Abstract:
A novel cup is disclosed that may be collapsed and extended to hold cold or hot liquids safely. The cup preferably comprises a telescoping body comprising a plurality of rings of varying outer diameters, each ring having an outer wall and an inner wall forming an air gap therebetween, a leak-proof mechanism comprising an O-ring disposed about one or more rings, and a locking mechanism comprising an annular track disposed about one ring, and a pin disposed about another ring adapted to fit within the track and slideably engage it. The locking mechanism may further comprise a first magnet seated within the air gap of a first ring, and a second magnet seated within the air gap of a second ring, whereby the first and second magnets create a magnetic pull toward one another to help keep the cup in either a collapsed or extended position.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
     The present application claims benefit of and priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 61/855,279 filed on May 13, 2013 entitled “Collapsible Steel Cup for Hot and Cold Beverages,” the entire contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference herein. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND 
     The present disclosure relates generally to cups and more particularly to cups cable of being collapsed and extended to hold both cold and hot beverages safely and effectively. 
     In the United States alone, it is reported that at least 25 billion coffee cups are thrown away each year, and at least 2.5 million plastic beverage bottles are thrown away every hour. According to one study, each paper cup manufactured is responsible for 0.24 pounds of carbon dioxide emissions. Just one cup of coffee or tea in a disposable cup every day creates about 23 pounds of waste in one year. And when the disposable cup is a made of polystyrene and thrown into a landfill, most if not all of that waste will still be present in that landfill 500 years later. 
     In an effort to combat this situation and promote a greener Earth, it is becoming more and more common to see an individual carrying their own reusable cup or bottle, a company that no longer provides disposable cups at the coffee station, and coffee or tea shops that promote and sell sustainable cups or provide a discount for bringing your own cup. 
     Conventional ceramic cups are reusable but suffer from being fragile and incapable of being collapsed and thus unlikely to be placed into a bag or purse and brought with the consumer. While collapsible cups exist, the disadvantages of conventional collapsible cups are many including failing to maintain liquid temperature for a high range of temperatures; collapsing upon receipt of hot liquid; too hot to hold safely upon receipt of hot liquid; counter-intuitive to collapse and/or extend; failing to be leak-proof; and aesthetically unpleasing. 
     Accordingly, a novel collapsible cup solving the aforementioned problems is therefore desired. 
     SUMMARY 
     One exemplary embodiment of the disclosed subject matter is a collapsible cup comprising a first ring having an outer wall and an inner wall forming an air gap slot therebetween, a second ring having an outer wall and an inner wall, and a locking mechanism for collapsing and extending the cup. The locking mechanism preferably comprises a first pin extending outwardly from the inner wall of the first ring, and further comprises a track disposed along the outer wall of the second ring, wherein the track is adapted to engage the pin as the cup is being collapsed and extended. The first ring may further comprise a magnet slot between the inner and outer walls. The second ring may further comprise an air gap slot and a magnet slot between its inner and outer walls, wherein the locking mechanism may further comprise a magnet held within the magnet slot of the first ring, and a magnet held within the magnet slot of the second ring. A leak-proof mechanism comprising an O-ring fit within a groove of each ring may also be employed, along with a lid that includes a flipping mechanism and a mouthpiece. At least the body of the cup is preferably made of stainless steel, making for an aesthetically appealing and sustainable, collapsible cup. 
     Another exemplary embodiment of the disclosed subject matter is a collapsible cup comprised of a lid and body made up of annular rings. The cup preferably includes a locking mechanism comprising threads on the rings for engaging one another, a lid made of ferretic stainless steel, and a magnet at the cup&#39;s base. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       Some non-limiting exemplary embodiments of the disclosed subject matter are illustrated in the following drawings. Identical or duplicate or equivalent or similar structures, elements, or parts that appear in one or more drawings are generally labeled with the same reference numeral, optionally with an additional letter or letters to distinguish between similar objects or variants of objects, and may not be repeatedly labeled and/or described. Dimensions of components and features shown in the figures are chosen for convenience or clarity of presentation. For convenience or clarity, some elements or structures are not shown or shown only partially and/or with different perspective or from different point of views. 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a collapsible cup according to an embodiment of the inventions disclosed herein, illustrating the cup in an extended fashion ready for use; 
         FIG. 2  is a perspective and partial cross-sectional view of the lid of the collapsible cup shown in  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 3  is a side view of one of the rings shown in  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 3A  is a perspective view of one of the rings shown in  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 3B  is a ring top that may be used in conjunction with one of the rings shown in  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 4  shows a grip handle that may be used at the bottom of the collapsible cup shown in  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIGS. 5A-5D  are perspective views of a collapsible cup according to another embodiment of the inventions disclosed herein, with  FIG. 5A  illustrating the cup in a collapsed and closed fashion,  FIG. 5B  illustrating how the cup is twisted counter-clockwise to extend it,  FIG. 5C  illustrating the cup in a fully extended fashion ready for use, and  FIG. 5D  illustrating how the cup is twisted clockwise to collapse it; and 
         FIGS. 6A-6F  are perspective views showing one or more aspects of the cup shown in  FIGS. 5A-5D  in more detail. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     A general problem in the field of beverage cups is sustainability. A general solution is a sustainable cup that may be reused as long as desired. 
