制冷技术的最大进步之一是蒸汽压缩系统的电气化和自动控制。这使得制冷厂的容量和实际规模得以减少，消除了全职操作员的必要性，并将制冷从冰库和肉类包装机领域转移到家庭和商业企业的新市场。历史资料很少提到小型制冷系统的发展，当它提到时，往往是错误的。考虑到目前公认的商用和家用制冷系统的重要性，这是令人惊讶的。本文将对这一古老领域提供一些新的、准确的信息，这是对行业出版物、专利和公司内部文件进行大量研究的结果。引文:德克萨斯州休斯顿ASHRAE学报第88卷第1部分研讨会

One of the greatest advances in refrigeration was the electrification and automatic control of vapor-compression systems. This made possible the reduction in capacity and physical size of refrigerating plants, eliminating the necessity of a full time operator, and took refrigeration from the realm of ice houses and meat packers to the new markets of homes and commercial businesses. Historical information seldom mentions the development of small refrigerating systems, and when it does, it is frequently in error. This is surprising given the now recognized importance of commercial and household refrigerating systems. This paper will shed some new and accurate light on this old field and is the result of considerable research in trade publications, patents, and internal company documents.