US2632310A

US2632310A - Refrigerated display case

Info

Publication number: US2632310A
Application number: US20246A
Authority: US
Inventors: Alfred J Kopp; John R Boyle
Original assignee: BETZ CORP
Current assignee: BETZ Corp
Priority date: 1948-04-10
Filing date: 1948-04-10
Publication date: 1953-03-24
Anticipated expiration: 1970-03-24

Description

March 24, 1953 A. J. KOPP ET AL .1 2,632,310

REFRIGERATED DISPLAY CASE Filed April 10, 1948 2 SHEETSSHEET 1 IN V EN TORS i Patented Mar. 24, 1953 2,632,310 REFRIGERATED DISPLAY CASE Alfred J. Kopp, Hammond, Ind., and John R.

Boyle, Chicago, Ill., assignors to Betz Corporation, Hammond, Ind., a corporation of Indiana Application April 10, 1948, Serial No. 20,246

13 Claims.

This invention relates to refrigerated display cases, particularly of the type in which a stream of cool air is circulated through an open compartment where food is displayed and an enclosed space where the air is refrigerated.

The invention has particular reference to open top display cases adapted for use in self-service stores and the like. Such display cases are advantageous in reducing the spoilage of vegetables, fruits and other perishable foods while still keeping them conveniently accessible to shoppers and sales persons. However, it has been the experience of store keepers in the past that open display cases tend to dry the food and that they require frequent defrosting. This has been due to the continual escape of refrigerated air from the enclosure at a comparatively rapid rate, carrying with it the moisture absorbed from the food, and the need of maintaining the refrigerating unit at a very low temperature so that it can effectively cool the relatively large quantity of incoming warm air, which then is considerably dehydrated in the course of being cooled.

Another objectionable feature has been a tendency toward non-uniform temperature distribution throughout the length of the case, which could be overcome only by making the refrigerating unit of a length comparable to that of the case. a

An important object of the present invention is to provide an improved refrigerated display case of the open top variety which eliminates the aforesaid disadvantages.

A further object is to reduce the escape of refrigerated air from the display case.

Another object is to equalize the distribution of cold air throughout the length of the display case so that a refrigerating unit preferably of a standard size can be employed successfully to refrigerate a display case of much greater length.

A still further object is to arrange for maximum utilization of the display case by providing a closed food storage space in the lower part of the case.

Still another object is to enable a single refrigerating unit to cool both enclosures, maintaining different air temperatures therein.

A still further object is to improve the construction and increase the utility of refrigerating units employed in open display cases.

Another object is to provide a unit package capable of easy installation in each section of the currently popular sectional cases, where several endless sections of case are abutted end to end to compose one long unit many feet in length. In accordance with one feature of the invention we provide one or more equalizing or plenum chambers formed by perforated baflies or the like for uniformly distributing the cold air which enters the display compartment of the case.

Another feature is that the cool air enters the open compartment of the display case from the rear side thereof at a level substantially lower than the top of the front wall thereof, yet in such a manner as to provide a blanket of cool air above the food on display.

Still another feature is that the refrigerating unit is arranged to direct a portion of the cold air upwardly into the plenum chambers and another portion of the air directly into the lower compartment of the case, maintaining the air in continuous circulation in both chambers.

The foregoing and other objects, features and advantages of the invention will be apparent from a study of the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which:

-Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a display case constructed in accordance with and embodying the principles of the invention, certain portions of the structure being shown broken away for clarity;

Fig. 2 is a transverse section on the line 2-2 in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary horizontal section substantially on the line 33 in Fig. 2; l Fig. f is a front elevational view of a refrigerating unit employed in the display case, with certain parts of the structure broken away;

Fig. 5 is a view looking from the left substantially on the line 5-5 in Fig. 4, showing abracket for holding the refrigerating coils; and

Fig. 6 is a fragmentary view, partially in section, taken on the line 6-6 in Fig. 4.

