US1965802A - Apparatus for precooling cars - Google Patents

Description

W. C. PHILLIPS APPRATUS FOR PRECOOLING CARS July 10, 1934.

Filed Feb. 19, 1932 Patented July 10, 1934 UNITED STATES.

PATENT QFFl-CE 2 Claims.

My invention relates to means and methods for lowering the temperature in compartments such as refrigerator'cars and is primarily concerned with a means and method for this purpose which utilizes the cooling influence of ice or a similar refrigerant placed within the ice compartment or bunker of the customary type of refrigerator car.

Many Ways to lower the temperature within a refrigerator car depending upon the circulation of air in the car have been utilized with dvarying degrees of success. As far as I am aware, all schemes relying solely upon air circulation Within the car itself have been relatively unsuccessful and ineffective because of non-uniform results, slowness, impracticability or other reasons. One of the chief problems involved in precooling a car is the .even lowering of temperature throughout the car and throughout the load in the car. It is relatively difcult to obtain the desired low temperature adjacent the center of the car and adjacent the top ofthe load inasmuch as the natural, convection circulation of air currents within a car is downwardly through the ice bunker to the lower and most immediate portion of the load in the storage compartment of the car, thence immediately back to the top of the ice bunker. Thus, the convection currents customarily short circuit or shunt the major portion of the load by rising within the load compartment in a zone immediately .adjacent the bunker wall and returning to the ice bunker at the upper portion thereof through the Aopening between the ice bunker and the 'storage or load compartment. Consequently, the center and upper portion of the load is not swept by such convection currents.

It is an object of my.invention to. obtain a relatively uniform or desired low temperature substantially throughout the load compartment of a car.

Another object of my invention is to prevent deleterious shunting or short circuiting of air currents within a refrigerator car.

Another Aobject of my invention is to provide means which can easily be installed within and removed from a refrigerator car for utilizing the ice bunkers in precooling the car and its load. .-The foregoing and other objects are attained in the embodiment of the invention shown in the drawing, in which Figure 1 is a cross section on a longitudinal vertical plane of a standard or typical refrigerator car showing the installation therein of a device in`accordance with my invention.

(Cl. (i2-24) Figure 2 is a cross section on a transverse vertical plane of the refrigerator car, showing in enlarged scale, part of a mounting for a circulating unit.

Figure 3 is a cross section on the lines 3-3 of 60 Figure 2.

In its preferred form, the apparatus and method of my invention is primarily for use within a refrigerator car having an ice bunker and a load compartment separated except at the top and bottom by a wall and contemplates forcing air from the interior ofthe bunker outwardly above the load in the car and permitting the air to return through the load into the lower portion of the ice bunker, the forcing means being preferably removable and being of such character and being disposed within the car in such a location and fashion as to ensure a proper circulation of air over the upper portion and central portion of the load.

In the embodiment of the apparatus of the invention shown in the drawing, there is provided a refrigerator car, generally designated 2, which is of the customary kind, having a floor 3, a roof 4 and end walls 6 and '1. Withinthe car there is located at each end an icei bunker 8 which is separated from the load compartment 9 of the car by means of a bunker'wall 11. The bunker wall extends transversely from one side wall 12 of the car to the other 13, but is spaced from the floor 3 at its lower endto leave an opening 16 and is similarly spaced to the roof 4 at its upper end to leave an opening 17. I Spanning the space between each of the bunker walls 11 and the end Walls 6 and 7 of the car are suitable grates 18 to support' ice19 or other suitable refrigerant within the bunker.

Customarily, the load-21 is suitably arranged Within the load compartment 9 and the direction of natural or convection air circulation is inA wardly through the opening 17, downwardly over the refrigerant 19 and outwardly through the opening 16 into the load compartment and thence upwardly through the load to the opening 17 for recirculation. Such circulation is relatively 1ocalized and has little or no effect upon the central and upper portion of the load 21. To obviate the dliculties caused by such circulation and to provide commercially sufficient and improved precooling, I preferably span the side walls 12 1 and 13 of the car with a detachable or readily removable beam 26 which can be of any suitable structural shape, for instance, and which serves as the point of anchorage for a suitable baie 27 spanning the space between the beam 26 and the upper portion of the bunker wall 11 or of the load to prevent air flow therebetween. The beam at opposite ends is provided with blocks 28, one of which may be slidable, carrying oppositely threaded spiked bolts 29 so that upon rotation of the beam, it rmly engages the car sides.

