PORTABLE INSTANT COOLING SYSTEM WITH CONTROLLED TEMPERATURE OBTAINED THROUGH TIMED-RELEASE LIQUID OR GASEOUS CO2 COOLANT FOR GENERAL REFRIGERATION USE IN MOBILE AND STATIONARY CONTAINERS

Abstract

Standalone and self-contained cooling systems using compressed liquid and/or gas CO.sub.2 containers positioned in an insulated or non-insulated vessel and consisting of a specially designed unit where the containers are vertically positioned in an upright or upside-down position.

The liquid and/or gas CO.sub.2 coolant is then released into capillary tube(s) embedded into a heat transfer plate or heat exchanger thus leveraging the CO.sub.2 coolant properties.

The temperature is controlled by a metering CO.sub.2 releasing system encompassing an electronic control device which can be operated remotely and/or via a touch screen and which sends alerts when pre-defined thresholds are exceeded.

The invention's metering CO.sub.2 releasing system may be triggered by an electronic or a thermostatic valve or may be triggered manually or by an electronic solenoid. The invention's cooling system also encompasses check valves, which avoid liquid and/or gas CO.sub.2 from escaping when removing or replacing CO.sub.2 containers individually.

Claims

1. A system comprising: a. at least one compressed liquid and/or gas CO.sub.2 container (CO.sub.2 container) in the upright position including a CO.sub.2 refrigerant retained within an interior chamber surrounded by a circumferential sidewall and top of each of said at least one CO.sub.2 containers; b. a respective siphon tube of a given length able to reach the bottom of each respective at least one CO.sub.2 container in the upright position; c. each respective siphon tube allows the liquid CO.sub.2 to flow from the bottom to the top of each CO.sub.2 container and then to exit through a control or release valve; d. a container selected from the group consisting of an insulated vessel and a non insulated vessel; e. each CO.sub.2 container comprises a mechanism to transmit the liquid and or gas CO.sub.2 selected from the group consisting of inside said vessel and outside said vessel; and f. a connection through a capillary in order to deliver CO.sub.2 as coolant to the vessel when a power supply outage occurs.

2. The system as described in claim 1, further comprising: a. a manifold block utilized to connect one or more CO.sub.2 container to the check valve; b. said at least one CO.sub.2 container having a connecting member with first mating member in fluid communication with each respective siphon tube, each first mating member engaged with a respective second mating member in said manifold block so that at least one CO.sub.2 container in the upright position is connected to said manifold block; c. a check valve between the manifold block and each retained at least one CO.sub.2 container, the check valve connected to a fluid dispensing valve releasing compressed liquid and/or gas CO.sub.2 to a capillary tube embedded in a heat transfer plate; and d. a release or control valve as part of a metering CO.sub.2 control releasing system, which is controlled or actuated selected from the group consisting of manually, electromechanically, electronically or thermostatically, to release liquid and/or gas CO.sub.2 from at least one compressed liquid and/or gas CO.sub.2 container into the system, the control valve metering and controlling the release of compressed liquid and/or gas CO.sub.2 from at least one CO.sub.2 container.

3. The system as described in claim 2, further comprising: a. at least one mating member from said connecting tube are male threads and the second mating member in the manifold block are female threads; b. said manifold block having an internal cavity where the compressed liquid and/or gas CO.sub.2 is conveyed once released; and c. said internal cavity is in connection with the at least one capillary tube embedded into the heat transfer plate.

4. The system as described in claim 2, further comprising: a. the heat transfer plate is made of any material having the capability of transferring heat through its surface and containing embedded capillary tube(s) where the compressed liquid and/or gas CO.sub.2 is released by the releasing valve (either electromechanical or electronic or thermostatic or manual) into the capillary tube(s); and b. the controlled reduction and steady maintenance of temperature along the heat transfer plate allows items to be maintained refrigerated, cooled or frozen.

5. The system as described in claim 2, further comprising: a capillary and a release valve that release CO.sub.2 in a refrigeration space.

6. The system as described in claim 2, further comprising: a. one or more capillary tube(s) with various widths and lengths are embedded in the heat transfer plate or wrapped around a cooling chamber designed to refrigerate, cool or freeze beverages including cans, bottles or other small items in need of refrigeration, cooling or freezing; b. the various widths and lengths of the capillary tube(s) allow an operator to manually regulate, change or control the flow of compressed liquid and/or gas CO.sub.2 thus acting on the temperature setting and on the quantity of compressed liquid and/or gas CO.sub.2 to be released for a more efficient utilization of the heat transfer plate; and c. the capillary tube(s) convey the compressed liquid and/or gas CO.sub.2 along the heat transfer plate, tubes having filters to avoid any freezing, clogging or blocking of the compressed liquid and/or gas CO.sub.2 flow, the capillary-tubes(s) convey the compressed liquid and/or gas CO.sub.2 to be safely released from the CO.sub.2 container(s) in the heat transfer plate, thereby avoiding the compressed liquid and/or gas CO.sub.2 to be directly spilled on the items in need of refrigeration.

