Blast cell cooling with guided airflow

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11243019-B2
Application number	US-202016745232-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jan 16, 2020
Priority date	Jun 26, 2019
Publication date	Feb 8, 2022
Grant date	Feb 8, 2022

Abstract

A blast cell system is provided with simple and scalable designs that prevent short cycling of air flow through any pallets in blast cells. The blast cell includes a plurality of suction channels that provide independent fluid pathways for directing the air drawn from different rows in the blast cell into the fan.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An apparatus for cooling items, the apparatus comprising:
a housing defining a bay space and including a plurality of rows in the bay space, each of the plurality of rows configured to hold one or more pallets of items to be cooled;
at least one fan arranged away from the bay space and configured to circulate air through the bay space in the housing, the at least one fan operable to pull the air from a rearward region of the bay space and discharge the air toward an opposite forward region of the bay space;
a plurality of channels arranged between the rearward region of the bay space and the at least one fan, each of the plurality of channels defining a fluid pathway from a corresponding row of the plurality of rows to the at least one fan and configured to direct air flow between the rearward region of the bay space and the at least one fan through the fluid pathway; and
a controller configured to selectively operate the at least one fan in a plurality of modes including a first operational mode and a second operational mode, wherein the at least one fan is configured to create air flow in a first direction in the first operational mode and in a second direction in the second operational mode, the controller configured to perform operations comprising:
receiving a schedule for a cooling cycle;
receiving operational factors;
determining a first trigger condition based on at least one of the schedule and the operational factors; and
switching, based on the first trigger condition, the at least one fan from the first operational mode to the second operational mode,
wherein a third operational mode is performed between the first and second operational modes.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising:
an intake plenum having forward and rearward ends, the forward end being in communication with the forward region of the bay space, and the rearward end being in communication with the rearward region of the bay space,
wherein the at least one fan is arranged to flow air from the rearward end of the intake plenum toward the forward end of the intake plenum,
wherein the plurality of section channels is arranged between the rearward region of the bay space and the rearward end of the intake plenum.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising:
a door configured to selectively open or close an entrance of the housing through which the items are moved into the bay space, the entrance arranged closer to the forward region of the bay space than the rearward region of the bay space.

4. The apparatus of claim 1 , the apparatus is configured as a blast freezer.

5. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the operations comprise:
determining a second trigger condition based on at least one of the schedule and the operational factors; and
switching, based on the second trigger condition, the at least one fan from the second operational mode back to the first operational mode.

6. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the operational factors include at least one of time, air temperature, and temperature of the one or more pallets of items to be cooled.

7. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the controller is configured to operate the at least one fan in the second operational mode near an end of the cooling cycle after operating in the first operational mode.

8. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the controller is configured to operate the at least one fan in the second operational mode intermittently throughout the cooling cycle.

9. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the plurality of channels each has a width that gradually becomes smaller from a drawing end adjacent the rearward region of the bay space to an opposite discharging end adjacent the at least one fan.

10. The apparatus of claim 9 , wherein the plurality of channels includes one or more walls curved between the drawing end and the discharging end.

11. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the schedule is determined based on a heat transfer coefficient at each pallet position and a cooling time of each pallet.

12. The apparatus of claim 11 , further comprising:
a plurality of sensors positioned at each pallet position and configured to measure a temperature of each pallet position over time.

13. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the at least one fan is stopped in the third operational mode, and
wherein the controller is configured to perform operations comprising:
determining a third trigger condition based on at least one of the schedule and the operational factors;
switching, based on the third trigger condition, the at least one fan from the first operational mode to the third operational mode;
determining a fourth trigger condition based on at least one of the schedule and the operational factors; and
switching, based on the fourth trigger condition, the at least one fan from the third operational mode back to the first operational mode.

14. The apparatus of claim 13 , wherein the controller is configured to perform operations comprising:
determining a fifth trigger condition based on at least one of the schedule and the operational factors;
switching, based on the fifth trigger condition, the at least one fan from the second operational mode to the third operational mode;
determining a sixth trigger condition based on at least one of the schedule and the operational factors; and
switching, based on the sixth trigger condition, the at least one fan from the third operational mode back to the second operational mode.

15. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the first direction is opposite to the second direction.

16. The apparatus of claim 15 , wherein the at least one fan is configured to, in the first operational mode, direct air flow from the rearward region of the bay space toward the at least one fan through the fluid pathway, and, in the second operational mode, direct air flow from the at least one fan toward the rearward region of the bay space through the fluid pathway.

17. The apparatus of claim 15 , wherein the plurality of modes includes the third operational mode in which the at least one fan is stopped.

18. The apparatus of claim 15 , wherein the at least one fan includes a reversible fan configured to direct air in the first and second directions.

19. The apparatus of claim 15 , wherein the at least one fan includes a booster fan configured to direct air in a direction opposite to a direction of air circulated by the at least one fan.

Assignees

• Lineage Logistics Llc

Inventors

• Zhang Alexander Ming

Classifications

• F25D2400/30

  Quick freezing · CPC title

• F25D17/06 Primary

  by forced circulation · CPC title

• F25D17/005 Primary

  in cold rooms · CPC title

• F25D13/02

  with several cooling compartments, e.g. refrigerated locker systems · CPC title

• F25D2500/02

  Geometry problems · CPC title