GB2389030A

GB2389030A - Container for biodegradable waste

Info

Publication number: GB2389030A
Application number: GB0310005A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Stewart Twinn
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2002-05-29
Filing date: 2003-05-01
Publication date: 2003-12-03
Anticipated expiration: 2023-05-01
Also published as: GB2389030B; GB0212349D0

Abstract

A container for collecting and storing biodegradable waste comprises a casing (11) having a cassette (20) forming a loading chamber (24) at the top of the casing for waste (70). The cassette holds a tubular liner (30), which is fed through the chamber. The bottom of the chamber is formed by sealing flaps (18), held closed by a mechanism (40). The mechanism is movable downwardly to release and open the flaps and has trap doors (41) which carry the waste and clamp the liner. Camming devices (60) effect opening of the trap doors on return upward movement of the mechanism, to unclamp the liner and permit waste to fall into the liner below the chamber (24).

Description

Container for Biodegradable Waste This invention relates to a container

for biodegradable waste and, in particular, to a container suitable for collecting biodegradable kitchen waste.

Most households in the United Kingdom dispose of organic kitchen (biodegradable) waste along with all other household waste, which is collected by local authorities and is then typically deposited in landfill sites.

The United Kingdom Government has set out its Waste Strategy (2000) for England & Wales, targeting local authorities with reducing the amount of waste deposited in these sites. As a result, local authorities are now requesting households to separate their biodegradable waste from their standard waste.

These authorities are also introducing collections specifically for biodegradable waste and developing community compost sites to help manage and recycle it back into the community. People are also being encouraged, where it is feasible, to compost their own biodegradable waste.

The issue for householders is how they manage this biodegradable waste, so that it can be effectively collected and stored without the smell and hygiene issues associated with it. This is particularly important where the waste is to be collected, because biodegradable waste collections are, at most, bi-weekly and there are no effective methods offered to households to manage this waste until it is collected.

An object of the invention is to provide a container suitable for the collection and storage of biodegradable waste.

GB-A-2169188 discloses a waste container having a casing housing a removable holder. The holder supports a tubular liner, folded in concertina fashion, with a dependent end portion tied at its bottom end to form a bag. The liner can be severed to detach the filled bottom portion, retied and manua11y pulled down to form a new bag.

GB-A-2206094 similarly discloses a container with a holder for a folded liner.

The liner is manually pulled down as in GB-A-2169188, but the liner is sealed by twisting, without severing, at intervals so as to form a series of discrete bags. The purpose is to seal an individual disposable happy (diaper) in each bag, formed in the liner.

GB-A-2221 XX9 is similar to GB-A-2206094 and is intended for use with disposable pappies. These are thrust into a liner, which is located in a container and has its bottom closed to form a bag. This manual action forces the liner into the container from a cassette and the liner is then twisted above the Happy to form a package for the nappy. The nappy is gripped by springs, to facilitate twisting of the liner. This design is impracticable for use with household waste.

The waste would have to be handled to force it into the container and the springs could not grip the waste, unless it was compacted.

US-A-6065272 discloses a complex construction in which a liner is passed between driven rollers for squeezing waste deposited in the liner. The liner is drawn from a cassette by the rollers and sealing bars heat-seal the liner into sachets, which hold the compacted waste.

The present invention provides, from one aspect, a container for collecting and storing biodegradable waste, comprising a casing having a loading chamber, means for mounting a liner in the casing for receiving waste from the chamber, openable means below the chamber having clamping means for clamping the liner substantially closed, and actuating means for effecting opening of the openable means to unclamp the liner and permit waste to fall into the liner below the chamber.

A sealing device may be provided above the openable means to seal the chamber.

A cassette may be provided for holding a liner and having a continuous aperture for feeding the liner into the casing. The cassette may define the periphery of the chamber.

The openable means may be reciprocably mounted in the casing for initial movement by actuation of the actuating means to form a secondary chamber below the waste-receiving chamber and allow opening of the sealing means, and return movement.

The openable means may be openable by cam action during its movement.

