Patent Grant
9238398
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to refrigerators for use in a galley of a vehicle (e.g., an aircraft) for refrigerating food and beverage products. More specifically, the present invention relates refrigeration systems and methods for connection with a vehicle's liquid cooling system.
2. Related Art
As known in the art, conventional vehicle refrigerators and beverage chillers, such as those used in an aircraft galley, include a mechanical refrigeration apparatus that employs a vapor-compression refrigeration process (i.e., a vapor cycle system) to transfer heat from contents of the refrigerator to an environment external to the refrigerator. Although conventional vapor cycle aircraft galley refrigerators are suitable for their intended purpose, they have several drawbacks. One drawback is that the vapor cycle system of conventional refrigerators consume a significant amount of electrical energy. In addition, the vapor cycle system adds numerous mechanical and electrical parts to a conventional refrigerator, thereby making the refrigerator prone to malfunction. Furthermore, vapor cycle systems add significant weight and cause conventional refrigerators to occupy considerable space.
An exemplary refrigeration system for cooling a removable object, such as food or beverages, may use a liquid cooling system of a vehicle. The refrigeration system may include a compartment in which the object may be placed and removed, a chilled liquid coolant system having a connection through which liquid coolant is received from the liquid cooling system of the vehicle, and a heat exchanger operationally coupled with the chilled liquid coolant system and the compartment to transfer heat from the compartment into the liquid coolant.
Another exemplary refrigeration system for cooling a removable object, such as food or beverages, may use a liquid cooling system of a vehicle. The refrigeration system may include a compartment in which the object may be placed and removed. The refrigeration system may also include a first chilled liquid coolant system having a connection through which first liquid coolant is received from the liquid cooling system of a vehicle and a first heat exchanger operationally coupled with the first chilled liquid coolant system and the compartment to transfer heat from the compartment into the first liquid coolant. The refrigeration system may also include a second chilled coolant system through which a second coolant flows and a second heat exchanger operationally coupled with the second chilled coolant system and the compartment to transfer heat from the compartment.
A method of cooling a refrigerated compartment using a liquid cooling system of a vehicle may include using reducing a temperature of a refrigerated compartment to a desired temperature using a first chilled liquid coolant system coupled with a liquid cooling system of a vehicle and a second chilled coolant system together as a cascade cooling system. The method may also include maintain the temperature of the refrigerated compartment at approximately the desired temperature using the first chilled liquid coolant system coupled with the liquid cooling system of the vehicle without using the second chilled coolant system to when the desired temperature is equal to or greater than approximately 3 degrees C. The method may additionally include maintaining the temperature of the refrigerated compartment at approximately the desired temperature using the first chilled liquid coolant system coupled with the liquid cooling system of the vehicle and the second chilled coolant system together as a cascade cooling system when the desired temperature is less than approximately 0 degrees C. The method may further include maintaining the temperature of the refrigerated compartment at approximately the desired temperature using the second chilled coolant system without using the first chilled liquid coolant system coupled with the liquid cooling system of the vehicle when the desired temperature is less than approximately 0 degrees C. and the second chilled coolant system includes a thermoelectric cooling system which is also coupled with the liquid cooling system of the vehicle.
Vehicles, such as aircraft, have recently included a liquid cooling system (hereinafter referred to as an LCS). The LCS typically provides a centralized refrigeration system in which chilled coolant is distributed from a central location throughout the aircraft for use in providing cooling to plenums within galleys into which food trolleys/carts are configured, as well as in providing cooling to in-flight entertainment electronics. The LCS typically includes a central refrigeration unit, a pump, and a liquid coolant tubing loop for circulating a chilled liquid coolant (e.g., PGW, a solution of 60% propylene glycol and water by volume, or Galden coolant, etc.) The chilled liquid coolant may be maintained at a chilled temperature by the LCS, such as −8 degrees C. The chilled liquid coolant is typically pumped throughout the aircraft to all galleys and their respective food service trolleys after being chilled by the central refrigeration unit.
