Distributed refrigeration system with optional storage module and controller

(54) Title: COOLING SYSTEM DISTRIBUTED WITH OPTIONAL STORAGE MODULE AND CONTROLLER (30) Unionist Priority: 06/28/2007 usu / 769,989 (73) Owner (s): Whirlpool Corporation (72) Inventor (s): DiegoBarone, John Joseph Vonderhaar, Lorenzo Bianchi, NihatO. Cur, Steven John Kuehl (57) Abstract: distributed cooling system with OPTIONAL STORAGE MODULE AND CONTROLLER. The present invention relates to a home appliance refrigeration system distributed for use in a residential kitchen and other locations in a home and includes multiple separate appliance appliances, a central cooling system and a cooling circuit, The system can also include one or more satellite stations having a heat exchanger and arranged to supply chilled air to one or more refrigeration appliance modules. One or more refrigeration appliance modules may include a thermal cascade cooling device for cooling the module to temperatures lower than the cooling circuit can obtain. One or more home appliance refrigeration modules can be storage refrigeration modules that can provide chilled, unconditioned or heated storage space. The central cooling system can be a vapor compression system that has a refrigerant circuit connecting the modules. Alternatively, the central cooling system can cool a secondary cooling medium circuit. The cooling system can also have more than one cooling machine providing cooling for the secondary cooling loop.

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Descriptive Report on the Invention Patent for the DISTRIBUTED REFRIGERATION SYSTEM WITH OPTIONAL STORAGE MODULE AND CONTROLLER.

Cross Reference to Related Orders 5 This order is partly a continuation of previously filed orders 11 / 646,754 and 11 / 646,972, filed on December 28, 2006. This order relates to the patent filing numbers, Patent ID US20030365, US20030366, US20030369, US20030370,

US20070374 and US20070325, deposited concurrently with it.

Background of the Invention (1) Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to household refrigeration appliances for use in residential kitchens and other locations associated with a home.

(2) Description of the Related Art

Household refrigeration appliances for use in residential kitchens and other rooms in a housing unit are known. Modular cooling devices, such as&gt; - modules_t refrigerator, freezer, ice maker and air-conditioned cellar for use in homes 20 the residential ones are known.

Brief Summary of the Invention

The invention relates to a distributed home appliance system built and arranged for use in a residential kitchen and other locations associated with a home including separate home appliance modules, each having an insulated cabinet with an opening for access inside the case, an insulated door to cover and discover an opening in the case, and an apparatus for receiving a cooling medium for cooling the interior of the appliance's appliance module. The distributed cooling appliance system may have a central cooling unit for removing heat from the cooling medium, a cooling medium circuit connecting the central cooling unit and the cooling appliance modules for supply of cooling medium. from the central cooling unit to the plurality of home appliance refrigeration modules, and for returning the cooling medium to the central cooling unit5 from the home appliance refrigeration modules, and a plurality of cooling medium flow control devices connected to the cooling medium circuit to control the medium flow. cooling units for each of the cooling appliance modules. At least one cooling / storage module can be located in relation to a home appliance refrigeration module and can be arranged to selectively provide a refrigerated storage space or an unconditioned storage space located in relation to a first of the appliance modules Plural refrigeration appliance. A temperature sensor can be provided for detecting the temperature in the cooling / storage module, and at least one insulated air duct can connect the cooling / storage module to a cooling appliance module, and a flow controller can selectively allow chilled air to circulate through the insulated air duct from the cooling appliance module to the cooling / storage module and air return from the cooling / storage module to the module of home appliance refrigeration, when the flow controller is positioned arranged to allow cool air to flow through the insulated air duct and to operate the cooling / storage module as a chilled storage space. A control circuit can connect the home appliance refrigeration modules, the cooling / storage module, the cooling medium flow control devices, the temperature sensor, the central cooling unit and a system controller. A cooling / storage module can have a selector connected to the system controller and can be arranged to select the refrigerated operation of the cooling / storage module or the use of the cooling / storage module as an unconditioned storage space.

The selector can be a switch mounted on a cooling / storage module arranged for a user to select a refrigerated use or an unconditioned storage use of the cooling / storage module. The selector can be a user selection in a user interface of a distributed household appliance system.

A cooling / storage module can include a heating element, so that the system controller can operate the cooling / storage module to selectively cool the contents below room temperature, store the contents at room temperature or heat the contents to a temperature above ambient. The system controller can include a portion that can be arranged for predetermined temperature sequence cycles of storage that can be selected by a user to provide the contents of the cooling / storage module with a selected predetermined temperature sequence. The cooling / storage module can include one or more sensors, in addition to the temperature sensor, for detecting one or more predetermined conditions of the contents. The predetermined temperature sequence cycles can be based on time and can be based on the condition of the contents. The sensors can be one or more of a humidity sensor, a hydrocarbon sensor and a carbon dioxide sensor.

In another aspect, the invention relates to a method of operating a home appliance refrigeration system including a refrigeration appliance that has a refrigerated cooling space, a separate cooling / storage module located in relation to the refrigeration appliance and including a heating element and a temperature sensor, at least one insulated air duct connecting the cooling / storage module to the refrigerated storage space, a flow controller to selectively allow the circulation of cooled air through the insulated air duct and a system controller. The method may include the selective operation of the flow controller to allow the cooled air to flow through the insulated duct to cool the contents of the cooling / storage module to a temperature below the desired environment; or selectively operating the flow controller to block the flow of cooled air through at least one insulated duct to operate the cooling / storage module as an unconditioned storage space; or selectively operate the flow controller to block the flow of cooled air through at least one insulated duct and selectively operate the heater to heat the contents of the cooling / storage module to a temperature above the desired environment; or selectively operate the flow controller to allow or block the flow of cooled air through at least one insulated duct and selectively operate the heater to sequence the storage temperature of the contents of the cooling / storage module through a temperature sequence cycle predetermined to cause physical or chemical effects on the contents of the cooling / storage module. The predetermined temperature sequence cycles can include yeast, defrost, fermentation, quick-regulated cooling and rapid cooling.

Brief Description of Drawings

Figure 1 is a schematic drawing illustrating a modular distributed household appliance system according to the invention.

Figure 2 is a schematic drawing illustrating another modality of a modular distributed household appliance system according to the invention.

Figure 3 is a schematic drawing illustrating another embodiment of a modular distributed household appliance system according to the invention.

Figure 4 is a schematic drawing illustrating another modality of a modular distributed household appliance system according to the invention.

Figure 5 is a schematic drawing illustrating an appliance refrigeration appliance module that can be used in combination with a modular distributed appliance appliance refrigeration system according to the invention.

Figure 6 is a schematic drawing showing another modality of a modular distributed cooling system that incorporates satellite stations according to the invention.

Figure 7A is a partial schematic drawing illustrating another modality of home appliance refrigeration modules that can be used in combination with the modular distributed cooling system illustrated in figure 6.

Figure 7B is a partial schematic drawing illustrating another modality of home appliance refrigeration modules that can be used in combination with the modular distributed cooling system illustrated in figure 6.

Figure 7C is an enlarged partial schematic drawing that illustrates a fan for controlling the air flow between compartments of a cooling appliance module, as shown in figure 7B.

Figure 8A is a partial schematic drawing illustrating another modality of home appliance refrigeration modules that can be used in combination with the modular distributed cooling system illustrated in Figure 6.

Figure 8B is a partial schematic drawing illustrating another modality of home appliance refrigeration modules that can be used in combination with the modular distributed cooling system illustrated in figure 6.

Figure 9 is a partial schematic drawing illustrating another modality of home appliance refrigeration modules that can be used in combination with the modular distributed cooling system illustrated in Figure 6.

Figure 10 is a schematic drawing showing another modality of a modular distributed cooling system that incorporates satellite stations according to the invention.

Figure 11 is a schematic drawing illustrating another modality of a modular distributed household appliance system that incorporates a cascade cooling system for a module according to the invention.

Figure 12 is a schematic drawing illustrating another embodiment of a modular distributed household appliance system incorporating a cascade cooling system for a module according to the invention.

Figure 13 is a schematic drawing illustrating another modality of a distributed modular home appliance refrigeration system that incorporates a cascade cooling system for a module according to the invention.

Figure 14 is a schematic drawing illustrating another modality of a modular distributed household appliance system that incorporates a cascade cooling system for a module according to the invention.

Figure 15 is a schematic drawing illustrating a modular distributed household appliance system that incorporates another mode of a cascade cooling system for a module according to the invention.

Figure 16 is a schematic drawing illustrating another modality of a modular distributed household appliance system that incorporates a cascade cooling system for a module according to the invention.

Figure 17A is a schematic drawing illustrating a modular distributed household appliance system similar to the mode illustrated in Figure 12 that incorporates another mode of cascade cooling according to the invention.

Figure 17B is a schematic drawing illustrating a modular distributed household appliance system similar to the mode illustrated in figure 12 that incorporates another mode of cascade cooling according to the invention.

Figure 18 is a partial schematic drawing that illustrates cooling / storage modules that can be used in a modular distributed cooling system, as illustrated in Figures 3 and 6.

Figure 19 is a partial schematic drawing that illustrates another modality of cooling / storage modules that can be used in a modular distributed cooling system, as illustrated in Figures 3 and 6.

Figure 20 is a partial schematic drawing that illustrates another modality of cooling / storage modules that can be used in a modular distributed cooling system, as illustrated in Figures 3 and 6.

Figure 21 is a schematic drawing showing another modality of a modular cooling system according to the invention.

Figure 22 is a schematic drawing showing another modality of a modular cooling system according to the invention.

Figure 23A is a schematic drawing illustrating another modality of cooling / storage modules that can be used in a distributed cooling system according to the invention.

Figure 23B is a schematic drawing illustrating another modality of cooling / storage modules that can be used in a distributed cooling system according to the invention.

Figure 24 is a schematic drawing illustrating another modality of a cooling / storage module that can be used in a distributed cooling system according to the invention.

Figure 25 is a schematic drawing illustrating another modality of a modular refrigeration system according to the invention.

Figure 26 is a schematic drawing showing another modality of a modular cooling system according to the invention.

Figures 27A to 27D are illustrations of temperature sequence cycles that can be provided in a refrigeration / storage module according to the invention.

Figure 28 is a schematic drawing that illustrates a cooling system distributed according to the invention installed on a schematic floor level of a house.

Figure 28A is an enlarged schematic drawing illustrating the connection of a module to a supply and return system.

Figure 29 is a schematic drawing that illustrates another modality of a cooling system distributed according to the invention installed on a schematic floor level of a house.

Figure 29A is an enlarged schematic drawing illustrating the connection of a module to a single line system.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

In a modular kitchen with multiple cooling modules, the cooling system for cooling the modules is a challenging problem. The simplest approach would be to have individual complete cooling systems for each module. In the early stages of modularity for residential kitchens, this could be the approach taken, especially when modular refrigeration product choices are few and economies of scale are not available. However, as modularity becomes more of a current trend and kitchen designs begin to incorporate modular refrigeration products with appropriate infrastructure, it will become desirable to have a unique central cooling system from the perspective of cost, manufacturing and efficiency power. Consumers will be primarily interested in the energy efficiency, cost, flexibility and expandability offered by a modular refrigeration appliance system with less concern about central cooling technology to support the modular system.

According to the invention, a modular home appliance system can be provided for a residential kitchen and other locations associated with a home that may include a central cooling unit for some or all of the cooling modules that a consumer may wish to include in your kitchen, at the time of construction or for expanding or changing cooling modules over time, as needs or desires change. A modular kitchen could allow consumers to select multiple refrigeration modules adapting to their lifestyles in the best way with the ultimate flexibility in their kitchens and kitchens fully customizable with modular appliances not only for refrigeration, but also for food preparation and cleaning the kitchen. According to the invention, a central cooling unit of single variable capacity can be provided, which is capable of combining the need for cooling with the aggregate thermal load of the cooling modules. The central cooling unit can be arranged to operate continuously by controlling the volume of the cooling medium being directed to each cooling module, so that each module is cooled to a temperature selected by the user and maintained at the desired temperature accurately. The cooling medium can be cold air, a coolant or a liquid cooler, such as a solution of ethylene glycol and water. The central cooling unit can be a vapor compression system, but it is not limited to that. If a central cooling unit is a vapor compression cooling system, the central cooling unit may have a variable capacity compressor capable of handling the cooling load of multiple cooling module products. Refrigeration module products may include freezer refrigerator modules on top, freezer freezer modules underneath, refrigerator and freezer modules having freeze compartments on top and freeze underneath in various configurations that may include, but are not limited to to configurations built-in, stackable, under counter or drawer. Also, the refrigeration module products could include special purpose modules, such as ice maker units, air-conditioned wine cellar and bar counter refrigerator. In addition, conventional refrigeration products having a complete refrigeration system can be combined with a modular refrigeration appliance system according to the invention. For example, one or more freezer freezer units from below can be combined with a modular refrigeration appliance appliance arranged for a plurality of freezer refrigerator modules above fresh food. As will be described in more detail below, a hybrid approach can be an energy-efficient approach to the provision of cooling for modular products, since the central cooling unit can operate under more favorable cooling cycle conditions, since that a very cold cooling medium, ie below -32 ° C (0 ° F) would not be required.

Turning to figure 1, in an embodiment of the invention, illustrated schematically, the cooling modules 20 and 22 can be connected in a system of home appliance refrigeration that can include a central cooling unit 10. In the illustrated mode in figure 1, two cooling modules 20, 22 are illustrated. According to the invention, more than one or more than two cooling modules can be provided in the home appliance refrigeration system, as desired, and although two or three cooling modules are included in the modes shown, it should be understood that they include the possibility of one or more of two or three cooling modules within the scope of the invention. In addition, the home appliance refrigeration system can be arranged to allow an expansion of the home appliance refrigeration system subsequent to the initial installation by adding additional cooling modules, as the user's needs change over time requiring new modules cooling or additional. In practice, the cooling modules 11, 22, 22 can be installed in a residential kitchen and / or in adjacent or adjacent rooms, such as a large room, a bar, a recreation room and / or other locations associated with a home. The central cooling unit 10 can be installed in a nearby location, such as a basement, a utility room, in the garage, in the yard or, if desired, in the kitchen in the vicinity of some or all of the refrigeration appliance modules , depending on the style of dwelling and whether a basement or crawl space is available or is desired for installation of the central cooling unit 10. The cooling modules 20, 22 can be independent or built-in modules and can be general purpose refrigerator or freezer modules or they can be special purpose modules, such as an ice maker or an air-conditioned cellar. Refrigeration modules 20, 22 may take the form of a conventional refrigerator or freezer cabinet having a hinged door, or may take the form of a refrigerator drawer appliance, as shown in co-pending non-provisional order N^Q 11 / 102,321, filed on April 8, 2005, fully incorporated herein by reference.

The cooling module 20 can have an insulated cabinet 24 and an insulated door 25 that can be hinged to the insulated cabinet 24 for the selective opening and closing of an opening 28 in the insulated cabinet 24. The cooling module 22 can have a insulated cabinet 26 and an insulated door 27 that can be hinged to the insulated cabinet 26 for the selective opening and closing of an opening 29 in the insulated cabinet 26. Those skilled in the art will understand that insulated doors 25 and 27 can be provided with a suitable handle, not shown, to facilitate opening and closing insulated doors 25 and

27. Cooling modules 20 and 22 can each have a heat exchanger 30 positioned in insulated cabinets 25 and 26. Similarly, cooling modules 20 and 22 can each have a heat exchange fan of variable speed 32 positioned for air circulation (illustrated by the air flow arrows 38) on the respective heat exchangers 30 and through the respective cooling modules 20, 22. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that a single speed fan can be used instead of a variable speed fan 32. The cooling modules 20, 22 can also have a temperature sensor 34 arranged for the detection of the temperature inside the cooling modules. refrigeration 20, 22. Temperature sensor 34 can be a thermistor or other well-known electronic or mechanical temperature sensing mechanism or device. Temperature selectors 36 can be provided for each of the cooling modules 20, 22 to allow the user to select the operating temperature for the respective cooling modules 20,

22. Although the temperature selectors 36 are illustrated schematically spaced from the cooling modules 20, 22, those skilled in the art will understand that the temperature selectors 36 can be located on each of the cooling modules 20, 22, as is well known in the art, or they could be centrally located, if desired. The temperature selectors 36 may comprise a well-known mechanical or electronic selector mechanism, to allow a user to select an operating temperature for the respective cooling modules 20, 22.

The home appliance refrigeration system schematically illustrated in Figure 1 also includes a central cooling unit 10. The central cooling unit 10 can include a variable speed compressor 12, a condenser 14 and an expansion device 18 connected in a cooling circuit with a cooled liquid evaporator 40. A variable speed condenser fan 16 can be provided for air circulation through the condenser 14. The cooled liquid evaporator 40 can be a shell and tube evaporator also known as a secondary loop evaporator. Expansion device 18 can be an expansion device with feedback arranged to control the flow of refrigerant through expansion device 18, based on the thermal load in the refrigeration appliance system. The central cooling unit 10 can be connected to the cooling modules 20, 22 with insulated ducts 42 forming a cooling medium circuit for transporting liquid refrigerant from the cooled liquid evaporator 40 to the heat exchangers 30 and from the heat exchangers 30 for the cooled liquid evaporator 40. The liquid refrigerant, not shown, contained in the cooled liquid evaporator 40, insulated ducts 42 and heat exchangers 30 can be circulated by a pump 44 which can be a variable speed pump. In addition, each refrigeration module can have a valve 46 for controlling the flow of liquid refrigerant to the heat exchanger 30. Valves 46 can be on-off valves to allow or prevent a flow of liquid refrigerant through the heat exchanger 30 to a refrigeration module. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that if a single speed heat exchange fan 32 is used in a cooling module 20, 22, an adjustable valve 46 can be used to control the amount of liquid refrigerant flowing into a heat exchanger 30, although it may be more energy efficient to use a variable speed heat exchange fan 32, a variable speed pump 44 and an on-off valve 46 for temperature control in the respective cooling modules 20, 22. The central cooling unit 10 can also have a microprocessor-based controller 50 having a first portion 52 that can be arranged for controlling the operation of the central cooling unit 10 and a second portion 54 arranged for controlling the volume of liquid refrigerant directed to the respective cooling modules 20, 22. A control circuit 56 can be provided for connecting temperature sensors 34, temperature selectors 36, variable speed compressor 12, variable speed condenser fan 16, expansion device 18, pump 44, valves 46 and heat exchange fans 32 with controller 50. Thus, a home appliance refrigeration system according to the invention is illustrated in figure 1 as a distributed cooling system that can have a steam compression condensing unit of variable capacity and a secondary loop using a network evaporator. cooled liquid. An example of a liquid refrigerant that can be used is a DYNALENE HC heat transfer fluid, a water-based organic salt that is non-toxic, non-flammable with low viscosity, although those skilled in the art understand that other liquid refrigerant solutions , such as a solution of ethylene glycol and water, can be used as desired.

