GB2388014A - Carrier for bag in refuse bin - Google Patents

Abstract

An elongated body of flexible sheet material 10A with holding means 11 at each end is adaptable to locate around the longitudinal dimension of a bin bag 15 and is positioned between the bag 15 and its holder 13 in order to facilitate bag removal. The aforesaid carrier 10 is rendered stable in function and multi-fit by having length adjustment means or by variably positioning the holding means 11. One of the handles 11 may have a slit (20, figure 6) in which a gathered upper part of a bag 15 may be trapped to control the position of the bag. The carrier may be made of plastic-coated textile and may incorporate a flexible pipe to facilitate breaking of suction between the bag 15 and the bin 13.

Description

A Carrier for a Refuse Sack or bin bag.

Apparatus for removing a refuse sack from its holder and preferably carrying it to a disposal point is known. This application refers to improvements in such apparatus.

Various refuse sack carriers are in prior knowledge.

These refuse sack carriers are usually inserts into bin holders and usually function to enable the user to pull up and remove bin bags from bins and preferably also to carry bin bags. in the context of this patent a bin bag holder may be a refuse bin or a free standing frame and'refuse sack" and bin bag" are interchangeable terms. The term sack is recognized to mean a shapeless bag. The term carrier refers to lifting and preferably carrying.

Load instability, relatively high production cost, lack of bin multi fit adaptability, load ejection difficulty, lack of consumer ease of use are all deficiencies of the known art. Known art does not consider a camer that can conform to the contours of a refuse sack at the various stages of its use in and out of a holder.

According to the present invention there is provided a carder for a refuse sack or bin bag comprising an elongated body of material, such as a construction of textile or plastic parts but preferably formed from a sheet, adaptable to locate around the longitudinal dimension of a refuse sack which is located in or on a holder, and hand grip means on or adjacent to each end of the material. This form of carrier with holding means at the ends facilitates control of bin bag release. Such a carrier may be of any suitable shape, preferably rectangular, and number of parts, and will cover at least two longitudinal surfaces of the bag and preferably will adapt to a variety of bin shapes and bin rim contours as well as a bag shape when the bag is in or out of a holder.

in order to facilitate a product that has a multi fit capability preferably the use of a material such as a plastic coated textile or metal foil is proposed for the body of the carrier. This confers tensile strength on the product and by its flexible nature contributes to adaptability and stability of the load.

Marketability of the carrier is enhanced by an adaptable multi - fit capability.

The product can be engineered out of other materials such as plastic sheet using the principles disclosed but is not as effective.

It is proposed that preferably the handle contact with the body of the carrier is as wide as possible to encourage a stable platform.

The stability and control of the bin bag within the carrier, on removal from the bin, is increased by continuing contact of the carrier wall with the bin bag. This requires the carrier to be sized and preferably adaptable to the longitudinal inside distance between the holder rims, and preferably able to adapt further to control a reduced filled bag size or slumping of the bag contents once removed by reduction of dimension of the loop of material surrounding the sack. Control of the bag and carrier combination by the user, such that the bag is not accidentally ejected when carried, depends on this feature which may be further enhanced by control of the ejection of the bag through direct control of the bag or preferably bag top by means originating on a handle. A degree of stability may also be achieved by including stiffening means along the width of the carrier, preferably an insert into the cloth or an extension of the handle base. The handle pull is thereby transmitted to the edges of the carrier similar to a hammock. In most prior art the problem of interference of a closing bin bag holder top

with the carrier or bag remover holding means has not been recognized or addressed. Again a coated textile addresses this issue. In prior art, holding

means for the handle is shown external to the refuse receptacle, this is not absolutely required as it has been discovered that the handle weight combined with the characteristics of a textile carrier may suffice to stabilize the carrier over the bin edge.

In the case of a straight edged bin rim the textile may not remain positioned at the bin rim and a hook preferably integral with or formed as part of the handle may be used for location at the rim.Where the body of the product is made from plastic sheet the handle may be on the sheet or stamped from it.