A galley refrigerator that connects to the LCS would be beneficial over galley refrigerators of the prior art. Such a new refrigerator may have a lighter weight, have fewer internal parts, use less electrical energy, and be able to hold more contents due to the elimination of the vapor cycle system (or a substantial portion thereof) compared to the prior art. As a result, the galley refrigerator that connects to the LCS may have higher reliability and a reduced cost of ownership. In such a refrigerator that connects to the LCS and which does not include a self-contained vapor cycle system, there may not be a requirement for air flow around a condenser. Accordingly, air ducts may not be necessary to install in the galley for ejection of heat from the refrigerator.
The refrigerator 100 includes an enclosure 110 (e.g., a chassis) having a door to a refrigerated compartment 120. The refrigerated compartment 120 may include an inner liner and thermal insulation. The inner liner may be constructed of stainless steel. The inner liner and/or the enclosure 110 may be grounded to provide a Faraday shield to help shield the refrigerator 100 from external electromagnetic interference (EMI) influences while containing internally generated high-frequency energy. Various embodiments of the refrigerator 100 may also include an EMI filter to reduce susceptibility to conducted EMI and emissions of EMI. The enclosure 110 may also include mounting rails, a removable air filter, a bezel, and wheels. The door to the refrigerated compartment 120 may include a door handle 130 with which the door may be opened or closed.
The refrigerator 100 may also include a control panel 140 having one or more input devices (e.g., control buttons or switches) 150, and a display panel (e.g., an LCD display or LED's) 160. The display panel 160 may provide a user interface display. The display panel 160 may be mounted on a grounded backplane to reduce RF emissions. An Indium Tin Oxide (ITO) on-polymer layer may be employed behind a display glass of the display panel 160 to block or reduce RF energy radiation. The refrigerator 100 may also include a controller coupled with the input devices 150 and the display panel 160. The controller may receive input commands from a user via the input devices 150, such as turning the refrigerator on or off, selecting an operation mode, and setting a desired temperature of the refrigerated compartment 120. The controller may output information to the user regarding an operational status (e.g., operational mode, activation of a defrost cycle, shut-off due to over-temperature conditions of the refrigerated compartment 120 and/or components of the refrigerator, etc.) of the refrigerator using the display panel 160. The controller may be coupled with the input devices 150 and the display panel 160 using shielded and twisted cables, and may communicate with the input devices 150 and/or the display panel 160 using an RS-232 communication protocol due to its electrically robust characteristics.
The controller may include an electronic circuit, printed circuit board, computing processor, memory comprising computing instructions, and/or data communications circuitry. The controller may be configured on or with an aluminum chassis or sheet metal box, which may be grounded and largely opaque to high-frequency energy transmission. Wires which carry high voltage and/or high frequency signals into or out of the refrigerator 100 may be twisted and/or shielded to reduce RF radiation, susceptibility, and EMI. Low frequency and low-voltage carrying wires may typically be filtered at the printed circuit board of the controller to bypass any high-frequency noise to ground.
The controller may be controlled by or communicate with a centralized computing system, such as one onboard an aircraft. The controller may implement a compliant ARINC 812 logical communication interface on a compliant ARINC 810 physical interface. The controller may communicate via a Galley Data Bus (e.g., galley networked GAN bus), and exchange data with a Galley Network Controller (e.g., Master GAIN Control Unit as described in the ARINC 812 specification). In accordance with the ARINC 812 specification, the controller may provide network monitoring, power control, remote operation, failure monitoring, and data transfer functions. The controller may implement menu definitions requests received from the Galley Network Controller (GNC) for presentation on a GNC Touchpanel display device and process associated button push events to respond appropriately. The controller may provide additional communications using an RS-232 communications interface and/or an infrared data port, such as communications with a personal computer (PC) or a personal digital assistance (PDA). Such additional communications may include real-time monitoring of operations of the refrigerator 100, long-term data retrieval, and control system software upgrades. In addition, a serial peripheral interface (SPI) bus may be used to communicate between the controller and motor controllers within the refrigerator 100.
