IES78833B2 - A mobile skip - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention provides a refused container which is essentially a skip mounted on a separate support chassis which can be towed from place to place. The skip is in the form of a container which has an elevated charging inlet closed by a door and a discharge opening closed by a refuse supporting door. The base of the skip is inclined and the refuse supporting door is pivoted across the opening so as to lie substantially vertical when open. The inclined base ensures that refuse lies against the door so that when the discharge door is opened the refuse forces the door outwards and discharges easily.

Description

This invention relates to a refuse container and in particular to a refuse container comprising a support chassis having ground engaging wheels and a skip mounted thereon.

Many forms of containers are well known for the storage and transportation of refuse. For example, it is known to provide a mobile container which can be loaded on and off a truck body such as described and claimed in German Patent Specification No. DE 38 05 375A1. Generally such skips are supported on some sort of framework that they can be tipped to discharge their contents and subsequently restored in position for removal to another site.

It is similarly known, for example, to provide a mobile collecting skip for generally light or at least not too heavy refuse which comprises a generally rectangular trough shaped container mounted on rollers. This type of refuse container is described in German Patent Specification No. 28 20 551. However, while it is useful for moving around a premises the disadvantage is either a truck with customised lifting means or a separate lifting device such a forklift truck is required for use therewith.

It is further known to provide a skip which is totally enclosed and which is demountable so that its chassis can be wheeled away and used for other purposes. The problem with such a device is that the lifting off of the skip from the chassis unit requires specialised equipment and further to empty the skip, it has to be tipped up about a horizontal axis and complicated and heavy equipment is - 2 required. A typical example of such a refuse container is described in British Patent Specification No. 2 234 731 A.

Irish Patent Specification No. 38,053 describes another form of refuse container very suitable for use as a refuse collector comprising a wheeled chassis carrying a skip which again is pivotally mounted for unloading by means of a ram and additionally includes a feed screw. It is also known to provide similar refuse collectors with compactors, however, all of these devices are bulky and unwieldy and generally require some form of mechanical means to empty them. They are thus unsuitable for many uses .

There is thus a need for a simple construction of refuse container which could be used for not alone the storage of industrial waste of a relatively innocuous kind such as the off-cuts of woods, metal, used packaging etc., but the storage of more environmentally unfriendly materials such as vegetable and animal and other food matter which on storage tends to rot, contaminate the surrounding environment and attract pests. There is a need for example for a refuse container that could be used in food preparation areas, adjacent food preparation areas, such as outside kitchens and the like, which can be moved about from place to place and easily unloaded and ideally unloaded without the need for any additional mechanical assistance.

The present invention is directed towards providing such as refuse container.

Statements of Invention According to the invention there is provided a refuse container comprising a support chassis having ground engaging wheels and a skip mounted thereon, in which the skip comprises a container having a base and upstanding side walls, the base being inclined downwards from a charging inlet to a discharge opening closed by a refuse supporting door. It will be appreciated that the present invention does not require any unloading equipment such as tipping rams and the like, but can simply be unloaded by opening the refuse supporting door. The advantage of the refuse lying on the supporting door is that the weight of the refuse automatically opens the door.

In one embodiment of the invention the container is an enclosed container having a door on the charging inlet.

It will be immediately appreciated that there are advantages in having an entirely enclosed container, particularly where the waste is such as to either cause difficulty if exposed to the air in the surrounding environment or would attract flies rodents and other animals .

Ideally, the discharge opening inclines upwards and outwards from the base, the refuse supporting door being pivoted across the opening so as to lie substantially vertical when open. The advantage of this is that any refuse in the container adjacent the discharge opening will bear against the refuse support door and thus when the refuse supporting door is released the weight of the material will push the door away from the opening allowing the refuse to be easily discharged. It will also be appreciated that the chassis can be moved forward away from the discharging refuse to facilitate its discharge.

Ideally there is provided a refuse supporting door lock comprising a lever arm pivoted intermediate its ends, one end being adapted to engage the door to secure it against the discharge opening and the other forms an actuating handle. This is a relatively simple construction of door lock and has the advantage that it is unlikely to be damaged in use and if it receives a blow or other impact that might cause it to distort, it can be relatively easily repaired.

Ideally, the lever arm includes a downward directed open slot adapted to engage and embrace a laterally projecting spigot on the refuse supporting door. The advantage of this arrangement will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art since such an arrangement allows the slot to be of a reasonably large size compared to the spigot. It will allow the two to be relatively easily engaged, thus it will not be dependent on always having a refuse support door in close contact with the discharge opening. It will be possible to allow a certain amount of play between the refuse supporting door and discharge opening by correct design of the slot which can be shaped in such a way as to provide a camming action against the spigot to lock the door firmly in position in the discharge opening.