In practicing the invention, we arrange a refrigerating unit in the lower compartment of a display case for discharging refrigerated air under pressure into a cold air passage extending vertically from the lower compartment to the open top, upper compartment of the display case. A portion of the refrigerated air also may be discharged directly from the refrigerating unit into the lower compartment. The cold air passage extends upwardly adjacent the rear wall of the display case and terminates in spaced relation to the underside of an insulated shelf which extends forwardly from the rear wall. Perforated Hbafile members are arranged between the cold air passage and the shelf to afford a series of, plenum chambers through which the cold air passes into the upper compartment. The plenum chambers extend substantially the entire length Ofthe dis.-

play case, whereas the refrigerating unit may be of considerably less length than the display case. The pressure of the incoming cold air is equalized throughout the length of the display case in passing through these plenum chambers, thereby assuring uniform temperature distribution in the upper compartment. An air exhaust passage extends downwardly from the upper compartment adjacent the front wall of the display case, through which air is withdrawn by suction from the upper compartment into the lower compartment to be cooled again. The aforesaid shelf on the rear wall is lower than the top edge of the front wall, and the final bafile through which the incoming cold air passes is arranged at a slant so that the air is directed diagonally downward upon the food stored in the upper compartment. A rail along the upper edge of the front wall extends rearwardly a sufiicient distance so as to overhang the exhaust passage, thus tending to prevent the entrance of warm air from outside the case into the exhaust passage. The foregoing arrangement enables the air to be circulated practically in a closed cycle through the upper and lower compartments of the display case.

Referring now to the drawings, and particularly Figs. 1 and 2 thereof, the display case has a rear wall It, side walls 12 and id and a front Wall 16, all of these walls being insulated. The base l8 of the case likewise is insulated. The display case (that is; the upper compartment 23 thereof) is open on top. The display case also has a lower closed storage compartment 22. A horizontal shelf 2 forms a partition between the two compartments. This shelf 25 is spaced from the inside of the rear wall If]. and from the inside of the front wall it, and is joined with upstanding partitions 2E and 28,, respectively, at the rear and front of the display compartment 23. The space between the

partitions

26 and 28 is adapted to hold food such as fruit and vegetables on display. The food may be placed in baskets such as 30 resting on the shelf 2 or may be supported directly by this shelf, as preferred.

A refrigerating unit 32 is disposed in the lower compartment 22 adjacent the rear wall iii. This unit 32 is provided at the top with a horizontally movable slide 29 from which depends a vertical partition 3| to divide the stream of cold air discharged from' the unit. The air which passes back of the partition 3| is discharged through an opening in the top of the unit 32 which communicates with an upwardly extending cold air passage or duct 33 between the rear wall it] and the partition 26. Air which passes in front of the partition 31 is discharged through louvers 34 which communicate directly with the lower compartment 22-. By moving the slide 29, one can adjust the relative amounts of cold air furnished to the two compartments and thereby control the respective temperatures thereof.

The cold air which is discharged from the unit 32 into the cold air passage 33 passes into the uppercompartment 23 to form a blanket of cold air over the food on display therein. The air then passes into an exhaust duct or passage 35 between the front wall i6 and the partition 28. This passage 35 is relatively narrow, and a suction is maintained therein by the ai circulating mean of the refrigerating unit 32. Food may be stored also in the lower compartment 22, to which access may be-had through the doors 3B in the front wall It. The lower compartment 22 preferably is maintained at a lower temperature than the upper compartment 2%, typical temperature values. for

vegetables and fruits being from 40 to 45 degrees Fahrenheit in the compartment 20 and from 37 to 41 degrees Fahrenheit in the compartment 22. Meats and dairy products may require lower tem peratures than those indicated,