The refrigerator 100 may be configured to refrigerate beverages and/or food products which are placed in the refrigerated compartment 120. The refrigerator 100 may operate in one or more of several modes, including refrigeration, beverage chilling, and freezing. A user may select a desired temperature for the refrigerated compartment 120 using the control panel 140. The controller included with the refrigerator 100 may control a temperature within the refrigerated compartment 120 at a high level of precision according to the desired temperature. Therefore, quality of food stored within the refrigerated compartment 120 may be maintained according to the user-selected operational mode of the refrigerator 100.
In various embodiments, the refrigerator 100 may maintain a temperature inside the refrigerated compartment 120 according to a user-selectable option among several preprogrammed temperatures, or according to a specific user-input temperature. For example, a beverage chiller mode may maintain the temperature inside the refrigerated compartment 120 at a user-selectable temperature of approximately 9 degrees C., 12 degrees C., or 16 degrees C. In a refrigerator mode, the temperature inside the refrigerated compartment 120 may be maintained at a user-selectable temperature of approximately 4 degrees C. or 7 degrees C. In a freezer mode, the temperature inside the refrigerated compartment 120 may be maintained at a user-selectable temperature of approximately −18 degrees C. to 0 degrees C.
In various embodiments, the refrigerator 100 may also include a fan assembly, which may have a fan motor, a motor controller, a blower assembly, and an over-temperature thermostat. The fan assembly may be operationally coupled with a heat exchanger, evaporator, and/or condenser. The refrigerator 100 may also include a plumbing system, which may have a liquid-to-air (e.g., forced convection) heat exchanger or a liquid conduction heat exchanger, a pressure vessel, a temperature control valve, a pressure relief burst disc, a temperature sensor, and one or more quick disconnects. In addition, the refrigerator 100 may include a power module having one or more printed circuit boards (PCB's), a wire harness, an ARINC connector, and/or a power conversion unit. The refrigerator 100 may also include ductwork and air interface components, and condensate drainage components.
The refrigerator 100 may also include one or more sensors such as temperature sensors and actuators. The sensors may be configured for air and refrigerant temperature sensing and pressure sensing, while the actuators may be configured for opening and closing valves. For example, an “RT1” evaporator inlet air temperature sensor may measure the temperature of air returning from the refrigerated compartment 120 to an evaporator of a vapor cycle refrigeration system, an “RT2” evaporator outlet air temperature sensor may measure the temperature of air supplied to the refrigerated compartment 120 from the evaporator, an “RT3” condenser inlet air or liquid temperature sensor may measure the temperature of ambient air or inlet liquid in the vicinity of the refrigerator 100, and an “RT4” exhaust air or liquid temperature sensor may measure the temperature of air exhausted or liquid outlet from the vapor cycle refrigeration system at a rear panel of the refrigerator 100. The controller may use data provided by the sensors to control operation of the refrigerator 100 using the actuators.
The controller may poll the sensors at a fixed minimum rate such that all data required to control the performance of the refrigerator 100 may be obtained by the controller in time for real-time operation of the one or more cooling systems within the refrigerator 100. The polled values may be reported by the controller via the RS-232 or infrared interface to a personal computer or PDA and may be reported over a controller area network (CAN) bus. The polled values may also be used in control algorithms by the controller, and may be stored to long-term memory or a data storage medium for later retrieval and analysis.
The controller may provide a self-protection scheme to protect against damage to the refrigerator 100 and its constituent components due to abnormal external and/or internal events such as over-temperature conditions, over-pressure conditions, over-current conditions, etc. and shut down the refrigerator 100 and/or one or more of its constituent components in accordance with the abnormal event. The self-protection scheme may include monitoring critical system sensors and taking appropriate self-protection action when monitored data from the sensors indicate a problem requiring activation of a self-protection action. Such a self-protection action may prevent the refrigerator 100 and/or its constituent components from being damaged or causing an unsafe condition. The self-protection action may also provide appropriate notification via the display panel 160 regarding the monitored problem, the self-protection action, and/or any associated maintenance required. The controller's self-protection scheme may supplement, rather than replace, mechanical protection devices which may also be deployed within the refrigerator 100. The controller may use monitored data from the sensors to intelligently restart the refrigerator 100 and reactivate the desired operational mode after the abnormal event which triggered the self-protection shut-down has terminated or reduced in severity.
