US2831743A - Cold storage boxes - Google Patents

Description

April 22, 1958 Filed Aug. 16. 1954 W. L. MORRISON COLD STORAGE Boxxas 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 PY 22, 1958 L.. MORRISON com STORAGE BOXES Filed Aug. 16. 1954 Y 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 5 4 .Y Y w 4/" rm". 4 L /1 ,h

Fig. 3

INVENTOR, WILLARD L. MORRISON By Parker Carter ATTORNEYS April 22, 1958 Filed Aug. 16. 1954 Fig. 4*

W. L. MORRISON COLD STORAGE BOXES 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 By Parker 8x Carter ATTORNEYS United States Patent O COLD STORAGE BOXES Willard L. Morrison, Lake Forest, lll. Application August 16,1954, Serial No. 450,202 i Claim- (Cl. 31a-#214) My invention relates to improvements in cold storage boxes and has for one object to provide a new and improved forr'n of cold'storage box which under some circumstances may be used for refrigeration at temperatures above freezing or under other circumstances may be used for storage of food and other heat sensitive material at temperatures below freezing.

Heretofore such boxes have .been made of metal or wood with insulating material contained in the walls of the box and supported by the walls, the walls having no structural strength and relying for its support and for its maintenance in position to enclose the material contained in the box entirely upon the structural elements.

I propose on the other hand to provide a box or casing I wherein the insulating means are in the main self-supporting so that the walls of the box which enclose the material being refrigerated serve simultaneously as insulating and structural elements.

Preferably, I propose to use in the construction of the box such an insulating material as balsa wood which is, though soft, substantially strong structurally and which when assembled in a box will provide a substantially, completely non-metallic casing which is self-supporting and insulating. v

It will be understood, of course, that the insulating character of the balsa wood is dependent in part at least on the fact that it is a soft lightweight porous material and being soft and lightweight while of ample strength is subject to some measure of penetration by impact or distortion as a result of impact and I therefore propose to reinforce the balsa wood insulating and structural box at a few places to prevent danger of marring, scuiiing and deterioration.

Balsa wood being porous, does not provide the best possible vapor barrier so under some circumstances the balsa wood box will be lined with a thin vapor barrier layer which might take the form of paint or lacquer or a thin box supported metal wall but in the main the balsa wood furnishes not only the insulating means but the structural strength for the box.

Other objects will appear from time to time throughout the specification and claims.

My invention is illustrated more or less diagrammatically in the accompanying drawings, wherein- Figure 1 is a side elevation of the box;

Figure 2 is an end elevation;

Figure 3 is a plan view;

Figure 4 is an exploded view of the box assembly.

Like parts are indicated by like characters throughout the specification and drawings.

I have not illustrated the refrigerating machine itself. This will take the form of the usual compressor, motor to drive the compressor, expansion or storage chamber, condenser and means for cooling the condenser. This assembly will be supported with the box preferably below the cold storage chamber and the evaporator coils or the places, as the case may be, will be contained within the chamber in serieswith the compressor and condenser supported below or if desired, at one: sideof the chamber.`

I propose that the box will be assembled as a unit and then the refrigerating machinery will be placed in relation-l ship with the box and connected up with the evaporator or cooler coils or plates. Y

1, 1 indicates the-v end, topplates, there being Atwoof them at either end of the box. 2, 2 are the side box plates, there. being two of them on either side joining thel end top plates. 3 is the top plate dividen `4, 4 indicates the four corner posts, 5, 5 the intermediate lcenter support.l 6 is a plywood bottom panel 'supported by the.l posts 4 and 5. The corner posts 4 are notched diagonaleA posts.

ly as indicated to support theend louvers 7. The corner posts and the center support posts are` notched diagonally v to" support the side louvers 8. 9 is an end cross bar, 10 a center cross bar. '.11, 12v are side louver bases immedi` atelyv above the skid bases 13 on which the structure rests. All these wood elements are of relatively hard or solid wood, Vpine or other similar type of wood habitually used for structural purposes. located at the top of the vessel or ,box and subject to wear and tear when food or other material is taken into or out of the box. The corner and end posts support the box on the skid bases through the cross bars 9 and 10.

