AU731263B1

AU731263B1 - Bin lid opener

Info

Publication number: AU731263B1
Application number: AU48856/00A
Authority: AU
Inventors: Gamini Samarakoon
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2000-05-22
Filing date: 2000-07-26
Publication date: 2001-03-29
Anticipated expiration: 2020-07-26

Description

AUSTRALIA

Patents Act 1990 COMPLETE SPECIFICATION FOR A STANDARD PATENT Name of Applicant: Actual Inventor: Address for Service: Invention Title: GAMINI SAMARAKOON GAMINI SAMARAKOON CULLEN CO., Patent Trade Mark Attorneys, 239 George Street, Brisbane, Qld. 4000, Australia.

BIN LID OPENER Details of Associated Provisional Application: N O No. PQ217 filed I Augu t 199 The following statement is a full description of this invention, including the best method of performing it known to me: BIN LID OPENER BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to a bin lid opener and is particularly concerned with an opener for use with a mobile garbage bin of the type known in many parts of Australia, particularly Queensland, as a "wheelie bin".

A "wheelie bin" is illustrated in Figures 1 and 2 of the accompanying drawings. It is a domestic garbage bin which has been adopted by many local councils as an efficient and hygienic means for storing and then permitting retrieval of garbage by purpose built vehicles which do not require the bin to be man-handled.

The bin comprises a cubical container 10 with a front wall 11, a rear wall 12, side walls 13, 14 and a base 15. It has a lid 16 with handles 17, 18 enabling the lid to be swung open about a pull bar 19 on hinges 21. The bin rests partly on its base 15 and partly on a pair of wheels 22, 23 which are connected by an axle 24 at the rear of the bin. The bin can be moved by hand by pulling on the pull bar so as to lift the base off the ground so that it can be wheeled along.

A problem with such bins is that the lid must be manually raised every time garbage is loaded into the bin. This can be a nuisance when both hands are loaded with garbage, and can be outright unhygienic if the handles are contaminated, as can quite often be the case when one is handling garbage.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART Many attachments have been devised over the years to assist the opening of the lid without the-use of hands. Examples of these are shown in Australian Patent Specifications Nos. AU 646524 to Harrison, AU 37942/95 to Jaccara Pty Ltd, AU 45529/96 to Whyte and AU 654259 to Shipman. It will be noted in all of these arrangements that they generally comprise a relatively large number of components (which are often difficult to assemble) and, in some instances, must be removed before the bin can be emptied into the collection vehicle. Furthermore, some of the arrangements require the fitting to be permanently fixed to the bin which can be difficult to do for the average householder, and can damage the bin.

OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION It is therefore a principal aspect of the invention to provide a bin lid opener which has minimal components.

A further aspect is to provide an opener which can be easily and readily fitted to a wheelie bin.

A still further object is to provide an opener which can remain in place when the bin is emptied by a collection vehicle.

A yet further object of the invention is to provide an opener which is relatively inexpensive and which gives the public a useful alternative.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION According to the present invention there is provided a bin lid opener for use with a bin of the type hereinbefore described, said opener comprising:a rigid arm having a hooking member at one end for hooking about a handle on the lid, a configured portion near its other end for fitting onto the pull bar of the bin, and an attachment region close to the configured portion which extends beyond the pull bar of the bin; (ii) a foot lever for securing to a wheel axis of the bin so as to extend along a side of the bin toward the front of the bin; and (iii) a flexible connecting element for connecting the foot lever to the attachment region of the rigid arm; wherein, in use, downward force on the end of the foot lever causes the attached flexible connecting element to rotate the rigid arm about the pull bar, thereby opening the lid.

DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Preferably, the maximum amount by which the lid can be opened is set so that it does not go beyond the vertical. This ensures that the lid will close under its own weight (and the weight of the arm) when the downward force on the foot lever is removed. It is most preferred if the maximum opening is set at about 850 with respect to the top opening of the bin (which is generally substantially horizontal).

