GB2591810A

GB2591810A - Refuse trolley

Info

Publication number: GB2591810A
Application number: GB2001755.4A
Authority: GB
Inventors: James Gavin
Original assignee: Helping Hand Co Ledbury Ltd
Current assignee: Helping Hand Co Ledbury Ltd
Priority date: 2020-02-10
Filing date: 2020-02-10
Publication date: 2021-08-11
Also published as: GB202001755D0

Abstract

A trolley 10 suitable for use in litter picking comprises a unitary body 12, a rear axle (figure 2a, 26) attached to the body 12 and supporting a pair of rear wheels 14, and a handle assembly 16 mounted to the axle, the handle assembly 16 including a first part (figure 3b, 29) fixed to the axle and a second part 34 adjustably attached to the first part, the second part including a support element 36 for engaging with a refuse bag holder, the second part being moveable between a carriage position in which the second part lies substantially in a position over the plastics body 18 and an operative position in which the second part extends directly upwardly from the first part.

Description

REFUSE TROLLEY

The present invention relates to a refuse trolley and particularly to a lightweight refuse trolly for use with litter pickers.

BACKGROUND TO THE INVENTION

In some communities, people form groups to clean up an area by litter picking. These groups may include children. When litter picking, it is necessary to have somewhere to put the picked litter, and often it is just placed in a plastic refuse bag, which is carried. Typically, the bag is a large bin bag, known as a "black bag" or "black bin liner" which may be dragged along the floor and is at risk of being ripped. This is a particular problem for a child, because of their height and strength.

Carrying a refuse bag is not easy for a child, particularly as it starts to fill with rubbish. There are many different refuse carts on the market, but none address the issues of providing a small, lightweight trolley, suitable for collecting rubbish, which can be stored easily, carried in hand and provide modular bag support options.

It is an object of the present invention to reduce or substantially obviate the aforementioned problems.

STATEMENT OF INVENTION

According to the present invention there is provided a refuse trolley for use in litter picking comprising a unitary body, a rear axle attached to the body and supporting a pair of rear wheels, and a handle assembly mounted to the axle, the handle assembly including a first part fixed to the axle and a second part adjustably attached to the first part, the second part including a support element for engaging with a refuse bag holder, the second part being moveable between a carriage position in which the second part lies substantially in a position over the unitary body and can serve as a carry handle for the refuse trolley and an operative position in which the second part extends directly upwardly from the first part for supporting a refuse bag over the unitary body.

The use of a unitary body provides a lightweight solution and removes the need for a chassis. The movement of the second part of the handle assembly enables the trolley to be reduced to a smaller size for transit and storage. Furthermore, it provides a convenient handle for lifting the device as well pushing/pulling the trolley in use Preferably the unitary body is made from plastics. Longitudinal strengthening ribs may be provided in the body to add rigidity. Plastic is preferred because of its light weight, enabling children, for example, aged 5 years upwards to be able to use the trolley.

A front support post may extend from the underside of the front of the unitary body for supporting the unitary body with the wheels in a substantially horizontal position above the ground.

Advantageously the post can serve not only to support the trolley body in use, but also as a carry handle when the trolley is in the carriage position, which may also be regarded as a stowed position.

The axle may extend laterally underneath the unitary body. A peripheral flange may be provided around the upper edge of the unitary body, which substantially covers the wheels for in use serving as a mudguard.

The axle also provides lateral rigidity to the unitary body.

The first part of the handle assembly may be a curved connecting arm which extends from the axle, around the rear end of the unitary body to a position beyond the body.

Advantageously any weight supported on the handle assembly is transferred directly to the axle and wheels, without passing through the unitary body structure.

The second part of the handle assembly may be connected to the first part by means of an indexed rotary joint.

The indexed rotary joint may include a central screw fastener, which serves as a pivot and locking means, and at least one pin extending from one part between the parts for location in one of a plurality of apertures in the other part for locking the first and second parts in respective positions.

The indexed rotary joint ensures that the handle assembly is securely deployed in use.

The second part of the handle assembly may include a stem, the refuse bag holder support element and an adjustable handle.

The refuse bag holder support element may extend from the stem at an angle and is disposed substantially inside the area of the unitary body in the carriage position.

The refuse trolley may further comprise a refuse bag holder, the refuse bag holder support element being a non-circular post and the refuse bag holder having a correspondingly shaped aperture, which locates on the non-circular post. The non-circular post prevents rotation of the refuse bag holder in use.

The correspondingly shaped aperture is disposed within a handle of the refuse bag holder. The handle enables simple removal and attachment of the refuse bag holder.

The refuse bag holder may include a hoop, a recess substantially running around the periphery of the hoop receiving an elastic restraining element, for retaining the upper end of a refuse bag disposed within the hoop with the upper edge folded back over the hoop.

