WO2023012583A1

WO2023012583A1 - Column drying device for organic waste

Info

Publication number: WO2023012583A1
Application number: PCT/IB2022/056885
Authority: WO
Inventors: Simone Berretti; Filippo CIFARELLI; Michele Picchi
Original assignee: DE' LONGHI APPLIANCES S.r.l. - Divisione Commerciale ARIETE
Priority date: 2021-08-02
Filing date: 2022-07-26
Publication date: 2023-02-09

Abstract

Organic waste drying device comprising a main body divided into two sections, a first section and a second section placed below said first section; a removable basket configured for insertion of organic waste and positioned in the first section; a removable container, positioned in the second section and configured to receive organic waste from the first section by gravity; wherein the basket includes an opening bottom configured to: open when the basket is removed from the drying device and allow the waste to fall into the container by gravity; close again when the basket is repositioned in the drying device.

Description

COLUMN DRYING DEVICE FOR ORGANIC WASTE

DESCRIPTION

Field of application of the invention

The present invention relates to the sector of organic waste for small-scale domestic use and concerns a drying device for organic waste divided into two sections.

State of the art

It is known that there are different types of composters or containers suitable for receiving organic waste during their aerobic decomposition.

The known composters consist of a container, generally made of plastic or wood, inside which, by means of a lid that can be opened at the top, it is possible to insert waste for their composting. The composters generally rest directly on the ground, for example in a garden or on a ground, but there are also composters that can be placed directly inside a kitchen or on a balcony. These composters, of smaller dimensions, must be equipped with ventilation systems to avoid the formation of bad odors. Said composters also generally comprise a single compartment - to simulate the conformation of a simple known waste bin - closed by means of a lid, in which it is possible to insert the waste to be composted but also to extract said waste once composted. However, this solution puts the user in a position to touch the waste with his hands and therefore possibly also get dirty. This could happen because in said single compartment there is no dried waste collection bag, as said compartment is configured for both the introduction and the extraction of the waste. The user is therefore in a position to extract a container housed in said compartment and empty it into a bag.

There is therefore the need to equip a composter with a compartment configured exclusively for the extraction of dried waste without the user coming into direct contact with the dried waste.

Summary of the invention The present invention arises from the need to efficiently overcome the technical problem highlighted above by designing a drying device for organic waste comprising a main body divided into two sections, of which a first section is configured to removably receive a basket for organic waste and a second section, located below said first section, is configured to receive, again in a removable way, a container into which the organic waste contained in said first section flows by gravity; in which a hinged bottom of the basket is configured for:

- open when the basket is removed from the drying device and allow the waste to fall into the container by gravity;

- close again when the basket is repositioned in the drying device.

The column configuration simplifies the delivery of waste and the lower hinged opening of the basket is particularly effective and, at the same time, reliable because it allows automatic reclosing by means of a simple stop when the basket is placed in the first section.

According to a preferred embodiment, the drying device comprises:

- a basket comprising bottom openings and side openings configured to allow the outflow of liquids deriving from organic waste,

- a tubular element fixed with respect to a rear wall of the device and housing the basket in use, said tubular element having a grilled portion or port placed in adherence to an electric unit for drying waste arranged between the rear wall and the basket.

In this way, it is possible to make it particularly easy to access the basket from above for the delivery of the waste to be dried because the electrical unit is placed on the side of the basket.

According to a preferred embodiment, the automatic release of the waste into the container takes place by means of an openable bottom of the basket which comprises walls hinged to the side walls of the basket and bulkheads connected to the walls. These walls are made using a grating that allows air circulation. Said walls and bulkheads also define respective gaps for collecting fluids that may have fallen by gravity from the waste contained in the basket. Said walls are configured to move between an opening configuration and allow the dried waste to fall when the basket is extracted from the tubular element by losing contact with a stop of said element and a closing configuration when the bottom of the basket comes into contact with said stop and allow the containment of waste.

According to a preferred embodiment, the drying device comprises a hinged closure comprising a continuous perimeter overhanging wall configured to contact, when the closure covers the first section, an edge of the basket and presses a flange of the basket against a head portion of the tubular element; the bulkheads protruding from the bottom towards the tubular element when the bottom is closed; and the perimeter walls of the tubular element being closed around the grid portion to generate an environment closed to the outside, preventing the escape of bad smells coming from the inside of the tubular element towards the outside of the drying device.