Where the load to be carried is not a full one then instability may also occur as the grip of the carrier is reduced. The hold on the bin bag may be increased by utilizing the flexible nature of the coated textile reducing the carrying loop by preferably passing one handle through the other to create a strangling effect. This "toggle" effect may also be achieved by passing the material through a hole in itself. One handle may be smaller than the other and be stamped out from within the larger handle in the one operation thus reducing manufactured cost. A handle may have a split in its side to facilitate entry and removal of the material when creating a loop. The loop

( may be secured by locking means. Such a split or side entry in a handle also facilitates entry of bag material to engage a trapping mechanism.

Handles at one or both ends of the material may releasably attach to the material by co-operating means preferably through openings preferably slits.

The handles may be in a suitably strong material, preferably stainless steel, that is formed to preferably facilitate the multiple functions of being a handle or hook for the rim edge, and the handles preferably also have the means to be able to cooperate together to form a temporary connection with each other or the body of the product.

It has been found that when the distance between the handles is correctly set, to place the handles at the bin rims, maximum grip is obtained on a full bag.

The handles preferably lie on the outside of the bin and have a dimension 9 between base contact with the material, and the hand grip portion that is sufficient to meet over the top of a full bin bag. Where the handle is in a more unobtrusive form and does not have the aforesaid dimension, there may be excess material lett inside the bin, designed to provide that dimension on pulling up the carrier.

A plastic handle is proposed that engages longitudinal slots in the material and can be moved to position by the user. Stamped out plastic is not strong enough to both have the spring effect required and the limited deformation to remain engaged in the slots. By forming releasable, adjustable holding means such as a transverse slot into the material and an extension on the handle base engaging into the transverse slot the handle is prevented from deforming out of the longitudinal slots. A handle may have means similar to a belt buckle facilitating sliding of the material through its structure such that it is fixable in various positions preferably by a prong, to provide different lengths of carrier.

There are a number of ways to achieve the performance required for this product. The concepts that make it work commercially are that the product should preferably be a variable fit. That this variable fit may be achieved by the user varying the handle position or product length and preferably the body of the carrier is constructed from a material that is capable of adaption to bin and bag shapes and contours, such as a textile material. The product should grip the bin bag and that it should be stable over the bin rim without interfering with bin tops. The top of the bin bag may also be gripped and controlled by holding means on the handle. This holding means may preferably be a slot arrangement in a plastic handle or a

means to squeeze the bag top between two parts one part preferably operated by hand. The use of a coated textile sheet material is also considered a novel and preferable method of achieving the main functions of this product.

The main principles in construction are that the distance between the holding means at each end of the product should be variable to allow a multi-ft capability that matches the holding loop formed by the carrier to match a filled bin bag and securely hold it. This can be achieved by the product body having length adjustment means or one or more handles being position adjustable. The carrier may be made in different sizes with fixed handles. In this case a fold of material may be left in the bin see figure 2 in order to allow meeting of the handles over the top of the holder on pulling up the carrier. Although the handles are preferably kept as neat as possible the handle dimension may suffice to achieve the aforesaid requirement. In the case of a pedal bin with an inner bucket the handles may be positioned between the outer wall and the bucket thus keeping them out of view. These handles may be constructed to slide longitudinally relative to the body of the carrier, acting as hooks when in the down position. D The handles may be position adjustable or formed in multiple locations at each end at manufacture. Equally important is stability over the edge of the bin, this may be achieved by stamping out handles in a plastic body and bending them up in use when pulled. Left in the position in which they are stamped out they act to stabilize the product over the bin edge. This product may also be used to control the removal of and carry a bin bag that is held by a free standing sack holder where the bin bag is held by a ring and a clamp, and the bag drops down on release.

Sliding handles sliding up and down relative to the length of the material may be created to remain hidden and extended for use at time of removal or to act as hooks over the bin edge when in the down position.

Adaptability to the bin is achieved by the nature of the material or when in plastic by creating vertical creases at manufacture to facilitate the shape.

According to the present invention there is provided a carrier in the form of an elongated sheet of material with holding means at each end. The sheet is adaptable to fit around the longitudinal dimension of a bin bag and may be of rectangular shape, the bin bag is located in a holder. There may be a flexible pipe or rod like structure running longitudinally along the carrier and preferably integral to it to facilitate breaking of suction between the bag and bin.

s Preferred embodiments of the invention will now be described with reference to drawings in which; Figure 1 Shows a refuse sack carrier in the form of an elongated rectangular sheet with position adjustable handles.