In one embodiment of the invention, there is provided a loading platform or step on the support chassis adjacent the charging inlet to make it easy to put refuse into the skip.

Ideally the support bar incorporates a telescopic tow-bar. The advantage of this is that the inclination of the skip can be varied. For example, when the tow-bar is mounted on an adjustable jockey wheel by telescoping the tow-bar inwards, the skip is naturally tipped upwards. It also ensures that the tow-hitch does not interfere with the loading of the refuse container and further the telescopic arrangement of the tow-bar reduces the overall length of the unit.

Ideally the tow-bar incorporates a lockable hitch. The advantage of this is that it prevents people removing the container from premises, since the hitch cannot be used by unauthorised persons without destroying the lock.

In one preferred embodiment of the invention, there is provided a refuse container comprising: a support chassis; a pair of ground-engaging wheels mounted on the chassis; a tow-bar on the chassis; an upstanding support frame mounted on the chassis adjacent the tow-bar; a downwardly and rearwardly inclined skip base mounted on the support frame in an elevated position on the rear of the chassis remote from the tow bar; a pair of opposed parallel upstanding side walls vertically mounted on the skip base; a skip roof bridging the side walls, which in combination with the skip base and the side walls forms an elevated charging inlet and a lower discharge opening; a side pivot hinged on each side wall adjacent the charging inlet; a door mounted on each side pivot hinge to form in combination a closure for the charging inlet; a transverse pivot hinge mounted across the discharge opening adjacent the skip roof; a refuse supporting door mounted on the transverse pivot hinge; a spigot projecting laterally of the refuse supporting door beyond each side wall; a pivot pin projecting from each side wall intermediate the charging inlet and the discharge opening; a lever arm mounted on each pivot pin, the lever arm projecting beyond the discharge opening and beneath the skip base; a door lock formed from an open-mouthed downwardly directed slot on each lever arm adjacent the discharge inlet to engage a spigot on the refuse supporting door; a door lock actuator formed by a transverse bar beneath the skip base and connecting the lever arms and a further actuator arm mounted on the transverse bar projecting beyond the support frame towards the tow-bar; a spring mounted between the actuator arm and the support frame for biasing towards the door lock into the locking position; and a door closer for the refuse supporting bar comprising a transverse bar mounted in spaced apart relationship with the door by a pair of extensions formed by cranking the bar adjacent each end.

Detailed Description of the Invention The invention will be more clearly understood from the following description of an embodiment thereof given by way of example only with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:Fig. 1 is a front view of a refuse container according to the invention with portion of the tow bar removed; Fig. 2 is a rear view of portion of the refuse container according to the invention; Fig. 3 is a side view of the refuse container in the transport position; Fig. 4 is a side view of the refuse container in a position of use; Fig. 5 is a side view of the refuse container in the discharge position; Fig. 6 is a side view of the container illustrating the closing of a refuse supporting door forming part of the container; and Fig. 7 is a view similar to Fig. 1 of an alternative construction of refuse container according to the invention.

Referring to the drawings, there is provided a refuse container, indicated generally by the reference numeral 1, comprising a support chassis 2 carrying a skip indicated generally by the reference numeral 3. The support chassis includes a pair of ground engaging wheels 4, an upstanding support frame 5 and a tow-bar 6. Mounted on the tow-bar 6 is a conventional tow-hitch 7 and a jockey wheel 8. A skip base 10 is provided which is downwardly and rearwardly inclined from the support frame 5 to behind the wheels 4. Mounted on the skip base 10 is a pair of upstanding side walls 11 vertically mounted on the said base 10. A skip roof 12 bridges the side walls 11 and together with the side walls 11 defines a charging inlet which by means of pivot hinges 13 on each side wall 11, supports a pair of doors 14. Each door 14 is provided with a handle 15. The sidewalls 11, skip base 10 and skip roof 12 also define a discharge opening. Mounted by means of pivots hinges 16 on the skip roof 12 is a refuse supporting door 17. The refuse supporting door 17 carries a door closer formed by a cranked bar 18 mounted thereon and supported by struts 19. A pivot pin 20 is mounted on each side wall 11 and carries a lever arm 21. At one end of the lever arm 21, there is provided a slot 22 for engagement with a spigot 23 projecting laterally of the refuse support door 17. An actuator for the door lock soformed is provided by a transverse bar 24 mounted beneath the skip base 10 and joining both lever arms 21. The bar 24 is connected to a further actuator arm 25, projecting through the support frame 5 beneath a cross member 26 and urged into engagement therewith by a spring 27 mounted on the support frame 5. Thus, the door lock is permanently biased to a closed position. A lock 28 mounted on the support frame 5 may be actuated to prevent downward movement of the actuator arm 2 and thus opening of the door 17.