The refrigerator 100 may be configured as a modular unit, and may be plug and play insert compatible with ARINC size 2 locations within the aircraft. The refrigerator 100 may have parts which are commonly shared with other galley inserts (GAINs), such as a refrigerator/oven unit. In some embodiments, the refrigerated compartment 120 may have an approximate interior volume of 40 liters for storing food items, and may be capable of storing 15 wine-bottle sized beverage bottles. In an exemplary embodiment, the refrigerator 100 may weigh approximately 14 kg when empty, and may have external dimensions of approximately 56.1 cm high, 28.5 cm wide, and 56.9 cm deep. Other embodiments may weigh more or less or have different external dimensions, depending on their application.
A controller 240 may control a coolant control valve (CCV) 250 to regulate a flow of the liquid coolant from the LCS 220 into the cold wall conduction heat exchanger 210 to maintain a precise temperature within the refrigerated compartment 120. The controller 240 may monitor air temperature within the refrigerated compartment 120 using one or more temperature sensors via a sensor monitor input 260. The controller may output data to and/or receive control commands and data from an external computing system via a data connection 270. In some embodiment, the CCV 250 may be normally closed and may open in proportion to a magnitude of an electrical signal received from the controller 240. The electrical signal may be related to a temperature measured within the refrigerated compartment 120. In some embodiments, the relationship between the magnitude of the electrical signal and the opening of the CCV 250 may be approximately linear. For example, the CCV 250 may be normally closed when the measured temperature within the refrigerated compartment 120 is at or below a desired threshold temperature, and may open to allow liquid coolant from the LCS 220 to flow into the cold wall conduction heat exchanger 210 in proportion to a temperature difference between the measured temperature of the refrigerated compartment 120 and the desired threshold temperature.
A controller 430 may control a coolant control valve (CCV) 440 to regulate a flow of the liquid coolant from the LCS 220 into the liquid-to-air heat exchanger 410 to maintain a precise temperature within the refrigerated compartment 120. In this respect, the controller 430 may function in a manner similar to that described with reference to the controller 240 of
The fan 450 may include a centrifugal type fan. A centrifugal fan may provide a higher aerodynamic efficiency than other types of fans at the airflow requirements of the refrigerator 400. Accordingly, a centrifugal fan may therefore minimize any loss of performance due to rejected heat. A centrifugal type fan may also minimize space requirements, facilitating a more compact refrigerator enclosure 110. Air ducts (not shown) may be installed in the enclosure 110 to direct the circulating air 420 out of the refrigerated compartment 120, through the liquid-to-air heat exchanger 410, through the fan 450, and back into the refrigerated compartment 120.
The controller 430 may also control a defrost cycle of the refrigerator, and provide a signal that the defrost cycle is in progress. The controller 430 may sense ice buildup using a pressure difference device, or the controller 430 may perform the defrost cycle at regular intervals as estimated by an internal timer. The defrost cycle may include closing the CCV 440 while operating the fan 450 to circulate the air 420 until all ice is melted. After the defrost cycle is complete, the fan 450 may be shut off for a period of approximately 30 seconds to allow water which may adhere to the heat exchanger 410 to drop off and drain. Throughout the defrost cycle, condensed water may be collected in a bottom tray of the refrigerator 400 for cleaning.
The condenser 630 within the refrigerant vapor cycle system may be liquid cooled using the liquid coolant provided by the LCS 220. Accordingly, heat from the condenser 630, including heat transferred from the refrigerant to the condenser 630 in a condenser refrigerant circuit 630A, may be transferred to the liquid coolant in a condenser secondary coolant circuit 630B prior to returning the liquid coolant to the LCS 220.
