US2380901A - Refrigerator - Google Patents

Description

July 31,' 1945. 1, w. CHAMBERLAIN l v 2,380,901

K v REFRIGEATOR Filed Feb. la; i943 2 sheets-sheet 1 July 31, 19115- J. w. cHA-MBERLAIN REFRIGERATOR Filed Feb. 13, 1943 2 sheets-sheet 2 Patented July 3l, 1945' SEP 23i947 l v.inserm w. Chamberlain, zeeland, man.'

Application February 13, 1943, Serial No. 475,715

itjggfin) This invention relates in general .to refrigeratitors and particularly to that type of refrigerator which is designed for cooling fluids or other substances. More especially, my invention relates to the cooling of mill: and the preferred embodiment of the invention as disclosed herein is designed .to cool nuids, such es milk, in a relatively short period of time.

@ne of .the objects of thisinvention is to provide a structure wherein a iluid such as milk can be economically cooled at a'rapid rate.

Another object of the invention is to provide Fig; 2 is a vertical section ltaken from front to rear through substantially the center of the refrigerator;

Fig. 3 is a horizontal section through the refrigerator taken substantially on the plane of line 3 3 of Fig. 1 with e. part of the pan broken a cabinet within which the substance to be cooled can be placed in a receptacle and have a heat exchange iluid, such as water, sprayed on the sides and bottom thereof to thereby effect a speedy cooling of theiiuid.

it. further object of the invention is to pro-4 vide, in a refrigerator, a compartment wherein ice is formed. around and through which the used heat exchange or cooling lluid may be passed for further cooling and re-use. A

Still another object. of the invention is .to provide within the refrigerator additional means for maintaining the air in the cabinet at a low temperature so that fluid, such as stored therein will not become warm.-

A further object of the invention is to provide, in a refrigerator, a means to automatically vcontrol the refrigerating unit in such a. manner that it will start within a short or predeter- 1 mined time after the cooling process has been started and will stop when the desired amount of ice has been reformed, thus eliminating the usual gradual building up ofthe ice reserve be yond the desired amount. 1

A further object of the invention is to provide, in a refrigerator having a quantity of ice thereima means to cause the ice to melt uniformly so that it will be replaced uniformly.

A still further object of the invention is the provision of a refrigerating unit which can be not only cheaply constructed but also economical to operate.

A still further object of the invention is' to provide a method by which a substance can be away to show the coils in plan;

Fig. fi is a lragmentary'perspective w'evv of the pan disposed immediately above the coils; and.

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary enlarged section through the pan showing the preferred construction of the' openings therein.

The invention disclosed herein is designed as a more economical structure and as an improvement over the device disclosed by me in Patent No. 2,256,971, issued September 23, 1941.

In the preferred embodiment of myimproved structure l provide a cabinet, in the lower portion of which is a compartment which may either be integral with or separate from the main refrigerator box. ln this lower compartment l provide a plurali-ty of refrigerating coils or economically and quickly brought from a high to an evaporator adapted to form a substantially solid block of ice therein.. immediately above this block of ice li provide a pan having a plurality of perforations therein. The excess water in the lower compartment is pumped therefrom and sprayed over the receptacle within which the milk or other substance to be cooled is located. A portion of the cold water thus pumped is icy-passed andv is sprayed upwardly against the bottom of the receptacle. This water mixes with the water being sprayed over the recetatacle and passes downwardly through the perforations in the pan and flows in streams onto the ice in the lower counter-tament- At rst the waterA will form a thin layer over the top of the block of ice, however as the process is carried on the water ilowing through the perforations inthe pan *will form holes `through the block of ice. Eventually these holes will extend entirely through the ice so that .the water will not only pass over and around the ice but downwardly therethrough. Some of .this water will also directly contact the refrigerating coils and thus the temperature of the water or other heat exchange liquid will be quickly lowered. By utilizing this method I have been able to effectively cool a conventional can of milk. from a temperature in the neighborhood of F. 'down to around 45 or 50 F. in a period of about ten minutes.