According to the invention, the central cooling unit 10 may be operating continuously, so that a liquid cooled to a temperature suitable for obtaining the lowest selected temperature in the cooling appliance system is continuously circulated in the insulated ducts 42 that form a cooling medium circuit for the cooled liquid evaporator 40 for the cooling modules 20, 22. The controller 50 can be arranged to adjust the capacity of the central cooling unit 10 in response to the aggregate cooling load of the plurality of cooling modules 20, 22. As mentioned above, although two cooling modules 20, 22 are illustrated in figure 1 , according to the invention, one or more of two cooling modules can be connected to the home appliance cooling system. The aggregate cooling load can be determined20 by the first portion 52 of the controller 50 as a function of temperatures detected by the temperature sensors 34, by the operating temperatures selected by the temperature selectors 36 and by feedback from the expansion device 18. The controller 50 can also be arranged to control the operating temperature in each of the cooling modules 20, 22. The second portion 54 of controller 50 can be arranged to control valves 46 and heat exchange fans 32 to maintain the selected operating temperatures in the respective refrigeration modules based on the settings of temperature selectors 36 and temperature sensors 34. Thus, according to the invention, a central cooling unit of variable capacity operating continuously single 10 can be provided for a plurality of cooling modules 20, 22 which can be regulated to operate at different operating temperatures. The central cooling unit of variable capacity 10 can be arranged to cool a cooling medium. A cooling medium circuit, the insulated ducts 42, can be provided by connecting the central cooling unit 10 for supplying a cooling medium from the central cooling unit 10 to the plurality of cooling modules 20, 22. A plurality of cooling medium flow control devices, valves 46, can be connected to the cooling medium circuit, insulated ducts 42, for controlling the cooling medium flow to each of the cooling modules 20, 22 . A controller 50 and a control circuit 56 can be provided for adjusting the capacity of the variable capacity central cooling unit 10 so as to provide sufficient cooling medium for cooling the plurality of cooling modules 20, 22 for the respective selected operating temperatures, and controller 50 and control circuit 56 can be arranged for adjusting the volume of cooling medium directed to the respective modules of the cooling modules 20, 22 by controlling the cooling medium flow control devices, the valves 46 , to maintain the selected operating temperature in the respective cooling modules 20, 22. Controller 50 can control the speed of the variable speed pump 44 for varying the volume of liquid cooling in the cooling medium circuit, the insulated ducts 42, and controller 50 can control the speed of the variable speed heat exchange fans 32 for additional control of the operating temperature in the respective cooling modules 20, 22.

Turning to figure 2, in another embodiment of the invention, illustrated schematically, the cooling modules 70 and 72 can be connected in a system of home appliance refrigeration that can include a central cooling unit 60. similar to the modality illustrated in figure 1, two cooling modules 70, 72 are illustrated. According to the invention, one or more of two refrigeration modules can be provided in the home appliance refrigeration system as desired. Cooling modules 70, 72 can be stand-alone or built-in modules and can be general-purpose refrigerator modules or can be special-purpose modules. The cooling module 70 can have an insulated cabinet 74 and an isolated door 75 that can be hinged to the insulated cabinet 74 for the selective opening and closing of an opening 78 in the insulated cabinet 74. The cooling module 12. can have an insulated cabinet 76 and an insulated door 77 that can be hinged to the insulated cabinet 76 for the selective opening and closing of an opening 79 in the insulated cabinet 76. Those skilled in the art will understand that insulated doors 75 and 77 can be provided with a suitable handle, not shown, to facilitate the opening and closing of insulated doors 75 and 77. Cooling modules 70, 72 may have a temperature sensor 84 arranged to detect the temperature inside the cooling modules 70,

72. Temperature sensor 84 can be a thermistor or other well-known electronic or mechanical temperature sensing mechanism or device. Temperature selectors 86 can be provided for each of the cooling modules 70, 72 to allow the user to select the operating temperature for the respective cooling modules 70, 72. Although temperature selectors 86 are illustrated schematically spaced from cooling modules 70, 72, a temperature selector 86 may be located on each of cooling modules 70, 72, as is well known in the art, or it may be centrally located , if desired. Temperature selectors 86 may comprise a well-known mechanical or electronic selector mechanism to allow a user to select an operating temperature for the respective cooling modules 70, 72.

The home appliance refrigeration system schematically illustrated in figure 2 also includes a central cooling unit 60. The central cooling unit 60 can include a variable speed compressor 62, a condenser 64 and an expansion device 68 connected in a refrigeration circuit with a cooled liquid evaporator 90. A variable speed condenser fan 66 can be provided for air circulation through the condenser 64. Evaporator 90 can be a tube and fin evaporator for cooling air that can be used as the cooling medium in the mode of figure 2. Expansion device 68 can be an expansion device with feedback arranged to control the flow through expansion device 68, based on the thermal load on the cooling appliance system including cooling modules 70, 72. The central cooling unit 60 can be connected to the cooling modules 70, 72 with insulated ducts 92 forming a cooling medium circuit for transporting cooled air from the evaporator 90 to the cooling modules 70, 72. The cooled air can be circulated by an evaporator fan 94 which can be a variable speed fan. Air inlets 93 can lead from insulated ducts 92 to respective cooling modules 70, 72, and air outlets 95 can lead from respective cooling modules 70, 72 to insulated ducts 92. Air intakes 93 and outlets of air 95 form the device for receiving the cooling medium, cooled air, in the cooling modules 70, 72. Air inlets 93 and air outlets 95 can be positioned with respect to insulated cabinets 74, 76 to provide a desired chilled airflow pattern in the respective cooling modules 70, 72. The airflow arrows 80 schematically illustrate the air flow in insulated cabinets 74, 76. In addition, each cooling module 70, 72 can have a deflector 96 for controlling the flow of cooled air through the air intakes 93 for the respective cooling modules 70, 72. Deflectors 96 can be on-off or variable for control. of the cooled air flow through a cooling module. Deflectors 96 can be adjustable between open and closed positions to allow or block the flow of cooled air to the respective cooling modules 70, 72, and the variable speed evaporator fan 94 can vary the flow of cooled air to the respective cooling modules 70, 72. Deflectors 96 can also be variable movable between the open and closed positions to allow, block and vary the flow of cooled air to the respective cooling modules 70, 72. The central cooling unit 60 can have a microprocessor-based controller 100 having a first portion 102 that can be arranged to control the operation of the central cooling unit 60 and a second portion 104 for controlling the volume of cooled air directed to the respective modules cooling unit 70, 72, similarly to controller 50 in the mode of figure 1. A control circuit 106 can be provided for connecting temperature sensors 84, temperature selectors 86, variable speed compressor 62, variable speed condenser fan 66, expansion device 68, evaporator fan 94 and deflectors 96 with controller 100. Thus, a home appliance refrigeration system according to the invention is illustrated in figure 2 as a distributed refrigeration system that has a steam compression condensing unit of variable capacity and a cooling forced air cooling delivery network. .

According to the invention, the central cooling unit 60 may be operating continuously, so that cooled air is continuously circulated in the insulated ducts 92 which form a cooling medium circuit from the evaporator 90 to the cooling modules 70, 72 and back to the evaporator 90. Controller 100 can be arranged to adjust the capacity of central cooling unit 60 in response to the aggregate cooling load of the plurality of cooling modules 70, 72. As mentioned above, although two cooling modules

70, 72 are illustrated in figure 2, according to the invention one or more of two refrigeration modules can be connected to the refrigeration appliance system. The aggregate cooling load can be determined by the first portion 102 of the controller 100 as a function of temperatures detected by temperature sensors 84, operating temperatures selected by temperature selectors 86 and feedback from expansion device 68. Controller 100 can also be arranged to control the operating temperature in each of the cooling modules 70, 72. The second portion 104 of controller 100 can be arranged to control baffles 96 and evaporator fan 94 to maintain operating temperatures. selected based on the settings of temperature selectors 86 and temperature sensors 84. Thus, according to the invention, a continuously variable single-acting central cooling unit 60 can be provided for a plurality of cooling modules 70, 72 which can be regulated to operate at different operating temperatures. The variable capacity central cooling unit 60 can be arranged to cool a cooling medium. A cooling medium circuit, the insulated ducts 92, can be provided by connecting the central cooling unit 60 to supply a cooling medium from the central cooling unit 60 to the plurality of cooling modules 70, 72. A plurality of cooling medium flow control devices, deflectors 96, can be provided for controlling the cooling medium flow, cooled air, for each of the cooling modules 70, 72 through the air intakes 93 and the air vents 95. A controller 100 and a control circuit 106 can be provided for adjusting the capacity of the central variable capacity cooling unit 60 so as to provide sufficient cooling medium to cool the plurality of cooling modules 70, 72 for the respective operating temperatures selected, and controller 100 and control circuit 106 can be arranged to adjust the volume of cooling medium directed to the respective modules of the cooling modules 70, 72 by controlling the flow control devices of the cooling medium, the cooling fan evaporator 94 and deflectors 96, to maintain the operating temperature selected in the respective cooling modules 70, 72. The controller 100 can control the speed of the variable speed fan 94 for varying the volume of cooling medium, cooled air, in the cooling medium circuit, the isolated ducts 92, for additional control of the operating temperature in the respective cooling modules 70 , 72. The modality of figure 2 is preferably used for freezing refrigerator modules above, to avoid the need to circulate the cooled air in the cooling medium circuit to obtain temperatures approaching -32 ° C (0 ° F) for freezer modules, although freezer modules can be included in the mode of figure 2, if desired.

Turning to figure 3, in another embodiment of the invention, illustrated schematically, the cooling modules 120, 122 and 124 can be connected in a system of home appliance refrigeration that can include a central cooling unit 110. According to the invention, a cooling module or more than three cooling modules can be provided in the home appliance refrigeration system, as desired. Refrigeration modules 120, 122 and 124 can be independent or built-in modules and can be general-purpose refrigerator or freezer modules or can be special-purpose modules. The cooling module 120 may have an insulated cabinet 126 and an insulated door 127 that can be hinged to the insulated cabinet 126 for the selective opening and closing of an opening 135 in the insulated cabinet 126. The cooling module 122 may have an insulated cabinet 128 and an insulated door 129 that can be hinged to the insulated cabinet 128 for the selective opening and closing of an opening 137 in the insulated cabinet 128. The cooling module 124 may have a insulated cabinet 140 and an insulated door 141 that can be hinged to insulated cabinet 140 for the selective opening and closing of an opening 139 in insulated cabinet 140. Those skilled in the art will understand that insulated doors 127, 129 and 141 can be provided with a suitable handle, not shown, to facilitate opening and closing insulated doors 127, 129 and 141. Refrigeration modules 120, 122 and 124 may include a cooling module evaporator 130 and a cooling module variable speed evaporator fan 132 arranged for circulating chilled air in the respective cooling modules. Airflow arrows 148 schematically illustrate the flow of cooled air in the respective cooling modules21. Cooling modules 120, 122 and 124 can have a temperature sensor 134 arranged to detect the temperature inside the cooling modules 120, 122 and 124. Temperature sensor 134 can be a thermistor or other detection mechanism or device electronic or mechanical temperature control. Temperature selectors 136 can be provided for each of the cooling modules 120, 122 and 124 to allow the user to select the operating temperature for the respective cooling modules 120,122 and 124. Although temperature selectors 136 are illustrated schematically spaced from cooling modules 120, 122 and 124, a temperature selector 136 may be located on each of cooling modules 120, 122 and 124, as is well known in the art, or can be centrally located, if desired. Temperature selectors 136 may comprise a well-known mechanical or electronic selector mechanism to allow a user to select an operating temperature for the respective cooling modules 120, 122 and 124.

The home appliance refrigeration system schematically illustrated in Figure 3 also includes a central cooling unit 110. The central cooling unit 110 may include a variable speed compressor 112, a condenser 114 and a variable speed condenser fan 116 The central cooling unit 110 can also include a collector 117 and an accumulator 118. The central cooling unit 110 can be connected to refrigeration modules 120, 122 and 124 with refrigerant lines that can be isolated supply ducts 142 and isolated return ducts 144 forming a cooling medium circuit for transporting refrigerant from the central cooling unit 110 through collector 117 for cooling modules 120, 122 and 124 and returning refrigerant from cooling modules 120, 122 and 124 to the accumulator 118 through the isolated return ducts 144 to be sent to a variable speed compressor 112. Evaporators of cooling module 130 form the device for receiving the cooling medium, refrigerant, in the cooling modules 22, 122 and 124. In addition, each cooling module 120, 122 and 124 may have an expansion device 138 for controlling the flow of refrigerant to the respective cooling module evaporators 130. Expansion devices 138 can be an expansion device with feedback arranged to control the flow of refrigerant through expansion device 138. The central cooling unit 110 can also have a microprocessor-based controller 150 having a first portion 152 that can be arranged to control the operation of the central cooling unit 110 and a second portion 154 for controlling the volume of refrigerant directed to the respective modules cooling units 120, 122 and 124, similarly to controller 50 in the mode of figure 1. A control circuit 156 can be provided for connecting temperature sensors 134, temperature selectors 136, variable speed compressor 112, variable speed condenser fan 116, expansion devices 138 and evaporator fans 132 with controller 150. Thus, a home appliance refrigeration system according to the invention is illustrated in figure 3 as a distributed cooling system that has a variable capacity vapor compression condensing unit and an evaporator network. Depending on the selected cooling modules, the modules can be all freezing cooling modules from above, all freezing from below or a mixture of freezing from above and freezing from below.

According to the invention, the central cooling unit

110 it may be operating continuously, so that a refrigerant is continuously circulated in the isolated supply lines 142 and in the isolated return lines 144 that form a cooling medium circuit from condenser 114 through collector 117 to cooling modules 120, 122 and 124 and back to compressor 112 via accumulator 118. Controller 150 can be arranged to adjust the capacity of the central cooling unit 110 in response to the aggregate cooling load of the plurality of cooling modules 120,122 and 124.

As mentioned above, although three refrigeration modules 120,122 and 124 I are illustrated in figure 3, according to the invention one or more of three 'refrigeration modules can be connected in the refrigeration appliance system. The aggregate cooling load can be determined by the first portion 152 of the controller 150 as a function of temperatures detected by temperature sensors 134, operating temperatures selected by temperature selectors 136 and feedback from expansion devices 138. Controller 150 it can also be arranged to control the operating temperature in each of the cooling modules 120, 122 and 124. The second portion 154 of the controller 150 can be arranged to control the expansion devices 138 and the cooling module evaporator fans 132 to maintain the selected operating temperatures based on the settings of temperature selectors 136 and temperature sensors 134.

The controller 150 can be arranged to maintain approximately the same evaporator pressure in the cooling module evaporators 130 and temperature control in the respective cooling modules by varying the refrigerant flow to the cooling module evaporators 130 and controlling the speed of the refrigerants. respective cooling module evaporator fans 132. Thus, according to the invention, a single continuously variable central cooling unit 110 can be provided for a plurality of cooling modules 120, 122 and 124 that can be regulated to operate at different operating temperatures. The variable capacity central cooling unit 110 can be arranged for cooling a cooling medium, a refrigerant. A cooling medium circuit, including refrigerant lines which can be isolated supply lines and isolated return lines 142, 144, can be provided by connecting the central cooling unit 110 for the supply of the cooling medium from the cooling unit. control unit 110 for the plurality of cooling modules 120, 122 and 124. A plurality of cooling medium flow control devices, expansion devices 138, can be provided for controlling the flow of cooling medium, refrigerant, for each of the cooling modules 120, 122 and 124. A controller 150 and a control circuit 156 can be provided for adjusting the capacity of the variable capacity central cooling unit 110 so as to provide sufficient cooling medium to cool the plurality of cooling modules 120, 122 and 124 for the respective selected operating temperatures, and controller 150 and control circuit 156 can be arranged to adjust the volume of cooling medium, refrigerant, directed to the respective modules of the cooling modules 120, 122 and 124 by controlling the cooling medium flow control devices, the expansion devices 138 and the cooling module evaporator fans 132, to maintain the selected operating temperature on the respective cooling modules 120, 122 and 124. The controller 150 can control the speed of the variable speed compressor 112, the variable speed condenser fan 116 and the expansion devices 138 to control the condensation and evaporation pressures of the cooling medium, the refrigerant, in the cooling medium circuit. cooling including refrigerant lines that can be insulated supply and return lines 142, 144 for additional control of the operating temperature in the respective cooling modules 120,122 and 124.

Turning to figure 4, in another embodiment of the invention, illustrated schematically, the cooling modules 120, 124 and 160 can be connected in a system of home appliance refrigeration that includes a central cooling unit 110. According to the invention, a cooling module or more than three cooling modules can be provided in the home appliance refrigeration system, as desired. As described in the modality shown in figure 3, the cooling modules 120 and 124 can be independent or built-in modules and can be general-purpose refrigerator, freezer modules or can be special-purpose modules. The cooling module 160 may have a refrigerator compartment 168 and a freezer compartment 166. The refrigerator compartment 168 may have an insulated refrigerator compartment door 174 hinged to the insulated cabinet 162 and the freezer compartment 166 may have an insulated freezer compartment door 172 hinged to the insulated cabinet 162. Those skilled in the art will understand that insulated doors 127, 141, 172 and 174 can be provided with a suitable hinge, not shown, to facilitate the opening and closing of insulated doors 127, 141, 172 and 174. The cooling modules 120, 124 and 160 can include a cooling module evaporator 130 and a cooling module variable speed pore eva10 fan 132 arranged for the circulation of chilled air in the respective cooling modules, see the flow arrows air 148. Refrigeration modules 120 and 124 may have a temperature sensor 134 arranged to detect the temperature inside refrigeration modules 120, 124. The freezer and refrigerator module

160 may have a temperature sensor 134 for the refrigerator compartment 168 and a temperature sensor 134 for the freezer compartment 166. The temperature sensors 134 can be a thermistor or other electronic or mechanical temperature sensing mechanism or device known. Temperature selectors 136 can be provided for each of the cooling modules 120 and 124 to allow the user to select the operating temperature for the respective cooling modules 120 and 124. The freezer and refrigerator 160 can have two temperature selectors 136 , one for the refrigerator compartment 168 and one for the freezer compartment 166. Although the temperature selectors 136 are illustrated schematically spaced from the cooling modules 120, 124 and 160, a temperature selector (s) 136 may be located on each of the cooling modules 120,124 and 160, as is well known in the art, or, alternatively, may be centrally located, if desired. Temperature selectors 136 may comprise a well-known mechanical or electronic selector mechanism, to allow a user to select an operating temperature for the respective cooling modules 120,124 and 160.

