US921370A - Freezing apparatus. - Google Patents

Description

' W. DEGENER, JE-

FREEZING APPARATUS.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 1.1908.

921 ,370; Patented May 11, 1909.

3 SHEETS-SHEBT 2.

WITNESSES INVENTOI? A TTOBNEYS W. DBGENER, JR. TREEZING APPARATUS. APPLIGATION FILED APR. 1, 1908. 921 ,370. Patented May 11, 1909.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 8.

ATTORNEYS UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

. ILLIAM DEGENER, m, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

FREEZING APB RATUS.

Specification of Letters Patent. Application filed April 1, 1908. Serial No. 424,489.

Patented May 11, 1909.-

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WILLIAM DE-GENE}??- J r., a citizen of the'United States, and a resident of the city of New York, borough of Manhattan, in the county and State of New York, have invented a new and Im roved Freezing Apparatus, of which the f0 owing is a full, clear,and exact description.

This invention relates to freezing apparatus, and more articularly to apparatus of this kind in which the congealing of liquids' by means of cold can be effected, and which includes means controlled by the change of volume of the liquids, due to the congela tion, for, operating the apparatus to discharge the .congealed liquld and replace it tures can be used for the production of ice and other congealed liquids.

Another object of the invention is to )1'0- vide a device of the class described, w ich is absolutely automatic in operation, by means of which receptacles of ice can be removed from the outer air, in which the freezing is effected to a point within a house, an

ice-box or the like, and which effects the removal of the receptacles to the outer air when the ice therein has melted.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a freezing apparatuswhich obviates the necessity of cutting ice on ponds and the like, by means of which the'freezing of the water in blocks of predetermined sha )e-can be effected, and which are discharge automatically when the freezing is completed.

The invention consists in the construction.

and combination of parts to be more fully described hereinaften and particularly set forth in the claims.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings forming a part of this specification, in which similar characters of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the views, and in which- Figure'l is a longitudinal section of my invention, showing a receptacle filled wit liquid to be congealed, and a magazine of similar receptacles; F ig. 2 is a similar view showing a receptacle filled with ice and about to he received from the outer air towithin a 1 building; Fig. 3 is a transverse section show-' ing the magazine of receptacles together. with a track upon which the receptacles I travel; Fig. 4 is a vertical section of a form of; my invention used upon lakes, ponds or the like, which obviates the cutting. of ice, and which serves to eifect the forming of ice in blocks, and the automatic discharge of the blocks; Fig. 5 is a longitudinal section showing a modified form'of my inventionin which the receptacles or canisters of ice are discharged directly to an ice-box, and when the icehas melted are returned automatically td the outer air so that the contents thereof can again be congealed; and Fig. 6

receptacles to the outer air.

Before proceeding to a more detailed ex planation of my invention, it should "be use of the temperature of the atmos here alone, for freezing the water, artificial y in.- duced low tern eratures can. of course be used equally we for example, during those seasons of the year when the temperature of theair is normally'too high for the congelation of wateror other liquids. Water, in 'freezing expands. aiproximately oneexerts a tremendous force I- make use of this force by means ofsuitable mechanism, for removing the; con ealed water to a place, for example an ice box, which is remote from, the point of its congolation.

ponds,'lakes and thelike to avoid the necessity of cutting ice, the ex )ansive force of the freezing water is used to'discharge the blocks of ice formed, to a point adjacent to the device, from which they can be gathered by means of a vehicle.- or the like. I wish to emphasize that my invention resides not in any of the various details of construction shown, for example, in the accompanying drawings, but consists primarily in the provision of means for utilizing'the force developed by the expansion of a congealed to a point at which it can be utilized, or to remove it merel so that its place can be taken by other iquid to be congealed.

Referring more particularly to the drawings, 1. Orepresents a window frame of a house or other building, provided" with a window clearly understood that while Ihaveshown for example, forms-of the device which make eighth of its volume, an in thus expanding is a transverse section showing a portion of the lee-box and the means for returning the In the form of the device used 1n connection with I liquid, to remove the liquid when congealed,

11, which can be of the usual construction. While the form of my invention described below is shown as extending-through the window of a building, it can equally well be.

used in connection with some other opening in the wall of the structure. I provide track members 12 extending from the inside 'to the outside of the building, through the window opening, and resting upon the Window sill 13. The track members 12 are separated and carry-therebetween rollers 14 for a purpose which willappear hereinafter. At

the outer ends of the track formed by the to prevent leakage of the water 20 or other liquid which the receptacles contain.- A receptacle 1S filled with water is placed upon thetrack rollers with one end engaging at a head-21 carried-at the free end of the spring.

