US1420088A - Butcher's ice box - Google Patents

Description

E. FRIEDRICH.

BUTCHERS ICE BOX. APPLICATION map MAY 28. 19 21.

a h w 9 R'C E 1 0 N ,H m w M f e w W mm J Jw M3 E n E. FRIEDRICH.

BUTCHERS ICE BOX.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 28, 1921.

Patented June 20, 1922.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

4 BY U/Lw ORNEYS E. FRIEDRICH.

BUTCHERS ICE BOX.

APPLICATION FILED MAY28, 1921.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

\ 4; v INVENTOR AT CEW Patented June 20, 1922.

LNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

EDWARD FRIEDRICH, OF SAN ANTONIO,

BUTCHEBS ICE BOX.

To all "whom it may concern.

it lanown that I, EDWARD FRIEDRICH, a citizen of the United States, residing at flan Antonio, in the county of Eexar and FZ'ate of Texas, have invented arrow and nproved Butchefis Ice Box, of which the hearing is a specification. 'lhis invention generically comprehends a new and effective method oi refrigeration, in which the parts are more especially designed l'or directing the circulation of air in a n'nctirally dry state to ensure the maintenance of uniform temperature within too container or goods holding compartment and in which the said parts are especially well adapted tor use in connection with butchers ice boxes, counter display retl'rigerators or refrigerator cars.

Another object of my invention is to provide a salt brine refrigerating means for bi'ilchers i e boxes, display counter re- .iir' geral'ors and the like, in which the cooled air is adapted tor being constantly maintained in circulation within the goods container compartment, in a substantially dry state, and the air, as the temperature thereof raise-1,. owing to its contact with the material within the refrigerating chamber, is can 1 ad to pass oaclt to the ice chest for re-cooling and so circulated that a much lower re'lrigerating temperature. with less consumption of ice, is had than is possible in the regular forms of butcher and counter display refrigerators now in general use.

ln its more completenature, my invention embodies in a refrigerator ot the general type stated. (K-Tl'tfiln teatu res of construction and combination oi parts especially designed for a more economical use of ice for cooling the goods within the holding compartment or chamber of the refrigerator and tor establishing a constant circulation of the cold air through the ice container and the goods compartment tor repeatedly reusing the same air without fresh air from the out :i de oi the refrigerator other than that which naturally finds its way into the rei'rigerator.

With other minor objects in view, all of which will hereinafter be "fully stated, my invention consists of an improved construction of but/chefs ice box or refrigerator that embodies the novel features of construction and detailed arrangement of parts Specification of Letters- Patent. Patented June 20, 1922 Application filed May 28, 192 1.

$eria1 H0. 473,425.

fully set out in the following description thereof, specifically mentioned in the appended claims and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, which show a preferred development of my invention, the details of which may be varied or modified to suit the special application of my invention in connection with the different types of butchers ice box construction that constitutes the,

essential feature of this invention.

Figure 52 is a longitudinal section of the refrigerator, the air circulation being in dicated by arrows.

lligure 3 is a horizontal section taken on the line 3-3 of Figure 2.

Figure l is an inverted perspective view of the bottom or" the ice container and the air cooling chest.

l igure is a detail perspective view, parts being in section, of the water draining base that cooperates with the ice container and the air cooling chest, the same being shown in its operative position on the drain platform located at one end of the refrigerator housing l igure 6 is an inverted detail perspective view of one ot the individual drain trough units.

i igure 7 is a detail section that illustrates the cooperative relation of the perforated bottoms oi? the ice holding compartments and the brine drip retaining troughs, hereinatter explained.

in. the drawings I have shownmy invention as embodied in connection with a butch e1"s ice box or coiniter display refrigerator, the same being shown as an elongated body coniiposed of the usual panelled opposite sides 1-1 and opposite ends 2--2, a bottom 3 and a top 41, the construction of the walls of the said body, in practice, hav ing the usual insulation features, whereby to retain as much cold air as possible inside of the refrigerator, it being understood that the refrigerator body or housing construction constitutes, per se, no part of my invention, which is confined to the peculiar construction and arrangement of the ice chest and the air cooling means hereinafter specifically stated and best illustrated in Figures 2, 3 and 4 of the drawings.

