Smart Travel Mug for Hot and Cold Beverages

Abstract

Disposable cups tend to be a viable solution as a packaging method for hot or cold beverages, but they have adverse environmental impact. They represent a concern for consumers due to the excessive use of trees during production of paper cups and non-biodegradability of plastic cups. The mobility and convenience of reheating the beverage in a microwave oven, for example, encourages the use of disposable cups. In this project, an environmentally-friendly solution is presented to reduce the use of plastic and paper cups that harm the environment. Compared to other existing products, this device maintains a desired temperature of a hot or cold beverage for extended periods of time using insulation and power from a thermoelectric cooler. The proposed design consists of a double-wall mug with outer steel and inner copper cylinders. The base of the copper cylinder is integrated with a thermoelectric cooler and a control system. The development of the device is governed by the performance of preserving desired temperature of beverages for longer times compared to conventional mugs and containers. Testing methods consist of thermal FEA simulation, CFD simulation and physical prototype testing showing a temperature difference of 30 °C with the added thermal system to the mug.