US1673860A - Electric refrigerator - Google Patents

Description

June 19, 1928.

F. S. WOOD ET AL ELECTRIC REFRIGERATOR Filed May 22. 1926 l mie nfa s, FwankSWooll, HOZPOZOZ FWo 0 0.7,-

Patented June 19, 1928.

-- UNITED STATES FRANK S.'WOOD AND HAROLD P. WOOD, F BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS.

ELECTRIC REFRIGERATOR.

. Application filed ma 22, 1926. Serial No. 110,938.

Our invention relates to refrigerating devices wherein the heat-extraction is performed by means of the vaporization of liquids and their return to their normal liquid condition by means-of suitable mechanical instrumentalities.

he object of our invention is to provide a refrigerator complete'in itself, capable of giving the maximum storage space for a minimum exterior,

general, to improve the refrigerator in important detalls of construction and arrangement.

To provide the largestlpossible storage- The other featuresof our invention will be set forth in thecourse of the general description of the refrigerator. 1 In the drawings forming a part of this specification, Fig. 1 is a front sectional elevation of a refrigerator embodying our improvements. Fig. 2 is a sectional side elevation. Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the fluid tank. Fig. 4 is a cross section on a larger scale of the refrigerant condenser.

The refrigerator chest 1 is of well known construction, but is provided with an apartment 2 below its the electric operating mechanism and apparatus. \Vithin the chest proper is located a fluid tank comprising a body 5' close beneath the ceiling of the chest, having depending hollow arms 6 near the sides of the chest; the arms and body being composed of metal and made liquid-tight. The fluid tank is in approximately the shape of an inverted U, as viewed from the front, and is designed to be filled with brine, or water carrying a proper amount of alcohol. In the body portion 5 is an expansion chamber 4 and a coil of pipe 7 designed to receive the refrigerant, which is preferably methyl chloride.

to obtain the highest efii'ciency and economy in operation, and, in.

instead of adapting the:

radiating ribs 15,

floor 3 for the reception of,

To prevent the dripping upon food below of the moisture condensing upon the body portion5, shields 8 are supported close beneath the same, suitably inclined to deliver any condensate into a drip-trough 9; A similar drip-trough 10 is provided for each of the branches 6.

The means for delivering the refrigerant to the expansion chamber 4 and coil 7 consists of a compresser 11 actuated by an electric motor 12 designed forlow: speed in order to be directly connected to the plunger 13 thereof; a condenser-comprising a thin walled cylinder 14 having radiating .ribs 15; a coil of large tubing 16 within this cylinder and having a coil 17 of smaller tubing within it. The compresser 11 is connected by a pipe 18 with the cylinder 14 to force the refrigerant into the latter. The inner end of the coil 16 is open to permit the contents of the cylinder to be driven through it past a check valve 22 into the receiver 23, and thence up through a pipe 24 into the expansion chamber 4 and coil 7.

The vapor from the coil 7 descends through a tube 19 to a coil 20 within a water tank 21, and thence on down to pass through an end of the condenser and to connect with the small coil 17, the other end of which emerges from the tubing 16 and passes through-a pipe 19 to the compressor 11 by which its contents are compressed and forced into the cylinder. 14 through the pipe .18; thus completing the cycle.

The cylinder 14 being filled with the refrigerant which is partially cooled by its and the coil 17 containing comparatively cold refrigerant, that within the cylinder as it escapes through the large coil 16 becomes very much colder, and passes on'to perform its refrigerating function in a suitably condensed and cold condition.

At any erably within the sub-apartment 2, is an electrically controlled needle valve 28 of well known construction, which is controlled through the agency of a thermostat 25 located in contact with the pipe 19; whereby the temperature of the refrigerant at the completion'of its work is caused to switch current to the needle valve, so that if the temperature is too hi h, the vapor is permitted to pass on up the tube 24; and if too low, the valve closes.

By thus intermittentlyoperating the valve to control the temperature of the refrigerant desired point of the tube 24, pref- Ill ' chest than is possible with the in accordance with the requirements of the contents of the chest 1, we are able to secure a far more equal temperature within the pressurecon'trolled devices now in use.

Through the great increase in refrigerating surface made possible by the archshaped fluid-tank, its cooling function is correspondingly rendered of maximum efficiency; the same shape providing maximum space for the reception of food and other perishables, while permitting a comparatively small size of chest.

For the larger sizes of refrigerators, we prefer to connect with the body5, additional to the branchesfi, another branch 6 at the back of the same, as shown in Fig. 2, in order to give increased refrigerating effect; but for the medium sized chests we use the two branches-6 only; while for the small sizes, we may use the rear branch 6 alone.

As illustrated in Fig. 2, the receiver 23 is connected. with anair-cushion chamber 32, whereby, upon the ppening of the needle valve 28 by the action of the thermostat 25, the liquid held back by the valve will in stantly be thrown on up into the tube 24, instead of stopping at the valve. The air chamber is, therefore, a very important adjunct to the needle valve and its controlling thermostat. I

We have discovered that a flatly extended vertical brine chamber having the refrigerating means in its upper portion, is much more efficient than a compact brine chamber of equal-capacity. While this is, of course, partly due to the increased surface exposed to the refrigerating space'by its exterior, we find that it is largely owing to the increased quickness of circulation given tothe brine within. This more rapid circulation is caused by the quickerwarming of the liquid in the lower section of the ,vertical chamber and its consequent more urgent rise, and the more rapid circulation- It is apparentlysimilar tolthe fact that the higher the chimney, the greater the draft. The result of the rapid circulation is a more efiicient refrigeration of the 'food adjacent thereto. We also find that by having the vertical chambers 6 approximately wedge-shape, with their thinner portions below, thisquickness of circulation is still further increased.

The reason why the circulation of the ture, especially when it isa true brine and contains a large proportion of salt; and by thus increasing the circulation, heat is absorbed from the contents-of the chest more rapidly, and the required 103v temperature obtained more efliciently and with a lessened consumption of electric power. Another advantage secured by the wedgeshape of the sections or arms 6 is this: The outer surfaces being entirely vertical where they are adjacentthe walls of the chest, the surfaces of the parts 6, next to the contents of the chest, overhang the points thereof below, whereby as the air within is chilled by its contact with the inclined surfaces, it can descend without frictional interference with surfaces below. At the same time, the ascending currents of warmer air can reach the inclined surfaces at the upper sections thereof with lessened interference with the descending chilled air. Consequently, not only is there more perfect circulation of the brine within the tank, but abetter circulation of air in the chest, and hence a more efiicient refrigerating action.

\Vhat we claim as our invention is:

In a domestic refrigerator, the combination of a chest, and ajank comprising a horizontally extended portion close beneath the top of the chest, and thin flatly extended port-ions descending from the lateral edges of the first-named portion close to the sides of the chest, all said portions being in communication with each other and adaptedto be filled with a refrigerating liquid and theupper portion having cooling means within

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