U.S. patent application number 14/916851 was filed with the patent office on 2016-07-21 for kick plate for refrigerated container assembly.
The applicant listed for this patent is CARRIER CORPORATION. Invention is credited to Mingfei Gan, Yue Jia, KeonWoo Lee.
Application Number | 20160207702 14/916851 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 51293128 |
Filed Date | 2016-07-21 |
United States Patent
Application |
20160207702 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Gan; Mingfei ; et
al. |
July 21, 2016 |
KICK PLATE FOR REFRIGERATED CONTAINER ASSEMBLY
Abstract
A refrigerated transportation cargo container includes a
transportation cargo container and a refrigeration unit disposed at
an end of the transportation cargo container to provide a flow of
supply air for the transportation cargo container. The
refrigeration unit includes a housing and an evaporator fan (34) to
urge the flow of supply air through the refrigeration unit. A kick
plate assembly (40) includes a kick plate (46) extending from the
refrigeration unit toward a floor of the cargo container and a
baffle plate extending between the refrigeration unit and a
sidewall of the cargo container. The kick plate assembly defines a
discharge cavity to direct the flow of supply air toward the floor
of the cargo container.
Inventors: |
Gan; Mingfei; (Manlius,
NY) ; Lee; KeonWoo; (Manlius, NY) ; Jia;
Yue; (Manlius, NY) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
CARRIER CORPORATION |
Farmington |
CT |
US |
|
|
Family ID: |
51293128 |
Appl. No.: |
14/916851 |
Filed: |
July 1, 2014 |
PCT Filed: |
July 1, 2014 |
PCT NO: |
PCT/US2014/045051 |
371 Date: |
March 4, 2016 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
|
61875901 |
Sep 10, 2013 |
|
|
|
Current U.S.
Class: |
1/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
F25D 2317/067 20130101;
F25D 17/06 20130101; F25D 11/003 20130101; B65D 88/745
20130101 |
International
Class: |
B65D 88/74 20060101
B65D088/74 |
Claims
1. A refrigerated transportation cargo container comprising: a
transportation cargo container; and a refrigeration unit disposed
at an end of the transportation cargo container to provide a flow
of supply air for the transportation cargo container, the
refrigeration unit including: a housing; an evaporator fan to
deliver supply air through the refrigeration unit; and a kick plate
assembly including: a kick plate extending from the refrigeration
unit toward a floor of the cargo container; and a baffle plate
extending between the refrigeration unit and a sidewall of the
cargo container; wherein the kick plate assembly defines a
discharge cavity to direct the flow of supply air toward the floor
of the cargo container.
2. The refrigerated transportation cargo container of claim 1,
wherein the baffle plate extends between the refrigeration unit and
the sidewall of the cargo container.
3. The refrigerated cargo container of claim 1, wherein the baffle
plate is formed integral to the forward face.
4. The refrigerated cargo container of claim 1, wherein the baffle
plate is attached to the kick plate via a hinged connection.
5. The refrigerated cargo container of claim 1, wherein the kick
plate assembly is disposed beneath the refrigeration unit.
6. The refrigerated cargo container of claim 1, wherein the baffle
plate further includes a peripheral seal to prevent leakage around
a periphery of the baffle plate.
7. The refrigerated cargo container of claim 1, wherein the baffle
plate prevents direct flow of supply air from the refrigeration
unit into a side cavity between the refrigeration unit and the
sidewall of the cargo container.
8. A method of cooling a refrigerated cargo container comprising:
urging a supply airflow across an evaporator of a refrigeration
unit disposed in the cargo container; cooling the supply airflow at
the evaporator; directing the supply airflow through a kick plate
assembly, the kick plate assembly including: a kick plate extending
from the refrigeration unit toward a floor of the cargo container;
and a baffle plate extending between the refrigeration unit and a
sidewall of the cargo container; and flowing the supply airflow
from the kick plate assembly along the floor of the cargo
container.
9. The method of claim 8, wherein the supply airflow is directed
through the kick plate assembly disposed beneath the refrigeration
unit.
10. The method of claim 8, further comprising flowing the supply
airflow through a plurality of T-bars arrayed along the floor of
the cargo container.
11. The method of claim 8, wherein the baffle plate extends
substantially horizontally between the refrigeration unit and the
sidewall of the cargo container.
12. The method of claim 8, wherein the baffle plate is attached to
the kick plate via a hinged connection.
13. The method of claim 8, further comprising sealing a periphery
of the baffle plate to prevent leakage of the supply airflow
therethrough.
14. The method of claim 8, further comprising preventing direct
flow of supply air from the refrigeration unit into a side cavity
between the refrigeration unit and the sidewall of the cargo
container via positioning of the baffle plate.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0001] The subject matter disclosed herein relates to refrigeration
systems. More specifically, the subject matter disclosed herein
relates to air distribution in refrigerated containers utilized to
store and ship cargo.
[0002] A typical refrigerated cargo container, such as those
utilized to transport a cargo via sea, rail or road, is a container
equipped with a refrigeration unit located at one end of the
container. The refrigeration unit includes a compressor, condenser,
expansion valve and evaporator coil, all located at the end of the
container. A volume of refrigerant circulates throughout the
refrigeration unit, and one or more evaporator fans of the
refrigeration unit blow a flow of supply air across the evaporator
coil cooling the supply air and forcing it out into the
container.
