Game Table With Movable Cups For Sanitary Beer Pong
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Solution Overview
Problem
The transmission of communicable diseases during games like Beer Pong, where cups are shared among players, poses health risks due to unhygienic conditions and the difficulty in monitoring alcohol consumption in communal settings.
Innovation Solution
A game table with automatically movable cups that can be switched between storage and playing positions, allowing for sanitary solutions or rewards to be dispensed, reducing the need for shared cups and enabling better monitoring of alcohol intake.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If cups are shared among players during Beer Pong, then the game can be played socially and communally, but the transmission of communicable diseases occurs due to unhygienic conditions
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the communal cup into individual portions by providing each player with their own separate cup. This segmentation eliminates direct contact between players' beverages while maintaining the social aspect of the game, as each player still has a cup on the table for gameplay purposes.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an intermediary mechanism (the individual cup system) that allows players to interact with the game without direct sharing of beverages. The individual cups serve as mediators that preserve social interaction while preventing disease transmission through beverage sharing.
2Reliability
If wash cups are provided to clean the ball, then the ball can be sanitized, but the wash cups themselves become contaminated and may transmit diseases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the cleaning function from the gameplay cups by providing separate wash cups dedicated solely to ball sanitation. This separation ensures that the wash cups are not contaminated with player beverages, eliminating the disease transmission risk while maintaining ball sanitation.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent suggests using disposable cups for washing the ball, which are discarded after use. This eliminates the need to clean and reuse wash cups, preventing contamination accumulation and disease transmission while maintaining effective ball sanitation.
3Adaptability or versatility
If multiple players share cups in a communal setting, then alcohol consumption is social and enjoyable, but it becomes difficult to monitor alcohol intake and prevent intoxication
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the communal drinking experience into individual cups for each player. This allows each player to have their own measured portion while still participating in social drinking, making it easier to track and control alcohol consumption for each individual.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent enables feedback mechanisms by providing individual cups that can be monitored separately. This allows players or hosts to track how much each person is consuming, providing feedback that helps prevent excessive intoxication while maintaining the social aspect of drinking.
Data Source
AI summary
In certain embodiments, the present disclosure is directed to a game table that has a plurality of cups that may be automatically moved from a storage position to a playing position. In certain other embodiments, the present disclosure is directed to a game table that has a plurality of cups that may be manually moved from a storage position to a playing position. In certain other embodiments, the present disclosure is directed to devices and methods that allow a user to provide a payment mechanism, and upon the acceptance of the payment mechanism, a game table will move a plurality of cups from a storage position to a playing position. In some embodiments, provision is made for the dispensing of a liquid drink or other reward when predetermined actions occur during play of the game. Although the presently disclosed embodiments will work with any game requiring cups for play, the disclosure makes reference to the game of Beer Pong for convenience of description. No limitation of the disclosure is thereby intended or to be inferred.