It is desired that the required low temperature be provided in the upper compartment with a minimum flow of cool air and also-that the air need not be of very low temperature. This i important in keeping the size and cost of the refrigerating apparatus as small as possible, to prevent-dehydration of the articles in the case due to circulation of a large volume of air, and also to prevent icing of the refrigeration coils which results when the temperature thereof is held very low. To accomplish this the escape of cold air from the compartment and the entry of warm air from the room in which the unit is placed must be held to a minimum. Inorder to provide the required cooling with aminimum amount of air, it is necessary that the cold air entering the upper compartment 23 shall have a uniform temperature and pressure distribution through thele ngth, of the compartment. Generally, however, in order to keep the cost down, it is not desirable to make the refrigerating unit 32 as long as the display case. For example, the refrigerating unit32 may be only one-half as long as the display case. In order to obtain the required uniformity, a series. of plenum chambers are arranged at the discharge end of the cold air passage 33 to equalize the air pressure along the length of the upper compartment 23.

Referring to Figs. 1 and 2, the upper com partment 23 has an insulated shelf 38 which extends in a generally forward direction from the rear wall I!) and is disposed in vertically spaced relation to the upper end of the partition 26. This shelf 33 serves as a bafiie for the upward current of cold air coming from the passage 33 and may also be utilized to support articles which do not require refrigeration. Perforated

baiile plate

40 and 42, Figs. 2 and 3, which preferably are formed from a single piece of sheet metal 43, extend diagonally upward in a divergent manner from a horizontal lip 44 which projects rearwardly from the upper end of the partition 26. The baffle 40 terminates near the junction of the shelf 33 and rear wall it, and the baffle 42 extends into proximity with the lower side of the shelf 38 near the frontedge thereof. An: other perforated baflie 46 extends horizontally from the lip Mto the rear wall 13. The

baflies

40, 42 and 46 extend the entire length of the upper compartment 23 and define plenum chambers in which the cold air pressure. is built up slightly above atmospheric. pressure. 7

As the cold air is discharged nder pressure from the refrigerating unit 32 into the passage 33 it encounters the resistance afforded by the lip 34 and the bafiie 43. Thus, air pressure is built up in the passage 33, which itself constitutes a plenum chamber. Hence the air tends to distribute itself with an approximately equal pressure along the length of the passage 33. In order that cold air will not pass from the air duct 33 directly into the lower chamber 22.'horizontal partitions E! are disposed at the lower end of the passage 33 on either side of the refrigerating unit 32, between the horizontal partition 'i i. and the rear wall I0. Still further equalizationof cold air pressure takes place in the plenum chamber 48 between the baffles 46 and 4B. The cold air then passes into, the plenum chamber 50 betw n e baffl s. 40. n 42.. w ere the ressu equalizing process is completed. The

chambers

48 and 50, in addition to equalizing the pressure of the cold air, also reduce the pressure so that the air is not discharged at high velocity. We have found that satisfactory results can be obtained by making the bafiies of perforated metal having a 40 per cent open area, this figure being given as a typical value only. The cold air emerges from the plenum chamber 50 in streams which are substantially perpendicular to the baffle plate 42. The plate 42 is so positioned that it directs the air downwardly at an angle toward the rear of the compartment 20. As the cold air spreads, it is drawn toward the suction exhaust passage 35, forming a layer of slowly moving cold air over the food.

The illustrated display case is designed to pre-' vent the escape of-excessive amount of refrigerated air from the upper compartment 20. To this end, the upper portion of the front wall l6 includes a transparent section 54 that extends to a height substantially above the level at which cold air from the plenum chamber 50 enters the upper compartment. The section 54 comprises two or more panes of glass, or other transparent material with a dead air space or vacuum sealed therebetween. A wide horizontal rail 56 along the upper edge of the section 54 extends rearwardly therefrom in a sufficient amount to overhang the exhaust passage 35. The arrangement just described has been found to be very effective in confining the refrigerated air within the display case and preventing the entrance of large quantities of outside air into the case. The transparent section 54 in the upper part of the front wall l6 facilitates viewing the food in the compartment 20. The rail 56 may have a chromium or other attractive finish and is positioned slightly lower than the top edges of the side walls I2 and M. The display case thus presents a pleasing appearance to the customer.

