EP0699602A1 - Pick-up device for refuse receptacles - Google Patents

Abstract

The device is for emptying refuse containers into a refuse collection vehicle. It incorporates an accommodation device (12) for the containers on the lift and tip mechanism of the collection vehicle. Several upwardly extending claws (14) are provided, between which are recesses (15) on the accommodation device for securing a pick-up strip with an open U-shaped profile standing away along a side wall on or near the opening edge of the refuse container. A lower support device is provided for the refuse container suspended on the accommodation device. The claw with a lower part (16) is fixed to the accommodation device and an upper part (44) of the claw is movably fitted to the lower part.

Description

TECHNICAL AREA

The invention relates to a device for emptying waste containers into a refuse collection vehicle. Such a device includes, for example, a receiving device on the lifting and tilting device of a refuse collection vehicle, which is designed to receive and transport one or more containers of different sizes into the refuse collection vehicle. So-called rear, front or side loaders are differentiated according to the respective different position of the lifting and tipping device with respect to a refuse collection vehicle. The receptacle must be structurally adapted to the waste containers to be emptied. This means that in addition to the receiving device on the lifting and tilting device, the device must also contain correspondingly adapted receiving devices on the garbage container.

STATE OF THE ART

From DE-PS 21 46 653 a device of the type mentioned is known. The receiving device of the tilting device arranged on the refuse collection vehicle has a plurality of claws projecting upwards and recesses located between them, which are alternately attached to a receiving bar. This mounting bar engages from below in a driving bar which is designed in cross section essentially as a U-profile bar which is open at the bottom. This carrier bar is present on the garbage container to be emptied along a side wall on or near its opening edge, projecting outwards. The claws of the receiving device can then underclose this carrier bar. There are a lot on the mounting bar claws of this type are present, so that waste containers of different sizes can be attached and emptied in an unbound sequence on the receiving bar.

From DE-PS 25 15 929 it is also known to empty larger garbage containers by dividing the carrier bar into two similar, side-by-side mounting bars, which then attach to both mounting bars simultaneously. To empty these larger garbage containers, the two holding bars and thus the two tilting devices are moved synchronously.

In all of these known devices, the receiving devices have, in addition to the claws on which the container or containers can be attached, lower support devices for supporting the respective container body or bodies.

With these emptying devices, the claws are firmly positioned on the receiving device. When immersing them from bottom to top in the respective U-profile strip of the waste container, they pull the waste container towards them, provided that the waste container with its U-profile strip should not be positioned exactly above the claws. Since the claws are approximately plate-shaped, with approximately perpendicularly oriented outer surfaces, the lateral relative movement between the container and the claw, which should be necessary for the claw to be immersed in the U-profile strip, is extremely small. As a result, the load on the outer wall of the U-shaped profile, which can occur when the claw is positioned off-center on the U-shaped profile, is not very great.

The garbage container known from EP-B1-235 784 has significantly greater loads on the driving bar which is designed in the form of a pocket which is open at the bottom. This receiving pocket forms the only way of holding the container on the receiving device. As a result, the receiving bag be relatively large, which in turn means that there is only a single receiving pocket on the front wall of the garbage container. This receiving pocket must hold the container in all of its lifting and tilting movements, since there is no lower support device for supporting the container body. The receiving bag must therefore not only bear the load of the filled garbage container, but also withstand the shaking movements in the final phase of the tilting position. The receiving claw designed for immersion in this pocket is movably attached to a swivel arm of the receiving device. As a result, the receiving claw can be suitably inserted into the receiving pocket from below by correspondingly swiveling out or extending the swivel arm. When the pick-up claw is loaded by the garbage container sitting on it, the claw is shifted vertically downward and thereby fixed in its respective orientation. The claw itself has the shape of an isosceles, triangular plate, which is aligned parallel to the container wall carrying the receiving pocket, the upper two triangular edges of which, on the side facing away from the waste container, form sloping gripping edges sloping inwards. The receiving pocket has correspondingly undercut surface areas. These surface areas are provided on a profile reinforcing the edge area of the opening side of the refuse container. Due to the arrangement of a single pocket on a waste container and the omission of additional supporting devices supporting the container body, the load acting on the edge of the pocket of the waste container is very high both when the container is emptied and when the receiving claw is immersed in the pocket.

