Mobile ripening container

A mobile container adapted for transporting perishable goods, said container comprising:

• a front wall, a rear wall, a pair of side walls extending therebetween, a ceiling and a floor disposed spaced apart from one another by said front, rear and pair of side walls so as to define an elongated enclosure having a longitudinal axis and adapted to receive a cargo load;
• an air recirculation plenum defined in said enclosure adjacent said front wall;
• a refrigeration system in fluid communication with said air recirculation plenum and adapted to induct air at a first temperature and to exhaust air at a second temperature;
• a pair of return air plenums extending from said air recirculation plenum along the length of said elongated enclosure substantially parallel to said longitudinal axis, each of said pair of return air plenums defined by a corresponding one of said side walls and a plenum wall spaced from said corresponding side wall and extending from the upper margins of the enclosure such that said plenum wall is adapted to be coextensive and in abutting contact with a portion of the cargo load;
• an air delivery plenum and a source of pressurized air, said source of pressurized air having an inlet in fluid communication with the exhausted air from said refrigeration system and an outlet in fluid communication with said air delivery plenum, said air delivery plenum defined between said pair of return air plenums such that cool air is supplied under pressure along the longitudinal length of said enclosure and then flows through the cargo load in a direction substantially transverse to said longitudinal axis into said pair of return air plenums whereafter the air flows substantially parallel to said longitudinal axis adjacent a corresponding side wall and back to said air recirculation plenum.

A mobile container adapted for transporting perishable goods, said container comprising:

• a front wall, a rear wall, a pair of side walls extending therebetween, a ceiling and a floor disposed spaced apart from one another by said front, rear and pair of side walls so as to define an elongated enclosure having a longitudinal axis and adapted to receive a cargo load within said enclosure;
• an air delivery plenum and a return air plenum, said air delivery plenum including at least one air supply housing extending along a substantial length of said elongated enclosure parallel to said longitudinal axis said at least one air supply housing having at least one inlet with a first, larger volume in fluid communication with said return air plenum and an outlet having a second, smaller volume;
• and
• a source of pressurized air supported within said housing and adapted to induct air at a relatively lower pressure from said return air plenum through said inlet of said housing, to pressurize the air and to exhaust air at a relatively higher pressure through said outlet in said housing such that the air flows through the cargo load in a direction substantially transverse to said longitudinal axis into said return air plenum and is ultimately inducted into said inlet of said air supply housing.