The refrigerating unit 32, Fig. 4, is contained in a box-like frame which is open at the rear and on top. The refrigerating means comprises cooling coils 60 which extend the full length of the unit 32 and are supported at their ends by brackets 52, Figs. 4 and 5, secured to the side walls 64 of the unit 32. Inlets and

exhaust connections

66 and 68 respectively are provided for circulation of a refrigerant through the cooling coils 60. Pins 69 on the coil 63 facilitate the absorption of heat. Air circulating fans are mounted on the front wall 72 of the refrigerating unit 32 below the cooling coils 60, apertures being provided in the wall 12 for receiving the blades of the fans 18. A pair of fans are used to provide the required volume of circulating air in a unit which is relatively low in height. Brackets 14 attached to the wall 72 support the fans 10. Each of the fans F0 is provided with a grille 76 to prevent the entrance of objects into the fan. The unit 32 is positioned against the rear Wall [0 of the case and is secured to this wall.

The fans Ill draw air from the lower compartment 22, Fig. 2, into the refrigerating unit 32 and propel the air upwardly past the cooling coils 60. As mentioned previously, the front wall 12 has louvers 34, which are located above the cooling coils B0. The louvers 34 are formed by punching out openings in the wall 12 and binding the metal back from the openings to provide vanes for directing the cold air angularly out of the refrigerating unit 32 toward the ends of the lower compartment 22. Thus, the vanes 80 on the left-hand side of the unit 32 are slanted to direct the air toward the left end of the compartment 22, while the vanes on the righthand side of the unit 32 direct the air toward the right end of the compartment 22. In this way, an adequate circulation of cold air in the lower compartment 22 is assured. The slide 29 with its partition 3| affords an adjustable plenum chamber preceding the louvers 34, for dividing the cold air stream as above mentioned.

Display cases in accordance with our invention have been constructed and found to be highly satisfactory. By reducing the interchange of air between the open display compartment and the space outside of the case the volume of cold air required is also reduced so that the refrigeration equipment and the means for circulating air can be held to a minimum. By providing separate air circulating paths in the upper and lower compartments, the energy required to circulate the air is less than would be required when cooling of the two compartments is accomplished by a single stream of air. It has also been found that the required temperatures can be maintained in the two compartments when the refrigerant is at a sufficiently high temperature so that icing.

of the coils is not excessive.

From the foregoing description it is apparent that we have provided a refrigerated display case which fulfills the above-stated objects of the invention. The illustrated structure obviously can be modified to suit individual requirements without departing from the principles of the inventon, and it is intended that all such modifications shall be covered by the following claims.

We claim: 7

1. In a refrigerated display case of elongated configuration having an open top upper compartment and an enclosed lower compartment, vertical walls bounding both said compartments, a refrigerating unit disposed in said lower compartment adjacent one of the longest of said vertical walls, means defining a cold air passage extending upwardly of said refrigerating unit adjacent said one wall to discharge into said upper compartment, said refrigerating unit having openings respectively communicating with said air passage and with said lower compartment, means defining an air exhaust passage extending adjacent the opposite wall for conducting air from said upper compartment to said lower compartment, said exhaust passage having an intake opening extending substantially the entire length of said upper compartment, air circulating means in said lower compartment for producing a flow of air from said exhaust passage through said refrigerating unit and thence through the openings in said unit, bafile means arranged in said upper compartment at the up' per end of said cold air passage to afford a plenum chamber communicating with the cold air passage, and air guiding means for directing air from said plenum chamber into said upper compartment at a level substantially lower than the upper edges of all the walls bounding said upper compartment.