At one end the housing has a doorway 5 and near that end opposite the doorway the housing top has a hinged lid 6 that covers an opening 60 in the top for gaining access to the ice chest, as will presently further appear.

7'7 designate. hanger racks located along the opposite sides of the goods containing compartment :12 of the refrigerator, as is clearly shown in Figure 2 of the drawings, by reference to which it will also be ob served, at that end opposite the doorway of the housing, is located the ice chest and air cooling means, the special construction of which forms the essential feature of this invention, as before stated.

The combined ice chest and air cooler 8 which, in practice, is made up of heavy sheet metal, includes opposite end walls 80. a back wall 81, and an open top 82 through which the ice is placed into the chest and which is normally closed by a removable cover 83 adapted for being readily lifted out through the lid covered opening 60 in the housingtop when the lid 6 is thrown back.

The ice chest, the construction of which is best shown in Figures 2. 3 and 4:, is composed of a substantially rectangular shaped sheet metal body that includes a series of alternately positioned. air chambers 4L and ice containers 9, and the said chambers L and containers 9 extend vertically the full height of the chest body, as is clearly shown in Figure 2.

The aforesaid alternately positioned air chambers 4. and ice. containers 9 are substantially wedge shaped in horizontal section and the said air chambers and ice containers are further alternately disposed by reason of the larger ends of the air chambers 4;. which open through the inner wall of the chest body, being located adjacent the smaller closed ends of the ice containers 9 whose larger ends are closed by the back'wall S1. and are disposed between the smaller ends of the air chambers 4. as will be readily understood by reference to Figure 3. I

Referring now-more particularly to Fig; ure 4 of the drawings it will be observed the substantially wedge shaped {ilr spaces or chambers 4;, whose smaller ends terminate at the back wall '8]. of the chest 8, alternate with a like-shaped set of vertically disposed ice compartments 9 which extend the full height of the said chest 8, the said ice holding compartments having their larger ends adjacent the back wall 8]. and next the smaller ends of the air compartments and the smaller ends of the said ice container compartments are closed as at 90 and located between the larger ends of the said air cooling compartments 4.

The several sets of alternately arranged air cooling compartments and ice holding chambers may be formed in any suitable way, but on account of economy of structure and rigidity of the parts, I prefer to form each air chamber of a single sheet of gal vanized iron that is bent into a substantially wedge shaped in horizontal section, whose smaller end is soldered, or otherwise rigidly secured to the pendent front member 10 of the housing 8.

The spread ends of each metal sheet of which the icecompartments are formed are turned in at right angles to form flanges 11 and these flanges are soldered, or otherwise made fast, to the back wall 81 and the top of the spaces between each adjacent pair of substantially wedge shaped ice holding compartments is closed by a like member i l,

the several members l l constituting the top for the air compartments 4: located between each pair of ice compartments and which open through the front wall of the combined ice holding and air cooling chest, as shown.

The air receiving and cooling spaces are each divided into a tier of vertically aligned air spaces, by the horizontal division plates 15, which are so shaped that they extend back the full length of the said air spaces, from the open front end of the chest to the back wall 81 thereof, and the'said wall constitutes the back end of all of the tiers of air cooling spaces. The back wall. 81, as is clearly shown in Figure 2, has a series of air passages 85 which. in the practical development of my invention are preferably 1% inches in diameter.

The divisions 15. before referred to, incline downwardly from the back wall to the front open end of the chest for reasons presently explained. i

The lowermost tier of air spaces or compartments and the ice compartments are closed by a series of plates 16 which are bounded at their opposite sides by pendent vertical flange projections 16 whereby to provide a series of alternately and inwardly directed. fan shaped grooves 17 along the bottom of the chest 8. the alternate ones of the bottom members 16 that constitute the closures for the. ice chamber each having a series of apertures 18 through whicl'i the drippings from the ice compartment drop.