The home appliance refrigeration system illustrated schematically in figure 4, similar to the mode illustrated in figure 3, can include a central cooling unit 110. The central cooling unit 110 can include a variable speed compressor 112, a condenser 114 and a variable speed condenser fan 116. The central cooling unit 110 can also include a collector 117 and an accumulator 118. The central cooling unit 110 can be connected to the cooling modules 120, 124 and 160 with refrigerant lines that can be isolated supply ducts 142 and isolated return ducts 144 forming a cooling medium circuit for transporting refrigerant from the central cooling unit 110 through collector 117 for cooling modules 120, 124 and 160 and returning refrigerant from cooling modules 120, 124 and 160 for the accumulator 118 through the isolated return ducts 144 for sending to a variable speed compressor 112. Evaporators of the cooling module 130 form the device for receiving the cooling medium, refrigerant, in the cooling modules 120, 124 and 160 In addition, each refrigeration module 120, 124 and 160 may have an expansion device 138 for controlling the flow of refrigerant for the respective refrigerant module evaporators20. Expansion devices 138 can be an expansion device with feedback arranged to control the flow of refrigerant through expansion device 138. The central cooling unit 110 can also have a microprocessor-based controller 150 having a first portion 152 that can be arranged to control the operation of the central cooling unit 110 and a second portion 154 for controlling the volume of refrigerant directed to the respective modules cooling units 120, 124 and 160, similarly to controller 50 in the mode of figure 1. A control circuit 156 can be provided for connecting temperature sensors 134, temperature selectors 136, variable speed compressor 112, variable speed condenser fan 116, expansion devices 138 and evaporator fans 132 with controller 150.

Thus, a home appliance refrigeration system according to the invention is illustrated in figure 4 as a distributed cooling system that has a steam compression condensing unit of variable capacity and an evaporator network. Depending on the selected cooling modules, the modules can be all freezing cooling modules from above, all freezing from below or a mixture of freezing above and freezing from below, in addition to the freezer and refrigerator module 160.

Refrigeration module 160 can be a two-temperature freezer and refrigerator module that can be arranged to have a freezer compartment above 168 and a freezer compartment below 166, as mentioned above. An insulated compartment separator 164 can be provided for dividing insulated cabinet 162 into a refrigerator compartment 168 and a freezer compartment 166. The freezer compartment 166 can have an evaporator compartment that can be formed by an evaporator compartment wall 170 that can be arranged for separation of the cooling module evaporator 130 from the freezer compartment 166. The evaporator compartment wall 170 is illustrated schematically as a dotted line below the cooling module evaporator 130 to indicate that air flows (air flow arrows 148) in the freezer compartment 166 from the cooling module evaporator 130 and, similarly, the air returns to the evaporator compartment under the influence of the cooling module evaporator fan 132. Insulated compartment separator 164 can have cooled air passages 176 positioned in compartment separator 164 that can allow cool air (air flow arrows 158) from freezer compartment 166 or evaporator compartment to flow into the refrigerator compartment 168, as is well known in the art. The compartment separator 164 may have a refrigerator compartment damper 178 for controlling the air flow from the refrigerator compartment 168 back to the freezer compartment 166 and the cooling module evaporator 130 sucked in by the evaporator fan. refrigeration module 132. In the embodiment of the invention illustrated in figure 4, the refrigerator compartment damper 178 is shown in the return air path of the refrigerator compartment 168. Those skilled in the art will understand that the cooled air passages 176 could be arranged in the cooled air flow to refrigerator compartment 168, if desired. The refrigerator compartment damper 178 can be an automatic damper operated by the controller 150, as shown in figure 4, or, if desired, the refrigerator compartment damper 178 can be a manually adjusted damper, manually adjusted by the user and the temperature sensor. temperature 134 and temperature selector 136 removed from freezer compartment 166.

Similar to the embodiment of figure 3, according to the invention, the central cooling unit 110 may be operating continuously, so that a refrigerant is continuously circulated in the supply ducts 142 and in the isolated return ducts 144 that form a circuit cooling medium from condenser 114 through collector 117 to cooling modules 120, 124 and 160 and back to compressor 112 through accumulator 118. Controller 150 can be arranged to adjust the capacity of the central cooling unit 110 in response to the aggregate cooling load of the plurality of cooling modules 120, 124 and 160. As mentioned above, although three cooling modules 120, 124 and 160 are illustrated in figure 4, according to the invention one or more of three refrigeration modules can be connected in the refrigeration appliance system. The aggregate cooling load can be determined by the first portion 152 of the controller 150 as a function of temperatures detected by temperature sensors 134, operating temperatures selected by temperature selectors 136 and feedback from expansion devices 138. Controller 150 it can also be arranged to control the operating temperature in each of the cooling modules 120, 124 and 160. The second portion 154 of the controller 150 can be arranged to control the expansion devices 138 and the cooling module evaporator fans 132 to maintain the selected operating temperatures based on the settings of temperature selectors 136 and temperature sensors 134. Besides that, the second portion 154 of the controller 150 can be arranged to control the refrigerator compartment damper 178 to control the amount of cooled air flowing from the freezer compartment 166 and the cooling module evaporator 132 through the compartment separator 164 to the refrigerator compartment 168 in conjunction with the cooling module evaporator fan 132 for maintaining the temperature selected by the user in refrigerator compartment 168, as well as in the freezer compartment 166. The controller 150 can also be arranged to maintain approximately the same evaporator pressure in the cooling module evaporators 130 and temperature control in the respective cooling modules 120, 124 and 160 by varying the flow rate. refrigerant for cooling module evaporators 130 and speed control of the respective cooling module evaporator fans 132. Thus, according to the invention, a single continuously variable central cooling unit 110 can be provided for a plurality of cooling modules 120, 124 and 160 that can be regulated to operate at different operating temperatures, and the module cooling unit 160 can be adjusted to have a refrigerator compartment and a freezer compartment. The variable capacity central cooling unit 110 can be arranged for cooling a cooling medium, a refrigerant. A cooling medium circuit, which can include refrigerant lines which can be isolated supply lines and isolated return lines 142, 144, can be provided by connecting the central cooling unit 110 for the supply of the cooling medium from the unit central cooling unit 110 for the plurality of cooling modules 120, 124 and 160. A plurality of cooling medium flow control devices, expansion devices 138, can be provided for controlling the flow of cooling medium, refrigerant, for each of the cooling modules 120, 124 and 160.

A controller 150 and a control circuit 156 can be provided for adjusting the capacity of the variable capacity central cooling unit 110 so as to provide sufficient cooling medium to cool the plurality of cooling modules 120, 124 and 160 for the respective selected operating temperatures, and controller 150 and control circuit 156 can be arranged to adjust the volume of cooling medium, refrigerant, directed to the respective modules of the cooling modules 120, 124 and 160 by controlling the cooling medium flow control devices, the expansion devices 138 and the cooling module evaporator fans 132, to maintain the selected operating temperature on the respective cooling modules 120, 124 and 160. The controller 150 can control the speed of the variable speed compressor 112, the variable speed condenser fan 116 and the expansion devices 138 to control the condensation and evaporation pressures of the cooling medium, the refrigerant, in the cooling medium circuit. cooling including refrigerant lines that can be insulated supply and return lines 142, 144 for additional control of the operating temperature in the respective cooling modules 120,124 and 160.

Turning to the figure. 5, a freezer module 180 is illustrated, which can be used in combination with a refrigeration appliance system according to the invention. The freezer module 180 can be a conventional freezer capable of operating without connection to the refrigeration appliance system according to the invention. Particularly, when a freezer module arranged for storage temperatures of -32 ° C (0 ° F) is desired for use in combination with the modalities illustrated in figure 1 (using a liquid refrigerant as the cooling medium), in figure 2 (using chilled air as the cooling medium), or in figure 3 (particularly when the freezer refrigerator modules above will be connected to the home appliance refrigeration system), it may be advantageous to incorporate a freezer module 180, as shown in figure 5. However, a freezer module 180 can be combined with any of the embodiments according to the invention. The freezer module 180 can have an insulated freezer cabinet 182 defining an opening 184 for access to the freezer compartment and can have an insulated freezer door 185 hinged to the isolated freezer cabinet 182 for selective opening and closing of the freezer compartment . Freezer door 185 may have a handle, not shown, to facilitate opening and closing freezer door 185 for access to freezer module 180. Freezer module 180 may include a freezer cooling unit 189 in a machinery compartment 186 outside the refrigerated portion of freezer cabinet 182 which may include a freezer compressor 190, a freezer condenser 192 and a freezer condenser fan 194. The freezer module 180 can include a freezer evaporator 196 that can be positioned in the insulated freezer cabinet 182 and can have a freezer evaporator fan 198 and a freezer expansion device 204. The freezer module 180 can have a sensor freezer temperature 200 which can be similar to the temperature sensors described above. Freezer module 180 may also have a freezer temperature selector 202 to allow a user to select the operating temperature for the freezer module. The freezer module 180 can have a controller 208 and a control circuit 206 connecting the freezer temperature sensor 200, the freezer temperature selector 202, the freezer compressor 190, the freezer condenser fan 194 and the cooling fan. freezer evaporator 198 to controller 208. Controller 208 can operate freezer module 180 in a manner similar to conventional freezer products, as is well known in the art. Those skilled in the art will understand that the freezer compressor 190, the freezer condenser fan 194 and the freezer evaporator fan 198 can be provided with variable speed motors, as desired, for optimal operation. The freezer expansion device 204 can be a feedback expansion device, as used in the modalities of figures 1 to 4, or it can be a capillary tube expansion device, again well known in the art. The freezer compressor 190 can be a variable speed compressor, if desired, as is well known in the art. Alternatively, those skilled in the art will understand that the freezer condenser 192 and / or the freezer evaporator

196 they can be static heat exchangers and that, if a static heat exchanger were used, the respective freezer condenser fan 194 and / or freezer evaporator fan 198 could be eliminated. For example, freezer module 180 could be a horizontal freezer with freezer evaporator 196 positioned in contact with internal liner 210 defining the freezer compartment in the insulation between inner liner 210 and cabinet 182, as is well known. in the technique. Similarly, freezer condenser 192 could be positioned in contact with cabinet 182 positioned in the insulation between the inner liner 210 and cabinet 182, as is well known in the art.

Turning to the schematic figure 6, in another embodiment of the invention, a plurality of satellite stations 212, 212 ', 212 can be connected in a home appliance cooling system that can include a central cooling unit. Each satellite station can have one or two cooling appliance modules

214 located near the satellite station for the formation of a distributed household appliance system. The home appliance refrigeration modules can be independent or built-in modules and can be general purpose, freezer or special purpose refrigerator modules. Satellite stations 212 and home appliance refrigeration modules 214 can be located in a residential kitchen or other locations associated with a home, as desired. The central cooling unit may be similar to the central cooling unit shown in figure 3 and, therefore, will use the same reference numbers as the central cooling unit 110 shown in figure 3. The central cooling unit 110, the controller 150 and the operation of the central cooling system are described in detail above in relation to the modality of figure 3. As mentioned above, the central cooling unit 110 can be located in a remote location of a residential kitchen, if desired.

According to the invention, a satellite station or more than three satellite stations can be provided in the home appliance refrigeration system, as desired. The home appliance refrigeration modules 214 can be located in the vicinity of satellite station 212 and can be connected to satellite station 212 by an insulated supply duct 216 and an insulated return duct 218 for supply of cooled air to the air conditioning modules. refrigeration appliance 214 from satellite station 212. Although the isolated supply duct 216 and the isolated return duct 218 are illustrated schematically as separate ducts, those skilled in the art will understand that the isolated ducts can be coaxial or, alternatively, isolated ducts formed with two discrete parallel passages, if desired. Those skilled in the art will understand that if only one cooling appliance module 214 is located in the vicinity of a satellite station 212, only a set of isolated supply and return ducts can be provided or, alternatively, the unused set of ducts may be buffered or blocked to provide for future expansion of the system. Satellite station 212 may include a satellite station evaporator 219 that can be connected to central cooling system 110 via a refrigerant line which can be an isolated supply conduit 142 via expansion device 138 and a refrigerant line which can be an insulated return line 144. As is well known in the art, quick coupling connections 145 can be used to connect satellite station 212 to refrigerant lines. Expansion device 138 can be an adjustable expansion device with feedback based on the load experienced by satellite station 212, and can be connected to controller 150 via control circuit 156. Those skilled in the art will understand that, if desired, one or more satellite stations 212 may include a plurality of expansion devices, not shown, connected in a refrigerating circuit for satellite station 212 to operate the evaporator of the satellite station at a plurality of operating temperatures to allow, for example, a user to selectively operate one or more of the refrigeration appliance modules 214 connected to a satellite station 212 to be operated as a freezer compartment from above or as a freezer compartment from below by merely selecting one different satellite station for controlling the 219 satellite station evaporator. For example, plural satellite stations could be connected in parallel to the refrigeration circuit10 including the satellite station evaporator 219. A multiple temperature evaporator system is shown in US Patent N^and 5. 377,498, assigned to the assignee of this request. US Patent No.^s 5,377,498 is hereby incorporated by reference. Satellite station 212 can also have a variable speed satellite station evaporator fan 220 that can be connected to controller 150 via control circuit 156. Those skilled in the art will understand that the satellite station evaporator fan 220 can be a single speed fan, if desired. Satellite station 212 can also have a temperature sensor 134 arranged to detect the temperature at satellite station 212. Satellite stations

212 'and 212 can be similar to satellite station 212. Although satellite stations 212 'and 212 are illustrated without the refrigeration appliance modules 214 positioned in the vicinity of the respective satellite stations for simplification of the drawings, those skilled in the art will understand that refrigeration appliance appliances modules such as the modules 214 illustrated in the vicinity of satellite station 212 may be, and in practice, additional satellite stations 212 'and 212, if included in the distributed home appliance system, they would likely be combined with one or more home appliance refrigeration modules 214.

The cooling appliance module 214 may have an insulated cabinet 223 and at least one insulated door 224 that can be hinged to insulated cabinet 223 to selectively open and close an opening 225 in insulated cabinet 223. Those skilled in the art will understand that insulated doors 224 can be provided with a suitable handle, not shown, to facilitate the opening and closing of insulated doors 224. The home appliance refrigeration module 214 can have an adjustable deflector 222 that can be positioned to control airflow through the insulated supply duct 216. Adjustable deflector 222 can be variable movable between open and closed positions to allow, block or vary the flow of cooled air to the 214 refrigeration appliance module. The adjustable baffle 222 can be manually adjusted by a user to control the temperature in the cooling appliance module 214 or, as illustrated, it can be an automatic adjustable baffle connected to the controller 150 through the control circuit 156. Airflow arrows 227 schematically illustrate a flow of cooled air from satellite station 212 to cooling appliance module 214 through isolated supply duct 216 and back to satellite station 212 through return duct isolated 218. Those skilled in the art will understand that the adjustable deflector 222 can be positioned in the isolated return duct 218, or, if desired, an adjustable deflector 222 can be provided in the supply and return ducts, in order to isolate an appliance module. cooling unit 214. The cooling appliance module 214 can also have a temperature sensor 134 for detecting the temperature inside the insulated cabinet 223. As above, temperature sensors 134 can be a ter25 mixer or another well-known electronic or mechanical temperature sensing mechanism or device, and can be connected to controller 150 via control circuit 156. A temperature selector 136 can be provided for each of the refrigeration appliance modules 214 to allow the user to select the operating temperature for each of the refrigeration appliance modules 214. While temperature selectors 136 are illustrated schematically spaced from generation 214 household appliance modules, a temperature selector 136 may be located on each of household refrigeration appliance modules 214, as is well known in the art, or may be centrally located in a combined user interface, as illustrated, if desired. Temperature selectors 136 can comprise a well-known mechanical or electronic selector mechanism to allow a user to select an operating temperature for the respective refrigerating appliance module 214 and can be connected to controller 150 via control circuit 156 . As above, the cooling load of the aggregate distributed household appliance system cooling can be determined by the first portion 152 of the controller 150 as a function of temperatures sensed by temperature sensors 134, the operating temperatures selected with temperature selectors 136 and feedback based on the load of expansion devices 138. Controller 150 can also be arranged to control the operating temperature in each of the refrigeration appliance modules 214. The second portion 154 of controller 150 can be arranged to control expansion devices 138, adjustable deflectors 222 and fans of satellite station evaporator 220, for-, maintenance of the selected operating temperatures based on the settings of temperature selectors 136 and temperature sensors 134. The controller 150 can be arranged to maintain approximately the same evaporator pressure in the satellite station evaporators 219 and temperature control in the respective refrigeration appliance modules 214 by varying the refrigerant flow to the satellite station evaporators 219, the position of the adjustable baffles 222 and speed control of the respective evaporator fans of 220 household appliance refrigeration module. The home appliance refrigeration modules 214 connected to a satellite station 212 can be operated at different operating temperatures. For example, a cooling appliance module

214 can be set to operate as a freezing refrigerator module37 on top and another module of cooling appliance 214 connected to the same satellite station 212 can be set to operate as a freezing freezer module from below, if desired . If manual deflectors are provided instead of automatic deflectors, those skilled in the art will understand that the user will be able to adjust the deflectors to obtain the desired temperature in the refrigeration appliance modules. Thus, according to the invention, a single continuously variable central cooling unit 110 can be provided for a plurality of home appliance refrigeration modules 214 that can be set to operate at different operating temperatures which can include temperatures for if it allows the operation of a home appliance refrigeration module such as a freezer refrigerator compartment on top, a freezer compartment underneath or another household appliance, such as an ice maker.