In this way, the environment that is created around the basket is completely closed, preventing bad smells going upwards from escaping from the closure. The closed environment is given:

- from the bulkheads that close the bottom of the basket;

- from the perimeter walls of the tubular element that close the grid portion of the basket;

- from the closure that covers the first section by pressing a flange of the basket itself against a head portion of the tubular element;

- from the bulkheads, which when the basket is closed, protrude towards the tubular element.

According to a preferred embodiment, the drying device comprises a handle which is:

- rotatable between a rest configuration and a configuration of use in which the handle stands out more from the closure than the rest configuration with respect to each other to allow the movement of said drying device in the configuration of use;

- hinged on said flange of said basket and surrounding the closure to be external to said closed environment to avoid contact with organic waste.

The handle can therefore be gripped by a user and allow the easy movement of the drying device and also being placed outside the closed environment prevents its contact with organic waste and therefore can get dirty and wet.

According to a preferred embodiment, the hinged closure of the drying device, by means of a releasable lock mechanism, is configured in such a way as to lock the basket in the tubular element when the handle is in the position of use and the drying device is dragged by the handle. The releasable lock mechanism therefore blocks the basket in the tubular element, generating a closed environment.

According to a preferred embodiment, the basket in plant does not have the same dimensions as the side walls of the drying device but is smaller, generating in the front part of the basket a space configured to house a waste drying unit. Therefore, the drying unit is contained in a space placed between the basket and the main body of the waste drying device, said space is a lateral space which develops in height allowing a containment of the total dimensions of the drying device.

According to a preferred embodiment, the drying device comprises a drawer configured to allow the extraction of the dried waste from the container even if the basket is placed at the top and is loaded.

According to a preferred embodiment, the drying device comprises an air conveyor designed to flow the air from the electrical unit towards the basket.

Brief description of the figures

Further objects and advantages of the present invention will become clear from the following detailed description of an example of its embodiment (and its variants) and from the annexed drawings given purely for explanatory and non-limiting purposes, in which:

- Figure 1 shows a three-dimensional top view of a drying device for organic waste;

- Figure 2 shows a three-dimensional view of the drying device open at the top for the insertion of organic waste;

- Figure 3 shows a three-dimensional view of the drying device of Figure 1 in which a basket for collecting organic waste is raised with respect to said device;

- Figure 4 shows a three-dimensional view of the device of Figure 1 in which the outer casing has been removed for convenience;

- Figure 5 shows a three-dimensional view of a container for the dried waste shown in the open position;

- Figure 6 shows a detail of the drying device;

- Figure 7 shows a detail of the drying device which shows the waste contained in the basket;

- Figure 8 shows a detail of the drying device in which the waste falls by gravity into a container once the basket is raised;

- Figure 9 shows a detail of the bulkheads of a basket of the drying device;

- Figure 10 shows a three-dimensional view of a waste drying unit of the drying device;

- Figure 11 shows a sectioned three-dimensional view of the drying device;

- Figure 12 is a sectional three-dimensional view, according to a different section plane, of the drying device;

- Figure 13 shows a sectional three-dimensional view of the drying device with the detail of a port for the passage of air;

- Figure 14 shows a sectional three-dimensional view of the drying device comprising an air conveyor placed inside the basket;

- Figure 15 shows a sectional side view of the drying device of Fig. 14;

- Figure 16 shows a sectional view of the air conveyor which is placed in front of the port for the passage of air.

The same reference numbers in the figures identify the same elements or components.

The elements and features illustrated in the various preferred embodiments, including the drawings, can be combined with each other without however departing from the scope of the present application as described below.

Detailed description of examples of embodiments

Figure 1 shows a waste drying device 1 , consisting of a main body having:

- side walls comprising

- a rear outer wall 2 - a front and upper outer wall 3

- an external front and lower wall 4 which can be opened slidingly by means of a drawer 5,

- an upper hinged closure 6 shown in the closed position

- a handle 7 which can be rotated by 90 ° counterclockwise from a rest position to a position of use.

