Refrigeration system and control system therefor
AssigneeFollett Corporation
InventorsEdward V. Twiggar, III, Shawn P. Szilezy, James Bottos
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A refrigeration system or a control system for a refrigeration system has a display that by default displays the temperature of a simulated product stored in the refrigeration system as sensed by a temperature probe. The system control logic determines the temperature limits for cutting the refrigeration cycle in or out based on a temperature set-point entered by a user.
Claims14
A control system for controlling temperature within an enclosure of a refrigeration system having an evaporator and means for forced air circulation past the evaporator, the enclosure having an interior, the control system comprising:
- a microcomputer, the means for forced air circulation being energized and deenergized under control of said microcomputer;
- a first temperature sensor communicating with said microcomputer, said first temperature sensor being located in a place selected from an air intake stream to the evaporator and directly on the evaporator itself;
- a second temperature sensor communicating with said microcomputer, said second temperature sensor being in contact with one of a first simulated product and a first actual product placed within the enclosure;
- user interface means to allow a user to program the control system with one or more temperature control parameters;
- a door opening sensor communicating with said microcomputer;
- and
- alarm means for generating an alarm to alert a user when a temperature sensed by said second temperature sensor is outside a desired temperature range that is based upon the one or more temperature control parameters, wherein said microcomputer determines upper and lower temperature limits based upon the one or more temperature control parameters, the control system operates the refrigeration system to cool the interior of the enclosure of the refrigeration system when a temperature sensed using said first temperature sensor is at or above the upper temperature limit, the control system stops operation of the refrigeration system to cool the interior of the enclosure of the refrigeration system when the temperature sensed using said first temperature sensor reaches the lower temperature limit,
- wherein the microcomputer at least stops operation of said means for forced air circulation when door opening is detected while the control system is operating the refrigeration system to cool the interior of the enclosure of the refrigeration system,
- wherein the control system operates the refrigeration system to cool the interior of the enclosure of the refrigeration system when, after door closing is detected, the temperature sensed using said first temperature sensor is at or above the upper temperature limit, wherein the second temperature sensor measures either a simulated product temperature from the first simulated product or an actual product temperature from the first actual product, respectively, wherein the simulated product temperature is a representation of the actual product temperature, and
- wherein said microcomputer logs temperature readings from said first and second temperature sensors at predetermined or user selected intervals of time, the microcomputer maintaining the log in a circular system, the microcomputer replacing older data with new data after a set duration.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.