Referring now more particularly to the drawings, it will be noted that in this preferred embodiment I provide a refrigerator cabinet having spaced apart sides 2 and I, a back I, a bottom l and a top I0. In the front of the box I may provide doors or other suitable closure members. However, it is necessary that the entireV cabinet .together with the front closure members, be effectively insulated to prevent any warm air from entering and thus decreasing the emciency of the cooling system. v I

In the bottom portion of the cabinet, or in any other desired location adjacent thereto, I provide a compartment l2 within which a plurality of reirigerating coils Il are located. If desired these coils may be supported by brackets I6 which may either rest on the bottom or be suspended from suitable means within the cabinet. Immediately above these coils there is provided a pan I8 having a plurality of perforations 20 therein. The upper edges of the sides and ends of this pan are outwardly flanged as at 22, see Fig. 4, so that the pan can be welded or otherwise permanently secured to a plurality of spaced apart transversely extending bars 2l. These bars may be either flat or of a T formation as shown.

At opposite sides of the refrigerator box and therewithin there are'provided angle bars 26 so as to support the pan IB by having the cross bars 2l thereof rest on the horizontally extending leg members of said angle bars.

Assuming that milk is to be the fluid cooled it is usually placed in a receptacle such as that shown at 28. This receptacle is then placed within the refrigerator at one side thereof and rests upon the bars 24. It is to be understood of course tliat the refrigerators may be made any desirable size. However, it is customary to provide means for cooling one or more cans of milk while providing space for storing the cans of milk already cooled. Obviously the number of cans of milk to be cooled and stored will vary, depending upon the size of the farm or dairy using the refrigerator. In the present instance, however, I have shown a refrigerator having sufficient space therein to cool one can of milk and additional space for storing a can of milk already cooled.

At one side of the refrigerator and at the upper portion thereof I. provide a motor 30 which has a downwardly extending shaft 32 located within a tubular housing 34. I'his shaft extends to the lower part of the refrigerating compartment and is connected to a pump 26. A conduit 38 is connected to the pump and is adapted to carry water or other cooling fluid from the lower refrigerating compartment upwardly through the conduit il to a location above the receptacle. The

upper end of the conduit 40 is provided with a T connection 42 which has extending outwardly at each end thereof short conduits Il and 46 which, in turn, have connected thereto the forwardly extending conduits 48 and 50. These conduits or pipes I8 and 50 extend forwardly one at each side of the upper portion of the receptacle 28 and have a plurality of spaced apart openings in the underside thereof which direct the water in the form of small streams inwardly toward the receptacle, so that when the pump is in operation the cold water will be carriedfrom the lower compartment upwardly and sprayed rial No. 405,277, filed August 4, 1941.

As stated before, a portion of the water thus by-passed to spray upwardly against the under-- side of the receptacle and for this purpose there is provided a forwardly extending conduit 52 (see Fig. 4) which has an upturned forward end 54. In the preferred form of the invention shown herein the conduit 52 extends forwardly at approximately the same level as the pan ll or slightly thereabove and for this reason I provide a cut-out portion in the pan and surround the conduit 52 by means of a housing 56. If desired, however, it would not eect the operation of the device to have the conduit 5 2 pass beneath the pan and spray the water upwardly through a suitable opening therein. In the present instance, however, the conduit is permitted to terminate closely adjacent the underside of the receptacle and thus have a greater cooling effect thereon.

There is, however, a second and equally, if not more, important reason for thus by-passing a portion of the cooled` water. The warmer water howing over the receptacle mixes uniformly with the cooler by-passed water, and this mixture having a uniform temperature, is then distributed evenly over the ice through the openings in the tray I8, thus causing a uniform melting of the ice. Such a uniform melting is necessary to insure an equally uniform replacement of the ice during and after the cooling cycle.

