EP1023988A2 - Process for compacting waste materials and machine for carrying out the method - Google Patents

Abstract

Machine includes cylindrical tank (2-4) and compressing head (15, 16) with horizontal toothed roller (16) able to rotate around vertical axis of tank under action of driving mechanism (15). Force or couple from driving mechanism is permanently monitored and when exceeding predetermined value, roller is pulled upwards at a predetermined value and released. Roller is then placed at top of waste and is rotated in opposite direction. An Independent claim is also included for the waste compressing machine.

Description

The present invention relates to the compaction of waste, in particular packaging lost in cardboard or similar material, based on organic resins for example (plastics in general), in a machine allowing to shred and compress the waste of this kind, significantly reducing their volume. Waste thus compacted are generally collected in a removable and interchangeable machine receptacle, such than a carrying bag.

In this context, the invention essentially has for subject a compaction process to eliminate risk of jamming which may cause a malfunction of the machine during compaction and a machine comprising means specific to the implementation of the different process operations.

A machine currently used for compaction of cartons and other disposable packaging products is described in patent application 97 12 967 of October 16 1997. It essentially comprises a cylindrical tank of waste reception, open upwards, and a compaction comprising a horizontal toothed roller which is applied by its own weight to the waste found in the tank. The toothed roller has a double rotational movement, namely a rotation of the head compaction as a whole around the central axis of said tank (oriented vertical in normal operation) and a rotation of the roller on itself, around its axis longitudinal. In practical implementation, this roller, preferably cylindrical in shape, is generally oriented perpendicular to the axis of the tank. Its own axis is so then horizontal in normal operation.

The object of the invention is to resolve the problems that sometimes arise from the use of machines gender, especially when the machine is intended for a continuous operation and the waste is discarded or otherwise introduced into the tank in instant quantities variable, while the compacting head is rotating. The supply of the tank with waste not being regular, local stuffing can occur which interfere with good compaction and / or shredding of waste.

The present invention proposes to provide a process which eliminates jams in order to obtain regular compaction of waste, in a reduced volume, in a bag or other receptacle placed in the tank.

The process according to the invention consists basically to monitor a significant magnitude of force or reaction torque exerted by the organ of the compaction head and, when said quantity exceeds a predetermined threshold, to perform a cleaning operation according to which the head of compaction is raised by a predetermined height and then released, the compaction head descending on the waste and being rotated in opposite directions.

Insofar as the compacting head continues to rotate in the tank while it is being lifted, it can pass over the filling point and eliminate it at the same time time. In this way, the toothed roller attacks and scatter the stuffing area first on one side of this last by getting up, then he passes it and returns by the other side by turning in the opposite direction, so that, normally, the jam area is cleared. Said cleaning operation is repeated if, during this movement back, said quantity again becomes greater than said threshold.

In the case of a machine where the roller which provides compaction of waste by pressure on them under the weight of the compacting head in rotation about the axis of the tank, also ensures shredding of the material of the waste, particularly effective in that it is toothed and rotated on itself simultaneously, according to the invention, provision may be made, only after lifting the roller with the whole head compacting and reversing the direction of rotation thereof, the direction of rotation of the roller on itself is also reversed. This improves the action of the roller on the jam, facilitates shredding and therefore improves the compaction.

Advantageously, the two rotational movements are controlled by a single motor and, in normal operation, the direction of rotation of the motor is periodically reversed, the period of time between two normal inversions successive being greater than the duration of the operation of cleaning. According to one of the embodiments of the invention applying these features, the duration of the cleaning operation is less than or at most equal at 5 seconds and the normal shift period is at least around 20 seconds.

The present invention also relates to a machine for carrying out the above process, machine which includes means suitable for producing, preferably automatically, the successive operations involved said process. According to the invention, such a machine advantageously includes means for detecting the force exercised by the driving organ, as well as means of shutdown of the drive unit, means reversing the direction of rotation around the tank axis and / or its direction of rotation on itself, and means of lifting of the compacting head, which are placed under the control of said force detection means.

According to other features of the invention, the machine comprising means for detecting the height of the compaction head which provide a tank signal full when said height exceeds a determined threshold, said cell-full signal triggers a time delay, the duration is greater than the duration of the operation of cleaning and, if during the duration of said delay, the height of the compacting head remains greater than said threshold of full tank, the machine is stopped completely. This prevents the machine from being stopped unexpectedly if the lifting head exceeds the threshold of tank full temporarily during lifting during a cleaning operation.

