Laundry transport container apparatus and method

• US 10,393,434 B2
• Filed: 03/20/2015
• Issued: 08/27/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 01/22/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Bertram E. Lacey
• Original Assignee: Bertram E. Lacey
• Inventors: Lacey, Bertram E.
• Primary Examiner(s): McCormack, John P
• Application Number:
  US14/664,776
• Publication Number:
  US 20160273834A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,621 Days
• Field of Search: 236 44 A, 236 44 C, 236 493, 454239, 454252, 62 78, 34218
• CPC Class Codes: B65D 2590/0066 Containers inside the container
• CPC Class Codes: B65D 88/745 blowing or injecting heating, cooling or other conditioning fluid inside the container
• CPC Class Codes: B65D 90/006 fixed on the floor of the container B65D90/0066, B65D90/0073 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: B65D 90/48 Arrangements of indicating or measuring devices
• CPC Class Codes: F26B 23/00 Heating arrangements by radiation, e.g. infrared, ultraviolet, solar F26B3/28 and F26B3/30; using heated air or gases F26B21/00
• CPC Class Codes: F26B 9/06 in stationary drums or chambers

Abstract

A laundry transport apparatus and method includes a container defining an interior area configured to accommodate a plurality of laundry carts, the container having a door movable between closed and open configurations to selectively allow access to the interior area. The apparatus includes a ventilation network to pass air to and from the interior area and the outside, the intake duct and the outlet duct in a thermal transfer configuration for a portion of their length to influence temperature of air passing through each duct, warmer air passing through one of the intake duct or the outlet duct becoming cooler and cooler air passing through another of the intake duct or the outlet duct becoming warmer. The ventilation network including a pathogen identification, containment and remediation apparatus to detect, isolate and treat potentially harmful material within the soiled laundry.

Claims

1. A laundry transport apparatus, comprising:

a container having front and rear ends, sad container defining an opening at said front end and defining an interior area having an open configuration to selectively allow access to said interior area, said interior area having a length;

wherein said container includes a door at said container front end for selectively accessing said interior area, said door being movable between a closed configuration preventing access to said interior area and an open configuration giving access to said interior area;

a plurality of laundry carts removably positioned in said interior space, each laundry cart configured to hold laundry;

a ventilation network situated in said interior area and configured to pass air to and from said interior area, said ventilation network including;

an intake duct operatively coupled to a top wall of said transport apparatus and extending longitudinally between said front and rear ends, said intake duct configured to channel air to said interior area;

an outlet duct configured to channel air away from said interior area;

wherein said ventilation network is configured to cause air to pass through either or both said intake duct and said outlet duct;

at least one fan configured to cause air to pass through said intake duct and said outlet duct;

wherein said interior area is airtight apart from said ventilation network when said door is at said closed configuration;

wherein at least a portion of said intake and outlet ducts are immediately adjacent one another to influence temperature of air passing through one of said intake duct and said outlet duct, warmer air passing through one of said intake duct or said outlet duct becoming cooler and cooler air passing through another of said intake duct or said outlet duct becoming warmer;

wherein said intake and outlet ducts include a plurality of branches extending outwardly and downwardly, each branch having a terminal end defining an opening positioned immediately adjacent a top of a respective laundry cart so as to ventilate the laundry in said laundry cart;

a climate controller for selectively heating and cooling air passing through said intake duct after said air is influenced by air passing through said outlet duct to cause said air passing through said intake duct to approximate a temperature of air in said interior area separate from said ventilation network; and

a dehumidifier to selectively dehumidify air passing through said intake duct;

a processor operatively coupled to a container area to store and convey transport data, the transport data includes at least one of;

time data, duration data, and temperature data, and temperature data;

a pathogen system

having a flow management system for directing an airflow and operatively coupled to a pathogen control processor;

said pathogen control processor capable of controlling the flow management system to detect and isolate a portion of the airflow determined to be contaminated wit potential pathogens, and selectively routing the contaminated portion of the airflow for pathogen isolation.

2. The laundry transport apparatus as in claim 1, wherein the pathogen system has the capacity to perform pathogen remediation of the contamination portion of the airflow.

3. The laundry transport apparatus as in claim 1, wherein the pathogen system is a stand-alone module, operatively coupled to the ventilation network.