7. The system as described in claim 2, further comprising: at least one member functioning as a manual valve control for the purpose of opening and releasing compressed liquid and/or gas CO.sub.2 into the capillary tube(s) embedded in the heat transfer plate when deemed necessary by a user.

8. The system as described in claim 2, further comprising: a. an electronic control device including a transmittal member to transmit encrypted or unencrypted commands to said electronic control device and when a desired cooling temperature is determined, the electronic control device opens the control valve, and compressed liquid and/or gas CO.sub.2 are dispensed through the at least one dispensing valve through the capillary tube(s) embedded in the heat transfer component with the heat transfer component providing the cooling temperature to a selected location; and b. at least an electronic CO.sub.2 member functioning as an electronic valve control for the purpose of evaluating the temperature of a cooler and its surroundings and electrically open and release compressed liquid and/or gas CO.sub.2 into the capillary tube(s) embedded in the heat transfer component until a set threshold temperature inside the cooler is achieved for a desired period(s) and length(s) of time.

9. The system as described in claim 2, further comprising: a. an electronic control device including a transmittal member to transmit encrypted commands to said electronic control device, and when a desired cooling temperature is determined, the electronic control member opens the control valve, and compressed liquid and/or gas CO.sub.2 are dispensed through the at least one dispensing valve through the capillary tube(s) embedded in the heat transfer plate with the heat transfer plate providing the cooling temperature to a selected location; b. at least one electronic solenoid member included in the manifold block and functioning as a valve controller for the purpose of controlling the flow of liquid and/or gas CO.sub.2 into the capillary embedded in the heat exchanger plate when deemed necessary by the user; and c. the solenoid CO.sub.2 valve control remains activated for various times to control the flow of compressed liquid and/or gas CO.sub.2 depending on a desired temperature and/or a desired period(s) and length(s) of time required or needed.

10. The system as described in claim 2, further comprising: a. at least a thermostatic CO.sub.2 member functioning as a valve controlling the temperature from 78 C. to ambient external temperature the at least one compressed liquid and/or gas container; b. the thermostatic CO.sub.2 member is a polymeric/wax-based thermostatic valve which operates by exploiting the thermal expansion of a mixture of polymer/wax components; c. as the polymer/wax mixture begins to melt, the material expands and opens the valve; d. as the system begins to cool, the material contracts and solidifies which allows the valve to close; e. the temperature at which the polymer/wax begins to melt is dependent on its formulation and is selected based on its desired operating temperatures; and f. when the desired operating temperatures are reached, the wax-based thermostatic valve closes for a period of time until an operating temperature exceeds a desired operating; temperature, then the wax-based thermostatic valve opens.

11. The system as described in claim 2, further comprising: a. at least one check valve placed between two or more CO.sub.2 containers; b. the said at least one check valve avoids compressed liquid and/or gas CO.sub.2 from escaping when removing or replacing CO.sub.2 containers individually; and c. the at least one check valve enables efficient utilization of one or more CO.sub.2 containers.

12. The system as described in claim 8, further comprising: the electronic control device including; a. a display where the following temperatures are visualized: i) ambient; and ii) at the upper surface of the heat transfer component; b. an electronic board for checking the current temperatures and sending the desired temperatures to the electronic valve; c. a wired electronic connection to the cooler; d. a USB port; e. a power supply component; f. a Bluetooth component; g. a WiFi component; h. a radio frequency component; and i. a case-box containing at least one of the electronic board and connection to the cooler, the USB port, the power supply component, a Bluetooth component, a WiFi component, and a Radio Frequency component, collectively defined as one or more of the electronic components, with an input and an output having a display on a surface of the cooler.

13. The system as described in claim 12 further comprising: the electronic control device is powered by a battery.

14. The system as described in claim 13 further comprising: the battery is chargeable via a USB port.

15. The system as described in claim 13 further comprising: the battery is chargeable via a 12V DC automotive connection.

