METHOD AND DEVICE FOR COOLING OR HEATING BIO-PHARMACEUTICAL FLUIDS

Abstract

A cooling or heating device for cooling and/or heating fluids includes a housing and a plurality of cooling plates. The cooling plates are arranged inside the housing, and the cooling plates each comprise at least one cooling channel for guiding a cooling or heating medium through the cooling plates. A container support surface is provided for arranging at least one first container containing a fluid to be heated or cooled inside the housing, and there is a first air blower in the housing for blowing air onto the cooling plates and/or into spaces between the cooling plates.

Claims

1. A cooling or heating device for cooling and/or heating fluids comprising: a housing; a plurality of cooling plates, the cooling plates being arranged inside the housing, and the cooling plates each comprising at least one cooling channel for guiding a cooling or heating medium through the cooling plates; a container support surface for arranging at least one first container containing a fluid to be heated or cooled inside the housing; and at least one first air blower in the housing for blowing air onto the cooling plates and/or into spaces between the cooling plates.

2. The cooling or heating device according to claim 1, wherein the at least one first air blower is configured to blow the air along an imaginary first air blower axis, the first air blower being arranged in the housing such that the first air blower axis leads through the cooling plates or through the spaces between the cooling plates.

3. The cooling or heating device according to claim 1, wherein the cooling plates are arranged inside the housing parallel to each other and/or the cooling plates are arranged inside the housing in a substantially horizontal configuration.

4. The cooling or heating device according to claim 1, wherein the cooling plates are mounted movably in the housing, wherein the cooling plates are movable relative to each other between first relative positions and second relative positions, wherein first distances present between neighbouring cooling plates in the first relative positions are large enough to admit at least one second container containing the fluid or a further fluid to be cooled or heated, and second distances present between neighbouring cooling plates in the second relative positions are smaller than in the first relative positions, but preferably not zero.

5. The cooling or heating device according to claim 4, wherein there is provided a drivetrain for moving the cooling plates from the first relative positions to the second relative positions.

6. The cooling or heating device according to claim 1, wherein the cooling plates are arranged above the container support surface.

7. The cooling or heating device according to claim 1, wherein there is provided at least one second air blower inside the housing configured to blow the air along an imaginary second air blower axis, wherein the second air blower axis intersects a further space above the container support surface, preferably intersects the further space between the container support surface and the cooling plates.

8. The cooling or heating device according to claim 1, wherein there is provided an apparatus for providing cooling and/or heating medium, the apparatus preferably comprising at least one of: a pump for pumping cooling or medium through the at least one cooling channel of each of the cooling plates, a medium cooler for cooling the cooling or heating medium, a medium heater for heating the cooling or heating medium, and/or pipes for establishing fluid communication between the apparatus and the at least one cooling channel the cooling plates.

9. The cooling or heating device according to claim 8, further comprising a control unit configured to control the at least one first air blower and the apparatus for providing cooling and/or heating medium such that the at least one first air blower and the apparatus for providing cooling and/or heating are active at the same time.

10. The cooling or heating device according to claim 1, wherein the housing comprises a flap for opening and closing the housing.

11. The use of a cooling or heating device according to claim 1 for cooling, in particular freezing, and/or heating, in particular thawing, a fluid which occurs in or results from a bio-pharmaceutical production process.

12. A method for cooling and/or heating fluids, in particular using the cooling or heating device according to claim 1, comprising: arranging at least one first container containing a fluid to be heated or cooled inside a housing on a container support surface, blowing air onto the cooling plates and/or into spaces between the cooling plates using at least one first air blower arranged in the housing, and cooling or heating the air inside the housing by guiding a cooling or heating medium through at least one cooling channel disposed inside cooling plates which are arranged inside the housing.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0068] Further advantages and details of the invention are apparent from the figures and the accompanying description of the figures. The figures show:

[0069] FIGS. 1 to 10 an embodiment of the cooling or heating device according to the invention in different use cases,

[0070] FIG. 11 a schematic sketch of an embodiment according to the invention, and

[0071] FIG. 12 a schematic sketch of a cooling plate.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0072] FIG. 1 shows an embodiment of a cooling or heating device 1 according to the invention in a front view. The cooling or heating device 1 comprises a housing 2, cooling plates 3, a first air blower 7, and a second air blower 10.

[0073] In this example there are nine cooling plates 3 with dimensions of approximately 1074 mm by 850 mm.

[0074] In the depiction of FIG. 1 a flap 17 of the housing 2 is in an open configuration. In this configuration the inside of the housing 2 is visible and users of the cooling or heating device 1 can access the inside, e.g. in order to place or remove containers in or from the housing 2, respectively.

[0075] The cooling plates 3 are arranged in a parallel horizontal configuration. Each of the cooling plates 3 is connected to an apparatus 11 for providing a cooling or heating medium to the cooling plates 3, in particular a cooling channel 4 in each of the cooling plates 3, by way of pipes 15.

[0076] The apparatus 11 for providing cooling or heating medium in this embodiment comprises a pump 12, a medium cooler 13, a medium heater, and a distributor 18 for distributing and collecting the cooling or heating medium from and back into a single circuit in the apparatus 11 for providing cooling or heating medium.

[0077] Furthermore, there are switching valves 19 present which can be used to pump the cooling or heating medium either through the medium cooler 13 or the medium heater 14.