In use, the refuse bag holder sits conveniently above the unitary body, enabling collected rubbish to be supported above the ground, either by the body or by the handle assembly.

The refuse bag holder support element may alternatively include a post terminating in a platform, the platform being in a substantially horizontal plane in use, and an inverted hook disposed above the platform.

The refuse trolley may further comprise a refuse bag holder being a substantially rectangular frame divided by a central spar for forming two hoops.

Advantageously, in this embodiment, two refuse bags can be supported which enables some rubbish separation for recycling purposes.

First and second resilient clips may be disposed on the central spar for holding refuse bags, the clips being pivotally mounted proximate the joins of the spar with the substantially rectangular frame, and being adapted to pivot towards the centre of the spar, in use resiliently gripping around the spar and holding one or more refuse bags to the spar.

A plurality of resilient clips may be disposed around the substantially rectangular frame, each clip extending around a part of the frame and having an integral latch to hold it in position, and an upper resilient member, which folds over the top of the clip for restraining a refuse bag.

The clips conveniently enable one or two refuse bags to be supported from the refuse bag holder. Tearing of the bags is avoided by the use of multiple spaced clips.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

For a better understanding of the present invention, and to show more clearly how it may be carried into effect, reference will now be made by way of example only to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figures la and lb show perspective views of a refuse trolley according to an embodiment of the present invention in the operative position and the carriage position respectively; Figures 2a and 2b show front views of the refuse trolley shown in Figures la and lb in the operative position and the carriage position respectively; Figures 3a and 3b show side views of the refuse trolley shown in Figures la and lb in the operative configuration and the carrying configuration respectively; Figures 4a and 4b show rear views of the refuse trolley shown in Figures la and lb in the operative configuration and the carrying configuration respectively; Figure 5a shows a perspective view of a first part of an indexed rotary joint; Figure 5b shows a perspective view of a second part of an indexed rotary joint; Figure 6 shows a perspective view of a refuse bag holder support element; Figure 7 shows a perspective view of a refuse bag holder support element; Figure 8 shows a perspective view of the refuse trolley in the operative position with a refuse bag holder attached; and Figure 9 shows a perspective view of the refuse trolley in the operative position with a refuse bag holder attached.

DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Referring firstly to Figures la, lb, 2a, 2b, 3a, 3b, 4a, 4b, 8 and 9 a refuse trolley is generally indicated at 10.

The refuse trolley 10 is formed from a unitary body 12, wheels 14 and a two-part handle assembly 16. The refuse trolley 10 has a first end and a second end. In use, the first end of the refuse trolley is intended to be the front end and the second end of the refuse trolley is intended to be the rear end.

The unitary body 12 is formed from a substantially lightweight and rigid material, such as plastics or aluminium. The unitary body comprises a base 18, a side wall 20 extending from the periphery of the base, a peripheral flange 22 formed on the side wall and strengthening ribs 24.

The base 18 has a substantially flat or planar portion and an angled portion disposed towards the front end of the refuse trolley 10. The angled portion effectively creates a dip in the base. In some embodiments, the base may have a curved profile.

The strengthening ribs 24 are formed in both the base 28 and side wall 20 and extend in a longitudinal direction, i.e. from the back end to the front end. In the current embodiment, the strengthening ribs 24 are only formed in a portion of the side wall 20 and taper to a point. The point may be approximately halfway to three quarters of the way up the side wall 20.

In some embodiments, the strengthening ribs 24 only taper to a point in a section of the side wall proximate the rear end of the refuse trolley 10, at the front end of the refuse trolley 10 the strengthening ribs extend to the peripheral flange 22.

The peripheral flange 22 extends from an upper portion of the side wall 20 and has a curved profile. The peripheral flange 22 extends from the side wall 20 by varying distances. In the area of the unitary body 12 proximate the wheels 14, the peripheral flange 22 extends over a portion of the wheels 14 to act as a mud guard.

A rear axle 26 extends laterally across and is connected to the underside of the unitary body 12. In some embodiments, two through holes are provided in the unitary body and are aligned with the position of the axle 26. The through holes allow for a fixing means to couple the unitary body 12 to the axle 26.

In the current embodiment, there are two axle locating means 27 provided on the underside of the unitary body 12. Each axle locating means 27 included two portions spaced longitudinally apart, one of the through holes may be disposed in the gap between the two portions. Only one portion of each axle locating means 27 is viewable in the figures.

In other embodiments, the two axle locating means 27 can be used to retain the axle in position, i.e the two portions are biased towards each other.

A front support post 28 extends from the underside of the unitary body 12. The front support post 28 has a circular cross-section and includes a foot. A housing for receiving a portion of the front support post 28 is formed in the unitary body 12 proximate the front end of the refuse trolley 10.

