Class / Patent application number | Description | Number of patent applications / Date published |
062063000 | Moving through cooling zone during cooling | 32 |
20080216488 | Dual Compartment Beverage Cooling System - A dual compartment cooling device that is designed to cool water, or other beverages, as a batch based on expected demand. This provides for the cooling of beverages which are to be consumed in a subsequent demand cycle at which time it is refilled but allows remaining water to remain “hotter” until it is to be in the next dispense cycle, which results in power savings | 09-11-2008 |
20080264073 | Device for Cooling Metal Sheets and Strips - Disclosed is a device ( | 10-30-2008 |
20090094995 | SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR PROCESSING FOOD PRODUCTS WITH FLUID RECIRCULATION AND CHILLING - Systems and methods freeze food products. A system provides a storage tank of liquefied gas, a gas-liquid separation tank, and a crust freezer. The crust freezer provides plates chilled by flow of liquefied gas through conduits traversing an interior volume of the plates. The method includes recirculating liquefied gas to improve cooling efficiency while lowering operation costs. The system and method further provide for integrated measurement and control of the flow of liquefied gas through components of the system. Freezing of the food products occurs at a surface of the food products along where the food products and the plate interface. | 04-16-2009 |
20090100846 | Cryogenic freeze chamber assembly - A cryogenic freezing chamber assembly provided with improved stress resistance caused by thermal expansion and contraction, improved cryogenic fluid utilization, better means for viewing activity therein and easy assembly and disassembly. | 04-23-2009 |
20090120107 | LIQUID OR PASTY PRODUCT ICE CUBE MAKER - The invention concerns a method and an equipment for making ice cubes of liquid or pasty products comprising a honeycomb conveyor belt transporting the product to be processed along a path passing through at least the following three zones: a zone for metering and depositing the product to be processed in the cells; a cold input zone where preferably a cryogenic liquid solution completes the freezing of the ice cubes; and a stripping zone. Further, the honeycomb belt is bottomless, and located in an upstream zone opposite a cooled surface acting as a base of the partial mold formed by the cells, so as to harden the part of the product in contact with the cooled surface, thereby producing the base of the ice cube. | 05-14-2009 |
20100089074 | Apparatus and Method for Cooling an Outer Wall of Pipe - A method of cooling an outer wall of polymer pipe is provided. The method includes extruding a layer of polymer onto a pipe to form an outer wall of pipe; conveying the pipe including the outer wall of pipe through an inner aperture of an annular air-cooler having an annular air manifold; and blowing pressurized air, at a temperature lower than a temperature of the outer wall of pipe, through the annular air manifold such that it contacts the outer wall of pipe and cools the outer wall of pipe at a rate that is a function of a pressure of the pressurized air and a difference between the temperature of the pressurized air and the temperature of the outer wall of pipe. An apparatus for cooling an outer wall of polymer pipe is also provided. | 04-15-2010 |
20100319365 | CROSS FLOW TUNNEL FREEZER SYSTEM - A system processes a food product with a cooling gas and includes a housing with a chamber; a blower in communication with the chamber for circulating the cooling gas; a baffle disposed in the chamber for dividing the chamber into a first region for exposing the food product to the cooling gas and a second region in which the cooling gas is moved by the blower for recirculation to the first region of the chamber; an arcuate member disposed in the chamber in spaced relationship with the baffle for providing a flow path between the first and second regions, the arcuate member coacting with the baffle to guide the cooling gas into the flow path; and conveyor means disposed for movement through at least one of the first and second regions for supporting and delivering the food product through the cooling gas. | 12-23-2010 |
20110000231 | METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR ULTRASONIC FREEZING - An apparatus for reducing a temperature of a product includes a housing in which cryogenic fluid is provided for being exposed to the product, and at least one ultrasonic transducer assembly disposed in the housing for generating ultrasonic energy to contact the cryogenic fluid and a surface of the product to facilitate heat transfer at the surface of the product. The cryogenic fluid can be selected from nitrogen and carbon dioxide. | 01-06-2011 |
20110000232 | LOAD LOCK APPARATUS AND SUBSTRATE COOLING METHOD - Disclosed are load lock apparatuses configured to cool a substrate efficiently. The load lock apparatus includes a container configured to change the pressure between an atmospheric pressure and a pressure corresponding to a transfer chamber which is in a vacuum state, a pressure adjusting mechanism configured to adjust the pressure in container to the pressure corresponding to transfer chamber and an atmospheric pressure. The load lock apparatus further includes an upper cooling plate and a lower cooling plate provided opposed to each other inside container and each configured to cool the wafer at a position adjacent to the wafer or in touch with the wafer, and a wafer elevating pin and a driving mechanism that transfer the wafer to the cooling position of lower cooling plate. The load lock apparatus also includes a wafer supporting member and driving mechanism that transfer the wafer W to the cooling position of upper cooling plate. | 01-06-2011 |
