Classifications

• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B30—PRESSES
  • B30B—PRESSES IN GENERAL
  • B30B9/00—Presses specially adapted for particular purposes
  • B30B9/32—Presses specially adapted for particular purposes for consolidating scrap metal or for compacting used cars
  • B30B9/321—Presses specially adapted for particular purposes for consolidating scrap metal or for compacting used cars for consolidating empty containers, e.g. cans
• • G—PHYSICS
  • G07—CHECKING-DEVICES
  • G07F—COIN-FREED OR LIKE APPARATUS
  • G07F7/00—Mechanisms actuated by objects other than coins to free or to actuate vending, hiring, coin or paper currency dispensing or refunding apparatus
  • G07F7/06—Mechanisms actuated by objects other than coins to free or to actuate vending, hiring, coin or paper currency dispensing or refunding apparatus by returnable containers, i.e. reverse vending systems in which a user is rewarded for returning a container that serves as a token of value, e.g. bottles
  • G07F7/0609—Mechanisms actuated by objects other than coins to free or to actuate vending, hiring, coin or paper currency dispensing or refunding apparatus by returnable containers, i.e. reverse vending systems in which a user is rewarded for returning a container that serves as a token of value, e.g. bottles by fluid containers, e.g. bottles, cups, gas containers

Definitions

• the present invention relates to a device for com ⁇ pacting recyclable packages in general and beverage con ⁇ tainers, such as metal cans or so-called PET bottles, in a recycling system in particular.
• beverage con ⁇ tainers such as metal cans or so-called PET bottles
• the consumption of beverages contained in metal cans and PET bottles has increased steadily in recent years, resulting e.g. in an increased strain on the environment, in that a considerable number of cans or bottles are not recycled but discarded after use.
• non-biodegradable aluminium in the beverage cans long-term problems may arise. This also goes for certain plastics materials that are sometimes used in the manufacture of bottles for beverages.
• Efficient collection means, for instance, that the consumer is offered the opportunity to return beverage containers in several optional places. As a rule, this means that it should be possible to return the cans and bottles close to the point of sale, e.g. a supermarket, local shop, filling station or kiosk. Efficient collection also involves the use of effi ⁇ cient equipment for receiving beverage containers, i.e. cans or bottles, for handling the containers and for printing out a refund slip or paying out cash for the number of cans and bottles returned and accepted. Moreover, the returned packages are suitably compacted in the recycling apparatus itself or in equipment adjacent to it, since this will lengthen emptying intervals.
• the equipment to handle deposit ⁇ ed beverage containers must thus be capable of decid ⁇ ing whether the cans or bottles returned comply with a number of predetermined parameters, e.g. relating to refunding, package material, contents and so forth. From SE-B-420,135, for example, it is known to decide, by means of capacitive and inductive trans ⁇ ducers, whether a returned can is made of sheet metal or any other material. Depending on the measuring result, a conveyor is brought either into a first position, in which it communicates with compacting equipment, or into a second position, in which it com ⁇ municates with collecting container for rejected pack ⁇ ages.
• a motor-control ⁇ led cradle which, depending on the result from a num- ber of measurements, ejects a returned can either in a first direction or in a second direction, i.e. the can is either rejected or accepted and displaced to a compacting unit.
• the can After depositing, the can initially passes a metal detector, whereupon its length is measured during displacement from the deposit opening to the above-mentioned cradle.
• SE-B- 465,743 it is of great importance to establish the weight of the can to detect cans which, although con ⁇ sisting of an acceptable material, contain some type of foreign matter.
• the weight of the can is measured as a function of the moment of inertia occasioned by the can when the cradle is rotated.
• the compacting equipment is of the chain type, in which returned, accepted bottles are crushed and perforated.
• An object of the present invention therefore is to provide a device for compacting recyclable pack ⁇ ages, such as aluminium cans or plastic bottles, in compliance with a certain, predetermined requirement profile.
• a second object of the present invention is to provide a device having a compact and robust as well as energy-efficient compacting unit.
• a third object of the present invention is to provide a device for compacting recyclable beverage containers, which has such a size and involves such costs and is so reliable that it can be employed also at minor points of sales, such as filling stations and kiosks.
• Fig. 1 is a side view of a device for compacting recycled beverage containers according to the present invention.
• Fig. 2 is a longitudinal section of the inventive device.
• Fig. 3 is a top view of the inventive device.
• Figs 1-3 show an embodiment of an inventive device 2 for sorting beverage containers, such as metal cans or plastic bottles (not shown), and subse ⁇ quent compaction of packages complying with a certain, predetermined requirement profile and thus qualifying as accepted packages.
• the device 2 has an infeed unit 4, a checking unit 6 and a compacting unit 8, which will be described in more detail hereinbelow.
• a returned can or bottle is deposited in the infeed unit 4, which has a space with a substantially vertical opening 10' and a substantially horizontal opening 10", below which there is provided a tubular element 14 which is rotatable about a substantially horizontal shaft 12 and having an internal diameter which slightly exceeds the external diameter of ordinary recyclable beverage cans or bottles currently existing on the market.
• one end of the tubular element 14 substantially connects with the substantially horizontal opening 10" of the above-men ⁇ tioned space.