16. The system as described in claim 13 further comprising: the battery is chargeable via a 120V AC connection.

17. The system as described in claim 13 further comprising: the battery is powered via a solar panel.

18. The system as described in claim 12 further comprising: the encrypted commands are transmitted from an electronic control device in the cooler through Wi-Fi/Bluetooth/Radio Frequencies to a smartphone or tablet or a server encrypted to avoid spoofing, intrusion, interference, meaconing, jamming or data falsification.

19. The system as described in claim 12 further comprising: the desired temperature and its length of time are remotely controllable.

20. The system as described in claim 12 further comprising: alerts are communicated using Bluetooth or Wi-Fi technologies to a mobile phone or email account, or sound, buzzer or vibration for notifying an operator of the system for: a. temperature of items, at the top and at the bottom of cooler as well as the ambient temperature outside the cooler equipped with the system out of acceptable limits for determined acceptable periods and lengths of time, b. liquid and/or gas CO.sub.2 level low, c. battery level low; and d. atmospheric pressure.

21. The system as described in claim 1 further comprising: a. an embodiment of the system used for back up refrigeration in the event of primary refrigeration cycle failure including: b. for residential/commercial use (backup to a compressor based refrigeration cycle); and c. for recreational use (backup to a thermoelectric cooler as the primary cycle).

22. The system as described in claim 1 further comprising: the system is integrated into a vehicle for food delivery.

23. The system as described in claim 1 further comprising: the system is integrated into a vehicle for food storage.

24. The system as described in claim 1 further comprising: a. the system is designed for a container for personal medical storage including insulin; b. the system further comprises an insulated plastic, composite or metal container with either traditional or vacuum insulation; and c. the container and control mechanism of the system contained inside the container.

25. The system as described in claim 1 further comprising: the system is designed for critical refrigeration of medical materials including vaccines and drugs.

26. The system as described in claim 1 further comprising: the system is designed to provide cooling selected from the group consisting of refrigeration, maintaining cooling, and freezing.

27. The system as described in claim 26 further comprising: the cooling is provided for food, beverages, medical supplies, blood, temperature sensitive chemicals and pharmaceuticals, any prey resulting from fishing or hunting activities or any other perishable items.

28. The system as described in claim 1 further comprising, the at least one CO.sub.2 container is selected from the group consisting of: a. disposable metal canister, b. 12, 16, 20, 24, 32 oz metal or composite cylinder, c. 1, 2.5, 5, 10, 20 lb portable compressed gas cylinders, d. >201b semiportable/bulk compressed gas cylinders, e. large volume liquid containers, and f. a specially designed compressed liquid container specific for the invention's cooling system and a custom manifold block where the CO.sub.2 container(s) can be screwed into or connected to form a seal between the CO.sub.2 container(s) and the manifold block that prevents the liquid and the gas CO.sub.2 from escaping and prevents the leakage of the liquid or the gas CO.sub.2.

29. The system as described in claim 12 further comprising: the system is integrated with wireless or hard wire transmission technology selected from the group consisting of: a. Bluetooth connection to a phone or computer, or tablet; b. Wi-Fi for connection to a phone, tablet, or computer; c. radio frequency, and d. hard wire transmission utilizing a hard wire connection for areas where there is high environmental interference of the wireless transmission.

30. The system as described in claim 29 further comprising: the data transmitted from the active control device of the system via Wi-Fi/Bluetooth/radio frequencies to a smartphone or tablet or a server encrypted to avoid spoofing, intrusion, interference, meaconing, jamming or data falsification.

31. The system as described in claim 29 further comprising: desired temperature and its length of time are remotely controllable.

32. The system as described in claim 29 further comprising: alerts are communicated using Bluetooth or Wi-Fi technologies to a mobile phone or email account, or sound, buzzer or vibration for notifying the operator of the invention's cooling system for: a. temperature of items, at the top and at the bottom of the vessels as well as the ambient temperature outside the vessel equipped with the invention's cooling system out of acceptable limits for determined acceptable periods and lengths of time; b. liquid and/or gas CO.sub.2 level low; c. battery level low; and d. atmospheric pressure.

33. The system as described in claim 9, further comprising: the electronic control device including: a. a display where the following temperatures are visualized: i) external to the cooler; ii) internal into the cooler; and iii) at the upper surface of the heat exchanger; b. an electronic board for checking the current temperatures; c. a wired electronic connection to the cooling system; d. a USB port; e. a power supply component; f. a Bluetooth component; g. a WiFi component; h. a radio frequency component; and i. a case-box containing the electronic components with input and output connectors and having the display in one of its surface.

34. The system as described in claim 33 further comprising: the electronic control device is powered by a battery.

35. The system as described in claim 34 further comprising: the battery is chargeable via a USB port.

36. The system as described in claim 34 further comprising: the battery is chargeable via a 12V DC automotive connection.