A controller 660 may control the operation of one or both of the refrigerant vapor cycle system and the chilled liquid coolant system to maintain a desired temperature within the refrigerated compartment 120. The controller 660 may also control a fan 670 to force the circulating air 650 through the refrigerated compartment 120, the liquid-to-air heat exchanger 610, and the evaporator 640. The controller 660 may coordinate control of the fan 670 with control of the one or both of the refrigerant vapor cycle system and the chilled liquid coolant system.
The controller 660 may control the CCV 680 and the CCV 685 to control the flow of liquid coolant from the LCS 220 into the liquid-to-air heat exchanger 610 and/or the condenser secondary coolant circuit 630B in a manner similar to that described with reference to the controllers 240 and 440 of
The exemplary refrigerator 600 may be configured as a self-contained galley refrigeration insert which may be operated in one of several modes, each of which may cool the refrigerated compartment 120 to a different temperature range. A beverage chiller mode may cool the refrigerated compartment 120 to a temperature range of approximately 46 to 61 degrees F. (8 to 16 degrees C.), a refrigerator mode may cool the refrigerated compartment 120 to a temperature range of approximately 39 to 45 degrees F. (4 to 7 degrees C.), and a freezer mode may cool the refrigerated compartment 120 to a temperature range of approximately 0 to 10 degrees F. (−18 to −12 degrees C.) or 16 to 32 degrees F. (−3 to 0 degrees C.). When the refrigerator is operated in the beverage chiller and refrigerator modes, cooling may be provided by the chilled liquid coolant system. When the refrigerator 600 is operated in the freezer mode, the refrigerant vapor cycle system may be employed in addition to the chilled liquid coolant system, thereby providing a cascade cooling system.
When the temperature within the refrigerated compartment 120 is higher than a desired temperature for an operating mode of the refrigerator 600 and the temperature within the refrigerated compartment 120 is to be pulled down to the desired temperature (e.g., by a pull-down process of the refrigerator 600 in which the cooling effort is maximized to quickly reduce the temperature of the refrigerated compartment 120 to the desired temperature), both the chilled liquid coolant system and the refrigerant vapor cycle system may be operated together as a cascade cooling system. In this mode, warm circulating air 650 from the refrigerated compartment 120 may be circulated through the liquid-to-air heat exchanger 610 and then through the evaporator 640 to be cooled prior to returning to the refrigerated compartment 120. Once the temperature within the refrigerated compartment 120 is pulled down to a desired temperature, operation of the refrigerator 600 may include either or both of the refrigerant vapor cycle system and the chilled liquid coolant system depending upon a temperature of the liquid coolant provided by the LCS 220, an air temperature of the refrigerated compartment 120 and/or the circulating air 650, and the operating mode of the refrigerator 600.
For example, when the refrigerator 600 is operating in freezer mode, and a measured temperature of the circulating air 650 at the evaporator 640 or the liquid-to-air heat exchanger 610 is less than −6 degrees C., the chilled liquid coolant system may be turned off while the refrigerant vapor cycle system remains operating (e.g., the CCV 680 may be closed while the CCV 685 and REV 690 are open).
As another example, when the refrigerator is operating in beverage chiller mode, and a measured temperature of the circulating air 650 output from the evaporator 640 or the liquid-to-air heat exchanger 610 is less than 8 degrees C., the refrigerant vapor cycle system may be turned off while the chilled liquid coolant system remains operating (e.g., the REV 690 and CCV 685 may be closed while the CCV 680 is open). However, in this example, when a temperature of the liquid coolant from the LCS 220 is higher than approximately 7 degrees C., the refrigerant vapor cycle system may be turned on, either in addition to or in place of the chilled liquid coolant system.
As yet another example, when the liquid coolant provided by the LCS 220 is maintained at a temperature of approximately −8 degrees C., the chilled liquid coolant system may be turned on while the refrigerant vapor cycle system is turned off in both the refrigerator mode and the beverage chiller mode. However, when the liquid coolant provided by the LCS 220 is at a temperature higher than approximately 5 degrees C., the refrigerant vapor cycle system may be turned on. When the liquid coolant provided by the LCS 220 is at a temperature higher than approximately 40 degrees C., the refrigerant vapor cycle system and the chilled liquid coolant system may both be turned off for safety purposes.
