GB2412840A - Extraction aid for a bin liner - Google Patents

Abstract

A tool (10) for aiding the removal of a bin liner from a bin, comprising a hollow elongate body (12) having a handle end (14) with a breather aperture, said aperture being in communication with at least one vacuum relief aperture (24) adjacent to a tapered penetrating end (18) of the tool remote from the handle end (14) at which a handle (16) is present. Insertion of the tool between a full bin liner and a bin in which it resides enables the liner to be quickly and easily removed in a two handed operation. Use of the tool acts to both stop the bin being lifted due to liner/bin friction whilst also stopping a vacuum being formed between the liner and bin, which can effectively prevent liner removal.

Description

24 1 2840 Extraction aid for a liner The present invention relates to an

extraction aid for a liner, in particular to a tool for use by a cleaner to aid removal of a liner from of a container such as a bin.

Containers such as bins are often made watertight to avoid spillage. For ease of emptying such bins are often equipped with a liner such as a bag which is similarly watertight so any liquid contents can be more easily removed without spillage. However, a full liner in a bin can be hard to remove as the liner can closely conform to the sides of a bin, such as a cylindrical bin, so as to make an airtight seal. The bin can therefore, for example, lift from a floor when the bag is lifted, or the liner may rip under a force applied to try and separate liner from the bin. This complicates what is otherwise a mundane activity and makes it more onerous than necessary. Furthermore when a bin with a liner contains waste such as clinical waste, where spillage may require a time consuming clean-up operation, such complexity with its attendant risk of mistake and spillage is even less desirable. Additionally bins in such use may be washed with disinfectant thus leaving a liquid layer between liner and bin, which greatly increases the risk of vacuum formation and adhesion of the liner to the bin.

The current invention provides a tool for aiding the extraction of a liner from inside an outer container, the tool comprising a hollow elongate body having a handle end with a breather aperture and a penetrating end of the tool remote from the handle end, the breather aperture being in communication with at least one vacuum relief aperture adjacent to the piercing end.

This tool enables a method of extracting a liner, such as a plastic bag, from inside an outer container, such as a bin, by inserting the tool between the liner and the container by means of the penetrating end. That end can then be inserted far enough to abut the base of the container with the handle end standing proud of an entrance to the container from where the liner is to be extracted. An operator holding a handle at the handle end can thereby stop the container being raised due to liner/container friction or adhesion whilst lifting the liner out of the container. In particular, any vacuum that may form when ordinarily lifting a liner out of a bin cannot form as the tool acts as a conduit for air to enter between the liner and the container. This is either because of air being communicated to the base of the container via the breather aperture, hollow body and vacuum relief aperture(s) and/or via air gaps adjacent the tool. As the handle stands proud of the container and optimally at a level with a holdable part of the liner the liner can be quickly and easily removed from the container in a two handed operation without an operator having to stoop, thus making the extraction operation more ergonomic.

The tool therefore enables a bin emptying operation comprising removing a liner from a bin to be performed more quickly and reliably.

The invention will now be described further, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which; Figure 1 shows a side view of an embodiment of a tool according to the invention; Figure 2 shows a side view orthogonal to the view of Figure 1; Figure 3 shows a plan view of the tool of Figure 1; and Figure 4 shows a perspective view of the tool of Figure 1.

The illustrated embodiment of the tool of the invention is made of stainless steel and comprises a rectangular hollow tube 12 having a handle end 14 and a penetrating end 18. The handle end has a terminal breather aperture 30 in communication with a channel 26 in the tube 12 and a handle 16 extending perpendicular to the tube 12 and attached on one face of the tube 12 towards it's handle end 14. The penetrating end 18 tapers to an apex 20 by means of a sloping closed face 22 situated on an opposite face of the tube 12 from the handle 16. In an end region adjacent the penetrating end 18 and on the same side as the sloping face 22, a regular closely spaced array of circular vacuum relief apertures 24 are present. These apertures 24 are in communication with the channel 26 of the tube as is a terminal breather aperture 30 at handle end 14.

In use, the tool 10 is held manually at the handle 16 by a user and the penetrating end 18, which is not sharp, is inserted between a liner in a bin and the bin and extended until the apex 20 reaches a base of the bin. The tool 10 is optimally inserted with the sloping face 22 facing the liner as the liner is deformable and so the chance of ripping the liner is reduced. Additionally, the face presenting the vacuum relief apertures thereby also faces the interior of the bin so as better to relieve any vacuum. Similarly the handle 16 is thereby disposed clear of the entrance to the bin for easier removal of the liner. The user then lifts the liner out of the bin. Any vacuum potentially created by lifting the liner from the bin is relieved by air passing from the breather aperture 30, along the channel 26 of tube 12 and out of the vacuum relieving apertures 24. The vacuum relieving apertures 24 are disposed at the side of the tool 10 to reduce the potential for blockage by debris entering the apertures 24 as the tool 10 is inserted. The rectangular cross section of the tube 12 facilitates the creation of an additional airway between the liner and the bin such that insertion is facilitated by air reaching the apex 20 as it penetrates.

In alternative embodiments, the handle 16 may have a rubberized cover for improved grip by a user and ease of use, the tube 12 may be other than rectangular in cross-section, it may for example be circular, and / or the tool may be made from a plastics material. A skilled person will appreciate that further modifications of the tool may be made without departing from the scope of the invention.

Claims (9)

1. Claims 1. A tool for aiding the extraction of a liner from inside an outer

   container, the tool comprising a hollow elongate body having a handle end with a breather aperture and a penetrating end of the tool remote from the handle end, the breather aperture being in communication with at least one vacuum relief aperture adjacent to the piercing end.
2. 2. A tool according to claim 1 wherein the at least one vacuum relief aperture is in a side of the tool.
3. 3. A tool according to claim 1 or claim 2 wherein a plurality of vacuum relief apertures are present in a closely spaced array.
4. 4. A tool according to any of claims 1 to 3 wherein the breather aperture is at the tip of the handle end of the tool.
5. 5. A tool according to any previous claim wherein the elongate body is a tube of rectangular cross-section.
6. 6. A tool according to any previous claim wherein the penetrating end tapers to an apex.
7. 7. A tool according to claim 6 wherein the apex is blunt.
8. 8. A tool according to any previous claim wherein a handle extends perpendicular to the elongate body at the handle end.
9. 9. A tool as herein before described and as illustrated in figures 1 to 4 of the accompanying drawings.