Improvements in or relating to the Construction of Refrigerators
Year: 1888

page_text: Improvements in or relating to the Construction of Refrigerators
We, THE ZIMMERMAN REFRIGERATOR COMPANY of the City of Chicago, in the State
of Illinois, USA a manufacturing concern, and MAX FRIEND of Chicago, aforesaid,
Vice President, do hereby declare the nature of this invention and in what manner
the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by
the following statement
Fig 1 is a vertical sectional elevation of the said refrigerator
struction of its walls door waste-pipe and all its other parts
Fig 2 is a vertical elevation of the ice-tank showing the side
showing the con-
opening into the
same, and the lower air-passage h³, and its cover in transverse section and below the
tank a drip-bowl and fragment of waste-pipe
Fig 3 shows in plan-view the section below a transverse plane cutting the wɩe-tank
in about the centre of its vertical height
Fig 4 shows a plan of the circular rotating shelves
l
Fig 5 is a transverse section of the covering over the air-hole h
Fig 6 shows in enlarged detail the lower and back corner of the ice-tank with its
drains, drip-bowl and a fragment of the waste-pipe and inner wall of the structure
Fig 7 is an enlarged view of the upper end of the drain-pipe in central vertical
section
Like letters of reference refer to like parts of the construction
The object sought in this invention is to construct a refrigerator which shall, for
the minimum of cost, produce the best nonconductor of heat and cold and give greater
and more easily accessible storage capacity than heretofore attained and to that end
it is constructed substantially as follows, namely
The ends a, a, are circular and made of well seasoned wood to each of which is
secured a wooden hoop a³, which serves both to hold said boards in place iud as a
flange to which the walls
a and bare secured

page_text: Said walls are made of strong manilla paper which is rolled into a cylinder, upon
suitable machinery for such purpose, the coils being united together while being
wound by strong cement so as to form a cylinder of any desired thickness and strength
One of such cylinders is made to fit tightly over the outer and another over the
inner edges of said flanges and the parts are then securely united together
By this construction two cylindrical walls made of the best ind cheapest known
nonconductor, inclose between themselves a large body of an which is another of best
known nonconductors of heat or cold as also are the ends of this structure
To the upper head a³, is hung, by means of strips f¹, a circular ice-tank f, of
Galvanized iron or sheet Zinc in such a manner as to leave an air-space n, all around
it, except at its door m¹ where it is attached to the inner wall b, as shown, and also so
as to leave an air-space n¹ over its top communicating with the interior of the ice-
tank
The bottom of said ice-tank slants in a general direction from its door m¹ to its
drain, and also from its entire circumference toward its center which is pierced by
a long oblong hole h, of which the greater dimensions are from the door towards the
drain, and is surrounded by flanges h', extending upward all around it which thus
form gutters in which the water from the melting ice runs down through the drain ƒ³,
and over said hole is placed a cover, of any form, but preferably such as shown
transverse section in figs 2 and 5, extending over the edge of said hole and held
above its flanges some distance, on pegs ¹, so as to permit a free circulation of air
through said hole and under said cover on the ice "Over said cover 2, is placed a
grating upon which the ice lays
The drain discharges into a drip-bowl k, attached to the inner wall 6, and 1s
provided at its lowest point with a short pipe 1, entering into the vertical pipe c placed
between said walls a, b, and extending through the heads a³, a
Said pipe is closed by a plug e at its upper end to the centre of which is attached
a w re d, extending to the lower end of said pipe Said wire serves to clean the pipe
of any obstructions which may accumulate therein by using the said plug as a handle
to stil it by
In
The doors m¹ and m, are attached to frames connecting the two walls in an air tight
manner, one for the ice chamber and the other for the storage chamber below
the latter are a series of loose circular shelves 6, supported and rotating on small
rollers 6, attached to the inner of said walls By this construction all parts of each
shelf may be fully loaded and readily got at by simply rotating the shelf until the
desid article comes to the front
Each door is provided with a button o, of which one end is formed into a loop
extending over the centre of the button, thus at the same time forming a handle to
pull the door open and work the button The end of the button o, is caught in a
hook p, to hold the door closed
The top a², extends a short distance over the outer wall, so as to form a neat
cornice and the joint of the outer wall and base is covered by a hoop a', which further
secures said joint and at the same time give a neat appearance to that part of the
structure.
By means of this construction the air is caused to circulate in the refrigerator as
shown by the arrows The warmed air ascending around the walls of the ice-tank
over its top upon the ice where it is cooled, condensed, and deprived of its moisture
and thereby again finds its way out through the hole in the bottom of the ice-tank and
and thence over the warmer articles stored in the chamber below which give up their
heat and moisture to it
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said Inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what we
claim is
1st A refrigerator having wooden ends to each of which is secured a hoop a³, and
said heads united by two paper walls, one on each side of said hoops, forming a dead
air-space and a metal ice-tank suspended from the upper end so as to leave an air

page_text: space around and above the tank and said tank provided with an inclined bottom, a
drain, a flanged hole in its bottom with a raised cover so as to cause the air to
circulate, substantially as specified
2nd A circular refrigerator with rotating shelves
3rd A circular double wall refrigerator provided with an ice-tank suspended from
its upper end having an inclined bottom with a drain at its lowest edge discharging
into a drip-bowl which discharges into a vertical pipe placed between the walls of the
refrigerator
4th The open drain-pipe provided with plug and clearing rod in combination with
a drip-bowl and ice-tank provided with a drain
Dated this 19th day of June 1888