- a hinged bottom 8.

Said drying device 1 is divided into a first 3a and a second section 4a, where the first section is identifiable with the front and upper outer wall 3 while the second section is identifiable with the front and lower outer wall 4.

According to a preferred embodiment, the main body of said drying device has a parallelepiped shape allowing the easy handling of the container and the basket but could be of any other shape without going out of the scope of protection of this patent application.

Similarly to the main body, the first 3a and second 4 sections, the basket 9 and a container 13 are parallelepiped in shape. This allows the easy overlapping of the basket 9 to the container 13.

The organic waste drying device is operated by means of an ON I OFF switch 11 positioned on the surface of the upper closure 6.

Figure 2 shows the drying device 1 with the upper closure 6 shown in the open position for the insertion of the organic waste inside a removable basket 9. Said basket 9 is placed inside a tubular element 10 without a wall of bottom and equipped with continuous side walls, three of which have no openings while the fourth side wall 10a is equipped with a port 24 for the entry of air into the basket 9. The tubular element 10 is fixed with respect to a rear wall 2 of device 1 , e.g. is fixed to a frame of the drying device which also supports the walls 2 and 3. The basket 9 also comprises a flange 22 resting on the element 10 when the basket is in the first section 3a. Said element 10 is contained within the first section 3a of the drying device 1.

According to a preferred embodiment, the upper closure 6 of the drying device can be opened by pressure, as will be better described below, and allows access to the basket 9 where the waste is poured and where the drying takes place. Once the drying cycle has been completed, the user, by means of the handle 7, extracts the basket 9 upwards and the dried waste is automatically released into the container 13 below without the user touching the waste with his hands because, in order to gravity, the hinged bottom 8 opens.

The upper closure 6 comprises a projecting part 12a intended to fit into a respective seat 12b adjacent to the front wall 3 to define a pressure-releasable lock. When the upper closure 6 is rotated downwards, applying pressure on a front edge 12, the protruding part 12a is completely inserted inside the seat 12b. In this position, the closure 6 blocks the basket 9 in the tubular element 10 and the handle 7 can be rotated into the position of use to move the device 1 .

Furthermore, when the closure 6 covers the basket 9, a closed environment is obtained since the closure 6 comprises a continuous perimeter overhanging band 6a configured to contact an edge 21 of the basket 9 preventing the escape of bad smells coming from the inside towards the outside of the drying device.

As can also be seen in Figure 2, the dimensions in plant of the basket 9 are smaller than the size of the side walls of the drying device 1 joined together, generating the formation of a space 18 in front of the basket 9 for housing a fan heater 19 that, in use, dries the waste. The side wall 10a equipped with the port 24 is the one that touches the space 18 for housing the fan heater 19. The heater fan 19 is ducted and the port 24 is inscribed in the tube of the fan to allow air to enter coming from the fan 19 inside the basket 9 also equipped with grid walls. The tubular element 10 is laterally continuous outside the fan tube to confine bad smells.

According to a preferred embodiment, when the basket 9 is in its seat in the closed position, the waste previously placed inside it starts the drying process by activating the heater 19. Once dried, the basket 9 is gripped by the user for the handle 7 and during lifting the opening bottom 8 of the basket opens by gravity. During the lifting of the basket 9, the support stops 20 of the bottom 8 are missing and the bottom opens automatically downwards, causing the dried waste to fall into the underlying container 13 by gravity. Once emptied, the basket 9 is placed in its seat inside the tubular element 10 and the bottom 8 closes automatically and can accommodate new waste.

During the waste drying process, the odors that could be generated cannot escape as a closed environment is created inside the drying device which is given:

- from the bottom 8;

- from the perimeter walls of the tubular element 10 which close the grid portion of the basket 9;

- from the closure 6 which covers the first section 3a by pressing a flange 22 of the basket 9 itself against a head portion 23 of the tubular element 10.

In this way, the basket 9 where the waste is dried is closed and bad smells are unable to escape to the outside.

Figure 3 shows the basket 9 for organic waste shown in the semi-extraction position, i.e. raised by means of a handle 7.