The back ends of the grooves on the under side of the chest 8 are closed by the bottom edge of the back wall 81, as shown, and at the opposite ends the bottom of the chest has bifurcated members 202(l which are provided for interlockably engaging stout pipe supports 21-21 for sustaining the bottom of the chest above a supplemental bottom, the

construction of which is best shown in Figure 5. and whose purpose will be hereinafter stated. in the practical use of my construction of refrigerator so far as described, the ice chest is filled with crushed ice and salt, and in a refrigerator proportioned along the lines shown in the drawings, 8 pounds of salt are recuiired for each 100 pounds of ice, the latter being supplied in a crushed condition, through the opening in the to ll of the housing and into the open top of the chest 8 the ice holding compartments are filled and the tops thereof and the tops of the air spaces or compartments are cov ered with ice.

The supplemental bottom before referred to consists of a stout pipe frame which includes a series of standards 25 that connect at their upper ends with a rectangular shaped. horiaontal'frame portion. the end supports 2l--2l of which constitute the supports engaged by the bifurcated members 20 on the bottom. of the chest 8. as before mentioned.

The several standards 25 also serve as supports for transverse front and back rods 526-27. the purpose "of which will be best understood. by reference to Figures :3 and 6. which show sheet metal bottom members 32-32 on the top of which are secured fan shaped troughs 33 which are separated by like air shaped passages 134-434. the troughs i553 and the air passages 3 1- alternatingr. the troughs 33 being; adapted for cooperating with the apertured bottoms of the ice compartments and into which the drippingrs from the said compartments gather and overflow at 35 into a transversely disposed trough 36 common to all of the troughs and which is formed in the inner end of a platform 37 upon which the supplemental bottom is supported when the parts are assembled for use. as clearly shown in Figure 2.

The sheet metal bottom members 32 incl ine downwardly from the back to the front end to cause the dripping's to pass out over the front ends of the trough 33 into the trough 36. before referred to. and which discharges through an oiftake pipe 38 that passes to the outside of the housing. as shown.

From the foregoing; description taken in connection with the drawings. the complete construction. the manner of use and the adrantages of my improved form of refrigerator will be readily apparent to those familiar with the use and the manufacture of refrigerators of the general type shown and described.

By reason of alternately arranging the air and ice chambers 4t and 9 in the manner de scribed and best shown in Figure 3. that is. with the smaller or contracted ends of the air chambers 4 adjacent the larger ends of the ice chambers 9. the air that enters the chambers 4. through the apertures in the back wall 81.. at the smaller ends of the said chambers e. spreads as it passes to the front end of the said chambers l and is thus subjected to constantly cooling action as it circulates over and between the adjacent iced walls of the pairs of opposite ice compartments 9, it being understood the warm air within the goods holding compartment of the reii'rigerator is constantly kept in motion and drawn back over the ire chest (see arrows on Figure 2) down back of the wall 81 and constantly returns through the ice chest into the compartment X. the said air being recooled as it passes through the spaces 4f. the arrangement of the parts stated tending to effect a continuous circulation and recooling; of the air and in such manner that a practical refrigeration of the articles within the goods holding; compartment X is provided for.

Fiu'thermore. after the air passes into the storage spa-"e that the compartment in which the perishables are kept) there must be a system to again bring the cold air. which eventually gets warmer. back through the ice tank chambers for recoolingr. As. naturally. the warm air rises tmvard the ceil ing of the housing. the storage compartment equipped with a supplemental or blind top 40 which extends horizontally from the top of the chest 8 to near the doorway end of the housing. This blind top l0 provides a return warmed air route for the air within the storage compartment and thereby causes the warmed air to take the course indicated by the arrows on Figure 2 from the storage chamber over and arour d the back and side walls of the chest 8 and to return directly through the air passages 85 in the back wall 81 of the chest. through the cold air spaces t, the downwardly inclined. horizontal partition causing the air. that returns through the apertures 85 at the back or contracted ends of the air chambers 4-. to pass through separate horizontal ducts to the compartment as indicated by the arrows on Fig.2- ure 2. by reference to which it will be noticed that such of the return air that may pass down to the bottom of the back of the chest 8 returns through the supplemental air channels ill-434- at the bottom back into the storage chamber thereby creating a continuous circulation through the interior of the refrigerator.

lt should be mentioned that in my constrnction of refrigerator only cracked ice mixed with 8 per cent of salt is placed in the ice spaces of the ice chest and air cooling casing and the brine as it collects in the said ice spaces drips through. the perforations in the bottoms of the said ice holders or saaces.

