Portable Refrigerator

Abstract

A portable refrigerator includes a main housing, a refrigerator cover, a cooling mechanism, a rechargeable battery pack and a control unit. The cooling mechanism includes heat exchanging tubes, a compressor, an evaporator and a condenser connected to the evaporator and the compressor. The rechargeable battery pack is detachably attached on a power compartment of the main housing. The control unit is supported in the main housing and electrically connected to the rechargeable battery pack and the cooling mechanism for centrally controlling an operation of the cooling mechanism. A predetermined amount of refrigerant is arranged to controllably pass through the heat exchanging tubes, the condenser, the evaporator and the compressor for extracting heat from the accommodating cavity.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A portable refrigerator, comprising:
 a main housing having a power compartment indently formed thereon, said main housing further having a compartment opening communicating said power compartment with an exterior of said main housing, and a component compartment formed adjacent to said power compartment and electrically connected to said power compartment, said component compartment and said power compartment being not detachable from said main housing, said component compartment and said power compartment being formed on a top portion of said main housing, said component compartment and said power compartment being formed in said main housing as a single and integral unit;   a cooling mechanism which is securely supported by and received inside said component compartment of said main housing and comprises a plurality of heat exchanging tubes, a compressor, an evaporator connected to said compressor through at least one of said heat exchanging tubes, and a condenser connected to said evaporator and said compressor through at least one of said heat exchanging tubes;   a rechargeable battery pack detachably attached and fittingly received in said power compartment of said main housing through said compartment opening, said power compartment defining a cavity sized to fit said rechargeable battery pack, said rechargeable battery pack being adapted for connecting to a power source, and comprising:   a battery housing having a front battery surface, a rear battery surface, two side battery surfaces, a top battery surface and a bottom battery surface, wherein when said battery housing is accommodated in said power compartment, said front battery surface is exposed to an exterior of said main housing;   a battery core received in said battery housing; and   a locking arrangement operatively provided on said battery housing, said locking arrangement comprising a first actuating member and a first resilient element mounted on said first actuating member to selectively exert a biasing force thereto, said first actuating member having a first locking latch and a first depressing member extending from said first locking latch, said first resilient element being arranged to selectively exert a biasing force against said first actuating member so as to drive said first locking latch and said first depressing member to selectively expose out of said battery housing, said first depressing member being selectively pushed to expose out of said battery housing, so that by depressing said first depressing member, said battery housing is adapted to be removed from said main housing through an outward movement of said battery housing.   
     
     
         2 . The portable refrigerator, as recited in  claim 1 , wherein said battery housing is divided into a front thicker portion and a rear thinner portion, said bottom battery surface of said battery housing being divided into a front section, a rear section and a biasing surface as a boundary surface between said front section and said rear section, wherein said front section is formed as said bottom surface of said front thicker portion of said battery housing, while said rear section is formed as said bottom surface of said rear thinner portion. 
     
     
         3 . The portable refrigerator, as recited in  claim 1 , wherein said power compartment is surrounded by a top compartment surface, a bottom compartment surface, a rear compartment surface, and two side compartment surfaces, said battery housing further having a plurality of securing slots formed on at least one of said top battery surface and said bottom battery surface respectively, said main housing further comprising a plurality of securing ridges formed on at least one of said top compartment surface and said bottom compartment surface of said power compartment at positions corresponding to said securing slots of said battery housing, thereby said rechargeable battery pack is selectively unlocked and pulled out from said power compartment through pressing said first depressing members of said locking arrangement and pulling said battery housing to disengaging said securing ridges from said securing slots. 
     
     
         4 . The portable refrigerator, as recited in  claim 1 , wherein said battery housing further has a plurality of positioning recesses provided thereon for assisting positioning of said battery housing in said power compartment. 
     
     
         5 . The portable refrigerator, as recited in  claim 1 , wherein said bottom compartment surface is divided into a front segment and a rear segment wherein a vertical height of said front segment is lower than that of said rear segment to form an urging surface as a boundary surface between said front segment and said rear segment, said main housing further comprising a plurality of positioning protrusions formed on said front segment of said bottom compartment surface. 
     
     
         6 . The portable refrigerator, as recited in  claim 1 , wherein said main housing further comprises a plurality of wheels rotatably and detachably mounted thereon for facilitating easy transportation of the portable refrigerator.