According to an advantageous characteristic of the invention, the means for lifting the compacting head have a hydraulic cylinder and the lifting height of said head when a jam is detected is determined by the actuation time of the cylinder.

According to another characteristic of the invention, which advantageously combines with the previous one, the organ drive the compacting head around the axis of the tank has a hydraulic motor and the motor and the cylinder are supplied by the same circuit from a motor pump connected to a hydraulic fluid tank. In in this case, the force detection means include a threshold pressure detector measuring pressure at the motor input.

Advantageously, the jack is arranged in a vertical housing arranged in the vicinity of the tank and the head compactor carries a moving protective sheet in front of the accommodation to prevent waste from entering in the accommodation.

A protective skirt can be attached under the head compaction so as to move tangentially to walls of the receptacle receiving the waste as and when of their compaction. Such a skirt is preferably made integral with the compacting head in its translational displacements in the direction of the axis of the tank (therefore in a normally vertical direction in functioning) and constructed so as to be totally clear of the tank when the compacting head is in its maximum upper position, so that in position upper maximum, the skirt does not hinder the extraction of full removable receptacle (usually a soft bag), and / or to ensure that all waste is always returned to the receptacle in place in the tank during the compaction of injected waste.

Advantageously, the means for detecting the height of the compaction head consist of a cam integral with the compacting head and cooperating with a detector mounted on a structure remaining fixed.

• la figure 1 est une vue en perspective éclatée d'une machine de compactage de déchets constituée conformément à un mode de réalisation particulier de l'invention ;
• la figure 2 est une vue schématique en coupe illustrant le procédé selon l'invention tel qu'il est mis en oeuvre au moyen d'une telle machine ;
• la figure 3 est un schéma du circuit hydraulique de la machine particulière considérée ;
• la figure 4 est un ordinogramme illustrant différentes séquences du procédé selon l'invention dans les étapes opératoires successives qu'elles impliquent ;
• et la figure 5 est un schéma synoptique des principaux circuits électriques de commande des organes de la machine intervenant dans la mise en oeuvre du procédé de l'invention.

The invention will now be more fully described in the context of preferred characteristics and their advantages, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

• Figure 1 is an exploded perspective view of a waste compacting machine formed in accordance with a particular embodiment of the invention;
• Figure 2 is a schematic sectional view illustrating the method according to the invention as it is implemented by means of such a machine;
• Figure 3 is a diagram of the hydraulic circuit of the particular machine considered;
• FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating different sequences of the method according to the invention in the successive operational steps which they imply;
• and FIG. 5 is a block diagram of the main electrical circuits for controlling the organs of the machine involved in the implementation of the method of the invention.

The machine shown in Figure 1 is intended to the compaction of waste constituting materials recyclable, which is collected in a bag, usually flexible and plastic, which is placed in the machine to collect the compacted materials under the form of what is customary to call a ball.

The machine according to the invention is intended more particularly to treat cardboard packaging, but it can also be light packaging in material plastic, loose paper, wood or sheet metal thin and, more generally, of materials compressible whose volume can be reduced by shredding and squeezing them.

This machine essentially comprises a chassis 1 the bottom of which is provided with feet 10 so as to present a pallet type structure, which allows to transport the chassis 1 by a forklift, for example of the type of pallet trucks.

The chassis 1 comprises a cylindrical tank 2 which is bounded by a semi-cylindrical fixed part 3 and two doors in the shape of a quarter of a circle which close on the in front of chassis 1 (only one has been shown, for clarity issues).

In the upper part of the wall of the tank 2, that is to say in the fixed half-tank 3 and in the doors 4, there is a horizontal groove 5 which is intended for receive a hoop 6 which is used to fix a bag in the tank deformable in flexible plastic.

The chassis 1 has, at its rear part, two rollers 7, only one of which is visible in FIG. 1. can fix at its front part a bar 8, which can be placed under the bottom of the chassis 1, in front of the front legs 10. This bar 8 has a central opening 9, which is suitable for the passage of the fork of a pallet truck.

The tank 2 is open upwards, and a hopper 11 is arranged above for feeding into old cartons packing. This hopper is of general shape rectangular and it has, in each rear corner lower, an oblique triangular plate 12 which serves to avoid the accumulation of material in these corners.

