FR2493275A1 - Energy-accumulating diaphragm for isolating box - uses two edge-joined sheets to form pocket contg. isolating agent inc ampoule aperture - Google Patents

Abstract

The insulating device is used to preserve objects such as ampoules at a definite temp. It comprises two supple walls which are rigidly connected along their perimeters to form a sealed pocket contg. a heat-accumulating substance. In addn. the two walls are similarly connected along the perimeter of an internal area, the two walls being pierced within this perimeter to permit the passage of an ampoule. The walls may be of PVC vinyl with connections made by HF welding, the internal areas being circular with radial cuts defining like segmental tongues which tend to retain an ampoule in the opening. Panelling so constituted may be used to form floors in an isothermal box, the openings in succeeding floors being offset.

Description

 The present invention relates to desdispositiss accumulator of heat or cooling energy, and an insulated boot 16 using.

 It is known that such heat storage or refrigeration energy storage devices are used when objects have to be stored under predetermined temperature conditions, as is for example the case with vaccines which must be stored at temperatures generally below the temperature. room even during transport, i.e. when it is not possible to use refrigeration cabinets for this purpose.

 Is then used for this purpose insulated boxes or bags in which are placed, in addition to objects to be stored under determined temperature conditions, such heat storage or cooling energy storage devices previously brought to a temperature close to the temperature at which objects should be kept.

 According to a known embodiment, essentially developed for storage at low temperature, the energy storage device is in the form of a tight, flat pocket, defined by two flat walls made of flexible, tight material, joined by their periphery. in a sealed manner, which pocket is filled with an energy-accumulating substance, depending on the calorific or refrigerating case, preferably in the form of a gel or in any other form retaining at least one part of its flexibility; in a particularly convenient embodiment, several pockets are thus assembled at their periphery in a strip which is preferably folded or cut between the pockets, as required, to obtain a device for accumulating heat or cooling energy. '' adapting to the best inside the boot or cooler bag and around the objects to keep.

 These flexible devices are particularly convenient, offering much greater possibilities of adaptation to each particular object case than other devices, for their part, rigid; it nevertheless appeared in use a possibility of improving them in order to further increase their convenience of use and their effectiveness in particular uses.

Thus, it appeared that when, after having placed in a thermo boot a certain number of objects to be stored under the same temperature conditions, with devices accumulating heat or cooling energy of type known in the art. previously brought to the required temperature, to take these objects one by one, or more generally by number less than the number of objects thus conditioned, in a stepwise fashion, and-for example when it comes to getting out of vaccines one by one as and after a round of bites, on the one hand this sampling can disturb a possible initial setting of the objects, and oblige either to recons
more or less easily titrate such a setting on each sample, or to transport thereafter objects without setting, with a risk of breakage and in tott case an unpleasant noise, and on the other hand create thermal imbalances among the objects, the folding of the energy storage device giving rise inside the boot or the cooler bag to independent compartments each of which groups several obits, which tend to gradually return to room temperature each time the corresponding compater is opened in order to collect objects from it, with. limited possibilities of thermal compensation between the compartments thus defined.

 The object of the present invention is to remedy these drawbacks; for this purpose, it is proposed to provide at least one central zone of the pockets with provisions allowing their passage through an object.

It is thus possible, in particular in a preferred embodiment where means are provided for retaining an object thus passing through a pocket, to take several objects without disturbing the ordering of the others, which remain retained in position independently of each other; on the other hand, it becomes possible to superimpose several layers of heat or refrigeration energy storage devices arranged flat, at a distance from each other, each layer receiving objects staggered with respect to objects from neighboring layers, and thus creating compartments between the different layers which, unlike the compartments that can be created with traditional energy storage devices, contain only one area of each object whose remaining area is housed inside another compartment, or even if necessary several other compartments defined in the same way; thus, it can be established inside each object, from one compartment to another, a thermal equilibrium which partially compensates, at the same compartment opened several times, for the loss of heat energy or refrigeration that this compartment undergoes; in other words, the risks of seeing an object brought to a temperature unfit for its
conservation are considerably reduced s.

Be energy storage device
calorific or refrigerating according to the invention, for the conservation of objects under predefined temperature conditions, comprising two flat walls of flexible, waterproof material, joined by their periphery, in a sealed manner, to delimit between
they a tight, flat pocket and a substance that accumulates heat or cooling energy inside said pocket, is characterized in that, in at least one zone located inside said periphery, the two walls are so - Lid tightly along a closed contour, and perforated inside said contour to allow the passage of at least one of said objects.

 According to a preferred embodiment, the device comprises means for retaining the object in the perforation.