In order to avoid damage to such a receiving pocket as far as possible, it is known from DE-PS 37 03 034 to assemble the receiving pocket from a plurality of wall sections running parallel to one another, these wall sections by struts, such as diamonds, are connected to each other in the manner of a vault.

PRESENTATION OF THE INVENTION

Based on this known prior art, the invention has for its object to provide an improved device for emptying garbage containers, with which the load on the carrier bar of the garbage container is as low as possible, with a problem-free reception of garbage containers on the lifting and tipping device of a refuse collection vehicle should be possible.

This invention is given by the features of the main claim. Useful further developments of this facility can be found in the subclaims. The device according to the invention includes constructive measures on the lifting and tilting device and requires a garbage container which is appropriately adapted with its carrier bar.

The device according to the invention is based on the known in the prior art, equipped with several claws carrier bar and is characterized in that the individual claw is composed of a lower part fixed to the receiving device and a movable upper part attached to the lower part. The upper part can move both in the direction of the lower part and in directions perpendicular thereto. The upper part can be moved freely from the lower part relative to the lower part in the direction of the container and away from the container, while it is not movable relative to the lower part in its other extreme position minimally removed from the lower part. There is only a single minimally distant position between the upper part and lower part.

With this design, the claw can be inserted, as it were, self-centering into the downward open carrier bar of a waste container. However, only the upper part is self-centering. The lower part remains in its position, for example, off-center to the longitudinal axis of the driving bar. This means that when the claw is retracted from below into the carrier bar of a waste container, the claw need not be positioned exactly below the carrier bar. It only has to be ensured that the upper part reaches the mouth area of the driving bar. When the receiving claw is pushed up, the upper part can move towards the container or away from the container so that it can float freely over the entire surface of the carrier bar. After the upper part is fully seated in the carrier bar and thus rests fully against the contact surfaces of the carrier bar, the upper part is moved towards the lower part when the claw is raised further. The vertical distance between the upper part and lower part is reduced and at the same time the upper part with its orientation is moved transversely into the vertical plane of the lower part. This also pulls the garbage container towards the lower part and thus into its emptying position which is predetermined for emptying. However, this pulling does not take place with a claw which only partially engages the lower edge region of the pocket, for example, but only in the position in which the claw or its upper part is positioned over the entire surface in the receiving pocket of the refuse container. The container is thus drawn towards the receiving claw. This is also necessary because the container must be present in a predetermined orientation to the tilting device in terms of its distance from the receiving bar. The lateral alignment on the receiving bar can be variable, as is already known in the aforementioned DE-PS 21 46 653. The device according to the invention thus allows a gentle reception of garbage containers to be emptied with a self-centering receiving device, whereby nevertheless the exact alignment of the waste container on the lifting and tipping device is present during the lifting and tilting movement.

The upper part can be arranged transversely to the longitudinal extent of the receiving bar or also in the longitudinal direction of the receiving bar, i.e. with the tilting device positioned at the rear of the refuse collection vehicle in the transverse direction of the refuse collection vehicle, it can be designed to be movable relative to the lower part. The receiving pocket can therefore be designed in the longitudinal direction of the driving bar as an essentially continuous groove or can be provided in the longitudinal direction with a plurality of pocket-like depressions arranged in series one behind the other. In both cases, it is possible to create rubbish bins offset along the receiving bar. As a result, garbage containers of different widths can be attached to the receiving bar as required. In addition, a waste container can also be attached to the claws of two holding bars positioned next to each other. It is possible with all these containers to position the container only at an approximate distance from the receiving bar and to drive the claws of the receiving bar from below into the possibly not exactly aligned carrier bar of the waste container. In the case of the receiving strip provided with several claws and known in the prior art, this is practically only possible with a precisely aligned container. Therefore, the garbage container is often attached by the operator to the receiving claws to ensure that the garbage container is also exactly aligned with the receiving bar.