The compacting device includes a support arm 13, substantially horizontal, one end of which moves in vertical translation in a vertical housing 14, arranged in the vicinity of the tank 2, under the action of a jack 22 (Figure 2). This single acting cylinder is located in housing 14. Its action is exerted only for impose a forced movement in the direction of lifting and to lift said arm 13, while the latter is in free descent, due to its weight, when the cylinder is exhausted.

At its other end, the arm 13 supports a motor hydraulic 15, which prints a double rotational movement to a toothed roller 16 arranged horizontally in the tank 2. The double rotational movement is as follows: share the toothed roller 16 turns on itself around its horizontal longitudinal axis, and on the other hand, the roller 16 is rotated in a horizontal plane around the central vertical axis of the tank 2. In this way, the roller toothed 16, which extends only on one side of the central axis of the tank, turns in the tank 2 while turning on itself.

In this double rotation movement, the roller toothed is driven by a single motor, namely the motor hydraulic 15, in the control it reaches by the entire mechanical transmission assembly to gears, as already described in the patent French 97 12 967.

A protective skirt 17, of cylindrical shape and slightly smaller in diameter than tank 2, is fixed on the support arm 15, so as to move vertically with the latter by sliding in the tank 2. In particular, it prevents the toothed roller from turning throw debris of shredded material out of the right-of-way from the receptacle bag, without falling back into it to undergo the compaction pressure by the pea of the assembly mobile.

An oblique protective sheet 18 is also fixed on the arm 13. It is arranged in front of the housing vertical 14 and it is inclined towards the inside of the tank. Its purpose is to avoid any intrusion of waste in housing 14.

In Figure 1, we can also see various equipment present on the chassis 1 of the machine, such as a indicator 19, which lights up to indicate that the bag is full under the control of a full tank detector, a window 21, and a control console 26.

In Figure 2, we have very schematically represented the functional links by which the cylinder 22 is used to lift the arm 13, bringing with it the toothed roller 16 in vertical translation. It is supported at the end of a shaft 23, coaxial with the tank 2, that comprises the arm 13. This shaft 23 has a surface cam 24 which cooperates with a position detector 25, fixed on the chassis 1. When the compacting head arrives or exceeds a position B which corresponds to the so-called state of full tank, or end of ball, the cam activates the detector 25, which, among other things, then controls the indicator 19 comes on automatically.

Figure 3 shows the diagram of the devices drive the compacting head. The system is hydraulic type. It includes a fluid reservoir 31 under pressure, to which pump 32 of a group is connected motor pump comprising an electric motor 33.

The motor 15 for driving the arm 13 being a hydraulic motor, it is supplied by the pressure supplied by pump 32, via a distributor three-position reverser 34 which supplies power to the motor 15 directly or in reverse, so as to obtain two directions of rotation, or put the pipes input and output of the motor in direct connection (position engine stop 15).

The hydraulic cylinder 22, which has already been said to be is single acting, is also powered by high pressure supplied by pump 32, via a two-position distributor 36 which controls either the setting under pressure from the jack, i.e. setting jack 22 to the exhaust, by connection with the reservoir 31, which causes the compaction head to descend under the effect of its weight.

We also see a pressure detector 37, which detects the pressure supplied to the motor 15 and provides a signal when this pressure exceeds a predetermined threshold.

In Figure 5, which is a block diagram of the machine control device, we brought up that the threshold pressure detector 37 thus provides a threshold crossing signal which is transmitted to a circuit control logic 41, the output of which is connected to the distributor 36 and distributor 34. Furthermore, the position detector 25, sensitive to high tank level full of the compaction head, provides a signal of overrun to a timing circuit 42 whose output is connected to distributor 36 and distributor 34.

The operation of the machine which has just been described already clearly emerges from the above description and the drawings it targets. However, it will be recalled below to better understand the different operations which it performs by applying the method according to the invention.

We open doors 2, we place a material bag plastic in the half-tank 3 by making it hang by its upper edge outside the arch 6, which is engaged in the groove 5, and the two doors 4 are closed in now the arch in the grooves 5. The bag is then kept open and suspended in the tank 2.

The cylinder 22, which was under pressure and maintained the arm 13 at its maximum high position in which the mobile assembly constituted by the motor 15, the roller toothed 16 and the skirt 17 is entirely disengaged from the tank 1 (position illustrated in C in Figure 2), is put out pressure in such a way that the arm goes down to its position minimum (A in Figure 2), the toothed roller being close from the bottom of the bag, as long as the bag is empty.

