EP3418217A1 - Device for the disposal of chewing gum - Google Patents

Abstract

A used chewing gum disposal apparatus comprising a body (11) having a front surface (12) prepared to receive used chewing gums, and a container (13) for collecting and temporarily storing the used chewing gums disposed below the body or the front (12) is provided with a flexible layer (14), the front having an opening (10) which is at least partially covered by the layer (14), and by which chewing gums are insertable into an interior of the body, and the container (13) has at its top an opening (16) shaped and arranged such that a chewing gum pushed through the opening (10) of the front (12) is caused by gravity traversing the interior of the body (11) through the opening (16) and falling into the container (13).

Description

The present invention relates to a device for disposing of used chewing gums, comprising a body with a front side for receiving the used chewing gums, and a container for collecting and temporarily storing the used chewing gum, which is arranged below the body or is integrated on the underside thereof, wherein the Front is provided with a layer.

A still common nuisance in public places is the behavior of many chewing gum consumers of disposing their used chewing gum on the spot, i. Wherever they are to spit on the ground or throw or stick to walls, benches, doors, lanterns and the like. Whether the chewing gum is clearly visible or perhaps out of a certain sense of shame, hidden in such an improper way, this is in any case unattractive and unhygienic.

With an average consumption of chewing gum of approximately 100 strips of chewing gum per citizen per year, this type of careless disposal is a problem even if it is practiced by only a small proportion of chewing gum consumers. In addition, chewing gum consumption, as well as the described manner of improper disposal, frequently occurs among certain ages and groups of people and the places frequented by them.

The problem is exacerbated by the fact that commercial chewing gum is not biodegradable and is very difficult to remove from most substrates, so described improper disposal for many communities and their cleaners represents a big problem. It has been found that in some places up to 80 chewing gum sticks on one square meter of street. For the removal of improperly disposed chewing gum from public places and plants, municipalities in Germany spend about 900 million euros annually. Therefore, it is not surprising that more and more cities impose fines for carelessly discarding chewing gum.

One reason for the occurrence and frequency of this phenomenon was that on the one hand, there is not a sufficient number of disposal options, for example in the form of public waste bins, and on the other hand, these are often ignored by chewing gum consumers. Approaches to tackling the problem of improperly disposed chewing gum, which have been and are being pursued by the communities and bodies concerned, may therefore be the cause of behavioral change and change campaigns and, on the other hand, the provision of a better and denser infrastructure of disposal opportunities at and near the places frequented by chewing gum consumers. The disadvantage here, however, is that, as mentioned above, trash cans on the one hand are large and on the other hand often too inconspicuous, in any case their use does not seem interesting or appealing enough to the causers of the chewing gum problem.

In addition, trash cans, as well as other public facilities, are often damaged by vandalism and become unusable in extreme cases.

To address the problem of improperly disposed chewing gum, the prior art already has known devices for discarding chewing gum, such as the particular one Chewing Gum Containers Gum Catcher. The Gum Catcher is easily attached to a wall and / or post due to its compact size. Its disadvantage, however, is that it can be overlooked even easier because of its compact size than a traditional trash can. A similar disadvantage has also from the British patent publication GB 2 337 195 A known waste bin for spent chewing gum, which has at its upper side an opening below which a sloping, anti-adhesive coated ramp which slides the chewing gums inserted into the interior, is mounted. In addition, this trash can from the user's point of view is functionally identical with a conventional trash can and offers no features that make his use to these interesting. This is not changed by the fact that the there disclosed chewing gum waste bin is made smaller than a conventional trash can. On the contrary, it can happen so much faster that it overflows and thus becomes useless for its purpose. Because the similarity with a traditional trash can be expected that it is often needed as such for the disposal of other waste.

Another device which, due to its configuration in the form of a post, over which a replaceable shell with bottom-mounted annular chewing gum catcher could be more visible and thus possibly more interesting to chewing gum consumers, is in the international publication WO2008 / 117071 A1 disclosed. However, this device has the disadvantage that the chewing gum sticks visible and unprotected outside until the casing is replaced, or partially also detach as a result of dehydration and fall down on the annular catcher in order to remain there. This is on the one hand ugly and on the other also unhygienic, This is why this form of chewing gum supply has so far gained little acceptance. An additional disadvantage is that it is suitable only for free-standing attachment, and not for attachment to house walls.