Figure 2 Is a sectional view showing the carrier in a bin.

igure 3 Shows the carrier mounted in a free standing bag support frame.

Figure 4 Shows the carrier ready to lift out a bin bag from a bin.

Figure 5 Shows an adjustable handle attached to the sheet.

Figure 6 Shows a fixed handle with bag holding means.

Figure 7 shows a stamped out sheet with middle split.

Figure 8 shows a carrier with differently sized handles forming a loop.

Figure 9 Shows a simple stamped out product.

Figure 10 Shows a sliding handle.

Figure 11 Shows a carrier constructed from parts with a suction breaking . nc uslon.

Rel erring to the drawings; In figure 1 The carrier 10 is a sheet of material 1 OA adaptable to different shapes and has position adjustable handles 11 at each end. Once a position has been selected excess material 33 may be cut oft. These handles preferably hang freely over a holder rim, see fig. 2. The handle 11 can be elastically deformed to enable the extension 14 to engage longitudinal opening 16 provided in the sheet l OA. The sheet may also have transverse slots 1 6A to suit another type of handle,see Fig. 2. The extensions 14 provide support across the material width. The body 1 OA can adapt to various bin contours and sack contours where the sack contour is determined by the bin contour or by its filling.

In figure 2 the carrier 10 is seen in position in a bin 13. Handles 1 1 are in position at the rim of the bin hanging freely. Excess sheet material is shown at I OB. Once the carrier is in position a bin bag is located in the bin. The main function of the carrier I O is to lift the bag 15 out of the bin 13 thus a carrier preferably made from plastic coated textile with small handles 11 may suffice. These handles 11 may not be position adjustable.

In figure 3 A free standing refuse sack holder 1 3A is shown. Carrier 10 has handles I 1 freely hanging over a supporting clamp ring 36. Bag 15 and the carrier under it are held by the clamp ring 36. When the clamp ring 36 of holder 1 3A is released, the bag 15 will tend to drop, but dropping is controlled by the user holding handles 11.

In figure 4 The carrier 10 is seen with handles 1 1 positioned ready to pull a bin bag 15 out of bin 13.

In figure 5 A position adjustable handle is shown attached to the carrier lO.The handle I I has a transverse base 17 and engages openings 16 by means of end extensions 14 of its base 17 making use of elastic qualities of the base 17.The handle is then stabilized by a longitudinal extension 18 of base 17 engaging opening 1 6A.This feature allows control of the bag on removal from the bin by correctly sizing the insert for a particular bin and therefore avoiding a loose loop, see figure 8.

In figure 6 A handle 1 1 is shown with means 19 for fixing to the body 1 OA of the carrier, such as by a rivet. A bin bag trapping means 20 is formed as a slit in the handle material and is designed to control the bin bag as the top of the bag is gathered and pulled down into the slit. There may be a side entry 31 into the handle to facilitate drawing the bag top into the trapping mechanism after twisting or tying it.

Control mechanisms originating from the handle may be of many different varieties and may be either direct or remote, including the handle position itself. Extensions l 4 attach to openings in the material 1 OA, and provide support for the material across its full width, thereby increasing stability of any load. The fixed handle 11 could simply be stitched in position.

In figure 7 A carrier is formed in two parts 1 Oc and 1 OD. Holding means 27 may be stamped out of the material and when bent upwards enable lifting of the carrier. In the down position these parts 27 form hooks to engage the holder rim and preferably have cooperating parts 22 on the holder and 21 on the part 27 to fix the carrier I O in position on holder wall 1 3.This two part carrier is length adjustable by variably positioning means such as peg 25 into openings 24 and cooperating VELCRCtrip'25 providing length adjustment. Tab 26 facilitates the user to Initiate or control the opening of the carrier and thereby release an enclosed bin bag. This control may be remotely attached to a handle by a string 27.

Length adjustment of the carrier may be achieved by other means such as folds of material held by press studs.

In figure 8 A carrier able to form a closed loop 28 is seen. It has one small fixed handle 29 and one large handle 30. The small handle 29 has a bin bag grip 20 as an alternative bag holding means and is economically stamped out of the large handle excess material in the same operation. There is preferably easy access means to form and disengage the loop such as a split 31 in a handle.

( The position adjustable handle 30 removably engages the carrier at positions 16. Extension 32 preferably engages transverse slit 16A to stabilize the handle.Excess material 33 is cut away after the handle is positioned.

