US3169742A

US3169742A - Garbage can holder

Info

Publication number: US3169742A
Application number: US284028A
Authority: US
Inventors: Smith Guilford Houston
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1963-05-29
Filing date: 1963-05-29
Publication date: 1965-02-16
Anticipated expiration: 1982-02-16

Description

Feb. 16, 1965 a. H. SMITH GARBAGE CAN HOLDER Filed May 29, 1963 Attorney:

Gui/fora Houston Smith INVENTOR. BY fin.

new

United States Patent() 3,169,742 GARBAGE CAN HBLDER Guilford Houston Smith, Lock Drawer 330,

Tuskegee, Ala. Filed May 29, 1963 Ser. No. 284,028 2 Claims. (Cl. 243-146) The present invention generally relates to a supporting device and more particularly a holder for a garbage can, trash receptacle or the like.

One of the major problems of the disposal of garbage is the retention of the conventional garbage can in a desired location. Various types of holders and supports have been devised for this purpose with varying degrees of success. Accordingly, it is the primary object of the present invention to provide a novel and improved garbage can holder incorporating in its construction a groundpenetrating standard having a plurality of radially extending arms having upstanding ends thereon for grippingly engaging a portion of a garbage can extending upwardly from the bottom thereof together with novel means for connecting the arms to the upper end of the supporting standard or stake.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a garbage can holder which may be easily assembled and disassembled with the component parts being capable of orientation in a compact manner for ease of transport in a compact condition thereby reducing the space necessary to store the garbage holder until it is ready for use and also reducing the size of package necessary to properly package the garbage can holder when it is being transported and before it is used.

Still another important object of the present invention is to provide a garbage can holder in which the upwardly extending members which engage the garbage can are so orientated that they frictionally and resiliently grip the garbage can with the upper ends thereof being slightly outwardly flared to guide the garbage can into the holder for facilitating the removal and replacement of the garbage can such as is required during normal use thereof.

Yet another important object of the present invention is to provide a garbage can holder which will effectively hold a garbage can in position at an elevated orientation in relation to the ground surface in order to preclude animals such as cats and dogs from dislodging the top of the garbage can and also dislodging the can itself from the holder thereby retaining the garbage can cover in place for maintaining sanitary conditions and also enabling the area under the garbage can to be easily cleaned or in the event the standard is orientated in the lawn, the area of the lawn under the garbage can will not be killed as is the case if the garbage can sits directly on the ground surface inasmuch as sunlight and air as well as water can still be received by the grass surrounding the ground-penetrating stake.

Another very important object of the present invention is to provide a garbage can holder in accordance with the preceding objects having a novel connecting assembly between the vertical ground-penetrating stake and the plurality of supporting arms which includes a pair of L- shaped angle iron members engaging the cylindrical upper end of the standard together with channel bolts securing the depending inner ends of the radial arms to the exterior surfaces of the angle iron members and at the same time securing the angle iron members to the upper end of the standard.

Still another feature of the present invention is to provide a garbage can holder which is extremely simple in construction, yet long lasting and durable in use, effective for holding a garbage can and yet relatively inexpensive to manufacture.

These together with other objects and advantages which will become subsequently apparent reside in the details of construction and operation as more fully hereinafter described and claimed, reference being had to the accompanying drawings forming a part hereof, wherein like numerals refer to like parts throughout, and in which:

FIGURE 1 is a side elevational view of the garbage can holder of the present invention illustrating the manner of use thereof;

FIGURE 2 is a perspective view, on an enlarged scale, of the upper end portion of the garbage can holder illustrating orientation of the radial arms and the structure for connecting the arms to the tubular standard or stake; and

FIGURE 3 is a transverse, sectional view, on an enlarged scale, taken substantially upon a plane passing along section line 33 of FIGURE 1 illustrating the details of construction of the connection between the radial arms and the upper end of the standard or stake.