• a first primary sorting is carried out of the objects to be deposited in the inventive device.
• a metal detector 15 of inductive or capacitive type is arranged at the tubular element 15. Such detectors are well-known in the art and, therefore, will not be described in more detail here.
• a dividable bot ⁇ tom plate 16 obstructing or exposing the upper end of the tubular element 14 for reasons which will be stated below.
• the plate 18 is driven by a drive unit 20, i.e. a motor, which drives the plate 18, either directly or via a transmission means, such as a belt.
• the plate 18 and the whole or parts of the drive unit 20 are suspended in pendulum fashion from a pin 22.
• a counterweight 24 is so adjusted as to balance the plate 18, the drive unit 20 and an aluminium can or plastic bottle accepted in accordance with the above- mentioned requirement profile, which is placed on the plate 18.
• a limit switch (not shown).
• the limit switch When an object not complying with the requirement profile by having an excessive weight is placed on the plate 18, this is pivoted downwards so as to actuate the limit switch, which in turn entails that the tubular element 14 is rotated to a first end position, in which it makes an angle of e.g. +45° with the vertical plane, thus passing the object on to e.g. an ejector.
• the plate 18 comprises a load cell for establishing the weight of the load placed on the plate.
• the processing of the above-men ⁇ tioned signals nonetheless takes place in the afore- mentioned central control unit which is in the form of e.g. a microcomputer.
• the plate 18 preferably is rotary.
• the reason for this is that there is provided beside the plate 18 a bar-code reader 26, which also is connected to the above-mentioned microcomputer.
• the bar-code reader is used for identifying a bar code which is applied on the can or the bottle and which may contain information about manufacturing/recycling country, type of package, size of refund and so forth.
• the beverage container is deposited and passes through the tubular element 14, it will pass the metal detector 15 and land on the plate 18.
• the beverage container is turned by the rotating plate 18 past the reader 26 for establishing e.g. the type of package, i.e. whether the package is a metal can or a plastic bottle, the size of the refund etc., this information being stored in the microcomputer.
• the microcomputer activates the actuat- ing means 28 and 30 which rotate the tubular element 14 through an angular range of +45° and -45°, respec ⁇ tively.
• actuat- ing means 28 and 30 which rotate the tubular element 14 through an angular range of +45° and -45°, respec ⁇ tively.
• deposited but rejected pack ⁇ ages are conveyed e.g. to an ejector, which is achieved by the corresponding actuating means 28 caus ⁇ ing the tubular element 14, partly surrounding the returned can, to rotate approximately +45° about the substantially horizontal shaft 12.
• the returned package is however accepted in all aspects, i.e. complies both with the physical, predetermined requirement profile and with the "soft" requirement profile sensed by the microcomputer by means of the bar-code reader, the accepted package is moved onwards by actuation of the corresponding actuating means 30 so as to rotate the tubular element 14 through -45°, to the compacting unit 8.
• a shear ⁇ ing-type compacting unit essentially comprises a fixed rigid wall 32 and a wall 34 which is movable between substantially two end positions, in parallel with and towards the rigid wall 32, such that in a first end position it is located spaced from the rigid wall 32, the distance between the walls 32, 34 slightly exceeding the diameter of a can or bottle complying with the aforementioned requirement profile, while in a second end position it substantially makes contact with the rigid wall 32.
• the displacement of the movable wall 34 is brought about by an eccentric/lever mechanism, see especially Fig. 1.
• a disc 36 rotatably mounted in its centre, is driven by a motor 38.
• a transmis ⁇ sion arm 40 In the edge region of the disc is rotatably fixed one end 48 of a transmis ⁇ sion arm 40, see especially Fig. 2, the other end of which is connected to one end of a lever 42 whose other end is connected to the movable wall 34.
• one revolution of the disc 36 corresponds to a compacting motion of the compacting unit 8.
• the contact means 50 can be actuated by direct contact, for example being a microswitch, or be e.g. of magnetic type.
• the signal from the contact means 50 is supplied to the aforementioned microcomputer which, responsive to this signal, controls the opening and the closure of the dividable bottom plate 16, so that more than one can or bottle is never passed on to the compacting unit 8.
• the other end of the lever 42 is displaced through a substantially quarter- circle-shaped path 44 when the transmission arm 40 is moved upwards.
• the movable wall 34 during its dis ⁇ placement is parallel to the fixed wall 32,* it will be appreciated that a can or bottle located between the walls, and possibly supported by a bottom pin 46, see Fig. 2, is compacted in a shear motion, i.e. is crushed substantially in the longitudinal direction. This shear motion requires considerably less energy and force than other known compacting techniques.
• the present invention is intended for use in a recycling machine for refund-type beverage containers complying with a certain requirement profile.
• the invention is especially well suited for use in a small-size compactor in local shops, filling stations, kiosks and the like.
• the paying-out unit necessary for printing out refund slips or for paying out the refund is suitably connected to the aforementioned micro ⁇ computer, which calculates the amount to be refunded. It is understood that a person skilled in the art may find alternative embodiments and other means which bring about the technical effect aimed at and which fall within the scope of the inventive concept. All such alterations and modifications are therefore intended to be encompassed by the claimed scope of protection.