Figure 4 shows in an axonometric view the inside of the device 1 in which it is visible that the basket 9 is completely extracted from the element 10. When the basket 9 is completely lifted from the element 10, the waste falls by gravity inside a container 13 placed in the second section 4a of the drying device 1. The fall of the waste by gravity occurs following the opening of an openable bottom of the basket 9 comprising walls 14 hinged to the side walls of the basket 9.

Figure 5 shows the second section 4a of the drying device 1 which can be slidably opened independently of the rest of the device by means of the drawer 5, which can be opened horizontally. Inside said second section 4a the container 13 is housed to hold the dried waste.

In Figure 6 it is visible that the basket 9 is housed inside the element 10. In particular, the bottom 8 is equipped with walls 14 shown in the closed position for the retention of waste and hinged to the side walls of the basket 9. At the moment in which the basket 9 is lifted by means of the handle 7, simultaneously with the opening of the walls 14 also the bulkheads 15 open being the latter provided with projections 16 which contact the surface of the walls 14 and rigidly connected to the latter. The opening of the walls 14 is therefore followed by the opening of the bulkheads 15 since both the walls 14 and the bulkheads 15 lose contact with a stop 20 of the tubular element 10. A gap 17 is defined between the walls 14 and the bulkheads 15 for the collection of liquids from organic waste. The basket 9 has bottom openings 9a and side openings 9b configured to allow the outflow of liquids from organic waste in the gap 17. The bottom openings 9a are located on the walls 14.

This collection preserves any already dried waste arranged below and, during drying, is consumed in whole or in part. Furthermore, as better seen in Figure 9, the bulkheads 15 protrude laterally with respect to the side walls of the basket 9 to get closer to the tubular element 10 and trap bad smells inside.

The retention of waste inside the basket 9 is visible in Figure 7 while its fall by gravity inside the container 13 is visible in Figure 8.

Figure 10 shows the detail of the drying unit in which a fan 19, driven by a motor 25, is able to suck the air contained inside the container for organic waste 1 ; a first lower duct 26 capable of receiving the air driven by the fan 19 and conveying it towards the inside of the device 1 ; a heating element 27 capable of heating the air in the first lower duct before the air arrives inside the device 1 ; a second upper duct 29 capable of receiving the return air coming from inside the device 1 and conveying it to the outside there is also an activated carbon filter 28 capable of filtering the air coming from the second upper duct 29 before be expelled from the device 1 through an outlet 30. In particular, the air is sucked into the walls 2, 3, 4, in particular into the cavity housing the fan 19 and is sent in part towards the port 24 and partly towards the duct 29. As illustrated in the figure, the outlet of the air filtered by the activated carbon is arranged in an interface area between a plate 35 defining in the non-limiting example a seat for the switch 11 and one of the walls exterior of the envelope, e g. the rear outer wall 2. Preferably, so as to substantially hide the air discharge from view, the outlet 30 is a slit defined by the approach between the plate 35 and the outer lateral casing comprising the rear 2, front 3 walls and left and right walls joining the posterior wall to the anterior wall.

The path of the air inside the device 1 by means of the ducts described above is visible in Figures 11 -12.

From the above description the person skilled in the art is able to realize the object of the present invention without introducing further construction details.

Figures 14-15 show the fan heater 19, which fan is ducted and the port 24 is inscribed in the fan tube to allow the entry of air from the fan 19 inside the basket 9.

According to a preferred embodiment, a box -shaped air conveyor 31 is placed on the side wall of the basket 9 parallel to the side wall 10a of the tubular element 10. Said conveyor 31 preferably faces the port 24 of the container 10 and contacts the bottom openings 9a of the basket 9. Furthermore, the conveyor 31 is open to receive hot air from the port 24, deflect it downwards and lead it through the bottom openings 9a.

The air coming from the fan 19 passes through the port 24 and by means of the air conveyor 31 it flows inside the gap 17 located below the openings 9a, intercepts the bulkheads 15 and rises inside the basket 9 through the bottom openings 9a or portions thereof, left uncovered by the conveyor 31 in the vertical direction.

The air conveyor 31 acts as a barrier and therefore directs the flow of air first into the gap 17 and then, rising again deflected by the bulkheads 15, into the basket 9. The air conveyor 31 facilitates the drying of the waste since otherwise, the air would flow directly into the basket 9 without passing into the gap 17, slowing down the drying process of the waste and I or liquids contained in the gap 17.