Special designs of the device according to the invention can be found in the features listed in the subclaims and in the exemplary embodiment below.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING

Fig. 1

zwei nebeneinander angeordnete, mit nach oben ragenden Klauen versehene Kammleisten von zwei Hub-Kippvorrichtungen eines Müllsammelfahrzeuges,

Fig. 2

einen Querschnitt durch eine Klaue entlang der Linie 2-2 von Fig. 1, mit einer Klaue, deren Oberteil sich in einer ersten extremen Stellung befindet, und

Fig. 3

eine Darstellung gemäß Fig. 2, bei der das Oberteil der Klaue sich in einer anderen extremen Stellung befindet.

The invention is based on the in the drawing illustrated embodiment described and explained in more detail. Show it:

Fig. 1

two comb strips of two lifting and tipping devices of a refuse collection vehicle arranged side by side and provided with claws projecting upwards,

Fig. 2

a cross section through a claw along the line 2-2 of Fig. 1, with a claw, the upper part is in a first extreme position, and

Fig. 3

a representation of FIG. 2, in which the upper part of the claw is in another extreme position.

WAYS OF CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

The comb strips 12 of two receptacles 10 present side by side on a refuse collection vehicle are shown schematically in FIG. 1. From each comb strip 12, her teeth, referred to below as claws 14, project upward. Recesses 15 are formed on the comb strip 12 between adjacent claws 14. The garbage container to be emptied is hung with its carrier bar on two or more of these claws 14. In addition to the comb strip 12, a lower support is also present on the receiving device 10, with which the garbage container hanging on the comb strip 12 is supported in its lower region.

Each claw 14 consists of a lower part 16 fixedly attached to the comb ledge 16. The lower part has laterally upwardly projecting support walls 20, 22 which have an upwardly tapering cross section and in this connection an upwardly inclined inner wall 24 on each support wall 20, 22 own. At the bottom, the inner walls 24 are connected to one another by a flat base surface 26 in the present case.

In the base area 26 there is an opening 28 tapering downwards. This breakthrough ends in an incision 30 with the formation of a recessed shoulder 32. The shoulder 32 forms a support surface for the washer 38 fastened to a bolt 36 by means of a nut 34. The bolt 36 projects upward through the breakthrough 28 and lies with its end face Ball head 40 on a roof-shaped central surface 42 from below, which is present molded in an upper part 44.

This upper part 44 has a surface 46 which runs around laterally and at the top and is designed in cross section as a truncated cone. This cross-section is of the same size in parallel planes, along the comb strip 12, in the case of a claw 14 and in the same way in the case of all claws 14. However, it is also possible to make the surface 46 radially symmetrical and thus, for example, conical.

A design corresponding to the surface 46 is present in the carrier bar of the refuse containers to be accommodated, which are to be hung on the claws 14. The inner surface of the driving bar is shaped so that the claws 14 can be immersed with their entire surfaces 46 in the driving bar and can rest there on corresponding inner walls of the driving bar and / or end faces of transverse webs which are present in the driving bar.

Sidewalls 50 projecting laterally downward from the upper part 44. When the upper part 44 is positioned centrally above the lower part 16, these side walls are positioned at a distance 52 from the outer wall 54 of the supporting walls 20, 22. The distances 52 are the same size. In the inner region enclosed by the support walls 20, 22, the upper part 44 has a projection 56 which projects downward centrally and in which the roof-shaped central surface 42 is molded.

A molded part 60, which is a clamping part with which the ball head 40 can be held pressed onto the central surface 42, is fastened to the projection 56 via a screw connection 58 accessible from below. The upper part 44 can be pivoted relative to the ball head 40.