Referring now specifically to the drawings, the numeral 19 generally designates the garbage can holder of the be in the form of an aluminum conduit or the like impervious to corrosive action of atmospheric conditions and any minerals found in the soil. The lower end of the standard 12 is beveled as at 14- to provide a groundpenetrating point 16 which enables the standard 12 to be easily pushed into or driven into the ground surface 18 a sufiicient distance to support the garbage can holder 10. When the standard 12 is disposed in the ground surface 18, the upper end thereof will be spaced above the ground surface to enable grass or other plants 20 to grow around the standard 12 in the manner illustrated in FIGURE 1. i

A garbage can holding and gripping assembly generally designated by the numeral 22 is attached to the upper end of the standard 12 and includes a plurality of identical radially extending arms each generally designated by numeral 24 and each including a horizontally disposed radially extending portion 26 and an upstanding portion 28 at the outer end of the radial horizontal portion 26. The upstanding portion 28 may be vertical or inclined slightly inwardly with the upper end thereof having an outwardly flared portion 34) for guiding the lower end of a garbage can 32 into the spacedefined by the upstanding portions 28 of the arms 24. Thus, as the garbage can 32 is forced downwardly into the space defined by the upstanding portions 28 of the arms 24, the upstanding portions 28 will be deflected outwardly slightly for frictionally resiliently gripping the peripheral wall of the garbage can 32 whereby the upstanding portions 28 generally conform with the shape and configuration of the lower end of the garbage can 32 as illustrated in FIGURE 1.

Also, the inner end of each horizontal portion 26 is provided with a depending attaching portion 34 which is in perpendicular relation to the horizontal radial portion 26. The depending attaching portions 34 are parallel to the longitudinal axis of the tubular standard or stake 12 and are attached thereto so that the horizontal portions 26 extend outwardly in perpendicular relation to an adjacent portion 26.

The details of the connection between the arms 24 and the standard 12 is illustrated in FIGURE 3 and is generally designated by numeral 36. The connection 36 includes a pair of angle iron members 38 and .40 which are of equal size and have flanges of equal dimensions. The angle iron members 33 and 40 enclose the upper end of the tubular standard 12 in the manner illustrated in FIG- least, to any great degree.

URE 3' thus forming a substantially square upper end for the tubular member. 12. The depending attaching portions 34 are disposed against the exterior surface of each of the flanges of each of the angle iron members 38 and 4t) and the entire assembly is maintained in assembled relation by a pair of channel bolts 42 having a bight portion 44 engaging the exterior surface of one' of the depending attaching portions 34 and having a pair of legs 46 extending'through the depending attaching portions '34, the flange of the angle .iron member 38, through the' tubular member 12,;a flange of the angle iron merrber 4i and the opposite depending attaching portion as as The free ends of the legs 46v illustrated in FIGURE 3. are externally threaded as at 48 and receive retaining nuts Si) having lock washers 52 of conventional con- When the components are assembled, the upper snr-' face of the radial horizontal portions 26 will be substantially flush with the upper ends of the tubular member 12 and angle iron members 38 and 113 although they may extend slightly above these edges to assure that the can 32 will eiiectively rest on the horizontal portions of the arms 24. If the standard 12 is constructed ofa relatively lightweight tubular aluminum member, then the angle iron members 33 and 4-6 serve to reinforce the upper end thereof in the event a hammer or other impact implement has to be employed for driving the standard or stake which may also be considered a spike into the ground surface. Also, the present invention enables the arms 24 to be oriented in a nested relationship when detached from the upper end of the standard so that the entire assembly maybe shipped or transported in knocked down condition. Also, the detachable engagement of the arms 24 with the standard enables arms having different dimensional characteristics to be employed with the same standard in the event a different sized container is to be supported in the device. While the dimensions of the device may vary and do not limit the present invention, a practical embodiment of the invention has been one in which the over-all length is 42 inches so that when the ground-penetrating stake 12 is inserted into the ground,

. the garbage can 32 will be orientated with the top thereof at a convenient height so that a person depositing material in the garbage can will not have to bend over, at i The standard .12 may be inchesin length and the diameter of the space encompassed by the vertical portions 28 of the arms 24 may be 15 inches in diameter which is the standard diameter of a conventional garbage can. The holder assembly 22 may be approximately 12 inches in height and the. depending attaching portions 34 may be 3 inches in length as are the angle irons. The above mentioned dimensions are not considered limitative in that other dimensions may be employed depending upon the size of the container to be supported.

As an alternative structure, the standard 12 may be square in cross-sectional configuration thereby elif'ninating the use of the angle irons since the depending portions 34 may then be mounted directly against the sides of the hollow square upright standard by using the bolts 42.