The latter is by the in the German utility model DE 20 2015 102 569 U1 Applicant has advantageously overcome the chewing gum feeding device disclosed. However, this device also has the disadvantage that discarded chewing gum adheres at least for the most part still visibly on the front of the device until the local paper or film layer is cleaned or changed.

There is therefore a need for a compact, yet highly visible, disposal device for used chewing gum which avoids the disadvantages described, in particular to temporarily store used chewing gums in a more hygienic and aesthetic manner until final disposal. To develop such a device is the object underlying the present invention.

As a solution, the present invention presents a device according to claim 1, comprising a body having a front side for receiving the chewing gums, a container located below the body or at the bottom or in a lower region for collecting the used chewing gums and a layer covering the front side of the body covers and covers. In that regard, device according to the invention corresponds to a known from the prior art. Characteristic of the chewing gum supplying device according to the invention, however, is that the front side has an opening through which used chewing gums are introduced into the interior of the body where they gravitationally fall further down into the (collection) container.

The body is a housing of front, side and top surface, which may additionally optionally include a rear wall and a bottom surface. Shape, design of the surfaces is of minor importance in the context of the invention. Fancy geometric structures can be used as well as simple, planar rectangular or geometrically demountable into a small number of triangles and / or rectangles surfaces.

For the fulfillment of their purpose more important is material and compound from the surfaces. The aim is to obtain a sturdy, robust body that can withstand years of daily use as well as vandalism. As material for this offer metallic materials, especially steel (sheet metal) or solid plastics. Metal has the advantage of being easier to repair on site. It is also a metal-plastic composite conceivable. Depending on the actual material used, the side surfaces are joined by welding, screwing, gluing, riveting or other types of connection known to the person skilled in the art. A production of the body or several of its surfaces in one piece by casting or thermoforming a blank is conceivable.

The opening in the front of the body is largely arbitrary in shape. However, it must be of sufficient size to be able to carry a used chewing gum comfortably through. The opening is partially or completely covered by the flexible layer. The flexible layer serves to effectively prevent sticking of used chewing gums to the front of the body itself, so that the chewing gums in each case go inside the body and further down into the collection container reach. For this purpose, the layer ideally has a reduced liability for used chewing gum.

The edges of the opening and the inside of the body, possibly also all internal surfaces of the body interior could also have an anti-stick coating in embodiments of the present invention to prevent the used chewing gum, possibly with much momentum, being introduced through the opening in the front sticking to an inside of the body.

If possible, this danger is to be minimized by constructive measures, since a simple cleaning process of the device according to the invention carried out at short intervals only provides for cleaning or changing the layer and emptying and / or cleaning the container. However, a cleaning of the entire interior of the carcass would usually take place only at longer intervals. However, it is not excluded within the scope of the invention to perform a complete cleaning at shorter intervals. The length of these cleaning intervals are ideally dependent on the expected or observed intensity of use.

The (collecting) container according to the invention is a vessel with at least side and a bottom surface. In addition, there may also be a lid surface that closes upwardly except for the chewing gum entrance openings. It can be integrated according to the invention either in the lower part of the body, in which there is approximately an insertion opening in the body of the front of the body, through which an open-topped container is inserted, or the container is designed as a separate unit, which underside of the body is arranged. When attaching the device according to the invention to a Wall, the container may be attached approximately independently of the body to the wall, or is a slide-in frame available, which is independent of the body attached to the wall and in which the container is inserted. Concrete embodiments and implementations of the arrangements described are readily familiar to the person skilled in the art.

However, it is important to ensure that no gap or smallest gap between the top of the container and the bottom of the body remains so that the inside of the container where the used chewing gum collects, is not or as little as possible from the outside.