Turning to the schematic Figures 7A, 7B and 7C, in an embodiment of the invention, two-compartment home appliance refrigeration modules can be combined with a satellite station. A single satellite station 212 can be connected to the x modules and the home appliance refrigeration and is shown in each of Figures 7A and 7B with the central cooling unit 110 omitted for simplification of the drawings. A home appliance refrigeration module 228 may be used in a distributed home appliance appliance system having one or more home appliance refrigeration appliance modules 214 located in the vicinity of one or more satellite stations 212 for the formation of an appliance system distributed cooling appliance. The 228 home appliance refrigeration module can be a stand-alone or built-in module and can be a general purpose refrigerator module, a freezer or a special purpose one. The 228 refrigeration appliance module can be located in a residential kitchen or other locations associated with a home, as needed. The central cooling unit, not shown, can be similar to the central cooling unit illustrated in figure 3, and, as above, can be located remote from the residential kitchen. The central cooling unit 110, the controller 150 and the operation of the central cooling system are described in detail above in relation to the embodiment of figure 3 and figure 6. Those skilled in the art will understand that more than one satellite station 212 can be provided and that satellite station 212 can be connected to central cooling unit 110 via well-known quick-connect connections 145 to refrigerant lines that can be supply lines. isolated 142 and 144, and to controller 150 through control circuit 156, as shown in figure 6. In the embodiment illustrated in figure 7A, a two-compartment home appliance refrigeration module 228 can be connected to satellite station 212 via an isolated supply duct 232 and an isolated return duct 234. A home appliance refrigeration module 214 also can be connected to satellite station 212 as shown in figure 6. The cooling appliance module 214 is described in detail above and therefore will not be described again in relation to Figures 7A to 7C. The cooling module 214 will use the same reference numbers as the cooling module 214 in figure 6. The cooling appliance module 228 can have an insulated cabinet 229 that can have two insulated doors 230 hinged to the insulated cabinet 229 for selective opening and closing of openings 233. Insulated doors 230 can be provided with a handle, not shown, to facilitate the opening and closing of insulated doors 230. Insulated cabinet 229 may have an insulated compartment separator 231 for dividing insulated cabinet 229 into two compartments 237 and 238 that can be closed by insulated doors 230. Insulated supply duct 232 can be arranged to extend substantially through compartment 238 for supplying chilled air to compartment 237. Insulated supply duct 232 may have an opening 232 'in compartment 238 for supplying chilled air to compartment 238. The opening 232 'can be located adjacent to the compartment separator 231 and can be provided with an adjustable deflector 235 that can be arranged to control the flow of cooled air to the compartments 237 and 238. Similarly, the isolated return duct 234 it can extend substantially through compartment 238 to provide a return of cooled air from compartment 237 without flowing through compartment 238. The insulated return duct 234 can have an opening 234 'which can be located adjacent to the compartment separator 231 and can be provided with an adjustable deflector 235 which can be arranged to control the flow of cooled air out of the compartments 237 and 238 . Similar to the cooling appliance module 214, the isolated supply duct 232 can be provided with an adjustable deflector 222 to control the amount of cooled air supplied to the cooling appliance module.

228 from satellite station 212 by satellite station evaporator fan 220. Adjustable deflectors 222 and 235 can be manually adjustable by the user to select the operating temperatures of compartments 237 and 238, or can be adjustable deflectors automatically controlled by controller 150 through control circuit 156, as generally described above. The cooling module 214 can operate in the same way as the cooling appliance modules 214, as described in relation to figure 6. Thus, a user can operate the cooling appliance module 214 at an operating temperature and can operate the two compartments 237,

238 of home appliance refrigeration module 228 at different temperatures and different temperatures of home appliance refrigeration module 214, as desired. As described above, compartment 237 and 238 can be operated at different operating temperatures, which can be frozen from above or below, as desired, as can the refrigeration appliance module 214. Those skilled in the art will understand that alternative arrangements of insulated duct and damper can be provided to provide a flow of cool air to compartments 237 and 238, as desired.

In the embodiment illustrated in Figures 7B and 7C, a two-compartment home appliance refrigeration module 228 can be connected to satellite station 212 via an isolated supply duct 216 and an isolated return duct 218. A home appliance refrigeration module 214 can be connected to satellite station 212 as shown in figure 6. The cooling appliance module 228 may have an insulated cabinet 229 which may have two insulated doors 230 hinged to the insulated cabinet 229 for selectively opening and closing the openings 233. Insulated doors 230 can be provided with a handle, not shown , to facilitate the opening and closing of isolated doors 230. Insulated cabinet 229 may have an insulated compartment separator 23Γ to divide insulated cabinet 229 into two compartments 237 and 238 that can be closed by insulated doors 230. Insulated compartment separator 231 'may have a circulation fan 236 provided in a opening in compartment separator 231 'and may have a second opening 239. Circulating fan 236 can be seen in figure 7C. In the embodiment of figures 7B and 7C, the circulation fan 236 can control the flow of cooled air from compartment 238 to compartment 237. As described above, the adjustable baffle 222 can control the flow of cooled air from the station -satellite 212 for the refrigeration appliance module 228. Thus, for the two-compartment home appliance refrigeration modules, two modes have been illustrated for temperature control in the two compartments 237, 238. One approach, as shown in figure 7A, employs adjustable baffles to control the cooled air flow for respective compartments. One approach, as shown in Figures 7B and 7C, employs a circulation fan 236 in compartment separator 231 'to control the flow of cooled air from compartment 238 to compartment 237. Those skilled in the art will recognize that in the embodiment of figures 7B and 7C, compartment 237 can operate only at a higher temperature than compartment 238, whereas in the embodiment of figure 7A it may be possible to operate compartment 237 at a lower temperature. than compartment 238.

Turning to the schematic figure 8A, in another embodiment of the invention, a satellite station can be combined with a cooling appliance module. In figure 8A, a combined satellite station / home appliance refrigeration module 240 and home appliance refrigeration module 214 are illustrated without a central cooling unit 110 or additional satellite stations 212 and home appliance refrigeration modules 214 , to simplify the drawings. The combined satellite station / home appliance refrigeration module 240 may be used in a distributed home appliance system having one or more 214 or 228 home appliance refrigeration modules located in the vicinity of one or more 212 satellite stations for the formation of a distributed household appliance system. The combined satellite station / home appliance refrigeration module 240 and the home appliance refrigeration module 214 can be stand-alone or built-in modules and can be general purpose, freezer or special purpose refrigerator modules. The combined satellite station / home appliance refrigeration module 240 can be located in a residential kitchen or other locations associated with a home, as desired. The combined satellite station / home appliance refrigeration module can have an insulated cabinet 241, an insulated door 242 that can be hinged to the insulated cabinet 241 for selective access to the interior of the insulated cabinet through opening 243. The insulated door 242 may have a handle, not shown, to facilitate access to the combined satellite station / home appliance refrigeration module 240. The central cooling unit, not shown, can be similar to the central cooling unit illustrated in figure 3. The central cooling unit 110, the controller 150 and the operation of the central cooling system are described in detail above in relation to the modality of figure 3. Those skilled in the art will understand that more than one satellite station 212 can be provided and that one or more satellite stations / combined home appliance refrigeration modules 240 can be connected to the central cooling unit 110 via quick coupling connections 145 to refrigerant lines which can be isolated supply lines 142 and 144, and to controller 150 through control circuit 156, as shown in figure 6.

The combined refrigeration refrigeration home appliance module / module 240 may have a satellite station evaporator 246, a variable speed evaporator fan 248 and an expansion device 138. The satellite station evaporator 246 and the device expansion ports 138 can be connected to the refrigerant lines which can be an isolated supply line 142 and an isolated return line 144 through the quick-connect connections 145. The satellite evaporator 246 can be positioned in an evaporator compartment indicated schematically by the dashed line 250. The cooling appliance module 214 can be located in the vicinity of the satellite station / the combined cooling appliance appliance module 240 and can be connected to the satellite station / combined cooling appliance module 240 via a duct. isolated supply 216 and an isolated return duct 218. The refrigeration appliance module 214 is described above in detail and, therefore, will not be described again in detail in relation to figure 8A. The refrigeration appliance module 214 can operate in the same way as the refrigeration appliance appliance modules 214, as described in relation to figure 6.

Turning to the schematic figure 8B, in another embodiment of the invention, a combined satellite station / electrode30 refrigeration device module 252 can be combined with a refrigeration appliance module 244 similar to the combination described above with respect to figure 8A. Similar to the modality of figure 8A, a combined satellite station / home appliance refrigeration module 252 can be used in a distributed cooling system having a central cooling unit 110, a controller 150 and a control circuit 156, as shown in figure 3, having plural satellite stations 212 and home appliance refrigeration modules 214, 228. Central cooling unit 110, additional satellite stations 212 and home appliance refrigeration modules have not been included in figure 8B for simplification of the drawings. The combined satellite station / home appliance refrigeration module 252 and the home appliance refrigeration module 244 can be self-contained or built-in modules and can be general purpose, freezer or special purpose refrigerator modules. The combined satellite station / home appliance refrigeration module 252 can be located in a residential kitchen or other locations associated with a home, as desired. The combined satellite station / home appliance refrigeration module 252 may have an insulated cabinet 253, an insulated door 254 that can be hinged to insulated cabinet 253 for selective access to the interior of the insulated cabinet through opening 255. Insulated door 254 may have a handle, not shown, to facilitate access to the satellite station / combined refrigeration appliance module 252. The central cooling unit, not shown, may be similar to the central cooling unit illustrated in figure 3. The central cooling unit 110, the controller

150 and the operation of the central cooling system are described in detail above in relation to the modality of figure 3. Those skilled in the art will understand that more than one satellite station 212 can be provided and that one or more satellite stations / combined home appliance refrigeration modules 252 can be connected to the central cooling unit 110 via quick coupling connections 145 to refrigerant lines that can be isolated supply lines 142 and 144, and to controller 150 through control circuit 156, as shown in figure 6.

The combined satellite station / home appliance refrigeration module 252 can have a direct-cooling satellite station evaporator 256 and an expansion device 138. Satellite station evaporator 256 and expansion device 138 can be connected via from quick coupling connections 145 to refrigerant lines which can be the isolated supply line 142 and the isolated return line 144 and to the controller 150 through the control circuit 156. The satellite evaporator 256 can be positioned in an evaporator compartment indicated schematically by the dashed line 258. The refrigeration appliance module 244 can be located in the vicinity of the satellite station / the combined refrigeration appliance module 252 and can be connected to the satellite station / refrigeration appliance module combined 252 by an insulated supply duct 216 and an insulated return duct 218. The refrigeration appliance module 244 may have an insulated cabinet 262 which may have an insulated door 263 hinged to the insulated cabinet 262 to provide selectively access to the insulated cabinet 262 through opening 264. The refrigeration appliance module 244 may have a circulation fan 260 that can circulate and control the volume of chilled air flowing into the refrigeration appliance appliance module 244 from the satellite station / the refrigeration appliance module combined 252. The combined satellite station / home appliance refrigeration module 252 and the home appliance refrigeration module 244 may have a temperature sensor 134, as described above, and may have a temperature selector 136, not shown, which can be combined with the respective cabinets or can be part of a central user interface, as described above, and can be connected to controller 150 for temperature control in refrigerated compartments. The refrigeration appliance module 244, otherwise, can operate in the same way as the refrigeration appliance appliance modules 214, as described in relation to figure 6.

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Turning to the schematic figure 9, in another embodiment of the invention, a satellite station can be combined with a two-compartment household appliance module. In figure 9, a satellite station / two-compartment home appliance refrigeration module 266 and a home appliance refrigeration module 214 are illustrated without a central cooling unit 110 or a controller 150 and control circuit 156, to simplify the drawings. A satellite station / combined 266 home appliance module may be used in a distributed home appliance system having one or more 214, 228 or 244 home appliance modules located in the vicinity of one or more satellite 212, 240 or 252, for the formation of a distributed household appliance system. The combined satellite refrigeration unit / appliance module 15 and the refrigeration appliance module 214 can be independent or built-in modules and can be general purpose, freezer or special purpose refrigerator modules. The 266 combined satellite station / home appliance module can be located in a residential kitchen or other locations associated with a home, as desired. The combined satellite station / home appliance refrigeration module can have an insulated cabinet 268, an insulated door 270 that can be hinged to insulated cabinet 268 for selective access to the interior of the insulated cabinet through opening 269. The iso25 door lada 270 may have a handle, not shown, to facilitate access to the satellite station / combined 266 appliance module. The central cooling unit, not shown, may be similar to the central cooling unit illustrated in figure 3. The operation of central cooling unit 110 and controller 150 are described in detail above in relation to the embodiment of figure 3. Those skilled in the art will understand that more than one satellite station 212, 240, 252 can be provided and that one or more satellite stations / combined domestic refrigeration appliance modules 266 can be connected to the central cooling unit 110 via connections quick coupling 145 to refrigerant lines that can be insulated supply lines

142 and 144, and to controller 150 through control circuit 156, as shown in figure 6.

The combined satellite station / home appliance refrigeration module 266 may have a satellite station evaporator 272, a variable speed evaporator fan 274 and an expansion device 138. The satellite station evaporator 272 and the ex10 expansion 138 can be connected to refrigerant lines which can be the isolated supply duct 142 and the isolated return duct 144. The satellite evaporator 272 can be positioned in an evaporator compartment indicated schematically by the dashed line 275. The satellite station / refrigeration appliance module combined

266 it can have a compartment separator 276 which can be arranged for separating the insulated cabinet 268 into two compartments 277 and 279. The compartment 277 can include the evaporator compartment 275 and, if a freezer compartment underneath is desired, the compartment 277 may be a freezer compartment, since the evaporator compartment 275 is positioned in compartment 277. Passages 278 allow airflow, indicated by the airflow arrows 227, from compartment 211 and / or from evaporator compartment 275 to compartment 279 and a return to evaporator compartment 275 when the evaporator fan 274 is operated. The evaporator fan 274 can be a variable speed fan or, if desired, it can be a single speed fan. An adjustable deflector 280 can be provided in combination with one of the passages 278 for controlling the air flow to compartment 279. The adjustable deflector 280 can be connected to control circuit 156 and can be operated by controller 150 (see figure 3 ), or can be manually adjusted by the user for temperature control in compartment 279 in combination with expansion device 138 and satellite evaporator fan 274.

The cooling appliance module 214 can be located in the vicinity of the satellite station / the combined cooling appliance module 266 and can be connected to the satellite station / combined cooling appliance module 266 via a supply duct. insulated 216 and an insulated return duct 218. The cooling appliance module is described in detail above and, therefore, will not be described in detail again in relation to figure 9. The combined satellite station / home appliance refrigeration module 266 and home appliance refrigeration module 214 may have a temperature sensor 134, as described above, and may have a temperature selector 136, not shown, which can be combined with the respective cabinets or can be part of a central user interface, as described above. The cooling appliance module 214 can operate in the same way as the cooling appliance module 214, as described in relation to figure 6.

Turning to the schematic figure 10, in another embodiment of the invention, a satellite station can be combined with a home appliance refrigeration module and a central cooling unit. In figure 10, a combined satellite-cooling station / appliance module / central cooling unit 282, a satellite-station 212 and three cooling appliance modules 214 are illustrated. A combined satellite station / home appliance refrigeration module / central cooling unit 282 can have more than one satellite station 212 and home appliance refrigeration modules 214 or 228 located in the vicinity of satellite stations 212 for training of a distributed household appliance system. A combined satellite station / home appliance refrigeration module / central cooling unit 282 and home appliance refrigeration modules 214 can be stand-alone or built-in modules and can be general purpose, freezer or end-of-life refrigerator modules48 Special. The satellite station / combined home appliance refrigeration module / central cooling unit 282 can be located in a residential kitchen or other locations associated with a home, as desired. The combined satellite station / home appliance refrigeration module / central cooling unit 282 can have an insulated cabinet 312, an insulated door 314 that can be hinged to the insulated cabinet 312 for selective access to the interior of the insulated cabinet via opening 313. Although insulated door 314 is illustrated as a single door, those skilled in the en10 technique will tend to provide two doors, one for each of compartments 308 and 310. Insulated door 314 may have a handle, not shown, for ease of use. access to the satellite station / to the combined refrigeration appliance module 282. The insulated cabinet 312 may have a compartment separator 316 which can divide the insulated cabinet 312 into two compartments 308 and 310.

The combined satellite station / home appliance refrigeration module / central cooling unit 282 may have a satellite station evaporator 320, a variable speed evaporator fan 322 and an expansion device 138. The station evaporator Satellite 322 and expansion device 138 can be connected to a collector 292 and an accumulator 294 to form a refrigerant circuit. The satellite evaporator 320 can be positioned in an evaporator compartment indicated schematically by the dashed line 324. The refrigeration appliance module 214 is described in detail above. The combined satellite station / home appliance refrigeration module / central cooling unit 282 and the home appliance refrigeration module 214 can have a temperature sensor 134 as described above and can have a temperature selector 136 that can be combined with the respective cabinets or be part of a central user interface, as described above. The cooling appliance module 214 can operate in the same way as the cooling appliance modules 214 as described in relation to figure 6. The compartment separator 316 can have passages 317 that can provide an air flow between the compartments 308 and 310. One of the passages 317 may have an adjustable deflector 318 that can control the quality of cooled air flowing from compartment 308 and / or from evaporator compartment 324 to compartment 310.

The central cooling unit 284 can be similar to the central cooling unit illustrated in figure 3, but it can be combined with the satellite evaporator and the home appliance storage module in a single cabinet or positioned adjacent to the satellite station cabinet and combined home appliance cooling module as desired. The central cooling unit 284 can include a variable speed compressor 286, a condenser 288 and a variable speed condenser fan 290. The central cooling unit 284 can also include a collector 292 and an accumulator 294. The central cooling unit 284 can be connected to satellite station 212 through quick-connect connections 299 to refrigerant lines which can be an isolated supply line 296 and an isolated return line 298 forming a cooling medium circuit for refrigerant transport. from central cooling unit 284 through collector 292 and isolated supply duct 296 to satellite station 212 and returning refrigerant from satellite station 212 for accumulator 294 through insulated return lines 298. The central cooling unit 284 can also include a microprocessor-based controller 300 that can include a first portion 302 that can be arranged to control the operation of the central cooling unit 284 and a second portion 304 that can be arranged to control the volume of refrigerant directed to the respective refrigeration modules similar to controller 50 in the mode of figure 1. A control circuit 306 can be provided for connecting temperature sensors 134, temperature selectors 136, variable speed compressor 286, variable speed condenser fan 290, expansion devices 138 and evaporator fans 220 and 322. The central cooling unit 284 can operate similarly to the central cooling units described in detail above with respect to figure 3 and figure 6. As described in detail above, controller 300 can be arranged to operate compartments 308 and 310 and cooling appliance modules 214 at selected temperatures, as a user can select by regulating the appropriate temperature selectors 136.

