Quite often, when I’m in a hotel room, the coffee maker is a single-serving Keurig branded machine, like the one pictured above.
To avoid the mess caused by a distracted traveler forgetting to put a cup or mug under the dispenser, the base where the cup goes has a sensor that can tell if even a light cup is sitting there.
It won’t brew unless you set a cup there. A green light flashes to get your attention next to the “PLACE CUP” letters.
When you set a cup there, the green light stops flashing and the blue “BREW” button starts flashing blue.
The machine in action:
You probably don’t want to circumvent this mistake-proofing design by pressing down on the base with your finger instead of placing a cup or mug. I haven’t tested this and you might burn yourself with hot water.
But I love this example because it’s more effective than putting a warning label that says, “DON’T BREW WITHOUT A CUP IN PLACE.”
The design probably adds a little cost. But I bet hotels are willing to pay a little more for a coffee machine that’s less likely to get the carpet wet.
Google says, “The Keurig K130 coffee maker is available for between $65 and $299.99.” This website has it for $201, which is more than I would have guessed, given that a Keurig single-cup coffee maker for home use starts at about $69.99 at Amazon.
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