Abstract:
A pan for use in connection with a trash receptacle with or without a trash bag inserted into the receptacle. The present pan has brackets formed to engage the rim of the receptacle&#39;s opening so that debris can be swept directly into the pan and ultimately deposited into the receptacle. Furthermore, the pan elevates the rim of the receptacle so that debris tends to slide toward the bottom of the receptacle. Once the trash receptacle is stood erect, the pan facilitates the moving of all debris easily and quickly into the container or bag.

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
   The present application claims the benefit of priority to U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/374,982 that was filed on Apr. 24, 2002. 

   STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT 
   Not Applicable. 
   REFERENCE TO A SEQUENCE LISTING, A TABLE, OR A COMPUTER PROGRAM LISTING COMPACT DISK APPENDIX 
   Not Applicable. 
   BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
   The present invention relates generally to trash collection, and, more particularly, to an improved pan for use in connection with trash receptacles. 
   Getting yard, workshop debris, and industrial by-product waste into a plastic bag or can for disposal is a problem. This debris includes leaves, bush and hedge trimmings, straw, weeds, bedding materials, sticks, sawdust, wood scraps, plastic dust, trimmings, or other industrial by-product. The effort requires squatting, bending and leaning, which can cause sore back and leg muscles. 
   Traditional cleanup equipment, such as dustpans and plastic bags, does not work effectively; debris spills from dustpans resulting in frustration. Cleanup is dirty, time-consuming work. Once a plastic bag is filled, it must be moved to another location for disposal. Filed bags are heavy and cumbersome and often, bags will tear or break open. 
   There are several devices that are intended to facilitate movement of wastes into trash receptacles. In particular, there is the patent issued to Jensen, U.S. Pat. No. 4,802,258, which teaches a modified dustpan that could be used with a cylindrical trash receptacle or used as a regular dustpan. As such, it must fill two quite different, somewhat conflicting requirements and falls short of being ideal for use with a trash receptacle. For example, it has no internal structures that prevent debris, once having been swept into the pan, from sliding out of the top of the container. As another example, the handle makes it more difficult to sweep debris into the container. 
   Accordingly, there remains a need for an improved device for filling trash receptacles that overcomes the limitations and shortcomings of the prior art trash collecting devices. 
   SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
   According to its major aspects and briefly recited, the present invention is a pan intended strictly for use in connection with a trash receptacle with or without a trash bag inserted into the receptacle. The present invention is also a combination of the trash receptacle and the pan. The pan is generally shaped like a half-funnel and has a top and bottom surface. On the top surface, the pan includes upstanding side walls. These side walls are inclined so that any debris and trash will tend to fall only within the trash receptacle opening. 
   On the bottom surface of the pan are included removable brackets. The brackets of the pan have slots that are formed to receive the edge of the opening of a trash receptacle. The orientation of the brackets is such that it will hold the trash receptacle at an angle when the pan engages the ground. This angle assures that receptacle is lifted in such a way that debris tends to slide from the top toward the bottom of the receptacle. Preferably, the leading edge of the pan, which is opposite to the brackets, is angled to facilitate the sliding of the combination of pan and receptacle or the sweeping of debris onto the pan. 
   A feature of the present pan is its size. It is dimensioned consistent with a large trash receptacle opening so that full size brooms, rather than dust brushes, and leaf rakes can be used to rake or sweep debris into the pan without portions of the debris being swept off the sides of the pan. 
   Another feature of the present pan is that it is dimensioned to be used on almost any trash container, whether it be oval, round or square, and to help stabilize the trash receptacle. Further, because of its design, the present pan can be used in two ways. First, on a hard surface, the pan can be pushed, pulled or slid until the pan is under the debris then stood up. Alternatively, the pan can be laid in front of the debris pile so that all debris can be raked or swept into the opening of the pan. 
   Still another feature of the present pan is that it has an internal section to prevent debris, once inside, from sliding out the front of the container. Once the pan is placed on the trash receptacle, a portion of the surface of the pan acts as a barrier to prevent the debris from coming out of the trash receptacle opening. 
   Yet another feature of the present invention is the use of brackets oriented so that they hold the trash receptacle at a slight upward angle when the pan engages the ground. This angle assures that the debris slides toward and stays at the bottom of the receptacle. 