2. In a refrigerated display case having an open top elongated upper compartment and an enclosed lower compartment, an imperforate partition separating said upper and lower compartments, a refrigerating unit disposed in said lower compartment, means defining a cold air passage extending upwardly of said refrigerating unit to discharge into said upper compartment, said re;-

sa aw 7-. frigeratingunit? having. openings; respectively; communicating. with said. passage; and with; saidilower compartment, exhaust passage for conducting air-from said upper compartment. to said lower compartment, baiilemeans arranged compartment, each tending: substantially: theg entire length of. said; upper compartment, air'circulatin-g means for producing arflow of air from saidv exhaust passage through said refrigerating unit and outwardly through the openings in said unit, and air: guiding means for directingv air from said plenum chambers into saidiuppercompartment atadevel substantially lower than the top of saidupper compartment, and; substantially higher than said partition, said exhaust passage having an intake opening located lower than the top 01:" said. upper compartment and substantially higherthan-said;partition.

' 3.111 arefrigerated display case, the combie nationof .front, rear and-side walls, upper and lower compartments bounded by said walls, said front and. rear walls extending lengthwise of the display case, a cold air passage extending upwardly: from said lower compartment to said upper compartment and. terminating in a discharge endspaced in a substantial amount above the'bottom of said upper compartment, an air exhaust passage extending downwardly from said upper;:compartment to said lower compartment, saidpassagesbeing respectively adjacent to and coextensive with said-front andrear walls, a refrigerating unit disposed in said lower compartmerit haying cold air discharge openings respectively communicating with said coldair passage and with1 the interior of said lower compartment, said-refrigerating unit being short in comparisonwith thelength of the upper compartment, air,.-circulating means for producing a flow of air fromsaid'exhaust passage through said refrigeratingunit and outwardly through the openings insaidunit, and a baifle arrangement at the discharge end of said cold air passage affording, a plenum chamber, through which the cold air is conducted from said passage into said upper compartment, said plenum chamber extending substantially the entire length of said upper compartment and serving to equalize the distribution ohincoming cold air, said exhaust. passage. having an intake: opening disposed on approximately the same levelas saidv plenum chamber and having. no-other intake openings in said upper compartmerit.

V 4. In arefrigerateddisplaycase, the combina-. tion of front, rear and side walls, upper and lower compartments bounded by said walls, a cold air passage extending upwardly from said lower compartment to said'upper compartment adjacent said rear wall, an air exhaustpassage extending downwardly from said upper compartment to,

said lower compartment adjacent saidfront wall, arrefrigerating unit disposed in said lower compartment having cold air discharge openingsrespectively communicating with said cold air passage and with the interior of said lower compartment, partitions to prevent the passage of air from said refrigerating unit directly intosaid lower; compartment except through said discharge" openings; saidrefrigerating unit being short in comparisonwiththe length of the upper compartment, air circulatingmeans for-producinga' fiow-ofair from said exhaust passage means defining, an :air-

in' said 1, upper Y comparte ment to aiiord a seriesof plenumchambers inter,- posedbetween the coldair passage andsaid upper,- of said, plenum chambers ex- 8- through: .saidi refri era wardly through saidlair; discharge openings there in, and'abafiie arrangementgatthe discharge, end; affordinga plenum chain 1 berxthrough which the cold air is conducted from saidpassagerinto saidtupper compartment, said of said coldair passage plenum chamber extending substantially-the entire length ofsaid ,uppencompartment' and sew-- ing toeequalize. the distribution of incoming; coldair;