The insulated box according to the invention, where we mean by box any rigid or semi-rigid container, is in turn characterized in that Effle comprises several superimposed layers of such devices, arranged flat, at a distance from each other. very, the perforations of the different devices respectively constituting the different layers being staggered from one layer to a layer immediately adjacent to allow the staggered positioning of the objects passing through the perforations of devices corresponding to these two layers
Other characteristics and advantages of the invention will emerge from the description below, relating to a non-limiting mode of implementation, and from the appended drawings which form an integral part of this description.

Figure 1 shows a top view of a heat or refrigeration energy storage device according to the invention, laid flat
Figure 2 shows a view of this device in section along the line Il-Il i Figure 1
FIG. 3 shows a view, in section through a transverse vertical plane, of an isothermal box implementing the device of FIGS. 1 and 2.

 In this example, a refrigerating energy storage device has been produced in accordance with the invention, for keeping the contents of ampoules, for example of injectable solutions, at a temperature generally below ambient temperature, by maintaining these ampoules according to individual and relative positions. constant, but it would naturally not go beyond the scope of the invention on the one hand by producing refrigerating energy storage devices capable of receiving other containers or objects in the same way, and on the other hand by realizing in accordance with the invention of heat energy storage devices.

 In a manner known per se, the refrigerating energy storage device illustrated is in the form of a flexible string 1 of sealed pockets Zlee qe 2a, 2b, 2c, each of which is filled with a refrigerating energy storage substance preferably fluid like for example a gei.

In a manner known per se, the chain 1 is produced by superposition of two strips of a flexible, impermeable material, such as polyvinyl chloride, which is welded in a sealed manner, for example by high frequency welding, of a share along two continuous lines 5 and 6, mutually parallel and parallel to the longitudinal edges 7 and 8
superimposed bands, and secondly following
lines 9 oriented transversely to
longitudinal lines 5 and 6, which they connect, these
weld lines 9 being repeated at regular intervals
tie our on the whole length of the super bands
questions 3 and 4; during this welding, we enclose
between the bars 3 and 4 the substance -accumulatri-
that of cooling energy and, thus, the respective zones of the two strips 3 and 4 situated between the two weld lines 5 and 6 and between two consecutive weld lines 9 define two flat walls of a flat pocket such as 2a, 2b, 2c, containing the substance accumulating refrigeration energy and sealed in a sealed manner at its periphery defined by lines 5 and 6 and by the two consecutive lines 9, constituting an elementary accumulator device.

 It should be noted that the term "weld lines 5, 6, 9, 9 welded strips whose width is small compared to the plan dimensions of the strips 3 and 4, that is to say of the chain 7 of pockets; in a manner known per se, the weld lines 9 constitute articulation zones between two neighboring pockets, due to the flexibility of the bands 3 and 4, a folding of the chain 1 at a pocket is however not excluded in the example illustrated due to the flexibility of the material constituting the bands 3 and 4, and the preferably fluid nature of the substance accumulating cooling energy i- that used.

According to the invention, the two walls of a pocket are tightly secured along a closed contour, in at least one zone situated inside the periphery of the pocket, and perforated inside this outline for autori
the passage of at least one of the objects to be kept
under predetermined temperature conditions.

The tight connection of the two pa
kings along the closed outline can advantageously
be obtained when they are tightly sealed
the periphery of the pocket, that is to say in the example illustrated in Figures 1 and 2 simultaneously with the welding of the two strips 3 and 4 along the lines 5,6,9, and by the same means, ctestàdire for example by high frequency welding especially when the bands 3 and 4 are made of polyvinyl chloride.

 The perforations can be made simultaneously, or be simply started in the form of lines of lower resistance of the material constituting the strips 3 and 4, easy to break when it is desired to make the pocket pass through an object in this area.

 Thus, the pocket 2a has halfway between the two transverse weld lines 9 which define a part of its periphery, respectively near the weld line 5 and near the weld line 6, two contours, for example circular 10a, 11a according to which the strips 3 and 4 which define its walls are welded; preferably, as illustrated, the contours lova, lia do not intersect the weld lines 5,6,9 and are not tangent to them, so that they are completely surrounded by the substance accumulating cooling energy with which the pocket 2a is filled.

 Inside each of the contours lova, lia, the two bands 3 and 4 are cut according to the same pattern which, in the example illustrated, takes the form of cutting lines arranged in a star according to the diameters of the corresponding contour, respectively joua, lia; advantageously, as illustrated, at the two ends of the lines 12a, 13a, located in the immediate vicinity of the corresponding contour, respectively iota, lia, and at the center of this contour, at the intersection of the cutting lines, the two strips 3 and 4 are perforated with a circular orifice which makes it possible to prevent them from being torn when the flexible tabs, respectively 14a and 15a, which are defined in these bands, are removed. two adjacent lines 12a of two adjacent lines 13a for introducing an object through the pocket.

