US1926718A - Refrigerated display case for butcher shops and the like - Google Patents

Description

Sept. 12, 1933.

.' 'REFRIGERATED DISPLAY CASE FOR BUTCHER :SHOPS'KND THE LIKE c. FREDBERGY Filed Sept. 9. 1929 Y Y v Patented Sept. 12,1933 v v a W an", is

. iszavis nnrnrcnnarnn DISPLAY case For. :ep'rorma snore AND r m LIKE Y "can Fredberg, Chicago, Ill. Applicationseptember 9,1929; Serial no; some:

9 Claims. {(162-8915) In butcher shops, delicatessen stores and the ated displaycase with compartments disposed one i like, it has been customary in recent years to use above'the other and having a new andimproved I transparent refrigerated display counters for. door construction for the lower compartment showing the various-cuts of meat or other foods. whichrenders the products clearly visible from a Q 5 While such displayof the foods isdesirable and point -forwardly or" and above the compartment, 0

aids the customer to some extent in selecting the which permits the doors of laterally adjacent com cuts of'rneat'desired, it-has not been entirely satpartments to be opened at the same time, and isfactory because of the poor refrigeration of the whichmove', when opened, 'to'an out-of-the-way countersand the small storage capacity thereof. position so as to facilitate removal of the foods 10 Thishas made it necessaryto stock thecounter from the compartment. V i 65 frequently ,during the day and to remove all meats Anotherobject is to provide such a-display case from the counter at, night, Much time has also arranged so that arapid and positive circulation been lost in bringing various large cutsof meat of cooled air is maintainedwithin the compartfrom the storage cooleriorcutting"or for inspecmerits atall times, and further-arranged so that Q tion by the customers; a I the normal'cpening and closing ofthe doors'pro- Byireason of the type of building usually occu-- motes'circulation or" the air-Within the case and pied and because of thelnecessityror economy of serves to prevent any increase inthe temperafioor and irontage'space, themajority of shops ture due to such openingoithe doors. 1 g of this kind areiound in narrow and ,compara- Y Other'objects and advantages will become ap i tively deep rooms with theoounters and aisles arparent from the following description taken. in

ranged insubstantially thesanie manner: The connection with the accompanying drawing, in conVentionalLand most eficient arrangement is which: f 1 v i provide'dby placing a'counter. lengthwise of the Figurel is a iragme'ntal perspective view of a room to provide an-aisleon one sidefor the cus-- display Case c y h the invelltibn- 5 tomers and-a work space fortthe salesmen behind a Fig. 2 is an enlarged vertical sectional view of v v or. on the other -side'of the'counter The storage the caseshown'in Fig.1: cooler is, in such cases, placed in theback end of Fig. .3 is an end view: of store showing the the'room so that the replenishing of the stool; case positioned therein for use;

in the-display counter or the carrying of meats While the invention is susceptible of ,various go to the front of the store forinspection involves; modifictions' and alternative constructions, I l

considerable loss oftimef l i V V have shown in the'drawing and will herein de- The primary object of the presentfinvention is scribe in detail thepreie'rred embodiment, but it to increase the efficiency andeconomywith which is to be understood that I do not thereby intend stores ofthis character maybe operated'by proto limit the invention to the specific form disviding a narrow'refrigerated display case having closed, but intend to cove-rail modifications and 9 substantially the efiiciency of the storage coolers alternative constructions falling within the spir-j heretofore usedand adapted to be positioned in it and scope of the invention as expressed inthe the work space behind the counter so as to provide appended claims. I r

