US1299175A

US1299175A - Refrigerator.

Info

Publication number: US1299175A
Application number: US15716317A
Authority: US
Inventors: Gustav J Gruendler
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1917-03-24
Filing date: 1917-03-24
Publication date: 1919-04-01
Anticipated expiration: 1936-04-01

Description

(5.1. GRUENDLER.

REFRIGERATOR.

AI'PLIcATIoN FILED MAII.24,I9I1.

Patented Apr. 1, 1919.

2 SHEETS-SHEET l .1. GHUENDLER.

REFRIGEHATOR.

APPLICATION man MAR.24. |911.

Patented Apr.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

Wis/77767770516.

UNITED sTATEs PATENT onirica.

GUSTV Jf. GRUENDLER, 0F ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI.

REFRIGERATOR.

To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, GUs'rAv J. GRUENDLER, a citizen of the United States, residing in St. Louis and the State of Missouri, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Refrigerators, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact specification, reference being had to/the accompanying drawings, which form a part thereof.-

My invention relates to refrigerators in whichthe cooling is effected by cold air which is cooled by means of-ice or, preferably, a mixture of ice and salt placed in a suitable container with which the air is brought in contact, and then the air is made to enter suitable pipes by which the cold air I is led to different parts oftherefrigerator.

My invention relates more particularly to refrigerators which have connected to them and forming a part thereof, a display case in which meats and foods are placed for display as well as for keeping.

The object of my invention is to provide in connection with a refrigerator and especially a refrigerator having attached thereto a display case, meansl whereby currents of cold air may be made to travel from the refrigerator to the desired points in the display case; and a further object of my in vention is to provide means whereby the water resulting from the melting of the refrigerating material, ice or, preferably, a mixture of ice andy salt, may be utilized to aid in effecting the cooling of the air circulated through the display case.

My invention is fully shown in the accompanying drawings where similar letters are used to designate similar parts. Figure 1 is a horizontal section along the line 11 of Fig. 2; Fig. 2 is a vertical sectional view showing the interior arrangement of -t-he refrigerator; Fig. 3 is a horizontal section.,A

looking upward, along the line 3-3 of Fig.

2; Fig; 4 is a vertical section along the line 4 4 of Fig. 1; Fig. 5 is a vertical section along the line 5--5 of Fig. l; and Fig; 6 is a vertical section along the line 6-6 of Fig. 1.

Referring to the figures, 1 is the casing of the refrigerator, which is preferably made of wood and which has its walls filled with insulating material to prevent heat from enter- Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Apr. 1, 1919.

l `Application filed March 24, 1917. Serial No. 157,163.

windows whereby persons may see the meats and foods exposed in the interior of that part of the refrigerator which serves as a display case'. 2 is the refrigerator chamber in which is placed a suitable container A for receiving ice or a mixture of broken ice and salt. 3 is a suitable display case in which meat and foods may e placed, and which is provided with suitab e windows. 4: is a fan housing. The container A is preferably lprovided with dependent legs B having their lower ends open, but provided with cross bars C which prevent the pieces of ice from dropping out of the legs while allowing water or brine, resulting from the melting of the ice, to drain away. D is a tank adapted to receive the brine from the container A, and which is provided with a screen E by which will be caught any small pieces of ice that'may drop from the legs B. T he tank D isprovided with one or more overflow pipes F, each of which. discharges into a header G which is connected by means of suitable tubes I to a second header H. This second header H is provided with an overiiow pipe J by means of which water is `discharged therefrom into the header Kl which is connected by suitable tubes M to a header L. In the exemplification of my invention shown in the drawings there are two headers G and two headers K, each provided with a suitable companion header, H and L, respectively. Each pair of headers G and H or K and L, with their connecting tubes, form a section. It is evident that there may be as 'many of these sections as are necessary or desirable and they may be arranged side by side or in tandem as shown. Inside of each of the tubes I and M there is provided an air tube I1 and M1, respectively. When the sections are in place the left hand end of each vof the tubes I, register with the right hand end of a tube M1, so as to make a joint whereby the two tubes are connected so as to allow air to pass from one to the other.