Reference is now made to the accompanying drawings, wherein: Fig.l is a front view of the casing of a container according to the invention; Fig.2 is a side view of the casing; Fig.3 is a rear view of the casing; Fig.4 is a top, plan view of the casing; Fig.5 is a perspective view of a cassette, usually housed in the casing; Fig.6 is a top, plan view of the cassette; Fig.7 is a cross-sectional view on line EWE of Fig.6; Fig.8 is a view similar to Fig.7, with a liner, mounted in the cassette body, extended and clamped to form a collection bag; Fig.9 is a cross-sectional view of the container, showing the cassette housed in the casing and with the container in its normal waste-loading state; Fig.10 is a cross- sectional view on the line H-H of Fig.9, showing the container in a transition state towards a waste-depositing state; Fig.11 is a similar view to Fig.10, showing the waste-depositing state; Fig.12 is a view similar to Fig.11, showing the container back in the waste-

loading state, with waste deposited;

Fig.13 is a cross-sectional view in the direction of arrow "A" in Fig.9, illustrating a depositing mechanism; Fig.14 is a cross-sectional view in the direction of arrow "B" in Fig.10, but with the waste not illustrated; Fig.15 is a side view, with the casing in cross-section of the depositing mechanism; Fig.16 is a similar view to Fig.15, with the container turned through 90 degrees; Figs. 17A to 17D are detail illustrations showing positions of a cam, during a depositing operation of the mechanism; and Figs.18A to 18C are detail illustrations of cam action of the mechanism.

Figs. 19 to 22 are detail illustrations of a modified mechanism.

Referring to Figs. 1 to 4, 9 and 10, the container comprises a casing 11 of rectangular section, having a hinged access door 12 in one side, a vertical guide slot 13 in the opposite side and a hinged lid 14 at the top, raisable to allow access to the casing interior. As shown in Fig.10, the casing has an internal peripheral ledge 16 defining an opening 17. The opening is closed by a pair of flaps 18, resiliently biased to a closed position, so as to close and seal the opening 17.

The ledge 16 is spaced from the top of the casing and a cassette 20 is housed in the casing and supported on the ledge. The cassette is removable from the casing through its top on raising of the lid 14. The cassette, as shown in Figs. 5 to 7, comprises an outer wall 21 and an inner wall 22, defining an annular gap 23 therebetween. The inner wall defines a loading chamber 24 with the flaps 18 (Fig.10) and a frustoconical member 25 forms a eared entrance to the chamber.

A narrow slit 27 is defined around the member 25 and communicates with the gap 23. The inner and outer walls are joined together by a bottom wall 29 at the

bottom of the cassette. A plastics liner 30 of tubular form is held in the gap 23 and folded in concertina fashion. One end of the liner passes through the slit 27 and is fed through the loading chamber 24, as shown in Fig. 8, and is sealed by a clamp 31. The liner may be sealed by other means, such as tying a knot.

Openable means, in the form of a mechanism 40 having a pair of openable doors 41, is provided in the casing below the flaps 18. The mechanism is normally located adjacent to the flaps and holds them in their closed positions. As shown in Figs. 13 and 14, the mechanism 40 has a rectangular frame 42 to which the doors 41 are hinged by resilient leaf springs 43. Each door has a gripping member 44, e.g. of rubber, at its end edge and the gripping members of the doors are mutually adjacent for gripping and closing the liner 30. Each door 41 includes an arm SS at a side edge, the two arms being at opposite sides of the mechanism. Each arm 55 has an end extension portion 56, extending beyond the gripping member 44 of the respective door, and a curved catch portion 57 at the opposite end (Fig. 15).

The frame 41 is mounted on supports 46, carrying rotatably mounted wheels 47.

The casing 11 has runners 49, spaced from and parallel to the slot 13 and the wheels engage in respective runners for vertical movement of the mechanism towards and away from the flaps 16. The frame is movable by means of a handle 50, which has a portion 51 extending through and engaging in the slot 13. A spring catch (not shown) is provided to hold the handle in the upper, normal position. A pair of actuating devices 60 is mounted in the casing and located below the doors 41. As shown in Figs. 17A to LID, each device 60 comprises a block 61 mounted by a spring 62, so as to be pivotally movable away from the casing wall on which it is mounted. A cylindrical projection from the block defines a cam 63.

Each device is associated with a respective door 41.

In operation, a cassette 20 is mounted in the casing 11 with a liner 30 extended and clamped, as shown in Fig.8 and 9. Waste 70 is deposited in the loading chamber 24 and is, accordingly, wholly located in the liner 30, which is closed

between the flaps 18 and clamped by the gripping members 44 on the doors 41.

The flaps 18 are held in the sealing position by the mechanism 40.

The handle 50 (Fig.10) is then depressed and moved past the spring catch, so as move the mechanism 40 downwardly, with the wheels 47 moving in the runners 46 (Figs. 15 and 16). This action causes the gripped liner 30 to be moved downwardly, with the liner being fed from the cassette 20. This action tensions the liner and forces open the flaps 18 against the closing bias, so that the waste 70 is supported on the doors 41, during the downward movement (Fig.l0). As the mechanism moves downwardly, the arms 55 engage with the cams 63 on the actuating devices 60 (Figs. 17A to 17C). The devices are caused to pivot downwardly to permit the mechanism to pass.