a large amount of space wherein the cuts: of meat In the drawing, the; invention is illustrated as 40 of various-sizes maybe supported in large quanembodied in a case having insulated walls desig 95. V tities in full viewof the prospective purchasers hated generally bythe numeral 19 defining a narand 'at' the same time readily available to the row elongated body ofsubstantial height adapted salesmen. i r a I F r to be positioned against the side wall ofa nar- Another object is to provide such a display case row store as illustrated in Fig. Sandproviding a having separate compartments disposedone above pair of compartments l1 and 12 disposed one the other for the reception of the maximum quanabove the. other and opening through the for-- tity of cuts of meat of different sizes, the transward wall of the case. r parent forward walls being arranged to insure The two- compartments 11 and 12 are accessible perfect visibility of the products therein from a through a large rectangular opening 13 formed point in the aisle outside of the counter and the in'the forward one of the insulated walls 10 and 9 doors of the compartment adapted for large cuts the two compartments are separated by a transof meat being arranged so that the workmen may Verse wall '14 supported at its forward edge by a 'readily and-easily remove such largeheavy cuts horizontal header-l5 extending across the openfrom the compartment. ing 1 3 intermediateits top and bottom edges. Amorespeoific object isto provide a refriger- 1 A case of this'chara'cterniay be placed against the wall of a store as illustrated in Fig. 3 so'that the goods within the compartments are viewed by customers standing outside of the usual counter 16 and the two compartments l1 and 12 are arranged to provide three distinct display zones disposed at different heights in the case so that goods in all-three zones may be readily seen by the customers. The lower display zone is formed by the bottom compartment 11 which has abottom wall 17 in horizontal position flush with the lower side of the opening 13. The bottom wall 17 of the lower compartment 11 is but a short distance above the fioor, in'the present case about two feet, so that a customer standing in frontof the'oounter 16 must look downward ly at an angle into the compartment as indicated i by the dotted line A shown in Fig. 3. To insure a clear view of the goods contained in the compartment l1, and to permit of convenient access thereto, a plurality of transparent doors 18 are provided for the lower compartment 11, the doors I' sloping upwardly and rear-wardiy so as to'avoid reflection of. light. e v p In the. present case the doors 18 are of arcuate cross section as shown in Fig. 2 and in order that the opening of the doors will not interfere'with the workmen, the doors are pivotally mounted on brackets 19 so as to be-movable about a horizontal axisi into an out-of-the-way position in the top portion of the lower compartment, as shown in dotted. outline in Fig. 2. By this arrangement, any one of the doors 18 may be opened irrespective of the position of the'adjacent doors and since the workman may reach downwardly at anangle into the compartment with both hands andmay hold the door open'with his upper arm or shoulder, he'is able to lift large heavycuts of meat from the compartment with the minimum of effort and loss of time;

. The second and third display zones are formed by the upper compartment l2, one being pro-' vided by the bottom wall-14 of the compartment while the other is formed along the backof the compartment. In order that the foods, in both.

of these zones of display maybe clearly seen :by

.the customers, the header 15 which defines the 7 lower front edge of the compartment 12, is positioned at a distance above the floorslightly less than the height of an ordinary obseriverfs eye, and the bottom wallle slopes upwardly and rearwardly therefrom so that an observer 'standingf infrontofthe counter 16 maylook, along the line B (Fig. 3) into the compartment to inspect foods positioned, on trays 20 removably sup ported. on the slopingibottom wall 14. t

. A division-wall 21 extending'downwardly from a plurality of cross beams 22 positioned above 7 the compartment 12 serves to support the rear edge of the wall 14 and also provides a rear wall for the compartment 12 upon which suitable hooks 23 may be fixed for hanging various cuts of meat. The hooks 23 provide the third display zone which may be viewed by thecustomer by forwardly from the upper rear edge of the doors 18 of the lower compartment. This construction, as clearly shown in Fig. 2, is providedby making the header .15 of triangular cross-section with the lower side 24 sloping upwardly and forwardly from the lower doors 18 so as not to interfere with the customers view downwardly through thedoors 18. Between the header 15 and the upper edge ofthe opening 13, a plurality of posts 25' extend to form separate openings for a plurality of transparent glass doors 26 which are, in the present case mounted along the upper forward edge of the header 15 on the posts 25 by hinges 27 so that they may be swung outwardly to provide access to the compartment 12.

Thus a workman may open one of the doors 26 and may remove meats from the trays 20 or from the hooks 23 and to enable the'workman to stand exceedingly close to thecase and thereby facilitate such removal'of stock, the lower forward corner of the case is cutv away or rounded as indicated at 28 in Fig. 2, so that the workmans feet may project under the case.