20110005241 | COOLING MECHANISM FOR USE WITH A FOOD PROCESSING SYSTEM - A cooler including a compartment, a conduit including a first end portion configured to be in communication with the compartment and a second end portion, food product at a first product temperature entering the first end portion, a fluid discharge positioned substantially within the conduit between the first end portion and the second end portion, and a pressurized fluid source in communication with and for supplying fluid through the fluid discharge, the fluid being at a first fluid temperature less than the first product temperature, the pressurized fluid source being operable to propel the fluid through the fluid discharge to move the food product from the first end portion of the conduit toward the second end portion and to cool the food product to a temperature below the first product temperature. | 01-13-2011 |
20110030393 | Cooling Tunnel And Method For Operating The Same - A cooling tunnel includes an infeed port for feeding objects, a discharge port for discharging objects, successive treatment stations for treating the objects with a cooling medium, and a conveyor system for transporting the objects to be cooled from the infeed port to the discharge port, with the conveyor system travelling through the individual treatment stations. The conveyor system has a first section running through several treatment stations, the first section extending from the infeed port to a turnaround station, a second section running through several treatment stations, the second section extending from the turnaround station to the discharge port, as well as a return section, which is arranged before the discharge port and connects a discharge-side zone of the second section with an infeed-side zone of the first section, to selectively either discharge objects or to cool them further. A method for operating a cooling tunnel is also provided. | 02-10-2011 |
20110219788 | CRYOGENIC STORAGE DEVICE - The invention relates to a cryogenic storage device and to a method for operating a cryogenic storage device, particularly for cryogenic storage of biological samples, comprising a sample carrying device that is set up to accommodate samples, a cryogenic container that is set up to accommodate the sample carrying device, a container cooling device with which the cryogenic container can be cooled, an intermediate storage container that is set up for intermediate storage of the sample carrying device, a transport device with which the sample carrying device can be moved between the cryogenic container and the intermediate storage container and a sensor device with which at least one operating parameter of the cryogenic storage device can be registered. The transport device is set up to be activated in dependence on an output signal from the sensor device upon registering a predetermined operating condition of the cryogenic storage device, so that the sample carrying device is moved from the cryogenic container to the intermediate storage container. Additionally or alternatively, an intermediate storage cooling device that is set up for cooling the intermediate storage container can be activated in dependence on an output signal of the sensor device. | 09-15-2011 |
20120067066 | FREEZE TUNNEL AND METHODS OF USE - A freeze tunnel can have a conveyor configured to move food product from a first end to a second end. At least one first cooling unit and at least one first fan can be positioned on the first side of the conveyor, and at least one second cooling unit and at least one second fan can be positioned on the second side of the conveyor. The fans can cooperate to circulate air inside the freeze tunnel in two opposite rotational directions. | 03-22-2012 |
20120137709 | CONTINUOUS FOOD FREEZING DEVICE AND CONTINUOUS FOOD FREEZING METHOD - Provided is an apparatus and a method for freezing the foods at a high quality without reducing the freezing process efficiency. The continuous freezing apparatus | 06-07-2012 |
20120151945 | METHOD FOR COOLING GRANULAR SOLID MATERIALS, AND CONTINUOUS CURING FACILITY AS SUCH - Method for cooling granular solid materials from a continuous curing facility having at least one area for burning a fuel to cure granular materials, wherein the curing of the granular materials, then the cooling of the cured granular materials is carried out in two consecutive steps, a first cooling step in a first cooler and a second cooling step in a second cooler, the method including: providing a cold air source for cooling the granular materials, the cold air source directly supplying air to the second cooler by blowing, and the air heated by the cured granular materials being used during the cooling as combustion gas for the burning area. All gases generated by the first and second coolers are routed to the burning area for use as a combustion gas, and the amount of cold air blown to the second cooler is adjusted to cover the air combustion needs. | 06-21-2012 |
