Refrigeration – Using electrical or magnetic effect – Thermoelectric; e.g. – peltier effect
Reexamination Certificate
2001-03-30
2002-04-16
Doerrler, William (Department: 3744)
Refrigeration
Using electrical or magnetic effect
Thermoelectric; e.g., peltier effect
C062S003300, C062S389000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06370884
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. The Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an apparatus for cooling fluids. More particularly, the present invention relates to an in-line thermoelectrically operated water-cooling device formed as a single-ended cylindrical cartridge vertically mounted on a flowboard.
2. The Prior Art
The present invention pertains to methods and systems for water conditioning, treatment and purification and, in particular, to domestic units which are readily adaptable to treat local water in accordance with any existing long term or varying temporary condition to produce water of high purity and to a flowboard for controlling fluid distribution in the system.
Impurities in natural raw waters (surface or well water) occur in four basic different forms, namely non-ionic and undissolved impurities; ionic and dissolved impurities; gaseous impurities; and biological impurities. Each of these impurities requires separate treatment techniques and equipment for their removal.
Non-ionic and undissolved impurities include, but are not Limited to, turbidity, silt, mud, suspended solids, organic matter, bacteria, oil colloidal matter and colloidal silica.
Ionic and dissolved impurities include: a wide variety of salts dissolved in water and dissociated to form positive ions, called cations, and negative ions, called anions. The major cations in natural raw water are calcium, magnesium sodium, potassium, ammonium, iron and manganese. The major anions are carbonate, bicarbonate, hydroxide, chloride, sulfate, nitrate, phosphate, and silica.
Gaseous impurities include a number of gases that are soluble in water. Some are found naturally in well water, such as carbon dioxide, hydrogen sulfide, and methane. Others are the result of water purification or industrial application and include such gases as ammonia, oxygen and chlorine.
Biological impurities include all types of microorganisms, bacteria, viruses, and pyrogen.
In most cases, all of these four forms of impurities coexist simultaneously and in differing amounts and their relative proportions can vary, even seasonally. No single treatment or technique is adequate for or capable of removing all impurities in one step. Multiple related or interdependent processes are normally required to rid water from such impurities. Generally these processes must be constantly monitored to assure each form of impurity is being properly treated and removed.
The inventor of the subject invention is also the inventor of U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,080,313 and 6,099,735, the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by way of reference. These patents describe counter-top modular water purification and disinfection systems to remove water impurities and produce water of high quality and purity as presented in the forgoing introduction. All water treatment and control modules are single ended, bottle-like cartridges of different functions mounted on a uniquely designed flow circuit forming a base, which was named “flowboard.” The subject invention discloses the use of a water cooler in the form of a bottle-like cartridge to be mounted on a flowboard of a stand-alone water-cooling apparatus or as a cooling module in a water purification system of the type described in the aforementioned patents. The flowboard is a flat box-like assembly concealing a fluid conduit extending between an inlet and an outlet and a plurality of mounting receptacles connected to the conduit, each receptacle receiving a single ended cartridge or a module vertically therein, whereby water is purified and cooled while passing from the inlet to be dispensed at the outlet. Prior art in thermoelectric fluid cooling, for example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,384,512 to Keith; 4,752,389 to Burrows; 4,913,318 to Forrester; 5,209,069 to Newman; 5,501,077 to Davis et al; and 5,544,489 to Moren describe the use of conventional thermoelectric cooling devices as affixed to the surface of a water container for the purpose of cooling water by natural convection within the container. U.S. Pat. No. 4,281,516 to Berthet et al describes a thermoelectric cooling device comprising a liquid flow circuit in the form of a bendable metal tube imbedded within the cold plate of a multi-plate thermoelectric cooler system. U.S. Pat. No. 5,494,195 to Knuettel et al describes a thermoelectrically cooled beverage dispenser comprising a liquid flow circuit in the form of a channel having affixed conventional thermoelectric devices.
None of the prior art devices depicts an in-line, fully integrated, single element fluid cooling system in the form of a detachable bottle-like coaxial cylindrical cartridge, having only one port for fluid inlet and outlet, and is easily mounted on or removed from a flowboard or a manifold without tools and without disturbing the piping, wiring or other parts of the apparatus.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a fully functional single-element thermoelectric water cooling device in the form of a vertically mounted cylindrical cartridge, which is similar to those used for water filtration and purification.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a cooling cartridge that provides immediate, on-demand cold water without requiring a reservoir for storing cold water.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a water-cooling cartridge, which is easy to install or to replace without the need for any tools or equipment.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a water-cooling cartridge, which has a single end with a water inlet and a water outlet forming a single concentric port.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a water-cooling cartridge that can be mounted on a flowboard so as to be included with various other elements for water treatment.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide one or more water-cooling cartridges that can be mounted on a flowboard for a stand-alone counter top water cooler.
It is still a further object of the present invention to provide one or more water-cooling cartridges that can be mounted on a linear flowboard in the form of a manifold.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a water-cooling cartridge whereby the water flows upwardly through an annulus of a chamber and leaves axially through the water outlet tube.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a water-cooling cartridge whereby the water flows upwardly through a single entry circumferential helix disposed on an internal compartment, forming a narrow annulus with the water pipe, for the purpose of enhancing flow velocity and subsequently heat transfer rate.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a water-cooling cartridge whereby the water flow pipe has external flat surfaces preferably of equal size so as to form a square wall pipe having a square internal channel.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a water-cooling cartridge whereby the water flow pipe is a rectangular block with external flat surfaces of equal sides so as to form a square wall pipe having drilled or cast therein a circular internal passageway.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a water-cooling cartridge whereby the water flow pipe is a conventional cylindrical pipe having affixed blocks of external flat surfaces and internal contoured surfaces for mating the pipes.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a water-cooling cartridge that can include a multi-section finned heat sink affixed circumferentially around the water flow pipe in which the heat sink is separated from the external surface of the water flow pipe by an insulating material.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a water-cooling cartridge having a multi-section finned heat sink which is formed of an economical highly heat conductive material such as aluminum.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a water-cooling cartridge in which the finned member of the heat sink has extruded, machined or molde
Doerrler William
Egan Russell J.
Shulman Mark
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