Design Students Raise $300,000 for Coffee Temp Control Invention

Two former Leiheigh University design engineer students have raised $300,000 on Kickstarter to create a product that they say solves a common problem among coffee drinkers — temperature fluctuation.

The two Daves, as they refer to themselves, are now working with Sherrill Manufacturing in Oneida, New York, to crank out the product, known as “Coffee Joulies,” to satisfy pre-orders from the Kickstarter campaign, which at the time was the third largest fundraiser in kickstarter history.

Coffee Joulies are polished stainless steel shells in the shape of oversized coffee beans that the Daves say cool brewed coffee to a drinking temperature of 140 degrees three times more quickly than naturally cooling. Then, the Joulies release some of the energy they’d stored in the cooling to keep the coffee as close to the ideal drinking temperature as possible.

Here’s more from the Coffee Joulies team:

Their polished stainless steel shells are full of a very special phase change material (an ingredient in food) that melts at 140°F. When you put them in your coffee this PCM begins melting, absorbing a LOT of heat in the process and cooling your coffee down much faster than normal.

Where does all that heat go? It’s stored right inside your Coffee Joulies™. When your coffee reaches 140°F (the perfect drinking temperature) the molten PCM begins solidifying again, releasing all that energy back into your coffee to keep it at a comfortable and delicious drinking temperature. The more heat you feed your Joulies, the longer they’ll keep your coffee warm.