Systems and methods for manufacturing tethered container caps

A method of manufacturing a tethered container cap, the method comprising:

• providing a cap holding assembly configured to hold a cylindrical container cap, the cap comprising a horizontal top lid having a circular perimeter, a cylindrical skirt extending vertically downwardly from the circular perimeter of the top lid, and a cylindrical retaining ring disposed as a lower end of the skirt opposite the lid, the cap holding assembly comprising an internal tool, a blade stack and a rotation assembly, the blade stack comprising connected stacked segments which include:
• first and second blades each having a horizontal cutting edge configured to cut first and second horizontal slits respectively in the skirt to form a tether of the cap, a blade spacer disposed between the first blade and the second blade, the tether being disposed between the first and second horizontal slits and connecting the retaining ring to the skirt, and each of the blade spacer and the first and second blades further including at least one inside cavity configured to receive a back rest of a blade insert, the blade insert comprising said back rest and a transversal blade, said transversal blade having a transversal cutting edge configured to cut a transversal cut in the container cap adjoining at least one of the horizontal slits, the transversal cutting edge being disposed at an acute angle to the horizontal cutting edge forming the adjoining horizontal slit, the horizontal cutting edge forming the adjoining horizontal slit having at least one notch connecting at least one of said at least one inside cavity to an outside of the blade stack and configured to receive the transversal blade, said transversal blade receiving support from said back rest and said stack when in said notch;
• and the rotation assembly being configured to rotate the cap holding assembly relative to the blade stack, the method comprising steps of:
• disposing the internal tool within the cylindrical skirt of the container cap to hold the cap within the blade stack;
• rotating, via the rotation assembly, the cap holding assembly relative to the blade stack, such that the horizontal cutting edge of the first blade, the horizontal cutting edge of the second blade and the transversal cutting edge of the blade stack cut the container cap to form the first and second horizontal slits and the transversal cut that form the tether and retaining ring of a tethered container cap.