US2120013A - Ice pack - Google Patents

Description

June 7', 1938.

J.'D. K-BATES ICE PACK Filed June 15. 1936 Patented June '-7,' 1938 I v UNITED STATES PATENT. OFFICE elixir; filli g 1:21 32? 1: 2:42;

claims. .(ci. 150-21) This invention relates to devices which are in- Fig. 4 is a view taken on the line 4-4 of Fig. tended to be applied to a part of the human body 3, and or to any article to cool the same by removing Fig. 5 is a view taken on the line 15- -5 of Fig.

heat therefrom, I 1 and showing a further form which the inven- .5 By the present inventionit is proposed to protion may take. 5 5 vide a hollow impervious receptacle or container According to this invention, I propose to prohaving a substantial'quantity of a liquid sealed videa sealed container which is preferably formed therein, which container may be placed in a reof flexible, impervious material, preferably rubfrigerator or other cooling; device to freeze the her, and'in which is sealed a quantity of 'a'liquid,

1o entrapped liquid. This device may then be apsuch as water, which may be frozen'in such an v plied to the body part, or article to be cooled, and ordinarily-available cooling device as a housebeing relatively colder than the partor article hold refrigerator by placing the entire device to be cooled, will remove heat therefrom and cool within the refrigerator. Such a cooling apand maintain cold'the part orarticle to which pliance is illustrated generally in Fig. 1 and it will f it is applied. While devices of this general type be seen that the same may be formed, if desired; 15 have been-heretofore proposed, the novel conof two substantially flat open-sided receptacle ,struction of the container according to the presmembers I, 2 disposed in face-to-face engagement 7 ent invention provides considerable advantages and united by vulcanizing or otherwise attaching over prior art constructions. their meeting edges. As illustrated in Fig. 1

It is an object of this invention to provide a these members may have formed, about the free 20 cooling appliance of the type described which will edges thereof, flanges 3, 4 which abut when the be so constructed as to permit it, when the entwo members are brought together and which trapped liquid is frozen, to be bent to conform to may be. united. in the manner described to any part or article which it is desired to cooland thereby provide a hollow container which is to which the cooling device may be applied. formed of impervious, preferably flexible ma- Another object is to provide a cooling device terial. A quantity of a liquid, preferably water, of the type described which will be provided inis put into this container before the sealing operteriorly with means aboutwhich the ice will be ation, this quantity of water being preferably frozen and which, when the device is bent to less than the volume of the container in order to adapt it to a body part or article to be cooled, prevent any possible rupture of the container 30 will cause the ice to be broken into small and when the included liquid is frozen. It willbe aprelatively uniform pieces which will be so disparent that the method of inserting the liquid posed within the device as not to present any into the appliance forms no part of the invenbumps or protruding edges. tion, and the liquid may, if desired, be injected It is also an object of the invention to provide into the container after the sealing operation has 35 -acooling appliance of the type described which been performed. It has been found that the best may be easily and cheaply manufactured and results are obtained by removing a substantial which will be strong and rugged in construction. part of the air from the container before sealing Other objects and features of novelty will be the same, as the presence of a substantial amount 40 apparent from the following description and the of air within the container retards the freezing 4o annexed drawing, it being clearly understood, of the water therein. however, that the invention is not limited in any One form which my invention may take is ilway by such description and drawing, which are lustrated in Fig. 2 and, referring to this figure, illustrative only, or otherwise than by the apit will be seen that means are provided for prepended claims. venting the formation of a solid mass or sheet 45 Referring to the drawing, in which similar refof ice within the receptacle. Such means comerence numerals refer to like parts, prise, in this form of. the invention, a plurality Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a cooling-apof posts or studs 5, which are preferably formed pliance which may be formed according to the integrally with and of the same material as one present invention; of the outer walls of the receptacle, and which 50' Fig. 2 is a cross sectional view taken on the extend from such wall toward the opposite wall line 2--2 ofFlg. 1 and showing one form which and into the interior of the" container. These the invention may take; posts or studs may be of any desired thickness or Fig. 3 is aview, similar to'Fig. 2, and showing shape and, inthis form of the invention, are of a modified form of the invention; 5 such a length that they extend approximately to 55 I 9,190,013 the opposite wall of the' container'and may be cooling device, ,it

regularly or irregularly spaced on the wall from be used as a heating pad by applying heat there! which they extend. It is or studs be'spaced over substantially-the entire v; wall-into the other half orportion" of the container.

If the studs are so formed that they do not overlap each other, as illustrated in Fig. 3.

'the studs extending from opposite wall members may be disposed opposite each other or may be staggered with relation to each other.

