Point-of-use holding cabinet

• US 9,003,820 B2
• Filed: 04/20/2010
• Issued: 04/14/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 04/20/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Marmon Foodservice Technologies Incorporated (Berkshire Hathaway Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Prince Castle LLC (Berkshire Hathaway Incorporated)
• Inventors: Veltrop, Loren
• Primary Examiner(s): Ciric, Ljiljana
• Assistant Examiner(s): COX, ALEXIS K
• Application Number:
  US12/763,553
• Publication Number:
  US 20110252813A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,820 Days
• Field of Search: 622/29, 624/51
• US Class Current: 62/229
• CPC Class Codes: A47J 36/2483 with electrical heating means
• CPC Class Codes: A47J 39/006 for either storing and preparing or for preparing food on serving trays, e.g. heating, thawing, preserving
• CPC Class Codes: F25B 21/02 using Peltier effect; using Nernst-Ettinghausen effect
• CPC Class Codes: F25D 25/028 Cooled supporting means
• CPC Class Codes: F25D 31/005 Combined cooling and heating devices

Abstract

A point-of-use food holding cabinet keeps food products hot and cold in different compartments, which are heated and refrigerated respectively. The refrigerated compartment is kept cold using a conventional refrigeration device. The heated compartment is kept hot using an electrically-resistive heater wire. One compartment or shelf of a holding cabinet can be refrigerated while an adjacent compartment can be kept warm.

Claims

1. A dual mode point-of-use, food holding cabinet comprising:

a chassis having a front face and an opposing rear face;

a first food holding compartment within the chassis, the first food holding compartment having first and second openings, the first opening being open, uncovered and located at the front face of the chassis, the second opening being open, uncovered and located at the rear face of the chassis, the first and second openings being configured to allow food items to be placed into and removed from the first food holding compartment;

a second food holding compartment within the chassis, the second food holding compartment having first and second openings, the first opening of the second food holding compartment being open, uncovered and located at the front face of the chassis, the second opening of the second food holding compartment being open, uncovered and located at the rear face of the chassis, the first and second openings of the second food holding compartment being configured to allow food items to be placed into and removed from the first food holding compartment;

a shelf located between and defining the first and second food holding compartments, the shelf comprising a first side and a second side, the first side facing into the first food holding compartment, the second side facing into the second food holding compartment;

a first refrigeration coil located between the first and second sides of the shelf, the first refrigeration coil being thermally insulated from one of the first side and the second side;

a first electrically resistive wire located between the first and second sides of the shelf, the first electrically resistive wire being thermally insulated from the other one of the first side and the second side; and

a controller operatively coupled to the first refrigeration coil and to the first electrically resistive wire, the controller being configured to operate the first refrigeration coil and the first electrically resistive wire simultaneously to absorb heat from one of the first side and the second side and to provide heat to the other of the first side and the second side;

wherein each of the first and second food holding compartments can be selectively heated or cooled.

2. The food holding cabinet of claim 1, further comprising:

a vapor-phase/liquid-phase refrigeration system operatively coupled to the first refrigeration coil and wherein at least one of the first and second food holding compartments can be cooled by activation of the vapor-phase/liquid-phase refrigeration system.

3. The food holding cabinet of claim 1, wherein at least one of the first side and second side of the shelf is made of a glass-ceramic.

4. The food holding cabinet of claim 1, further comprising a refrigerated liquid, which is circulated through the first refrigeration coil.

5. The food holding cabinet of claim 1, further comprising:

a transistor comprising a P-N junction, the transistor being coupled to at least one of the first food holding compartment and the second food holding compartment, the transistor being configured to effectuate control of the temperature of the at least one of the first food holding compartment and the second food holding compartment by a calculation of the P-N junction'"'"'s temperature from a measurement of a voltage across the P-N junction.

6. The food handling cabinet of claim 5, wherein the temperature sensor is thermally coupled to the first compartment.

7. The food holding cabinet of claim 1, wherein the first compartment is located in the chassis, below the second compartment.

8. The food holding cabinet of claim 7, wherein the shelf is comprised of ultra-low expansion glass.

9. The food holding cabinet of claim 7, wherein the heat-sinking device is a comprised of a refrigerated liquid.