US2551391A - Bottled beverage cooling device - Google Patents

Description

May 1, E951 L. A. PHILIPP 2,551,391

BOTTLED BEVERAGE COOLING DEVICE Original Filed June 5, 1944 2 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR.

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Patented May 1, 1951 BOTTLED BEVERAGE COOLING DEVICE Lawrence A. Philipp, Detroit, Mich., assignor to Nash-Kelvinator Corporation, Detroit, Mich., a corporation of Maryland Original application June 5, 1944, Serial No.

538,791. Divided and this application September 4, 1948, Serial No. 47,798

This invention relates to refrigerating apparatus and more particularly to the type used for cooling bottled beverages.

This application is a division of my copending application Serial No. 538,791, filed June 5, 1944, for Refrigerating Apparatus and issued on March 15, 1949, as Patent No. 2,464,605.

One of the objects of my invention is to provide an improved arrangement for quickly cooling bottled beverages.

Another object of my invention is to provide an improved arrangement for dry cooling bottled beverages quickly without the aid of forced circulation of air thereover.

Another object of my invention is to provide for cooling bottled beverages by a refrigerated surface which substantially follows the contour of the bottled goods and which is refrigerated by volatile refrigerant in thermal contact with the exterior of said surface whereby said beverages are quickly cooled by conduction.

Another object of my invention is to provide an improved refrigerant evaporating element.

Other objects and advantages will be apparent from the following description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a fragmentary front view of the apparatus embodying features of my invention.

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary view on an enlarged scale of a portion of the apparatus shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a side View in cross section of the apparatus shown in Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is an enlarged view of a portion of the apparatus shown in Fig. 2;

Fig. 5 is a plan view of a portion of the apparatus shown in Fig. 2; and

Fig. 6 is a bottom view of a portion of the apparatus shown in Fig. 2.

In accordance with my invention bottled beverages are quickly cooled without the aid of a liquid contacting such bottled beverages or by forced circulation of air thereover.. This is accomplished in one form by the use of aluminum or copper bottle holders or troughs horizontally positioned in a cabinet with the troughs being but slightly larger than the bottles containing the beverages. Since bottled beverages are cylindrical in shape the troughs are made substantially to follow the curvature or contour of the bottles. This provides a good contacting surface for the bottles and allows good conduction therebetween. The troughs are refrigerated by a refrigerant evaporating element in the form of a 4 Claims. (Cl. 62-126) 2 serpentine coil with the coil arranged so. that two straight runs thereof are secured respectively to the sides of a trough and the same runs are secured respectively to the adjacent sides of adjacent laterally positioned troughs- Thus the troughs are refrigerated along both sides. This evaporating element is secured to the exterior walls of the troughs and because of their semicylindrical formation no space is lost and the troughs may be placed one above the other and in contact with each other, the refrigerant evaporating element being secured to the troughs adjacent the contacting points of the troughs. The troughs are semi-circular in cross section and slightly larger than the bottles placed therein to provide a good contact between the trough and the bottles so that the bottles may be quickly cooled by conduction. Since one trough is placed immediately above the other the bottled goods will be cooled from above and below. In my invention conduction forms the chief cooling arrangement with convection currents doing a lesser amount of cooling.

The troughs and the refrigerant evaporating element are placed in an insulated cabinet with the troughs horizontally positioned. Since the bottles are not of great length such bottles do not require a cabinet of great depth. In practice I have found that a standard household refrigerator cabinet, such as the cabinet shown in my above-identified patent is of sufiicient depth and lends itself readily for housing my bottleholder evaporator.

Referring to the drawings by characters of reference, I have illustratively disclosed my improved refrigerating apparatus as installed in a thermal insulating cabinet 26, of any conventional construction such, for example, as is commonly used for household refrigerators, and having a heat insulating door 22 disposed thereon to provide convenient access to the enclosed storage space 24 in the usual manner.

My refrigerating device comprises a plurality of troughs 42 which are substantially arcuate or semi-circular in cross-section and of a radius of curvature slightly larger than the peripheral surface of the bottles 43 to be cooled for close thermal contact and quick cooling. The arcuate troughs 42 are conveniently formed or stamped out of a strip of sheet metal in a side-by-side set or series, as shown in more detail in Figs. 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6. A plurality of such sets of arcuate troughs are provided and these are mounted horizontally and in vertically spaced relation, similarly to the shelves in a cabinet, and with the respective arcuate troughs 42 of the various sets in vertical alignment. As shown particularly in Fig. 4, the side walls between each pair of sideby-side troughs are suitably formed to provide complementary flutes 44 for receiving a straight run 48 of a refrigerant conduit 46 extending therethrough.