Each of the tubes M1 is connected 'by suitable i vthe display case, and each of these tubes S is provided with a suitable damper c byl means of which the flow of air may be regulated. It is understood that'thetubes S are preferably built up in the sections as shown in the drawings, so that they may be easily taken apart and out of the refrigerator for cleaning purposes. rll`he right hand end of each of the tubes l, register with and connect by means of a slip-joint, to one of the tubes Q which pass through the lower part of the tank D and which opens into the fan chain ber R. lin order that the different sections may be easily connected to one another or disconnected, the joints, by which the air tubes of one are connected to the air tubes in another, are formed as shown in section in Fig. l. That is, each joint is formed by enlarging the end of one tube as indicated at b so that the end a of the connecting tube may be slipped into the enlargement. A similar slip-joint is preferably provided for connecting the tubes Q, to the fan chamber R. S, indicates tubes extending through upper parts of the container A. T is a fan connected to and operated by the motor U which is adjustably supported on the stand V which is carried by the shelf X. W is an air passage through which air enters the fan housing from the refrigerator and show case. The motor U is, preferably, an electric motor and is connected to a suitable source of supply of electricity by means of wires, not shown, and suitable switches are provided whereby the operation of the motor may be controlled.

Broken ice or, preferably, a mixture of broken ice and salt is placed inthe container and the fan set in motion. Air is drawn from the show case to the refrigerator chainber 2 where it is made to come in contact with the exterior `walls of the container and the legs B, and also the interior walls of the tubes S, and thereby is cooled. The air passes from the fan through the tubes Q, l, and M1, into the tubes S, and by these latter are discharged at different points into the display case. The brine and cold water resulting from the vmelting of the ice in the container A enters the tank D where it surrounds the pipes Q, and then overiiows into the header G and fills the section of which this header is a part and surrounds the air tubes l1.l When the header H ,hasbeen filled, the cold water overflows into the header K and fills the section of which K is a part and surrounds the tubes M1. When the header L is filled, the water rove'rliows through the pipe N into the trap N, and from this it passes away through the drain pipe D. During lthe passage of the air through the tubes Q, l, and M, the air is cooled by the action of the cold water which surrounds these tubes, and thus the full refrigerating edect of the cold water is used in cooling the air. The amount of air made to pass through the tubes in a given time may be regulated by the dampers c or by regulating the speed of the fan. After the mesme moved out of position on the shelf X so as to leavethe entrance to the chamber R open for the free admission of air, and then circulation will continue through the pipes for several hours. In this way the amount of electricity required to operate the fan may i be kept at a minimum.

Iprefer to provide the container A, the tank D, and the headers U and L with suitable drain cocks P, so that when it is desired to clean the apparatus all the water therein may be drained out. lt is especially desirable to drain the water from' the tank D and the sections when. it becomes necessary to remove them, because otherwise the weight of the water in them would make these parts difficult to handle.

I do not intend to confine myselfto the exact proportions of apparatus shown in the drawings nor to the precise arrangement of details, since it is evident that these may be changed within wide limits without departing from the spirit of my invention.

What l claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is: l. A refrigerator comprising a casing, a container for ice and salt, a plurality of sections arranged in tandem and adapted to receive brine from said container, each of said sections having two headers connected by one or more double tubes, each double tube comprising an inner and an outer tube, said outer tube connecting the adjacent walls of said headers and said inner tube eXtending through said headers, means whereby the inner tubes of one section are connected to the inner tubes of its adjacent sections so as to aord a continuous passage for air through said sections.

2. A refrigerator comprising a casing, a container for ice and salt, a tank adapted to receive brine from said container, a section adapted to receive brine from said tank, one or more air tubes extending through said tank, one or more l air tubes extending through said section, and means whereby the said tubes through said section are connected to the said tubes through said tank so as to aHord a continuous passage for air through said tank and said section.

3. A refrigerator comprising a casing, a v

containerfor ice and salt, a tank adapted to receive brine from said container, a plural- .ity of sec-tions arranged in tandem and adapted to receive brine from said tank, one

-for airfthrough. said tankfand said sections.

4. refrigerator comprising a casing', a

4 container for ice and, salt, a tank adapted to receive brine from said container, a section fan whereby air is made to circulate through.

said tubes. v

5. A refrigerator comprising a casing, a container for iceand salt, a tank adapted to` receive brine from said container, a section adapted to receive brine from said tank, one or more air tubes extending through said tank, one or more air tubes extending through said section, means whereby the,

said tubes through said section are connectved to the said tubes through said tank so as to aEord a continuous passage for air through said tank and said section, a fan whereby air is made to circulate through said tubes,l and means whereby the flow of air through said tubes is regulated.

'6.' A refrigerator comprising a casing, a

container for ic and salt, a tank adapted to receive brine from said container, a plurality of sections arranged in tandem and adapted to receive brine from said tank, one or more air tubes extending through said tank, one or more air tubes extending' i through each section, means whereby the said tubes through said sections are connected to one another and to the said tubes in sald tank so as to .aord a continuous passage for air through said tank and saidv sections,` and a fan whereby air is made to circulate through said tubes.