The machine is then ready to operate for process the waste that is admitted to the tank by the feed hopper 11. To carry out the treatment of compaction, the motor 15 is started, either by command manually by means of the control panel 26, either so automatic by means of detection cells which are arranged on each side of the hopper 11 and which control switching on for a determined time when passing each batch of waste.

Driven by the motor 15 relative to the shaft 23, the toothed roller 16 turns on itself while turning around the central axis of the tank. The skirt 17 constitutes a protection which ensures that all waste falls into the bag and the oblique plate 18 prevents waste from enter housing 14, which could harm movements of the arm 13 under the translation control vertical.

As we introduce waste, the level of these in the bag occupying the tank increases and the toothed roller 16 gradually rises all by resting on the waste and pressing on them by his weight. By its double rotation movement, it achieves also a shredding and distribution operation waste. In total, regular compaction is obtained.

If, during its rotation in the tank, the roller toothed 16 meets a resistance constituting a jam, the motor 15 will have to provide a greater effort. The presence of a pile of waste that the machine does not reach to be treated results in reaction by an increase in the hydraulic supply pressure. When this pressure reaches or exceeds a certain threshold, for example 100 bars, detector 25 transmits a threshold crossing signal to logic circuit 41, which initiates operations of cleaning.

The automatic commands which intervene in the event of stuffing are shown diagrammatically in FIG. 4, as well as those which determine the stopping of the machine in case of tank full, whether or not there is a jam at the same time.

Permanently indeed, we carry out surveillance of the height of the support arm 13 (cam 24 and detector position 25) to detect the state of full tank or end of ball (step 41). If we have detected a position testifying from this state, the jack 22 is pressurized, the engine is stopped and the mobile assembly is raised to its maximum position shown in C in Figure 2. In this position, the assembly is sufficiently raised so that the protective skirt 17 is above the tank and that, therefore, the full bag is released. Simultaneously, the LED 19 is on to signal the operator that he is not no more sending waste into the tank. The full bag can then be evacuated, for example by means of a pallet truck, after opening the two doors 4.

As long as there is no end of ball signal, the cleaning orders are determined automatically by engine supply pressure monitoring (step 42) by means of the detector 25. If the threshold is not exceeded, there is no particular action. However, if this threshold is exceeded, the cleaning operation is commanded. She consists in triggering a timer (step 43) during which one raises the compacting head of a certain height and the engine is stopped. For example, we can note the compaction head for 3 seconds and stop the engine after 2 seconds. The operating time of the motor is calculated based on the rotation speed of the toothed roller 16 in tank 2 to ensure that during of this cleaning operation, the roller passes from the other side of the mass of material that created this stuffing. For one second, the motor is not powered and this is sufficient for the roller to become stationary from so as to be able to bear without risk of being trained in reverse rotation.

When the lifting cylinder is actuated, the engine supply pressure drops below the threshold value due to hydraulic fluid withdrawal (oil under pressure in practice) by the cylinder and that the motor is relieved by the lifting movement above the stuffing.

At the end of this time delay, we check that it there is no end of ball signal (step 44). If this is the case, we go to the machine stop phase to unloading of the bag of compacted waste: the mobile assembly completely (step 45) and the engine (step 46).

If there is no signal for the end of the ball, we return en route the engine by reversing its direction of rotation (step 47) and the compaction assembly is lowered by putting the cylinder 22 at the exhaust, so that the roller toothed 16 descends and comes into contact with the waste. The jam status monitoring is performed new as shown in arrow 49.

The time delay and the lifting height of the roller, which depends on the actuation time of the jack 22, are set in such a way that, in the majority of cases, the toothed roller passes over the jam by reducing and then eliminating it completely by returning to the other direction. If a jam is again observed during second pass, a second cleaning operation is controlled to completely remove the jam.

Full tank (or end of bale) detection is performed by means of the detector 25 during step 41 of as follows: When the height threshold B is exceeded, a timer is triggered, for example 10 seconds, the duration of which is greater than that of the cleaning operation and, if during this time delay, the height has always been above the threshold B, we provide an end of ball signal which is tested in step 44. In this way, stops are avoided untimely in the event that, to resolve a jam occurring when the tank is only almost full, the compaction assembly is located higher than the position B to descend immediately.

Note that automatic orders periodically reverse the direction of rotation of the motor 15 even in situations where a power supply regular machine in homogeneous waste does not cause jams. In normal operation, such a reversal, which entails both that of the two rotational movements combined with the toothed roller, is operated as described for jams, but without lifting all of compaction in the absence of a jam detected. The period is obviously greater than the duration of the operation of cleaning, for example 20 seconds.

