Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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The pxesent invention relates to improvements
in refuse bins incorporating compacting means,
for domestic use.
FR-A-2 135 322 discloses a refuse bin of the
type in question, comprising:
- an upwardly open bin;
- a lid articulated on the bin;
- a compacting plate disposed inside the bin
and comprising two upwardly oriented tabs which
10 pass through the lid and comprise means for sliding
and pivoting association with the manoeuvring rod
which rests on the lid. By subjecting this rod
to a translation, the latter may, at the end of
stroke, be pivoted with respect to said means of
15 the tabs in order to orient it vertically with
a view to actuating the compacting plate downwardly
and upwardly.
However, the position of the manoeuvring rod
on the lid is neither practical nor aesthetic.
Moreover, assembly of the low end of the ma-
noeuvring rod and of the compacting plate necessi-
tates a pusher system controlled by a handle, the
whole being complex and uneconomical.
It is an object of the improvements according
25 to the prescnt invention to overcome these drawbacks
and to allow a compacting refuse bin to be produced
which responds better than heretofore to the deside-
rata of the users.
To this end, the tabs of the compacting plate
30 come, in high position of the latter, into housings
in thc lid opcning out in a longitudinal groove
made in the top of the latter and which slidably
contains thc platc controlling mcmbcr so that thc
catchcs comc into this groovc and pcnctratc in
35 known manncr in two longitudinal slides madc in
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the two opposite longitudinal faces of the control member.
According to another fea-ture of the invention, the
slides of the plate control member comprise two notclles than~.s
to which the catches of said plate may be enyayed in these
slides in a position thereof which i5 never presented duriny
operation.
According to another feature of the invention, the
active end of the plate control member comprises a depression
in which a fixed projection on this plate penetra-tes in order
to lock the member perpendicularly to the latter and be
automatically released as soon as the member is pulled
upwardly.
The invention therefore provides a compac-tion refuse
receptacle comprising a bin having an open top portion and a
lid selectively mounted to the top portion of the bin which lid
is provided with an elonyated recess formed therein. An
opening to the bin disposed within this recess cooperates in
the mountiny of a compactor assembly in the lid. The compactor
assembly includes a compaction plate disposed within the bin
and an elongated control member which is cooperatively seated
within the recess. Mounting means connected to the compaction
plate extend through the opening in the recess which slidably
and pivotably engage the control member. The control member
is selectively moveable from a first position within the recess
which is generally parallel with the lid to a second position
which is generally perpendicular to the lid. In the
perpendicular orientation, the con-trol member is aligned for
movement through the opening in the recess which permits the
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control member to selectively urge the compac-tion plate
downward relative to the lid within the bin.
I'he invention will be more readily understood on
reading the following description with reference to the
accompan~ing drawings, in which:
Fig. 1 is an exploded view in perspective of a
compacting refuse bin incorporating the improvements accordiny
to the invention.
Fig. 2 is a transverse section of the upper part of
the refuse bin according to the invention.
Fig. 3 is a view similar to that of Fig. 2, but made
in the centre of the refuse bin, so as to show the assembly of
the control member and of the compacting plate.
Fig. 4 shows the manner in which the compacting plate
is positioned in the slides of its control member.
Fig. 5 is a longitudinal section of the upper part of
the refuse bin according to the invention showing the manner
in which the plate control member is displaced from its rest
position to its active position.
Fig. 6 is a detailed view showing the con-trol member
in vertical position before the projection
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on the lid is fitted in the terminal depression
of the control member.
Fig. 7 illustrates the manner in which compac-
ting is effected.
Referring now to the drawings, the refuse
bin illustrated in Fig. 1 essentially comprises
a bin 1 of rectangular cross section of which the
upper part is covered by a frame 2 on which is
articulated a lid 3, whilst, inside this bin, a
10 compacting plate 4 may be displaced vertically
with a view to compressing the refuse contained
in a plastic bag. The latter is disposed inside
the bin and its opening is wedged between the frame
2 and the upper part of bin 1, as illustrated in
15 Fig. 2 et seq., the bag being referenced 5 and
shown schematically in broken lines. Openings la
and 2a axe made in register in the bin and the
frame respectively, so that, by passing his hands
through these openings, the user grips these two
20 elements without separating them.
As illustrated in Fig. 1, the compacting plate
4 is adapted to be associated with a control member
6 which is normally, i.e. not during periods of
compacting, located in a groove 3a in the lid 3.
25 The latter pivots with respect to frame 2 via pins
2b on the latter which engage in perforations 3_
made in lugs 3c on lid 3.
It is observed that groove 3a is traversed
by an opening 3d located at the centre thereof
30 and which is intendcd, on thc one hand, for the
passagc~ of the control mcmbcr 6 during compacting
and, on thc othcr hand, to al~ow permancnt assembly
Or this mcmbcr and of the compacting p~ate 4.
Thc lattcr comprises a ne~twork of reinforcing
35 ribs issuing from a central vcrtical extcnsion
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composed of two vertical tabs 4a, 4b of which the
opposite faces each bear a catch 4c, 4d comprising
a common horizontal geometrical axis. Between the
two tabs 4a and 4b is located a hollow projection
4e whose role will be set forth hereinbelow.
