WO2000043329A1

WO2000043329A1 - Composting apparatus

Info

Publication number: WO2000043329A1
Application number: PCT/AU2000/000028
Authority: WO
Inventors: John Andersen
Original assignee: John Andersen
Priority date: 1999-01-21
Filing date: 2000-01-19
Publication date: 2000-07-27
Also published as: AUPP125099A0

Abstract

Composting apparatus has two containers for receiving organic waste material removably mounted in side-by-side relationship on a support. Passages extend between the containers at least in an upper part of the containers to permit migration of worms from one container to the other. The passages can be opened and closed to selectively allow and prevent worm migration by operation of a rotary control disc associated with the passages, an operating arm of the disc extending to an outside position between the two containers.

Description

COMPOSTING APPARATUS

The present invention relates to composting apparatus and more particularly to composting apparatus for use with worms, particularly earthworms, which act on waste material to provide a humus of high nutrient value, known as vermicompost.

In my earlier Australian patent 670589 there is disclosed a composting bin comprising two compartments separated by an apertured control panel which can be slid between an open position in which migration of worms from one compartment to the other is permitted and a closed position in which migration of worms is prevented. By appropriate use of the control panel, the worms can be maintained in one compartment so as to allow for substantially complete breakdown of organic material within that compartment while the other compartment is being filled with further organic waste material. Without use of a migration control there would be a tendency for worms to migrate from one compartment to the other before the material in the first compartment has been completely broken down. As a result of investigations I have carried out into the behavioural characteristics of earthworms in a composting situation I have determined that the composting performance is dependent on the design of the control for selectively preventing or allowing migration of worms from one compartment to the other.

According to the present invention, there is provided composting apparatus including first and second containers for receiving organic waste adapted to be placed in side-by-side configuration, passage means extending between the containers to permit migration of worms from one container to the other, the passage means being in the adjacent side walls of the two containers, and control means for selectively opening and closing the passage means, wherein the passage means are situated at least within an intermediate part of the container side walls and an upper part of the side walls as considered in the height direction of the side walls.

Advantageously, the passage means are situated within a confined area of the side walls offset inwardly from upwardly extending edges of the side walls. Advantageously, the passage means are bounded within a circular or part-circular zone centred approximately mid- way along the height of each side wall. Preferably, the circular or part-circular zone is centred approximately mid- way within the width of the side walls.

Advantageously, the passage means are defined by a circular or part-circular arrays of spaced apertures. Preferably, the control means comprises a control disc mounted on one of the containers for rotary movement about the centre of the circular or part-circular array of the apertures of that container. Alternatively, the control means may comprise two such control discs each mounted on a respective one of the containers with the two control discs being in alignment in the operative side-by-side configuration of the containers.

Further according to the present invention, there is provided composting apparatus including first and second containers for receiving organic waste adapted to be placed in side- by-side configuration, passage means extending between the containers to permit migration of worms from one container to the other, and control means for selectively opening and closing the passage means, wherein the control means comprises at least one rotary control disc, each of said containers being separately removable for emptying.

Advantageously, the rotary control disc is located between the two containers in the operative side-by-side condition of the containers and has an operating member extending between the two containers to an outer position for movement of the disc between open and closed conditions of the passage means.

An embodiment of the invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of composting apparatus in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the invention;

Figure 2 is a schematic perspective view showing further details of the two containers of the apparatus during assembly; Figure 3 is a schematic side view showing the two containers assembled into side by side relation with a rotary control member between the two containers;

Figure 4 is a view showing the rotary control member in greater detail; and Figure 5 is a section showing schematically seats in raised areas of the container side walls for receiving the control member.

