Abstract:
An improved display cooler for storing and displaying refrigerated items for retail purchase. The improved cooler includes an LED lighting system integrated within the periphery of the glass display door of the cooler that is oriented so as to provide substantially greater illumination of the products contained within the cooler. The LED system is further of substantially lower maintenance and space efficiency compared to prior art lighting systems. The improved cooler further includes a base-integrated refrigeration unit that is substantially easier to access than prior art coolers. Such cooling system further includes condenser coils having a fin-free design that substantially reduces servicing and cleaning.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
       [0001]    Not Applicable 
       STATEMENT RE: FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH/DEVELOPMENT 
       [0002]    Not Applicable 
       BACKGROUND 
       [0003]    The present invention is directed to improved coolers for storing and displaying refrigerated items for retail purchase. The improved coolers are provided with enhanced illumination means and are further significantly easier to maintain and service than prior art coolers. 
         [0004]    Display refrigerators or coolers for storing and displaying refrigerated items, and in particular beverages, are well-known in the art. Typically, such coolers are configured per conventional refrigerators that are provided with a series of shelves or racks upon which refrigerated items may be displayed. Typically, the display cooler is provided with a glass door and illumination means, set within the ceiling or sides of the refrigerator that enables the retail purchaser to see the contents within the refrigerator while keeping the contents within the display cooler refrigerated. In this regard, display coolers are typically used in connection with beverages, such as soft drinks, bottled water, energy drinks, beer and other alcoholic beverages that are packaged in cans or bottles and displayed at retail outlets, which are frequently located close to check-out counters to stimulate impulse purchases by departing customers. 
         [0005]    Enhancing the attractiveness of the refrigerated items, and in particular beverage products, ideally requires that the products be sufficiently illuminated to attract the purchaser&#39;s attention, as well as enable the purchaser to make the desired selection. To accomplish this, most display coolers utilize conventional fluorescent bulbs that are integrated within the refrigerator cabin. Such fluorescent lighting, however, is prone to several drawbacks, including the suboptimal ability to illuminate the products stored within the display cooler, the need to continuously replace burned out fluorescent bulbs, and perhaps most problematic the tendency of the fluorescent lamps or fluorescent tubes to break by virtue of their glass construction and bulky size. Along these lines, the susceptibility of such light bulbs to break can be very high given that retail purchasers will repeatedly be reaching into the cooler to grab cans, bottles and the like. 
         [0006]    In addition to the deficiencies associated with the illumination of products, most display coolers suffer from the drawback of requiring on-going service. In this regard, display coolers are provided with conventional refrigeration systems, which typically comprise forced-air refrigerators that include condenser coils. As is well-known, such condenser coils must be routinely cleaned, which is problematic insofar as it is frequently difficult to access such condenser coils. Furthermore, because condenser coils are provided with fins or other similar-type structures for use in dissipating heat, the same can accumulate dust and other debris very rapidly. As such, condenser coils and other componentry of the refrigeration system typically require that the cooler be completely moved out of position from its desired locale to enable all parts of the cooler to be accessed by service/repair people. As a consequence, such design is labor intensive and potentially disruptive in the retail environment. 
         [0007]    Accordingly, there is a substantial need in the art for an improved retail display cooler that overcomes the aforementioned deficiencies. In particular, there is a need in the art for an improved display cooler that is operative to provide an enhanced visual display to the merchandise contained within the cooler, and in particular an improved illumination system that enhances the visibility and attractiveness to refrigerated products as seen through the glass door of a display cooler. There is a further need in the art for such an improved display cooler that has a more reliable illumination system that is more space efficient and lower maintenance. There is still a further need in the art for such a display cooler that incorporates a refrigeration system that requires substantially less maintenance, is easier to access, and is substantially easier to clean, especially on a less frequent basis, than conventional display coolers. Still further, there is a need for such improved display cooler that can be sized and adapted for use in all commercial types of applications per conventional display coolers, and is efficient and cost-competitive with other existing display coolers. 
