GB2465410A

GB2465410A - Waste compactor

Info

Publication number: GB2465410A
Application number: GB0820869A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Paul John Creasey
Original assignee: COMPACABIN Ltd
Current assignee: COMPACABIN LIMITED
Priority date: 2008-11-14
Filing date: 2008-11-14
Publication date: 2010-05-26
Anticipated expiration: 2028-11-14
Also published as: GB0820869D0; GB2465410B

Abstract

The invention provides a waste compactor adapted to compress waste in a normal waste receptacle such as a bin (11, fig 2). The waste compactor comprises a cross bar 12, supported at each end thereof by a support frame 13, 14, 15, 16, such as a wall bracket, so that a waste receptacle (11, fig 2) may be positioned below. A second order lever 30 is mounted at its pivot point on to the cross bar 12 by a sleeve 33 containing a bearing, such that the lever 30 is pivotally and slidably mounted to the cross bar 12. A manually operable handle 32 is provided at or adjacent an end of the lever 30 remote from the sleeve 33. A compacting ram 40 is pivotally mounted to the lever 30 between the handle 32 and the sleeve 33, the ram 40 having a press plate 42 at a lower end thereof which contacts and compresses waste during use. The ram 40 is arranged to be raised and lowered with respect to the receptacle (11, fig 2) to compress waste therein by the raising and lowering of the handle 32.

Description

WASTE COMPACTOR

This invention relates to a waste compactor and in particular to a waste compactor for compressing waste in a waste receptacle.

A large quantity of domestic, commercial and industrial waste material is produced annually which must be collected and disposed of. Usually, a business or home will be provided with one or more waste receptacle into which all manner of waste is discarded before it is taken away, either to landfill or to be recycled. The removal of waste is rarely free of charge, and many councils and/or private waste disposal companies will levy a charge per collection, once the receptacle is full. Therefore, there is a need to increase the amount of waste that can be placed into any receptacle, so that fewer collections are necessary, resulting in reduced cost as well as reducing the number of receptacles needed to hold the waste between collections.

Additionally, there are environmental advantages in limiting the number of waste collections, as less energy is expended with fewer collections.

One of the favoured ways to increase the amount of waste that can be placed into a receptacle is by compressing the waste. This may be done by compressing the waste in a powered waste crusher before putting it into the receptacle, however these crushers can be expensive to purchase and run, and they require a significant expenditure of energy to operate. The present invention aims to provide an economical, manually operated waste compactor that will compress waste in a receptacle, freeing up space for further waste, so that the cost of waste removal is significantly reduced.

Therefore, according to this invention there is provided a waste compactor adapted to compress waste in a waste receptacle comprising: -a cross bar, supported at each end thereof by a support frame; -a second order lever mounted at the pivot point on to the cross bar, the lever being pivotally and slidably mounted to the cross bar by a sleeve containing a bearing; -a handle at or adjacent an end of the lever remote from the sleeve; and -a compacting ram pivotally mounted to the lever between the handle and the sleeve, the ram having a press plate at a lower end thereof which contacts and compresses waste during use, the ram being arranged to be raised and lowered with respect to the receptacle to compress waste therein by the raising and lowering of the handle.

As used herein, the term "receptacle" could refer to any container into which waste is placed for collection. Usually, this will be a solid, open-topped (with or without a removable lid) container or bin made from plastic or metal.

Receptacles provided by councils and the like tend to be of standard dimensions, and this invention can be adapted for use with most shapes and sizes of receptacle by varying the dimensions of the support frame. Importantly it can by its nature be used with a range of different receptacles without modification.

Generally the sleeve will be at one end of the lever and the handle at the other. However, the material forming the lever may actually extend somewhat beyond the pivot point and the handle such that in practice these are not at the actual ends of the material. The pivot point and handle are however always the ends of the effective lever because the lever is defined by the fulcrum at the pivot point and the input force at the handle.

During use by actuating the lever the compacting ram is lowered into the receptacle onto waste thereby to compress the waste therein. When a user pulls down the handle, a downward compressive force is exerted onto the waste by the press plate. The ram is pivotally mounted to the lever, so that as the angle of the lever relative to the ground changes as the lever is actuated and rotates around the pivot provided by the cross bar, the ram will remain in the same orientation, and the compressive force will continue to be exerted in the same direction onto the waste. The direction of movement of the ram will usually be generally vertical.