Satellite station 212 and cooling appliance modules 214 may be similar to satellite station 212 and cooling appliance modules illustrated and described in detail with reference to figure 6. Those skilled in the art will understand that more than one satellite station 212 can be provided and that one or more satellite stations / combined home appliance refrigeration modules15 of the 240 can be connected to the central cooling unit 284 via quick-connect connections 299 to refrigerant lines which can be isolated supply lines 142 and 144 and to controller 300 via control circuit 306, similarly to the distributed cooling system illustrated in figure 6.

Turning to the schematic figure 11, in another embodiment of the invention, a plurality of cooling modules 120 and 326 can be connected in a distributed household appliance system that can include a central cooling unit 110. The cooling modules refrigeration 120 and 326 can be independent or built-in modules and can be general purpose refrigerator, freezer or special purpose modules. Refrigeration modules 120 and 326 can be located in a residential kitchen or other locations associated with a home, as desired. The central cooling unit can be similar to the central cooling unit 110 illustrated in figure 3 and, therefore, will use the same reference numbers as the central cooling unit 110 illustrated in figure 3. Similarly, the cooling module 120 can be similar to the cooling module 120 shown in figure 3 and, therefore, it will use the same reference numbers as the cooling module 120 in figure 3. As mentioned above, the cooling unit central 110 may be located in a remote location of a residential kitchen or in the vicinity of a residential kitchen, as desired, as those skilled in the art will understand.

According to the invention, other cooling modules and / or satellite stations and home appliance refrigeration modules, as described above, can be combined with the central cooling unit 110, in addition to the cooling modules 120 and 326 illustrated in the figure 11.0 cooling module 120 is described in detail above and, therefore, will not be described in detail again in relation to figure 11. Similarly, the central cooling unit 110 is described in detail above and, therefore, will not be described in detail again in relation to figure 11.0 cooling module 326 may have an insulated cabinet 328 and at least one insulated door 330 that it can be hinged to insulated cabinet 328 for selective opening and closing of compartments 331 and 332 formed in insulated cabinet 328 by insulated compartment separator 334. Insulated door 330 can be provided with a suitable handle, not shown, to facilitate the opening and closing of insulated door 330. Those skilled in the art will understand that two insulated doors can be provided for closing independently of compartments 331 and 332, if wanted. Cooling module 326 may include a cooling module evaporator 336 and a cooling module evaporator fan 338. The cooling module evaporator fan 338 can be a single speed fan or, if desired, it can be a variable speed fan. An expansion device 138 can control the flow of refrigerant to the cooling module 326. The expansion device 138 can be an expansion device with feedbaek arranged to control the flow of refrigerant through the expansion device 138. The cooling module 326 can have a temperature sensor 134 and a temperature selector52 ra 136, as described above, for each compartment 331 and 332. Temperature sensors 134, temperature selectors 136 and expansion device 138 can be connected to controller 150 via control circuit 156, as described above in detail. Also, as described in detail above, temperature selectors 136 may be located on cooling modules 120 and 326 or may be part of a central user interface, as is well known and described above. The cooling module evaporator 336 can be connected to refrigerant lines which can be the isolated supply and return ducts 142 and 144 leading to the central cooling unit 110.

Cooling module 326 can still employ a cascade cooling system to cool compartment 332. For example, compartment 332 can be operated as a freezer compartment underneath and compartment 331 can be operated as a refrigerator compartment. of freezing on top. In case it is also desired that the cooling module 120 operates as a freezing refrigerator compartment on top, the central cooling unit 110 can be operated to provide refrigerant cooled sufficiently to cool the cooling module evaporators 130 and 336 for a temperature to produce freezing temperatures above in cooling module 120 and in compartment 331 of cooling module 326. The operation of the central cooling unit 110 to produce freezing temperatures from above allows the compressor 112 to operate at higher refrigerant evaporation pressures, lower refrigerant condensation pressures and therefore may require less energy for operation of the refrigerant. central cooling unit 110. Thus, when a distributed household appliance system has primarily freezer refrigerator modules above, it can be energy efficient and cost effective to use cascade cooling to obtain the desired freezing temperatures below in compartments that are you want them to operate at freezer temperatures underneath.

The cascade cooling system can be a thermoelectric cooling system 340, as illustrated in the cooling module 326. The alternative cascade cooling systems, described below, can be used in combination with the cooling module 326 in place of the cooling system. thermoelectric cooling 340. The thermoelectric cooling system 340 can be connected to controller 150 via control circuit 156. The thermoelectric cooling system 340 can be a well-known thermoelectric device that can include a thermoelectric module 342 combined with heat sink enclosures 344 and 346 on opposite surfaces of the thermoelectric module 342. A heat sink enclosure 346 can be positioned in heat exchange communication with compartment 331 and the other heat sink housing 344 can be positioned in heat exchange communication with compartment 332. The thermoelectric cooler 340 may also have a circulation fan 348 for circulating air in compartment 332 over the heat sink housing 344. Although a circulation fan 348 is illustrated in compartment 332, those skilled in the art will understand that a circulation fan can be used with respect to both or neither of the heat sink housings 344 and 346, if desired. When a voltage is applied to the 342 thermoelectric module, a surface becomes cold, absorbing heat from the heat sink enclosure in contact with the cold surface, and the opposite surface becomes hot, releasing heat into the heat sink enclosure. in contact with the hot surface. Thus, when the appropriate polarity voltage is applied to the thermoelectric module 342, the heat sink envelope 344 can become cold and the circulation fan 348 can circulate cooled air through the heat sink envelope 344 through compartment 332. Meanwhile, the heat released by the heat sink enclosure 346 heats the compartment 331, the heat of which can be absorbed by the cooling module evaporator 336 and transferred to the central cooling unit 110. An appropriately sized thermoelectric cooler can easily reduce the temperature in compartment 332 by 20 ° C in relation to compartment 331, and can therefore cool compartment 332 for freezer freezer temperatures below, compared to freezer refrigerator temperatures above in compartment 331. Thus, compartment 332 can be cooled based on the temperature selected for compartment 332 by temperature selector 136 for compartment 332. If desired, thermoelectric module 342 can be energized with an opposite polarity voltage to cause the module thermoelectric generator provides heat to compartment 332 by drawing heat from compartment 331. Thus, the operation of the thermoelectric module 342 can allow a user to use compartment 332 for heating the contents of compartment 332, as well as for defrosting frozen articles, if desired. Controller 150 can be arranged to operate thermoelectric module 342 to heat compartment 332, when temperature selector 136 for compartment 332 is set for heating and / or defrost regulation. When thermoelectric module 342 is set to heat compartment 332, the heat removed from compartment 331 will cool compartment 331 and reduce the cooling load of compartment 331.

Turning to the schematic figure 12, in another mode of the invention, a plurality of cooling modules 20 and 350 can be connected in a distributed household appliance system that can include a central cooling unit 10. The modules cooling units 20 and 350 can be independent or built-in modules and can be general purpose, freezer or special purpose refrigerator modules. Refrigeration modules 20 and 350 can be located in a residential kitchen or other locations associated with a home, as desired. The central cooling unit can be similar to the central cooling unit 10 illustrated in figure 1 and, therefore, will use the same reference numbers as the central cooling unit 10 illustrated in figure 1. Similarly, the cooling module 20 can be similar to the cooling module 20 illustrated in figure 1 and, therefore, it will use the same reference numbers as the cooling module 20 in figure 1. As mentioned above, the cooling unit central cooling 10 can be located in a remote location of a residential kitchen or in the vicinity of a residential kitchen, as desired, as those skilled in the art will understand.

According to the invention, other cooling modules and / or satellite stations and home appliance refrigeration modules, as described above, can be combined with the central cooling unit 10, in addition to the cooling modules 20 and 350 illustrated in the figure 12. The cooling module 20 is described in detail above and, as such, it will not be described in detail again in relation to figure 12. Similarly, the central cooling unit 10 is described in detail above and, therefore, will not be described in detail again with reference to figure 12. The cooling module 350 may include a cascade cooling system. The cooling module 350 may have an insulated cabinet 352 and insulated doors 353 and 354 that can be hinged to the insulated cabinet 352 for the selective opening and closing of compartments 356 and 357 formed in the insulated cabinet 352 by the insulated compartment separator 355. Insulated doors 353 and 354 can be provided with a suitable handle, not shown, to facilitate opening and closing insulated doors 353 and 354. Those skilled in the art will understand that a single insulated door can be provided for closing compartments 356 and 357, if desired. The cooling module 350 can include a heat exchanger 30 and a heat exchange fan 32, similarly to the cooling module 20. The heat exchanger fan 32 can be a single speed fan, or if desired, it can be a variable speed fan. A valve 46 can control the flow of liquid refrigerant to the cooling module 350. The valve 46 can be an on-off valve arranged to control the flow of liquid refrigerant through the valve 46. The refrigeration module 350 po30 has sensors for temperature 34 and temperature selectors 36, as described above, for each compartment 356 and 357. Temperature sensors 34, temperature selectors 36 and valves 46 can be connected to controller 50 via control circuit 56, as described in detail above. Also as described in detail above, temperature selectors 36 can be located on cooling modules 20 or 350 or they can be part of a central user interface, as is well known and described above. The cooling module heat exchanger 30 can be connected to the insulated ducts 42 leading to the central cooling unit 10 for supplying cooled liquid refrigerant to the heat exchanger 30.

Cooling module 350 can still employ a cascade cooling system to cool compartment 357. For example, compartment 357 can be operated as a freezer compartment underneath and compartment 356 can be operated as a refrigerator compartment of freezing on top. As described above, the central cooling unit 10 can include a secondary loop evaporator 40 arranged to supply cooled liquid refrigerant to the cooling modules. Although a secondary loop cooling system can produce freezing storage temperatures from below, such cooling systems operate most efficiently when arranged to provide freezing storage temperatures from above. Therefore, when a distributed household appliance system includes a secondary loop using a cooled liquid refrigerant, it can be energy efficient and cost effective to use cascade cooling to obtain the desired freezing temperatures below in refrigeration compartments. freezing freezer underneath.

The cascade cooling system for the cooling module 350 can be a thermoelectric cooling system 340 similar to the thermoelectric cooling system 340 illustrated in the cooling module 326 in the form of figure 11. Alternative cascade cooling systems described below can be used in combination with the cooling module 350 in place of the thermoelectric cooling system 340. Therefore, the thermoelectric cooling system 340 illustrated in figure 12 will employ the same reference numbers as in figure 11 and the operation of the thermoelectric cooling system will not be explained again in detail in relation to figure 12. A cooled liquid refrigerant circulating through from the heat exchanger 30 in compartment 356, it can transfer the heat released by the heat sink enclosure 346 to the central cooling unit 10. Thus, compartment 357 can be cooled regardless of the temperature in compartment 356, based on the temperature selected for compartment 357 by the temperature selector 36 for compartment 356. Also, as described above, the thermoelectric cooling system 340 can provide lower storage temperatures in compartment 357 than can actually be obtained in compartment 356 based on the cooling provided by the cooled liquid refrigerant.

Turning to the schematic figure 13, in another fashion of the invention, a plurality of cooling modules 72 and 360 can be connected in a distributed household appliance system that can include a central cooling unit 60. The modules cooling units 72 and 360 can be independent or built-in modules and can be general purpose, freezer or special purpose refrigerator modules. Cooling modules 72 and 360 can be located in a residential kitchen or other locations associated with a home, as desired. The central cooling unit can be similar to the central cooling unit 60 shown in figure 2 and, therefore, will use the same reference numbers as the 60 shown in figure

2. Similarly, the cooling module 72 can be similar to the cooling module 72 shown in figure 2 and, therefore, it will use the same reference numbers as the cooling module 72 in figure 2. As mentioned above, the cooling unit central 60 can be located in a remote location of a residential kitchen or in or near the residential kitchen, as desired, as those skilled in the art will understand.

According to the invention, other cooling modules and / or satellite stations and home appliance refrigeration modules, as described above, can be combined with the central cooling unit 60, in addition to the cooling modules 72 and 360 illustrated in the figure 13. The cooling module 72 is described in detail above and, therefore, will not be described in detail again in relation to figure 13. Similarly, the central cooling unit 60 is described in detail above and, therefore, will not be described in detail again with reference to figure 13. The cooling module 360 ​​may include a cascade cooling system. The cooling module 360 ​​can have an insulated cabinet 362 and insulated doors 366 and 367 that can be hinged to the insulated cabinet 362 for the selective opening and closing of compartments 366 and 367 formed in insulated cabinet 362 by the insulated compartment separator 365 Insulated doors 366 and 367 can be provided with a suitable handle, not shown, to facilitate the opening and closing of insulated doors 363 and 364. Those skilled in the art will understand that a single insulated door can be provided for closing compartments 366 and 367, if desired. The cooling module 360 ​​may include an air inlet 93 leading from the insulated ducts 92 and an air outlet 95 leading in a similar manner to the insulated ducts 92 which are in communication with the evaporator 90. Air inlets 93 and air outlets 95 form the apparatus for receiving the cooling medium, cooled air, in cooling modules 72 and 360, as described above in detail. A baffle 96 can control the flow of cooled air to the cooling module compartment 366 360. The baffle 96 can be adjustable between open and closed to vary the control of the cooled air flow to the 366 compartment. The cooling module 360 ​​can have temperature sensors 84 and temperature selectors 86, as described above for each compartment 366 and 367. Temperature sensors 84, temperature selectors 86 and deflector 96 can be connected to controller 100 via the control circuit 106, as described in detail above. Also, as described in detail above, temperature selectors 86 may be located on the generation 72 or 360 cooling modules or may be part of a central user interface, as is well known and described above.

The cascade cooling system for the cooling module 360 ​​can be a thermoelectric cooling system 340 similar to the thermoelectric cooling system 340 illustrated in the cooling module 326 in the form of figure 11. Therefore, the thermoelectric cooling system 340 illustrated in figure 13 will employ the same reference numbers as in figure 11, and the operation of the thermoelectric cooling system 340 will not be explained again in detail in relation to figure 13. The cooled air flowing through the compartment 366 it can carry heat released by the heat sink housing 346 to the central cooling unit 60. Thus, compartment 367 can be cooled regardless of the temperature in compartment 366, based on the temperature selected for compartment 367 by the temperature selector 86 for compartment 366. Also, as described above, the thermoelectric cooling system 340 can provide temperatures of lower storage in compartment 367 than can be efficiently obtained in compartment 366 based on the cooling provided by the cooled air. Although the cooling module 360 ​​illustrated in figure 13 does not include air passages through compartment separator 365 to allow cool air to flow into compartment 367, those skilled in the art will understand that the appropriate air passages and deflectors all not shown, they can be provided in the compartment separator 365 for the provision of the possibility of selective cooling of the compartment 367 using cooled air or a cooling through the thermoelectric cooling system 340.

Turning to the schematic figure 14, in another embodiment of the invention, a plurality of cooling modules 20 and 350 can be connected in a distributed household appliance system that may include a central cooling unit 370. The cooling modules refrigeration 20 and 350 can be independent or built-in modules and can be general purpose refrigerator, freezer or special purpose modules. Refrigeration modules 20 and 350 can be located in a residential kitchen or other locations associated with a home, as desired. The cooling modules 20 and 350 can be similar to the cooling modules 20 and 350 can be illustrated in figure 12 and, therefore, will use the same reference numbers as the cooling modules 20 and 350 in figure 12.

The home appliance refrigeration system schematically illustrated in Figure 14 also includes a central cooling unit 370 which can be an absorption cooling system, as are well known in the art. The central cooling unit 370 shown in figure 14 can be a single-effect absorption system that provides the same result as a vapor compression system, such as the central cooling units illustrated in Figures 1 to 3 with the compressor being replaced with a solution circuit that absorbs va15 at a low pressure and desorbs it at a higher pressure. The central cooling unit 370 may have a solution circuit that includes an absorber 372, a pump 373, a solution heat exchanger 374, a desorbor 375 and a liquid metering valve 376 connected by the appropriate solution circuit conduits 377 . Central cooling unit 370 may also include an ammonia refrigerant circuit with a condenser 378, a pre-cooler 379, an expansion valve 380 and a cooled liquid evaporator 381 connected in series to the solution circuit absorber 372 and the desorbor 375 by suitable ammonia circuit conduits 382. Desorbor 375 can have a heat source, shown as heating element 371, used to provide heat to desorbor 375 for evaporation and separation of ammonia refrigerant from ammonia and water solution, as the water is drained back to the absorber 372 via the liquid measuring valve 376. Ammonia separated from the ammonia and water solution in desorbor 305 375 flows to condenser 378 and through expansion valve 380 to chilled liquid evaporator 381. Although a heating element 371 is shown, those skilled in the art will understand that ou61

<img file="BRPI0803382A2_D0004.tif" />

other heat sources, which may include a gas burner or solar heater, can be used, instead of heating element 371, to supply heat to desorbor 375 for vaporizing ammonia from the water and ammonia solution. Likewise, although the central cooling unit 370 is illustrated as a single-effect absorption system, those skilled in the art will understand that other absorption systems can be used as the central cooling unit, if desired.

In operation, the central cooling unit 370 cools a liquid refrigerant in the cooled liquid evaporator 381. As mentioned above, the cooled liquid evaporator 381 can be a shell and tube evaporator. Similar to the central cooling unit 10 illustrated in figure 1 and figure 12, a variable speed pump 44 can circulate the cooled liquid refrigerant to the cooling modules 20 and 350, as described in detail above. The central cooling unit 370 can also have a controller 50, a control circuit 56 and temperature selectors 36 similar to the central cooling unit 10 described in detail above. Since the operation of the home appliance refrigeration system, in addition to the central cooling unit 370, is similar to the operation of the home appliance refrigeration system described in relation to figure 12, the description of the system operation will not be repeated in relation to to figure 14. As described in relation to figure 12, a cascade cooling system can facilitate the provision of compartments operating at freezing temperatures from below in a distributed household appliance system having a central cooling unit of absorption cooling system having a cooled liquid evaporator cooling a liquid refrigerant in secondary loop supply cooling modules.