7. A refrigerator comprising a casing, aA

container for ice and salt, a tank adapted to receive brine from said container, a' plurality ofl sections arranged in tandem and adapted to receive brine from said tank, one or more airtubes extending through said tank, one or more air tubes extending through each section, means whereby the said tubes through said sections are connected to one another and to the said tubes in said tank so as to aford a continuous 'passage for air through said tank and said sections, a fan whereby air is made to circu-v late through said air tubes, and means whereby the flow of air through said tubes is regulated.

8. A refrigerator comprising a casing, a container for ice and salt adapted to allow a circulation of air through the upper part thereof in a substantially horizontal dlrection, one or more air tubes arranged in a substantially horizontal position near the bottom of said casin and adapted to be cooled by contact with brine from said container, and means whereby the air in said casing is caused to circulate in one direction through the upper part of said con-- tainer and in the opposite direction through said air tubes.

9. A refrigerator comprisinga casing inclosing a compartment for food and a refrigerant chamber whose top 1s on a higher level than that of said compartment, a container for ice and salt in said chamber having two opposite sides spaced from the walls of said chamber` so as to form passages for the circulation of air between the walls of said container and said chamber, means whereby a circulation of air is allowed from one of said passages to the other through the `lpp'er part fof said container, and one or more air tubes adapted to be cooled by brine from said container and arranged in a substantially horizontal position near the bottom of said casing and in such relation with respect to said container 'that the circulation of air through said tubes is in a direction opposite to that through the upper part of said container. A

' 10. A refrigerator comprising a casing inclosing a compartment lfor food and a refrigerant chamber whose top is on a higher level than that of said compartment, la container for ice and salt, means whereby a circulation of air in a substantially hori- 'zontal direction is allowed through said container at a level above that of the top of said compartment, one or more air tubes adapted to be cooled by brine from said container'and arranged in a substantially horizontal position near the bottom of said case and in such relation with respect to said container that the circulation of air through said tubes is in a direction opposite to that through the upper4 part of said container.

11. A refrigerator comprising a casing, a

`container for, ice and salt, said container being 'so constructed and arranged as to allow a circulation of a1r 1n a substantially horizontal direction throu h the u per part Ithereof at a level above t at of t e top of the part of said refrigerator in which food is placed, one or more air tubes adapted to be cooled by brine from said container and arranged in a substantially horizontal position near the bottom of said casing and in such relation with respect to said container that the circulation of air through said tubes is in a direction opposite to that through the upper Vpart of said container.

12. A refrigerator comprisingacasin a container for ice and salt adapted to al ow a circulation of air through the upper part thereof ina substantially horizontal direction, one or more air tubes arranged in a substantially horizontal position near the bottom of said casing and adapted to. be cooled by contact with brine from said container, and a fan whereby air is made to circulate in one direction through the upper part of said container and in an opposite direction through said air tubes,

iso

13. A refrigerator comprising l a casing inclosing a compartment for food and a refrigerant chamber whose top. is on a higher level than that of said compartment, a container for ice and salt in said chamber having two opposite sides spaced from the walls of said chamber so as to form passages for the circulation of air between the walls of said container and said chamber, means whereby a circulation of air Ais allowed from one of said passages to the other through the upper part of said container, one or more air tubes adapted to be cooled 'by brine from said container and arranged in a substantially horizontal position near the bottom of said casing, and a fan whereby air is made to circulate in one direction through the upper part of said container and in an opposite direction through said air tubes.

14. A refrigerator comprising a casing inclosing a compartment for food and a refrigerant chamber whose top is on a higher levelthan that of said compartment, a container 4for ice and salt in said chamber, means whereby a circulation of air in a substantially horizontal direction is allowed through said container at a level above that Legame of the top of said compartment, one or more air tubes adapted to be cooled by brine from said container and arranged in a substantially horizontal position near the bottom of said casing, and afan whereby aill is made to circulate through the upper part of said container in one direction and through said air tubes in the opposite di rection.

15. A refrigerator comprising a casing, a container for ice and salt, said container being so constructed and arranged as 'to allow a circulation of air in a substantially horizontal direction through the upper part thereof at a level above that of the to of the part of said refrigerator in which food is placed, one or more air tubes adapted to be cooled by brine from said container` and arranged in a substantially horizontal position near the bottom of said casing, and -a fan whereby air is made to circulate in one direction through the upper part of said container and in an opposite direction through said tubes.

In witness whereof I have signed my name to this specification.

eUsTAv J. GRUENDLER.