Referring now specifically to Figs. 3 to 6 a refuse container 1 is shown in Fig. 3 in a position where it could be towed around a site by a vehicle with the jockey wheel 8 raised. For manual operation the jockey wheel 8 is used. With the jockey wheel 8 raised, the tow bar 6 is lowered to the ground, as shown in Fig. 4, the doors 14 and the refuse container 1 can now receive refuse which will fall down the skip base 10 to lie against the refuse supporting door 17.

Referring now to Fig. 5 when it is desired to dispose of refuse, the actuator arm 25 is pulled downwards as is illustrated by the arrow A in Fig. 5 which will cause the refuse supporting door under the weight of the refuse to pivot outwards in the direction of the arrow B, thus causing the refuse to be discharged. When all the refuse has been discharged then the refuse supporting door 17 illustrated by the interrupted lines in Fig. 6 is closed in the direction of the arrow C by downward pressure being exerted on the cranked bar 18 in the direction of the arrow D.

The cranked bar 18 also acts as a stop to prevent the container tilting backwards.

Referring to Fig. 7, there is illustrated an alternative construction of refuse container, indicated generally by the reference numeral 30 in which parts similar to those described with reference to the previous drawings are identified by the same reference numerals. In this embodiment there is provided a tow-bar having an inner tow-bar portion 31 and an outer tow-bar portion 32, not all of which is shown, which outer tow-bar portion 32 is telescopically arranged within the inner tow-bar portion 31 and is secured thereto by a locking pin 33. A loading platform formed by a step 34 is mounted on the support chassis 2 is provided. The step 34 is pivoted by a hinge 35 so that it can be folded back across the support chassis 2 for transport. The step can be in the form of or incorporate a tool box as well as facilitating loading of the refuse container.

Generally the tow-bar incorporates a tow-hitch and ideally the tow-hitch incorporates a lock. Generally this is a ball hitch and incorporates a pivoting engaging/releasing mechanism. These can be locked by insertion of a padlock transversely through the frame of the ball hitch across the engaging/release mechanism to prevent it pivoting.

Claims (5)

1. A refuse container comprising a support chassis having ground engaging wheels and a skip mounted thereon in which the skip comprises a container having a base and upstanding side walls, the base being inclined downwards from a charging inlet to a discharge opening closed by a refuse supporting door.

2. A refuse container as claimed in claim 1 in which the container is an enclosed container having a door on the charging inlet, and preferably the discharge opening inclines upwards and outwards from the base, the refuse supporting door being pivoted across the opening so as to lie substantially vertical when open .

3. A refuse container as claimed in any preceding claim in which there is provided a refuse supporting door lock comprising: a lever arm pivoted intermediate its ends, one end being adapted to engage the door to secure it against the discharge opening and the other forms an actuating handle, and preferably the lever arm includes a downwardly directed open slot adapted to engage and embrace a laterally projecting spigot on the refuse supporting door.

4. A refuse container as claimed in any preceding claim comprising: a support chassis; a pair of ground-engaging wheels mounted on the chassis; a tow-bar on the chassis; an upstanding support frame mounted on the chassis adjacent the tow-bar; a downwardly and rearwardly inclined skip base mounted on the support frame in an elevated position on the rear of the chassis remote from the tow bar; a pair of opposed parallel upstanding side walls vertically mounted on the skip base; a skip roof bridging the side walls, which in combination with the skip base and the side walls forms an elevated charging inlet and a lower discharge opening; a side pivot hinge on each of the side walls adjacent the charging inlet; a door mounted on each side pivot hinge to form in combination a closure for the charging inlet; a transverse pivot hinge mounted across the discharge opening adjacent the skip roof; a refuse supporting door mounted on the transverse pivot hinge; a spigot projecting laterally of the refuse supporting door beyond each side wall; a pivot pin projecting from each side wall intermediate the charging inlet and the discharge opening; a lever arm mounted on each pivot pin, the lever arm projecting beyond the discharge opening and beneath the skip base; a door lock formed from an open-mouthed 5 downwardly directed slot on each lever arm adjacent the discharge inlet to engage the spigot on the refuse supporting door; a door lock actuator formed by a transverse bar beneath the skip base and connecting the lever 10 arms and a further actuator arm mounted on the transverse bar projecting beyond the support frame towards the tow-bar; a bias spring mounted between the actuator arm and the support frame for biasing towards the 15 door lock into the locking position; and a door closer for the refuse supporting bar comprising a transverse bar mounted in spaced apart relationship with the door by a pair of extensions formed by cranking the bar adjacent 20 each end.

5. A refuse container substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying drawings .