As shown in Fig. 3, the conduit 46 is reversely bent in a vertical plane to provide vertically spaced pairs of straight runs 46, the lower one of each pair passing through the flutes 44 between the side walls of two adjacent troughs. The uppermost one of each pair of straight runs 46 rests in a socket groove 48 in top of the fold intermediate two troughs, as may be seen in Figs. 2, 3 and 4. The refrigerant conduit 46 is pro-' vided with sufficient reversely bent straight runs 46 in a vertical plane to support and cool all the plurality of sets of bottle receiving troughs 42 which may be stacked in vertically spaced relation. By means of horizontal cross overs or conduit portions 46", which may be seen in Figs. 2, 5 and 6, the conduit continues over into the vertical plane between the adjacent pair of sideby-side troughs .2 and a series of reverse bends provides a series of straight runs 45- in said vertical plane for providing support and conductive contact for cooling between said bottle supporting troughs 42. This connection and serpentine bending of the refrigerant conduit 46 is continued through a plurality of side-by-side vertical planes until support and conductive connection has been provided between all the pairs of side-by-side disposed troughs 42, as may be seen in Fig; 2 and other views, where the arrows serve to indicate the flow of refrigerant, or cooling liquid or fluid therethrough.

Fig. 1 shows how the side walls of the insulated cabinet 29 may be provided with shelf flanges or brackets 56 for receiving and supporting the end of each set of troughs 42. The outer end of each outside trough 42 is provided with a fiat laterally projecting flange strip 52 for resting upon a' corresponding shelf flange 59 provided on the adjacent inside side wall of the enclosing insulated cabinet 20, as may be seen in Fig. l, and in more detail in Figs. 2' and 4. If desired, the entire assemblage of the serpentine refrigerant conduit 46 and the series of vertically spaced sets of side-by-side troughs 42 may be firmly united, as

by soldering, or in any suitable manner for providing a good conductive joint of sufficient strength.

In my invention, conduction is mainly utilized for cooling. M improved structure is advantageous for cooling bottled beverages and similar purpose irrespective of the particular refrigerant which may flow through th refrigerant conduit for absorbing heat and which might be a cold brine or other liquid, or a volatile refrigerant, as will be readily understood. A cabinet of rather shallow depth is suflicient for this purpose, as beverage bottles are not of great length, and in practice I have found that the usual household refrigerator cabinets serve very well for this'pu'n pose. My structures are readily made up to dimensions of height and width suitable for the particular cabinets to be utilized.

It is apparent that within the scope of my invention modifications and different arrangements may be made other than herein disclosed,

4 and the present disclosure is illustrative merely, the invention comprehending variations thereof.

I claim:

1. Apparatus for cooling articles of substantially cylindrical conformations comprising, a first set of looped sheet metal troughs disposed in a horizontal side-by-side relation, each of said troughs being of a substantially semi-circular cross-section slightly larger than cylindrical articles to be supported therein, a second set of such troughs disposed in a horizontal side-by-side relation and aligned above the respective troughs of said first set, and a sinuous refrigerant conduit extending in a vertical plane from one set of troughs to the other to support said sets of troughs in vertical spaced relationship and extending between and in contact with adjacent troughs of said sets of troughs for conducting heat therefrom.

2. Apparatus for cooling articles of substantially cylindrical conformations comprising, a first set of looped sheet metal troughs disposed in a horizontal side-by-side relation, each of said troughs being of a substantially semi-circular cross-section slightly larger than cylindrical articles to be supported therein, a second set of such troughs disposed in a horizontal side-by-side relation and aligned above the respective troughs of said first set, and a refrigerant conduit means sinuously bent in a vertical plane between each vertically aligned row of troughs and having horizontal straight runs disposed between each sideby-side pair of troughs for conducting heat from said troughs.

3. Apparatus for cooling articles of substantially cylindrical conformation comprising, a plurality of troughs disposed in a horizontal sideby-side' relationship, each of said troughs being of a substantially semi-circular cross-section slightly larger than cylindrical articles to be supported therein, a coolant circulating conduit, and retainers receiving said conduit and disposed between and in heat exchange relationship with adjacent troughs.

4. Apparatus for cooling articles of substantially cylindrical conformation comprising, a plurality of troughs disposed in a horizontal side by side relationship having adjacent troughs joined together by looped portions, each of said troughs being of a substantially semi-circular cross section slightly larger than cylindrical articles to be supported therein, a coolant circulating conduit for removing heat from said troughs extending longitudinally of and between adjacent troughs, and flutes formed in and extending longitudinally of said looped portions receiving and engaging said conduit in heat exchange relationship.

LAWRENCE A. PHILIPP.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,975,045 Larkin Sept. 25, 1934 2,180,237 Henderson Nov. 14, 1937 2,218,602 Carryl' Oct. 22, 1940 2,453,667 Lambert Nov. 9, 1948

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