The cross bar is preferably linear and arranged horizontally, and may have a circular cross section so that the sleeve can slide along it and rotate around it when the lever is actuated. A bar forming the cross bar may also extend beyond the point of connection to the support frame.

The lever is mounted to be lateral slidable along the cross bar so that the press plate can if needed be moved across the whole surface of the waste in the receptacle. This is particularly important, as the upper surface of the waste may be significantly larger in area than the compacting surface of the press plate. The area of the compacting surface of the press plate should not be too large, as otherwise the pressure that it exerts will not be enough to effectively compress the waste. Of course, this invention could be adapted for use with a plurality of receptacles by extending the length of the cross bar. This could allow the ram to be moved slidably from above a first receptacle to a second receptacle so that the first receptacle may be removed and replaced.

A bearing is required in the sleeve to permit reduced frictional translational movement of the lever along and potentially rotationally around the cross bar. It has been found that without the bearing, the friction between the sleeve and the cross bar is too great to permit satisfactory movement of the lever. Preferably the bearing comprises at least one linear recirculating ball bearing, as this has been found to be the most effective at reducing friction.

Advantageously, the sleeve contains three or four such bearings to further reduce the friction.

The ram preferably comprises an elongate shaft which is mounted towards one end thereof to the lever, with the press plate being attached at an other end. The press plate preferably has a compacting surface arranged substantially perpendicularly to the plane of the shaft. The shaft of the ram may be connected at any suitable point along the lever depending on the force and range of movement required.

Preferably, the position of the press plate relative to the lever is adjustable so that the ram may reach the desired depth into the receptacle during use. In a preferred embodiment, the ram has a plurality of alternative connection points to mount said ram to the lever. The desired length of the ram and/or the point of connection of the ram shaft to the lever can be adjusted by selecting the appropriate connection point.

The press plate is preferably generally rectangular, so that it may press waste in the corners of a generally square receptacle. Of course, different shapes of press plate could be provided depending on the shape of the receptacle. Preferably, the press plate is perforate so as to reduce the weight thereof, making it easier to raise the lever. Such a perforate press plate could for example be made from a grille or mesh of interlocking slats, a single sheet of material with perforations therein, or could be constructed from a single piece of material worked into a spiral. The optimum size of the gaps in the press plate depends on the average particle size of the waste to be compressed. Larger gaps are ideal for larger waste such as plastic bottles and cardboard boxes, as the overall area of waste in contact with the press plate will be the same as if the press plate was solid. Smaller waste would require smaller gaps in the surface of the press plate.

The support frame preferably also comprises a base on which the receptacle is supported. Preferably, the base includes adjustable receptacle supports to alter the position of a receptacle supported thereon relative to the ground. These receptacle supports could be adjusted to increase or decrease the height of the receptacle during use, and/or be adjusted to stabilise the receptacle thereon.

Means may be provided to counterbalance or support the lever when not in use. The effective length of the lever may be adjustable.

So that the invention may be better understood, but by way of example only, one embodiment will be described in detail with reference to the following drawings: Figure 1 shows a perspective view of the waste compactor of this invention; and Figure 2 shows a perspective view of this invention with a waste receptacle.

Referring to both figures there is shown a waste compactor generally indicated 10 adapted to compact waste within a waste receptacle generally indicated 11. The waste compactor includes a support frame, which comprises a cylindrical, horizontal cross bar 12 supported at one end by a first L-shaped bar having an upright section 13 and horizontal section 14 disposed along the ground, and a second L-shaped bar having an upright section 15 and a horizontal 16 section disposed along the ground. The ends of upright sections 13 and 15 are connected to the respective ends of horizontal sections 14 and 16 by diagonal struts 17 and 18. Cross bar 12 is connected to the support frame by insertion of the ends thereof through apertures 19, 20 in the respective upper ends of upright sections 13 and 15.