The use of the device according to the invention takes place as follows:
Optionally, the device according to the invention is first prepared for intended use by the (collection) container is inserted into its intended holder and the front of the body is provided with a layer or coating according to the invention. This may for example be in the form of a film, a (coated) paper or a textile fabric, which is attached to the front of the body, such as by sticking, gluing or inserting into a holder provided therefor. The thus-prepared chewing gum supplying device of the present invention is used by pressing a used chewing gum on the part of the layer located above the opening in the front face, which yields and releases the path into the inside of the body. The chewing gum is then released by the user and, by gravity, passes the interior of the body passing down through the opening in the top of the container to the interior of the collection container where it remains for further storage until final disposal.

The opening in the top of the container may, in some embodiments of the present invention, be closed by a spring-loaded flap which is opened by the force of a chewing gum falling down on the flap. By such a flap an opaque firing of the collecting container and thus an almost isolated from the environment intermediate storage of used chewing gum is possible. However, it is advisable to make sure that adequate ventilation of the container is nevertheless ensured so that the chewing gums stored there dry quickly in order to minimize microbial growth as far as possible.

The main advantage of the improved chewing gum supplying device according to the present invention is that, in contrast to known in the prior art devices by intermediate storage of used chewing gum inside a non-visible from the outside collection container a great progress of the aesthetics and especially hygiene of the disposal device is achieved. Bacteria or other microorganisms that thrive on the chewing gums are thereby isolated by subsequent users, and minimizing or even preventing the attractiveness of other small creatures and vermin.

As a consequence of the achieved higher aesthetics and hygiene results as a further advantage of the solution according to the invention a reduction of disgust or overcoming by potential users. In devices known from the prior art, this may be an important reason why they found little or no approval. Because when used chewing gum visibly on the outside or front of such disposal devices are stored in an adhesive, reduced the willingness of subsequent chewing gum consumers to use the device as well. Thus, not only does the present invention have practical advantages in terms of hygiene and aesthetics, but it can also contribute to a higher acceptance and usage rate of chewing gum delivery device, and thus to an environment generally free of used chewing gum.

Advantageous developments of the present invention, which can be implemented individually or in combination, insofar as they are not mutually exclusive, will be presented below.

Preferably, the front of the body has more than one chewing gum supply opening in the interior of the body. In particular, two, better yet a plurality of openings should be provided. These can be random and of different sizes. In a preferred embodiment, however, these openings are all substantially of the same size and shape, and are distributed approximately grid-shaped over the front.

The openings in the front of the body are preferably circular and have a diameter between 1 and 3 cm, more preferably between 1.5 and 2 cm. The front side, but in particular the inner edges of the openings and the front inside of the body are preferably provided with a firmly applied adhesion-reducing coating, so that chewing gums do not stick there, but reliably, as provided by the present invention, continue to fall down into the collection container.
The front side preferably comprises a flat plate into which one or all of the openings for insertion of the chewing gum are introduced are. In some embodiments of the present invention, the front is designed as a side opening door or an upwardly or downwardly opening flap, which is particularly preferably lockable. The front as a whole is essentially vertical and level.

The arranged below the body or in the lower part of the body integrated collecting container is open in an embodiment of the present invention upwards, d. H. the top opening largely occupies the entire surface of the top.

Furthermore, it is proposed in particularly preferred embodiments, the opening collecting container to close by a flap in particular a spring-loaded flap. It should be used as light flap and weak spring, so that the impulse of a falling chewing gum usual size is sufficient to open the flap.

A quick drying of the stored in the container chewing gum is very beneficial for hygiene. It is therefore proposed to provide ventilation options. These should let through only air, but not small and microorganisms if possible. This can be achieved, for example, in that a partial region of one or more side surfaces or the bottom surface is designed as a fine-meshed wire mesh. Alternatively or additionally, a grid of fine holes may also be present.

To further increase hygiene and / or facilitate cleaning or emptying of the container, the container may have an anti-stick coating inside and / or be filled with a granular material, for example sand. Even more advantageously, the granular material has moisture-binding properties, such as sawdust, talcum powder or magnesia.

