Patent Publication Number: US-8123141-B2

Title: Laundry transport apparatus

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     This invention relates generally to laundry systems and, more particularly, to a method and apparatus for transporting laundry that increases the efficiency and lowers the cost of laundering textiles. 
     Linens are typically collected from commercial users during normal working hours from multiple workstations, such as from hospitals, nursing facilities, or industrial facilities. The soiled linens are usually placed into linen carts that remain in predetermined locations throughout the facility. The linen carts are retrieved upon arrival of the laundry truck from a laundry processing facility and weighted prior to loading onto the truck. This process is very inefficient and may lead to delays for both the cleaning staff and the launderers. Another problem frequently experienced in laundry processing is that linens may not be properly stored and thus may become degraded by environmental factors such as ultraviolet light, moisture, temperature, insects, and textile mold and mildew. 
     Various devices have been proposed in the art for transporting and laundering textiles. Although assumably effective for their intended purposes, the existing devices and methods are either inefficient, not cost effective, or fail to optimize the sanitation and freshness characteristics of the textiles being transported and laundered. 
     Therefore, it would be desirable to have an apparatus and method for transporting and laundering textiles that is efficient and cos 7-8t-effective. Further, it would be desirable to have an apparatus and method for transporting and laundering textiles that provides a transportation apparatus that avoids degradation of stored linens from environmental factors. In addition, it would be desirable to have an apparatus and method for transporting and laundering textiles that provides security and insect control. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     Therefore, a laundry transport apparatus and method according to the present invention includes a container defining an interior area configured to accommodate a plurality of laundry carts, the container having a door movable between closed and open configurations to selectively allow access to said interior area. The container is a trailer configured to be moved by a vehicle. The apparatus includes a ventilation network to pass air to and from the interior area, the ventilation network including an intake duct for channeling air to the interior area and an outlet duct for channeling air from the interior area. At least a portion of the intake and outlet ducts are immediately adjacent one another to influence temperature of air passing through each duct, warmer air passing through one of the intake duct or the outlet duct becoming cooler and cooler air passing through another of the intake duct or the outlet duct becoming warmer. 
     Therefore, a general object of this invention is to provide an apparatus and method for transporting and storing laundry that avoids degradation of linens by environmental conditions. 
     Another object of this invention is to provide an apparatus and method, as aforesaid, having a container that is climate controlled. 
     Still another object of this invention is to provide an apparatus and method, as aforesaid, that increases the efficiency and cost-effectiveness of laundry transportation and storage services. 
     Yet another object of this invention is to provide an apparatus and method, as aforesaid, in which the laundry transport container is a truck trailer that is movable between pickup, processing, and receiving facilities. 
     A further object of this invention is to provide an apparatus and method, as aforesaid, in which the transport trailer maintains an internal air environment that is controlled by a processor and may be remotely monitored. 
     Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, wherein is set forth by way of illustration and example, embodiments of this invention. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1   a  is a perspective view of a laundry transport container according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 1   b  is a perspective view of a ventilation network removed from the laundry transport container as in  FIG. 1   a;    
         FIG. 2  is a flowchart illustrating a methodology for transporting and storage of laundry according to the present invention; 
         FIG. 3  is a block diagram of the laundry transport apparatus in engagement with a dock at a linen receiving area; 
         FIG. 4  is a block diagram of a laundry transport apparatus according to another embodiment of the present invention; and 
         FIG. 5  is a schematic of a heat exchanger according to the present invention. 
     
