Story of Different Sleeve Patents

Hello Everyone,

Today I will be discussing several similar patents and their applications. All the patents are with regard to temperature-related cup sleeves, similar to the ones you get when you buy a drink at Starbucks, or other coffee shops.

Patent US 6,343,735 B1, titled Insulating Sleeve, was issued on February 5, 2002 and filed on May 4, 2000. The patent includes 18 claims and 9 drawing sheets. In the “Background of the Invention” section, it is stated that coffee and other beverages were often served in Styrofoam containers and as these served the purpose, they were not environmentally friendly.  Often times when other methods were used, such as cardboard sleeves, they would insulate, but not entirely. The hope was to find an alternative method of utilizing the sweet to minimize burns and maximize comfort. The sleeve is made of paperboard with a corner off the topside so that the user does not directly have to be in direct contact with the hot wall. The primary objective is to provide a holder with a sleeve so that they do not have to touch the wall. The claim also states that this invention not only serves the purpose of hot drinks, but cold ones as well.

Delbert E Phinney’s Patent 2661889, Thermal Coffee Cup was filed on July 20, 1946 and issued December 8^th, 1953. The figures and diagrams show the sleeve to resemble an external paperboard container that almost entirely envelops the cup aside from the top drinking portion. The claim states the jacket consists of an outer conical shaped sleeve and inner corrugated lining. The primary objective was to prevent fingers from getting heated.

John E. Katchko and David Uitenbroek’s Patent US 8251277 titled Thermal sleeve, method for manufacturing a thermal sleeve, and combination cup and thermal sleeve has a priority date of April 15, 2005 and published August 28, 2012. Similar to the previous patent, this too took 7 years. The background states how sleeves were often used for thermal insulation burn prevention, and reduction of paper. Most of the claims consist of height, weight, type, and length of the sleeve.

Kevin Prince’s US7922031 Patent titled Insulator sleeve for a beverage container has a priority date of March 1, 2006, and was published April 12, 2001. The background section describes how the use of disposable sleeves has saved significant paperboard material and benefited the environment. It is stated that drawbacks include one sleeve must be purchased with each drink and do not allow the barista to see customization details that are typically written on the container. This new inventions combats these drawbacks by permitting more creativity to the customer as they could make their own combination of sleeves and not have to use as many.

Wendy and Donald LaGuardia’s US 8118189 titled Temperature-indicating sleeve and related container has a priority date of June 19, 2008 and was published February 21, 2012.  The background states how even though current sleeves provide insulation and prevent burns, there is no way for the user to know if the beverage is too hot for consumption. The diagrams show five boxes ranging from warm, very warm, hot, very hot, to too hot. The temperature-indicating sleeve is in combination with the known insulating properties of the sleeve itself.

James Rule’s US 6152363 patent titled Sleeve construction for improved paperboard cup insulation has a priority date of May 3, 1999 and publication date of November 28, 2000. The background section describes how most paperboard sleeves are backed with hot-melt glue dots to improve insulating characteristics. The purpose of the invention is to provide lightness, easy assembly, excellent economy, insulation, and customizable with writing. The description provides a possible alternative to hot-melt glue dots with syntactic foam.

Andrew Spriegal and Howard Loewanthal’s Patent US20078824 explains a cup insulating system that is made of a layer of elastomer formed into a homogenous conical sleeve. This conical sleeve could be made of silicon, rubber, or butyl.

Barry Silverstein, Matthew Cook, James Hubbard, and Kurt Wolf’s 20100019023 patent descibes a sleeve comprising of a first edge with a peak with regard to a second edge. The claims describe how the sleeve will be biodegradable, must accommodate at least two fingers and a thumb, and method to assemble the sleeve.

Eugene Chun’s 20140151385 Patent titled Hot and Cold Cup Sleeve is a sleeve made of three layers with a water absorbent inner layer. This new sleeve prevents condensation from dripping onto the table, while the outer layer keeps the hand dry.  The background describes how often times sleeves are only provided for hot drinks and cold drinks, which can also cause burns, lead to condensation and water stains on tabletop surfaces.