37. The system as described in claim 34 further comprising: the battery is chargeable via a 120V AC connection.

38. The system as described in claim 34 further comprising: the battery is powered via a solar panel.

39. The control system as described in claim 34 further comprising: the data transmitted from the active control device of the system via Wi-Fi/Bluetooth/Radio Frequencies to a smartphone or tablet or a server is encrypted to avoid spoofing, intrusion, interference, meaconing, jamming or data falsification.

40. The system as described in claim 34 further comprising: desired temperature and its length of time are remotely controllable.

41. The system as described in claim 34 further comprising: alerts are communicated using Bluetooth or Wi-Fi technologies to a mobile phone or email account, or sound, buzzer or vibration for notifying the operator of the invention's cooling system for: a. temperature of items, at the top and at the bottom of the vessels as well as the ambient temperature outside the vessel equipped with the invention's cooling system out of acceptable limits for determined acceptable periods and lengths of time; b. liquid and/or gas CO.sub.2 level low; c. battery level low; and d. atmospheric pressure.

42. The electronic control device as described in claim 34 further comprising: the system is integrated with wireless or hard wire transmission technology selected from the group consisting of: a. Bluetooth connection to a phone or computer or tablet; b. Wi-Fi for connection to a phone, tablet or computer; c. radio frequency, and d. hard wire transmission utilizing a hard wire connection for areas where there is high environmental interference of the wireless transmission.

43. The control system as described in claim 34 further comprising: the data transmitted from the active control device of the system via Wi-Fi/Bluetooth/radio frequencies to a smartphone or tablet or a server or any kind of other device is encrypted to avoid spoofing, intrusion, interference, meaconing, jamming or data falsification.

44. The system as described in claim 43 further comprising: desired temperature and its length of time are remotely controllable.

45. The system as described in claim 43 further comprising: alerts are communicated using Bluetooth or Wi-Fi technologies to a mobile phone or email account, or sound, buzzer or vibration for notifying the operator of the invention's cooling system for: a. temperature of items, at the top and at the bottom of the vessels as well as the ambient temperature outside the vessel equipped with the invention's cooling system out of acceptable limits for determined acceptable periods and lengths of time; b. liquid and/or gas CO.sub.2 level low; battery level low; and c. atmospheric pressure.

46. A system wherein the compressed liquid and/or gas CO.sub.2 container is in the upright position, comprising: a. a siphon tube flowing into a release valve with said siphon tube of a given length able to reach the bottom of the CO.sub.2 container; b. the siphon tube allows the liquid CO.sub.2 to flow from the bottom to the top of CO.sub.2 container and then to exit through a control or release valve; c. said CO.sub.2 container is placed outside the insulated or non-insulated vessel and encompasses a mechanism to transmit an liquid or gas CO.sub.2 inside the insulated or non-insulated vessel; d. a connection from a refrigerator through a capillary passing through the refrigerator's door gasket in order to deliver CO.sub.2 as coolant to the refrigerator when a power supply outage occurs; and e. a connection to a refrigerator condenser to deliver CO.sub.2 as a coolant to the refrigerator when a power supply outage occurs.

47. The system in accordance with claim 46, further comprising: said release valve is selected from the group consisting of electronic, manual, electromechanical, and thermostatic.

48. The system in accordance with claim 46, further comprising: said insulated or non-insulated vessel is equipped with wheels for transportation.

49. The system in accordance with claim 46, further comprising: a connection to a refrigerator condenser to deliver CO.sub.2 as a coolant to the refrigerator when a power supply outage occurs.

50. The system in accordance with claim 49, further comprising: said release valve is selected from the consisting of electronic, manual, and thermostatic.

51. The system as described in claim 1, further comprising: each said CO.sub.2 is placed outside a vessel.

52. The system as described in claim 1, further comprising: each said CO.sub.2 is placed inside a vessel.

Description

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0029] The present invention is a standalone and self-contained cooling system using compressed liquid and/or gas CO.sub.2 containers positioned in an insulated or non-insulated vessel and consisting of a specially designed unit where the containers are vertically positioned in an upright or in an upside-down position. The liquid and/or gas CO.sub.2 coolant is then released into capillary tube(s) embedded into a heat transfer plate or heat exchanger thus leveraging the CO.sub.2 coolant properties.

[0030] The temperature is controlled by a metering CO.sub.2 releasing system encompassing an electronic control device which can be operated remotely and/or via a touch screen and which sends alerts when pre-defined thresholds are exceeded.