20120291456 | METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR CONTACT REFRIGERATION IN CRYOGENIC SOLID BELT FREEZER - Methods and apparatus for contact freezing a food product. A conveyor belt or other support may have an active region that supports materials on an outer surface. Liquid cryogen may be provided in bulk contact with an inner surface of the active region via splashing, agitation, pumping, gravity feed, and the like. | 11-22-2012 |
20120318002 | COOLING APPARATUS AND COOLING METHOD - A cooling apparatus includes a conveying means which conveys a resin composition formed into a sheet shape along a direction parallel to a surface of the sheet-shaped resin composition and a cooling means which cools the resin composition being conveyed by the conveying means. A temperature of the resin composition just before being cooled by the cooling means is in the range of 40 to 60° C. and the cooling means has a cooling ability to cool the resin composition such that a cooling rate of the resin composition is in the range of 0.2 to 5° C./min. Further, the cooling means includes a fan section having at least one outlet port which discharges cooling air of which temperature is in the range of −40 to 0° C. to the resin composition. | 12-20-2012 |
20130167561 | METHOD OF CHILLING OR FREEZING PRODUCTS IN A CRYOGENIC SPIRAL FREEZER - An upwardly helical flow path of cryogen-rich air inside a cryogenic spiral freezer may be used to chill or freeze products. | 07-04-2013 |
20130167562 | CRYOGENIC SPIRAL FREEZER - An upwardly helical flow path of cryogen-rich air inside a cryogenic spiral freezer may be used to chill or freeze products. | 07-04-2013 |
20130255282 | CARCASS WEIGHT CONTROL - Provided, is a fully integrated system to monitor and control carcass weight to minimize weight loss in carcasses during the chilling cycle. This will be accomplished by incorporating a load cell and a radio frequency identification device on the trolley operating on the elevated track system extending through the packing plant, including the carcass chilling rooms. This method and apparatus will provide the needed location and weight data to control a water spray system to maintain a constant carcass weight during the entire chilling cycle. | 10-03-2013 |
20130255283 | Energy Efficient Biological Freezer With Vial Management System - An automated, ultra-low temperature freezer having multiple structural features that reduce heat transfer into the freezer, protect its internal mechanical devices against low temperature mechanical binding of their movements, allow defrosting and autoclaving as a result of only minimal changes to the conventional CO | 10-03-2013 |
20130291570 | METHODS AND DEVICES OF ACCELERATED COOLING - A device cooling an item having a cooling chamber having a cooling cavity with a top opening sized and shaped for receiving the item, at least one cooling element which cools the cooling cavity during a cooling session, an elevation mechanism for lifting and lowering the item, from and into the cooling cavity, via the top opening, and a control unit which controls the elevation mechanism according to at least one of a measurement of a temperature in the cooling cavity during the cooling session, a measurement of a temperature in the cooling cavity after the cooling session, and a duration of the cooling session. | 11-07-2013 |
20140000296 | MECHANICALLY REFRIGERATED SPIRAL FREEZER AND METHOD OF USING SAME TO CHILL OR FREEZE PRODUCTS | 01-02-2014 |
20140033740 | METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR DISTRIBUTING AND STORING SERIALLY PRODUCED ARTICLES IN MULTIPLE STORAGE UNITS - An apparatus and method for distributing articles is arranged to deliver articles to selected stacking positions in two or more storage units. An article is dispensed to a first article transport and distribution section in a main storage unit, and then either delivered to a stacking position in the main unit or transported through a connecting window onto a second transport and distribution section in a satellite storage unit for delivery to a stacking position in that unit. The procedure is repeated to distribute subsequent bags of ice to selected stacking positions in each unit. Additional satellite storage units may be provided and included in the delivery sequence for distributing bags of ice throughout the units. The storage units may be refrigerated, merchandizing units for bagged ice, with the main storage unit associated with an ice bagged ice supply unit which dispenses bags of ice into the unit. | 02-06-2014 |
20140069124 | APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR FLUIDIZED BED TREATMENT OF MATERIALS - Apparatus and method for treatment of a particulate material employs a conveyor belt for supporting the particulate material for transport and a source of gas for delivery through the conveyor belt to fluidize the particulate material. A gas distribution system is used for controlling the gas flow to create regions of greater and lesser fluidization. This approach avoids the use of mechanical agitation of the conveyor belt which improves efficiency and reliability. The apparatus and method fmd particular application in the handling of particulate foodstuffs in bulk when treatment such as freezing, heating, or blanching of individual food particles is required. | 03-13-2014 |