At a point removed from the head 21 a dis-' tance substantially'equal to the length of a receptacle 18 is a catch 22 slidably mounted in a socket 23 carried upon one of the track members 12, and adapted to engage the receptacle to hold it in position. A spring 24 within the socket 23 normally projects the catch. The latter has a stud 25 which engages a slot 26 of a bell crank lever 27 pivoted upon one of the track members 12 and connected with the head 21 by means of an arm 28 slidably'. mounted in a guide 29.

The windowo ening is closed by means of a flap 30 of suita le flexible material which can be displaced by the receptacle as the latter travels along the track upon the rollers.

As the liquid within the receptacle freezes or congeals, it expands, and in expanding, the telescoping parts of the receptacle are forced apart, as is shown most clearly in Fig. 2. As the receptacle is held in position by the catch 22 the expansion of the liquid the receptacle along the track and into the compresses the spring 16. The head 21 moves with the spring, and through the arm 28 operates'the bell'crank lever 27. Consequently, when the liquid is congealed the spring hasbeen compressed to such a point t at the catch' is displaced to release the receptacle, and the potential energy stored in the spring, as the catch is. released rojects building.

Adjacent to the track within the building is a,chute or magazine 31 in which is arranged a plurality of receptacles 18. The

magazine has an outlet adjacent to the track, and a trigger 32 which holds the outermost receptacle 18 in place. The trigger 32 .hinge 52 x ofthe casing upon a suitable bracket 54 and it depresses the dog, and when it passes from the track, thus releases the first of the receptacles 18 within the magazine. The same rolls out uponthe track and starts downward along it. The track, it will be understood, is suitablyv inclined for the purpose.

The new receptacle then moves downward to the spring, and as soon as it passes from the dog 34 the trigger 32 is released, and in time to engage the next of'the receptacles in the magazine to hold it in position and prevent it from leaving the magazine. The

receptacle moving downward upon the track passes over'thecatch 22, depressing the latter, which is suitably beveled to permit the.

passa e toward the spring of the receptacle 18. f. the outer air is cold enough, the

liquid within the receptacles will be frozen.

These will be successively discharged from the magazine, and subsequently, when frozen, will be returned to the building, passing down the chute 17 to the point where theyare to be utilized.

In Fig. 4 is shown a modified'form of my invention, which can be used as a substitute,

for the operation of cuttinli ice'upon ponds, lakes, reservoirs and the l' e. In this form of the invention 1 emplo a substantially cylindrical'casing 50 who 1s arranged in a suitably formed opening in the ice A of a lake or pond B. The upper rim of the casing 50 projects above the surface of the ice A, while the lower art extends into the water of the lake B. X edge of the casing1 by means of, a suitable A catc 53, pivoted at the side arranged within a tubular chamber 55 at the side 0f"t'he casing, serves to engage at the edge of the lid 51 to hold the latter ina closed position. A piston or plunger 56 is slidable within the casing and has a piston ring 57 which insures a tight fit. The piston 56 has a hollow piston rod 58, sliding in a suitable opening 59 of the bottom of the casing, and rovided with an annular lateral flange 60 wliich limits the movement of the piston longitudinally of thecasing in one direction. A helical spring 61 incased in an envelop 62 of rubber or the like, surrounds the piston rod. The casing can be held by a float or in any other *convenient manner before the lake freezes, and the ice then allowed to form about the casing to secure it in position.

The chamber 55 extends longitudinally of the casing to a point below the piston and.

the casing. A member 64 is arrangedunderlid 51 is mounted at the-upper neath the piston a'ndhas' a stem 65' slidably located-in the slot 63 and extending into the chamber 55. The stem 65 is joined by means of a line or link 66 with an arm .67 of the catch 53. A'flap 68,,of flexible orother suitablematerial; closes the upper opening of the hollow piston rod 59 and constitutes a one-way valve. The envelop 62 serves to protect the spring 61' from the water which might penetrate the casing underneath the piston. When the casing is filled with water and the lid 51 is closed and held closed bv the catch 53, the expansion of the liquid within the casing, due 'to its congelation, forces the tends to hold the catch 53 in a normallyop erative position. A leaf spring 70, mounted at the opp osite end of the casing and extending upwardly above the same, is arranged to engage the lid 51 as the latter is swung to an open position, and returns it to a closed position after the ice leaves the casing.

As the ice is forced outward by the action of the spring, the water from the lake enters the casing'through the hollow piston rod 59, the valve 68 opening inwardly for this purpose. A vacuum'is created by the movement of the ice'from the casing and this acts r the casing can be greased or otherwise lubri-' cated on the inner surface, to facilitate the to draw water into the'latter to the-upper rim thereof. In this way the operation of the device is continuous, and as soon'as one block of ice is formed and ejected the casing is filled with water, which subsequently freezes to form a second block. If necessary,

removal of the ice blocks therefrom.