I have found it most convenient to locate the usual refrigerator mechanism I8 at the top of the refrigerator. However, the particular location of this mechanism is not important. The detalls of such a refrigerating device or compressor are well known to those skilled in the art and need not be described in detail here. However, suillce it to say it is provided with the usual motor as indicated at 60.

While it is not necessary to the successful operation of my refrlgerating mechanism, I have found it highly desirable, especially in warmer weather, to provide refrigerating means or a hold-over device for reserve cooling within the upper part of the cabinet. In the preferred embodiment of my invention I have shown this portion of the refrigerating mechanism as being located adjacent the top of the cabinet as at 62. The housing l2 is provided therein with a plu rality of refrigerating coils Il and a quantity of liquid such as water, and as the refrigerant passes therethrough a quantity of ice is formed within the housing so that the temperature within the cabinet will be maintained comparatively low. For example, in actual practice I prefer to arrange this mechanism so as to maintain a substantially 40 F.. temperature within the cabinet, thus maintaining the milk or other cooled fluid at a low temperature even though it is being stored therein. It may be desirable in certain thereof. However, I have found that the placement of this device adjacent the top of the cabinet obtains more satisfactory results. This device creates a natural circulation of air within the cabinet, since the warm air tends to rise and the cooler air at the top tends to drop, thus replacing the warm air and maintaining the cabinet at a substantially even low temperature for all practical purposes.

The refrigerating mechanism I8 is provided with the usual outlet for the refrigerant which then passes through the expansion valve Il and into the coils Il. The water within the compart-I 4ment will then eventually become frozen and form a solid block oi' ice. The refrigerant then passes out of the compartment and upwardly through the pipe 18 to the housing 82 of the reserve cooling device. Passing of the refrigerant through these coils will eventually freeze the water in the housing and form ice therein. The refrigerant then leaves the coils N and passes upwardly to the inlet 12, into the refrigerating mechanism or compressor at the top of the cabinet.

In controlling the temperature and the flow of the refrigerant I provide two thermal bulbs; one indicated at 14which is connected directly to the expansion valve by the connection Il and controls the flow of the refrigerant therethrough, and the other indicated at 18 within the refrigerating compartment, which is connected directly to the control mechanism which controls the motor 88 through the connection 88 and starts or stops the motor, depending upon the temperature at which the bulb 'Il is set to operate.

It is to be noted that the location of the bulb 18 is quite important in that it should be in a position so that the warmer used water can be directed against it when the cooling process is started. The reason for this will appear more fully hereinafter. In the present instance it is shown secured to one of the top coils Il and immediately below the pan I8.

In order to avoid operating the compressor or refrigerating mechanism a great number of times daily and, which is even more important, to prevent a gradual accumulation of ice beyond the.

desired amount, I have found it desirable to start the flow of refrigerant `within a short period of time after a cooling process has started. so that the ice which has been melted by the warmer f water passing thereover will be replaced. To explain more fully,'in the conventional type of cooler -employing an ice reserve it is customary to provide a large tank having a number of rei'rigerat ing coils therein. The receptacles are immersed in the water of the tank and the bulb ol' the temperature control is embedded in the ice. In that type of refrigerator no provision is made for melting the ice around the bulb fasterthan elsewhere, therefore the control must be set to cut in the compressor at a temperature of 32"` F. or less. Consequently the refrigerant in the coils is maintained at 32 F. or less and some ice will continue to form after the cooling operation has ceased. The device, then.' cycles quite often even during periods when nothing is being cooled, and, theaamount of ice which is formed each time is up of excess ice around the coils. In some machines manual controls are provided to avoid this. bu that is obviouslyundesirable.

While this excess ice acts as an insulator and thus reduces the eiliciency of the machine, it can be operated by providing a suillciently large body of water. On the other hand it would not be practical for a compact machine of the character herein described, because the limited amount of water available wouldl eventually become frozen and none would remain for carrying out the cooling operation.