The shape of the container, as well as that of the body with the exception of the front, in the context of the present invention essentially arbitrary. So z. For example, to focus more attention on the chewing gum utility, unusual shapes and interesting designs are used. However, not to undermine the widest possible use of the device according to the invention by an expensive production and therefore high production costs, it is proposed to use a simple shape, for example a cuboid or cuboid-like shape, for the collecting container.

The collecting container is, moreover, preferably designed from the body or, if it is attached separately, removable from a holder and also designed to be lockable. In order to prevent any possibly pasted on the front of the body or on the existing coating thereon chewing gum falling on the ground below the device, the container is preferably designed so that it protrudes forward over the front of the body and there over has an upward opening, which may also be closed with a flap.

The flexible layer or coating according to the invention on the front side of the body is designed to be replaceable in each case, but preferably additionally has anti-stick properties compared to used chewing gums, so that they do not hang or stick to the layer as possible.

The layer may consist of paper, in particular coated paper, foil or a textile fabric. It is too conceivable to use a composite, for example a multilayer composite of these materials.

The layer can consist of a coherent piece. However, it is also conceivable that it is composed of mutually only loosely connected or not connected subregions. When used in this form, such portions would be forced inwardly through the opening together with the chewing gum and fall down along with the chewing gum into the collection container. As a result, an even more hygienic storage of chewing gum is achieved. In this embodiment of the present invention, each of the openings provided in the front of the body is associated with such a portion of the layer.

Such a subdivision can be realized, for example, when using a paper, a film or a textile fabric equipped with predetermined breaking lines in the form of perforations. In this case, predetermined breaking lines in the region of the opening can completely surround and be executed.

In another variant, the predetermined breaking lines do not completely enclose the openings but only partially. In this case, upon pressing the chewing gum, only one kind of door or flap is opened in the flexible layer, through which the chewing gum is slidable through the opening into the interior of the body. After this process, this flap goes back more or less in the starting position and closes the opening again in an aesthetic and hygienic way.

In order to enable a simple and rapid cleaning of the device according to the invention, the flexible layer is preferably exchangeable or exchangeable. This is achieved by realization as solvable attained fixed paper, foil or textile fabric. The attachment can be accomplished here in many ways. These fall down, stick, screw and / or pinned. It can also be provided two or more spring clips. Particularly preferably, the flexible layer is fixed by being inserted into a holder which is present at the edge of the front side. This can for example be designed as a doubling of the material of the front.

The flexible layer preferably has an eye-catching graphic design that appeals to the respective target group of chewing gum consumers. For this she can be printed or painted with different motives. Furthermore, it is proposed to print instructions regarding the correct use in order to avoid misuse. Such cues may also be applied, alone or in conjunction with the indicia on the flexible layer, elsewhere on the front or outer surface of the body. In conjunction with a plurality of openings in the front of the body, wherein preferably one motif per opening of the front or per subregion is present, is thus achieved by a particularly interesting and stimulating for use design of the chewing gum according to the invention.

Further details, features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the embodiments explained in more detail below with reference to FIGS. These serve only to illustrate the idea of the present invention and are not intended to limit it in any way in its generality.

They show in detail:

FIG. 1:

A perspective view of a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2:

A front view of the embodiment FIG. 1 in two sub-figures once with and once without the flexible layer according to the invention.

FIG. 1 shows a preferred embodiment of the chewing gum supplying device according to the invention in a perspective view. It has a body 11 with a front side 12 in the form of a flat plate, in which a plurality of round, equal-sized openings 10 are introduced and distributed largely grid-like. The layer covering the front side is not shown here. In the lower part of the body 11 collecting container 13 is integrated. It consists of a substantially cuboid insertion compartment, which can be inserted into a complementary insertion opening in the lower part of the body 11 and locked there. The container 13 is open at the top and protrudes from the front over the front side 12 of the body, in order to be able to catch any chewing gum adhering to the front and falling from there as well. On the upper side, the body is closed by an inclined cover plate 111 with the above rain cover 1110. The rain cover protrudes at least as far as the front side 12, as the container 13, so that its outside of the body 11, front 12 lying opposite opening 16 is protected against the ingress of rain.

