Intermittent power grid ready cooler
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional coolers, such as ice chests, face challenges with inconsistent product quality due to unreliable power supply and lack of visibility, which hinders impulse purchases and product appeal, especially in areas with intermittent electricity, and they often have stability and energy efficiency issues.
Innovation Solution
A cooler design featuring a hexagonal shape with shelf assemblies containing evaporator coils and phase change material cells, which maintains chilled conditions using refrigerant circulation during power availability and phase change material melting during power outages, along with a Seebeck indicator for visual product presence indication.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If conventional ice chests are used to maintain cooled products, then the cooler can operate without electrical power, but the product quality becomes inconsistent and the cooler lacks visibility for impulse purchases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs phase change material (PCM) that transitions between solid and liquid states to maintain consistent cooling temperatures. The PCM absorbs excess heat when products warm up and releases cooling when temperatures drop, ensuring reliable and consistent product quality without electrical power while maintaining visibility through transparent or translucent cooler designs.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent utilizes transparent or translucent materials for the cooler body and incorporates visual indicators such as LED lights or color-changing elements that illuminate when the cooler is properly cooled. This allows consumers to see products and receive visual assurance of cooling effectiveness, addressing both visibility and reliability concerns.
2Duration of action of moving object
If large ice blocks are used to extend cooling duration, then the products remain cool longer without power, but the cooler becomes unstable and has a large footprint
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the cooling system into multiple smaller PCM units or cells distributed throughout the cooler rather than using one large ice block. These segmented cooling units provide stable weight distribution, extend cooling duration through cumulative phase change capacity, and maintain cooler stability while reducing footprint requirements.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses phase change material with specific melting points selected to match desired cooling durations. The PCM gradually transitions from solid to liquid, releasing cooling over an extended period without requiring large ice blocks, thereby maintaining both long cooling duration and cooler stability.
3Use of energy by moving object
If evaporator coils are used in shelf assemblies, then the cooler achieves efficient cooling, but the system requires continuous electrical power and becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The patent incorporates evaporator coils in shelf assemblies that are pre-cooled and integrated with PCM during manufacturing or initial setup. The system performs preliminary cooling action to freeze the PCM, which then maintains cooling without requiring continuous electrical power, achieving energy efficiency while reducing operational complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent combines evaporator coils with phase change material to create a hybrid system where the evaporator provides efficient initial cooling and the PCM maintains temperatures during power outages. This integration achieves high energy efficiency during operation while the PCM buffer reduces the need for continuous complex control systems.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The cooler effectively maintains products at a consistent chilled condition for extended periods with reduced energy consumption and improved merchandising capabilities, even in intermittent power conditions, while providing visual assurance of cooled products, enhancing both efficiency and consumer appeal.
Implementation Method 1
The shelf assemblies include an evaporator and a phase change material therein
Implementation Method 2
maintaining the cooler in a chilled condition for an extended period of time when the power is off by melting the phase change material
Implementation Method 3
circulating a refrigerant about the phase change material when the power is on, freezing the phase change material
Implementation Method 4
The cooler may include a Seebeck indicator in thermal communication with the outer frame and the product space so as to indicate the presence of cooled products therein
Data Source
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AI summary
The present application provides a cooler. The cooler may include an outer frame, a product space within the outer frame, and a number of shelf assemblies positioned within the product space. The shelf assemblies may include an evaporator and a phase change material therein.