As illustrated and described, the exemplary refrigerator 700 includes three cooling loops provided by two cooling systems having three heat exchangers. A first cooling loop includes a chilled liquid cooling system having the liquid-to-air heat exchanger 750 which is coupled with the LCS 220 to transfer heat from the circulating air 740 to the liquid coolant provided by the LCS 220. The first cooling loop includes coolant flow path 701 from the LCS 220 to the input quick disconnect 230, coolant flow path 702 from the input quick disconnect 230 to a CCV 780, coolant flow path 703 from the CCV 780 to the liquid-to-air heat exchanger 750, coolant flow path 704 from the liquid-to-air heat exchanger 750 to the output quick disconnect 235, and coolant flow path 708 from the output quick disconnect 235 to the LCS 220. A second cooling loop includes the thermoelectric cooling system (TECS) having the cold side air heat exchanger 710 which transfer heat from the circulating air 740 through the TED 720 to the heat sink 730, which then transfers the heat to the liquid coolant provided by the LCS 220 as the third heat exchanger of the refrigerator. The second cooling loop includes the coolant flow path 701, coolant flow path 705 from the input quick disconnect 230 to a CCV 790, coolant flow path 706 from the CCV 790 to the heat sink 730, coolant flow path 707 from the heat sink 730 to the output disconnect 235, and coolant flow path 708. The combination of coolant flow paths 702, 703 and 704 and a coolant flow path through the liquid-to-air heat exchanger 750 is in parallel with the combination of coolant flow paths 705, 706 and 707 and a coolant flow path through the heat sink 730. The third cooling loop functions in conjunction with either or both of the cooling systems and includes the circulating air 740 which circulates through the refrigerated compartment 120, the liquid-to-air heat exchanger 750, and the cold side air heat exchanger 710.
A controller 760 may control the operation of one or both of the TECS and the chilled liquid coolant system to maintain a desired temperature within the refrigerated compartment 120. The controller 760 may also control a fan 770 to force the circulating air 740 through the refrigerated compartment 120, the liquid-to-air heat exchanger 750, and the cold side air heat exchanger 710. The controller 760 may coordinate control of the fan 770 with control of the one or both of the TECS and the chilled liquid coolant system.
The controller 760 may control the CCV 780 and the CCV 790 to control the flow of liquid coolant from the LCS 220 into the liquid-to-air heat exchanger 750 and/or the heat sink 730 in a manner similar to that described with reference to the controllers 240, 440, and 660 of
Alternatively, when the chilled liquid coolant system is being controlled to cool the circulating air 740 using the liquid-to-air heat exchanger 750 while the TED 720 of the TECS is not being used, the controller 760 may control the CCV 790 to be closed and the CCV 780 to be open such that liquid coolant flows from the LCS 220 through the liquid-to-air heat exchanger 750. Meanwhile, the controller 760 may control the TED 720 to be off such that heat is not actively transferred from the cold side air heat exchanger 710 to the heat sink 730 by the electrical operation of the TED 720. When both the liquid-to-air heat exchanger 750 of the chilled liquid coolant system and the TED 720 of the TECS are being controlled to cool the circulating air 740, the controller 760 may cause the CCV 780 to be open such that liquid coolant from the LCS 220 flows through the liquid-to-air heat exchanger 750 and the CCV 790 to be open such that liquid coolant flows through the heat sink 730 to transfer heat away from the TECS into the liquid coolant which is then returned to the LCS 220.
The controller 760 may operate the refrigerator 700 in one of three operating modes in a manner similar to that described with reference to the refrigerator 600 of
The controller 760 may operate the TED 720 using a DC power source. The cooling capacity of the TED 720 may be controlled by an amount of DC current input to the TED 720. The TED 720 may be designed to operate using a wide range of input voltages and current values.
