Cooling system with reusable cooling modules
A cooler container is provided with hollow wall cavities to allow for placement of cooling material in the form of modules adapted for insertion into the cavities. The interior of the cooler includes perforated walls which allow for air flow between the cooling material and an interior cavity. Optionally, the cooling system includes a fan on the inside of a lid to increase air flow around the modules so as to provide more uniform air temperature within the container.
The present invention relates to storage containers, and more specifically, to a system that utilizes reusable cooling modules to same space, reduce the cast of supplying a cooling medium, and for convenient and efficient temperature control in a portable cooling container.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTIONPortable cooling containers are used to store food items, biological materials, and other items which require refrigerated transport. Such containers usually employ the intrinsic temperature in conjunction with insulated container walls to control the internal temperature. Some container manufacturers suggest placement of ice or other cooling materials within the cooler or between the stored items. Other containers provide a central compartment for retaining a cooling pack, which helps control the internal temperature. However, such cooling pack placement requires interior cavity space as well as interrupts the continuous interior space, making placement of large items cumbersome or even impossible. Additionally, such existing cooling containers do not allow for convenient temperature modulation by increasing or decreasing the number of cooling packs. Moreover, the use of ice in the cavity not only decreases space, it adds cost as the ice must be replaced after each use. Therefore, there is a need for a cooling container that allows for increased interior space and temperature control.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTIONAccordingly, the present invention provides a cooling container which accommodates various numbers of cooling modules to provide temperature modulation, without interrupting the internal container space. The present invention also provides for a large cooling container cavity space. In one embodiment, the container includes a plurality of wall cavities for receiving cooling modules. The wall cavities are provided in spaces between internal and exterior faces of the container walls. This frees up the entire interior cavity of the container for storage. Also, by varying the number of cooling modules placed within the wall cavities, a user is able to control the temperature modulation affecting the container interior. The cooling modules can be manufactured with a reusable cooling material for repeated use. Although the invention is described herein as relating to cooling, it is equally applicable to warming.
In other embodiments, the cooling modules are provided with linking element on all peripheral edges. As may be appreciated, in some embodiments the container is provided with a sufficiently large cavity space so as to accommodate several modules. A user may choose to employ some or all such modules in a cavity, depending on intended container use. As may be appreciated, different linking elements may be used with the cooling modules of the invention, depending on the corresponding module size and shape. In one embodiment, a cavity is additionally provided in the lid between an interior face and an exterior face. A cooling module is adapted for insertion into the lid cavity. Preferably the lid cavity included the retaining mechanism discussed above with respect to
In another embodiment, the cooling modules do not include linking elements but instead each cavity includes tracks for retaining each module in a planar orientation with respect to an adjacent module.
Claims
1) A portable cooling device, comprising:
- A substantially planar base;
- a peripheral wall extending circumventially and substantially perpendicular from said base to define an interior space, said peripheral wall formed from an insulating material; at least one cavity provided within said peripheral wall, the cavity including a bottom face extending parallel to said base and a peripheral face extending circumventially from said bottom face and substantially perpendicular to said bottom face; and
- at least one cooling module adopted to be retained by said at least one cavity positioned within said cavity, the cooling module including a heat absorbing element.
2) The cooling device of claim 1, wherein said cavity peripheral face includes a plurality of openings along a portion of said peripheral face that defines the periphery of said interior space.
3) The cooling device of claim 1, wherein the base is rectangular shaped.
4) The cooling device of claim 1, wherein the peripheral wall is rectangular shaped.
Type: Application
Filed: Nov 30, 2006
Publication Date: Jun 5, 2008
Inventors: Daniel A. DeVito (Rye, NY), Alexa DeVito (Rye, NY)
Application Number: 11/606,575
International Classification: F25D 3/08 (20060101);