Landscapes

• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
• Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
• General Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
• Auxiliary Devices For And Details Of Packaging Control (AREA)
• Sorting Of Articles (AREA)
• Basic Packing Technique (AREA)
• Processing And Handling Of Plastics And Other Materials For Molding In General (AREA)
• Processing Of Solid Wastes (AREA)
• Refuse Collection And Transfer (AREA)
• Container Filling Or Packaging Operations (AREA)

Priority Applications (6)

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Publications (1)

Family

ID=20388930

Family Applications (1)

Country Status (9)

Cited By (2)

Families Citing this family (2)

Citations (3)

• 1993
  • 1993-02-17 SE SE9300527A patent/SE9300527D0/sv unknown
• 1994
  • 1994-02-17 DK DK94907763T patent/DK0685096T3/da active
  • 1994-02-17 AU AU61200/94A patent/AU6120094A/en not_active Abandoned
  • 1994-02-17 DE DE69407761T patent/DE69407761T2/de not_active Expired - Fee Related
  • 1994-02-17 WO PCT/SE1994/000131 patent/WO1994019776A1/en active IP Right Grant
  • 1994-02-17 EP EP94907763A patent/EP0685096B1/en not_active Expired - Lifetime
  • 1994-02-17 AT AT94907763T patent/ATE161991T1/de not_active IP Right Cessation
• 1995
  • 1995-08-14 NO NO953176A patent/NO953176L/no not_active Application Discontinuation
  • 1995-08-16 FI FI953869A patent/FI116489B/sv active IP Right Grant

Patent Citations (3)

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