'In the form of my invention shown in Figs. 5 and 6, a track 37 leads directly through a suitable opening 38 in a site walls 40 of which are inclined toward each, other from top to bottom. A return track 41 leads from the bottom of the refrigerator 39 through a suitable opening' 42 to the outer end of the track at which the receptacles are positioned during the congelation. The receptacles filled with the congealedliquid enter the ice chest through the opening 38in ally move downward between the walls as the congealed liquid is melted in cooling. In

this way the receptacles are radually tele-'. scoped again and are ready to e returned to the outer air to be again frozen. The part 43 of the refrigerator, within which the receptacles are located, constitutes a magazine having an outlet adjacent to the return track 41. A guide socket 44 is provided at the gall, intonan icechest, refrigerator or the li e, 39, the oppo-' outlet, in: which is located a novablefinger 45 heldin a projected operative position by means of aspring- 46. The trigger is connected by a line 47, passing over a pulley 48,

with the bell crank lever 27, so that as the receptacle at the outer end of the track is released, the lowermost of the receptacles within the refrigerator is released si-inultaneouslyftherewith. A swinging trap '49 directs the receptacle moving under the impulse of the-spring 16 on to the upper track- 37 and into the upper portion of the refrigerator. The trap 49 -permits the released receptacle to move along the lower track 41 from the refrigerator'to a position at the outer end of the track, where it is to be congealed and from which it is subsequently returned to the refrigerator by the spring 16. The lower track 41 has rollers 14 and is suitably inclined to permit the return from.the refrigerator of the successive receptacles filled with liquid to be congealed.

Patent:

container for a substanceto be congealed, a spring, and a movable member controlled by t e-substance and controlling said spring so thatthe spring is compressed by the substance -in changing form when congealed,

vwhereby said spring'serves to advance the substance to a point remote from the point of its congelation: Y

2. In'.apparatus of the class described,

Having thus-described my invention, I claim-as new, and desire to secure byLetters f 9O 1. In apparatus of the class described, a

means for .converting the expansive forceexerted by a congealing substance into potential energy, andlmeans for utilizing the potential energy to remove thecongealed substance to a point remote from the point of its congelation.

3. In .ap aratus of the class described, a container or a fluid to be'congealed, and means controlled by the change in the volume of the congealing fluid, for removing the congealed fluid from the place of its congelation. 4. In apparatus of\the class described, an adjustable container. for a fluid to be congealed, means for converting the movement of the container due to the ex ansive force exerted by'the eon eah'ng su stance, into potential energy, an means for utilizing the potential ener to remove the containerto a place remote rom the place of the congelation of the fluid. 1 the upper part'of the refrigerator and gradu 5.- In apparatus of the class described, a

container for a fluid to be con ealed, means for resisting the expansion of t e fluid while it is congealing, means for storing the force for positioning said container at a point havflui said track at the point of lower temperature, a means forholding a container in'engagement 'ing a temperature adaptedto congeal the fluid, means for storing the energy produced by the change in volume of the congealing fluid, and means for utilizing the stored energy to remove said container to a point,

remote from the first point. 1

7. In apparatus of the class described,- a telescopic container for a fluid to be cong'ealed, means for holding said container in position at a point having. a temperature adapted to congeal the fluid, means for stor in the energyprodu'ced by the change in v0 ume of the congealing fluid, and means controlled by'said last-mentioned means, for releasing said container.

8. In apparatus of the class described, a

track, an extensible container for a -fluid to be congealed, a"stop for holding said container against-movement along said track in one direction, a spring engaging said container when the same is held in position upon said track, [and a 'release controlled by said spring, for releasing said container.

9. In apparatus of the class described, a

a track connecting two points having different tem eratures, telescoping containers for a to. be congealed, a spring adjacent to with said spring, means for releasing the con- 3 tainer, a magazine for containers at the point ofhigher temperature, and means operable by the movement of a container along said track, for releasing one of the containers within said magazine, said track being inclined to permit a receptacle to travel gravitationally along the same from said magazine to saidspring. i

10. In apparatus of the class describedfa track having at one end a spring, telescoping 40 containers fonfluid to be congealed, means for holding one of said containers in enga ement with said spring, means controlled y said spring for releasing one of said containers from its position against said spring, a casing 4 adapted to receive said receptacles at the upper end thereof, said track leading to the upper end of said casing,' said casing being formed to telescope said containers as the same ass through said casing, and a return 50

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