Patent Application
20250066112
The present invention relates to instant beverages and, more particularly, to a cup with an interior coating of an instant beverage.
Generally, coffee must be made with a coffee machine or similar device. Coffee made with currently available coffee machines and instant coffee alike require a consumer to manually mix cream, sugar, etc. and instant coffee also requires manually mixing in water. Additional trash is generated, including, for example, brewing pods, stirrers, individual sugar and creamer packages, etc., harming the environment.
As can be seen, there is a need for a means of making coffee that does not require the consumer to use a coffee machine or generate additional waste.
In one aspect of the present invention, a prepared, single-use hot beverage cup comprises a hot beverage cup substrate having a base and a sidewall around a container interior. The sidewall has an inner surface coated with a beverage concentrate and the beverage concentrate is operative to produce a beverage when hot water is provided in the container interior.
These and other features, aspects and advantages of the present invention will become better understood with reference to the following drawings, description, and claims.
The following detailed description is of the best currently contemplated modes of carrying out exemplary embodiments of the invention. The description is not to be taken in a limiting sense but is made merely for the purpose of illustrating the general principles of the invention, since the scope of the invention is best defined by the appended claims.
Broadly, one embodiment of the present invention is a prepared, single-use coffee cup with an interior coating of beverage powder and/or paste.
As used herein, the term “single-use” means that the cup is manufactured of materials intended to be disposed of after a single use. The term “single-use” is not intended to be interpreted to mean that no other use may be found for the cup or that a user cannot re-use the cup, such as to add additional water to the cup, if the user so desires.
The term “hot water”, as used herein, refers to water that has a temperature greater than 98.6° F. and less than 212° F.
The term “cup blank” is well known to refer to a component of a paper or other disposable cup prior to assembly.
The inventive coated cup renders stirring unnecessary and is easy to use with less mess. The consumer is not required to manually mix milk powder with coffee and sugar.
The cup may have an interior coating of one or more ingredients selected from the group consisting of: coffee power paste, milk power paste, and sugar paste.
In some embodiments, the cup may be coated with other ingredients, e.g., dried juices or other food products, such as syrup or soup.
In some embodiments, the coating may extend from the bottom (i.e., base) to the top (i.e., rim) of the cup, and may increase in thickness, depth, or concentration from the bottom to the top of the cup.
In some embodiments, the ingredients may be extruded onto or printed onto a cup blank interior surface in a horizontal configuration. In other embodiments, the ingredients may be extruded onto or printed onto a cup blank interior surface in a vertical configuration.
The consumer may use the cup of the present subject matter to make coffee by merely pouring hot water into the coated cup.
Referring to
It should be understood, of course, that the foregoing relates to exemplary embodiments of the invention and that modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as set forth in the following claims.