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     A laundry transport apparatus and a method of transporting laundry will now be described in detail with reference to  FIG. 1   a  through  FIG. 5  of the accompanying drawings. More particularly, a laundry transport apparatus  100  includes a container  110 . 
     As shown in  FIG. 1   a , the container  110  defines an interior area  112  and has a door (not shown) for accessing the interior area  112 . The door is movable between a closed configuration (not shown) and an open configuration ( FIG. 1   a ) to selectively allow access to the interior area  112 . The container  110  is configured to accommodate a plurality of laundry carts  10  in the interior area  112  ( FIG. 1   a ). The container  110  may be a trailer configured to be moved by a vehicle ( FIG. 1   a ) or may be otherwise mobile. 
     A ventilation network  120  is included to pass air to and from the interior area  112 . The ventilation network  120  includes an intake duct  122  for channeling air to the interior area  112  and an outlet duct  124  for channeling air from the interior area  112 . Apart from the ventilation network  120 , the interior area  112  may be airtight when the door is at the closed configuration. One or more fan (not shown) may be configured (e.g., positioned and sized) to cause air to pass through the intake duct  122  and/or the outlet duct  124 . To reduce or eliminate condensation, the intake and outlet ducts  122 ,  124  may form a heat exchanger  125 . More particularly, at least a portion of the intake and outlet ducts  122 ,  124  are immediately adjacent one another to influence temperature of air passing through each duct  122 ,  124 . Warmer air passing through one of the ducts  122 ,  124  becomes cooler from transferring energy to the cooler air passing through the other duct  122 ,  124 , and the cooler air becomes warmer from obtaining the energy from the warmer air.  FIG. 5  shows exemplary heat exchange between an intake duct  122  and an outlet duct  124 . 
     As shown in  FIGS. 3 and 4 , a climate controller  130  (e.g., a heater and air conditioner) may be included for selectively heating and cooling air passing through the intake duct  122  after the air is influenced by air passing through the outlet duct  124  to cause the air passing through the intake duct  122  to approximate a temperature of air in the interior area  112  separate from the ventilation network  120 . Also shown in  FIGS. 3 and 4 , a dehumidifier  135  may be included for removing humidity from the air passing through the intake duct  122  (e.g., after passing through the heat exchanger  125  and the climate controller  130 ). 
     In some embodiments, as shown in  FIG. 1   b  and  FIG. 3 , the portions of the intake and outlet ducts  122 ,  124  immediately adjacent one another are operatively coupled to the container  110  (e.g., above where the carts  10  are accommodated, as shown in  FIG. 1   b ). Branches  129  from the intake and/or outlet ducts  122 ,  124  may extend downwardly toward the carts  10  ( FIG. 1   b ). The climate controller  130  and the dehumidifier  135  may also be operatively coupled to the container  110  ( FIG. 3 ). In other embodiments, as shown in  FIG. 4 , a control unit  150  is separate from the container  110 , and the portions of the intake and outlet ducts  122 ,  124  immediately adjacent one another are operatively coupled to the control unit  150 . Similarly, the climate controller  130  and/or the dehumidifier  135  may be operative coupled to the control unit  150  ( FIG. 4 ). If the control unit  150  is included, a portion of the ventilation network is coupled to the container  110  and another portion of the ventilation network is coupled to the control unit  150 ; these portions of the ventilation network are in selective communication with each other to allow air to pass to and from the interior area. When not in communication with each other, the portion of the ventilation network coupled to the container  110  may be sealed. For example, a removable cover or a flexible gasket may be used. 
     A processor  160  may be operatively coupled to the container  110  ( FIG. 3 ) or the control unit  150  ( FIG. 4 ) to store (e.g., using a memory device) and convey (e.g., through an output device) transport data, such as time data, temperature data, content data, etc. In conveying the transport data, a wireless data transfer system  162  ( FIG. 4 ) or a wired data transfer system  164  to a control panel  165  at the dock  15  ( FIG. 3 ) may be used. 
     In use, clean laundry is placed in the container  110  at a laundering facility and transported to its destination (e.g., a healthcare facility, etc.). The heat exchanger  125 , climate controller  130 , and dehumidifier  135  may maintain ventilation and acceptable humidity in the interior area  112  for the laundry during transport ( FIG. 3 ) and after being left at a dock ( FIG. 3  and  FIG. 4 ). As such, the laundry may be transported further distances or simply housed in the container  110  for longer amounts of time than possible in prior art systems. 
     In many applications, the way laundry is transported is very important. Healthcare facilities, for example, may be required to comply with the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations and infectious control guidelines. As should be readily appreciated, transporting or storing clean laundry in a manner that does not protect the laundry from moisture, undesirable temperatures, insects, textile mold, or mildew is not acceptable. Prior art methods and systems often make multiple trips to a single facility during working (i.e., business) hours to maintain the clean nature of the laundry and to collect soiled laundry. 
     In most prior art situations, the end user collects laundry during working hours from various workstations. Soiled laundry is placed into linen carts that remain in specified locations throughout the facility. The soiled linen carts are picked up upon arrival of a laundry truck from a processing plant and weighed prior to loading onto the laundry truck. This process can be very inefficient and can lead to delays for both the cleaning staff and the launderers. 
       FIG. 2  shows an improved system  200  for laundry transportation and storage that utilizes the laundry transport apparatus  100 . At step  202 , the container  110  housing clean laundry in the interior area  112  is moved (e.g., by a truck) to a loading dock and left at the loading dock. If the control unit  150  is not used ( FIG. 3 ), the container  110  may simply be left at the loading dock without further action, and the airflow and ventilation described above regarding  FIG. 3  may occur; if the control unit  150  is used ( FIG. 4 ), the container  110  may be placed in communication with the control unit  150  to allow airflow and ventilation described above regarding  FIG. 4 . While omitting the control unit  150  may provide a more simple docking process, utilizing a control unit  150  may provide a cost savings, as each individual container  110  does not have to include various elements (as discussed above regarding  FIG. 4 ). Step  202  may occur during business hours or at night; the climate control provided inside the container  110  may allow the laundry to remain in the container  110  overnight without detriment. The processor  160  may be used to track the temperature in the container  110 , humidity in the container  110 , time the laundry was in the container  110 , and/or any other information useful in determining whether the laundry has been compromised while in the container  110 . 
     At step  204 , the laundry is then moved into a linen (or “staging”) room, where clean linen carts are configured using the laundry from the container  110  and laundry from a reserve linen area  20  if necessary. If not all laundry from the container  110  is needed for the carts, excess may be placed in the reserve linen area  20 . 
     At step  206 , the laundry in the clean linen carts is delivered to a unit for use, and the clean laundry is used at step  208 . After being used, the laundry is placed in a soiled linen hamper at step  210 , and laundry collected in the soiled linen hamper is moved to a linen cart at step  212 . The soiled laundry from the soiled linen cart is collected, weighed, and moved to an empty container  110  at step  214  for transport to a laundering facility. 
     It is understood that while certain forms of this invention have been illustrated and described, it is not limited thereto except insofar as such limitations are included in the following claims and allowable functional equivalents thereof.