Said air conveyor 31 is an integral part of the basket 9 and is placed in a side wall of the same in front of the port 24 of the fourth side wall 10a of the tubular element 10 as visible in fig. 16.

Preferably the cross-sectional shape of the air conveyor 31 is box-like with a triangular shape but could be of any other shape without going out of the scope of protection of this patent application.

Further, the air conveyor 31 includes at least one slot 31 a placed in correspondence with the bottom openings 9a designed to allow part of the air flow coming from the fan 19 to flow directly into the basket 9.

Claims

CLAIMS Organic waste drying device (1 ) comprising:

- a main body divided into two sections, a first section (3a) and a second section (4a) placed below said first section (3a);

- a removable basket (9) configured for insertion of organic waste and positioned in the first section (3a);

- a removable container (13), positioned in the second section (4a) and configured to receive the organic waste from the first section (3a) by gravity; wherein the basket (9) includes an opening bottom (8) configured to:

• open when the basket (9) is removed from the drying device (1 ) and allow the waste to fall into the container (13) by gravity;

• close again when the basket (9) is repositioned in the drying device (1). Waste drying device according to claim 1 wherein the basket (9) comprises bottom openings (9a) and side openings (9b) configured to allow the outflow of liquids deriving from organic waste and comprising a tubular element (10) fixed with respect to a rear wall (2) of the device (1) and housing the basket (9) in use, said tubular element (10) having a portion (10a) placed in adherence to an electrical unit (19) for drying waste arranged between the rear wall (2) and the basket (9), said portion (10a) comprising a port (24) suitable for letting the air coming from the electrical unit (19) into the basket (9). Waste drying device according to claim 1 or 2 wherein the openable bottom of the basket (9) comprises walls (14) hinged to the side walls of the basket (9) and bulkheads (15) connected to the walls (14) and defining respective gaps (17) to collect fluids that may have fallen by gravity from the waste contained in the basket (9); the walls (14) being configured to move between an opening configuration and allow the dried waste to fall when the basket (9) is extracted from the element (10) losing contact with a stop (20) of the tubular element (10) and a closing configuration when the bottom of the basket (9) comes into contact with said stop (20) and allows the containment of the waste.

4. Waste drying device according to claim 3, characterized in that it comprises a hinged closure (6) comprising a continuous perimeter overhanging wall (6a) configured to contact, when the closure (6) covers the first section (3a), a edge (21) of the basket (9) and pressing a flange (22) of the basket (9) itself against a head portion (23) of the tubular element (10); the bulkheads (15) protruding from the bottom towards the tubular element (10) when the bottom is closed; and perimeter walls of the tubular element (10) being closed around the grilled portion to generate an environment closed to the outside, preventing the escape of bad smells coming from the inside of the tubular element (10) towards the outside of the drying device.

5. Waste drying device according to claim 4, characterized in that it comprises a handle (7) which is:

- rotatable between a rest configuration and a configuration of use in which the handle (7) stands out more from the closure (6) than the rest configuration with respect to each other to allow the dragging of said drying device (1 );

- hinged on said flange (22) of said basket (9) to be external to said closed environment to avoid contact with organic waste.

6. Drying device according to claim 5, wherein the hinged closure (6), by means of a releasable lock mechanism, is configured so as to lock the basket (9) in the tubular element (10) when the handle (7) is in the position of use and the drying device is dragged by the handle (7).

7. Waste drying device according to claim 2, wherein the drying unit (19) is contained in a space (18) placed between the basket (9) and the main body of the waste drying device.

8. Waste drying device according to claim 4, characterized in that it comprises a drawer (5) configured to allow the extraction of the dried waste from the container (13) even if the basket (9) is placed on the top and is loaded.

9. Waste drying device according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein an outlet (30) of drying air is arranged between an external plate (35) and a lateral casing (2, 3) of the device itself. Waste drying device according to claim 3 when dependent on 2, characterized in that it comprises an air conveyor (31) placed inside the basket (9) and configured to make the flow of air coming from the electrical unit (19) first in the gap (17) and then in the basket (9) through the bottom openings (9a).