`I, therefore, prevent such accumulation of unwanted ice by setting the control bulb to cut in at a temperature'above 32 F. and causing the ice around the bulb to melt. rapidly as soon as the cooling cycle has started. .The amount of ice being replaced is then controlled by setting the control to cut out at a lower temperature. The

Vlong off cycle more than compensates for the unit cannot, therefore, operate on short cycles, and thev amount of ice which melts during the amount formed after the compressor stops.

To do this in the specific embodiment of the invention shown herein I provide a greater number of perforations in the pan I8 immediately over the bulb 18, so that as soon as the cooling Process starts and the first of the warmer water is received in the pan I8 more water' will pass downwardly through the pan in4 the vicinity of the bulb 18 than at any other place. mediately melts the ice around the bulb and within a very few minutes will raise the temperature of the bulb so that it will start the refrigerating mechanism and the ilow of refrigerant. It will be obvious then that the refrigerant will continue to flow until the desired amount of ice has been re-formed and the refrigerator will be in readiness for cooling the next group of milk receptacles. In actual practice I have found the most satisfactory results to be obtained when the thermal bulb 18 is set to start the motor 68 at a temperature above 32 F. and preferably in the neighborhood of' 34 F. and to stop the refrigerating action when the temperature has dropped to about 27 F., although it may be Avaried within desirable limits. When the bulb is thus set and the refrigerating operation is begun, suilicient ice Will have been melted" from around the bulb 18 and its temperature will attain 34 F. to start the motor 60 in about 21A minutes. The ice however will not be re-formed quite as fast as it is melted, so that when the cooling operation has ceased the refigerant will continue to ilow for a period of time until the desired amount of ice has been re-formed andthe bulb 'I8 reaches 27 F.. at which time the motor 68 will be stopped and the flow of refrigerant will cease.

By the use of this structure and method I have found that the refrigerator will go through this cycle only twice a day, and then only at those times when a cooling operation is being performed and for a period of time thereafter. In refrigerators of this general character heretofore known where use is made of the formation of ice around coils, it is quite usual for such refrigerators to cycle as many as six lor eight times daily and in some instances every 1% hours or so. The advantages in cycling the machine but `twice a day instead of several times will be obvious.

Another novel feature of my invention is making use of the pump motor 30 to also drive the agitator within the receptacle during the cooling operation. As is customary, the agitator has the usual blades 82 which are secured to one end of a shaft 84. This shaft extends upwardly and is detachably secured at its upper end -to a coupling 86 which in turn is rotated-by its connection with a suitable vertical shaft. On the permanently mounted vertical shaft I provide a pulley 88. Above the pulley the shaft is suitably mounted in a housing 98 within whichv lthe necessary bearings4 are located which may be sealed within the housing 'and self-lubricated. The upper end of the shaft 32 of the motor 30 is provided with a pulley 82 which in turn is con.-

nected with the pulley 88 by means of a belt 94.

It will thus be evident that as long as the coolingr operation is in process land the `motor 30 is in operation, the agitator consistingof the shaft 84 and the blades 82 will also be operated. At the This imceptacle can be removed and either be placed in storage in the other side of the cabinet or otherwise disposed of. In order to prevent any dirt or grease from this mechanism from dropping downwardly into the milk or other substance being cooled, I place a housing 9B around the two pulleys and seal the oil in the bearings. The particular formof this housing is not important as long as it provides a sealed enclosure to prevent leakage of oil or grease out of the bearings. especially if the substance being cooled is milk. Means may also be provided for mounting the stirrer mechanism flexibly. such as in rubber or on springs to prevent excessive vibra.

tions of the stirrer if the rod should be bent and out of balance.