Regardless of the length or disposition of the studs, it will be seen that they will extend into the liquid entrapped within the container and, when such liquid is frozen, will -in effect, form holes in the ice and prevent the formation ofa solid massor sheet. of-ice within the appliance thereby permitting the ice to.be broken into 1 small, regular pieces. In the preferred form of the invention the studs are arranged over the en-- tire area of the cooling appliance, and consequently the ice which is formed therein is formed .in only small connected masses which are easily broken apart. The entire appliance may, therefore, be easilybent with the hands to any desired shape and aftrbeing-bent, the ice therein will i be in small regular'pleces instead of being in large free, irregularlumps as in the usual ice .Intlie embodiment of my invention disclosed in FigiSgthe cooling appliance may take the same form andbe constructed in the same manner as that disclosed in Fig. 1. In this" modification, however, thezst'uds are omitted and the hollow interior of the appliance is filled, or substantially filled, with a sponge rubber element, or a plurality of smaller similar-elements. This sponge rubber member is saturated with a liquid, suchas water, preferably before being sealed within the appliance. When required, the cooling appliance so formed may be placed within a refrigerator or other cooling device and the en trapped liquid frozen. It will be apparent that the ice which will be formed within the appliance will be completely enmeshed withthe sponge rubber. This will effectually prevent the formation of any large rigid mass of ice and will insure that the ice formed within the appliance may be easily broken, whereby the coolingappliance may be easily and quickly bent to any desired shape. I 4 p It will be apparent that the'appliance, instead of being formed oftwo connected members, may be formed in any other manner and in any desiredshape. Also, if desired, the twohalves'of the container may be connected in some manner whereby they may be separated, either wholly or partly. If such a construction is employed, the container need only be filled with liquid when it is to be used and at other times the liquid may be removed therefrom. The appliance may also be formed of any material other than rubber, as desired.

While it is primarily intended that the appllance hereinbefore described be employed as a preferred that the posts 3 to instead of; cooling the appliance. Also, while \thedevicedescribed is particularly adapted for therapeutic uses, it will be apparent that it may be employed whenever it is desired to cool any article, foodstufi or other material, and while certain of the claims may refer to the invention as a therapeutic device it will be understood that this term is descriptive only and is not to Mil be apparent that it may be construed as placing any limitation on the.

scope of the claims.

. It may be found to be desirable to form-the bag. In this event the posts cannot easily be formed on-the inner surfaces of the walls of the bagand, with such a construction, my invention contemplates that a flat partition member having posts or studs over substantially-the en- 'tire area of both sides thereof be formed andbe inserted within the bag to thereby divide the bag' into two flat portions each having studs or posts extending therein. If desired, this studded partition sheet may be formed of thin, bendable sheet metal as may be all portions of themesent invention.

While in the preferred form of .the invention -the studs form the means for insuring that the ice within the container may be easily broken, it'is also proposed that instead of the posts or studs, the opposite inner walls of the container be provided with laterally-extending ridges' or alternate ridges and grooves, whereby the ice is frozen intoalternate thick and thin portions and may -beeasilybroken. Such ridges may be formed on the opposite sides of the partition sheet described above, in place of the studs thereon.

While I have illustrated and described various forms of my invention, it will be apparent to those 'skilledin the art that the invention is susceptible of other forms and modifications, and that improvements may be made therein, all without departing in any way from the spirit or scope of the invention, for the limits of which reference must be had to the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

l. A therapeutical device, comprising a container adapted to contain a liquid, and a sponge rubber member disposed within said container and lying within the liquid within said container and adapted to prevent the formation of large masses of ice within said container when said liquid is frozen, whereby said device may be easily bent to a desired shape.

2. A therapeutical device comprising a hollow container formed .of flexible material and having a quantity ,of a liquid contained therein, and a memberclisposed within said container and com-' prisinga .flexlble mass which substantially fills the space within said container and which isformcd with a large number of openings throughout which communicate with the exterior of said member and within which the liquid within said container is received, said member being adapted to prevent the formation of large masses of ice 'within the containcr when the liquid therein is frozen, whereby the device may be bent to a desired shape.

3. A therapeutics] device comprising a hollow container formed of flexible material andhaving 79 and which is formed with a large number of, I

openings throughout which communicate with the exterior of said member and within which the liquid within said container is received, saidmemher being adapted to prevent the iormation of large masses of ice within the container when the liquid therein is frozen, whereby the device may be bent to a desired shape.

4. A therapeutical device comprising a hollow, closed container formed of flexible material and having a quantity of a liquid contained therein, and ,a plurality of perforate members disposed within said container and which substantially fill the space within said container, each of said members being formed with a large number of openings throughout which communicate with the exterior thereoiand within which the liquid within said container is received, whereby the liquid within said container, when frozen, will form small, irregular masses of ice which may be easily broken to permit the device to be bent to a desired shape.

5, A therapeutical device comprising a hollow, closed container formed of flexible material, and a fluid-saturated sponge-like member disposed within and substantially filling the space within said container, the fluid within said member being adapted to be frozen.

JOSEPH D. BATES.

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