Alcohol, the Mother of Invention?
Per this recent report from MSNBC, a Washington inventor named Josh Springer has invented a machine and cup system that allows one to fill a beer cup upside down. The invention includes a thin magnet that covers a hole at the base of the beer cup. When placed on the dispenser, the magnet is raised and the beer flows into the cup through the hole. The magnet is attracted to a metal rim at the cup’s base and, when the cup has been filled, seals the hole at the base of the cup. A Youtube video of the system in operation can be seen below.
The system allows one to impressively fill up to at least 56 beer cups per minute, as shown in the a clip at the inventor’s website here.
More information on the inventor and his company, Grinon Industries, including further videos of the invention in operation, can be found here.
Anticipate This!™ | Patent and Trademark Law Blog 
This invention has had a lot of publicity around the world but the general idea is known since at least 2007 – see US Patent Application US 2010/0043911 A1 of 28 Feb 2007 by Charles Russel of Ireland – it is also available on the Esp@cenet Patent Database. There are also other patents / applications although there may be differences in the manner in which the objective of filling a beer vessel from the bottom is achieved.
Generally one may not patent the object of an invention but one may patent the particular or exact means of achieving the objective + equipment for doing so.
Stuart Fox – Bondi Beach Australia
But what if you want a head on your beer? And are the special cups needed for use with this machine recyclable?
From the videos, it would appear that the target customer of this product is the mass seller at sporting events, concerts, etc. Thus, the disposable plastic cups.
I would, though, like to see how it handles a Guinness. I imagine putting a swirl in the loading apparatus would produce a head in any beer/ale, but am curious about that particular product.