The TECS provides a number of advantages over refrigerant vapor cycle systems, especially in applications such as onboard aircraft where reliability, size, and weight are important factors to consider. The TED 720 is an electrical device which may have a solid state construction that functions with no moving parts. Accordingly, the TED 720 may be virtually maintenance free and highly reliable in comparison with refrigerant vapor cycle systems. For example, a typical TED 720 may have a life expectancy greater than 200,000 hours. In addition, the TED 720 may not exhibit mechanical noise and vibration, or electrical noise, unlike mechanical refrigeration systems. Thus, the TED 720 may be ideal for systems in which sensitive electronic sensors are present or acoustic noise is undesirable. Also, a TED 720 may be compact in size, facilitating a more compact and lightweight refrigerator than a comparable mechanical system. The TED 720 may be operable in any orientation and even in zero gravity environments. The TED 720 may control temperatures very precisely, for example to better than +/−0.1 degree C. when used with an appropriate closed-loop temperature control circuit. Thus, the TED 720 may be advantageous when precise temperature control is required. Additionally, the TED 720 may not use or generate any gases, unlike a conventional refrigeration system which may require chlorofluorocarbons or other chemicals that may be harmful to the environment. Also, a TECS may have a lower coefficient of performance (COP) than a vapor cycle system. A TECS may have a COP below 1. As a point of reference, a typical range of COP for an air conditioning unit is 0.4 to 0.7.
A first cooling loop includes coolant flow path 801 from the LCS 220 to the input quick disconnect 230, coolant flow path 802 from the input quick disconnect 230 to a CCV 880, coolant flow path 803 from the CCV 880 to the cold side liquid heat exchanger 810, coolant flow path 804 to the liquid-to-air heat exchanger 850, coolant flow path 805 from the liquid-to-air heat exchanger 850 to the output quick disconnect 235, and coolant flow path 806 from the output quick disconnect 235 to the LCS 220. A second cooling loop includes coolant flow path 801, coolant flow path 807 from the input quick disconnect 230 to a CCV 890, coolant flow path 808 from the CCV 890 to the heat sink 830, coolant flow path 809 from the heat sink 830 to the output quick disconnect 235, and coolant flow path 806. The combination of coolant flow paths 807, 808 and 809 with a coolant flow path through the heat sink 830 is in parallel with the combination of coolant flow paths 802, 803, 804, and 805 with the coolant flow paths through the cold side liquid heat exchanger 810 and the heat exchanger 850.
A controller 860 may control the operation of one or both of the TECS and the chilled liquid coolant system to maintain a desired temperature within the refrigerated compartment 120. The controller 860 may also control a fan 870 to force the circulating air 840 through the refrigerated compartment 120 and the liquid-to-air heat exchanger 850. The controller 860 may coordinate control of the fan 870 with control of the one or both of the TECS and the chilled liquid coolant system.
The controller 860 may control the CCV 880 and the CCV 890 to control the flow of liquid coolant from the LCS 220 into the cold side liquid heat exchanger 810, the liquid-to-air heat exchanger 850, and/or the heat sink 830 in a manner similar to that described with reference to the controllers 240, 440, 660, and 760 of
Alternatively, when the chilled liquid coolant system is being controlled to cool the circulating air 840 using the liquid-to-air heat exchanger 850 while the TED 820 of the TECS is not being used, the controller 860 may control the CCV 890 to be closed and the CCV 880 to be open such that liquid coolant flows from the LCS 220 through the liquid-to-air heat exchanger 850. Meanwhile, the controller 860 may control the TED 820 to be off such that heat is not actively transferred (i.e., pumped) from the cold side liquid heat exchanger 810 to the heat sink 830 by the electrical operation of the TED 820.
The controller 860 may operate the refrigerator 800 in one of three operating modes in a manner similar to that described with reference to the refrigerator 700 of
Although illustrated within the enclosure 110 yet outside the refrigerated compartment 120, in some embodiments, the liquid-to-air heat exchangers illustrated in any of
The exemplary refrigerator may have an average pull-down time from room temperature in a beverage chiller mode of approximately 40 minutes to pull down the temperature of 12 bottles to 8 degrees C., while the refrigerator may have an average pull-down time from room temperature in a refrigerator mode of approximately 5 minutes to pull down the temperature of an empty refrigeration compartment 120 to 4 degrees C. In a freezer mode, the refrigerator may have an average pull-down time of the empty refrigeration compartment 120 from room temperature to −18 degrees C. of approximately 15 minutes.
