he NASA-inspired Koolatron keeps hot foods hot and cold foods cold.

The portable refrigeration unit, manufactured by Koolatron Division of Urus Industrial Corp., is replacing the traditional ice cooler with technology originally designed to provide cooling systems in the tight confines of space. The Koolatron is a refrigerator and a food warmer.

Space travel's tough demands forced scientists to find a more dependable and compact form of a space cooling system than traditional refrigeration coils and compressors. Research led them to discover a component called the thermo-electric module. Smaller than a matchbook, it delivers the cooling power of a
10-pound block of ice.

When connected to an electric source, current causes heat to move from one side to the other. The direction of the current, controlled in some models by the flick of a switch, determines whether the contents placed in the Koolatron is heated or cooled.

In the cool mode, the portable Koolatron reduces the outside temperature by 40° Fahrenheit. When used as a warmer, the Koolatron can warm food up to 125° Fahrenheit. The large model weighs only 12 pounds and can hold up to 40 12-oz. cans. The smaller model weighs seven pounds and holds six cans.

For more information, contact Arun Kulkarni at Koolatron.
Call 519/756-3950.
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