20140096543 | Fluidized Bed Conveyor Belt Freezer System - A fluidized bed conveyor belt freezer system that includes at least one wire mesh conveyor belt in a freezer with a plurality of coil arrays and fans that produce a high volume of cold air directed upward into a plurality of air deflection vanes mounted under the belt. The vanes are equally spaced apart and longitudinally aligned under the conveyor belt to evenly distribute the cold air in the fan chamber through the belt to efficiently fluidize and freeze product transported on the belt with minimal waste. The volume of cold air in the fan chamber is produced by a plurality of fan assemblies that draw cold air from coils. The cold air in the fan chamber is uniformly mixed to a constant low temperature and moves at the same velocity. The vanes efficiently divide and distribute the cold air in the fan chamber through the belt, quickly freezing the product. The freezer housing is configured so the fan motors are mounted externally and the cold area produced by the coil arrays may be shared by the fans to uniformly cold the product the entire length of the belt. | 04-10-2014 |
20140290286 | METHOD AND DEVICE FOR COOLING SOLDERED PRINTED CIRCUIT BOARDS - Method for cooling soldered printed circuit board modules in a cooling zone of a soldering system, wherein at least one cooling gas comprising inert gas is introduced into the cooling zone, wherein the printed circuit boards are conveyed continuously from a soldering zone of the soldering system into the cooling zone, wherein the cooling gas is generated using liquid cooling gas. The method according to the invention and the device ( | 10-02-2014 |
20140345304 | Mobile Apparatus And Method For Rapidly Pre-Cooling Produce - An integrated mobile apparatus pre-cools produce prior to shipment, for example, to purchasers or to a cold storage facility. The apparatus comprises a preparation chamber for receiving and arranging produce on a movable carrier, a cooling chamber for receiving the produce from the preparation chamber, and a shipping chamber for receiving the produce from the cooling chamber. The chambers are preferably housed in a single enclosure and are arranged linearly, with the cooling chamber interposed between the preparation chamber and the shipping chamber. A method for pre-cooling produce prior to shipment comprises (a) arranging the produce on a movable carrier located within the preparation chamber, (b) conveying the carrier from the preparation chamber to the cooling chamber, (c) cooling the produce in the cooling chamber, (d) conveying the cooled produce to the shipping chamber, and (e) unloading the produce from the shipping chamber on to a vehicle. | 11-27-2014 |
20150027140 | System to Improve Icing Problems in Blast Freezer Tunnels - A method and device for chilling food products by jets blasted into a tunnel, said tunnel comprising/a conveyor for conveying products into a tunnel, at least one plate, located opposite the conveyor, and provided with through holes, the plate or plates being located above and/or below the conveyor; and at least one means of blowing a cold fluid through the through holes and towards the products, characterized in that, during all or part of the periods of operation of the tunnel and/or during all or part of the periods of stoppage of the tunnel, there takes place an operation to clear all or part of said through holes, using a network of channels allowing a blow gas to be distributed opposite all of said through holes. | 01-29-2015 |
20150068223 | RAINFALL CHILLER - A counterflow chiller for cooling products on a conveyor employs a plurality of recirculating cooling modules in fluid communication with each other. Each recirculating cooling module sprays coolant over a portion of the conveyor to adjust the temperature of a product on the conveyor. An axial pump pumps coolant from a reservoir in a first recirculating coolant module to a sprayer, which sprays coolant over the product. Overflow coolant spills from one recirculating cooling module to another recirculating cooling module operating at a higher equilibrium temperature. | 03-12-2015 |
20150308726 | METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR RECOVERING CRYOGENS - An apparatus and method for recovering a cryogenic fluid used to freeze a food item in a food freezer. The cryogenic fluid is sprayed onto the food item such as a bird carcass and when there is excess cryogenic fluid, it is captured in a cryogen drain basin situated at the bottom of the food freezer. The cryogenic fluid is fed to a pump which will pump the cryogenic fluid to a spray assembly which will spray the cryogenic fluid in its gaseous or liquid form into the food freezer or else to alternative chilling, cooling or inerting processes | 10-29-2015 |
20160018150 | PRODUCT COOLING APPARATUSES - Coolers for cooling pet food products and methods regarding same are presented. In an embodiment, the present invention provides a cooler comprising a chamber having product inlet, a product outlet and an air outlet, and at least one air duct having an exit opening so constructed and arranged for providing airflow into the product outlet. | 01-21-2016 |