[0031] The invention's metering CO.sub.2 releasing system may be triggered by an electronic or a thermostatic valve or may be triggered manually or by an electronic solenoid. The invention's cooling system also encompasses check valves, which avoid liquid and/or gas CO.sub.2 from escaping when removing or replacing CO.sub.2 containers individually.

[0032] The present invention consists of self-contained cooling system(s) using compressed liquid and/or gas CO.sub.2 as coolant to refrigerate, cool or freeze items inside a portable insulated or non-insulated vessel. The present invention is capable of providing a controlled, steady and constant flow of liquid and/or gas CO.sub.2 thus maintaining the items in need to be refrigerated, cooled or frozen at the desired temperature.

[0033] The present invention relates to the field of providing a source of cooling to desired temperatures going from cool to cold to freezing depending upon the product which is desired to be kept cold within the cooler or ice chest.

[0034] This invention relates to the field of providing constant and controlled cooling temperatures to various items using refillable CO.sub.2 canisters as refrigerant without the necessity of electricity and without the necessity of having to have a built-in cooling unit within the container.

[0035] The following words: a) canister, b) cylinder, c) cartridge and d) tank are used interchangeably throughout this text to indicate the CO.sub.2 refillable container.

[0036] The following words: a) release valve, b) control valve and c) dispense valve are used interchangeably throughout this text to indicate the releasing member allowing the liquid and/or gas the CO.sub.2 to be distributed into the invention's cooling system in a controlled manner.

[0037] It has been discovered that the present invention provides the following advantages for using liquid CO.sub.2, among the advantages including 1) liquid CO.sub.2 is storable at standard ambient conditions, 2) cooling capacity does not degrade with length of storage, 3) there is no residual liquid CO.sub.2 after cooling capacity is exhausted, 4) temperature is continuously variable from ambient to below 40 F. allowing, for example, to maintain ice cream frozen or to keep organs at a constant temperature for transplant transportation, 5) coolant is easily replaced without the need to remove material from the container volume, 6) CO.sub.2 containers and refilling of CO.sub.2 containers are already commonly available (e.g. beverage and paintball industry), 7) CO.sub.2 is not wet or easily spillable as it is in a pressurized container.

[0038] The invention's cooling system is comprised of: a) one or more compressed liquid and/or gas CO.sub.2 container(s); b) a heat exchanger plate connected to a manifold block; c) capillary tube(s) embedded in the heat exchanger plate to allow the coolant to be distributed homogenously along the said heat exchanger plate; d) a manifold block where the CO.sub.2 container(s) is/are screwed into or attached on; e) check valves which are used to avoid CO.sub.2 from escaping when removing or replacing containers individually; f) a metering CO.sub.2 control releasing system and a control algorithm for controlling, monitoring and regulating, automatically or manually, the release of the liquid and/or gas CO.sub.2 inside the invention's cooling system; g) a control valve, as part of the metering CO.sub.2 control releasing system, which releases the liquid and/or gas CO.sub.2 in the capillary tube(s) and which has been specifically customized to prevent freezing, clogging and blocking of the capillary tube(s) by calibrating the optimal flow of liquid and/or gas CO.sub.2; the control valve may be electronically, thermostatically, manually or electromechanically operated; h) an electronic unit to operate the invention's metering CO.sub.2 control releasing system which may be operated using a touch screen or, remotely, using a smartphone application or any other electronic devices; the invention's cooling system has different variations according to the type of release valve and to the number of CO.sub.2 container(s).

[0039] The liquid and/or gas CO.sub.2 containers are positioned in the invention vertically in an upright or upside-down position.

[0040] When the CO.sub.2 container(s) is/are in an upright position, the invention's control valve has a siphon tube of a suitable length to be able to reach the bottom of the CO.sub.2 container. The siphon tube allows the liquid CO.sub.2 to flow from the bottom to the top of CO.sub.2 container and then to exit through the invention's control or release valve.

[0041] When the CO.sub.2 container(s) is/are in an upside-down position, because of the gravity force, the liquid or gaseous CO.sub.2 flows from the CO.sub.2 container and exits through the invention's control or release valve.

[0042] It is also an object of the present invention to provide a special designed manifold block where the CO.sub.2 container(s) are placed on, and which allows the passage of the refrigerant from the CO.sub.2 container(s) into the invention's cooling system.

[0043] It is an object of the present invention to provide a cooling system containing a heat transfer plate (also referred to as heat exchanger) and liquid and/or gas CO.sub.2 distribution through capillary tubes embedded in the said heat exchanger to maximize energy transfer from the liquid and/or gas CO.sub.2 to the contents of a vessel which may or may not be insulated, thereby keeping the vessels' contents at a desired temperature.

