GB2269801A

GB2269801A - Lockable waste container

Info

Publication number: GB2269801A
Application number: GB9216080A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Robert Christopher Firbank
Original assignee: Firbank & Sons Ltd C
Current assignee: Firbank & Sons Ltd C
Priority date: 1992-07-28
Filing date: 1992-07-28
Publication date: 1994-02-23
Anticipated expiration: 2012-07-28
Also published as: GB9216080D0; GB2269801B

Abstract

A free standing tippable waste container 10 comprises a closeable lid 12 which is closed when the container is in its normal standing position and open when the container is tipped over orientation sensitive locking means (20, 26) located within the container. The locking means comprising co-operable latch members, one of the latch members being a lever 20 pivotally attached to the container body or lid, the lever at one end including a latch formation 25 and including at its opposite end a gravity biasing weight 24, the pivotal connection being disposed between both ends of the lever such that tipping of the container between its standing and emptying position causes the lever to be moved about its pivotal connection to cause disengagement of the co-operating latch members. <IMAGE>

Description

WASTE CONTAINER The invention relates to a waste container particularly, although not exclusively, to a waste container to be used in conjunction with the disposal of waste such as drink canisters.

It is known in the art to provide special mobile waste containers at site areas such as car parks and municipal sites to encourage the deposit of waste such as drink canisters.

The waste container normally includes a closeable lid which is opened on tipping of the container to enable the contents to discharge. Tipping is normally carried out on site by a vehicle which lifts and tips the container to deposit the contents onto the vehicle.

The containers are kept unsupervised and are often intended only to receive specified items e.g. drink canisters. To encourage this, small openings are provided to discourage the deposit of larger items. As a further measure to discouraging the deposit of large items, the container is generally completely enclosed apart from the openings for the specified waste and the closeable lid. A problem with having a closeable lid is that people may open the lid and deposit large waste into the container.

A solution to this problem would be to provide a lock for the lid but in so doing another problem arises in that the lock would have to be operated manually during the emptying of the waste container. This means that the operator of the waste container vehicle would have to spend time locking and unlocking the lid.

It is therefore an aim of the present invention to provide a tippable waste container having an automatic lid locking mechanism which locks the lid when the container is standing but automatically unlocks the lid to enable it to open for emptying of the container.

According to the present invention there is provided a free standing tippable waste container for receiving waste comprising a closeable lid which is closed when the container is in its normal standing position and open when container is tipped to an emptying position for emptying the waste from the container, orientation sensitive locking means adapted to lock the lid in the closed position when the container is in said standing position and which is adapted to release the lid when the container is tipped towards the emptying position.

Preferably, locking means comprises a co-operating latch formation on the lid and on the container body, one of the latch formations being movably mounted between locking and non-locking positions, a gravity biasing means being operably connected to said one formation to move it between said locking/un-locking positions.

Preferably the movably mounted latch formation is located on a lever.

Preferably the gravity biasing means is a weight located on the lever.

Preferably the movably mounted latch formation has a chamfered top edge to assist the latch formation on the lid into a lock engaging position.

The lock is preferably housed in an enclosure and located inside the waste container whereby the enclosure provides shielding for the latch lever against possible interference in operation by the contents of the waste container. Advantageously, housing the lock inside the waste container also prevents unauthorised manual operation of the lock.

The enclosure may be a tubular member closed at its lower end. Preferably the tubular member is closed at its lower end with a base that will allow water to drain from the latch enclosure.

Preferably, opposed engaging faces of the latch are spaced to provide clearance to enable the latch to freely move to its open position during tipping of the container.

Various aspects of the present invention will hereinafter be described with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1, is a side view of a waste container; Figure 2, is a plan view of the waste container of Figure 1; Figure 3, is an enlarged view of the lid of Figures 1 and 2 showing a lid locking mechanism; Figure 4 is a plan view of the lid lock of Figure 3; Figure 5, is a side view of the lid lock of Figures 3 and 4; Figure 6, is a partial perspective view of the lid lock of Figures 3 to 5; and Figure 7, is a side elevation of the waste container and lid lock showing the operation of the lid lock.

Referring to the drawings, there is shown a free standing, tippable waste container 10 comprising opposed front 50, rear 51 and side walls 52,53, also having base 54 and top 55 wherein the top 55 is split and includes closeable lid 12 hinged about pivot 11 being closed in the free standing position of the waste container 10 and open when the waste container is in a tipped position. Limited access ports 21 of a suitable size are provided to enable waste items of a specified size to be placed therethrough.

Locking means 28 comprises movably mounted gravity orientated lever 27 having a latch member 25 for locking co-operation with lid latch member 26 when container is in free standing position A. The locking means is housed in an enclosure 22 in the form of a tube fixed to the inside of the container. The enclosure comprises opposed front 56, rear 57 and side walls 58,59, a base 60 and an open top 61. The enclosure defines cavity 20 in which the locking means is protectively housed against the contents in the container. The lever 27 comprises a bearing tube 40 disposed generally between a gravity biasing member 24 and movably mounted latch member 25. Lever 27 is suspended vertically within enclosure 22 and pivotally mounted through the bearing tube 40 by a bolt 23 that passes through the side walls 58,59 of the enclosure 22 and secured by nut 41.

