread protector cup, ending the need for a Rubber Band. The Washer is now placed in this area and then covered with Foil to keep it there. The Foil serves a few different purposes. It seals the Washer, keeping it free of outside contaminates. It also provides a canvas for advertisement and branding. There is now an annular feature at the perimeter of the CO2 Cap that makes it easy to grab even with gloves on. The retaining ring on the end opposite the Cap was split so that it may be installed and removed much more quickly. Last but not least a Tear-Away Tab was added onto the Cap. This allowed for the retaining feature inside the Cap to be made much more positive and hold firmly in place. It does not come off until the Tear-Away Tab is pulled, then it may easily be removed. This Tear-Away feature also shows when a cylinder has been used.

To go a step further I also designed a new Premium Nylon Washer to replace the fiber washer. The new Washer is precision injection molded from nylon. This change in material from fish paper to nylon in itself is significant in the Washer’s ability to seal. The Washer also has a Sealing Ring molded on each side that further aids its sealing ability. I also added 3 small, thin Fins to its perimeter. These Fins self-center the Washer in the CO2 fitting and help to hold it in place while the fitting is being coupled to the CO2 cylinder. Ensuring a perfect seal every time is also extremely important because these cylinders cost approximately $85 to refill. Leaks are very costly, premium Washers are not.

The new and improved design addressed all of the complaints from the gas companies and the end users. It also addresses the new requirements imposed by the FDA. These premium Caps and Washers greatly increased functionality while costing roughly the same to produce as the competitors old design. A major success all the way around!