As shown in the accompanying drawings, worm composting apparatus in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the invention comprises first and second compost-receiving compartments in the form of separate containers 2,4 removably supported on a base tray 6. The containers 2,4 have perforated bottoms to enable excess liquid within the containers to drain into the tray 6 and liquid collected within the tray 6 can periodically be drained via a tap or drain device 8. Each container 2,4 is provided with a removable lid 10,12 for filling of the container. As shown the two containers 2,4 are of cuboid shape, although other suitable shapes may alternatively be adopted. When the two containers 2,4 are placed within the tray 6, the innermost side walls 2a,4a of the two containers are in close proximity. These side walls are formed with a series of apertures 14,16 which align when the two containers 2,4 are present on the tray 6, to define passages through which earthworms can migrate from one container to the other and these passages can be closed to prevent such migration.

I have determined that worms are more likely to migrate from the middle or upper part of a container which will still contain some food value for the worms and hence have a major concentration of worms, rather than from the bottom part of the container which has vermicastings with nil food value. Accordingly it is important for these apertures to be within the middle part of the height of the container side wall and to extend into the upper part of the height of the wall. I have also determined that the apertures should not be arranged throughout the area of the side wall but, rather, should be within a relatively confined area of the side wall, consistent with what I have said above and also consistent with the need to have an adequate open area of aperture to permit satisfactory migration of earthworms through the apertures. By confining the extent of the apertures within the wall I have found that there is less disturbance to feeding and breeding patterns of the earthworms resulting in faster composting than would be the case if the apertures were throughout the height and/or width of the side wall and which would result in significant soil disturbance in the zones adjacent the apertured side walls when the passages defined by the apertures are open and closed.

These objectives can be attained by arranging the apertures within a circular or part- circular zone centred approximately mid-way along the height of the side wall so that the zone extends into the upper part of the height of the side wall while spanning only a part of the width of the side wall. In the particular form shown, the zone in which the apertures are located terminates a substantial distance from the top, bottom, and opposite sides of the wall and is in the form of a circular zone with uniform apertures of sector shape arranged around a central point. This provides a configuration in which the individual apertures have a relatively large open area while restricting the extent of the apertures within the wall for the reasons discussed above. Although as shown the apertured zone is circular, in alternative arrangements it may only be part circular with one or more of the lower apertures being omitted. This configuration of apertures also permits the use of a rotary control member 18 for selectively opening and closing the apertures.

As shown, the rotary control member 18 comprises an apertured disc 20 rotatably mounted to the outside of one of the two side walls (as shown, the side wall 4a) at the centre point 0 of the array of apertures and rotatable between angularly-spaced stop positions in which apertures 22 in the disc align with the apertures 14,16 in the side walls 2a,4a whereby to open the passages for migration of worms between the two containers 2,4, and a position in which solid areas between the disc apertures 22 align with the side wall apertures to thereby close the passages. The control member 18 also includes an operating arm 24 which extends beyond the side wall of the container, and as shown above the side wall, to provide at its outer end a projecting tab 24a by which the disc 20 can be manually accessed for rotation between its two stop positions. The rotational control disc 20 described herein in conjunction with the extended operating arm 24 provides a more compact arrangement which is easier to use than a slidable control panel as disclosed in my earlier patent. Also the rotational movement of the disc 20 helps to remove material which might otherwise cause jamming. The stop positions for the disc 20 are preferably formed by stops 26 on the side walls 2a,4a and which are engagable by the operating arm 24. In the particular form shown, the containers may be of moulded plastics construction which can be supplied in knock-down form to facilitate packing and transport. As shown schematically in Figure 5, preferably each side wall 2a,4a is provided with a central raised area on its outer surface, the raised area including the apertures 14,16 and being provided with a seat 2b, 4b for receiving the control disc 20 which is rotatably mounted to one of the two side walls. The disc is located partially within the seat in that side wall to which it is mounted and when the two containers are placed side-by-side within the tray it also locates within the seat of the other side wall with the surrounding raised areas of the two side walls being in close proximity. In this way, the passage from one container to the other is substantially surrounded by the raised areas substantially to prevent compost from dropping between the two containers. The stops 26 for the operating arm 24 of the control disc 20 are provided on the raised areas of the two side walls.