Likewise mounted on the beam 26 and extending between the beam and the roof 4 of the car is a baie 30 formed of one or a plurality of plates designed to fill completely the space between the beam 26 and the roof .4 of the car and to be adjustable to accommodate mechanisms forl cars of different dimensions. Some of this structure is similar to that shown in my copending application, entitled Car cooler, led October 17, 1931,

through the openings 17. Shortly after fan cirwithy Serial No. 569,4'79. The baille plate 30 is provided with a central aperture encompassing which is a shroud 31 having a cylindrical shell 32 in which a propeller fan 33 is mounted. To drive the fan there is provided a source of power such asan electric motor 34 preferably mounted on the shell 32. `The direction of rotation of the fan 33 is such that air is induced to flow from the ice bunker 8 through the opening 17 and through the shroud 31 and the fan 33 into the upper portion of the load compartment 9. The relatively large space between the bunker wall 11 and the fan 33 facilitates the flow of air to the fan and increases the efficiency. A

I have foundby virtue 'of numerous experiments that the apparatus as so far described is not eiective no matter how operated to procure the desired low or uniform temperature adjacent the upper central portion of the load 21. Therefore, in accordance with my invention, I have preferably provided in each half of the car a blower unit 36 disposed within the load compartment 9 and preferably located about midway between the fan 33 and the central portion of the load. The blower unit 36 comprises usually a cylindrical shell 37 mounted on a base 38 and containing an impeller fan 39 driven by a suitable source of power, such as electric motor 41. Electric current conductors 42 extend from a suitable source of electromotive force (not shown) not only to the motor 41 but likewise to the motor 34 so that the two impellers 33 and 39 are operated simultaneously.

'I'he impeller 39 is operated in such a direction as to induce further flow of the current discharged by the fan 33 over and above the load 21 toward the center of the car, so that the current instead of short-circuiting in the direction of the arrows A to the lower portion of the bunker 8 through the opening 16, is impelled to the center upper portion of the load 21 as shown by the arrows B. Sincethe two fans 33 send currents in opposite directions toward the center of the car, a small pressure is developed at the center of-the car above the load, and since this pressure is greater than that at the lower portion of the bunkers 8, because there the suction due to the fans 3 3 is appreciable, the air ows downwardly through the load and back to the bunkers 8 under the door 3.

By virtue of this method of cooling, the temperature Sis substantially uniform throughout the car. I have found that what slight variations in temperature occur are such that after several hours of circulation by the fans as described, the upper central portion of the load is the coldest, while those portions of the load adjacent the lower parts of the bunker walls 11 are the warmest. Upon discontinuance of fan circulation, however, the natural convection circulation is such that the coldest air from the bunkers 8 ows upwardly from the openings 16 and short circuits the remainder of the load to return culation has been stopped, therefore, the temperature throughout the load is almost exactly uniform.

Although under different conditions some variations occur, I have found that the best results occur when the fans are of such capacity that from fourteen to sixteen complete cycles of air now, or air changes, are made per minute. This is distinct from former practice in which from one to one and a half air changes are made per minute.

It is to be understood that I do not limit myself to the 4form of the apparatus and method for precooling -cars shown and described herein, as the invention, as set forth in the following claims may be embodied in a plurality of forms.

I claim: y i

1. Apparatus for precooling a car having a refrigerant bunker and a load compartment partially separated by a bunker wall providing openings adjacent the top and bottom of said car, said apparatus comprising a removable partition for closing said top opening, said partitio having an aperture therein, a fan mounted 1n said aperture exteriorly of said bunker compartment for forcing cooled air from the top of said bunker compartment toward the center of said load compartment and a second fanspaced from said rst mentioned fan and positioned adjacent-the top of said car between said first mentioned fan and the center of said load compartment for forcing a portion of said cooled air to the center of said load compartment.

2. Apparatus for precooling a car having a refrigerant bunker and a load compartment partially separated by a bunker Wall providing open-A ings adjacent the top and bottom of said car, said apparatus comprising a beam extending across said load compartment adjacent said wall, a partition for closing said top opening supported by said beam, said partition having an aperture therein, a. fanmounted in said aperture exteriorly of said bunker compartment and a second fan spaced from said rst mentioned fan and positioned above the load in said car for forcing a portion ofsaid cooled air to the center of said load compartment.

WALTER C. PHILLIPS.

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