Refrigeration – Cooler utilizing solidified gas – Means dispersing sublimed gas into cooled enclosure
Reexamination Certificate
2001-02-28
2001-10-02
Doerrler, William (Department: 3744)
Refrigeration
Cooler utilizing solidified gas
Means dispersing sublimed gas into cooled enclosure
C062S371000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06295830
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF INVENTION
This invention relates to a portable container. In one aspect, this invention relates to a portable container adapted for the transportation of refrigerated or frozen goods, e.g., groceries. In another aspect, this invention relates to a portable container equipped with an insert for holding carbon dioxide (CO
2
) ice, typically in snow or pellet form. In yet another aspect, this invention relates to a portable container that can convert from a container adapted for transporting refrigerated goods to a container for transporting frozen goods simply by inverting a CO
2
ice-containing insert.
With the growth of the .com industry, the need to transport refrigerated or frozen goods from a central distribution center (e.g., warehouse, grocery store, etc.) to a consumer (e.g., individual, business, etc.) in an effective and efficient manner has also grown. Effective transport means that the goods are conveyed from one point to another without material diminution of their quality, and efficient transport means that the goods are conveyed quickly and inexpensively.
In the context of transporting refrigerated or frozen food stuffs, the portable container (or tote) ideally should exhibit a number of beneficial properties. The tote should be large enough to hold a reasonable amount of groceries, e.g., one or two fully packed, standard-size grocery bags, yet sufficiently light so that it does not add significantly to the total weight of the groceries. The tote should be reusable over extended periods of time, and thus resistant to the routine impact, water, solvent, temperature and similar abuse that is commonly encountered in transporting goods from once place to another. In addition, the tote should be easy to use, e.g., easily opened and closed, packed, carried, stored, cleaned, etc., and it should easily convert from a condition for transporting refrigerated goods to a condition for transporting frozen goods, and vice versa. In this regard, this desirable tote is markedly different than conventional totes which are designed for transporting only hot or cold foods, e.g., totes for delivering hot pizza or cold beverages.
Various containers are known that use an insert containing carbon dioxide ice or snow (the latter simply a shaved or aerated form of the former), but none of these embody all of the desired features described in the proceeding paragraph.
For example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,971,231 to Derry teaches a refrigerator comprising an insulated cabinet with an access opening and at least one dry ice (CO
2
) carrier removably disposed within the cabinet. The insert comprises perforated and nonperforated walls opposed to one another that promoted refrigerated or freezing conditions, respectively, in the space adjacent the wall(s).
Kornish et al. teach in U.S. Pat. No. 3,678,703 a container for transporting or storing packaged frozen foods. The freezing element of this container is located in the cover of the container, and the freezing element comprises a heat-absorbing medium, preferably a mixture of water and propylene glycol.
Two other food storage and cooling devices of interest are U.S. Pat. No. 3,800,554 to Knapp, et al. and U.S. Pat. No. 1,654,828 to Nelson. Both use dry ice as the cooling agent, but neither are particularly well adapted for easy transport of refrigerated or frozen grocery items. The Nelson cabinet is designed more for storage then transport, and the Knapp, et al. cabinet is designed for use in travel trailers, camper units and the like.
SUMMARY OF INVENTION
In one embodiment of this invention, a tote for transporting refrigerated or frozen goods comprises a container with an access opening and a coolant insert. The container, typically in a trapezoidal or rectangular configuration, is sized to receive one or two fully packed, standard-size grocery sacks containing refrigerated or frozen foods. The container is typically of lightweight, e.g., constructed from a lightweight, insulated plastic and, optionally, is equipped with a corrugated plastic liner. The access opening to the container is, in one embodiment, one or more cover flaps that when open, give full access to the interior of the container.
The insert is typically in the shape of a thin, rectangular, shallow box in which carbon dioxide ice, typically in the form of pellets or snow, is placed. One of the top or bottom walls of the box is perforated while the other wall is solid and/or insulated. The box is designed to rest at or near the top of the sidewalls of the container such that it overlays the food stuffs within the container but does not interfere with the closure of the container. If the container contains frozen food stuffs, then the perforated wall of the insert is opposite the foodstuffs. If the container holds refrigerated food stuffs then the solid and/or insulated wall of the insert is opposite the foodstuffs.
In an alternative embodiment, the container has a detachable lid designed to receive and hold the insert.
In one specific embodiment of the invention, the tote comprises an insulated container and a coolant insert, the container comprising:
A. a durable, impact-resistant shell having a bottom wall and at least one side wall, all walls with interior and exterior surfaces, the interior surfaces defining a container volume and the internal surface of the side wall defining a container internal periphery;
B. an insulation liner adapted to fit adjacent the interior surface of the shell, the liner having a height that is less than the height of the shell so that the top edge of the liner forms a ledge about the internal periphery of the shell; and
C. a cover adapted to seal the container volume from its environment; the coolant insert comprising:
a. a durable, impact-resistant shell comprising at least one side wall, a perforated floor, and an access cover;
b. an insulation liner for the cover; and
c. a coolant;
the coolant insert adapted to fit within the container such that the coolant insert rests (i) upon the ledge formed by the top edge of the at least one side wall of the insulation liner, and (ii) within the shell such that the container cover can close to form a seal between the container volume and the environment. The container volume is, of course, the volume defined by the interior surfaces of the shell (with the cover closed), and the internal periphery is the length of a line drawn across the internal surfaces of the side walls and parallel to the plane of the bottom wall. If the tote is in the shape of a trapezoid or cone, then the internal periphery of the container will vary, of course, with height of the line measured from the bottom wall. If the container is in the shape of a cylinder or cone, then it has a single side wall. If it is in the shape of a polygon, then it has at least three side walls.
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Cohen Joshua L.
Doerrler William
Pace Salvatore P.
The BOC Group Inc.
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