Refrigeration apparatus
AssigneeThe Sure Chill Company Limited
InventorIan Tansley
Life of this patent
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Abstract
An apparatus for cooling objects such as food items, beverages or vaccines comprises at least two reservoirs, a cooling device for cooling fluid contained in one of the reservoirs and a thermal transfer region between respective upper regions of the reservoirs. The thermal transfer region permits thermal transfer between the fluid contained in the reservoirs such that cooling of the fluid in one reservoir causes cooling of the fluid in the other reservoir.
Claims45
An apparatus, comprising:
- first and second fluid reservoirs;
- and
- a thermal transfer region disposed between respective upper regions of the first and second fluid reservoirs,
- the apparatus being configured to permit a cooling element to be disposed in thermal communication with fluid in a headspace thereby to cool said fluid, in use,
- the apparatus being configured to allow fluid within the first fluid reservoir at a temperature below a critical temperature of fluid in the first reservoir to rise to the upper region of the first fluid reservoir and to allow fluid within the second fluid reservoir at a temperature above a critical temperature of fluid in the second reservoir to rise to the upper region of the second fluid reservoir thereby to allow thermal transfer to take place in the thermal transfer region between fluid that has risen in the first reservoir and fluid that has risen in the second reservoir,
- the apparatus being further configured to permit fluid at the critical temperature in the thermal transfer region to sink at least into the second fluid reservoir.
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A method, comprising:
- cooling a fluid in a lower region of a first fluid reservoir;
- allowing fluid within the first fluid reservoir at a temperature below a critical temperature of fluid in the first reservoir to rise to an upper region of the first fluid reservoir;
- allowing fluid within a second fluid reservoir at a temperature above a critical temperature of fluid in the second reservoir to rise to an upper region of the second fluid reservoir;
- allowing thermal transfer to take place in a thermal transfer region between fluid that has risen in the first reservoir and fluid that has risen in the second reservoir, the thermal transfer region being provided between respective upper regions of the first and second fluid reservoirs;
- and
- allowing fluid at the critical temperature in the thermal transfer region to sink at least into the second fluid reservoir.
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A method, comprising:
- cooling a fluid in a lower region of a first fluid reservoir;
- permitting fluid within the first fluid reservoir at a temperature below a critical temperature of the fluid to rise to an upper region of the first fluid reservoir;
- mixing the fluid at a temperature below the critical temperature with fluid at a temperature above the critical temperature from a second fluid reservoir in a thermal transfer region disposed between respective upper regions of the first and second fluid reservoirs;
- and
- permitting fluid at the critical temperature in the thermal transfer region to sink into at least the second fluid reservoir so as to cool a payload compartment in thermal communication therewith.
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Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.