' The foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the invention. Further, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those s eaves;

' skilled at the an, it is not scribed, and accordingly all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of theinventionasclaimed. e f What is claimed as new is asfollows: l. A garbage can'holder "comprising anupright stand ard having ground-penetratingmeans on the lower end thereof, a garbage can holding assembly, and means connecting the garbage can holding-assembly to the upper end of the standard, said garbage can holding assembly includingaplurality of radially disposed resilient arms,

means securing the inner ends of the arms'to the standard, each of said arms including anupstanding portion and a radially extending horizontal portion integral therewith with the horizontal portions adapted to support the bottom of a garbage can and the upstanding portions adapted to frictionally resiliently engage the peripheral wall thereof for securely and detachably retaining the garbage can in position on the holder, said means connecting the arms to the'upper end of thestandard including a depending attaching portion on the inner end of a each horizontal portion of the arms, said depending attaching portions'being disposed in parallelrelation to the longitudinal axis of the standard, andfastening means extending through the attaching portions and the standard for'detachabiy securing the arms to the standard, a pair of angle iron members interposed betweenthe standard and the attaching portions, said standard having a cylindrical external peripheral surface engaging the inner surfaces of the flanges of the angle iron members with the attaching portions engaging the outer surfaces of the angle iron members, said fastening means including a pair of perpendicularly arranged channel bolts staggered in relation to each other extending through the attaching portions, the angle irons and the standard for securely orientating the components in assembled relationship.

2. in a garbage can holder, connecting means for con- 7 necting a cylindrical standard to a plurality of radial arms at the upper end of the standard comprising a pair of angle iron members orientated in diametrically opposed relation on the standard with the inner surfaces of the flanges engaging the standard at points spaced around the periphery. of the standard thereby forming substan: tially a square enclosure for the standard, bolts extending through the opposed flanges of the opposed angle iron members with the bolts being disposed in perpendicular relation to each other thereby assembling the components, said bolts securing depending attaching portions of the radial arms to the outer surfaces of the flanges of the angle iron members.

1 References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS CLAUDE A. LE Rev, Primary Examiner.

I desired to limit theinvention to the exact construction and 'operation'shownand de-

Claims

1. A GARBAGE CAN HOLDER COMPRISING AN UPRIGHT STANDARD HAVING GROUND-PENETRATING MEANS ON THE LOWER END THEREOF, A GARBAGE CAN HOLDING ASSEMBLY, AND MEANS CONNECTING THE GARBAGE CAN HOLDING ASSEMBLY TO THE UPPER END OF THE STANDARD, SAID GARBAGE CAN HOLDING ASSEMBLY INCLUDING A PLURALITY OF RADIALLY DISPOSED RESILIENT ARMS, MEANS SECURING THE INNER ENDS OF THE ARMS TO THE STANDARD, EACH OF SAID ARMS INCLUDING AN UPSTANDING PORTION AND A RADIALLY EXTENDING HORIZONTAL PORTION INTEGRAL THEREWITH WITH THE HORIZONTAL PORTIONS ADAPTED TO SUPPORT THE BOTTOM OF A GARBAGE CAN AND THE UPSTANDING PORTIONS ADAPTED TO FRICTIONALLY RESILIENTLY ENGAGE THE PERIPHERAL WALL THEREOF FOR SECURELY AND DETACHABLY RETAINING THE GARBAGE CAN IN POSITION ON THE HOLDER, SAID MEANS CONNECTING THE ARMS TO THE UPPER END OF THE STANDARD INCLUDING A DEPENDING ATTACHING PORTION ON THE INNER END OF EACH HORIZONTAL PORTION OF THE ARMS, SAID DEPENDING ATTACHING PORTIONS BEING DISPOSED IN PARALLEL RELATION TO THE LONGITUDINAL AXIS OF THE STANDARD, AND FASTENING MEANS EXTENDING THROUGH THE ATTACHING PORTIONS AND THE STANDARD FOR DETACHABLY SECURING THE ARMS TO THE STANDARD, A PAIR OF ANGLE IRON MEMBERS INTERPOSED BETWEEN THE STANDARD AND THE ATTACHING PORTIONS, SAID STANDARD HAVING A CYLINDRICAL EXTERNAL PERIPHERAL SURFACE ENGAGING THE INNER SURFACES OF THE FLANGES OF THE ANGLE IRON MEMBERS WITH THE ATTACHING PORTIONS ENGAGING THE OUTER SURFACES OF THE ANGLE IRON MEMBERS, SAID FASTENING MEANS INCLUDING A PAIR OF PERPENDICULARLY ARRANGED CHANNEL BOLTS STAGGERED IN RELATION TO EACH OTHER EXTENDING THROUGH THE ATTACHING PORTIONS, THE ANGLE IRONS AND THE STANDARD FOR SECURELY ORIENTATING THE COMPONENTS IN ASSEMBLED RELATIONSHIP.