[0044] It is additionally an object of the present invention to provide capillary tube(s) to convey the liquid and/or gas CO.sub.2 along the heat transfer plate of the invention's cooling systems. The capillary tube(s) allows the flow of the liquid and/or gas CO.sub.2 being released for the purpose of maintaining or reducing the temperature of the containers being cooled by the cooling systems.

[0045] It is a further object of the present invention to provide a metering CO.sub.2 control releasing system for the CO.sub.2 release which enables the controlled release of the liquid and/or gas CO.sub.2 inside the invention's cooling systems.

[0046] It is a further object of the present invention to provide release valve (also referred to as control valves), as part of the metering CO.sub.2 control releasing system, which can be controlled or actuated manually, electromechanically, electronically or thermostatically, to release the liquid and/or CO.sub.2 from the CO.sub.2 containers into the invention's cooling systems. The invention's control valves are specifically designed to prevent the freezing and clogging and blocking of the capillary(s) tubing by calibrating the control valves to flow the optimal amount of liquid and/or gas CO.sub.2. Without the inventions control valves in the invention's cooling systems, the invention's capillary tubes could be clogged or blocked or frozen not allowing the liquid and/or gas CO.sub.2 to be properly released. The invention's designed cooling systems are capable of providing a steady and constant flow of liquid and/or gas CO.sub.2 to insulated or non-insulated portable units (i.e.: ice chests, coolers, lunch boxes), stationary units (i.e.: refrigerators, freezers), compartments of vehicles (i.e.: trunk or cabinet located in a car or autonomous vehicles), aircrafts, small unmanned aerial vehicles (drone), motorcycles, scooters or bicycles.

[0047] It is also an object of the present invention to provide a cooling system with multi-CO.sub.2 containers with configuration that comprises check valves. The check valves are used between the container manifold block and the connections joining the CO.sub.2 containers. This eliminates liquid and/or gas CO.sub.2 from escaping when removing or replacing tanks individually. The compressed CO.sub.2 containers are positioned in the invention's specifically designed cooling systems in a vertical upright or upside-down position in order to maintain the CO.sub.2 liquid and gas balance within the CO.sub.2 container when the liquid/and or gas is expelled from said container.

[0048] It has been discovered according to the present invention that when the CO.sub.2 container(s) is(are) in an upright position, the invention's control valve has a siphon tube of a suitable length able to reach the bottom of the CO.sub.2 container. The siphon tube allows the liquid CO.sub.2 to flow from the bottom to the top of CO.sub.2 container and then to exit through the invention's control valve.

[0049] It has further been discovered according to the present invention that when the CO.sub.2 container(s) is(are) in an upside-down position, the liquid goes down because of gravity force and the liquid CO.sub.2 flows from the bottom to the top of CO.sub.2 container and then exits through the inventions' control valve.

[0050] It is an additional object of the present invention to provide a metering CO.sub.2 control releasing system which is monitored, controlled and operated electronically using a touch screen or, remotely, using a smartphone application or any other electronic devices. The invention's metering CO.sub.2 control releasing system has different configurations according to the type of release valve and to the number of CO.sub.2 container(s).

[0051] It is also an important object of the present invention to provide cooling systems that also includes an electronic control device powered by battery, solar panel or +12V socket in the car, which allows to monitor and control temperatures, control algorithms, and a metering CO.sub.2 control releasing system. These components are attached to, or enclosed in, or can be placed in any kind and any size insulated or non-insulated vessels to minimize heat transfer with the environment.

[0052] It is also an object of the present invention to provide a system which contains an electronic control strategy using encrypted data to avoid spoofing, intrusion, interference, meaconing, jamming or data falsification. To encrypt the transmitted data a message authentication code (MAC) method will be used. Because an active control (electronic) is the most accurate, flexible, and easy to operate, it is envisioned that this is the preferred embodiment. Data is transmitted from the active controllers of the inventions' cooling systems via WiFi, Bluetooth and Radio Frequencies to a smartphone or tablet or a server or any kind of other device will be encrypted to avoid spoofing, intrusion, interference, meaconing, jamming or falsifying data.

[0053] It is additionally an object of the present invention to provide a cooling system which can be transported, stored and moved to locations which do not have electricity connections, where electrical service has been disrupted (e.g. utility power outage) or which do not have conventional methods for refrigerating, cooling or freezing.

