Elaboration on Anticipation and Obviousness

US 2661889 A

Patent Title: Thermal Coffee Cup

Being that this patent was filed in 1948, I believe it was a novel technology and therefore not anticipated. I make this statement because the prior art does not exist in a means that would jeopardize the novelty of this idea. 

The patent has one single claim. Interestingly enough, this gives us some insight on how different the patent regulations were 65 years ago. It claims:

In an insulated container jacket, 

the combination which comprises an outer frusto conicalshaped sleeve 

and an inner corrugated lining

having a plurality of open vertically disposed separated channels 

therein with both the upper and lower ends of said channels open, 

and with the inner surface of the lining also frusto conicalshaped, 

and a cup-like frusto conical-shaped container 

the upper and lower ends of which are rolled inwardly 

with a closure permanently secured in the lower end, 

an outer ring having a bead 

with a groove in the inner surface around the upper end of the container 

and a cap secured in the groove of said ring.

The way the patent is claimed leaves great room for patent improvements, which can be observed in the number of patents on thermal sleeves that were filed in the number of decades after.

US 7922031 B1

Patent Title: Insulator sleeve for a beverage container

I believe this patent was non-obvious in many ways: as one who regularly uses thermal sleeves, I had never considered a reusable thermal sleeve. The novelty is further highlighted in making the sleeve clear for convenient use when ordering at coffee shops. This was the first mention of an eco-friendly, smart thermal sleeve.

The first claim states:
An insulating sleeve combination for a frusto-conical beverage cup,
 the cup including an outer peripheral surface, the combination comprising:

an opaque frusto-conical inner sleeve, 

the inner sleeve including an inner surface for engagement with the outer peripheral surface of the cup, 

an outer surface adapted for accepting printed indicia, 

a top edge and a bottom edge, 

wherein the inner sleeve comprises an arcuate section of a paper-based material having a top edge, 

a bottom edge, 

and two side edges, 

the two side edges being fixed to one another and the arcuate section folded to form the frusto-conical inner sleeve;

a frusto-conical outer sleeve, 

the outer sleeve including an inner surface for engagement with at least a portion of the outer surface of the inner sleeve, an outer surface, a top edge, and a bottom edge; 

the outer sleeve having an inside diameter sufficient to allow at least partial insertion of the inner sleeve within the outer sleeve 

such that the inner and outer sleeve are coaxially aligned.

This patent, as opposed to the prior above, is far more detailed. This is precisely why it makes it increasingly difficult to build off of such a patent.