The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Sep. 06, 1994
Filed:
Jul. 15, 1993
William A Gowan, Raleigh, NC (US);
Precision Storage, Inc., Raleigh, NC (US);
Abstract
A temperature controller for facilitating the storage of wine and like perishables in a household refrigeration unit includes a temperature sensing device, adapted to be positioned in a chilled compartment of the refrigeration unit, and a temperature controller circuit, operatively connected to the temperature sensing device, for overriding an internal thermostat of the refrigeration unit. The temperature controller circuit maintains the refrigeration unit's chilled compartment at a desired user selected wine storage temperature by periodically enabling and disabling the supply of electrical power from an external power supply to the refrigeration unit's chiller (e.g., compressor). The temperature controller circuit is maintained in a housing adapted to be positioned on or adjacent the refrigeration unit. The housing may also include a display for visually indicating the temperature of the chilled compartment. Unlike conventional household refrigeration units, the cooling of the chilled compartment is not performed on a continuous basis until the user selected wine storage temperature is reached, but instead is performed on a more gradual basis using a series of consecutive cooling and non-cooling periods.