Modular refrigerated merchandise display system
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Solution Overview
Problem
Commercial refrigerators are large, heavy, underutilized, and environmentally impactful due to their design and refrigerant usage, failing to adapt to design trends and consumer expectations.
Innovation Solution
A modular, customizable refrigerated display system with lightweight, foam-insulated display units and a removable refrigeration unit, allowing for flexible configuration and easy assembly, using eco-friendly refrigerants and insulation materials like Aerogel to reduce weight and environmental impact.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of energy
If commercial refrigerators use traditional construction with two thin steel plates and polyurethane foam insulation, then they provide adequate thermal insulation, but they become heavy and difficult to assemble
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces traditional polyurethane foam insulation with vacuum insulation panels (VIPs) that use a vacuum environment combined with a porous barrier material. This composite structure provides superior thermal insulation performance while significantly reducing the overall weight and thickness of the insulation layer compared to conventional foam-based systems.
Solution Approach 2:
The vacuum insulation panels utilize a porous barrier material structure that maintains vacuum integrity while providing thermal resistance. The porous structure prevents gas molecule movement and maintains the vacuum state, achieving high insulation efficiency with minimal material usage and reduced weight.
2Quantity of substance
If commercial refrigerators are designed as large fixed units, then they provide sufficient storage capacity, but they are under-utilized and cannot adapt to varying space requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The refrigerator system is divided into multiple independent modular units that can be configured in different arrangements. Each module contains its own insulation, shelving, and cooling components, allowing customers to select and assemble only the modules needed for their specific space and storage requirements, eliminating wasted capacity in fixed large units.
Solution Approach 2:
The modular design enables dynamic reconfiguration of the refrigerator system. Modules can be added, removed, or rearranged based on changing storage needs and available space, transforming a static fixed-unit refrigerator into a flexible, adaptable system that evolves with customer requirements.
3Reliability
If commercial refrigerators are built as integrated units, then they provide complete functionality, but they are time-consuming to build and difficult to repair
Solution Approach 1:
The refrigerator is constructed from pre-fabricated modular units that are manufactured independently and then assembled on-site. Each module is complete with its own insulation, shelving, and mechanical components, significantly reducing assembly time and complexity compared to building integrated units from scratch, while maintaining full system functionality.
Solution Approach 2:
The cooling system and other mechanical components are extracted as separate removable modules rather than being permanently integrated into the structure. This allows for easy replacement and maintenance of individual components without affecting the entire system, reducing repair time and improving serviceability.
4Temperature
If traditional commercial refrigerators use conventional refrigerants and compressors, then they provide reliable cooling, but they have negative environmental impacts
Solution Approach 1:
The system transitions from conventional high-GWP refrigerants to alternative refrigerants with lower environmental impact, changing the chemical composition parameter of the cooling system while maintaining adequate cooling performance through optimized heat exchange design and vacuum insulation that reduces overall energy requirements.
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 modular system provides efficient cooling, visual access, and easy maintenance, reducing weight and environmental impact while adapting to varying space needs and improving energy efficiency.
Implementation Method 1
The at least one first wall and the at least one second wall may be coupled together to form a vacuum sealed cavity therebetween. The vacuum sealed cavity may be filled with a vacuum insulation panel (VIP).
Data Source
AI summary
A merchandise display system including one or more display units is described. The merchandise display system may include a base unit having a refrigeration unit that cools one or more display units. The refrigeration unit may be removable from the base unit. The one or more display units may attach to another display unit or a base unit. The display units may be stackable on top of one another. The display units may also be configured to attach to the base unit. The one or more display units may include one or more doors, which allow access to display units. The display units may include a C-shaped panel that forms the side walls and back wall of each of the display units.