There are also distances 62 between the projection 56 or its outer surfaces 57 and the support walls 20, 22, which are the same size when the upper part 44 is centrally located above the lower part 16.

A helical spring 64 is positioned between the molded part 60 and the base surface 26 and pushes the molded part 60 and thus the upper part 44 away from the base surface 26 and thus from the lower part.

The situation of the upper part 44 shown in FIG. 2 represents the unloaded state of the claw 14. As soon as the lower part 16 and thus the comb strip 12 moves from below into the carrier strip of a garbage container which is open at the bottom, the comb strip 12 only has to be so far below the carrier strip be positioned so that the upper part 44 can dip into the driving bar with its upper region 65. When the lower part 16 is raised further, the upper part 44, which is freely movable with respect to the lower part 16 by the dimension 62, can adapt to the respective position of the waste container and thus to the existing position of its carrier bar. The upper part 44 can thus be fully and unloaded, without exerting any constraints on the driving bar, immersed in the same.

As soon as the upper part 44 is fully immersed in the carrier bar, the projection 56 comes to rest either on the inner wall 24 of the support wall 20 or on the inner wall 24 of the support wall 22 when the lower part 16 is raised further. When the lower part 16 is raised further, the upper part 44 is pressed downwards along the inclined inner wall 24, whereby it performs a transverse movement (double arrow 68) perpendicular to the longitudinal axis 66. In the final state, the upper part 44 reaches its position shown in FIG. 3, in which it is positioned centrally and exactly above the lower part 16.

During its transverse movement (double arrow 68), the upper part 44 takes the movement bar fully seated on it and thus the corresponding waste container with it in terms of movement. The force exerted on the garbage container can be easily absorbed by the driving bar, since the upper part 44 is fully seated in the receiving bar and there are correspondingly large contact surfaces between the garbage container and the upper part 44 for the transmission of force. The waste container, generally made of plastic, can therefore absorb the load acting on it without destroying it. The forces occurring between the upper part 44 and lower part 16 act only on a small area. However, these forces can be easily absorbed by the claws and comb strip 12, which are generally made of sufficiently resistant material, such as metal.

The side walls 50 are connected to the lower part via a rubber mat or other flexible mat 70, for example via screw connections 72, 74. As a result, the gap 76 defined by the distance 52 between the upper part 44 and lower part 16 is covered in a dust-tight manner. The screw connections 72, 74 may have to be countersunk so that there are no protruding parts.

In order to enable the deflection of the upper part 44 shown in FIG. 2, the bolt 36 must also be able to deflect from its vertical, central orientation shown in FIG. 2. In order to make this deflection possible, the opening 28 has the shape tapering downwards shown in the drawing. The bolt 36 also serves prevent a complete lifting of the upper part 44 from the lower part 16. This lifting is only possible after loosening the nut 34 and the screw connection 72 or 74. The upper part 44 can then be removed together with the bolt 36 upwards from the lower part 16. By loosening the screw connection 58, the molded part 60 can then be removed from the upper part 44 and thereby the bolt 36 can be removed from the upper part 44.

Instead of the coil spring 64, other elastic molded bodies, such as shock absorbers, could also be arranged. The shock absorbers could also generally be provided as piston-cylinder arrangements that can be acted upon hydraulically or pneumatically. By applying different amounts of pressure medium to the piston, the size of the force pushing the upper part 44 upward away from the lower part 16 could be made variable. For example, the risk of the upper part 44 tipping out of its vertical orientation could also be counteracted by corresponding action on the magnitude of these compressive forces. This tilting could occur in some cases when centering the upper part 44 on the lower part 16.