[0054] The invention of the cooling systems was envisioned by the inventors working together on delivering the optimum cooling system which results in cooling temperatures utilizing liquid and/or gas CO.sub.2 to insulated and not-insulated vessels, containers, compartments, enclosed areas, cooling systems claimed in this invention utilizing any type and size of CO.sub.2 containers positioned on, in or near an area where there is a need or desire to reduce or to maintain a specified or required temperature.

[0055] Many additional features, apparatus and methods of the present invention are described in the following paragraphs.

[0056] The design is specific for the use of coolers and can be also designed for any type of system that is in need of refrigeration. The invention is not required to have any specially made cooler as it is a standalone and can be designed specific.

[0057] The present invention includes a specially designed insulated cooler which embeds the invention's cooling system and the electronic control device to monitor and control the temperature.

[0058] The present invention includes an additional accessory that can be placed into the cooler to produce ice on a specially designed ice making system in a period of time from 1 to 10 minutes. The mechanism to convey the liquid and/or gas CO.sub.2 into the specially designed ice making system may be directly connected to the capillary assembly. The specially designed ice making accessory includes: a) a connection assembly to the principal unit of this invention, b) an ice tray block which is attached to a bottom cold disbursement plate with fasteners, c) a containment tray which holds the water or other liquids where the cold is dispersed into; d) a divider which will be full of water or other liquids. The plate assembly is fastened together by ice tray bottom plate fasteners.

[0059] The present invention includes a cooling system for individual beverage containers such as cans/bottles or individual containers, which needs to be cooled or to be maintained at a cooled temperature or frozen. This invention's cooling system has a circular designed casing which, except for the top of the cooling unit, is enclosed allowing for a beverage container to be placed into it. The cooling unit has the invention's control system utilizing the manual, electromechanical, electronic or thermostatic valve depending and according to the type of beverage(s) intended or desired to be cooled.

[0060] The present invention also includes a portable cooling system equipped with wheels to be easily transported and which can be easily connected to a refrigerator through a suitable connector designed in collaboration to the refrigerators' makers or a capillary passing through the refrigerator's door gasket in order to deliver CO.sub.2 as a coolant to the refrigerator when a power supply outage occurs. The CO.sub.2 canister is in the upright position with a siphon tube of a suitable length able to reach the bottom of the CO.sub.2 container. The siphon tube allows the liquid CO.sub.2 to flow from the bottom to the top of CO.sub.2 container and then to exit through the invention's control or release valve. This invention's cooling system is envisioned to be specifically designed to be connected and attached to the refrigerator system to minimize or eliminate the amount of heat transfer from the refrigerator to the external environment.

[0061] The present invention additionally includes a system designed to transport goods, which need controlled refrigeration such as medical, pharmaceutical, foods and any other small cooled or frozen items using a Small Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (SUAV, also called Drone). This invention's cooling system is envisioned to be specifically designed to be connected and attached to a specific drone according to its mechanical elements.

[0062] This disclosure focuses on the system as a whole as well as the electronic control strategy. Because the electronic control system utilizing smartphone communication for monitoring and control and other sensing options is the most accurate, flexible and easy to operate, it is envisioned as the preferred embodiment. Other options such as incorporating a manual, electromechanical or thermostatic CO.sub.2 releasing mechanism are envisioned.

[0063] The present invention, either standalone or embedded in a specially designed insulated cooler, can be applied to refrigerate, cool or freeze individual bottles, cans or containers, insulated or non-insulated portable units (i.e.: ice chests, coolers, lunch boxes), stationary units (i.e.: refrigerators, freezers), compartments of vehicles (i.e.: trunk or other cabinets of trucks, cars, motorcycles, scooters, bicycles or autonomous vehicles), compartments of aircrafts or small containers transported by drones.

[0064] Further novel features and other objects of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description, discussion and the appended claims, taken in conjunction with the drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0065] Referring particularly to the drawings for the purpose of illustration only and not limitation, there is illustrated:

[0066] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of one embodiment of the present invention cooling apparatus utilizing a single CO.sub.2 cylinder threaded into a single manifold block which in turn is connected to a valve which in turn is connected to a capillary, the valve operated manually (first variation);

[0067] FIG. 1A is a cross-sectional view taken along line A-A of FIG. 1 to show the cross-sectional components illustrated in FIG. 1;

[0068] FIG. 1B is an exploded view of the components in FIG. 1 illustrating the single CO.sub.2, manifold and other components in their separate condition;

[0069] FIG. 2 is an exploded view of the present invention in the first variation with a valve operated manually;

[0070] FIG. 2A is a cross-sectional view of the manifold block;

[0071] FIG. 3 is an exploded view of the capillary assembly;