In figure 9 A simple stamped out carrier 10 is seen. Variable position handles 34 can be chosen by the user. 35 is a push out hook stamped at manufacture that can engage bin wall or an internal laminate edge not shown. In figure 10 A sliding handle I 1 A is shown. The handle I I A passes through a sleeve formed between the sheet I OA and strap 36.Strap 36 is preferably fixed to the sheet I OA by fixing means 19 but may removably engage slits 16. A means 2 1 to removably attach the handle, such as "Velcro'/, to a bin wall is shown on the handle base. This type of handle is especially suitable for a carrier that is used in a pedal type bin with an outer casing where the top is shallow and the handle can be hidden inside the outer casing.

In figure 1 1 A carrier 10 of elongated shape is shown. The carrier 10 has a body consisting of a construction of multiple parts I OA, 1 OB, that are joined, preferably stitched, together. Handles I I are positioned at the ends of the carrier 10 preferably attached to an extension of the body material, the material of the body preferably adapts to hang over a bin rim. A flexible longitudinal feature 37 that is preferably a long hollow tube but may be a rod is attached or is part of the body 1 Oa of the carrier 10. This Mature 37 facilitates the passage of air between the body of the carrier and the bin wall thus reducing suction forces.

Claims (9)

CLAIMS 1) A carrier for a refuse sack or bin bag comprises an elongated body of material, adaptable to locate around the longitudinal dimension of a sack, which is held by or located within a holder, and hand grip means on or adjacent to each end of the body. 2) A carrier as in claim I where the body is formed from sheet material. 3) A carrier as in claim 1,2,3 where the material of the body of the carrier adapts over the rim of the holder. 4) A carrier as in claim 1,2,3,4 where the distance between the hand grip means is adjustable. 5) A carrier as in 1,2,3,4,5wherein means to control a bin bag is the longitudinal dimension of the shape, set to a suitable length by the user. 6) A carrier as in claim I, 2, 3, 4,5,6 has means to variably adapt to a refuse bin. 7) A carrier as claimed in claims 1,2,3,4, 5,6,7 where a bag controlling means is on a handle. 8) A carrier as in claims 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8 where a bag controlling means on removal from the holder, is formed as a variable loop of the carrier shape. 9) A carrier as in 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9 where the holding means at each end is a handle that hangs freely over the bin wall. 10) A carrier as in 1---9 where the shape is constructed from a plastic coated textile. I I) A carrier as in 1-10 where the body is a construction of parts. 12) A carrier as in l--l 1 where at least one handle is position adjustable. 13) A carrier as in I-12 that has means to allow air ingress between its body and the bin wall 14) A carrier as in 1--13 where at least one handle slides longitudinally relative to the carrier. l 5) A carrier substantially as described herein with reference to drawings figures 1--- I 1. Amendments to the claims have been filed as follows CLAIMS

1. A refuse sack remover for use in removal of a refuse sack from its holder, comprising an elongated body of material to extend in use down one side of the sack, under the sack and back up the opposite side of the sack and having hand grip means on or adjacent to each end of the elongated body and means to enable the user to set a distance, from out of various possible distances, between the hand grip means.

2. A refuse sack remover as claimed in claim l, where at least one hand grip means is position adjustable by the user.

3. A refuse sack remover as claimed in claim I or 2, where the body is formed as a sheet of material.

4. A refuse sack remover as claimed in any of claims I-3' where a refuse sack gripping means is located on one of the hand grip means.

5. A refuse sack remover as claimed in claim 4 where use of the sack gripping means is facilitated by a horizontal slot in the hand grip means.

6. A refuse sack remover as claimed in any preceding claim, where the body is a construction of parts.

7. A refuse sack remover as claimed in any preceding claim, where at least one hand grip means can be repositioned by sliding longitudinally relative to the body.

8. A refuse sack remover as claimed in any preceding claim, that has means to allow air ingress between its body and a holder wall thus releasing suction forces.

9. A refuse sack remover as claimed in any preceding claim, substantially as described herein with reference to drawings l-11.

I O.A refuse sack remover as claimed in any preceding claim, which is disposed in a holder for a refuse sack so that its hand grip means con overly the rim of the holder, without attachment to the holder.