Patent Application
20250230968
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The disclosure relates to portable beverage and food coolers and more particularly pertains to a new dual beverage cooler and air conditioner for cooling persons using the cool or cold air already present inside the cooler itself.
The prior art relates to portable beverage and food coolers. The prior art, as best understood, does not disclose a dual beverage cooler and air conditioner that has air intake vents in a lower portion thereof with a separate interior compartment and/or with two articulatable and extendable air outlets to direct air in two different directions as selected by the user.
An embodiment of the disclosure meets the needs presented above in a dual beverage cooler and air conditioner generally comprising a cooler compartment, an air conditioning compartment, a fan, an air-conducting arrangement, and at least two air outlet structures. The cooler compartment is designed to contain ice, water, and products to be kept in a cool or cold environment. The air conditioning compartment is positioned above the cooler compartment and includes an upper wall and a lower wall dividing the cooler compartment from the air conditioning compartment. The cooler compartment includes at least one air intake vent designed to permit air to enter the cooler compartment from the surrounding environment. The fan is mounted to the lower wall of the air conditioning compartment and designed to draw air through the at least one air intake vent and upwardly from the cooler compartment to the air conditioning compartment. The air-conducting arrangement is positioned in the air conditioning compartment and designed to conduct air from the fan. The air outlet structures are connected to the air-conducting arrangement and project vertically through and out of the top wall to supply cooled air to one or more users.
In accordance with at least one possible embodiment, the air-conducting arrangement includes a central tube positioned to project through the lower wall to connect to the fan and at least two branch tubes designed to conduct air in at least two separate directions. The at least two air outlet structures are connected to the at least two branch tubes. Each of the at least two outlet structures includes an extendable and articulatable tube designed to be adjusted in length and direction to direct cooled air to a desired location to cool one or more users. In this manner, a user can adjust the tubes and fix them in position so that air can be directed exactly where the user wants and to multiple locations and/or persons. For example, two people sitting by the dual beverage cooler and air conditioner can each have cooled air aimed at different parts of their bodies.
In accordance with at least one possible embodiment, an interior container is positioned within the cooler compartment and designed to contain ice, water, and products to be kept in a cool or cold environment. The interior container is designed to fit in a nesting manner in the cooler compartment with space between the outer surfaces of the interior container and the inner surfaces of the cooler compartment to form air passages therebetween to conduct air drawn through the at least one air intake vent and cool the passing air using the cooled outer surfaces of the interior container. The at least one air intake vent is positioned at or near the bottom of the cooler compartment such that air drawn by the fan from the external environment must pass upwardly over a substantial portion of the outer surfaces of the interior container to maximize the cooling effect on the air. Since ice melts over time and/or some users place beverages or similar in a combination of ice and water in a cooler, the space through which air can travel in a cooler or any container is restricted to the head space above the water. This restricted space limits the surface area that can be used to cool passing air, and thus current coolers with air conditioning functions place air intakes at the top of the cooler. In contrast, the separate interior container creates a much greater amount of surface area to cool passing air. The water and/or ice are contained in the interior container rather than filling the entire bottom of the cooler compartment, so air intake vents may be located in the lower portion of the cooler compartment. This is advantageous because air must pass through the air passages over a substantial portion of the outer surfaces of the interior container, which has been cooled by the contents therein. The air can still enter the space above the interior container to be cooled by the contents of the interior container, but this is additional surface area and thus a greater cooling effect can be achieved. Consequently, the invention can provide a greater surface area, and thus a greater cooling effect, in a cooler of reduced size.
There has thus been outlined, rather broadly, the more important features of the disclosure in order that the detailed description thereof that follows may be better understood, and in order that the present contribution to the art may be better appreciated. There are additional features of the disclosure that will be described hereinafter and which will form the subject matter of the claims appended hereto.
The objects of the disclosure, along with the various features of novelty which characterize the disclosure, are pointed out with particularity in the claims annexed to and forming a part of this disclosure.