Functions of the exemplary refrigerators described herein may be controlled by a controller according to instructions of a software program stored on a storage medium which may be read and executed by a processor of the controller. The software program may be written in a computer programming language (e.g., C, C++, etc.) and cross-compiled to be executed on the processor of the controller. Examples of the storage medium include magnetic storage media (e.g., floppy disks, hard disks, or magnetic tape), optical recording media (e.g., CD-ROMs or digital versatile disks (DVDs)), and electronic storage media (e.g., integrated circuits (IC's), ROM, RAM, EEPROM, or flash memory). The storage medium may also be distributed over network-coupled computer systems so that the program instructions are stored and executed in a distributed fashion.
The present invention may be described in terms of functional block components and various processing steps. Such functional blocks may be realized by any number of hardware and/or software components configured to perform the specified functions. For example, the present invention may employ various integrated circuit components, e.g., memory elements, processing elements, logic elements, look-up tables, and the like, which may carry out a variety of functions under the control of one or more microprocessors or other control devices. Similarly, where the elements of the present invention are implemented using software programming or software elements, the invention may be implemented with any programming or scripting language such as C, C++, Java, assembler, or the like, with the various algorithms being implemented with any combination of data structures, objects, processes, routines or other programming elements. Furthermore, the present invention could employ any number of conventional techniques for electronics configuration, signal processing and/or control, data processing and the like. The word mechanism is used broadly and is not limited to mechanical or physical embodiments, but can include software routines in conjunction with processors, etc.
The particular implementations shown and described herein are illustrative examples of the invention and are not intended to otherwise limit the scope of the invention in any way. For the sake of brevity, conventional electronics, control systems, software development and other functional aspects of the systems (and components of the individual operating components of the systems) may not be described in detail. Furthermore, the connecting lines, or connectors shown in the various figures presented are intended to represent exemplary functional relationships and/or physical or logical couplings between the various elements. It should be noted that many alternative or additional functional relationships, physical connections or logical connections may be present in a practical device. The use of any and all examples, or exemplary language (e.g., “such as”) provided herein, is intended merely to better illuminate the invention and does not pose a limitation on the scope of the invention unless otherwise claimed. Moreover, no item or component is essential to the practice of the invention unless the element is specifically described as “essential” or “critical”.
As these embodiments of the present invention are described with reference to illustrations, various modifications or adaptations of the methods and or specific structures described may become apparent to those skilled in the art. All such modifications, adaptations, or variations that rely upon the teachings of the present invention, and through which these teachings have advanced the art, are considered to be within the spirit and scope of the present invention. Hence, these descriptions and drawings should not be considered in a limiting sense, as it is understood that the present invention is in no way limited to only the embodiments illustrated.
It will be recognized that the terms “comprising,” “including,” and “having,” as used herein, are specifically intended to be read as open-ended terms of art. The use of the terms “a” and “and” and “the” and similar referents in the context of describing the invention (especially in the context of the following claims) are to be construed to cover both the singular and the plural. Furthermore, recitation of ranges of values herein are merely intended to serve as a shorthand method of referring individually to each separate value falling within the range, unless otherwise indicated herein, and each separate value is incorporated into the specification as if it were individually recited herein. Finally, the steps of all methods described herein can be performed in any suitable order unless otherwise indicated herein or otherwise clearly contradicted by context.
This application claims the priority benefit under 35 U.S.C. §119(e) from U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 61/100,170 entitled “Galley Refrigerator Connected to Aircraft Supplemental Cooling System” and filed Sep. 25, 2008, the entire content of which is incorporated herein by reference. This application also claims the priority benefit under 35 U.S.C. §119(e) from U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 61/236,963 entitled “A Cascade Thermoelectric Device Cooling System Design for a Vehicle Three-Mode Refrigerator” and filed Aug. 26, 2009, the entire content of which is incorporated herein by reference.
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