The control member 6 is in the form of a rectan~
gular parallelepiped whose length corresponds to
that of lid 3 and whose section is identical to
that of groove 3a (Fig. 2), with the result that
10 this member is embedded in the lid. One of the
ends of member 6 comprises a downwardly projecting
gripping handle 6a which engages in a hollow 3e
made at one of the ends of groove 3a; In this way,
as will be emphasized hereinafter, the outward
15 slide of member 6 in groove 3a can only be effected
in the direction of arrow F of Fig. 5. Member 6
further comprises an opening 6b adjacent handle
6a and facilitating gripping thereof. The two longitu-
dinal faces of member 6 are hollow so as to determine
20 two slides 6c, 6d whose height is slightly greater
than the diameter of catches 4c, 4d. The end of
member 6 opposite its handle 6a is provided with
a depression 6e of section complementary to that
of projection 4e of the compacting plate 4.
~ig. 4 illustrates the refuse bin according
to the invention in a partial plan view, its lid
3 being open as illustrated in discontinuous lines
in Fig. 3, i.e. it has been pivoted about pins
2b of frame 2, so that its rear edge 3f comes into
30 abutment against the corresponding face oE the
frame so as to constitute stop of maximum opening.
~n this position, the control member 6 is intro-
duced horizontally in the opcning 3_ in the lid,
so that it is presented horizontally once its handle
35 6a abuts against the top of said ~id. As thc two
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slides 6c, 6d of member 6 each comprise a notch
6f, 6q, if the compacting plate 4 is presented
in vertical position with its tabs 4a, 4b turned
towards notches 6f, 6~, catches 4c, 4d may be made
to penetrate in slides 6c, 6d further to the position
of notches 6f, 6q. Arrangements are such that,
in no position of the control member 6 during opera-
tion do the catches 4c, 4d ever come to the level
of notches 6f, 6~. In fact, once said catches are
10 engaged in slides 6c, 6d of member 6, any axial
displacement of the latter is made in the zone
included between these notches and its end opposite
handle 6a. It is noted in particular on this subject
that member 6 cannot be displaced in the direction
15 opposite that of arrow F of Fig. 5 beyond the posi-
tion of abutment of the handle 6a against the hollow
3e. The catches are then made to slide in slides
until they come into abutment against end stops
6h, 6i of the slides opposite handle 6a (Fig. 6),
20 then the plate is pivoted so that it is oriented
perpendicularly to its manoeuvring member 6 (Fig.
6). The manoeuvring member is then withdrawn outward-
ly by sliding it in opening 3d in lid 3 until plate
4 comes against the underneath of lid 3. The opening
25 3d of the lid comprises two lateral cut-outs 3q,
3h by which open out into groove 3a two housings
3i~ 3i into which come ~abs ~a, 4h in high posi-
tion of the p~ate 4, the catches qc, 4d then being
crosswise in said groove whilst being engaged in
30 the slide of member 6, as illustrated in Fig. 3.
In this way, an articu~ation is constituted between
this member and plate 4. Finally, the lid is closed
and the control member 6 is folded down to the
horizontal with respect to plate 4, so that it
35 rests in groove 3a in the lid. The latter is dis-
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placed axially until it no longer projects from
said lid, the handle 6a cooperating with the hollow
3e. The refuse bin is then in rest position, i.e.
not in use.
If a user desires to place refuse in the bin,
it suffices to open the lid, pour the refuse into
bag 5, and to close the lid again. If he then desires
to compress the products deposited in the bag,
he extracts the manoeuvring member by subjecting
10 it to a longitudinal translation in the directionof arrow ~ of Fig. 5, such translation bringing
the two catches 4c, 4d to near the end of the member
6 opposite its handle 6a. Under these conditions,
it is possible to pivot member 6 to bring it to
lS the vertical in the direction of arrows Fl and
F2 of Fig. 5. The following operation consists
in vertically lowering the manoeuvring member down-
wardly in the direction of arrow F3. When plate
4 comes into contact with refuse, it is immobilized
20 whilst member 6 may be descended a little more
in order to engage the projection 4e of this plate
in the depression 6e of the manoeuvring member
6 (~ig. 7). In this way, the angular positions
of these two elements are locked and compacting
25 may be practised without pivoting the plate 4.
Return into position is effected in reverse.
When the me~ber 6 is withdrawn by a vertical displace-
ment, tabs 4a, 4_ of the plate come into housings
3i~ 3i of the lid against the bottom of which they
30 abut in order to allow disengagement of the projec-
tion 4e with respc~ct to the end depression 6e of
the mcmber 6. 'I'he latter returns into the position
illustratcd in ~ig. 2, so that it may again pivot
with respc~ct to catches 4c and 4d in order to be
35 placed in horizontal position in tl-le groove 3a
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of the lid. This member is then returned into its
rest position by sliding in the direction opposite
that of arrow F of Fig. 5.
~ compacting refuse bin has thus been produced
of which the compacting plate is actuated by a
control member which, in rest position, is perfectly
included within the general volume of the bin.
It goes without saying that the article forming
the subject matter of the present invention may
10 be made of any appropriate materials, but that
its different elements are advantageously made
by moulding a plastics material under pressure.
It will be noted that the handle 6a abuts
against the bottom of groove 3a if the manoeuvring
15 member 6, placed vertically, is released by the
user when the bin is empty.
It must, moreover, be understood that the
foregoing description has been given only by way
of example and that it in no way limits the domain
20 of the invention which would not be exceeded by
replacing the details of execution described by
any other eq~ivalents.