Within the case and above the upper display compartment, a cooling chamber 29 is formed by a wall 30 supported on'the cross beams 22, the wall terminating short of the front and rear walls of the case so as to provide spaces-31 and 32 along the forward and .rear edges" respectively of the wall 30. The cooling means may be of any preferred character and in the presentinstance comprises a brine tank 33 and coils 34 supported by the horizontal wall 30 in the cooling chamber 29. The air'cooledby thefcoils 34 and the tank 33 passes downwardly along the rear one .of the insulated walls-10 through'a duct or passage-way 35 formed between the division wall 21 and the insulated rear wallof the case. It will be noted that the passage-way 35 extends pastthe upper 7 compartment 12 so thatit is of considerable verextending from substantially. the top of the cooling chamber 29 past the upper compartment 12 and into thelower comparament .11 and obviously the rapid movement of the air downwardly therethrough aids in drawing the air from the front of the cooling chamber 29 over the "tank 33 and into the passage-way. V

v The bottom wall 14 of the upper compartment 12 is formed in sections which are spaced from each other to provide air circulation openings in which-screens-36 are positioned as shown in, Fig. 2, and the cooled air in the lower compartment 11 passes upwardly, through the screens 36 into the upper compartment; In theupper compartment 12, the upwardly moving air is directed forwardlyto the space 31 at the front of the compartment by a sloping baflle wall 37 supported beneath the wall 30 and connectedto the rear wall 21 of the compartment. The bafiie wall 3'7 sloping downwardly to meet the rear wall 21 a short distance above thehooks 23 imparts a finished appearance to the interior of the compartment and also serves as a drain board to catch condensate formed on the-coils and the brine tank. Access to the cooling chamber 29' is' provided by a door 38 in one of the end walls of the case and in order that sufficient working space may be provided within the chamber 29"aboutthe ,coils and brinetank 33 the forward wall of the chamber is offset forwardly above the oomfloor spaceoccupiedrbythe case.

' Since the upper compartment 12 does not com municate'directly with the cold air passagew'ay and is closed at its upper-rear corner by the baifie'walls 37'and 21, the opening and closing of the doors 26 does not efiect the downward movement of the cold air thereinand doesnot materially effect the temperature in the back of the upper compartment 12,'and any warm air,

which'enters through the open doors 26 moves directly up through the space 31 at the forward side of the compartment into the cooling cham-; her.

This serves to force more cooled air down the passageway ,35 and accelerates the circulation of air so as to improve the operation of the case. The circulation. of the air is further accelerated by the slamming of the doors 26 and as a result it has beenfound that repeated opening and closing of the doors does not materially effect the temperature within the case. 'If desired, a vertical baffle wall 40 'may be positioned in front of thef'coilsfi along the rear edge of the space to offset any tendency'of the cooledair about the coils 34 to moveidownwardly through the space 31; r

With acase constructed in accordancewith the present invention it has'be'en found that two' workmenare able to handle a volume of business which ha's'heretofore necessitated" the employ V ment of at least three men. Thisresult may be attributed to the convenience .of the arrange-. ment of display compartments which enables the or customers to select the particularcut of meat desired before the workman has finished putting up the orders of the preceding customer. It also results from the fact that the meats are all within convenient reach of the workmen and the storage capacity-of the compartments is quite meats from the compartments to arstorage cooler atthe end ofthe day so that it will be seen that the use of the case is far more simple and satisfactory than the display counters heretofore used. I claim as my inventionz- 1. A display and storage'case of the refrigerated type adapted for use in small stores, said case comprising a narrow elongated body of sub-'- stantialfheight and providing a lower display compartment in said body positioned a short dis- "tance above the floor, transparent doors for said compartment in the'forward side thereof slop ing upwardly and rearwardly so as to provide a clear view of the products insaid compartment from a point in front of the case and above the compartment, said doors being movable so as to permit of access into said compartment, said case also providing a second compartment above said lower compartment, said second compartment having transparent doors in its forward side offset forwardly; from the upper edge of the doors'of said lower compartment so as to provide a compartment of substantial depth, and cooling means in said case adapted to induce a circulation, of air through said compartments.

'A-display 'caseof the refrigerated type .com-

prising a narrow elongated body of substantial height and providing a lower display compartment ashort distance aboveithe floor, a transparent doorfor said compartment in the forward side. thereof sloping upwardly and rearwardly so as to provide a clear view of theproducts therein from a point in front of the case and above the compartment, .said door being move able to permit of access to said compartment,

supporting various cuts of 'meat transparent doors forming the forward wall of said second compartment, and means for cooling sai'd case.