       BRIEF SUMMARY 
       [0008]    The present invention specifically addresses and alleviates the above-identified deficiencies in the art. In this regard, the present invention is directed to an improved display refrigerator that has substantially more effective illumination means for use in illuminating refrigerated products stored within the cooler, as well as signage that may be utilized in connection with the display door of such refrigerator. Still further, there is provided an improved display refrigerator that includes a refrigeration system that is substantially easier to access and is of lower maintenance than prior art display refrigerators. 
         [0009]    More specifically, the improved display refrigerator of the present invention is provided with a transparent display door that includes an LED-based lighting system integrated about all or a portion of the interior periphery thereof. The LED-based lighting system is preferably arranged as one or more linear arrays of LED lights that are operatively angled to optimally illuminate the contents stored within the display refrigerator. Unlike prior art display refrigerators that utilize fluorescent bulbs integrated within the refrigerator body of the display refrigerator, the LED system is integrated within the periphery of the refrigerator door, which is not only space efficient, but substantially minimizes the ability of such lighting system to become damaged or broken. Moreover, by virtue of the fact that LED lights are utilized, the lighting system will possess substantially longer life and be of substantially lower maintenance than prior art display refrigerators utilizing alternative lighting means. 
         [0010]    To enhance the ability of the LED system integrated within the refrigerator door of the improved display refrigerator to both optimally illuminate the contents within the refrigerator, as well as to enhance the durability and enhance the ability of the lighting system to withstand impact or damage, there is further preferably provided an elongate protective casing that is operative to extend over the linear array of LED lights. Such protective coating is preferably formed from a durable polymer material and operative to facilitate the distribution of light emitted from the LED electrodes. To that end, the protective casing will preferably be formed to have a generally arcuate cross-section and may further include a plurality of apertures that align with respective ones of the LED lights to allow for direct illumination. Still further, the protective casing will be formed in a manner that is operative to resist condensation buildup as is well-known in the art to occur in refrigeration systems. 
         [0011]    With respect to the easier access and lower maintenance associated with the improved display refrigerator of the present invention, there is provided a base-mounted refrigeration system accessible from the bottom front portion thereof. By providing such access through the front portion of the improved display refrigerator, such refrigerator need not be moved or otherwise pulled from its position in order to access the refrigeration system for maintenance and cleaning. As a consequence, such base-mounted refrigeration system accessible from the front of the improved display refrigerator is substantially less labor intensive and disruptive of retail operations. 
         [0012]    With respect to the refrigeration system incorporated within the improved display refrigerator, the same may take any of a variety of conventional designs known in the art and may include conventional elements such as a compressor, drain pan and condenser coils, among other conventional equipment, but will preferably include a condenser coil that has a fin-free design. In this respect, it is contemplated that the condenser coil utilized in connection with the refrigeration system of the present invention will have a unique serpentine configuration that is spaced such that heat may be caused to dissipate therefrom without the need of using fins to facilitate the dissipation of the heat, as well as may minimize the usage or dispense entirely with a fan to facilitate heat removal via convection. In this regard, it is contemplated that the condenser coils will be stacked upon one another in close proximity to the front-facing base of the refrigerator in close proximity to an external grill operative to provide ventilation sufficient to facilitate the dissipation of heat. By eliminating the fins associated with condenser coils, as well as minimizing or eliminating the use of a condenser fan as is typically deployed to facilitate the removal of heat from the condenser coils, there is substantially minimized the potential for the improved display refrigerator, and more particularly the refrigeration system thereof, to break down due to potential mechanical failure to the condenser fan. Such design likewise requires lower maintenance, due to the substantially lessened ability of dust and debris to build up about the condenser coils and the fins thereof, given the reduced surface area of the condenser coils and the reduced or eliminated use of a fan operative to blow air about the coils which facilitate the accumulation of dust. As a consequence, substantially less effort is required to clean condenser coils and maintain the refrigeration in top operative condition. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0013]    These and other features and advantages of the various embodiments disclosed herein will be better understood with respect to the following description and drawings, in which like numbers refer to like parts throughout, and in which: 
           [0014]      FIG. 1  is a perspective illustration of an improved display cooler constructed in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0015]      FIG. 2  is an interior view of a portion of the glass display door of the cooler depicted in  FIG. 1  depicting an LED-based lighting system integrated therein. 