The perforations in the bottoms of the air circulation as the said air passes from the back end of the ice chest under the ice chest and returns to the 'efrigerating compartment. It is a provcn fact that ice simply laying flatwise on a platform in ice box will not produce cold dry air, By my system, as before explained and shownin the drawings, the warmer up draft air and the colder down dra'l t air carried through the refrigerator, as hereinbefore explained, produces a cold dry air, instead of a saturated or wet air, as is usual in refrigerator systems in which the air is passed directly over the ice.

In my construction o1 refrigerator suliicient fresh air supply is maintained. by air sucked in through the cracks around the top cover 6, which latter fits the opening 60 loosely.

Vi hat I claim is Tl. Tn a butchers ice box of the character stated, a combined ice holding and air cooling chest having a series of: alternately disposed vertical spaces, one set of the said spaces forming air chambers, one end ot each of which. chambers is open the toll height thereof, the other end of which has a series or air passages whereby to provide for the tree circulation of the air, in horizontal direction, throughthe said air chambers, the other set of chambers extending substantially the full height ot the chest and open at the top'ot the chest for the reception of ice, the said ice and air chambers being substantially wedge shaped in horizontal section and alternately disposed, relatively to each other, whereby the wide ends of the air chambers are disposed between the narrow ends of adjacent pairs of ice chambers and the wider ends of the ice holders are likewise located between the narrow ends of adjacent pairs 01" air chain here, the bottom of the ice holders having apertures, a platform on which the chest rests, supports tor holding the bottom of the chest above the plattornn'aml alternately disposed sets of troughs and air spaces located on the platform under the troughs and air spaces being substantially wedge shaped in horizontal planes.

2. In a refrigerator, a combined ice and air cooling chest consisting of a series of alternately disposed vertical chambers, one

air and ice chambers of the chest, the said 1 ,aaopes set of the said chambers forming air spaces that are in open communication with the storage compartment and the other set of chambers being open through the top of the chest and constituting the ice and salt receptacles, the storage compartment having provision for delivering the ice and salt into the said ice chambers, the said ice and air chambers being substantially wedge shaped in horizontal section, the airchamhers being disposed with their wide ends in communicationwith the s orage compartment, the ice chambers having their wide ends disposed between the narrow or innermost ends of the said ice chambers and their narrow and closed ends located be tween the wide ends of the air chambers, the said several vertically disposed air chamhers being each divided by a Series of horizontal division members that incline from the inner or rear ends of the said air chambers to the front end of said chambers, the bottom of the ice chambers having drip apertures through which the brine that accumulates in the said ice chambers escapes, and means for collecting the brine that passes from the gutters and discharging the same externally of the refrigerator.

In a refrigerator, a combined ice and air cooling chest consisting of a series of alternately disposed vertical chambers, one set of the said chambers forming air passages that are in constant open communication with the Storage compartment and the other set of chambers being open through the top of the chest and constituting provision {or delivering the ice and salt into the said ice chambers, the said ice chambers and air passages being substantially Wedge shape in horizontal section, the air chamhers being disposed with their ends in com munic-ation with the storage compartment, the ice chambers having their wide ends disposed between the narrow or innermost ends of the said ice chambers and their narrow and closed ends located between the Wide ends of the air chambers, said ice chambers having brine outlets in their bottoms, a supplemental bottom on which the chest is supported having alternately disposed substantially wedge shape passages and like shaped troughs, the troughs being adapted to receive the drippings from the ice chambers and the passages serving as air ducts through which portions oil the rccooled air passes into the storage compartment, and a platform upon which the supplemental bottom rests, the said platform having a transverse trough into which all of thedrip collecting troughs overflow, and an ofttake from the said trough through the Wall of the refrigerator housing.