Turning to the schematic figure 15, in another fashion of the invention, a cooling module 350 'is an independent cooling appliance 384 that can be connected to a distributed cooling appliance system that can include a cooling unit central 10. Duct 350 'and refrigeration appliance 384 can be located in a residential kitchen or other locations associated with a home, as desired. The central cooling unit can be similar to the central cooling unit 10 illustrated in figure 1 and, therefore, will use the same reference numbers as the central cooling unit 10 illustrated in figure 1. Similarly, the cooling module 350 can be similar to the cooling module 350 shown in figure 12 and, therefore, will use the same reference numbers as the cooling module 350 in figure 12, except for a modified heat exchanger and a cascade cooling system that will be described below. As mentioned above, the central cooling unit 10 can be located in a remote location of a residential kitchen or in or near the residential kitchen, as desired, as those skilled in the art will understand.

According to the invention, other cooling modules and / or satellite stations and home appliance refrigeration modules, as described above, can be combined with the central cooling unit 10, in addition to the 350 'cooling module and the home appliance cooling units 384 shown in figure 15. The central cooling unit 10 is described in detail above and, therefore, will not be described in detail in relation to figure 15. The 384 household refrigeration appliance may include a cascade cooling system. The refrigeration appliance 384 can have an insulated cabinet 386 and an insulated door 387 can be hinged to the insulated cabinet 386 for selective closing and opening of the opening 388 in the insulated cabinet 386. Insulated door 387 can be provided with a suitable handle , not shown, to facilitate the opening and closing of the insulated door 387. The household refrigeration appliance 384 may include an evaporator 389 and an evaporator fan 390. The evaporator fan 390 may be a single speed fan or, if desired, it may be a variable speed fan. An expansion device

392 it can control the flow of refrigerant to the evaporator 289. Expansion device 392 can be an expansion device with feedback similar to expansion devices 138 in the form of figure 3. The refrigeration appliance 384 can have a temperature sensor 398 and a temperature selector 399. Temperature sensor 398, temperature selector 399 and expansion device 392 can be connected to controller 396 via control circuit 397. Controller 396 may be similar to controller 50 described in detail above, and may have a first portion and a second portion similarly to controller 50. The refrigeration appliance 384 may have a cascade cooling unit 400 arranged to supply refrigerant for evaporator 389. The cascade cooling unit 400 may include a compressor 393 and a liquid-cooled condenser 394. The liquid-cooled condenser 394 can be connected to the central cooling unit 10 via valve 46 and insulated ducts 42. The cascade cooling unit 400 can be connected to the central cooling unit 10 which can provide a temperature heat sink low for the cascade cooling unit 400, allowing it to operate at a much higher capacity than if it rejects heat to the ambient air. Controller 396 can control the operation of cooling appliance 384, as is well known in the art, and can include a connection to controller 50 for central cooling unit 10. The 384 household refrigeration appliance can efficiently provide much colder cooling temperatures than can be achieved in a practical way using a cooled liquid refrigerant supplied by the central cooling unit 10, since the compression compression cascade cooling unit steam 400 can efficiently provide temperatures below 0 ° C. Although a steam compression cascade cooling unit 400 is illustrated in the form of figure 15, those skilled in the art will understand that a thermoelectric cooling unit or a Stirling cycle cooling unit, as illustrated in Figures 17A and 17B below, can be na64 nailed, as desired.

As mentioned above, the cooling module 350 'can be similar to the cooling module 350 in the mode of figure 12, with the exception of the heat exchanger and the connection of the thermoelectric cooling system 340 to the central cooling system 10. The heat exchanger 30 'in the cooling module 350' may include a section 30 that can extend to and contact the heat sink housing 346 'for absorbing the heat rejected by the heat sink housing 346', instead of having the heat sink enclosure 346 'rejecting heat into compartment 356, as may be the case in the embodiment of figure 12. In addition to the modifications to the heat exchanger 30 'and the heat sink housing 346', the cooling module 350 'is similar in operation to the operation of the cooling module 350, as described in detail in relation to figure 12, and will not be repeated in relation to figure 15.

Turning to schematic figure 16, in another embodiment of the invention, a plurality of cooling modules 20 and 350 can be connected in a distributed household appliance system that can include a central cooling unit 402. The cooling modules refrigeration 20 and 350 can be independent or built-in modules and can be general purpose refrigerator, freezer or special purpose modules. Refrigeration modules 20 and 350 can be located in a residential kitchen or other locations associated with a home, as desired. The cooling modules 20 and 350 can be similar to the cooling modules 20 and 350 illustrated in figure 12 and, therefore, will use the same reference numbers as the cooling modules 20 and 350 in figure 12. The central cooling unit 402 may be located in a remote location of a residential kitchen or in or near a residential kitchen, as desired, as those skilled in the art will understand.

According to the invention, other cooling modules and / or satellite stations and home appliance refrigeration modules, as described above, can be combined with the central cooling unit65, in addition to the cooling modules 20 and 350 illustrated in figure 16. The cooling modules 20 and 350 are described in detail above and, therefore, will not be described in detail again in relation to figure 16. The central cooling unit 402 may be a Stirling cycle cooling unit which may include a Stirling 404 cooler which may have a hot end 410 and a cold end 413, as is well known in the art. The Stirling 404 cycle cooler may have a 406 linear motor and may have a hot end heat exchanger 411 and a fan 412 for heat rejection of the ex10 hot trem 410. The cold end 413 can be associated with a cooled liquid cooler 415 which can be arranged for heat transfer from the cooled liquid in the cooled liquid circuit to the cold end 413. As with the secondary loop systems described above, the cooling unit central cooling 402 may have a pump 44 for circulating the cooled liquid in isolated ducts 42. The Stirling cycle cooler 404, fan 412 and pump 44 can be connected to controller 50 via control circuit 56. For cooling provision, the Stirling cycle cooler 404, fan 412 and pump 44 can be connected. activated by controller 50, causing the Stirling cycle cooler

404 cause the cold end 413 to become cold by absorbing heat in the cooled liquid cooler 415 from the cooled liquid circulated by the pump 44 and reject heat at the hot end 410 to the heat exchanger 411, as is well known in the art. Thus, as illustrated in Figures 12, 13, 14 and 16, a variety of central cooling units can be used in combination with one or more cooling modules including a cascade cooling arrangement. The central cooling units can be a vapor compression refrigeration system, a vapor compression refrigeration system with a secondary loop of cooled liquid, an absorption system or a Stirling cycle cooler with a secondary loop of cooled liquid and can be a vapor compression cooling system, an absorption system or a Stirling cycle cooler arranged to cool the air for circulation to the cooling modules having the cascade cooling arrangement.

Turning to schematic figure 17A, in another embodiment of the invention, a plurality of cooling modules 20 and 420 can be connected in a distributed household appliance system that can include a central cooling unit 10. The cooling modules refrigeration 20 and 420 can be independent or built-in modules and can be general purpose refrigerator, freezer or special purpose modules. Refrigeration modules 20 and 420 can be located in a residential kitchen or other locations associated with a home, as desired. The central cooling unit can be similar to the central cooling unit 10 illustrated in figure 1 and, therefore, will use the same reference numbers as the central cooling unit 10 illustrated in figure 1. Similarly, the cooling module 20 can be similar to the cooling module 20 illustrated in figure 12 and, therefore, it will use the same reference numbers as the cooling module 20 in figure 12. As mentioned above, the cooling unit central 10 may be located in a remote location of a residential kitchen or in or near a residential kitchen, as desired, as those skilled in the art will understand.

According to the invention, other refrigeration modules and / or satellite stations and home appliance refrigeration modules, as described above, can be combined with the central cooling unit 25, in addition to the cooling modules 20 and 420 illustrated in figure 17A. The cooling module 20 is described in detail above and, therefore, will not be described in detail again in relation to figure 17A. Similarly, the central cooling unit 10 is described in detail above and, therefore, will not be described in detail again in relation to figure 17A. The cooling module 420 may include a cascade cooling system. The cooling module 420 can have an insulated cabinet 422 and insulated doors 424 and 425 that can be hinged to the insulated cabinet 422 for the selective opening and closing of compartments 426 and 427 formed in insulated cabinet 422 by the insulated compartment separator 423 Insulated doors 424 and 425 can be provided with a suitable handle, not shown, to facilitate the opening and closing of insulated doors 424 and 425. Those skilled in the art will understand that a single insulated door can be provided for closing compartments 426 and 427, if desired. The cooling module 420 can include a heat exchanger 30 and a heat exchange fan 32, similarly to the cooling module 20. The heat exchange fan 32 can be a single speed fan, or if desired, can be a variable speed fan. A valve 46 can control the flow of liquid refrigerant to the cooling module 420. The valve 46 can be an on-off valve arranged to control the flow of liquid refrigerant through the valve 46. The cooling module 420 can have temperature sensors 34 and temperature selectors 36, as described above, for each compartment 426 and 427. Temperature sensors 34, temperature selectors 36 and valves 46 can be connected to controller 50 via control circuit 56, as described in detail above. Also as described in detail above, temperature selectors 36 can be located on cooling modules 20 or 420 or they can be part of a central user interface, as is well known and described above. The cooling module heat exchanger 30 can be connected to the insulated ducts 42 leading to the central cooling unit 10 for supplying cooled liquid refrigerant to the heat exchanger 30.

The cascade cooling system for the cooling module 420 can be a central vapor compression cooling unit 430 that can be located at the base of the insulated cabinet 422. The cascade cooling unit 430 can include a compressor 431, a condenser liquid-cooled 432, an evaporator 433, an evaporator fan 434 and an expansion device 435 connected in a refrigerant circuit, as is well known in the art. A 42 'loop can transport the cooled liquid refrigerant leaving the evaporator 30 to the liquid-cooled condenser 432 to provide a low temperature heat sink for the cascade cooling system 430, allowing the cascade cooling system 430 operate at a much higher capacity than a similar system having a room air-cooled condenser. Thus, compartment 427 can be cooled regardless of the temperature in compartment 426, based on the temperature selected for compartment 427 by the temperature selector 36 for compartment 427. In addition, as described above, the vapor compression cascade cooling system 430 can efficiently provide much lower storage temperatures in compartment 427 than can be obtained in compartment 426 based on the cooling provided by the cooled liquid refrigerant.

Turning to schematic figure 17B, in another embodiment of the invention, a plurality of cooling modules 20 and 440 can be connected in a distributed household appliance system that can include a central cooling unit 10. The cooling modules refrigeration 20 and 440 can be independent or built-in modules and can be general purpose refrigerator, freezer or special purpose modules. Refrigeration modules 20 and 440 can be located in a residential kitchen or other locations associated with a home, as desired. The central cooling unit can be similar to the central cooling unit 10 illustrated in figure 1 and, therefore, will use the same reference numbers as the central cooling unit 10 illustrated in figure 1. Similarly, the cooling module 20 can be similar to the cooling module 20 illustrated in figure 12 and, therefore, it will use the same reference numbers as the cooling module 20 in figure 12. As mentioned above, the cooling unit central 10 can be located in a remote location of a residential kitchen or in or in the vicinity of a residential kitchen, as desired, as those skilled in the art will understand.

According to the invention, other cooling modules and / or satellite stations and home appliance refrigeration modules, as described above, can be combined with the central cooling unit 10, in addition to the cooling modules 20 and 440 illustrated in the figure 17B. The cooling module 20 is described in detail above and, therefore, will not be described in detail again in relation to figure 17B. Similarly, the central cooling unit 10 is described in detail above and, therefore, will not be described in detail again in relation to figure 17B. Cooling module 440 may include a cascade cooling system. The cooling module 440 may have an insulated cabinet 442 and insulated doors 444 and 445 that can be hinged to the insulated cabinet 442 for the selective opening and closing of compartments 446 and 447 formed in insulated cabinet 442 by the insulated compartment separator 443 Insulated doors 444 and 445 can be provided with a suitable handle, not shown, to facilitate the opening and closing of insulated doors 444 and 445. Those skilled in the art will understand that a single insulated door can be provided for closing compartments 446 and 447, if desired. Cooling module 440 may include a heat exchanger 30 and a heat exchanger fan 32, similarly to cooling module 20, which can be arranged for cooling compartment 446. Heat exchange fan 32 can be a single speed fan, or if desired, can be a variable speed fan. A valve 46 can control the flow of liquid refrigerant to the cooling module 440. The valve 46 can be an on-off valve arranged to control the flow of liquid refrigerant through valve 46. The cooling module 440 can have temperature sensors 34 and temperature selectors 36, as described above, for each compartment 446 and 447. Temperature sensors 34, temperature selectors 36 and valves 46 can be connected to controller 50 via control circuit 56, as described in detail above. Also as described above in detail, temperature selectors 36 can be located on cooling modules 20 or

440 or they can be part of a central user interface, as is well known and described above. The cooling module heat exchanger 30 can be connected to the insulated ducts 44 leading to the central cooling unit 10 for supplying cooled liquid refrigerant to the heat exchanger 30.

The cooling module 440 can have a cascade cooling unit 450 which can be located at the base of the insulated cabinet 442. The cascade cooling unit 450 can be a Stirling cycle cooler 452. Stirling cycle coolers are well known in the art and typically include a hot end 455, a cold end 454 and a linear motor 456. The cascade cooling unit 450 can also include a circulation fan 457 arranged for air circulation in compartment 447 through the cold end 454 for cooling compartment 447. Circulation fan 457 and Stirling cycle cooler 452 can be connected to the controller 50 through control circuit 56. A loop 42 can transport the cooled liquid cooler leaving the evaporator 30 to the hot end 455 to remove heat from the Stirling cycle cooler, allowing the cascade cooling system 450 to efficiently cool compartment 447. Thus, compartment 447 can be cooled regardless of the temperature in compartment 446, based on the temperature selected for compartment 447 by the temperature selector 36 for compartment 447. In addition, as described above, the vapor compression cascade cooling system 430 can efficiently provide much lower storage temperatures in compartment 447 than can be obtained in compartment 446 based on the cooling provided by the cooled liquid refrigerant.

The alternative cascade cooling units described above in relation to figures 17A and 17B can be used in any of the thermoelectric cascade cooling modes shown in Figures 11, 12, 13, 14 and 16, in place of the thermoelectric cooling unit shown , if desired.

Turning to schematic figures 18 and 19, in another embodiment of the invention, cooling modules 120 and 466 can be combined with cooling / storage modules 460 and 472 in a distributed household appliance system that can include a central cooling unit 110, as shown in Figures 3 and 6. Refrigeration modules 120 and 466 can be independent or built-in modules and can be general purpose, freezer or special purpose refrigerator modules. Refrigeration modules 120 and 466 can be located in a residential kitchen or other locations associated with a home, as desired. The cooling module 120 can be similar to the cooling module 120 shown in figure 3 and, therefore, it will use the same reference numbers as the cooling module 120 in figure 3. Alternatively, the cooling module could also be similar to the station - combined satellite 240 shown in figure 8A. Central cooling unit 110, additional satellite stations 212, and other home appliance refrigeration modules were not included in Figures 18 and 19 for simplification of the drawings. The isolated supply lines 142 and the isolated return lines 144 (see figures 3 and 6) can be connected to the quick connect connections 145 to provide a refrigerant circuit for the evaporators 130 and 470 in the cooling modules 120 and 466 from a central cooling unit 110 (see figures 3 and 6). As noted above, the central cooling unit 110 may be located in a remote location of a residential kitchen, or in or in the vicinity of a residential kitchen, as desired, as those skilled in the art will understand.

Cooling module 466 can have an insulated cabinet 467 and an insulated door 468 that can be hinged to insulated cabinet 467 for selective access to a compartment 469 defined by insulated cabinet 467. Insulated door 468 can have a handle, not shown , to facilitate access to the 466 refrigeration appliance module. The central cooling unit, not shown, may be similar to the central cooling unit 110 illustrated in Figures 3 and 6. The operation of the central cooling unit 110 and controller 150 is described in detail in relation to the mode of figures 3 and 6 and therefore will not be described in detail again in relation to figures 18 and 19. Those skilled in the art will understand that more than one cooling module can be provided and that one or more satellite stations / combined home appliance refrigeration modules can be connected to the central cooling unit 110 via quick-connect connections 145 for power lines. refrigerant that can be isolated supply lines 142 and 144, and to controller 150 through control circuit 156, as shown in figure 6.

The cooling module 466 can have a direct-cooling satellite station evaporator 470 and an expansion device 138. Evaporator 470 and expansion device 138 can be connected via quick-coupling connections 145 to the refrigerant lines that can be connected. the isolated supply line 142 and the isolated return line 144 and to the controller 150 via control circuit 156 (see figures 3 and 6). Evaporator 470 can be positioned in compartment 469 which those skilled in the art understand can include an evaporator compartment, if desired. The cooling / storage module 460 can be located in the vicinity of the cooling module 466 and can be connected to the cooling module 466 via an isolated supply duct 216 and an isolated return duct 218. The cooling / storage module 460 may have an insulated cabinet 462 which may have an insulated door 463 hinged to the insulated cabinet 462 for selectively providing access to compartment 464. The cooling / storage module 460 can have a circulation fan 465 that can be positioned in the insulated supply duct 216 and that can circulate and control the volume of cooled air flowing to the cooling / storage module 460 from the cooling module 466. The cooling module 466 and the cooling / storage module 460 can have temperature sensors 134, as described above, and can have se73 temperature sensors 136, not shown, which can be combined with the respective cabinets or can be part of a central user interface as described above. Temperature sensors 134 and temperature selectors 136 can be connected to controller 150 (figures 3 and 6) via control circuit 156. The cooling / storage module 460 can be selectively operated as a refrigerated storage space, when the circulation fan 465 is operated by controller 150 (figures 3 and 6). Alternatively, the circulation fan 465 can be deactivated and the cooling / storage module 460 can be allowed to remain at room temperature in the location in which it is located. The 465 circulation fan can be a variable speed fan, or a single speed fan that can be turned on and off in cycles to control the temperature in the 460 cooling / storage module.

