Patent Document

CROSS-REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application claims priority from U.S. Application No. 61/768,037, filed Feb. 22, 2013, the contents of which are incorporated by reference in its entirety. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND 
     Present day commercial aircraft are traditionally configured with a food and beverage preparation area, commonly referred to as a galley, for service of the passengers and crew. The galley incorporates various types of equipment for the storage, preparation, and disposal of food and drink, such as refrigeration units, heaters, ovens, beverage brewing machines, and the like. Flight attendants work within the galley to provide passengers with amenities such as beverages, snacks, and on longer flights, meals. As with all aircraft equipment, today&#39;s aircraft galleys strive to be examples of efficiency and conservation of weight and space. Every component of the aircraft galley must abide by these principles, and be both compact and efficient but retain functionality and convenience. All of the equipment must also be arranged in a manner which is both ergonomic and efficient for the allotted space. 
     It is common among a growing number of commercial airlines to provide a station where passengers can serve themselves certain items, such as a cooler with soft drinks and a shelf for snacks. An example of this system can be incorporated into a double refrigeration unit within the galley that has one side for soft drinks and one side for food storage, or storage of wines and beers. Passengers may help themselves to the soft drinks and snacks, but not the controlled alcoholic products. One issue with this system is that it requires that passengers be granted access to the galley, which is problematic to the flight attendants. Having passengers in the galley presents both safety concerns as there are equipment such as boilers and other apparatus that could burn or injure a passenger, and security concerns where passengers can pilfer restricted items in the galley when no one is looking. 
     To eliminate the requirement that passengers be allowed in the galley, many airlines have created a cooler that is outside the galley, such as in the walkway aisle adjacent the galley. The cooler can be loaded with soft drinks and snacks, and the passengers can retrieve them without entering the galley or disturbing the flight attendants. However, such systems either require their own chilling system, or require ducting from a main chilling system to the separate auxiliary cooler. Both the of these solutions add weight to the aircraft, efficiency deficits due to losses in the ducting, and configuration problems connecting the cooler to the main chilling system. 
     While the dual refrigeration units provide economy in that a separate refrigeration unit is not required for the passengers&#39; self service station, the security issue that arises when passengers have access to the main refrigeration unit (where non-gratis products such as wines and beers are also stored) makes this an unsatisfactory solution. Passengers can reach into the refrigeration unit and pilfer some products that are reserved for other passengers or for which a separate charge is associated. Currently there is no method by which the economy of a single refrigeration unit is provided that includes a passenger self-service window, but limits the access of the passengers within the refrigerator unit to a selected area where only complementary products are within reach. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention is a refrigeration unit for an aircraft galley that includes a side access window/door for allowing passengers to select and self-serve certain products such as soft drinks, but where the refrigeration unit is constructed so as to limit the access of the passengers to a designated portion of the chiller and does not require the passengers to enter the galley. The side window is accessed from outside the galley, preferably in the adjacent common walkway or aisle, so that passengers do not need to enter the galley to retrieve a complimentary drink or the like. An advantage of the present invention is that it can be retrofitted from existing aircraft chillers, such as for example the 600 Series wine chillers available from BE Aerospace Inc. of Wellington, Fla. The front loaded refrigeration unit has at least one front door that is within the galley where flight attendants can fill the unit with drinks and snacks, and also use the refrigeration unit in a separate compartment for restricted beverages such as beers and wines. Passengers, via the side access door, may retrieve the complimentary items stored in the designated compartment, but cannot gain access to the restricted items located in the separate compartment. However, both compartments are cooled by the same cooling unit and no additional ducting is required to chill both compartments. 
     The refrigeration unit of the present invention includes a frame with a removable panel on one side that can be moved to the other side as required by the aircraft&#39;s configuration and its location within the galley. The opposite side of the frame is open to receive a side compartment module that mounts within the side wall of the galley. The side compartment module is preferably open in either the back or the top to allow chilled air to circulate, but provides a barrier to the restricted compartment so that passengers cannot reach though to access the beers, wines, etc. The refrigeration unit is thus divided into two compartments that can both be loaded though the front doors of the refrigeration unit, but allows access through a side door outside of the galley to one of the two compartments. 
     Since both compartments use the same cooling equipment, there is no additional ducting or apparatus needed to cool the products in the side compartment. The elimination of the need for a second chiller and/or ducting saves both the cost of the chiller and the weight associated with a second refrigeration unit and additional components. The side compartment, which is accessible in the aisle outside of the galley, can be used to store complimentary beverages and snacks that is accessible by passengers, reducing the burden on the flight attendants. 