The means by which the maximum amount of lid opening can be set is suitably by the provision of a projection on the configured portion of the rigid arm.

The projection is arranged so that it will come into contact with the rear wall of the bin when the lid has been raised to the predetermined maximum amount, thereby preventing further rearward movement of the lid.

The rigid arm of the lid opener can be a substantially straight rod, bar or the like which is preferably slightly cranked downwardly approximately twothirds the distance from the hooking member. This enables the arm to neatly and effectively lie adjacent to the surface of the lid (the lid has a raised rib towards its rear section as will be noted from Figure 1).

The configured portion on the rear end of the actuating arm can suitably be in the form of an open loop in which the opening, in use, faces rearwardly, or away from, the bin, when the lid is closed. The loop can be formed integrally with the actuating arm and is preferably located below the arm when the arm extends across the closed lid.

The attachment region adjacent to the configured portion can comprise an eyelet formed in the arm, on the top side, in the closed position, of the loop. Preferably, the eyelet is an integral continuation of the arm and the loop is an integral continuation of the eyelet. The projection which limits the amount of opening of the lid can, in turn, be an integral continuation of the loop.

The foot lever can be a rigid bar with a pedal, that is, foot contacting portion, on one end, and a securing means on the other for securing the lever to the wheel axle. This securing means can comprise a halfcylindrical cusp located on the upper, in use, side of the lever. A plate may extend from an edge of the cusp to enable the cusp to be permanently secured to the wheel axle with an associated clamping plate, using nuts and bolts. Preferably, the foot lever is arranged to extend at approximately 150 upwardly with respect to the base of the bin.

The flexible connecting element can be chosen from a wide range of products including cables, wires, chains, cords, or even a plurality of relatively articulating rigid elements. Preferably it is a stranded wire cable which is looped through the eyelet on the arm and spliced back upon itself. Similarly the other end can be looped through a hole in the bar of the foot lever and also spliced back upon itself.

From the above description, it is readily apparent that the lid opener according to the present invention, has a very simple construction, being merely three elements, which can operate in a very effective manner. Furthermore, it does not interfere -with the emptying of the bin by a garbage collection vehicle since when the bin is upended, there is nothing to prevent the lid from opening to its fullest extent, that is, up to the position provided by the projection on the configured portion. A particular advantage is that when the bin has been emptied and is returned to its standing position, the lid will automatically close. This is a feature which is quite unique to the invention.

DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENT A preferred embodiment of the invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:- Figures 1 and 2 are conventional "wheelie bins" as previously noted, Figure 3 is a perspective view of a bin lid opener according to one aspect of the present invention, Figure 4 is a top perspective view of a "wheelie bin" fitted with the bin lid opener shown in Figure 3, Figure 5 is a top perspective view of the "wheelie bin" of Figure 4 in a fully open position, Figures 6, 7 and 8 illustrate the manner in which the bin lid opener of Figure 3 can be fitted to a "wheelie bin", Figure 9 is a close-up perspective view of the hooking member of the bin lid opener of Figure 3 fitted to the lid, and Figure 10 is a close-up perspective view of the configured portion of the arm of the bin lid opener of Figure 3 fitted to the lid.

In all of the drawings, like reference numerals refer to like parts.

Referring to Figure 3, the bin lid opener comprises a rigid arm 30, a foot lever 31 and a flexible connecting element 32 (shown broken because of its length).

The arm 30 has a hooking member 33 at one end and configured portion 34 at the other. The hooking member 33 is formed by bending the end of the arm to a shape that enables it to slip over and hold the handle 17 of the lid as shown in detail in Figure 9.

The configured portion 34 includes a loop shaped section 35 which fits around the pull bar 19, as shown in detail in Figure 10. An intermediate eyelet 36 provides an attachment region for one end 37 of the flexible connecting element 32. A terminal end section has a projection 38 which prevents the lid from opening further than that shown in Figure 5 by virtue of it coming into contact with the rear wall 12 of the bin as the lid is raised to an open position.