           [0016]      FIG. 3  is a cross-sectional view taken along line  3 - 3  of  FIG. 2 . 
           [0017]      FIG. 4  is a partial exploded view of the refrigeration unit as incorporated in the improved display cooler of  FIG. 1 . 
           [0018]      FIG. 5  is a photograph of a condenser coil constructed in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present application. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0019]    The above description is given by way of example, and not limitation. Given the above disclosure, one skilled in the art could devise variations that are within the scope and spirit of the invention disclosed herein, including various ways of integrating an LED-based lighting system within the door of a display cooler, as well as integrating a low maintenance refrigeration system therein. Further, the various features of the embodiments disclosed herein can be used alone, or in varying combinations with each other and are not intended to be limited to the specific combination described herein. Thus, the scope of the claims is not to be limited by the illustrated embodiments. 
         [0020]    Referring now to the Figures, and initially  FIG. 1 , there is perspectively illustrated an improved display refrigerator  10  constructed in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention. The improved display refrigerator  10 , which can be utilized per conventional display refrigerators, is operative to provide substantially enhanced illumination to the contents stored within the refrigerator, as well as is substantially easier to service and maintain compared to prior art display refrigerators. 
         [0021]    As illustrated, the improved display refrigerator  10  includes a refrigerator cabin  12  that is operative to receive, store and display refrigerated items for retail purchase. In this regard, an interior  14  is defined within the cabin  12  within which refrigerated items, such as bottled beverages as shown, are stored. To achieve that end and to maximize the area available within the refrigerator cabin  12 , product organization means, such as shelves  18  or other similar types of racks, trays and the like may be readily deployed, as will be readily appreciated by those skilled in the art. The refrigerator cabin  12  further includes a base portion to which is affixed grill  20 , the latter providing easy access to the refrigeration system utilized in connection with the improved display refrigerator  10 , as discussed more filly below. 
         [0022]    The improved display refrigerator  10  further includes a novel display door  22  which, per conventional refrigerator display doors, is attached via a hinge to refrigerator body  12  and operative to form a sealed enclosure about opening  14 . To that end, the peripheral edge of the display door  22  is provided with a conventional door gusset  24 . In order to enable consumers to view the contents stored within the improved display refrigerator  10 , the display door is fabricated to have a transparent panel  26 , typically formed of glass or other transparent polymer material. 
         [0023]    To enhance the consumer&#39;s view of refrigerated items stored within the refrigerator body  12  through transparent panel  26 , there is provided an illumination system consisting of a linear array of light emitting diodes or LED lights  28  that are integrated about all or a portion of the periphery of the door  22  and oriented to provide illumination  30  toward the interior  14  of the refrigerator  12  when the door  22  assumes a closed configuration. The LED lights  28  as utilized in the practice of the present invention may take any of a variety of commercially-available LED lights that may be operative to emit any of a variety of desired color or colors. For general purpose, it is believed that white light LEDs may be deployed, which are well-known in the art to produce high intensity light-light. As will be readily understood by those skilled in the art, however, any LED lights as utilized in the practice of the present invention should be operative to withstand temperatures typically associated with refrigerated systems, namely, just above and below freezing temperatures, as well as be capable of withstanding fluctuations in temperature as occurs when door  22  will transition from its closed state, where temperatures will be kept at or below freezing, and open state, where the LED lights will be exposed to room temperature. 