Claims (16)

Device for emptying garbage containers into a garbage collection vehicle, with - A receiving device (12) for the refuse containers present on the lifting and tilting device of the refuse collection vehicle, - A plurality of claws (14) projecting upwards and recesses (15) located between them on the receiving device (12) for underneath a carrier bar which is designed as a U-shaped strip which is essentially open at the bottom and which is on the respective waste container along or near its side wall Opening edge protrudes outwards, and a lower support device for the waste container attached to the receiving device (12),
characterized in that - The claw (14) with a lower part (16) is fixed to the receiving device (12), - An upper part (44) of the claw (14) is movably attached to the lower part (16), such that - The upper part (44) in lower positions from the lower part (16) relative to the lower part in the direction (68) towards the container and away from the container is freely movable and that - the upper part (44) is not movable relative to the lower part (16) in a position minimally distant from the lower part (16), - A single minimally distant position between the upper part (44) and lower part (16) is present. Device according to claim 1,
characterized in that - The upper part (44) in the lower part (16) Positions relative to the lower part (16) is freely movable in all directions. Device according to claim 1 or 2,
characterized in that - At least one spacer (64) is present between the upper part (44) and lower part (16), which strives to bring the upper part (44) at an extreme distance from the lower part. Device according to claim 3,
characterized in that - The spacer (64) is an elastically deformable body. Device according to claim 3 or 4,
characterized in that - That the spacer (64) is a spring body. Device according to one of the preceding claims,
characterized in that - The spacer is a piston-cylinder device. Device according to one of the preceding claims,
characterized in that - The spacer is a hydraulically or pneumatically controllable piston-cylinder device. Device according to one of the preceding claims,
characterized in that - The upper part (44) has at least in a cross-section downwardly sloping contact surfaces (57), - The lower part (16) of these contact surfaces (57) has corresponding inner surfaces (24), such that in the minimal distant position between the lower part (16) and the upper part (44), the contact surfaces (57) bear against the inner surfaces (24) over the entire surface and that in the other positions there is a different mutual distance (62) between these surfaces (24, 57), this distance (62) being greatest in the maximally distant position of the upper part (44) from the lower part (16), - A holding member (36) is present, with which the maximum distance of the upper part (44) from the lower part (16) can be limited, - The holding part (36) is movably attached to the lower part (16) and upper part (44), - A coil spring (64) between the upper part (44) and lower part (16) is available, with which the upper part (44) can be pressed in the direction away from the lower part (16). Device according to claim 8,
characterized in that - The holding part (36) is a rod-shaped member which is longitudinally displaceable and deflectable from its longitudinal direction on the lower part (16). Device according to one of the preceding claims,
characterized in that - The holding part (36) has a spherical head-like end region (40) with which it bears from below in an indentation (42) in the upper part (44), - Clamp-like fastening parts (60) are fastened to the upper part (44) with which the spherical head-like end region (40) can be fixed on the upper part (44). Device according to one of the preceding claims,
characterized in that - One the overlap area of the upper part (44) and Lower part (16) covering protective mat (70) on the outside is present. Device according to claim 11,
characterized in that - The protective mat (70) on the upper part (44) and lower part (16) is each fastened (72, 74). Device according to one of the preceding claims,
characterized in that - The upper part (44) in the direction of the existing several claws (14) each have the same cross-sections aligned parallel to each other. Device according to one of the preceding claims,
characterized in that - The upper part (44) is radially symmetrical. Device according to one of the preceding claims,
characterized in that - The carrier bar of the refuse container, which is essentially designed as an open U-profile bar, is adapted to the outer surface (46) of the upper part (44) of the claw (14) such that when the upper part (44) is fully immersed in the profile bar, no relative movement between the upper part ( 44) and waste container in the direction (68) towards the container and away from the container, it is possible that such a relative movement (68) between the upper part (44) and the container is possible if the upper part (44) is not fully immersed in the profile strip. Device according to one of the preceding claims,
characterized in that - The inner surface of the profile strip can be applied to the outer surface (46) of the upper part (44) via flat inner wall areas and / or via end faces of webs formed in the interior of the profile strip.

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