The support frame further comprises lower cross bar 21, which is connected between lower parts of the upright sections 13 and 15. Extending from lower cross bar 21 are parallel receptacle support bars 23, 24. Each receptacle support bar 23, 24 has a foot 25 mounted on its lower surface which extends to the ground to support the support bars 23, 24. The feet 25 are threaded into an aperture on the support bars 23, 25, so that their length can be adjusted to support the compactor 10 on uneven ground. Two receptacle supports 26 are attached to the upper surface of each of the support bars 23, 24, and as shown in Figure 2, the receptacle 11 is supported on these supports 26. The supports 26 are threaded into apertures in the support bars 23, 24, 50 that their height may be adjusted to suit particular receptacles. In Figure 2 the receptacle is a wheeled bin and the wheels pass either side of the support bars. The receptacle supports 26 are set at a height to support the lower surface of the receptacle between the wheels, which helps to prevent this from bowing under compression of the waste as well preventing it from rolling away except when desired.

A second order lever, generally indicated 30, is mounted onto to the cross bar 12. The lever 30 comprises an elongate body 31, with a handle 32 at one end and a sleeve 33 at the other end, which is slidably and rotatably mounted on to the cross bar 12. Sleeve 33, which is generally circular in cross section to fit around the cylindrical cross bar, contains a linear recirculating ball bearing (not shown) to permit reduced frictional movement of the sleeve 32 along and around the cross bar 12. The body 31 of the lever 30 is angled downwardly towards the handle end thereof to make it easier for a user to reach the handle 32 when the lever 30 is raised.

Attached to the lever there is a compression ram 40 comprising a shaft 41 which is pivotally attached to the lever 30, and a generally rectangular press plate 42. The press plate comprises a series of interconnected slats 43 which contact the waste during use. The upper end of the shaft 41 is bifurcate to form opposed strips 44, and these fit either side of the lever 30. The shaft 41 is mounted to the lever 30 with a pin 45 that extends through opposed pairs of apertures 46 formed in rows along each of the strips 44. Connecting the pin 45 through different pairs of apertures 46 and a locating bore (not visible) on the lever can be used to alter the effective length of the ram 40.

In use the receptacle 11 is arranged on or above the supports 26. A user holds handle 32 and raises the lever 30 until the press plate 42 is above the upper level of receptacle 11. The lever 30 is then slid along cross bar 12 to position the press plate 42 above waste in the receptacle 11. The user then applies a downward force onto the lever 30 to compress by the waste with the press plate 42. This action can be repeated, with the position of the press plate 42 in the receptacle 11 changing so that all of the waste is compressed. The effective length of the ram 40 can be extended or reduced as necessary. Once the waste has been compacted the lever 30 can be returned to the position as shown in Figure 2 so as to be out of the way of the receptacle 11.

Claims

CLAIMS1. A waste compactor adapted to compress waste in a waste receptacle comprising: -a cross bar, supported at each end thereof by a support frame; -a second order lever mounted at the pivot point on to the cross bar, the lever being pivotally and slidably mounted to the cross bar by a sleeve containing a bearing; -a handle at or adjacent an end of the lever remote from the sleeve; and -a compacting ram pivotally mounted to the lever between the handle and the sleeve, the ram having a press plate at a lower end thereof which contacts and compresses waste during use, the ram being arranged to be raised and lowered into the receptacle to compress waste therein by the raising and lowering of the handle.
2. A waste compactor as claimed in claim 1, wherein the bearing comprises at least one linear recirculating ball bearing.
3. A waste compactor as claimed in claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the ram comprises an elongate shaft which is mounted towards one end thereof to the lever, and the press plate is attached at an other end, the press plate having a compacting surface arranged substantially perpendicularly to the plane of the shaft.
4. A waste compactor as claimed in any of the preceding claims, wherein the position of the press plate relative to the lever is adjustable.
5. A waste compactor as claimed in claim 4, wherein the rain has a plurality of alternative connection points to mount said ram to the lever.
6. A waste compactor as claimed in any of the preceding claims, wherein the press plate is generally rectangular.
7. A waste compactor as claimed in any of the preceding claims, wherein the press plate is perforate.
8. A waste compactor as claimed in any of the preceding claims, wherein the support frame includes a base on which the receptacle is supported.
9. A waste compactor as claimed in claim 8, wherein the base includes adjustable receptacle supports.
10. A waste compactor as claimed in claim 1 and as substantially herein described with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying drawings.