         [0024]    Referring now to  FIG. 2 , the illumination system as integrated within refrigerator door  22  is more clearly illustrated. As shown, the LED lights  28  are arranged in a linear array upon LED mount or backing  30 , the latter being operative to receive and interconnect with electrical conductor  32  integrated within the periphery of door  22  and operative to receive an electric current, per conventional design and construction. Preferably, the linear array of LED lights formed upon backing  30  will be mounted on the door  22  on the interior side thereof, namely, the interior side of transparent door portion  26  facing the interior compartment  14  of refrigerator body  12  shown in  FIG. 1 . The lighting system defined by elongate mount  30  with LED lights linearly arranged thereupon will further be formed upon the sides of door  22  on the interior side of door gusset  24 , so that the lighting system does not interfere or otherwise compromise the seal formed by the door gusset  24  about opening  14  which is operative to preserve refrigeration within refrigerator cabin  12 . 
         [0025]    To provide enhanced protection and illumination to the lighting system so described above, there is preferably provided a transparent covering  34  that is operative to extend lengthwise over the elongate strip  30  to which LED lights  28  are mounted. Such covering  34  is preferably fabricated from any of a variety of transparent materials, such as glass and other suitable transparent polymer materials that are desirable and operative to resist exposure to cold. Preferred materials include acrylic plastic or polycarbonate that form the covering  34  via extrusion. Likewise, the protective covering  34  will preferably be formed in a manner that not only facilitates the distribution of light, but further resists condensation buildup that can occur on surfaces maintained in a refrigeration environment. 
         [0026]    Referring now to  FIG. 3 , there is shown a cross-sectional view illustrating the preferred arrangement of the LED component as mounted upon the backing  30  and integrated within the periphery of door  22  and facing the interior side of transparent display window  26 . As illustrated, the LED light  28  will be oriented at an angle facing inwardly to the interior of the refrigerator body to thus enable the light emitted form the LED to illuminate about the angle defined by the letter “A”, which preferably will be at least 60 degrees or greater. As discussed above, to enhance the dispersion of the light in the angle defined by the letter “A”, protective covering  34  may be configured to have a generally arcuate cross-sectional shape, which can thus facilitate and focus the distribution of light emitted by LED  28 . Along these lines, it is further contemplated that protective covering  34  may include a plurality of apertures designed to be aligned with respective ones of the LED lights  28  to thus allow the LED lights to illuminate through protective covering  34  directly upon the contents stored and displayed within the improved display cooler. Such design further resists condensation build-up that can occur by allowing ventilation to pass therethrough. It is likewise believed that such illumination system, by virtue of the orientation of the LED lights to display illumination in the manner shown to illuminate the contents within the refrigerator, will further provide illumination across the front of the refrigerator, and thus illuminate any type of signage or transparent materials positioned upon the front exterior of transparent display window  26  which has not heretofore been available. 
         [0027]    By virtue of such construction, there is thus eliminated the use of fluorescent bulbs that are positioned within the interior of the refrigerator that not only offer suboptimal illumination but further are more easily prone to damage and subject to continuous replacement, which are problems which are eliminated by the design of the present invention. 
         [0028]    It is further contemplated that the protective covering  34  and arrangement of LED lights upon backing  30 , as well as the electrical connection  32  operative to interconnect therewith, as shown in  FIG. 2 , will be formed of a modular nature which will thus facilitate the ability of such elements to be readily manufactured and integrated within the door of the improved display refrigerator of the present invention and further, will greatly facilitate the ability of such elements to be replaced and/or serviced, as may be required over time. As discussed above, it is believed that conventional LED lights and materials that are commercially available can be readily utilized and integrated within the improved display refrigerators of the present invention. 
         [0029]    Referring now to  FIG. 4 , there is shown a further aspect of the improved display refrigerator of the present invention, namely, the refrigeration system thereof that can be easily accessed and designed for minimal servicing compared to other prior art display refrigerators. As illustrated, the refrigerator cabin  12  at the bottom, forward-facing side thereof defines an opening  46  within which the refrigeration system is disposed. In this regard, grill  20 , as also shown in  FIG. 1 , is operative to provide a covering about the opening of the base of refrigerator cabin  12  within which the refrigeration components are provided. In this regard, grill  20  may be fastened to the base of refrigerator cabin  12  via any of a variety of fastener mechanisms, such as the aligned apertures  50  through which fasteners such as bolts, screws and the like may be secured. The opening  46  formed within the base of refrigerator cabin  12  will be operative to receive the refrigeration components  36  as shown, which includes compressor  44 , drain pan  46  and condenser coil  40 , the latter being formed within an encased housing  42 . The refrigeration components  36  is further formed upon a base member  38  that is sized and adapted to be positioned within the interior  46  of refrigerator unit  12 . To facilitate accessibility thereto, rails  48  may be provided to enable the refrigeration system to be easily pulled out and repositioned within the interior  46 . Along these lines, the refrigeration components  36 , by virtue of being formed upon a mount  38 , quickly and easily enables the refrigeration system to be fastened into a secure position within the refrigerator  12 , but also to be easily and readily removed therefrom. 