     Other features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, which illustrate, by way of example, the operation of the invention. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is an elevated perspective view of the galley chiller of the present invention; 
         FIG. 2  is a front view of the galley chiller; and 
         FIG. 3  is an exploded view of the galley chiller of  FIG. 1 . 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
       FIG. 1  illustrates an example of a convertible aircraft galley refrigerator/chiller with a side door access that allows passengers to retrieve complimentary products from the side entrance without entering the galley. A galley monument  23  is shown at a perspective view to illustrate both the entrance to the galley area  15  and the aisle/walkway  20  used by the passengers. The monument  23  includes a number of features, including bays  22  for storing beverage carts used to serve the passengers, a counter  24  that can be used to prepare beverages and meals, storage cabinets  26  to house mugs, supplies, cleaning supplies, or other emergency equipment, and ovens  28  for heating meals. It is understood that galleys can include other features known to those of ordinary skill in the art, the recitation of which is omitted herein for brevity. 
     At the corner of the monument  23  is a refrigeration unit  30  having a front panel  32  and a handle  34  used to open a door  36 . On the side of the monument  23  is an aisle wall  38  that is outside of the galley area  15 , and includes a self-serve station  40  that passengers can access. The self-serve station  40  includes a door  42 , which may be a sliding panel or a pivoting door that accesses the interior of the refrigeration unit  30 . Items such as cans of soda or bottles of water can be loaded into the refrigeration unit  30  by flight attendants in the galley area  15  via door  36 , and removed using the side door  42  in the self-serve station  40 . However, as explained below, passengers do not have access to the entirety of the refrigeration unit&#39;s interior, but rather only a selected portion of the interior can be accessed by the passengers. 
       FIG. 3  shows how a supplemental or auxiliary compartment can be formed in the refrigeration unit  30  that limits access through the side door  42 . A frame  44  for the refrigeration unit  30  includes a floor  46 , a ceiling  48 , a rear wall  50 , and a removable first side wall  52 . The first side wall  52  can be placed on either the right side or the left side of the frame  44 , depending upon the arrangement of the galley and the placement of the refrigeration unit  30 . Opposite the removable first side wall  52  is an open side window that is aligned with the passenger self-serve station  40  in the monument wall  38 . The door  36  with handle  34  on the front of the refrigeration unit includes a seal to prevent chilled air from escaping, and a second door  56  may be used to access the auxiliary compartment. Placed within the open side window is a side access compartment  58  sized to fit into a cut-out  60  in the wall  38 . The side access compartment  58  is tub-shaped wherein the bottom of the tub establishes a dividing wall  62  inside the interior of the refrigeration unit  30 . The top  64  and bottom  66  panels cooperating with the dividing wall  62  to define a side compartment interior space, the dividing wall  62  separating the side compartment interior space from a main chilled compartment. 
     To maintain the side access compartment  58  within the cut-out  60 , a transverse retaining lip  68  spaced from the dividing wall  62  bears against the outside surface of the wall  38 , and can be mounted to the wall using any number of ways, including fasteners, adhesives, and the like. The transverse retain lip  68  extends from the top and bottom panels  64 ,  66  (and preferably a rear panel  70 ) to secure the side access compartment to the fixed galley monument wall  38 . The side compartment is accessed via a side door  42 , which can also be any number of types of doors, from sliding to hinged, to a pull-out panel. In a first preferred embodiment, the door  42  slides in grooves within the self-serve station to easily open and close the unit. The side door  42  provides access to the side compartment, but only up to the dividing wall  62 . Other items stored in the main compartment of the refrigeration unit are inaccessible though the side door  42 , ensuring that costlier items cannot be taken through the self-serve station by passengers. The configuration allows drinks and snacks to be placed in the refrigeration unit  30  via the first and second front doors  36 , 56  in both the main chilled compartment and the side access compartment, and wherein access to the main chilled compartment is foreclosed via the side door. 
     In a first preferred embodiment, the rear panel  70  is open (See  FIG. 3 ) to allow circulation of the chilled air from the main compartment to enter the side compartment, along the opening can also be established in the top panel  64 , although to prevent passengers from reaching over the dividing wall  62  some mesh or grid is preferred over the opening. 
     The side access compartment  58  is preferably formed from a single sheet of metal or polymer, stamped into the desired shape, and inserted into the cavity in the frame. Aluminum could be used due to its corrosion resistant properties and easy of shaping, or other materials could be used equally as well, as long as the material possesses the necessary strength after shaping to not deform or corrode once inserted into the chilled environment of the refrigeration unit  30 . 
     The refrigeration unit can include locks on either the front doors  36 ,  56  or the side door  42  to prevent entry without a key where greater control is required over the contents of the refrigeration unit. 
     The benefit of the present invention is the cost and weight savings of using the primary chiller to cool a second compartment, which is more efficient and saves costs and weight. This also saves space, as the volume that would be needed to house a second refrigeration system for the second chiller can be used to store beverages, food, wine, beer, or other products served on the flight. 
     It will be apparent from the foregoing that while particular forms of the invention have been illustrated and described, various modifications can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Accordingly, it is not intended that the invention be limited, except as by the appended claims.

Technology Category: 2