   Another feature of the present invention is the use of external, removable brackets designed to hold the pan to a container. These brackets do not interfere with the sweeping of debris into the receptacle. Further, when the pan is not in use, the brackets can be removed for more convenient storage of the pan device. 
   Other features and advantages of the present invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art from a careful reading of the Detailed Description of the Preferred Embodiments presented below and accompanied by the drawings. 

   
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     In the drawings, 
       FIG. 1  is a perspective view of the present pan in use with a trash receptacle according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention; 
       FIG. 2A  is a top view of the present pan according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention; 
       FIG. 2B  is a bottom view of the present pan according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention; 
       FIG. 3  is a side view of the present pan according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention; 
       FIG. 4  is a front view of the present pan according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention; 
       FIG. 5  is a side view of a bracket for use in connection with the present pan according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention; 
       FIG. 6  is a front view of a bracket for use in connection with the present pan according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention; and 
       FIG. 7  is a side view of the present pan in combination with a trash receptacle according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention. 
   

   DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
   As illustrated in  FIG. 1 , the present invention is a pan  10  for use with a trash receptacle  20 . The present invention is also a combination of trash receptacle  20  with or without a trash bag  22  inserted, and pan  10 . For the purpose of these drawings, the trash receptacle  20  is a rolling 45-gallon receptacle. If trash bag  22  is used, a 55-gallon trash bag is preferred with a 45-gallon receptacle. However, other types of trash receptacles  20  having varying dimensions and shapes are contemplated and planned for use and could be used with pan  10  of the present invention. Trash receptacle  20  has a conventional design and includes an annular wall  24 , a closed bottom end  26 , and a top open end  28  that is defined by an annular rim  30 . The pan  10  and trash receptacle  20  cooperate to permit cleanup of a surface or yard with minimal effort and back strain of the user. 
   Pan  10  of the present invention is shown in detail in  FIGS. 2A–6 . As illustrated, pan  10  is generally shaped like a half-funnel, and includes a top surface  32 , a bottom surface  34 , a leading edge  36 , and a trailing edge  38 . As used herein, “funnel” refers to a utensil used to channel the flow of a substance with a wider and narrower end. On top surface  32  of pan  10  are included upstanding side walls  40 . Side walls  40  are inclined and dimensioned to fit within the opening of trash receptacle  20  so that debris can be effectively funneled into top open end  28  of trash receptacle  20  when pan  10  is in use. As shown in  FIGS. 2A–4 , side walls  40  are spaced farther apart at leading edge  36  of pan  10  than at the trailing edge  38  of pan  10 . This orientation allows more effective gathering of debris and prevents spilling of the debris over rim  30  of trash receptacle  20  or over the sides of pan  10 . 
   A feature of the present invention is the size of pan  10 . Pan  10  is dimensioned consistent with a large trash receptacle  20  opening so that full size brooms, rather than dust brushes, and leaf rakes can be used to sweep debris into pan  10  without portions of the debris being swept of the sides of pan  10 . Preferably, pan  10  is dimensioned to be received by a 45-gallon trash receptacle  20 , and has a length (distance between leading edge  36  and trailing edge  38 ) between 24 to 30 inches and a width (distance between side walls  40 ) between 30 and 35 inches at leading edge  36  and between 15 and 20 inches at trailing edge  38 . Side walls  40  of pan  10  preferably have a height ranging between 5 to 10 inches. Most preferably, pan  10  has a length of 24 inches, a width of 32 inches, and a height of 8 inches. However, depending on the size and shape of the intended trash receptacle, these dimensions can vary. For example, a small version could be fashioned to fit on a bucket or a semi-rounded version could be fashioned to fit a round receptacle. 
   As shown in  FIG. 2A , top surface  32  of pan  10  is preferably smooth so that debris and trash are moved easily over pan  10  and into the receptacle  20 . 