When the container has been filled with waste through limited access ports 21, the waste container is ready to be emptied. In the free standing position the lever 27 is biased to an upright position by the gravity biasing member 24 so that latch members 25 and 26 are engaged to lock the lid 12 in a closed position. Preferably a small clearance X is provided between the opposing faces of the movably mounted latch member 25 and lid latch member 26. This clearance is provided so that no frictional forces exist between the two engaging surfaces of the lid latch member 26 and latch member 25 when the lid 12 is in its closed position during the tipping procedure.

To empty the container, a waste haulage vehicle 71 grabs waste container 10 and moves the container toward its fully tipped position C for emptying through an intermediate position B.

During the initial tipping motion of the container 10 from position A to B the lever 27 of the locking means 28 under the influence of gravity biasing member 24 moves the latch member 25 to an unlocked position, i.e. to a position when at latch member 25 and 26 are no longer engaged.

Accordingly the lid 12 is now unlocked and is able to be opened. As the container is tipped from position B to C the the weight of the lid and the weight of the waste forces the lid 12 into an open position thus allowing the waste to exit from the container 10 into the haulage vehicle 71. When the container 10 is fully empty it is returned to its standing position A through C to A. During the motion C to A the lid is initially moved to its closed position (during movement from C to B) and subsequently the latch member 25 is moved to its locking position (during movement B to A) so that when the container is returned to its free standing position, the lid is locked in its closed position.

In order to assist closure of the lid 12 to its closed position after latch member 25 has returned to its lock position a chamfer 42 is preferably provided on the upper portion of movably mounted latch member 25. Thus as the bottom edge of latch member 26 moves into co-operation with the chamfered edge of the movably mounted latch member 25, the force of the lid 12 and the action of the lever 27 pivoting cause the bottom edge of latch member 26 to slide down the chamfer 42 thereby forcing the lever 27 to move until such time that the latch 28 engages. The lid lock 28 is now in a locked position and the lid lock remains captive within waste container 10 in the locked position until such time that the waste container is tipped during emptying. The captive lid lock 28 ensures that no persons can gain access to the container 10 whilst it remains in its free standing position.

Claims

1. A free standing tippable waste container for receiving waste comprising a closeable lid which is closed when the container is in its normal standing position and open when container is tipped to an emptying position for emptying the waste from the container, orientation sensitive locking means adapted to lock the lid in the closed position when the container is in said standing position and which is adapted to release the lid when the container is tipped towards the emptying position.

2. A container according to claim 1, wherein the locking means comprises a co-operating latch formation on the lid and on the container body, one of the latch formations being movably mounted between locking and non-locking positions, a gravity biasing means being operably connected to said one formation to move it between said locking/unlocking positions.

3. A container according to claim 2, wherein the movably mounted latch formation is located on a lever pivotally attached to the container body.

4. A container according to claim 3, wherein the gravity biasing means is a weight located on the lever.

5. A container according to claims 3 or 4, wherein the lever is housed within an enclosure located inside the waste container whereby the enclosure shields the lever from the contents of the container.

6. A container according to claim 5, wherein the enclosure is a tubular member.

7. A container according to any of claims 2 to 6, wherein when the lid is closed opposed faces of the co-operating latch means are spaced to provide clearance to enable the latch to freely move to its open position during tipping of the container.

8. A free standing tippable waste container substantially as described with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying drawings.

Amendments to the claims have been filed as follows CLAIMS 1. A free standing tippable waste container for receiving waste comprising a closeable lid which is closed when the container is in its normal standing position and open when the container is tipped to an emptying position for emptying the waste from the container, orientation sensitive locking means located within the container adapted to lock the lid in the closed position when the container is in said standing position and which is adapted to release the lid when the container is tipped towards the emptying position, the locking means comprising co-operable first and second latch members, one of the latch members being a lever pivotally attached to the container body or lid by means of a pivotal connection, the lever at one end including a latch formation and including at its opposite end a gravity biasing means, the pivotal connection being disposed between both ends of the lever such that tipping of the container between its standing and emptying position causes the lever to be moved about its pivotal connection to cause disengagement of the co-operating latch members.

2. A container according to claim 1, wherein when the lid is closed opposed faces of the co-operating latch means are spaced to provide clearance to enable the latch to freely move to its open position during tipping of the container.

3. A container according to claims 1 or 2, wherein the lever is housed within an enclosure located inside the waste container whereby the enclosure shields the lever from the contents of the container.

4. A container according to claim 3, wherein the enclosure is a tubular member.

5. A container according to claim 3 or 4, wherein the pivotal connection of the lever comprises a bearing tube mounted on the lever and a bolt passing through the tube, the bolt being fixedly secured to the enclosure.

6. A container according to any preceding claim, wherein the latch members have co-operating edge formations which assist movement of the lever into a lock engaging position during movement of the lid to its closed position.

7. A container according to claim 1, wherein the gravity biasing means comprises a weight.