The disclosure will be better understood and objects other than those set forth above will become apparent when consideration is given to the following detailed description thereof. Such description makes reference to the annexed drawings wherein:
With reference now to the drawings, and in particular to
As best illustrated in
In accordance with at least one possible embodiment, the air-conducting arrangement 18 includes a central tube 28 positioned to project through the lower wall 24 to connect to the fan 16 and at least two branch tubes 30 designed to conduct air in at least two separate directions. The at least two air outlet structures 20 are connected to the at least two branch tubes 30. Each of the at least two air outlet structures 20 includes an extendable and articulatable tube 32 designed to be adjusted in length and direction to direct cooled air to a desired location to cool one or more users. In accordance with at least one possible embodiment, each of the at least two air outlet structures 20 includes a tapered nozzle 62 to focus the air output.
In accordance with at least one possible embodiment, an interior container 34 is positioned within the cooler compartment 12 and designed to contain ice 70, water, and products to be kept in a cool or cold environment. The interior container 34 is designed to fit in a nesting manner in the cooler compartment 12 with space between the outer surfaces of the interior container 34 and the inner surfaces of the cooler compartment 12 to form air passages 36 therebetween to conduct air drawn through the at least one air intake vent 26 and cool the passing air using the cooled outer surfaces of the interior container 34. The at least one air intake vent 26 is positioned at or near the bottom of the cooler compartment 12 such that air drawn by the fan 16 from the external environment must pass upwardly over a substantial portion of the outer surfaces of the interior container 34 to maximize the cooling effect on the air.
In accordance with at least one possible embodiment, the interior container 34 includes at least one ventilation opening 38 in an upper portion thereof to permit air passing through the air passages 36 to pass into the interior of the interior container 34 and be further cooled by ice 70, water, and products to be kept in a cool or cold environment in the interior container 34.
In accordance with at least one possible embodiment, the cooler compartment 12 includes a front cooler wall 40, a back cooler wall 42, a first side cooler wall 44, and a second side cooler wall 46. The at least one air intake vent 26 includes a first air intake vent 48 positioned in the first side cooler wall 44 and a second air intake vent 50 positioned in the second side cooler wall 46. Each of the first air intake vent 48 and the second air intake vent 50 is positioned at or near the bottom of the cooler compartment 12 such that air drawn by the fan 16 from the external environment must pass upwardly over a substantial portion of the outer surfaces of the interior container 34 to maximize the cooling effect on the air.
In accordance with at least one possible embodiment, the air conditioning compartment 14 is attached on one side to the cooler compartment 12 in the manner of a hinge to permit the air conditioning compartment 14 to be pivoted away and towards the cooler compartment 12 to permit a user to open and close the cooler compartment 12.
In accordance with at least one possible embodiment, the air conditioning compartment 14 includes a first zipper portion 52. The cooler compartment 12 includes a second zipper portion 54. The first zipper portion 52 is designed to sealingly engage with the second zipper portion 54 to permit a user to connect and disconnect the air conditioning compartment 14 and the cooler compartment 12.
In accordance with at least one possible embodiment, the dual beverage cooler and air conditioner 10 further includes a battery pocket 56 positioned on the outside of the cooler compartment 12. A battery 58 is positioned in the battery pocket 56 and operatively connected to the fan 16. A manual switch 60 is positioned to project out of the air conditioning compartment 14 to permit a user to turn the fan 16 on and off.
In accordance with at least one possible embodiment, the dual beverage cooler and air conditioner 10 further includes an adjustable carrying strap 64 attached to the first side cooler wall 44 and the second side cooler wall 46.
In accordance with at least one possible embodiment, each of the front cooler wall 40, the back cooler wall 42, the first side cooler wall 44, and the second side cooler wall 46 includes an insulated flexible material, and the interior container 34 includes a rigid plastic or metallic material.
With respect to the above description then, it is to be realized that the optimum dimensional relationships for the parts of an embodiment enabled by the disclosure, to include variations in size, materials, shape, form, function and manner of operation, assembly and use, are deemed readily apparent and obvious to one skilled in the art, and all equivalent relationships to those illustrated in the drawings and described in the specification are intended to be encompassed by an embodiment of the disclosure.
Therefore, the foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the disclosure. Further, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the disclosure to the exact construction and operation shown and described, and accordingly, all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the disclosure. In this patent document, the word “comprising” is used in its non-limiting sense to mean that items following the word are included, but items not specifically mentioned are not excluded. A reference to an element by the indefinite article “a” does not exclude the possibility that more than one of the element is present, unless the context clearly requires that there be only one of the elements.