The first part of the two-part handle assembly 16 includes a connecting arm 29 extending from the axle 26 around the rear end of the unitary body 12 through a through hole in the peripheral flange 22. The connecting arm 29 may be curved or be formed from multiple straight parts with each part meeting at an angle.

An indexed rotary joint 30 is provided to rotatably connect the first part of the two-part handle assembly 16 to the second part of the two-part handle assembly 16. The index rotary joint 30 comprises two parts which are releasably secured together by a central screw or bolt fastener 32 serving as a pivot and a locking means. The indexed rotary joint 30 will be described in more detail below.

The second part of the two-part handle assembly 16 includes a stem 34, a refuse bag holder support element 36 and an adjustable handle 38.

In the operative position, the stem 34 extends substantially upright, the adjustable handle 38 extends rearwardly from the stem 34 and the refuse bag holder support element 36 extends in a forward direction from the stem 34, as shown in Figures la, 2a, 3a and 4a.

In the carriage position, the stem 34 extends partially over a portion of the unitary body 12 from the rear towards the front, the adjustable handle 38 extends over the stem 34 towards the rear, and the refuse bag holder support element 36 extends from the stem towards the front, as shown in figures lb, 2b, 3b and 4b.

In the carriage position, the stem 34 and adjustable handle 38 are within the area formed by the periphery of the unitary body 12 when viewed in plan.

The adjustable handle 38 includes a rotary joint 40 coupling the grip portion 42 to the stem 34. The rotary joint 40 includes a locking means to allow a user to lock the position of the grip portion 42 in respect to the stem 34 The indexed rotary joint 30 is formed from coupling a first part 301, shown in figure 5a, and second part 303, shown in figure 5b. In the current embodiment, the first part 301 is releasably attached to the connecting arm 29 and the second part 303 is releasably attached to the stem 34, however, the first and second parts are reversible.

Both the first and second parts 301, 303 include a tubular body 305 having a cavity for fitting over either the connecting arm 29 or stem 34, and a head 307 having the indexing means. Each head portion 307 having a central through hole 309. The central through holes 309 align when the first and second parts are coupled allowing the central screw or bolt fastener 32 to be received and serve as the pivot and locking means The head 307 of the first part 301 includes four index apertures 311 formed on an engagement face, each aperture is disposed around the central through hole 309. The four indexing apertures 311 are formed into two index aperture pairs, each aperture of the index aperture pair is disposed to either side of the central through hole 309a.

The head 307 of the second part 303 includes two dowels 313, or similar protrusions from an engagement face, the two dowels form a pair. Each dowel is disposed to either side of the central through hole 309b.

To move the stem 34 from the operative position to the carriage position, a user loosens the central screw or bolt fastener 32. By loosening the central screw or bolt fastener 32, the user is able to decouple the first and second parts 301, 303 by separating the engagement faces which withdraws the dowel pair from the index aperture pair. Once withdrawn, the user rotates the second part 302 until the dowel pair substantially align with the other index aperture pair, in the current embodiment this is approximately 90 degrees. The user than couples the first part 301 to the second part 303 by moving one engagement face closer to the other which causes the dowel pair to be received in the other index aperture pair. Subsequently, the user tightens the central screw or bolt fastener 32 to secure the first and second parts 301, 303 together.

In other embodiments, there may be more than four indexing apertures to provide for more than two index aperture pairs. The more index aperture pairs provided the more discrete positions the stem 34 can take.

The rotary joint 40 of the adjustable handle 38 may function similarly to the indexed rotary joint 30. For example, it may include a dowel pair disposed on or in one part and a plurality of index aperture pairs. Alternatively, indexing may be provided by saw-toothed profiles which interface.

Figures 6 and 7 both show different embodiments of the refuse bag holder support element 36. In both embodiments, the refuse bag holder support element 36 includes a hollow tubular body 361 for receiving a portion of the stem 34, a fixing means 363 disposed on or in the hollow tubular body for releasably securing the hollow tubular body 361 to the stem 34, and post 365 extending from the hollow tubular body 361 at an angle.

The refuse bag holder support element 36 shown in Figure 6 includes a post terminating platform 367 with a spur extending from the platform and an inverted hook 369 extending orthogonally from the terminating platform 367. The terminating platform 367 and spur are disposed on the same plane. The inverted hook 369 being sized and shaped to receive a portion of a frame of the refuse bag holder, such as that shown in Figure 8.

Figure 8 shows a refuse bag holder 44 having a generally rectangular frame 48 divided by a central spar 50. Two clips 52 pivotally mounted, in a removable or fixed manner, to central spar 50 proximate to the frame 48. A plurality of removable clips 54 are provided around the periphery of the frame 48.