The operation of my device is novel in many respects. For example, it makes use of the fact that a small stream of water falling on a block of ice will eventually form a hole through the ice from top to bottom. Formation of excessivev amounts of ice is prevented by automatic control, and uniform melting of the ice is secured by mixing the warmer water flowing over the receptacle with the by-passed water and distributing it uniformly over the ice bank. Assuming that the refrigerating device has operated for a suiiicient length of time to form a solid block of ice in the lower compartment and the milk receptacle is suitably located between the spray arms I8 and 50, the motor 30 isl then turned on. The excess water in the lower compartment is then pumped upwardly through the conduits 40. A greater proportion of this Water will then be by-passed through the conduit 52 and will be sprayed upwardly against the bottom of the receptacle 28. The remainder of the water will pass upwardly and will be sprayed over the receptacle through the openings in the conduits 48 and 50. The water thus sprayed over the receptacle will pass downwardly and become warmer. The water sprayed upwardly against the bottom of the receptacle will be several degrees colder because it has not contacted asv great an area of the receptacle. I'he sprayed water and the by-passed water will then mix and be received by the pan I8. At first a sufficient amount of the Water will pass through the openings in the pan immediately above the bulb 18 to melt the ice and raise the temperature of the bulb so as to start the motor 60. In a very short time the water in the pan will be above the raised perforations 20 and the water therein will pass substantially uniformly downwardly and fall in small streams onto the block of ice. At first the water will pass over the ice and down the sides thereof to be pumped and sprayed over the receptacle. 'I'he falling water, however, will eventually form holes in the ice substantially as shown by the dotted lines in Fig. 1 and this will continue until these holes extend through to the bottom of the block of ice. By this time a portion of the coils will also be bared and some of the water will flow directly in contact therewith. It will thus be evident that the warmer water is able to pass over an unusually great area of ice so that this water will be rapidly cooled down to a temperature in the neighborhood of 33 or 34 F.

It will be clear from the foregoing that, by this method of control a cycle of operation will start shortly af-ter each cooling operation has begun, or after the machinehas stood idle long enough to cause thebulb temperature to rise to approximately 34 F. Furthermore, the mixing of the -`substances capable of being cooled by the use of my invention. It will be clear that substances other than those mentioned herein can be refrigerated without in any way departing from ,the

, spirit of the invention. For example; the device could be used as an air conditioner by cooling air in the manner herein described and then passing the air into a room.

While I have described and claimed the device as utilizing refrigerating coils through which a refrigerant pas'ses, it will be obvious that other means, such as an evaporator, can be used inter- V changeably therewith.

While it is not necessary to the successful operation of the device to have the perforations 20 in the pan I8 raised, it is better to have them so for sanitary reasons. Any dirt or sand which may be present in the water will thus be collected in the pan and will not be carried up over the raised perforations.

This construction also facilitates the cleaning of the pan and the lower compartment, since after a cooling operation the pan and the cross-bars connected thereto can be easily removed from the cabinet to provide access to the coils.

Having thus described my invention. what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, is:

1. An apparatus of the class described comprising a compartment having means to freeze a block oi' ice, means for introducing a cooling fluid into said compartment to be cooled by said ice, means for conveying said cooling fluid from said compartment after it has been cooled and passing it in heat exchange relation with a substance to be cooled, and means to distribute said cooling 40 uid over said ice in such a way as to melt a plurality of holes in the ice.

2. A refrigerator of the class described comprising a refrigerating compartment adapted to contain a quantity of heat exchange liquid, a plurality of refrigerating coils in said compartment. means for passing a refrigerant through said coils to thereby freeze a part of said liquid, means for passing the remainder of said liquid in heat exchange relation with a substance to be cooled, and means for distributing said liquid after it has passed in heat exchange relation with the substance to be cooled in such a manner as to melt holes at spaced intervals in the frozen part of said liquid.

3. In a refrigerator of the class described, two cooling zones each having a quantity of a freezable heat exchange liquid and refrigerating coils therein, means for passing a. refrigerant first through the coils in one zone and then through the coils in the other zone to thereby freeze at least a part of the liquid in each zone, and means for circulating the remaining liquid from at least one of the zones in heat exchange relation with a substance to be cooled, the other zone being adapted to maintain the air in the cabinet at a low temperature.