The flexible connecting element 32 is a stranded wire cord which is spliced to itself through the eyelet 36. It is also spliced at its point of connection 39 with the foot lever 31, which is through a hole located just past the mid-section of the foot lever.

The foot lever 31 has a pedal 40 on one end and a cusp-shaped element 41 on the other to enable connection to the wheel axis as hereinafter described.

Figure 4 shows the opener fitted to a closed bin. It is to be noted that it does not hinder the garbage vehicle from lifting the bin as it does so by grabbing onto the top sides of the bin. It will also be noted that the opener forms a neat, almost unobtrusive fitting on the bin.

Figure 5 shows that when the foot lever is depressed, the lid will open to about 850 maximum, permitting easy access to the interior.

Figures 6-8 show the means by which the opener is fitted. Firstly the bin is laid down on its rear face with the wheels facing the installer. The foot lever 31 is inserted onto the axle in the direction of the arrow shown in Figure 6 so that the cusp 41 extends over the axle. The foot lever is then rotated about the axle as shown in Figure 7 and the bin is positioned upright. Any twists in the stranded wire cord are removed at this stage.

The configured end portion 34 of the opening arm is positioned as shown in Figure 8 and the hooking member 33 is hooked over the lid handle 17 as shown in Figure 9. The configured end portion 34 is then pushed over the pull bar 19 as shown in Figure 10 and the fitting is complete.

Claims

1. The bin lid opener for use with a bin of the type hereinbefore described, said opener comprising:- a rigid arm having a hooking member at one end for hooking about a handle on the lid, a configured portion near its other end for fitting onto the pull bar of the bin, and an attachment region close to the configured portion which extends beyond the pull bar of the bin; (ii) a foot lever for securing to a wheel axis of the bin. so as to extend along a side of the bin toward the front of the bin; and (iii) a flexible connecting element for connecting the foot lever to the attachment region of the rigid arm; wherein, in use, downward force on the end of the foot lever causes the attached flexible connecting element to rotate the rigid arm about the pull bar, thereby opening the lid.

2. A bin lid opener as claimed in claim 1, wherein the maximum amount by which the bin lid can be opened is set by a projection on the configured portion of the rigid arm which comes into contact with the rear wall of the bin.

3. A bin lid opener as claimed in claim 2, wherein the projection on the configured portion of the arm is of such a length as to prevent the lid from being opened beyond a substantially vertical position.

4. A bin lid opener as claimed in claim 3, wherein the length of the arm enables a maximum lid opening of approximately 850 with respect to the top opening of the bin.

A bin lid opener as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein the rigid arm is a substantially straight rod which is slightly cranked downwardly approximately two-thirds the distance from the hooking member.

6. A bin lid opener as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein the configured portion is in the form of an open loop in which the opening, in use, faces rearwardly of the bin when the lid is closed, said loop being located below the rigid arm.

7. A bin lid opener as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein the attachment region is in the form of an eyelet through which the flexible connecting element can be threaded.

8. A bin lid opener as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein the foot lever is a rigid bar having a pedal on one end and a securing means on the other end for securing to the wheel axle.

9. A bin lid opener as claimed in claim 8, wherein the securing means comprises a half-cylindrical cusp extending on the upper, in use, side of the lever.

10. A bin lid opener as claimed in claim 9, wherein a plate with openings formed therein, projects from a side of the cusp to enable the cusp to be permanently fixed to the wheel axle with the use of an associated clamping plate.

11. A bin lid opener as claimed in any one of claims 8-10, wherein the rigid bar is connected to the flexible connecting element at a point which is slightly offset from the mid-point of the bar, toward the pedal.

12. A bin lid opener as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein the flexible connecting element is a cable, a wire, a chain, a cord, or a plurality of 11 relatively articulating rigid elements.

13. A bin lid opener substantially as herein described with reference to Figures 3-10 of the accompanying drawings. DATED this 26th day of July 2000 GAMINI SAMARAKOON By his Patent Attorneys CULLEN CO.