The handle 50 is then returned to its original, upper position, where it is held by the spring catch. During upward movement of the mechanism, the arms 55 engage respective cams 63, which cam the doors open (Figs. 18A, 18B and TIC).

The curved portions 57 of the arms catch the cams 63, during this movement.

The waste 70 falls through the doors. Continued upward movement releases the arm extensions 56 from the actuating devices and the doors close under their spring bias. The extensions 56 prevent premature closing of the doors. The mechanism 40, as it returns to its original position, closes the naps 16, returning them to their sealed positions.

The waste is, therefore, hygienically handled and is stored in a liner which is closed by the doors 41 and also sealed by the naps 18. On further deposition of waste, the existing waste remains sealed in the liner by the doors 41 and the flaps 16. The stored waste is only exposed to the exterior for a short period during the return movement of the mechanism 40 in a further operation to move waste from the loading chamber 24 into the casing.

When the casing is substantially full, or earlier if required, the liner 30 is severed below the mechanism and the resulting bag is removed from the casing and sealed for disposal. The remaining part of the liner is again clamped below the mechanism 40. Access for these purposes is provided by the access door 12.

It is envisaged that the mechanism may be spring loaded to its normal, upper position, so that the handle need only be depressed and then released. It is also envisaged that the handle may be replaced by an electric motor and a drive mechanism. The liner may be made of biodegradable material and may be perforated to facilitate the severing action.

The naps (18) may be omitted and the construction modified, so that the doors (41) effect sealing. Such an embodiment is shown in Figs. 19 to 22.

Each door (141) has a camming edge (176), engageable with a Range (178) of the frame (142) of the mechanism (140), to hold the doors (141) closed. When the mechanism (141) is lowered, the edge (176) disengages from the Range (178).

Claims

l CLAIMS

1. A container for collecting and storing biodegradable waste, comprising a casing (11) having a loading chamber (24), means (20) for mounting a liner (30) in the casing for receiving waste (70) from the chamber, openable means (40) below the chamber having clamping means (41) for clamping the liner substantially closed, and actuating means (60) for effecting opening of the openable means to unclamp the liner and permit waste to fall into the liner below the chamber (24).

2. A container according to Claim 1, wherein the clamping means comprises a

pair of openable doors (41).

3. A container according to Claim 1, wherein the clamping means comprises hinged doors (41), which grip the liner between them, and the actuating means (60) effects opening of the doors.

4. A container according to Claim 2 or 3, wherein the doors (41) are resiliently biased to a closed position.

5. A container according to Claim 2, 3 or 4, wherein the doors (41) have gripping means (44) for gripping the liner (30) between the doors.

6. A container according to any one of claims 2 to 5, wherein the actuating means (60) is mounted on the casing (11) with a portion (63) positioned in the path of the openable means (40) during said movement away from the chamber (24), the portion being resiliently movable by said means out of said path, and said portion being positioned in the path of the doors (41) during reverse movement of the opening means towards the chamber (24), so as to cam the doors open.

7. A container according to Claim 6, wherein each door (41) has an arm (55) positioned to engage the respective actuating means portion (63), each arm having an extension (56) beyond the gripping means (44).

(

8. A container according to Claim 7, wherein each arm (55) includes a curved portion (57) opposite to the extension (56) for catching said actuating means portion (63).

9. A container according to any preceding claim, including a sealing device (18) above the openable means (41) to seal the chamber (24).

10. A container according to Claim 9, wherein the openable means (41) is reciprocably movable away from the chamber (24) to engage the actuating means (60).

11. A container according to Claims 9 or 10, wherein the sealing device (18) is biased closed and openable by said movement of the openable means.

12. A container according to any preceding claim, including a cassette (20) for holding a liner (30) and having a continuous aperture (27) for feeding the liner into the casing.

13. A container according to Claim 12, wherein the cassette (20) defines the periphery of the chamber (24).

14. A container according to Claim 12 or 13, including a liner (30) housed in the cassette (20).

15. A container for collecting and storing biodegradable waste, comprising a casing (11) having a loading chamber (24) whose bottom is defined by openable means (16,40) closing an opening (17), actuating means (40, 60) for opening said openable means to permit waste to pass through the opening from the chamber (24), and means (20) for mounting a liner to receive said waste from the chamber.

16. A container substantially as described with reference to the accompanying drawings.