     A technical problem in the field of beverage cups is collapsibility when not in use and non-collapsibility when in use with a hot liquid. A technical solution implementing the spirit of the disclosed inventions is a cup locking mechanism that quickly and intuitively collapses when not in use and stays extended when in use with a hot or cold liquid. 
     Potential benefits of the general and technical solutions provided by the disclosed subject matter include a novel cup that is insulative and maintains liquid temperatures for a high range of temperatures, while also being safe to hold and leak-proof. Additional benefits also include an aesthetically pleasing cup that can be collapsed and carried in a bag or purse by a consumer whenever and wherever desired. 
     A general non-limiting overview of practicing the present disclosure is presented below. The overview outlines exemplary practice of embodiments of the present disclosure, providing a constructive basis for variant and/or alternative and/or divergent embodiments, some of which are subsequently described. 
       FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a collapsible cup according to an embodiment of the inventions disclosed herein, illustrating the cup in an extended fashion ready for use. Turning in detail to  FIG. 1 , the collapsible cup  10  is preferably comprised of a lid  12  and cup body  14 . The lid  12  and/or body  14  are preferably made out of stainless steel and most preferably Type  304  stainless steel with an 18/10 grade. The cup body  14  may be comprised of one or more rings, such as rings  16 ,  18 ,  20 , and  22  seen in  FIG. 1 . The rings  16 ,  18 ,  20 , and  22  are of varying outer dimension, wherein ring  16  is larger in diameter than ring  18 , which in turn is larger than ring  20 , which in turn is larger than ring  22 , whereby the cup  10  is telescopically extendable and collapsible upon itself. When collapsed, the preferred dimensions of the collapsed cup  10  are some 3.4″ in diameter and some 1.8″ tall without the lid  12 . With these preferred dimensions and four preferred rings  16 - 22 , the cup  10  advantageously will hold  12  ounces of a hot or cold beverage while extended, while also easily fitting into a pocket or purse when collapsed. 
       FIG. 2  is a perspective view of the lid  12  shown in  FIG. 1 . The lid  12  helps prevent leakage and/or keeps a beverage or the like contained within the cup body  14 . As seen in  FIG. 2 , the lid  12  may include a flipping mechanism  24  engageable with a mouthpiece  26  to permit the user to drink from the cup  10  when the flipping mechanism  24  is lifted. The flipping mechanism  24  preferably has a protrusion  28  adapted to fit within mouthpiece  26 . To make it easier for a user to lift the flipping mechanism  24  once friction-fit within the mouthpiece  26 , the mouthpiece may have annular rings  30  of varying diameter. The flipping mechanism  24  is preferably pivotally mounted to the top of the lid  12  by way of flipping mechanism clips  32 . The lid  12  is preferably coupled to the body  14  of the cup  10  via threads  34 . 
       FIGS. 3 and 3A  illustrate a preferred locking mechanism  36  for collapsing and expanding the cup. As shown there, the locking mechanism  36  comprises a slot or track  38  and pin  40  arrangement and may further comprise magnets, such as magnet  52 . The track  38  and pin  40  arrangement provide a fail-safe mechanism so if a strong force was to be applied to the top of the cup  10 , it would not immediately collapse. The magnets are also intended to lock the cup  10  in expanded and collapsed positions. The locking mechanism may alternatively comprise threads  110  on rings  108  and/or a magnet  114  that is attracted to a ferretic stainless steel lid  102 , such as the embodiment shown in  FIGS. 5A-5D . 
