Cup carrier
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Solution Overview
Problem
Traditional cup carriers are often bulky, expensive, and inefficiently designed, frequently having more cup-engaging portions than drinks provided, leading to unused spaces and suboptimal use of materials.
Innovation Solution
The development of flexible sheet-formed cup carriers with connectable base and handle portions, featuring cup-holding apertures and fasteners, allowing for customizable configurations and efficient use of material, with options for recyclable, biodegradable, or marine-degradable materials, and the ability to be 3D printed or molded for reduced waste.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If traditional rigid cardboard or formed board trays with four three-dimensional cup holders are used, then cup carriers provide structural strength and stability, but they become bulky, expensive, and inefficiently designed with unused spaces when fewer drinks are provided
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces traditional rigid cardboard or formed board trays with flexible plastic sheets containing cup-engaging portions. This flexible sheet approach maintains sufficient structural strength to support cups while dramatically reducing bulkiness and material usage. The thin flexible sheet can be easily stored and transported, eliminating the bulky nature of traditional rigid cup carriers.
Solution Approach 2:
The cup carrier is segmented into multiple cup-engaging portions (typically four) that can be independently formed on the flexible sheet. This segmentation allows the carrier to accommodate varying numbers of cups (1-4) efficiently, reducing wasted space when fewer drinks are provided while maintaining structural integrity through the distributed design of the engaging portions.
2Strength
If traditional rigid cardboard or formed board trays with four three-dimensional cup holders are used, then cup carriers provide stable cup support, but they become expensive to manufacture
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses flexible plastic sheets instead of expensive rigid cardboard or formed board materials. The flexible sheet can be manufactured through cost-effective processes such as injection molding or extrusion, significantly reducing manufacturing costs while maintaining adequate cup support stability through the design of the cup-engaging portions that taper to fit standard cup shapes.
Solution Approach 2:
The cup carrier is designed as a disposable item made from inexpensive flexible plastic material. This approach eliminates the need for expensive durable materials and complex assembly processes, allowing for high-volume production at low cost. The carrier performs its function reliably for single use and is then discarded, optimizing the balance between manufacturing cost and functional performance.
3Weight of moving object
If plastic sheets with four or six cup-engaging portions are used, then cup carriers can be made from lighter material, but one or more cup-engaging portions often remain empty when fewer drinks are provided
Solution Approach 1:
The cup carrier is segmented into multiple cup-engaging portions (four or six) on the flexible sheet, allowing selective use based on the number of drinks provided. This segmentation enables the carrier to be lightweight while accommodating variable quantities of cups, reducing material waste by only utilizing the necessary number of engaging portions rather than providing fixed rigid structures for all positions.
Solution Approach 2:
The flexible sheet with multiple cup-engaging portions serves multiple functions: it can accommodate 1-6 cups depending on need, can be manufactured in standardized configurations, and can be easily adapted to different drink quantities. This multi-functionality reduces material waste by avoiding over-provisioning while maintaining lightness through the flexible sheet design.
Data Source
AI summary
A cup carrier formed from a flexible sheet of material includes a base portion connected to a handle portion. Each of one or more cup-holding portions formed in the base portion includes a cup-holding aperture. The base portion includes one or more base fasteners that are mated to one or more base fasteners of another cup carrier. The handle portion includes one or more handle fasteners that are mated to one or more handle fasteners of another cup carrier.