The cooling module 120 is described in detail above and, therefore, will not be described in detail again in relation to figures 18 and 19. The cooling / storage module 472 can be located in the vicinity of the cooling module 120 and can be connected to the cooling module 120 by an isolated supply duct 216 and an isolated return duct 218 similar to the combined satellite station 240 shown in figure 8A. The cooling / storage module 472 can have an insulated cabinet 473 that can have an insulated door 474 hinged to the insulated cabinet 473 to provide selectively access to compartment 475 defined by insulated cabinet 473. Insulated door 474 can have a handle, not shown, for easy access to the 472 refrigeration appliance module. The cooling / storage module 472 can have a damper 476 that can control the volume of cooled air flowing to the cooling / storage module 472 from the cooling appliance module 120. The cooling module 120 and the cooling / storage module 472 can have a temperature sensor 134, as described above, and can have a temperature selector 136, not shown, which can be combined with the respective cabinets or can be part of of a central user interface, as described above. Temperature sensors 134 and temperature selectors 136 can be connected to controller 150 (figures 3 and 6) via control circuit 156. The cooling / storage module 472 can be selectively operated as a refrigerated storage space, when the damper 476 is positioned to allow air flow from the cooling module 120 to flow into compartment 475 under the influence of the evaporator fan 132. Those skilled in the art will understand that the 476 damper can be manually adjustable by a user, or can be automatically adjusted under the control of controller 150 (figures 3 and 6). Damper 476 is illustrated connected via control circuit 156 to controller 150. Those skilled in the art will understand that a manually adjusted damper 476 can be used and, if so, would not need to be connected to controller 150. Alternatively, the damper 476 can be positioned to block the flow of cooled air from the cooling module 120, and the cooling / storage module 472 can be allowed to remain at room temperature in the location in which it is positioned. Also, a second damper 476, not shown, can be positioned in the isolated return duct 218, if desired, to improve the insulation of the cooling / storage module 472, when it is desired to operate the cooling / storage module 472 as a space non-conditioned storage.

As shown in figure 19, a second cooling / storage module 460 can be connected to the cooling / storage module 472 to provide two modules connected to a cooling module 120 that can be used alternately for a refrigerated storage space or environment. It may be advantageous to employ a cooling / storage module 460 having a circulation fan 465 remote from a cooling module 120, when it is desired to provide two cooling / storage modules to facilitate the air flow, indicated by the air flow arrows 148, on both 475 and 460 cooling / storage modules. Similarly, two cooling / storage modules 460 could be provided for a cooling module 120 or 466, since the circulation fans 465 could provide adequate cooling air circulation in at least two cooling / storage modules. Thus, in the embodiment of the invention illustrated in Figures 18 and 19, a distributed home appliance system can have one or more cooling / storage modules to allow for additional temporary refrigerated storage space that, when not needed, could be converted in a storage space at room temperature. Those skilled in the art will understand that a second damper, not shown, can be provided for the isolated return duct 218 to prevent cool air from flowing into the cooling / storage module 460 or 472, when the user has deactivated the cooling fan. circulation 465 and / or closed the damper 476 to operate one or more cooling / storage modules as a storage space at room temperature. Those skilled in the art will also understand that the cooling / storage module 472 can be modified to be used in combination with a cooling module, such as the cooling module 120 ration, without having a second cooling / storage module 460 combined with it, as illustrated in figure 19. In case the cooling / storage module is to be used without a second cooling / storage module, the isolated supply and return ducts 216 and 218 leading to the cooling / storage module

460 from the cooling / storage module 472 they can be eliminated.

Turning to schematic figure 20, in another embodiment of the invention, the cooling module 120 can be used with the cooling / storage module 478 in a distributed household appliance system that can include a central cooling unit 110 , as shown in Figures 3 and 6. Refrigeration module 120 can be independent or built-in modules and can be a general purpose, freezer or special purpose refrigerator module, and can be located in a residential kitchen or other locations associated with a home, as desired. The cooling module 120 can be similar to the cooling module 120 illustrated in figure 3 and, therefore, will use the same reference numbers as the cooling module 120 in figure 3. Alternatively, the cooling module could also be similar to the combined satellite station 240 shown in figure 8A. Central cooling unit 110, additional satellite stations 212 and other home appliance refrigeration modules have not been included in figure 20 for simplification of the drawings. The isolated supply lines 142 and the isolated return lines 144 (see figures 3 and 6) can be connected to the quick connect connections 145 to provide a refrigerant circuit for the evaporator 130 in the cooling module 120 from a central cooling unit 110 (see figures 3 and 6). As noted above, the central cooling unit 110 may be located in a remote location of a residential kitchen, or in or in the vicinity of a residential kitchen, as desired, as those skilled in the art will understand.

The cooling / storage module 478 may have an insulated cabinet 479 which may have an insulated door 480 hinged to the insulated cabinet 479 to selectively provide access to compartment 481 defined by insulated cabinet 479. Insulated door 480 may have a handle , not shown, to facilitate the opening and closing of insulated door 480 to access compartment 481. The cooling / storage module 478 can be connected to the cooling module 120 via an insulated supply duct 216 and an insulated return duct 218 and may have a damper 486 associated with the insulated supply duct 216, which can control the volume of air cooled flowing, see dashed airflow arrow 148, for cooling / storage module 478 from cooling module 120. The cooling / storage module 478 can also have a selector 482 which can be a switch connected to the control circuit 156. In some embodiments of the invention, the cooling / storage module can comprise an isolated insert in a cabinet, as will be described in further details below. In these circumstances, it may be advantageous to provide a selector switch 482 to indicate the presence or absence of an isolated insert for the formation of the insulated case 479, to avoid operating the cooling / storage module 478 at temperatures below ambient without the insertion of insulation in place. Those skilled in the art will understand that the selector switch can be arranged to be manually adjusted by a user, or it can be automatically closed to indicate the presence of an isolated insert when positioning the isolated insert in the cabinet. The cooling module 120 and the cooling / storage module 478 can have temperature sensors 134, as described above, and can have temperature selectors 136, not shown, which can be combined with the respective cabinets or can be part of an interface central user as described above. Temperature sensors 134 and temperature selectors 136 can be connected to controller 150 (figures 3 and 6) via control circuit 156. The 478 cooling / storage module can be selectively operated as a refrigerated storage space, when the damper 486 is positioned to allow air flow from the cooling module 120. The damper 486 can be manually adjusted by a user to control the operating temperature in the compartment

481. Alternatively, damper 486 can be arranged to be operated by controller 150 (figures 3 and 6), depending on the setting of a temperature selector 136, not shown, controlling the cooling / storage module 478 and the temperature detected by the temperature sensor 134. Alternatively, the damper 486 can be positioned to block the flow of cooled air from the cooling module 120, and the cooling / storage module 478 can be allowed to remain at room temperature in the location in which it is positioned. Those skilled in the art will understand that the isolated return duct 218 can also be provided with a damper, not shown, to help ensure that the cooled air does not flow from the cooling module 120, when the user wishes to allow the cooling module refrigeration / storage remains at room temperature for additional storage space. The cooling / storage module 478 can also have a heating element 484 that can be arranged to heat the contents of the cooling / storage module above room temperature. The heating element 484 can be connected via the control circuit 156 to the controller 150 for selective operation of the heating element 484. The use of a heating element 484 may allow a user to select a temperature sequence cycle for the contents of the cooling / storage module 478, which may include heating the contents to a temperature above room temperature, as will be described in details below. Thus, in the embodiment of the invention illustrated in figure 20, a distributed household appliance system may have one or more cooling / storage modules to allow for an additional temporary refrigerated storage space that, when not needed, can be converted to a storage space at room temperature, or it can be operated to provide one or more predetermined temperature sequence cycles for treating the contents of compartment 481. Although the modalities illustrated in Figures 18 to 20 have been described in combination with the central cooling unit 110, those skilled in the art will understand that secondary loop central cooling units 10, 60, 370 and 402 described in detail above could be employed with corresponding home appliance refrigeration modules combined with cooling / storage modules, as described in the modalities shown in Figures 20.

Turning to schematic figures 21 to 23, in another embodiment of the invention, a refrigeration appliance 570 can be combined with refrigeration / storage modules that can be arranged to selectively provide refrigerated storage space

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additional or non-conditioned. The refrigeration appliance 570 can be an independent refrigeration appliance and can be positioned in a kitchen or in another location in a house in relation to the upper cabinets 488 and lower cabinets 489. The 570 refrigeration unit can be similar to a satellite station / home appliance refrigeration module / central cooling unit combined 282, as illustrated and described in figure 10, or it can be similar to a freezer and freestanding or built-in refrigerator modular or stacked. As shown in Figures 21 to 23, the refrigeration appliance 570 will use the same numbers as the satellite station / the home appliance refrigeration module / the combined central cooling unit 282 shown in figure 10. The operation of the satellite station / the home appliance refrigeration module / the combined central cooling unit 282, shown partially in Figures 21 to 23, is described in detail a15 above and will not be repeated in relation to figures 21 to 23.

The cooling / storage module 492 shown in figure 21 may include an insulated cabinet 491 having an insulated door 493. Insulated door 493 may have a handle, not shown, to facilitate access to the cooling / storage module 492. The control module cooling / storage 492 can have a temperature sensor 134 and a temperature selector 136, not shown, as described above, and can be positioned adjacent to the upper cabinets 488. Temperature sensors 134 and temperature selectors 136 can be connected to controller 300 (figure 10) via control circuit 306. The cooling / storage module 492 can include a selector 482, as described above, connected to controller 300 (see figure 10), and can have dampers 486 that can be positioned on the isolated supply duct 216 and the isolated return duct 218 , which can connect the combined satellite station 282 with the cooling / storage module

492. As described above, dampers 486 can be adjusted to allow chilled air to flow to the cooling / storage module 492 or block the flow of chilled air to allow the cooling / storage module to remain at room temperature as a space non-conditioned storage. The 486 dampers can be manually adjusted by a user to allow a flow of cooled air to a sufficient volume to maintain a desired temperature in the 492 cooling / storage module, or they can be automatic dampers that can be connected to a controller 300 (figure 10) for temperature control in the cooling / storage module 492, based on an input from a temperature sensor 134 and a temperature selector 136 (figure 10).

The cooling / storage module 494 shown in figure 22 may include an insulated cabinet 495 that has an insulated door 495 '. Insulated door 495 'may have a handle, not shown, for easy access to the cooling / storage module 494 may have a temperature sensor 134 and a temperature selector 136, not shown, as described above, and may be positioned adjacent to the lower 489 cabinets. Temperature sensors 134 and temperature selectors 136 can be connected to controller 300 (figure 10) via control circuit 306. The cooling / storage module 494 can include a selector 482, as described above, connected to the controller

300 (see figure 10) and can have a damper, 486 positioned in the isolated supply duct 216 and a circulation fan 457 positioned in the isolated return duct 218. As mentioned above, the refrigeration unit 570 can have a freezer compartment mounted on top and a freezer compartment on top mounted on the bottom opposite the cooling / storage module 494. The 486 damper can be manually adjusted by the user, or it can be an automatic damper, as described above, to control the amount of cooled air flowing to the 494 cooling / storage module, and therefore the operating temperature. In the modality illustrated in figure 22, a circulation fan 457 can be provided in the isolated return duct 218, to guarantee a circulation of cooled air, see the air flow arrows 148, for the cooling / storage module 494 from from the 570 independent cooling electrode appliance and back to the 570 independent cooling appliance.

In the modality illustrated in figure 23A, the independent refrigeration appliance 570 may be similar to the satellite station / the appliance refrigeration appliance module / the combined central cooling unit 282, not shown, (see figure 10). The cooling module 466 is described above in detail with reference to figure 18 and, therefore, it will not be described again in detail, again, with reference to figure 23A. The cooling module 466 can be positioned in a lower cabinet 489, as shown in Figures 21 to 22. The cooling / storage module 496 can be positioned adjacent to the cooling module 466 and can be connected to the cooling module 466 through the insulated supply duct 216 and the isolated return duct 218 and may have a circulation fan 465 associated with the duct. insulated supply 216 for cooling air circulation from cooling module 466 to compartment 499, when circulation fan 465 is operated. The circulation fan 465 can be connected to controller 300 (figure 10) through control circuit 306. The cooling / storage module 496 can have a temperature sensor 134 and a temperature selector 136, as described above. Thus, a user can select a refrigerated operation from the cooling / storage module 496 by adjusting the appropriate selector 136 for the cooling / storage module 496 for the cooling operation. Controller 300 (figure 10) can cause the circulation fan 465 to operate by circulating the cooled air from the cooling module 466 to the cooling / storage module 496 (see dashed air flow arrows 148) . The cooling / storage module 496 can also have a heating element 484 which can be similar to the heating element 484 illustrated in the cooling / storage module 478 (see figure 20). The operation of the heating element 484 on the cooling / storage module 496 may be similar to the operation of the cooling / storage module 478 described above, and will not be repeated. As mentioned above, the operation of the heating element 484 can selectively provide a predetermined temperature profile for the contents of the cooling / storage module 496, as will be described in detail below.

In the embodiment of figure 23B, the independent refrigeration appliance 570 may be similar to the satellite station / the appliance refrigeration appliance module / the combined central cooling unit 282 shown in figure 10, and may have a cooling module 466 arranged for connection to the central cooling unit 284, not shown, (see figure 10). The cooling module 466 is described above in detail with reference to figure 18 and therefore will not be described again in detail with reference to figure 23B. The cooling module 466 can be positioned in place of a lower cabinet 489, as shown in Figures 21 to 22. The cooling / storage module 496 is described above in detail in relation to figure 23A and, therefore, will not be described in detail. new in detail again. The cooling / storage module 492 'shown in figure 23B may employ a secondary cooling medium circuit for selective cooling of the insulated cabinet 491, in place of insulated ducts 216 and 218 connecting insulated cabinet 491 to compartment 308, as described above with respect to figure 23A. The secondary cooling medium circuit may include a heat exchanger 512 that can be positioned in compartment 308 in the vicinity of evaporator 320 for rejection of heat from insulated compartment 491 to compartment 308 and evaporator 320. Heat exchanger 512 can be connected with insulated ducts 42 to the alvodianteiro 513, which can be positioned in the insulated cabinet 491 and a pump 514. Pump 514 is illustrated as being positioned in an isolated compartment 491, although pump 514 can be positioned in other locations, if desired, including in central cooling unit space 311, as desired. As described above, the liquid coolant for the secondary cooling medium circuit, not shown, can be a DYNALENE HC heat transfer fluid, an organic salt.

ί '' water based which is non-toxic, non-flammable with low viscosity, or other liquid coolant solutions, such as a solution of ethylene glycol and water. In operation, when a user chooses to operate the refrigeration / storage module as a refrigerated space, the se5 sensor switch 482 can be closed and pump 514 can operate under the control of controller 300 and a temperature sensor 134, not shown, for circulating the liquid cooler through the front target 513 to cool the insulated cabinet 491. In order to operate the cooling / storage module 492 'as an unconditioned storage space, the selector mutator co2 482 can be opened and the pump 514 de-energized to allow the temperature in the insulated cabinet 491 to rise to room temperature. The insulated cabinet 491 can be a container forming a space for holding a liquid or paste material, such as water or ice cream or other liquid, semi-liquid or paste materials that a user could choose to cool or cool for use, or as a step in preparation. Insulated cabinet 491 could take the form of an insulated tank or container, or it could be an insulated space arranged to receive a container of liquid and / or removable paste, not shown. The front target 513 can be positioned to cool a removable liquid / paste container, not shown. Those skilled in the art will understand that modules other than the cooling / storage module 492 'may comprise, or be arranged to receive, a tank or container for storing and / or cooling a liquid or paste material, if desired. Similarly, the cooling / storage module

492 'can be used in combination with satellite stations, as shown in the modalities of figures 6 to 11, as desired.

Those skilled in the art will understand that the independent refrigeration appliance 570 can be configured as a bottom freezer appliance with an evaporator at the bottom of the appliance appliance and that, therefore, the refrigeration / storage modules 492, 492 'and 494 could be switched to match the freezing compartments above and the freezing compartments below in the independent refrigeration appliance 570. In addition, although heating elements have been illustrated in the cooling / storage modules 478 and 496, those skilled in the art will understand that the heating elements could be provided in any of the cooling / storage modules illustrated in Figures 18, 19, 21 or 22. Thus, in the embodiment of the invention illustrated in Figures 21 to 23B, a distributed refrigeration appliance system may have one or more cooling / storage modules combined with an independent refrigeration appliance to allow for an additional temporary refrigerated storage space that , when not needed, can be converted to a storage space at room temperature or, if provided with a heating element, can be used to heat contents to temperatures above ambient.

The insulated cabinets described above can be formed of wood, metal or molded plastic and provided with an insulating material, such as polyurethane foam or expanded Styrofoam, as is well known in the art. Also, as is well known in the art, these insulated cabinets can be formed at a manufacturing location and shipped to a service location in the final form, or can be manufactured at the service location by cutting and assembling the cabinets from of insulated panels and preformed insulated doors. According to the invention, an insulated cabinet and an insulated door for a cooling / storage module can be formed by providing an insulated insert and an insulated door kit for converting a non-insulated cabinet into a cooling module / storage. Turning to figure 24, which includes an exploded view of an isolated insert 500, the preparation of an isolated insert 500 can be seen. The insulated insert 500 can include an insulated box 502 and an insulated door 504 that can be attached to the insulated box by hinges 510. The insulated door can include a handle 511 to facilitate the opening and closing of the insulated door 504.

Insulated box 502 may include an insulated rear wall 505, an insulated top wall 506, an insulated bottom wall 507, an insulated left side wall 508 and an insulated right side wall 509, which can be mounted on insulated box 502, as it is well known in the cabinet industry. The insulated insert 500 can be inserted in an upper case 488 or a lower case 489 for converting a conventional case into a cooling / storage module. Those skilled in the art will understand that, instead of manufacturing the insulated insert 500 as an insert, an insulated case can be manufactured, which can replace an upper case 488 or a lower case 489, if desired. If an insulated cabinet is to be built instead of an insulated insert, panels having an acceptable external surface can be used in combination with other cabinets used in the home, as needed. In accordance with this aspect of the invention, distributed cooling modules can be provided to meet the requirements for the cooling system by the intended user, without requiring the user to conform to module sizes generally available in the mass market for household appliances. cooling. The construction described above for the insulated insert 500 can be used for any of the cooling / storage modules 460, 472, 492, 492 ', 494 and 496 described above, if desired.