4L. In a refrigerator of the character described, a housing having a storage compartment provided with a doorway at one end, a combined ice holding and air cooling chest adjacent the other end of the said compartment, the lopoi the said chest being disposed below the top of the housing, the latter having a door closed opening abc c the chest, a supplemental inside top projected forwardly from the top of the chest to near the door end of the storage campartment whereby to provide a warm air passage under the ceiling of the housing and above and beyond the chest, the said chest having alternately disposed ice and air spaces extending the full height thereof, the air spaces being closed at the top, bottom, the sides, and. having the inner ends open the full height to the storage compartment, the ice spaces being open at the top for the reception of the ice and salt and supported above the bottom of the storage compartment, the bottom of the ice spaces having drip outlets that also con stitute brine passages, all being arranged sub stantially as shown, whereby the warm air as it accumulates within the storage com-- partment and naturally rises to the ceiling is drawn off over the supplemental top, over the top and back and under the chest back in a re-cooled condition into the storage compartment.

5. In a refrigerator of the character stated, a combined ice holder and air cooler comprising a sheet metal body including opposite sides and a back wall that merges with the said sides, a series of partitions each formed of a sheet metal member bent upon itself into a substantially wedge shape in horizontal section. the ends of the opposing bent portions of the partitions being fixedly attached to the back wall of the metal body and extended from the lower edge to near the top edge of the opposite sides of the aforesaid body whereby to provide alternate substantially wedge shaped vertical ice receivers and intervening vertically extended air spaces, the latter opening through the front of the combined ice holder and air cooling body, the back wall of the said body having passages that open into the aforesaid vertical air spaces, horizontal partitions in the air spaces that divide such spaces into a series of horizontal ducts, the lowermost one of said partitions constituting a closed bottom for the air spaces and perforated partitions that constitute the bottoms for the ice holding spaces.

6. In a refrigerator of the character stated, a combined ice holder and air cooler comprising a sheet metal body including opposite sides and a back wall that merges with the said sides, a series of partitions each formed of a sheet metal member bent upon itself into a substantially wedge shape in horizontal section, the ends of the opposing bent portions of the partitions being fixedly attached to the back wall of the metal body and extended from the lower edge to near the top edge of the opposite sides of the aforesaid body whereby to provide alternate substantially wedge shaped vertical ice receivers and intervening vertically extended air spaces, the latter opening through the front of the combined ice holder and air cooling body, the back wall of the said body having passages that open into the aforesaid vertical air spaces, horizontal partitions in the said air spaces that divide such spaces into a series of horizontal ducts, the lowermost oneof said partitions constituting a closed bottom for the air spaces, perforated partitions that constitute the bottoms for the ice holding spaces, the lower edges of the bent portions extending below the bottom horizontal partitions of the ice holding and air spaces to thereby provide channels or passages under the said ice holding and cool ing spaces.

7. In a refrigerator of the character stated, a combined ice holder and air cooler comprising a sheet metal body including opposite sides and, a back wall that merges with the said sides, a series of partitions each formed of a sheet metal member bent upon itself into a substantially wedge shape in horizontal section, the ends of the opposing bent portions of the partitions being fixedly attached to the back wall of the metal body and extended from the lower edge to near the top edge of the opposite sides of the aforesaid body whereby to provide alternate substantially wedged shaped vertical ice receivers and intervening vertically extending air spaces, the latter opening through the front of the combined ice holder and air cooling body, the back wall of the said body having passages that open into the aforesaid vertical air spaces, horizontal partitions in the said air spaces that divide such spaces into a series of horizontal ducts, the lowermost one of said partitions constituting a closed bottom for the air spaces, perforated partitions that constitute the bottoms for the ice holding spaces, the lower edges of the bent portions extending below the bottom horizontal partitions of the ice holding and air spaces tothereby provide chann els or passages under the said ice holding and cooling spaces, a platform having alternately disposed air passages and fluid troughs, the body having the air and ice holding spaces having means at the lower edge for sustaining the said body with the air passages on the bottom in register with the air passages and fluid troughs on the platform.

8. In a refrigerator of the character stated, a combined ice chest and air cooler located within the said compartment near one end thereof, a supplemental ceiling for the storage chamber that extends from the top of the combined ice chest and air cooler to near the end of the storage compartment horizontal tiers of chambers, the back Wall of the ice chest cooler having passages that open into the air spaces for the return of the 10 Warm air through the horizontal ducts of the air chambersinto the storage compartment.

EDWARD FRIEDRICH.

Images