Patent ID: 9038412
Filing Date: 2015-05-26
Classification: F25D

Abstract:
1. A refreezable barrel for use with ice and a power source, the refreezable barrel being operative to chill a plurality of items, the refreezable barrel comprising: a barrel shell having a shell outer wall and a shell inner wall defining a shell cavity; a barrel insert having a closed end portion and an open end portion, the barrel insert includes an insert inner wall defining an insert cavity, the barrel insert being configured to receive the plurality of items and the ice, the barrel insert being disposable within the shell cavity to assume a nested position; an insulation element disposed within the barrel shell and positioned between the shell inner wall and the barrel insert to define an enclosed cooling zone between the insulation element and the barrel insert, and a heat removal zone between the insulation element and the shell inner wall; a refreezable substance disposed within the cooling zone; and a cooling coil disposed within the cooling zone and encapsulated within the refreezable substance, the cooling coil extending around the barrel insert and along the barrel insert substantially along a length thereof from the closed end portion toward the open end portion, the cooling coil being configured to chill the cooling zone to freeze the refreezable substance for mitigating ice melting within the barrel insert to conserve water; and a heating coil disposed within the heat removal zone; the refreezable barrel being configured to undergo a cooling cycle wherein the cooling coil is disposed in operative communication with the power source to chill the refreezable substance to a prescribed temperature; the refreezable barrel being configured to undergo a vending cycle subsequent to the cooling cycle, wherein the refreezable barrel is physically disconnected from the power source and the refreezable barrel is configured to maintain a temperature within the insert cavity of less than 40 degrees Fahrenheit for at least 6 hours when the insert cavity is at least partially filled with ice at the beginning of the vending cycle.