In the example shown, body 11 with container 12 is attached to a wall. It is also possible to hang the body either on a post or put on top of a post. A free-standing attachment has the advantage of a further increased visibility of the chewing gum device according to the invention, so that the frequency of use tends to increase.

FIG. 2 shows in two sub-figures depending on a front view of the embodiment FIG. 1 once with (part A) and once without the flexible layer according to the invention (part B).
As seen in part A, the flexible layer 14 is printed as colorful motifs that appeal to children and / or adolescents. It has circular regions 141 surrounded by predetermined breaking points, each region 141 being associated with an opening 10 on the front side 12 of the body 11. Some of the area is clearly pressed into the openings 10 'behind you after use.
This paper is fixed by being inserted into an edge-side, serving as a holder doubling 17 of the front side 12 from above. For this purpose, front flap designed as a flap must first be opened to make the space created by the doubling accessible. This embodiment of the flexible layer 14 according to the invention has the advantage of being easy and simple to replace in the course of cleaning or emptying the chewing gum supplying device according to the invention. Likewise, this advantageously makes it possible to adapt to the desired target group addressed by simply changing the motifs printed on layer 14.

LIST OF REFERENCE NUMBERS

10

opening

11

corpus

111

cover

1110

rain protection

12

front

13

container

14

flexible layer

141

Subarea with motif

17

doubling

Claims (6)

A device for disposing of used chewing gum, comprising: - A body (11), with a front (12), which is prepared for receiving used chewing gum, and a container (13) for collecting and temporarily storing the used chewing gum, which is arranged below the body or is integrated in the lower area or in the lower area, - wherein the front side (12) is provided with a flexible layer (14), characterized in that - The front has an opening (10) which is at least partially covered by the layer (14), and by which chewing gums are introduced into an interior of the body, and - The container (13) has on its upper side an opening (16) which is designed and arranged such that a through the opening (10) of the front (12) pushed bubble gum due to gravity, the interior of the body (11) crossing the opening ( 16) and falls into the container (13). Apparatus according to claim 1, characterized in that the front side (12): - More than one, in particular more than two, preferably a plurality of openings (10) and / or - Includes a flat plate, and / or - Is designed as a door or flap, which is in particular lockable, and / or - In its edge region, a holder (17) for insertion of the layer (14), and / or - Is oriented substantially vertically, and / or - is essentially flat. Device according to one of claims 1 or 2, characterized in that the container (13): - is open upwards over most of its top, and / or - Has on its front side via a flap, in particular preferably a lockable flap, and / or is substantially cuboid, and / or - Removable from the body and / or - In a side or bottom surface comprises a flat, air-permeable but impassable for microorganisms area over which an air exchange with the environment is possible, and / or - Has an anti-adhesion coating inside, and / or - At least partially filled with a granular, especially moisture-binding, material, and / or - protrudes beyond the front (12) of the body (11) and there has an upwardly directed opening (16) - Consists of the same material as the body (11), in particular a metal, a plastic or a composite thereof. Device according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the flexible layer (14): - Is designed so that used chewing gum is not or only badly attached, and / or - is changeable, and / or - consists of mutually only loosely or not connected subregions, each subregion is associated with an opening (10), and / or consists of paper, in particular coated paper, a film, a textile fabric or a composite of aforementioned materials and / or completely covering the opening (10), - Attractively printed or otherwise graphically designed, and / or - Above opening (10) has predetermined breaking lines. Device according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the opening (10): - is circular, and / or - Has a diameter between 1 and 3 cm, in particular between 1.5 and 2.5 cm. Device according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the body (11): - Includes side surfaces, in particular planar side surfaces, and / or - Includes a bottom surface, in particular a flat bottom surface, and / or - Includes a lid surface, in particular a flat and / or obliquely mounted and / or as a rain cover over the front protruding lid surface, and / or is substantially cuboid, and / or - Has a base on the underside, and / or - Made of the same material as the container (13), and / or - Made of a metallic material or a plastic or a composite thereof.

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