Stackable Cup Handle Geometry for Spill-Resistant Carrying
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Solution Overview
Problem
Carrying multiple filled drinking cups often results in spillage due to the difficulty in holding or stacking them efficiently.
Innovation Solution
A stackable drinking cup design featuring a rigid elongate handle with a conical truncated shape and serrated surface, allowing for angular stacking and easy separation, along with a complementary cup holder for secure handling and storage.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Quantity of substance
If multiple drinking cups are carried or held simultaneously, then the quantity of beverages transported increases, but spillage increases and handling becomes difficult
Solution Approach 1:
Multiple drinking cups are merged into a single integrated structure by connecting their handles to form a common handle assembly. The cups share common support elements including a shared base, common reinforcing ribs, and an integrated common handle that combines the handle functions of multiple cups into one unified handling mechanism, allowing multiple cups to be carried as a single unit.
Solution Approach 2:
The common handle structure serves multiple functions simultaneously: it provides structural support for multiple cups, acts as a unified carrying mechanism, offers reinforcing elements through shared ribs, and creates an ergonomic grip point. This multi-functional design eliminates the need to handle each cup separately while maintaining all necessary structural roles.
2Volume of stationary object
If drinking cups are made stackable for storage and transport, then storage efficiency improves, but the mechanism for stacking and carrying multiple filled cups becomes complex
Solution Approach 1:
The drinking cups are designed to nest within each other through their handle structures. The handles of multiple cups are configured to fit together in a nested arrangement, with the open top of one handle receiving the lower end of the complementary handle of another cup. This nesting mechanism enables compact stacking for storage while maintaining simplicity in the carrying mechanism when filled.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of adding complex mechanical locking or joining mechanisms to enable stacking, the invention inverts the approach by designing the handles themselves to interfit naturally. The handle geometry is inverted or reversed such that the open top of one handle receives the lower end of another handle, creating an intuitive stacking and carrying solution without additional complexity.
3Strength
If the handle is designed with a conical truncated shape for structural strength, then structural integrity improves, but clearance and glide ability between stacked handles may be reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The handle employs local quality variations through its conical truncated shape, with the wall thickness and diameter varying along its length. The handle has a larger diameter at the base for structural strength and tapers to a smaller diameter at the open top for easier insertion and better clearance. This localized variation in geometry optimizes both structural integrity and operational ease at different sections of the same component.
Data Source
AI summary
A stackable cup having a rigid handle with an open top, the open top shaped and dimensioned to receive a complementary handle of a stackable cup of the like such that one or more cups may be angularly stacked, the cup having a lip projecting from the open top and extending outwardly to a circular rim, which in turn extends downwardly to define the drinking cup.