4. A refrigerator of the class described comprising a refrigerating compartment having lcoils therein to freeze a substantially solid block of ice in said compartment, a heat exchange liquid in said compartment. means to circulate said liquid in heat exchange relation with a substance to be cooled, means to collect said liquid after performing its cooling' operation and distribute it over said ice, a temperature responsive control embedded in said ice, and means'to rapidly melt the ice locally in the area of saidcontrol immediately after starting the cooling operation to thereby start the flow of refrigerant through said coils and replace the ice melted by distribution of said liquid thereover.

5. A refrigerator of the class described comprising a refrigerating compartment having coils therein to freeze a substantially solid block of ice in said compartment, a heat exchange liquid in said compartment, means to circulate said liquid in heat exchange relation with a'substance to be cooled, a pan having a plurality of perforations therein to collect said liquid after it has passed in heat exchange relation with said substance and distribute it over said ice to thereby melt the ice and cool the liquid, a temperature responsive control embedded in the ice, and means to rapidly melt the ice locally in the area of said control to actuate said control and start the flow of refrigerant within a predetermined period of time after starting the cooling operation, thus replacing the lCe.

6. A refrigerator of the class described comprising a refrigerating compartment having coils therein to freeze a substantially solid block of ice in said compartment, a heat exchange liquid in said compartment, means to circulate said liquid in heat exchange relation with a substance to be cooled, a pan. having a plurality of perforations by quickly cool said liquid, and then circulating the cooled liquid in heat exchange relation with a e substance to be refrigerated.

10. The method of refrigeration which consists of circulating a cooled liquid in heat exchange relation with a substance to be refrigerated, passing the liquid thus circulated over a block of ice in a plurality of individual streams to thereby recool the liquid by melting holes in the ice, and then replacing the ice thus melted, the ice replacing step being started within a predetcr mined time after the refrigerating step is begun and carried on until a predetermined amount of ice has been replaced.

11. In a cooling apparatus, means for freezing a freezable cooling liquid to a cake, means for directing a plurality of streams of a warmer cooling 7. The method of refrigeration which consists K ated.

9. The method of refrigeratlonwhich consists of forming a block of ice, forming a plurality oi' holes in said ice,V passing a heat exchange liquid over said ice and into the holes therein to thereliquid against said frozen cake to melt a plurality of h'oles therein thereby cooling said warmer liquid,l and means for circulating the liquid so cooled in heat exchange relation with a substance t0 be refrigerated.

l2. In a cooling apparatus, means for freezing a freezable cooling liquid to a cake, means for directing a plurality of streams of a warmer cooling uid against said frozen cake to melt a plurality of holes therein thereby cooling said warmer cooling liquid, means for circulating the liquid so cooled in heat exchange relation with a substance to be refrigerated, and means to replace said frozen cake by freezing said cooling liquid at a slower rate than the rate at which said cake was melted.

13. Ina cooling apparatus, means for freezing a freezable cooling liquid to form a, frozen cake,

means for directing a plurality of streams of said cooling liquid against said frozen cake to melt a plurality of holes therein thereby further cooling said cooling liquid, said means for directing said streams against said cake comprising a pan disposed above said cake and having holes therein at spaced intervals, means for circulating the liquid so cooled in heat exchange relation with a substance to be refrigerated, and means to pass said cooling liquid to said pan after it has performed the cooling operation.

14,-In a cooling apparatus of the class described, a compartment'having means therein to freeze a' block of ice, a cooling liquid in said compartment adapted to be cooled .by said ice, means for conveying said cooling liquid to a receptacle containing a substance to be cooled,.means to collect said cooling liquid after it passes from said receptacle and to distribute it over said ice in such a manner as to cause said ice to melt uniform1y,and means to replace said ice at a slower rate than it is melted.

. JOSEPH W. CHAMBERLAIN.

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