To secure the frame of the refuse bag holder 44 shown in Figure 8, the frame 48 is angled, and a top portion of the frame is received in the inverted hook 369. Once received, the frame 48 is rotated so that portions of the frame are pushed against the wall of the inverted hook 369 extending from the platform 367 and the spar against the spur of the platform 367. This securely locates the frame to the refuse bag holder support element 36.

In the embodiment shown in Figure 7, post 365 has a square, or non-circular, cross section which corresponds to a correspondingly shaped aperture in a refuse bag holder. The square cross section may be same or vary across the length of the post 365. The corresponding shaped aperture may be disposed in a handle (not shown) attached to a refuse bag holder, such as that shown in Figure 9.

Figure 9 shows a refuse bag holder 56. The refuse bag holder 56 includes a circular, oval, or elliptical frame 58 and a handle 60 reliably attached to the frame. The frame 58 comprises a recess around the periphery of the frame 58. The recess receives a bag restraining element, such as an elastic band. An aperture shaped to correspond to the cross section of the post 365 is disposed in a lower portion of the handle 60.

The embodiments described above are provided by way of example only, and various changes and modifications will be apparent to persons skilled in the art without departing from the scope of the present invention as defined by the appended claims.

Claims

CLAIMS1 A refuse trolley for use in litter picking comprising a unitary body, a rear axle attached to the body and supporting a pair of rear wheels, and a handle assembly mounted to the axle, the handle assembly including a first part fixed to the axle and a second part adjustably attached to the first part, the second part including a support element for engaging with a refuse bag holder, the second part being moveable between a carriage position in which the second part lies substantially in a position over the plastics body and can serve as a carry handle for the refuse trolley and an operative position in which the second part extends directly upwardly from the first part for supporting a refuse bag over the unitary body.
2. A refuse trolley as claimed in claim 1, in which the unitary body is made from plastics.
3. A refuse trolley as claimed in claim 1 or 2, in which a front support post extends from the underside of the front of the unitary body for supporting the unitary body with the wheels in a substantially horizontal position above the ground.
4. A refuse trolley as claimed in any preceding claim, in which the axle extends laterally underneath the unitary body.
5. A refuse trolley as claimed in claim 4, in which a peripheral flange is provided around the upper edge of the unitary body, which substantially covers the wheels for serving as a mudguard in use.
6. A refuse trolley as claimed in any preceding claim, in which the first part of the handle assembly is a curved connecting arm which extends from the axle, around the rear end of the unitary body to a position beyond the body.
7. A refuse trolley as claimed in any preceding claim, in which the second part of the handle assembly is connected to the first part by means of an indexed rotary joint.
8. A refuse trolley as claimed in claim 7, in which the indexed rotary joint includes a central screw fastener, which serves as a pivot and locking means, and at least one pin extending from one part between the parts for location in one of a plurality of apertures in the other part for locking the first and second parts in respective positions.
9. A refuse trolley as claimed in any preceding claim, in which the second part of the handle assembly includes a stem, the refuse bag holder support element and an adjustable handle.
10. A refuse trolley as claimed in claim 9, in which the refuse bag holder support element extends from the stem at an angle and is disposed substantially inside the area of unitary body in the carriage position.
11. A refuse trolley as claimed in any preceding claim, further comprising a refuse bag holder, the refuse bag holder support element being a non-circular post and the refuse bag holder having a correspondingly shaped aperture, which locates on the non-circular post.
12. A refuse trolley as claimed in claim 11, in which the correspondingly shaped aperture is disposed within a handle of the refuse bag holder.
13. A refuse trolley as claimed in claim 11 or 12, in which the refuse bag holder includes a hoop, a recess substantially running around the periphery of the hoop receiving an elastic restraining element, for retaining the upper end of a refuse bag disposed within the hoop with the upper edge folded back over the hoop.
14. A refuse trolley as claimed in any preceding claim, in which the refuse bag holder support element includes a post terminating in a platform, the platform being in a substantially horizontal plane in use, and an inverted hook disposed above the platform.
15. A refuse trolley as claimed in claim 14, further comprising a refuse bag holder, the refuse bag holder being a substantially rectangular frame divided by a central spar for forming two hoops.
16. A refuse trolley as claimed in claim 15, in which first and second resilient clips are disposed on the central spar for holding refuse bags, the clips being pivotally mounted proximate the joins of the spar with the substantially rectangular frame, and being adapted to pivot towards the centre of the spar, in use resiliently gripping around the spar and holding one or more refuse bags to the spar.
17. A refuse trolley as claimed in claim 15 and 16, in which a plurality of resilient clips are disposed around the substantially rectangular frame,each clip extending around a part of the frame and having an integral latch to hold it in position, and an upper resilient member, which folds over the top of the clip for restraining a refuse bag.