Method of making a drinking cup and container

A drinking cup and container for a beverage concentrate is made by shaping a piece of thin plastic film on a shaped form by a vacuum to form a shaped lining including one or more compartments, positioning a beverage concentrate or the like in said compartments and sealingly affixing an inverted expendible cup thereover and releasing said assembly from said shaped form.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
(1) Field of the Invention 
This invention relates to expendible cups wherein a beverage concentrate or 
the like such as an instant coffee product is packaged by a closure and 
the method of making the same. 
(2) Description of the Prior Art 
Prior articles of the type produced by the hereindescribed invention have 
employed cup-like containers and various means for retaining a beverage 
concentrate or the like therein. See for example U.S. Pat. No. 2,062,897 
wherein a pair of rigid cups form a container therebetween, U.S. Pat. No. 
2,328,798 wherein a method of attaching a non-removable liner in a 
container is disclosed, and U.S. Pat. No. 3,052,371 wherein a container 
having several compartments therein is disclosed. 
The present invention discloses a novel method of shaping a thin flexible 
plastic film liner over a shaping form by moving the same there-against by 
a partial vacuum from within the shaping form, holding the shaped liner 
while a desirable beverage concentrate is positioned in one or more 
compartments formed in the uppermost portion of the shaped liner and then 
positioning an inverted expendible cup thereover and securing the same 
thereto in sealing relation to form an expendible cup and beverage 
concentrate which is readily usable by removable of the substantially 
unattached liner. Portions of the liner may extend over the outer surface 
of the expendible cup to insure the cleanliness thereof. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
A method of making a drinking cup and container is disclosed which utilizes 
a novel step of shaping a thin flexible plastic film over a shaped form 
with pocket-like depressions in its upper end and outwardly and downwardly 
tapering side walls so that the shaped liner thereon defines compartments 
in which a beverage concentrate or several different materials such as 
coffee concentrate, dry creamer, and sugar may be positioned and an 
inverted expendible drinking cup positioned thereover in sealing relation 
to the area of the shaped liner about the compartments whereupon removal 
of the expendible cup and liner produces the drinking cup and container of 
the invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
By referring to the drawings and FIGS. 1 and 3 in particular it will be 
seen that an expendible drinking cup 10 such as may be formed of expanded 
polystyrene or the like as a single integral molded article includes a 
circular side wall 11, a bottom 12 and a rim 13. A section 14 of very thin 
flexible plastic film such as polyethylene or the like, incapable of self 
support or shape retention, is positioned in the cup 10 with its outermost 
portions 15 overlying the rim 13 of the cup and extending over the outer 
surface of the rim 13 thereof.. The innermost or bottom portion of the 
film 14 has one or more portions 16 and 17 thereof spaced with respect to 
the bottom 12 of the cup so as to enclose a beverage concentrate or the 
like as indicated by the numerals 18 and 19 in FIG. 1 of the drawings. 
In FIG. 3 of the drawings, a top plan view of the disposable drinking cup 
and container of FIG. 1 may be seen and it will be observed that three 
compartments 16, 17 and 20 are shown in the bottom of the film 14 and that 
three different substances such as coffee, creamer, and sweetener are 
disposed therein. 
By referring now to FIG. 2 of the drawings, the method of making the 
expendible drinking cup and container seen in FIGS. 1 and 3 and 
hereinbefore described, may be seen. In FIG. 2 of the drawings, a base 21 
has a shaping form 22 mounted thereon, the outer surface of the shaping 
form 22 is semi-conical tapering upward and inwardly as at 23 and the 
uppermost portion of the shaping form 22 has a plurality of depressions 24 
and 25 formed downwardly therein. Communicating passageways 26 extend from 
the bottom of the depressions 24 and 25 to a chamber 27 within the shaping 
form 22 and secondary communicating passgeways 28 extend through the base 
21 to establish communication with the chamber 27 and a source of negative 
air pressure such as a vacuum machine, not shown. A bolt 29 engaged in the 
shaping form 22 passes through an opening in the base 21 and a nut 30 
holds the shaping form 22 in desirable position. A secondary base 31 has 
an annular cutaway section 32 therein which is spaced radially with 
respect to the lowermost portion of the shaping form 22 so as to form an 
annular groove. Additional passageways 33 are positioned through the base 
21 and communicate with the annular groove formed by the inner surface of 
the secondary base 31 and the lower annular portion of the shaping form 22 
and are adapted to communicate with the vacuum machine hereinbefore 
referred to. 
Still referring to FIG. 2 of the drawings, it will be seen that a section 
of a very thin flexible film 14 has been positioned over the shaping form 
22, the vacuum machine operated so that the film 14 is pulled inwardly and 
downwardly against the outer surfaces of the shaping form 22 and into the 
grove formed between the secondary base 31 and the lower annular portion 
of the shaping form 22. 
As shown in FIG. 2 of the drawings, the edges of the film 14 are positioned 
on an outturned plane above the secondary base 31 and it will occur to 
those skilled in the art that by increasing the height of the secondary 
base 31, the film 14 can be shaped upwardly alongside the annular cutaway 
portion thereof to a greater height than that illustrated. 
When the film 14 has been moved into the position shown in FIG. 2 by 
operation of the vacuum machine, the desirable beverage concentrate, such 
as instant coffee, powdered fruit drink, or dry creamer and sugar or the 
like, can be positioned in one or more compartments 16 and 17 formed in 
the film 14 where it is drawn into the depressions 24 and 25, etc. An 
expendible cup 10 is then inverted and positioned over the shaped film 14 
and the beverage concentrate in the compartments 16 and 17, etc. and 
temporarily heat sealed to the film 14 about the depressions 24-25 by a 
heating element 34 which is positioned in the form 22. The film 14 may 
also be sealed to the cup 10 about the depressions 24 and 25 and the 
outside of the cup by applying an adhesive thereto before the inverted cup 
10 is positioned over the shaped film 14. A commercially available 
"polyethylene label adhesive" manufactured by the 3M Company of 
Minneapolis, Minnesota is one of several such suitable adhesives. The film 
14 is shaped to form an annular rim where it overlies the uppermost 
annular edge of the shaping form 22. If desired a similar shaping and 
attachment can be used to secure the edges of the film 14 about the outer 
surfaces of the cup 10 in the areas adjacent the rim thereof so as to 
provide a protective covering therefor. 
After the expendible cup 10 has been positioned and secured, as seen in 
FIG. 2 of the drawings and hereinbefore described, the vacuum machine is 
stopped or the lines communicating therewith opened to the atmosphere 
whereupon the assembled expendible drinking cup and container complete 
with the beverage concentrate or the like may be removed and packed for 
shipment. The method herein disclosed may be varied by heating the film 14 
prior to or during its shaping on the shaping form 22. The shaping of the 
film 14 may also be from the exterior, as by pressure applied to the film. 
In order to use the drinking cup and container, the peripheral edge of the 
film 14 is grasped and the unattached liner formed of the film 14 is 
pulled out of the cup which is then in upright position thus leaving the 
beverage concentrate in the bottom of the cup and the addition of hot or 
cold water or other liquid enables the desired beverage to be 
reconstituted in the cup. 
Those skilled in the art will observe that the method of making a drinking 
cup and container disclosed herein results in an inexpensively formed 
combination drinking cup and beverage concentrate or the like and it is 
obvious that the cup may take shapes other than those specifically 
disclosed herein and that the beverage concentrate may include soft drinks 
as well as soups and cereals and other food products which become usable 
attractive articles of consumption upon being mixed with hot or cold 
water, milk or other liquid. Individual doses of medicine may also be 
packed in place of the beverage concentrates or the like.