   Pan  10  of the present invention further includes removable brackets  50 , shown in detail in  FIGS. 5 and 6 , that are attached onto bottom surface  34  of pan  10 . As illustrated, brackets  50  include slots  60  that are formed to receive rim  30  of trash receptacle  20  with or without an inserted trash bag  22  in the receptacle  20  and fastened about the top open end  28  of the receptacle  20 . The orientation of brackets  50  is such that brackets  50  will hold trash receptacle  20  at a slight angle upward, shown as angle A in  FIG. 7 , when pan  10  engages the ground. The angle formed, which is preferably equal to or less than 45°, with the rim  30  of the open end  28  of trash receptacle  20  held slightly above the ground, assures that debris swept into the pan  10  and thence into the receptacle  20  will tend to stay inside of the receptacle  20 . This angle is determined by the angle with which brackets  50  fit trash receptacle  20 , which is preferably approximately 33°. Additionally, trailing edge  38  of pan  10  extends past rim  30  and into trash receptacle  20  when pan  10  and receptacle  20  are engaged (see  FIG. 7 ). Therefore, trailing edge  38  acts as a barrier to further prevent the debris from coming out of the trash receptacle open end  28 . Preferably, the leading edge  36  of pan  10  is angled so as to prevent debris from sliding off pan  10  once it has swept or pushed onto pan  10 . 
   Brackets  50  are made to be removable in order to allow pans  10  to be stacked and otherwise conveniently stored. Preferably, the brackets  50  are made to clip onto pan  10 , but can also be fastened to pan  10  by other means for attachment or be made integrally with pan  10 . According to the preferred embodiment, brackets  50  include a plurality of male members  52  for use in attaching of brackets  50  to bottom surface  34  of pan  10 . As shown in  FIGS. 2A and 2B , pan  10  includes a plurality of openings  48  having narrow slits  46  that are dimensioned to receive brackets  50 . Brackets  50  are locked into place during use by simply placing male members  52  into openings  48  and sliding male members  52  into slits  46  of openings  48 . Alternatively, other means for attachment of brackets  50  may be employed, such as screws. When brackets  50  are removed, they can be taped to top surface  32  or bottom surface  34  of pan  10  so that pan  10  can be stacked for convenient storage shipping, and display. 
   Preferably, pan  10  is made of a rigid to semi-rigid material, such as a heavy grade plastic, metal or wood. Most preferably, pan  10  is made of an unbreakable plastic that is weatherproof and abrasion-resistant, and is easily manufactured by well-known molding technology. 
   In use, trash bag  22  may be fitted over rim  30  of trash receptacle  20  with its lid open, if receptacle  20  includes a lid, and the present pan  10  is then engaged with receptacle  20  by fitting rim  30  of receptacle into slots  60  of brackets  50 . The receptacle  20  can be carried or wheeled, if receptacle  20  includes wheels, to the desired location and then lowered so that the leading edge  36  of the pan  10  engages the ground. Then, with the rim  30  of the receptacle  20  held in a slightly raised position, the user rakes or sweeps debris into pan  10  and thence into the receptacle  20 . Once all sweepings are in the pan  10 , the receptacle  20  can be returned to an upright, vertical position. Any debris in pan  10  will fall into the trash receptacle. Giving the receptacle  20  a gentle shake also settles the trash. 
   To facilitate removal of trash bags  22  from trash receptacle  20 , a few holes, preferably 10–15 holes of ½ inch diameter, can be drilled into sides and bottom of receptacle  20  in advance of bag insertion so that air can enter when the bag is pulled out. Then when the receptacle  20  has been rolled to curbside, a user can lower it to the horizontal position and pull the bag from it rather than lift it out of a vertical receptacle. 
   As previously stated, a feature of the present invention is the use of brackets  50  that hold receptacle  20  at a slight angle when pan  10  engages the ground. This feature is advantageous because it facilitates the retention of debris within receptacle  20 . Another feature of the present invention is the use of the combination of pan  10  and receptacle  20  as described herein. This combination greatly reduces the leaning, squatting, and bending associated with yard, industrial or shop cleanup. The combination additionally minimizes spillage, making cleanup more efficient and less disagreeable, and speeds up the overall yard cleanup, because the combination makes it possible to go from pile to pile quickly. Finally, the combination allows bags to be moved in a rolling container to the final location for disposal. 
   It will be apparent to those skilled in the art of debris collection devices, that many changes and substitutions can be made to the foregoing preferred embodiments without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention, defined by the appended claims.