The machine according to the invention thus ensures, in in all circumstances, regular compaction to form a homogeneous ball with high density, the waste having been effectively shredded together with tablets. Of additional direction reversals are insured, as described, whenever there appears a tamping, by facilitating by raising the arm a passage of the toothed roller in one direction, then in the other, in the area where the material has gathered to remove the jam. The delay of the final shutdown operation when the tank is full avoids untimely stops of a cleaning operation while the bale being training does not fill the bag completely yet.

Incidentally, we note, in conjunction with a feed by hopper 11 which can be carried out manually or by means of discharge spouts that the machine described is built to be able to be moved. In particular, to move the machine and rotate it on itself, we can place the plate 8 (see figure 1) on the front, engage a pallet truck in the recess 9 in the bar 8 and rotate the machine in rotating it on the rollers 7 arranged at the rear.

But of course, the invention is not limited to provisions and methods of implementation which have been specifically described above. On the contrary, it extends to any variant passing through equivalent means. In particular, other organs can be used drive, such as an electric motor. But the example of embodiment described has the advantage that the delay implemented during the operation of cleaning can be obtained simply, due to the inertia of hydraulic motors, by the duration of the action of the lifting cylinder.

Claims (11)

Method for compacting waste, in a machine comprising a cylindrical tank (2-4) open towards the top and a compacting head (15, 16) including a roller horizontal toothed (16) is disposed in said tank (2-4) resting on said waste by its own weight, said roller (16) which can be subjected to a movement of rotation about the central vertical axis of said tank, under the action of a drive member (15), characterized in that we monitor a significant magnitude of the force or torque exerted by the drive member (15) and in that, when said quantity exceeds a threshold predetermined, in order to carry out an operation of cleaning, said roller (16) is raised by a height predetermined and then released, the roller (16) descending on the waste and being rotated reverse. Method according to claim 1, characterized in which, in the case of a machine where the roller (16) is subjected simultaneously to a rotational movement on itself, after lifting the roller, the direction of this rotation is also reversed. Method according to claim 2, characterized in what the two rotational movements are controlled by a single drive member (15) and in that, in normal walking, the direction of rotation of the organ drive (15) is periodically reversed, the period of time separating two successive normal inversions being greater than the duration of the operation of cleaning. Method according to any of claims 1 to 3, said machine comprising means detection (24-25) of the head height compaction (15-16) which provide a tank signal full when said height exceeds a determined threshold (B), characterized in that said full tank signal triggers a timer with a longer duration that the duration of the cleaning operation and that, if during the duration of said time delay, the height of the compacting head (15-16) remains above said threshold full tank (B), the machine is stopped completely. Machine for implementing the method according to at least one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that that it includes means (37) for detecting the force exercised by the drive member (15), means (34) for controlling the stopping of the drive member (15), its operation in a direction of rotation or its operation in the other direction of rotation, means (22, 36) for lifting the compacting head (15, 16) and in that the detection means (37) act so automatic on the control means (34) and on the lifting means (22, 36). Machine according to claim 5, characterized in that the lifting means (22, 36) include a hydraulic cylinder (22) and in that the lifting height is determined by the actuation time of the cylinder (22). Machine according to claim 6, characterized in that the drive member includes a motor hydraulic (15) and in that the motor (15) and the cylinder (22) are supplied by the same circuit from a motor pump (32) connected to a fluid reservoir (31) hydraulic. Machine according to claim 7, characterized in that the force detection means include a threshold pressure detector (37) measuring the pressure supply to the motor inlet (15). Machine according to claim 6, 7 or 8, characterized in that the jack (22) is arranged in a vertical housing (14) arranged in the vicinity of the tank (2-4) and in that the compacting head (15, 16) carries a protective sheet (18) moving in front of the housing (14) to prevent waste from entering the housing (14). Machine according to any one of Claims 1 to 9, characterized in that a skirt of protection (17) is fixed under the compacting head (15, 16) so as to move tangentially to the walls of the receptacle, said skirt (17) being completely free of the tank (2-4) when the compacting head (15, 16) is in its maximum upper position. Machine according to any one of Claims 1 to 10, characterized in that it comprises means for detecting the height of the head compaction (24, 25), constituted by a cam (24) integral with the compacting head and cooperating with a detector (25).

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