 Advantageously, the strips 3 and 4 are also joined together, for example by high frequency welding, at least along the periphery of the tongues 14a, 15a, that is to say in practice along the lines 12a and 13a, in addition the outline 10a or 11a; they can also be joined over the entire surface of the tongues such as 14a and 15a.

 Thus, the tongues 14a and 15a have an elasticity which, when an object is introduced through the strip by deforming them, then makes it possible to retain this object by applying to it an elastic lateral pressure.

 Naturally, the shape of the contours such as 10a and 11a surrounding the perforations of the pocket 2a, the shape of these perforations itself, as well as the number of these contours and of these perforations may be different from the shapes and number illustrated without so far from the scope of the invention.

Likewise, when the pockets are presented in a chain 1 as illustrated, all the pockets of the same chain can present
laughter of their respective periphery of the contours according to which their walls are welded in etan
che and inside which these walls are perforated, or only some of the rosary pockets have such contours or such perforationa
In the example illustrated in Figures 1
and 2, only the pockets 2a and 2c are thus equipped, the pocket 2c carrying, in the same positions as the contours 10a, 11a with respect to the periphery of the corresponding pocket, contours 10c and 11c identical to the contours 10a and 11a and along which the walls 3 and 4 are sealed; the contours 10c and 17c are identical to the contours 10a and 11a and, inside, rectilinear cut lines, respectively 12c and 13c, oriented along diameters of the corresponding contour and intersecting in a star, offer the possibility of crossing the pocket 2c by objects.

 The pocket 2b could also be thus equipped, as shown in a dashed line, the distribution along the strip of the pockets having inside their periphery a tight connection of their walls according to a closed contour and internal perforations of this outline can vary without departing from the scope of the invention, as well as for raimt mire the shape, dimensions, and position of the closed contours of tight connection and perforations to inside these contours, from one pocket to another or on the same pocket.

 As is clear in particular from Figures I and 2, the tongues such as 14a, 15a, 14c, 15c which delimit between es and with the closed contour, such as lova, lia, Oc, lic, the cutting lines, respectively 12a, 13a, 12c, 13c, constitute a particularly simple, convenient and economical means of retaining in a perforation of the pockets objects to be stored under predetermined temperature conditions.

 Indeed, these tabs have, because there are two thicknesses of material, namely a strip thickness 3 and a strip thickness 4, especially when these two thicknesses are secured to the periphery of the tabs or over the whole of the surface of the latter, an elasticity which, when an object such as a bulb 16 is introduced through a pocket such as the pocket 2c, by spreading the corresponding tongues such as 15c which come to occupy a projecting position on the face of the pocket opposite to the face by which the introduction is made, tends to bring these tabs such as 15c back to their initial position, along a mean plane which is that of the outline such as the corresponding lic, that is to say to apply by their intermediary to an object 16 a lateral force distributed uniformly around the periphery thereof, which ensures that it is held in position; in the example illustrated in Figures 7 and 2, where the object 16 has in its zone passing through the pocket 2c a cylindrical outer periphery of revolution around an axis 18 perpendicular to the mean plane of the pocket 2c and coinciding with that of the contour lic itself circular, and where the i5c tabs are uniformly distributed around the axis 18, these forces have been shown diagrammatically by arrows 17 radial, centripetal with respect to the axis 18.

 Those skilled in the art will easily determine, depending on the average shapes and dimensions of the objects intended to be kept under predetermined temperature conditions and maintained in relative positions also predetermined by means of a strip such as 7, the shape and the dimensions to be given to the contours such as 1Oa, lia, 10c, and lic and to the tongues such as 14a, 15a, i4c, 15c so that the forces applied laterally to the objects, shown diagrammatically by the arrows 17 in the example illus tré, soiet sufficient to hold these objects in position relative to the corresponding pocket.

 FIG. 3 schematically illustrates an insulated boot using a refrigeration energy storage device of the type described with reference to FIGS. I and 2.

 This boot comprises an enclosure 19 in the form of a rectangular parallelepiped, delimited by a container 20 in the form of a rectangular parallelipiped, having upwards an opening closed by a removable cover 21 provided with a handle 22 for gripping the assembly; the container 20 and the cover 21 are lined inside the enclosure 19 with a thermal insulation coating, respectively 23 and 24.