In a modified form (not shown) a separate rotary control member 18 is mounted to the outside of each respective side wall 2a, 4a, each control member 18 being substantially as previously described and operating as previously described. The use of two separate control members enables the worm-migration apertures of both containers to be closed so that worms and waste material will not fall from either container when one container is removed for emptying. In this modified form preferably each control member is mounted in a seat within the associated side wall 2a, 4a, with the depth of the seat being equivalent to the thickness of the control member whereby the two side walls and the two control members can lie in closely abutting relation when the two containers are mounted on the tray 6 in their operative state.

Although for the reasons discussed above it is preferred to use one or two rotary control discs for opening and closing the passages it would alternatively be possible to incorporate one or two slidable control members rectilinearly movable and which, in conjunction with the described placement of the apertures, still provide a beneficial and improved effect over that disclosed in my earlier patent.

The embodiments have been described by way of example only and modifications are possible within the scope of the invention. Throughout this specification, unless the context requires otherwise, the word "comprise", or variations such as "comprises" or "comprising", will be understood to imply the inclusion of a stated integer or group of integers but not the exclusion of any other integer or group of integers.

Claims

CLAIMS :-

1. Composting apparatus including first and second containers for receiving organic waste adapted to be placed in side-by-side configuration, passage means extending between the containers to permit migration of worms from one container to the other, the passage means being in the adjacent side walls of the two containers, and control means for selectively opening and closing the passage means, wherein the passage means are situated at least within an intermediate part of the container side walls and an upper part of the side walls as considered in the height direction of the side walls.

2. Apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the passage means are situated within a confined area of the side walls offset inwardly from upwardly extending edges of the side walls.

3. Apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the passage means are bounded within a circular or part-circular zone centred approximately mid-way along the height of each side wall.

4. Apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the circular or part-circular zone is centred approximately mid- way within the width of the side walls.

5. Apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the passage means are defined by a circular or part-circular arrays of spaced apertures.

6. Apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the control means comprises a control disc mounted on one of the containers for rotary movement about the centre of the circular or part- circular array of the apertures of that container.

7. Apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the control means comprises two such control discs each mounted on a respective one of the containers, the two control discs being in alignment in the operative side-by-side configuration of the containers.

8. Apparatus according to claim 6 or claim 7, wherein the control means further comprises an operating member for the or each disc, the operating member extending between the two containers to an outer portion to facilitate manual access.

9. Apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 8, further comprising a support for receiving the two containers in side-by-side configuration, each of said containers being separately removable from the support for emptying.

10. Composting apparatus including first and second containers for receiving organic waste adapted to be placed in side-by- side configuration, passage means extending between the containers to permit migration of worms from one container to the other, and control means for selectively opening and closing the passage means, wherein the control means comprises at least one rotary control disc, each of said containers being separately removable for emptying.

11. Apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the rotary control disc is located between the two containers in the operative side-by- side configuration of the containers and has an operating member extending between the two containers to an outer position capable of manual access to effect movement of the disc between open and closed conditions of the passage means.

12. Apparatus according to claim 11, comprising stop means limiting rotation of the disc between a first stop position corresponding to opening of the passage means and a second stop position corresponding to closure of the passage means.

13. Apparatus according to claim 12, wherein the stop means is associated with the operating member to define stop positions for the movement of the operating member.

14. Apparatus according to any one of claims 11 to 13, wherein the operating member extends upwardly between the two containers to terminate above the two containers.

15. Apparatus according to any one of claims 10 to 14, comprising a support for removably supporting the two containers in side-by-side configuration, the two containers having perforated bottoms to permit drainage of liquid into the support for collection by the support.

16. Apparatus according to claim 15, further comprising a tap-controlled drain device to permit periodic drainage of liquid from the support.

17. Apparatus according to claim 14, claim 15 or claim 16, wherein the support is in the form of a tray.

18. Apparatus according to any one of claims 10 to 17, wherein the passage means are situated at least within an upper part of the containers as considered in the height direction of the container, and span only a part of the width of the container.

19. Composting apparatus substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Substitute Sheet (Rule 26) RO/AU