A new coffee cup concept recently emerged from China, offering a playful take on to-go cup transportation.
Oxymoronically pitched by its inventors as an “eco-friendly portable paper cup,” the new cups come with a mesh sleeve that expands upward like an accordion.
When surrounding the cup, the sleeve provides insulation for either hot or cold beverages. When extended by an ergonomic handle at the top, the sleeve transforms into a carrying bag, theoretically keeping multiple beverages generally upright.
The winner of a 2024 iF Design Award, the cups and sleeves are both made of recyclable, renewable and biodegradable materials, according to the designers, although no information regarding the specific materials was provided.
Called the Accordion Paper Cup, the cup, sleeve and carrying system was designed by Zhu Hengyao, Zhou Fei, Li Zhe, Zhi Weihang and Zhang Jie of a Shenzen, China-based industrial design firm called Shenzhen Samore Design & Research Product Planning Co. The firm is also behind a newfangled ink bottle design, as well as an ore sorting machine design.
Design documents for the accordion cup concept list the development time as “confidential,” and the project launch date as “unknown.”
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