In the enclosure 19 are superimposed, at vertical intervals h approximately equal to half the height H, objects such as 16a, 16b, 16c, 16d, 16e, to be stored under predetermined temperature conditions and in predetermined relative positions , this height H being assumed to be measured vertically on the objects placed in the position in which it is desired to keep them inside the container 20, horizontal sections 7a, 7b, 7c, 7d, 7e of a strip similar to the strip 7 illustrated in
Figures 1 and 2; it will be noted that these sections can be distinct, or be formed by sections of the same strip folded appropriately, each of the sections being connected to the immediately lower section and to the immediately upper section by a section situated respectively at and the other of its ends, preferably bearing against the face of the coating 23 facing the inside of the enclosure 19, respectively at 7f, 7g, 7h, 7i.

 In the example illustrated, each of the sections 7a, 7b1 7c, 7d, 7e corresponds to the three pockets of a neighboring strip and each section 7f, 7g, 7h, 7i has a pocket of this strip, but these numbers could also vary in depending on the shape and dimensions of the container 20, the shape and dimensions of objects such as 16a, 16b, 16c, i6d, 16e, and the dimensions of the pockets of the strip or strips used.

 According to an embodiment not shown, the three pockets constituting the strip section 7b and the three pockets constituting the strip section 7d, separated from the section 7b by the section 7c, receive objects passing through them in the manner described in reference to Figures i and 2, the pockets of the sections 7a, 7c, 7e, 7f, 7g, 7h, 71 not being perforated, or having real or pre-cut perforations but not used.

According to the preferred and illustrated embodiment, however, only the two end pockets of sections 7b and 7d are crossed by objects, respectively 16a, 16b, 16d, 16e, as described with reference to Figures 1 and 2, and only the central pocket of the section 7c is crossed by objects 16c, in the same way; the objects 16a, and 16b rest downwards on the extreme pockets of the sections 7a and their upper part serves as a downward support for the external pockets of the section 7c, on which the objects 16d and 16e rest by their lower part, their upper part will
support leg for the extreme pockets of the 7th section; the objects 16c, for their part, bear downwards on the central pocket of the section 7b and their upper part serves as a support for the central pocket of the section 7d.

 In other words, only the perforations of the strip sections located in staggered rows are used wr rgpot auxp = fordffios ud strip sections immediately adjacent up or down.

Thus, each time an object is removed from the box, other objects are only placed in contact with the ambient air over half their height, only among the compartments defined inside the enclosure. 19 by two neighboring strip sections, that which encloses the upper part of the sampled object to be opened; this results in better maintenance of the objects under the predetermined temperature conditions; it also results from the staggered positioning of the objects as illustrated in the
Figure 3, that is to say the positioning of the respectively upper or lower half of an object whose same compartment as the other half, respectively lower or upper, dwun another object, a temperature balance through the objects from one compartment to the other over the entire height of the enclosure 19; in other words, the provisions adopted make it possible to reduce the influence on the conservation of objects of successive openings and closings of the boot.

Naturally, these 3 ventages would be found in the case of a heat accumulator device produced in accordance with the invention, and of an isothermal box equipped with such a device as described with reference to the
Figure 3.

Claims (10)

 1. Device acc = ul2teur of calorific or refrigerating energy, for the conservation of objects in predetermined conditions of temperature, comprising two flat walls in flexible, waterproof material, joined to their periphery, in a sealed way, to delimit between them a pocket watertight, flat, and a substance that accumulates heat or refrigeration energy inside said pocket, characterized in that, in at least one zone situated inside said periphery, the two walls are sealed along a closed contour, and perforated inside said contour to allow the passage of at least one of said objects.  2. Device according to claim 1, characterized in that it comprises means for retaining the object inside said contour, in the perforation.  3. Device according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the two sides are perforated inside said outline in star lines, defining between them, two by two, and with the outline of the flexible wall tabs .  4. Device according to claim 3, characterized in that the walls are integral with the periphery of a tongue.  5. Device according to claim 3, characterized in that the walls are integral at all points with the tongues.  6. Device according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the  outline is circular.  of the preceding claims, characterized in that the walls are made of polyvinyl chloride.  7. Any device  8. Device according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the joining of the walls in a sealed manner is assumed by high frequency welding.  9. Accu authoring device for heat or cooling energy, for the preservation of objects under predetermined temperature conditions, comprising a band of a plurality of storage devices for elementary heat or cooling energy themselves comprising two flat walls made of material flexible, watertight, integral by their periphery, in a leaktight manner, to delimit between them a sealed, flat pocket and a substance that accumulates heat or refrigeration energy inside said pocket, these elementary arrangements being connected so flexible by said periphery of the pockets, characterized in that at least one of said elementary devices is produced according to any one of the preceding claims.  10. Isothermal box, characterized in that it comprises a superposition of several available sites or sections of device according to any one of the preceding claims, arranged flat, at a distance from each other, the perforations of the various superimposed devices or sections being placed in staggered fashion from a device or section to an immediately adjacent device or section to allow staggered positioning of objects passing through the perforations of these two devices or sections.