[0072] FIG. 4 is an exploded view of the manual valve;

[0073] FIG. 4A is a cross-sectional view of the manual valve;

[0074] FIG. 5 is a representation of the second variation of this invention where the release valve is operated electronically;

[0075] FIG. 5A is a cross-sectional lateral view of the electronic release valve;

[0076] FIG. 5B is another cross-sectional top view of the electronic release valve;

[0077] FIG. 5C illustrates an electronic display where the temperatures outside, inside and at the upper surface of the heat exchanger are visualized and controlled;

[0078] FIG. 5D illustrates the block diagram of the electronic control device;

[0079] FIG. 5E illustrates the flowchart of the software program running on the electronic control device hardware;

[0080] FIG. 6 is a representation of the third variation of the present invention with a release valve operated thermostatically;

[0081] FIG. 6A is a cross-sectional view of the thermostatic valve;

[0082] FIG. 6B is an exploded view of the thermostatic valve;

[0083] FIG. 7 is a representation of the fourth variation of the present invention with a release valve activated by an electronic solenoid;

[0084] FIG. 7A is an exploded view of the manifold block including the electronic solenoid;

[0085] FIG. 7B is an exploded view of the electronic solenoid;

[0086] FIG. 7C is a cross-sectional view of the manifold block including the electronic solenoid;

[0087] FIG. 8 is a representation of the fourth variation invention's cooling system in the variation with three CO.sub.2 canisters and with a release valve manually operated;

[0088] FIG. 8A is a cross-sectional view of FIG. 8 to show the cross-sectional components illustrated in FIG. 1;

[0089] FIG. 8B is a representation of the interior components of the fourth variation illustrated in FIG. 8 with the top plate removed;

[0090] FIG. 8C is an exploded view of the fluid communication assembly of the fourth variation of the invention's cooling system;

[0091] FIG. 8D is a representation of the top plate which covers the heat exchanger;

[0092] FIG. 8E is a cross sectional view of the cross fitting member;

[0093] FIG. 8F is a cross sectional view of check valve;

[0094] FIG. 8G is an exploded view of the male compression fitting of the check valve;

[0095] FIG. 8H is an exploded view of the female compression fitting of the check valve;

[0096] FIG. 9 is a representation of the fifth variation invention's cooling system in the configuration with three CO.sub.2 canisters and with a release valve which is electronically operated;

[0097] FIG. 9A is a view of the bottom of the invention's cooling system in the fifth variation;

[0098] FIG. 9B is a representation of the interior components of the fifth variation illustrated in FIG. 9 with the top plate removed;

[0099] FIG. 9C is an exploded view of the fluid communication assembly of the fifth variation of the invention's cooling system;

[0100] FIG. 10 is a representation of the sixth variation invention's cooling system in the configuration with three CO.sub.2 canisters and with a release valve which is thermostatically operated;

[0101] FIG. 10A is an exploded view of the fluid communication assembly of the sixth variation of the invention's cooling system;

[0102] FIG. 11 is an exploded representation of the seventh variation of the invention's cooling system which includes an accessory to make ice in a range of time from 1 to maximum 10 minutes;

[0103] FIG. 11A is an exploded view of the fluid communication assembly of ice making accessory mechanism;

[0104] FIG. 11B is a cross sectional view of the block used for the ice tray design;

[0105] FIG. 11C is a prospective view of the heat exchanger used in the ice making accessory mechanism;

[0106] FIG. 11D is a prospective view of the water containment tray used in the ice making accessory mechanism;

[0107] FIG. 11E is a prospective view of the water divider used in the ice making accessory mechanism;

[0108] FIG. 12 is a representation of the present invention's cooling system communicating with a smartphone device through Wifi, Bluetooth or Radio-Frequency communication;

[0109] FIG. 13 is a representation of the present invention's cooling system communicating with a smartphone device through Wifi, Bluetooth or Radio-Frequency communication using encrypted algorithm;

[0110] FIG. 14 is a representative example of the use of the present invention cooling system to refrigerate a unit;

[0111] FIG. 15 is a representation of the application of the invention's cooling system to portable individual containers for beverages such as cans or bottles, expressed breast milk or other beverages or foods or items that need to be cooled or to be maintained at a controlled temperature;

[0112] FIG. 16 is a representation of the application of the present invention cooling system to items which need to be maintained refrigerated, cooled, or frozen and need to be transported using a small unmanned aerial vehicle also called drones; and

[0113] FIG. 17 is a representation of the present invention's cooling system embedded in a cooler which includes the electronic unit control.