3. Arefrigerated displaycase having a pair of forwardly [opening display compartments jdisposed one abovethe otheiythe lower one of said compartments having transparent doors in the V open forward side thereof'sloping upwardly'and rearwardly, aheader abutting the upper edgeof saiddoo'rs, theforward sideof said header being formed to slope upwardly and forwardly from its point of contact with said doors so as to permit of an unobstructed view angularly downwardly into the lower c'ompartment and provide a larger effective openingthereinto, transparent doors disposed along the upper forward edge of said header'serving to closethe upper compartment,

and means for cooling said compartments. i i

I i 4. A refrigerated display case'adapted for use in small stores, said case comprising a narrow elongated body providing a pairof display compartments in the lower portion thereof, a cooling chamber formed by saidwalls in the upperportion vision','-a plurality of'hooks-in' said second compar-tment adjacent to'the rear wall-thereof for of said body, said chambercommunicating with said compartments, and cooling means in said chamber, the forward wall of said cooling chamber being offset forwardly with respect .to the forward walls of said display compartments whereby to provide working space about said cooling means without increasing the floorspace occupied by the case. v a

i 5. A refrigerated display case comprising walls defining a narrow comparatively high case with two forwardly" opening display compartments therein disposed one above the other and a cooling chamber above said compartmenta said compartments communicating with'each other to permit air to pass from the lower into'the upper compartment,,means providing a passage along downwardly past said upper compartment into. the lower compartment, and cooling means in.

said chamber including a brine tank positioned in the rear portion of said chamber so as to increase the effective vertical length of said passageway.

6. A refrigerated display case having walls 7 defining a pair of forwardly opening display compartments disposed one above the other and a the upper forward corner'of the upper cOmpartcooling chamber above said compartments, trans-1' parent doors closing the open forward side s of said compartments, said'compartments communieating with each other to permit passage of air and having means for supportingfoods on the bottoms thereof, means for supporting food at the back of the upper compartment, means providing a rear wall for'the upper oneof said compartments and defining a cold air passageway back of the upper of said compartments to conduct the cooled air from said cooling chamber to the lower compartment and means defininganfopening along the upperforward corner of said upper compartment to permit warm air to pass upwardly into said cooling chamber, the upper rear cor ner of said upper compartment beingclosed so as to provide'an air pocket tending'to prevent passage of warm air from the doors tothe back .of theupper compartment. 1 V

7. A display case of the refrigerated type comprising a narrow elongated body of substantial height andproviding a lowerfdisplay compartment a short distance above the floor, a transparent door for said compartment in the forward side thereof sloping upwardly and rearwardly so as to provide a clear view of the products therein from a point in front of the case and above the 'compartment,'-said door being movable to permit of access to said compartment, lower and rear division Walls within said body forming a second display compartment above said first compartment, the lower wall of said second compartmentbeing inclined upwardly and rearwardly and positioned at such a distance above the floor that customers may view meats thereon along a downwardly inclined line of vision, supporting means in said second compartment adjacent to the rear wall thereof for supporting various cuts of meat above the sloping bottom wall of said compartment and adjacent to the rear wall thereof, transparent doors forming the forward wall of said second compartment, and means 'for cooling said case. r c 1 l v ,8. A refrigerated display case having, a pair of forwardly opening display compartments discompartments having transparent doors in the open forward side thereof sloping upwardly and rearwardly, a, header abutting the upper edge posed one above the other, the lower one of said of said doors, the forward side of said header being formed to slop upwardly and forwardly from its point of contact with said doors so as to permit of an unobstructed view angularly downwardly into the lower compartment and provide a larger effective opening thereinto, transparent doors disposed alongthe upper forward edge of said header serving to close the upper compartment, a cooling chamber formed on said case above said upper compartment and having a forward wall offset forwardly from the plane of the transparent doors of the upper comwall of the case from the cooling chamber downwardly past said upper compartment without communication with the upper compartment and into the lower compartment, and cooling means in said chamber,

CARL rnnnnnna.

Images