[0003] The supply air is typically forced downwardly into a kick
plate located at a bottom of the refrigeration unit, which is used
to direct the supply air to discharge along the cargo container
floor, for example, through t-bars arrayed along the floor. A
portion of the supply air flows outward and upward from the kick
plate, not into the t-bars, but filling side passages between a
side wall of the container and a side wall of the refrigeration
unit, in some designs. The side passages are closed by a side plate
extending vertically between the container side wall and the
refrigeration unit to prevent supply air from being discharged
directly from the side passages into the cargo container without
passing through the t-bars. The side passages, however, also reduce
the velocity of supply air discharged through the t-bars along the
side walls of the cargo container compared to that discharged
nearer the center of the cargo container, resulting in uneven
temperature distribution, "hot" and "cold" spots, in the cargo
container.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0004] In one embodiment, a refrigerated transportation cargo
container includes a transportation cargo container and a
refrigeration unit disposed at an end of the transportation cargo
container to provide a flow of supply air for the transportation
cargo container. The refrigeration unit includes a housing and an
evaporator fan to circulate the flow of supply air through the
refrigeration unit. A kick plate assembly includes a kick plate
extending from the refrigeration unit toward a floor of the cargo
container and a baffle plate extending between the refrigeration
unit and a sidewall of the cargo container. The kick plate assembly
defines a discharge cavity to direct the flow of supply air toward
the floor of the cargo container.
[0005] In another embodiment, a method of cooling a refrigerated
cargo container includes circulating a supply airflow across an
evaporator of a refrigeration unit disposed in the cargo container.
The supply airflow is cooled at the evaporator. The supply airflow
is directed through a kick plate assembly. The kick plate assembly
includes a kick plate extending from the refrigeration unit toward
a floor of the cargo container and a baffle plate extending between
the refrigeration unit and a sidewall of the cargo container. The
supply airflow is flowed from the kick plate assembly along the
floor of the cargo container.
[0006] These and other advantages and features will become more
apparent from the following description taken in conjunction with
the drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0007] The subject matter, which is regarded as the invention, is
particularly pointed out and distinctly claimed in the claims at
the conclusion of the specification. The foregoing and other
features, and advantages of the invention are apparent from the
following detailed description taken in conjunction with the
accompanying drawings in which:
[0008] FIG. 1 is a schematic illustration of an embodiment of a
refrigerated transportation cargo container;
[0009] FIG. 2 is a schematic illustration of an embodiment of a
refrigeration unit for a refrigerated transportation cargo
container; and
[0010] FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of an embodiment of a
refrigeration unit for a refrigerated transportation cargo
container.
[0011] The detailed description explains embodiments of the
invention, together with advantages and features, by way of example
with reference to the drawing.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0012] Shown in FIG. 1 is an embodiment of a refrigerated cargo
container 10. The cargo container 10 is formed into a generally
rectangular construction, with a ceiling 12, a directly opposed
floor 14, opposed side walls 16 and a front wall 18. The cargo
container 10 further includes a door or doors (not shown) at a rear
wall 20, opposite the front wall 18. The cargo container 10 is
configured to maintain a cargo 22 located inside the cargo
container 10 at a selected temperature through the use of a
refrigeration unit 24 located at the container 10. The cargo
container 10 is mobile and is utilized to transport the cargo 22
via, for example, a truck, a train or a ship. The refrigeration
unit 24 is located at the front wall 18, and includes a compressor
26, a condenser 28, an expansion valve 30, an evaporator 32 and an
evaporator fan 34 (shown in FIG. 2), as well as other ancillary
components.
[0013] Referring to FIG. 2, the refrigeration unit 24 blows return
airflow 36 across the evaporator 32 via the evaporator fan 34, thus
cooling the airflow 36 to a selected temperature and urges the
cooled return airflow 36, now referred to as supply air 38, through
a kick plate assembly 40 into the container 10 via, for example,
openings 42 in one or more T-bars 44 extending along the floor 14
of the container 10 to cool the cargo 22. As shown in FIG. 2, the
kick plate assembly 40 includes a kick plate 46 that forms a
discharge cavity 48 at a bottom portion of the refrigeration unit
24 to evenly distribute the supply air 38 along a width 50 (FIG. 3)
of the cargo container 10 into the T-bars 44. In some embodiments,
the kick plate assembly 40 and the discharge cavity 48 are located
below the refrigeration unit 24, between the refrigeration unit 24
and the floor 14 of the cargo container 10.
[0014] Referring to FIG. 3, the cargo container 10 is configured
with a side passage 52 between a refrigeration unit sidewall 54 and
the sidewall 16 of the cargo container 10. To enhance the even
distribution of the supply air 38, the kick plate assembly 40 is
configured with a baffle plate 56 extending laterally from the
refrigeration unit sidewall 54 to the side wall 16 of the cargo
container 10. The baffle plate 56 prevents flow of the supply air
38 into the side passage 52 and directs the supply air 38 into the
T-bars 44. The baffle plate 56 may be secured in a fixed position
relative to the kick plate 46, may be secured to the kick plate 46
via one or more hinges 58 for better serviceability and to allow
the kick plate assembly 40 to be adapted to different
configurations of cargo container 10 and/or refrigeration unit 24.
Further, in some embodiments, as shown, the baffle plate 56
includes a peripheral seal 60 to reduce leakage of the supply air
38 around the baffle plate 56 into the side passage 52.
[0015] While the invention has been described in detail in
connection with only a limited number of embodiments, it should be
readily understood that the invention is not limited to such
disclosed embodiments. Rather, the invention can be modified to
incorporate any number of variations, alterations, substitutions or
equivalent arrangements not heretofore described, but which are
commensurate with the spirit and scope of the invention.
Additionally, while various embodiments of the invention have been
described, it is to be understood that aspects of the invention may
include only some of the described embodiments. Accordingly, the
invention is not to be seen as limited by the foregoing
description, but is only limited by the scope of the appended
claims.
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