16 is the top lid preferably of balsa wood, there being two of them and they rest upon the two openings at the cated to receive and enclose the corner and center support posts. The topv plate 3 is supported and reinforced by the top divider stop 20 of balsa wood which also furnishes insulation for the space or clearance between the two covers 16.

26 is a refrigeration unit with temperature controls and the like shown only in outline and not illustrated because the particular details of this refrigeration machine form no part of the present invention. 27 illustrates cold plates in series with the refrigerator by way of the ducts 28 so that operation of the refrigeration machine will cause the cold plates 27 to act as evaporators and lower the temperature of the plates and so the temperature of the contents of the box. 33 indicates rubber gaskets for the lids 16. These lids 16 of hard wood on their upper surface are insulated by balsa wood filling panels 32 which insulate the lids themselves and penetrate between the members 1 and 2. 34 indicates an aluminum foillining for the box. This lining may be cemented or glued to the inner walls of the balsa wood box and to the lower surfaces of the doors :or lids, thus furnishing both a vapor seal for the box and a waterproof lining for the box to prevent the danger of impregnation of the insulation by water as a result of condensation above the freezing temperature, of vapor migrating from the contents of the box to the cold plates. Under some circumstances such lining may be omitted or it might take the form of paint, enamel-or any other suitable material coating the box lining.

The wooden box, the louvers and the supporting wood mechanism will of course be painted or venameled as is usual, in the refrigeration and freezer industry.

3S indicates wood dowel pins joining and tying the posts and cross bars with the balsa wood side and end and other panels so that so far as is possible, there will be no metal in the structure except that above referred to and the wood screws 43 which tie the cross bars 9 and 10 and the louver bases 11 and 12 together to the wooden skid base 13.

While I prefer t-o make the end, side and bottom panels t A.Patented Apr. 22, 195,8

The end and side top plates are` forming the' box-of a porous relatively light material having -high insulation eiect, such as balsa wood, it will be understood that other light, porous material of sufficient strength to form the body of the boxand having suciently-h'igh' insulating characteristics jma'y* be used.

When balsa is used, sincebalsa'wood of commereis usually in small pieces, these pieces Will be cemented or glued together to form'the panels, a suitable number and size of these pieces being used for that purpose;

I claim:

A refrigerator box comprising horizontal bottom, and vertical end and side slabs of alight porous insulating Wood4 such as balsa, corner posts of Wood stronger and more resistant than balsa, inletsinto the fourucorners of the `box whereby the posts are flush with the ,balsa slab, wood-dowels holding the posts in place in the slabsand holding the slabs together, the -postsextending downwardly below the bottom slab, the box being open at the top, hardwood reinforcing plates' masking the upper edges of thev side and end slabs andoverlying and in direct contact with the posts, the plates being zo-extensive with and at outer and inner edges ush with the sides of the slabs, a non self-supporting metallic foil liner adhering to the inner face of bottom, end and side slabs, a refrigeration coil supported on one lof the vertical slabs in contact with the foil lining, the corner posts being insulated from the interior of the box by the balsa interposed between the inner surfaces of the posts and the interior of the box.

References Cited inthe le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,133,299 l,Lundin Mar.30, 1915 1,385,274 Rhodes July 19, 1921 1,471,503 Meyer Oct. 23, 1923 1,486,113 Baxter Mar. 4, 1924 1,598,922 Mason Sept. 7, 1926 1,789,288 Auld Jan. 20, 1931 1,948,780 Adams -l r Feb. 27, 1934 2,083,852 v ',McrClanalvlanV `Tune 15, 1937 2,094,740 Green ;v l Oct. 5, 19,37 2,711,380

Images