Cup Holder Lug-and-Collar Assembly to Prevent Handle Detachment
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Solution Overview
Problem
Beverage cups made of waxed paper or card are structurally weak and difficult to carry due to flexibility, often causing spills and finger burns when filled with hot beverages, and existing cup holders can detach, leading to potential injury and increased spill risk, especially with heavy or hot contents.
Innovation Solution
A cup holder design featuring a collar with opposed holes and a handle with laterally extending lugs that are folded and inserted through the collar holes, providing a secure pivot connection that resists disconnection under compressive force, allowing for safe carrying of hot beverages without adding weight or complexity to the assembly process.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the handle is made thicker and more rigid to prevent detachment, then the reliability of the handle connection is improved, but the manufacturing cost and weight increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the geometric parameters of the lug, specifically making the proximal edge perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the handle rather than at an obtuse angle. This parameter change allows the lug to resist compressive forces better without increasing the overall thickness or weight of the handle, thereby maintaining reliability while avoiding increased weight and cost
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a curved cam surface on the lug that transitions from the proximal edge to the distal edge. This curvature allows the lug to gradually engage with the collar hole, distributing the load and preventing sudden detachment without requiring a thicker handle. The cam surface converts the compressive force into a mechanical interlock that resists detachment while maintaining lightweight construction
2Reliability
If the lugs are made longer to extend beyond the handle edges, then the reliability of connection is improved, but the ease of assembly deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent makes the lugs dynamic during assembly by allowing them to be folded back during insertion and then springing forward to engage with the collar hole. The cam surface provides a progressive engagement that guides the lug into the hole, transforming a potentially difficult precise insertion into a more forgiving snap-fit assembly process
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of having the lug extend straight out and requiring precise alignment for insertion, the patent inverts the approach by having the lug fold back during assembly. The proximal edge starts at the handle edge and the lug is folded backward to present a smaller profile for insertion, then springs forward to engage, reversing the traditional insertion geometry
Data Source
Figure 1~3
Figure 4
Figure 5~6
AI summary
A cup holder comprises a collar (2) and a handle (4), which comprises a continuous loop of flexible sheet material in which two opposed holes (6) are formed and which, in use, extends around and engages the outer surface of a cup. The handle (4) comprises an elongate strip of flexible sheet material, integral with each end of which are two lugs (10), which extend laterally in opposite directions. Each lug (10) has a distal edge (23), a proximal edge (22), an end edge (24) and a length which does not substantially exceed the width of the handle (4) at the region with which the lugs (10) are integral. The proximal edge (22) of each lug defines an angle with the adjacent edge of the handle of less than 90 degrees. The width of the handle (4) at the region with which the lugs (10) is integral is no grater than the maximum dimension of the holes (6) in the direction of the length of the collar (2). The distance between the two end edges (24) is greater than the said the maximum dimension. The two ends of the handle (4) are pivotally received in respective holes (6) with the two lugs on one side of the collar (2) and the adjacent portion of the handle being on the other side of the collar.