5..In a refrigerated-display case of" elongatedconfiguration having: arsopentop upper display ing short in comparison with the length of the? display case, means defining a cold air passage; extending upwardly adjacent said rear-wall I and; communicating with said refrigerating unit, said cold air passage being substantially coextensive with said rear wall-above said'lower'compart' ment, perforated baflie plates arranged to afford a series of plenum chambers interposed between said cold air passage and said upper compartment, said plenum chambers extending substan-- tially the entire length of the display'casewand serving to'equalize-the distribution of cold" air entering said upper compartment; a member extending forwardly from said rear wall,rone of said baffle plates being arranged diagonally to cooper ate with said member for directing the incoming cold air downwardly atan angle into saiduppcr compartment at a level'lower than thetops of said wallsand substantiallyhigher than the bottom of said upper compartment, means defining an exhaust passage having'an intake opening dis-- posed a .substantial'distance above the bottom of said upper compartment, said exhaust passage extending downwardly adjacent saidfront wall and communicating with said lower compartmerit, and air circulating meansfor producing a flow of air from said exhaust passage-through said-refrigerating unit" and said cold air passage into the upper compartment;

6. In a refrigerated display case having an upper open top displaycompartment and a lower enclosed storage compartment, vertical walls bounding both said compartments, a refrigerat ingunit disposed at said lower compartmentadjacent a first wall ofthe display case; meansdefining a cold air 1 passage extending upwardly of said refrigeratingunit-adjacentsaid first wall; said refrigerating unit'having cold air discharge openings communicating respectively with said cold airpassage andwith the interior-of saidt lowercompartment and having-a length substantially less than the length of 'the display case, means defining an air exh'austlpassage extendingfrom said upper compartment to said lower compartment adjacent a second of said walls, the space in said upper compartment between said cold air passage andsai'd'exhaust passage being. adapted for holding food on display, air circulat ing-means for forcing ,a circulation of air from said lower compartment throughv said refrigerating unit, bafil'e members, arranged at the discharge end of said coldjairpassagetoafforda plenum chamber extending substantially the en"- members being effective to-direct-ai-r'fromsaid and, thence: out

display case, a-refrigeratplenum chamber downwardly at a slant into said upper compartment substantially below the top of the display case.

7. In a refrigerated display case having an open top upper compartment and an enclosed lower-compartment, the combination of means defining a cold air passageextending vertically from the lower compartment to the upper compartment, a refrigerating unit arranged in said lower compartment, air circulating means associated with said refrigerating unit to discharge refrigerated air under pressure from said unit into said cold air passage, said refrigerating unit being short in comparison with the length of the upper compartment, and a plurality of baffle members arranged to afiord a series of plenum chambers extending substantially the entire length of the upper compartment and communicating with said cold air passage for equalizing the pressure of the incoming cold air, said bafile members including a perforated plate arranged diagonally for directing the cold air from the final plenum chamber downwardly at an angle toward articles contained in the upper compartment.

8. In a refrigerated display case having partitions dividing the case into upper and lower compartments and a vertically extending cold air passage through which said compartments communicate with each other, a refrigerating unit adapted to be disposed in the lower compartment of the case for cooling both said compartments, said unit comprising a movable frame having a vertical wall adapted to extend for a substantial part of the distance between the top and bottom of the lower compartment, said frame being adapted for attachment to a wall of said cold air passage and having an opening in its top for communication with the cold air passage, refrigerating means carried by said frame, and an air circulating fan mounted on said frame below said refrigerating means for drawing in air from the lower compartment of the case and directing the air past the refrigerating means, said frame wall having apertures therein above said refrigerating means whereby a portion of the refrigerated air is discharged directly into the lower compartment, the remainder of the refrigerated air passing into the cold air passage.

9. In a refrigerated display case having partitions dividing the case into upper and lower compartments and a vertically extending cold air passage through which said compartments communicate with each other, a refrigerating unit adapted to be disposed in the lower compartment of the case for cooling both said compartments, said unit comprising a frame having a vertical wall adapted to extend for a substantial part of the distance between the top and bottom of the lower compartment, said frame having an opening in its top for communication with the cold air passage, refrigerating means carried by said unit, an air circulating device disposed in said unit below said refrigerating means for directing air to be cooled upwardly through said refrigerating means, said wall having louvers therein above said refrigerating means, and an adjustable partition in the upper portion of said unit movable toward and away from said vertical wall to divide the refrigerated air stream selectively between the two compartments.