Turning to schematic figures 25 and 26, in another embodiment of the invention, a refrigeration appliance 570 can be combined with a refrigeration / storage module that can be arranged for the selective provision of a refrigerated storage or storage space additional non-conditioning above or below the 570 refrigeration unit. The refrigeration appliance 570 can be a built-in or independent appliance and can be positioned in a kitchen or in another location in a home in relation to upper cabinets 488 and lower cabinets 489. The 570 refrigeration unit can be similar to a satellite station / home appliance refrigeration module / central cooling unit combined 282, as illustrated and described in figure 10, or it can be similar to a freezer and refrigerator conencional con86. The refrigeration unit 570 will not be described again in detail in relation to figures 25 and 26.

In figure 25, the refrigeration unit 570 can be installed on or above a refrigeration / storage module 515 to lift the refrigeration unit 570 to facilitate user access to the lower compartment of the refrigeration unit 570, without having to flex improperly. The cooling / storage module 515 may include an insulated cabinet 516, an insulated door 517, and, if desired, a selector 482, as described above. The cooling module / gun10 zen 515 may have a temperature sensor 134, a temperature selector 136, not shown, and a diffuser 518 that can cooperate with insulated ducts 519 by connecting the cooling / storage module 515 to the lower device compartment 310 refrigeration unit 570. Insulated duct 519 can be a concentric duct or it can be a parallel two-pass duct to provide a supply and return passage for the cooling / storage module 515. Temperature sensor 134 and temperature selector 136, not shown, can be connected to controller 300 (figure 10) via control circuit 306. Insulated door 517 may have a handle, not shown, to facilitate access to the cooling / storage module 515. Insulated duct 519 may have a damper 486 to selectively allow air cooled from the refrigeration apparatus 570 to flow to the cooling / storage module 515. A circulation fan 523 can ensure that the air cooled from the cooling module refrigeration / storage 515 return to compartment 310 of refrigeration appliance 570. As described above in detail, the cooling / storage module 515 can be selectively operated as a cooled storage space by positioning the damper 486, to allow cool air to flow through the insulated duct 519 and the operation of the circulation fan 523 . As above, the damper 486 can be manually operated by a user, it can be an automatic damper connected to controller 300 (see figure 10) via control circuit 306. Circulating fan 523 can be connected via control circuit 306 to controller 300 and can be operated when a user selects a refrigerated operation from the 515 cooling / storage module. Likewise, as described above in relation to other modalities, a user can allow the 515 cooling / storage module to reach room temperature with the damper 486 positioned to block the cooled air flow to the 515 cooling / storage module and circulation fan 523 de-energized.

Turning to figure 26, the cooling / storage module 520 can be positioned above the cooling device 570 in the space between the top of the cooling device 570 and a soffit or the ceiling at the location in the dwelling in which the cooling device 570 is located. The cooling / storage module 520 can include an insulated cabinet 521 and an insulated door 522 that can be hinged to the insulated cabinet 521. The insulated door 522 may have a handle, not shown, to facilitate the opening and closing of the insulated door 522. In figure 26, the insulated door 522 is illustrated schematically as pivoting on a horizontal geometric axis. Those skilled in the art will understand that insulated door 522 can be hinged to pivot on a vertical geometric axis similar to insulated door 517 in figure 25, if desired. The cooling / storage module 520 may have a selector 482, as described above, and may have a temperature sensor 134 and a temperature selector 136, not shown. Temperature sensor 134 and temperature selector 136, not shown, can be connected to controller 300 (figure 10) via control circuit 306. An insulated supply duct 216 and an insulated return duct 218 can connect the cooling / storage module 520 to the refrigeration unit 570. Insulated supply and return ducts 216 and 218 can have a damper 486 for controlling the air flow cooled from the refrigeration unit 570 to the cooling / storage module 520 and back to the refrigeration unit 570. As described above, the 570 can be a satellite station / the combined refrigeration appliance module88 / the central cooling unit 282 (see figure 10) which can include an evaporator fan 322 (see figure 10). The evaporator fan 322 can circulate the cooled air through the isolated supply ducts 216 and return 218 when the dampers 486 are positioned to allow air to flow through the ducts. The 486 dampers can be manually adjustable by a user to allow the cooled air to flow to a sufficient volume to maintain a desired temperature in the cooling / storage module 520, or they can be automatic dampers that can be connected to a controller 300, not shown, for temperature control in the cooling / storage module 520, based on an input from a temperature sensor 134 and a temperature selector, both not shown. Thus, in Figures 25 and 26, the refrigeration / storage modules 515 and 520 can be combined with a refrigeration appliance 570 that can be selectively operated as a refrigerated or ambient storage space, to allow a user to have a storage space. refrigerated storage or at additional room temperature, as needs change.

As described in relation to figures 20 and 23, a cooling / storage module may have a heating element 484 to allow a user to selectively raise the temperature in the module above room temperature, as well as to cool the module below room temperatures . In each mode, the cooling / storage module can have a flow controller to allow or block the flow of cooled air to the cooling / storage module and, as in the modalities illustrated in Figures 20 and 23, it can have a heating element that can be selectively energized to heat the contents of the cooling / storage module. The flow controller, damper 486 or circulation fan 465, and heating element 484 can be connected to controller 300 (see figure 10) via control circuit 306. System controller 300 may be arranged to selectively operate at least one flow controller to allow cool air to flow through at least one insulated duct for cooling the contents of the cooling / storage module to a temperature below the desired environment ; or selectively operating the flow controller to block the flow of cooled air through at least one insulated duct for operating the cooling / storage module as an unconditioned storage space (i.e., at room temperature); or selectively operating the flow controller to block the flow of cooled air through at least one insulated duct and selectively operating the heating element to heat the contents of the cooling / storage module to a desired temperature above ambient; or selectively operate the flow controller approximately to allow or block the flow of chilled air to the cooling / storage module and selectively operating the heating element to sequence the storage temperature of the contents in the cooling / storage module through a sequence cycle predetermined temperature for cause physical or chemical effects on the contents of the cooling / storage module. For example, predetermined temperature sequence cycles may include defrosting, fermenting, leavening, rapid-setting cooling and rapid cooling.

Turning to figures 27A to 27D, an illustration of time and temperature conditions in four temperature sequence cycles can be seen. In figure 27A, controller 300 can be programmed to cause the temperature in a cooling / storage module to rise to a predetermined regulated temperature to leaven the contents and then maintain for a predetermined time or with an open end. In figure 27B, controller 300 can be programmed to maintain the contents of the refrigeration / storage module at a regulated temperature above the predetermined environment for a predetermined time for aging or fermentation of the contents and then to reduce the temperature of the contents to a temperature maintenance, which may be above or below ambient temperature. At 27C, controller 300 can raise the temperature to defrost the contents and then maintain the contents at a reduced temperature above freezing. In figure 27D, the controller can cause the temperature in the refrigeration / storage module to rapidly drop to cool the contents and then allow the temperature to rise to a regulated temperature. In the programs illustrated in Figures 27B, 27C and 27D, the controller can be arranged to change from higher to lower temperatures or from lower to higher temperatures, based on an elapsed time, or an input from a temperature sensor or another sensor, such as a moisture, carbon dioxide or hydrocarbon sensor (such as ethylene or other food product gases caused by ripening or decay), so that the predetermined temperature sequence cycle is dependent on the changed condition / condition of the contents of the cooling / storage module. Those skilled in the art will understand that the predetermined temperature sequence cycles, in addition to those illustrated in figure 27 and described above, can be used with the cooling / storage modules described above. Likewise, those skilled in the art will understand that a controller can be arranged to allow a user to program a temperature sequence cycle using a user interface or another well-known programming method.

Turning to figures 28 and 29, a cooling system distributed according to the installed invention applied to a floor level of the house can be seen schematically. Residential housing 525 illustrated in Figures 28 and 29 may have a kitchen 526, a bathroom 528, an office or small work room 520, a living room or family room 532 and a patio 534. Although a refrigeration system distributed according to the invention is illustrated in a simple housing in Figures 28 and 29, those skilled in the art will understand that refrigeration systems distributed according to the invention can be used in combination with any housing style having any desired number of rooms or floor levels. The distributed cooling system shown in Figures 28 and 29 can have a primary cooling machine, a central cooling unit 10, which can be similar to the central cooling unit 10 illustrated and described in detail in relation to figures 1, 12, 15, 17A and 17B and will not be described again in detail in relation to figures 28 and 29. The central cooling unit 10 can include a controller 50 and can have temperature selectors 36 which can be located on a user interface in a remote location, such as in kitchen 526, as shown in Figures 28 and 29. Although temperature selectors 36 are illustrated in a combined user interface, those skilled in the art will understand that temperature selectors 36 can be combined with each remote cooling device, if desired, as is well known in the art. The central cooling unit 10 can be connected to a secondary cooling medium circuit. In the embodiment illustrated in figure 28, a secondary cooling medium circuit15 comprises an insulated conduit 42 that forms a loop leading from the cooled liquid evaporator 40 in the central cooling unit 10 around the drive piston head perimeter 525 and back to the cooled liquid evaporator 40. As described in detail above, pump 44 can circulate a liquid cooler through insulated ducts 42. Although insulated duct 42 is positioned on the perimeter walls in Figures 28 and 29, those skilled in the art will understand that insulated ducts 42 can be located on other walls and / or portions of the home, as desired, to provide access to the loop secondary cooling system in desired locations in arrears25 days. A pressure differential valve 541 can be provided in the secondary cooling medium circuit to adjust any pressure differential between supply and return pressures. The secondary cooling medium circuit, also referred to as the secondary cooling loop, can include a plurality of access points 535 (figure 28) and

535 '(figure 29). An enlarged view of an access point 535 can be seen in Figure 28A. Access point 535 can include a housing 533 that can wrap around conduits 42 and can support remote device connectors 543 when a remote cooling device is connected to an access point. Remote device connectors 543 can be well-known connectors for use with liquid refrigerant circuits and can be quick-connect or permanent connections, as desired.

Access point 535 may also include an electrical connector, not shown, for making a suitable connection between control circuit 56 and the electrical component (s) in the remote cooling device. Access point 535 can also include a valve 545 that can be connected to control circuit 56. Valve 545 can open to allow cooled liquid refrigerant to flow to a remote cooling device when activated by controller 50. Although a central cooling unit 10 is shown in Figures 28 and 29, those skilled in the art will understand that a central absorption cooling unit, as shown in figure 14, or a central Stirling cycle cooling unit, as shown in figure 16, can be used in the modalities of figures 28 and 29, as desired.

A variety of remote cooling devices can be connected to the secondary cooling medium circuit for the provision of distributed cooling for various purposes in widely spaced locations

- 20 in a house. The following are examples of remote cooling devices that can be used. Those skilled in the art will understand that the following examples are just that and that the examples are not to be understood as limiting the invention to the remote cooling devices illustrated in Figures 28 and 29. A remote cooling device25 can be a cooling module 20 located in a 534 courtyard. Cooling module 20 can be a patio cooler for chilled drinks or snacks. The cooling module 20 can be similar to the cooling module 20 described in relation to figures 1, 12, 14, 16,17A and 17B, and will not be described again in relation to figures 28 and 29. The cooling module 30 generation 20 it can be connected to an access point 535 and 535 ', as described above, and can operate as described above. Another remote cooling device can be a cooling module 384 combined with a cascade cooling unit 400. The cooling module 384 and the cascade cooling unit 400 can be similar to the cooling module 384 and the cooling unit in cascade 400 described in detail with respect to figure 15, and will not be described again in detail. The cascade cooling unit 400 can be connected with remote device connectors to access point 535 and 535 'and can operate as described above in relation to figure 15. Another remote cooling device can be a dehumidifier 546 that can be employed to reduce humidity in bathroom 528 that can be generated during showers or baths. Dehumidifier 546 can be similar to the cooling modules described above and can include a heat exchanger 548, a heat exchange fan 549, a temperature sensor 34 and a humidity meter 547. The heat exchange fan 549, the Temperature sensor 34 and humidity meter 547 can be connected to isolated conduits 42 at access point 535 and 535 'using remote device connectors 543, as described above. Dehumidifier 546 may have a condensate basket, not shown, or may be connected to a drain for condensate disposal, as is well known in the art. Instead of connecting temperature sensor 34 and humidity meter 547 to controller 50, a control panel - not shown - can be provided on dehumidifier 546, as will be readily understood by those skilled in the art. Another remote cooling device can be a 552 CPU cooler that can be arranged for cooling a computer's central processor or server. The CPU cooler can include a 5534 heat exchanger and a temperature sensor 34. The CPU cooler 552 can connect to the secondary cooling medium circuit using remote device connectors 543 to connect to an access point 535 and 535 '. Temperature sensor 34 can connect to controller 50 via a suitable electrical connector on control circuit 56 at access point 535 and 535 '. Another remote cooling device can be a local area cooler

556 which is illustrated, in the living room or family room 532. The local area cooler 556 can provide air conditioning or supplementary air conditioning for a room or a home portion 525. For example, house 525 may be located in a climate that does not require air conditioning for the entire house or central, but cooling for part of a day or part of the year can be satisfactorily considered with a local area cooler 556, instead of a roomy air conditioner. The local area cooler 556 can have a cabinet 557 that can involve a heat exchanger 558 and a heat exchange fan 560. The local area cooler 556 can include a temperature sensor 34 and a temperature selector 36 that can be connected to controller 50, or alternatively can be accessed from a control panel in cabinet 557 for controlling the local area cooler 556 on the device. The local area cooler 556 can be connected to access point 535, 535 'using remote device connectors 543, as described above. The 556 local area cooler can operate similarly to a room air conditioner and can include a condensate collector for condensate collection, or it can have a condensate drain line that can be connected to a home drain line or can be directed outside for disposal as desired.

A second primary cooling machine can be connected to the secondary cooling loop to provide an additional source of cooling in the secondary cooling medium circuit. In the embodiment illustrated in Figures 28 and 29, the second primary refrigeration machine can be a 536 horizontal freezer. The horizontal freezer 536 may have an insulated cabinet 537 and a freezer cooling circuit including a static evaporator 538, an expansion device 539, a condenser 540, a compressor 542 and a condenser fan 550. The horizontal freezer 536 can also have a heat rejection element which can be a cooled liquid evaporator 544 which can be connected to insulated ducts 42 at an access point 535, 535 'using remote device connectors 543 which can provide additional cooling in the secondary cooling loop. The horizontal freezer 536 may also have a temperature sensor 34 and a temperature selector 36 that can be connected to controller 50 via control circuit 56, as described above. Those skilled in the art will understand that the horizontal freezer 536 can have a suitable cover or insulated housing, not shown, and that the temperature selector 36 can be positioned on a control panel in the horizontal freezer 536, if desired, rather than on a remote user interface as illustrated. When the horizontal freezer 536 is operating, a suction line heat exchanger or chilled liquid evaporator 544 can absorb heat from the liquid cooler being circulated in the insulated ducts 42, thereby supplementing the cooling capacity of the distributed cooling system. . In addition, the freezer cooling circuit may include a bypass valve 551 that can be integrated with the expansion device 539 connected to the control circuit 56, which can allow a central controller 50 for the bypass evaporator 538 make the cooling capacity of the horizontal freezer 536 available on the cooled liquid evaporator 544 to provide additional cooling for the distributed cooling system. Although a secondary primary refrigeration machine is illustrated as a horizontal freezer in the modalities of figures 28 and 29, those skilled in the art will understand that other refrigeration machines, such as a central air conditioner condensing unit, freezers of other configurations, as well as such as refrigerator freezers, ice makers, air-conditioned cellars and the like having a cooling unit, can be used as an additional primary cooling machine in a distributed cooling system, if desired.

In the embodiment illustrated in figure 29 and figure 29A, the secondary cooling medium circuit can have a single isolated conduit 42 connecting access points 535 'to the cooled liquid evaporator 40 and pump 44. Access points 535' can have a housing 564 and may include a valve 566 that can be connected to controller 50 via control circuit 56. Valve 566 can close, forcing the cooling of cooled liquid circulating in the insulated conduit 42 to bypass through the remote device, when valve 566 is closed by controller 50. Access point 535 'may have a suitable electrical connector, not shown, to facilitate the connection of remote cooling devices to controller 50. The single-line secondary cooling medium circuit shown in figure 29, otherwise, it can operate similarly to the supply line and return line system illustrated in figure 28.

The cooling modules, cooling / storage modules, satellite stations, combined satellite stations and central cooling units described above were selected to explain the invention. However, the invention is not limited to specific examples of modules, satellite stations and central cooling units, and these elements can take any desired shape and can be combined as desired within the scope of the invention. The invention is not to be limited to refrigeration modules and equipment located in any particular geometric orientation. The central cooling unit and receiving modules do not need to be positioned in the same horizontal plane, as appropriate pumps and fans can adjust elevation differences resulting from a desired location of cooling units and modules. Although the use of quick coupling connections for connecting satellite stations to refrigerant lines in distributed refrigeration systems is described above, those skilled in the art will understand that quick coupling connections are not necessary for the practice of the inventions described in this application and that, instead, any well-known refrigerant line connection arrangements can be used as desired.

The controllers for the central cooling units, the cooling modules, the satellite stations, the combined satellite stations and the central cooling units and the cooling / storage modules described above, including the control circuits, the thermostats, the selectors temperature switches and selector switches, can be arranged to function as controls, components and devices to connect and use, or they may be arranged to function as part of a home appliance network that may be part of a home network. Co-pending International Orders PCT / 2006/022420, Software Architecture System and Method for Communication with, and Management of, at Least One Component Within a Household Appliance, filed on June 8, 2006; PCT / 2006/022503, Components and Accessories for a Communication Appliance, filed on June 9, 2006; and PCT / 2006/022528, Comprehensive System for Product Management, filed on June 9, 2006; and US Patent Application 11 / 619.767, Host and Adapter for Docking a Consumer Electronic Device In Discrete Orientation, filed on January 4, 2007, all assigned to the assignee of this order, show architectural elements for plug-and-use controls and modular systems that can be used in practice of the inventions described in this application. Co-pending International Applications PCT / 2006/022420, PCT / 2006/022503, PCT / 2006/022528 and US Patent Application co-pending 11 / 619,767 are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety.

Although the invention has been specifically described in relation to certain specific embodiments thereof, it is to be understood that this is by way of illustration and not limitation, and the scope of the appended claims must be constructed as widely as the prior art allows.