Paper Cup Sleeve Angle and Top Curl Design for Food Service
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional paper cups with frustum-shaped cup sleeves face challenges in creating a smooth top curl due to material compression and stretching, leading to rippling and creasing, especially with larger cone angles, limiting their suitability for food consumption and requiring a cone angle of 9° or less to avoid material damage.
Innovation Solution
A paper cup design with a cup sleeve angled between 10° and 25° relative to the central longitudinal axis, featuring a wider opening and a bowl-like shape, allowing for easier food consumption and a liquid-tight connection with a bottom edge, and incorporating a top curl and S-shaped cross-section to facilitate shaping without material damage, along with notches for enhanced sealing and stacking capabilities.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If the cone angle of the cup sleeve is increased to create a bowl-like shape for food consumption, then the ease of operation for consuming food is improved, but the paper material tends to crease and ripple during curling and folding
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the geometric parameters of the cup sleeve by increasing the cone angle to between 10° and 25° relative to the central longitudinal axis. This parameter change creates a bowl-like shape that facilitates food consumption while the patent addresses the resulting material stress through specific structural features like the top curl design and bottom connection geometry
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies curvature principles by forming a top curl at the upper rim of the cup sleeve. This curved structure not only provides a functional rim for holding and drinking but also helps distribute the material stress that occurs during the curling process, reducing the tendency for creases and ripples in the paper material
2Ease of operation
If the cone angle of the cup sleeve is increased to provide a wider opening for spoon use, then the ease of operation is improved, but the material compression and stretching during shaping increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent modifies the cone angle parameter to between 10° and 25°, which widens the cup opening to accommodate spoon use for food consumption. This parameter change is balanced by optimizing the wall thickness and material distribution in the cup sleeve to maintain structural integrity despite the increased material deformation during manufacturing
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies local quality principles by varying the wall thickness and material properties in different regions of the cup sleeve. The area subject to greatest stress during curling and folding is reinforced or designed with specific geometric features that localize the deformation, preventing overall material failure while achieving the wider opening needed for spoon access
3Volume of moving object
If the cone angle of the cup sleeve is increased to create a bowl-like shape, then the volume for receiving food is improved, but the material must sustain greater permanent compression without creasing
Solution Approach 1:
The patent increases the cone angle parameter to create a bowl-like shape with greater volume suitable for food reception. To prevent creasing despite the increased material compression, the patent incorporates a top curl structure that redistributes stress and optimizes the curling process geometry
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies preliminary action by pre-forming the top curl structure during the manufacturing process before final assembly. This preliminary shaping creates a stress distribution pattern that prevents creases from forming during subsequent handling and use, while maintaining the increased volume achieved through the larger cone angle
Data Source
AI summary
1. Paper cup, and method and device for making a paper cup. 2.1. The invention relates to a paper cup with a cup sleeve and a bottom connected in a liquid-tight manner to the cup sleeve. 2.2. In accordance with the invention, the cup sleeve is arranged between the bottom and an end opposite the bottom at least in some sections at an angle greater than or equal to 10.degree., in particular between 10.degree. and 15.degree., relative to a central longitudinal axis of the paper cup. 2.3. Use for example for paper cups of plastic-coated paper material.