     Turning again to  FIGS. 3 and 3A , to extend the cup  10 , a user need simply rotate the bottom ring  22  while holding the lid  12  in place, for example. More preferably, the user grips a handle at the bottom of the cup  10  for twisting. The handle  62  may comprise a “yin-yang” tab such as that seen in  FIG. 4  or equivalent design such as a bowling grip, finger cut-outs, pop-up handle, or pop-up pin. When the handle  62  is gripped and turned clockwise, the pin  40  moves along slot  38  from a pin starting point  44  until a pin ending point  46 . This action may occur with each pin-slot arrangement. For example, a pin  40  associated with ring  20  moves along slot  38  in ring  22  until it hits the pin end point  46  there; while a pin  40  associated with ring  18  moves along slot  38  in ring  20  until it hits the pin end point  46  there. To collapse the cup  10 , a user need simply grip the handle  62  and rotate counter-clockwise. The motion that collapses the cup  10  could cause it to disassemble if the shear force of the magnets  52  were to be overcome. To fix this problem, the slot  38  preferably includes a pin exit track  48  extending downward at a vertical angle from the pin starting point  44 , as seen in  FIG. 3 . The pin exit track  48  requires the user to remove the rings  16 ,  18 ,  20 , and  22  consciously, rather than accidentally, for disassembly such as when the user desires to wash the cup  10 . 
     As seen in  FIG. 3A , an air gap slot  50  is disposed between the inner  80  and outer walls  82  of each ring  16 ,  18 ,  20 , and  22  of the cup  10  to help insulate the cup  10  and also increase safety for the user. To elaborate, assuming that a conventional, single-walled cup contains hot coffee at a constant temperature of 180° F., the outside wall temperature of a conventional cup may be 170° F. for a plastic material such as polypropylene, and 179.9° F. for stainless steel. As the threshold for pain to humans is typically around 120° F., a conventional cup may be considered too hot to be safe for the consumer in this instance. In contrast, the novel cup  10  disclosed herein with dual walls and air gap  50  therebetween advantageously results in an outside wall temperature of some 99° F. even though the cup  10  itself holds hot coffee at a constant temperature of 180° F. The dual walls with air gap therebetween also advantageously create a magnet slot  56  to embed a magnet  52  therein to keep it contained. The cup  10  preferably comprises six magnets  52  per ring  16 ,  18 ,  20 ,  22  wherein three magnets  52  are disposed at the top and three are disposed at the bottom. Each magnet  52  is preferably a ¼″×¼″× 1/16″ rare earth magnet in a Neodymium block with a pull force of 2.7 lbs. To minimize the wall thickness in the disclosed cup  10 , the air gap slot  50  preferably sits in between each slot  38  near or about each pin ending point  46 . To close the air gap, a press fit ring top  58  with press fit engagement protrusions  60  engage the air gap slot  50 , magnet slot  52 , and press fit slot  54 , as seen in  FIGS. 3A and 3B . 
     Turning once again to  FIG. 3 , the disclosed cup  10  also advantageously has a leak-proof dynamic seal. To create this seal, cup  10  preferably includes an O-ring, such as O-ring  42 , held within a groove  84  at the top of each ring  16 ,  18 ,  20 , and  22 . The O-ring may be machined aluminum rings, silicon rings, or the like. 
     An alternative embodiment to the cup  10  disclosed in  FIGS. 1-4  may be seen in  FIGS. 5A-6F . In particular,  FIG. 5A  illustrates a collapsed and closed cup  100  comprised of a lid  102  and base  104 . The lid  102  and base  104  are preferably made of stamped stainless steel, with the lid  102  most preferably made of ferretic stainless steel. The body  106  of cup  100  may be comprised of one or more annular rings  108 , as seen in  FIG. 6C , having tapered threads  110 . Each ring  108  is preferably investment cast, polished threaded to its mating ring  108 , and then hammered to lock the rings  108  together. The bottom ring  108  is preferably welded to the base  104 , sandwiching the magnet  114  therebetween. In operation, the user exerts enough shear force to overcome the magnetic attraction between the magnet  114  and lid  102  and then continues to twist counter-clockwise to extend, as seen in  FIG. 5B .  FIG. 5C  shows the cup  100  in a fully extended state. To collapse the cup  100 , the user twists clockwise, as seen in  FIG. 5D , until the fully closed position seen in  FIG. 5A . Similar to the cup  10  disclosed above, the cup  100  preferably includes an air cavity for insulative and safety reasons, such as air cavity  112  disposed within each ring  108  seen in  FIG. 6F . 
     While certain embodiments have been described, the embodiments have been presented by way of example only and are not intended to limit the scope of the inventions. For example, from the above disclosure, it will be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art to configure any of the cups  10 ,  100  disclosed herein to collapse by turning counter-clockwise and extend by turning clockwise. By way of further example, instead of the preferred “S” lock pin and slot configuration disclosed above, an “L” lock or “C” lock pint and slot configuration could be employed. Indeed, the novel devices described herein may be embodied in a variety of other forms; furthermore, various omissions, substitutions, and changes in the form of the devices and methods described herein may be made without departing from the spirit of the inventions. The accompanying claims and their equivalents are intended to cover such forms or modifications as would fall within the scope and spirit of the inventions.