[0078] A control unit 16 is connected to and controls the following: The pump, the medium cooler 13, the medium heater 14, the first air blower 7, and the second air blower 10.

[0079] In the configuration shown in FIG. 1 first containers 6 in the form of bottles are arranged inside the housing 2. The first containers 6 are arranged on a container support surface 5 (see FIG. 7).

[0080] After closing the flap 17 a user can start a cooling or heating process using the control unit 16, e.g. by issuing a starting command by the push of a button.

[0081] The control unit 16 then activates the pump 12, sets the switching valves 19 to the desired operation setting (such that the cooling or heating medium either flows through the medium cooler 13 or the medium heater 14), and activates the first air blower 7 as well as the second air blower 10.

[0082] If the fluid in the at least one first containers 6 is to be cooled, in particular frozen, the cooling or heating medium is pumped through the medium cooler 13 and is then distributed to the cooling channels 4 of the cooling plates 3. By heat transfer from the air inside the housing 2 to the cooling plates 3 and into the cooling or heating medium the air in the vicinity of the cooling plates 3 is cooled.

[0083] The first air blower 7 blows air onto the cooling plates 3 where the air is cooled (or alternatively heated as desired) as described before. There are small distances between the cooling plates 3 such that the air can pass through the spaces between the cooling plates 3 for particularly effective cooling of the air.

[0084] The first air blower 7 is mounted inside the housing 2, and in this embodiment is disposed entirely inside the housing 2.

[0085] In this embodiment the first air blower 7 is mounted to a side of a drivetrain 9 for driving a movement of the cooling plates 3 (see below).

[0086] The distances between the cooling plates 3 in this configuration (second distances) are between 24 mm and 30 mm.

[0087] The housing 2 subsequently leads the cooled air down to the area of the second air blower 10, which blows the cooled air directly onto the second containers 6. By heat transfer from the fluid in the first containers 6 to the cooled air blown onto the first containers 6 by the second air blower the fluid contained in the first containers 6 is cooled and/or frozen.

[0088] The air is then deflected by the housing 2 back to the area of the first air blower 7 where it can re-join the air flow onto the cooling plates 3. Regarding the resulting rolling air flow inside the housing 2 it is also referred to FIG. 9.

[0089] FIGS. 2 and 3 show the embodiment of FIG. 1 in perspective views.

[0090] FIG. 4 shows the inside of the housing of the embodiment of the FIG. 1 in an enlarged view.

[0091] FIG. 5 shows the embodiment of FIG. 1 where there are also second containers 8 present. These are arranged between two of the cooling plates 3. The second containers 8 can be loaded between the cooling plates 3 by vertically moving the cooling plates 3 down from the configuration in FIGS. 1 and 2.

[0092] As is described and shown in unpublished European Patent Application No. 20181117.1 the cooling plates 3 can be moved collectively in a downward direction so that there are bigger relative distances between the cooling plates 3 compared to the configuration as depicted in FIG. 1. For performing the movement of the cooling plates 3 there is provided a drive train 9 and a motor drive (not shown).

[0093] The bigger distances between the cooling plates 3 permit introduction of the second containers 8 into the resulting slots between the cooling plates 3.

[0094] The cooling plates 3 can then be moved up again so that the second containers 8 contact the adjacent cooling plates 3 while the rest of the cooling plates are in the relative positions shown in FIG. 1.

[0095] In this way the cooling plates 3 directly cool or heat the fluid contained in Single Use Bags in the second containers 8, while at the same time the first containers 6 are cooled or heated as described in connection with FIG. 1.

[0096] Accordingly, the cooling or heating device 1 according to the invention can effectively and easily be used to cool or heat fluid contained in bottles and containers of a substantially flat configuration as shown in FIG. 5.

[0097] The configurations and embodiments are in particular well suited for cooling, in particular freezing, or heating, in particular thawing, bio-chemical fluids, as both fluids contained in the first containers 6 (bottles) and in the second containers 8 (containers with Single Use Bags) can be cooled or heated easily and effectively.

[0098] FIG. 6 shows the configuration of FIG. 5 from a slightly different perspective.

[0099] FIGS. 7 and 8 show that the cooling or heating device 1 can also be used to only cool or heat fluid in second containers 8.

[0100] FIGS. 9 and 10 show the embodiment of FIG. 1 from yet different perspectives.

[0101] FIG. 11 is a schematic sketch of an embodiment of the invention. The arrows visualise the rolling flow pattern of the air within the housing 2.In particular, the first air blower 7 blows the air onto the cooling plates 3 (only three are shown as an example), into the spaces between the cooling plates 3, and onto second containers 8 which may be present between the cooling plates 3.

[0102] The cooled or heated air gets then deflected by the housing 2 into the vicinity of the second air blower 10. The second air blower 10 blows the cooled or heated air onto the first containers 6. Finally, the housing 2 deflects the air to re-join the air flow in the area of the first air blower 7.

[0103] FIG. 12 shows a schematic sketch of a cooling plate 3 as it can be used in embodiments of the invention in a sectional view. The pipes 15 supply cooling or heating medium to the cooling channel 4 disposed within the cooling plate 3. After the cooling or heating medium has passed through the cooling channel 4 the pipes 15 lead the cooling or heating medium back to the apparatus 11.