10. A refrigerator display case comprising an open-top display compartment having front, rear and side walls, means defining a cold air passage extending upwardly adjacent said rear wall, bafile members defining a series of plenum chambers communicating with said cold air passage, air guiding means including certain of said bafie members fordirecting air from the final one of said plenum chambers into said display compartment at a level substantially higher than the bottom of said compartment, said plenum chambers extending substantially the entire length of said compartment,- means defining an air exhaust passage extending down,- wardly adjacent the front wall and having an intake opening substantially higher than the bottom of said display compartment, refrigerating means, and air circulating -means for producing a flow of air from said exhaust pas.- sage through said refrigerating means and thence through said cold air passage into the display compartment.

11. In a refrigerated display case having partitions dividing the case into upper and lower compartments and a vertically extending cold air passage through which said compartments communicate with each other, a refrigerating unit adapted to be disposed in the lower compartment of the case for cooling both said compartments, said unit comprising a frame having a vertical wall adapted to extend for a substantial part of the distance between the top and bottom of the lower compartment, said frame having an opening in its top for communication with the cold air passage, refrigerating means carried by said unit, and an air circulating fan mounted in said unit below said refrigerating means for drawing in air from the lower compartment of the case and directing the air past the refrigerating means, said wall having apertures therein above said refrigerating means and vanes disposed in association with said apertures, whereby a portion of the refrigerated air is discharged directly into the lower compartment toward the ends thereof and the remainder of the refrigerated air passes into the cold air passage.

12. In a refrigerated display case having partitions dividing the case into upper and lower compartments and a vertically extending cold air passage through which said compartments communicate with each other, a refrigerating unit adapted to be disposed in the lower compartment of the case for cooling both said compartments, said refrigerating unit including a housing having an intake opening and an outlet opening communicating with the cold air passage, refrigerating means within said housing intermediate said openings, and an air circulating fan mounted on said housing for circulating air from said intake opening through said housing and over said refrigerating means and outthrough said outlet opening, said inlet opening communicating with the lower compartment of the case and receiving air therefrom, said housing including air distributing means at said outlet opening thereof for discharging a portion of the refrigerated air directly into the lower compartment, and for discharging the remainder of the refrigerated air into the cold air passage.

13. In a refrigerated display case having partitions dividing the case into upper and lower compartments and a vertical cold air passage through which said compartments communicate with each other, a refrigerating unit adapted to be disposed in the lower compartment of the case for cooling both said compartments, said refrigerating unit including a housing having intake and outlet openings, refrigerating means thereof for discharging 11 within said housing intermediate said openings, andan air circulating fan mounted on said housing for circulating air through said intake opening into said housing from the lower compartment of the case, and directing the air-past said refrigerating means and out through said outlet opening, said housing including adjustable air distributing means at said outlet opening a portion of the refrigerated air directly into the lower compartment, andfordischarging the remainder ofthe refrigerated air through the cold air passage and into the upper compartment, with the adjustment of said air distributing means controlling the relative quantities 'of air supplied to the two compartments. ALFRED J. KOPP.

JOHN R. BOYLE.

LREFERENCES ..CITED "The following references are oi'recor'd in the file :of "this patent:

Number UNITED STATES PATENTS Name Date Bales Jan. 5, 1937 Jones Nov. '1, 1938 Starr Mar. 28, 1939 Sipp Apr. 22, 1941 Hermann June 3, 1941 Lambrecht Nov. 11, 1941 Caulk Oct. '13, .1942 .Shreve Oct. 19, 11943 Brinkoeter May 27, 1947 MacMaster Aug. 24, 1948 MacMaster Aug.'24, 1948 Hardin Mar. 8, 1949 Stultz Apr. 15,1949 .MacMaster Jan. 10, 1950 Raskin June 13,1950