         [0030]    Along these lines, the components of refrigeration system  36  may take any of a variety of designs well-known in the art, including conventional refrigeration designs employing the aforementioned components, namely, a compressor, drain pan, condenser coil and the like, as well as will further include an evaporator coil and evaporator fan integrated within the interior of the refrigerator  12 , air duct, coolant lines, heaters, defrost timers, air returns and all other aspects of conventional refrigeration systems well-known to those skilled in the art. Although not shown, it is further contemplated that a condenser fan may further be provided in connection with refrigeration components  36  mounted upon base  38  as shown, and will further be oriented to dissipate heat from the condenser coils  40 . In this respect, it will be understood that the same would be operative to provide air flow through the condenser coil  40  and through grill  20  so as to dissipate heat from the coil per conventional refrigeration. 
         [0031]    Because of the tendency of condenser fans to not only break and require servicing, the use of condenser fans is also known to be problematic insofar as the same can facilitate the buildup of dust and debris about the condenser coils, which in turn requires the condenser coils to be routinely cleaned. As is well-known in the art, to clean condenser coils is a tedious task that must necessarily be performed. To eliminate the need for a condenser fan, as well as to minimize the amount of cleaning that must be rendered to the condenser coil  40  of the improved display refrigerator of the present invention, it is contemplated that the condenser coil  40  will extend in an elongate spiral extending about a vertical axis as shown in  FIG. 5  such that the condenser coil is spaced apart from itself in a looping fashion that provides for enough distance for heat to sufficiently dissipate. To further facilitate the dissipation of heat, as well as add structural rigidity to the spiral configuration of the condenser coil, it is contemplated that the condenser coil will be encased within a cage-like grid with a plurality of vertically extending support bars or cross-wires extending about the condenser coil in generally parallel relation to one another as shown in  FIG. 5 . 
         [0032]    By virtue of the spacing of the condenser coil, as well as how the same is incorporated within a reinforced cage-like structure, it is contemplated that the condenser coils of the present invention may not be provided with any type of fins or other heat dissipating protuberances that are operative to facilitate the dissipation of heat through the use of fans and further, are well-known to attract copious amounts of dust and other types of debris. 
         [0033]    To achieve that end, it is contemplated that the condensation coil will be formed from conventional materials, typically aluminum tubing and aluminum wires/rods operative to form the cage-like structure shown in  FIGS. 4 and 5 . As is well-known, heat-conductive materials, such aluminum, are operative to facilitate the transfer and dissipation of heat. By forming the condenser coil in such a manner, there is thus eliminated, or alternatively greatly reduced, any type of problems that can arise via the overuse of condenser fans, as well as the need to routinely clean the condenser coil insofar as the fin-free design discussed above readily provides for the sufficient dissipation of heat without the need of the enhanced surface are provided by fins and the use of fans to dissipate heat therefrom. 
         [0034]    Additional modifications and improvements of the present invention may also be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art. For example, the LED lights  28  may be arranged anywhere about the interior periphery of door  22 , and may be disposed within door display window  26  or about the exterior thereof. Likewise, the arrangement of those components  36  shown in  FIG. 4  may be arranged upon base  38  in any of a variety of configurations. Thus, the particular combination of parts and steps described and illustrated herein is intended to represent only certain embodiments of the present invention, and is not intended to serve as limitations of alternative devices and methods within the spirit and scope of the invention.