Mobile Cooling Box with Removable Ice Maker and Dual Temperature Zones
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional mobile cooling boxes are unable to both freeze water and maintain cooled beverages, requiring users to choose between freezing or cooling, and stationary ice makers are not portable for outdoor use.
Innovation Solution
A mobile cooling box with an integrated ice maker module that includes a freezing compartment, evaporator, and attachment means, allowing for the freezing of water while maintaining the rest of the interior at a cooling temperature, and featuring a removable ice maker module for easy cleaning and efficient ice cube formation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If a mobile cooling box uses a powerful cooling unit to freeze water, then ice can be produced, but the entire interior becomes too cold for beverages and the device cannot be moved while working
Solution Approach 1:
The cooling box is divided into two separate functional zones: a freezing zone with a powerful evaporator for ice production, and a cooling zone with a separate cooling element for beverages. This segmentation allows each zone to operate at its optimal temperature independently, enabling simultaneous ice making and beverage cooling without one function interfering with the other.
Solution Approach 2:
Different regions of the cooling box are assigned different thermal characteristics. The freezing zone has high cooling power concentrated in a localized area with insulated boundaries, while the cooling zone maintains moderate temperatures suitable for beverages. This local differentiation of thermal properties enables the system to perform both freezing and cooling functions effectively.
2Productivity
If a mobile cooling box has an integrated ice maker module, then ice can be made portably, but the module requires thorough cleaning and is difficult to access
Solution Approach 1:
The ice maker module is designed as a removable component that can be extracted from the cooling box. This extraction allows the module to be easily removed for thorough cleaning and maintenance without disassembling the entire cooling box. The module can be taken out, cleaned completely, and reinserted, solving the accessibility problem while maintaining portable ice making capability.
Solution Approach 2:
The ice maker module transitions from a fixed integrated component to a dynamic removable component. This dynamic design allows the module to be inserted and removed as needed, providing flexibility for cleaning and maintenance while maintaining the portable ice making function during normal operation.
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
Enables the transport of both cooled and frozen goods simultaneously, providing a cost-effective and efficient solution for portable ice production and temperature control.
Implementation Method 1
The mobile cooling box may further comprise an evaporator arranged underneath the bottom part of the lining at the freezing zone. The evaporator provides sufficient cooling power for freezing goods when being placed in the freezing zone
Implementation Method 2
the ice maker module having a freezing compartment... capable of freezing water and making ice, for example, ice cubes
Data Source
AI summary
The present embodiments relate to an improved mobile cooling box with an ice maker that is capable of freezing water and making ice, for example, ice cubes.