A WASTE CONTAINER FOR HANDLING WITH FRONT LOADING MEANS

Abstract: By a waste container being adapted to handle - e.g. by emptying - by means of lifting arms or lifting forks mounted at the front of a vehicle (2), the container (12) by emptying being adapted to be lifted and swung upwards/rearwards across the driver's cab of the vehicle (2) to an emptying position over a collecting receptacle (4) on the vehicle (2), the container being provided with one or more filling shutters of doors and a wall portion (14) which can be opened for emptying and/or filling and insertion means (16) for said lifting forks (10), the wall portion which can be opened consists of an upper preferable plane cover plate member (14) which at opposite side portions is swingably and displaceably connected with upper side edge portions of the container (12) in such a manner that the cover plate member (14) when this is turned upwards, i.e. when the container (12) is standing on the ground, may be displaced and may be swung away from the container (12) in order to open one side thereof, that the cover plate member (14), when this is turned downwards, i.e. during the emptying of the container (12), automatically during displacement may be swung away from the container (12) in order to emptying thereof, and that the cover plate member (14), when this is again turned upwards, i.e. after the emptying of the container (12), automatically during displacement may again be swung back for closing the container.

Description: A waste container for handling with front loading means. The present invention relates to a waste container for handling with front loading means and of the type described in the introductory part of claim 1. For many years is has been commonly to make use of contai¬ ners for collecting waste and in that connection it has been common practice by the emptying of containers to change a filled waste container with an empty container whereby is obtained a minimum of driving. However, this principle in- volves that one should have the disposal of a very large number of containers which for further minimizing the emp¬ tying frequency should be rather large. In the later years a new container principle ' has been taken in use where use is made of smaller containers which are emptyied in situ - as use is made of a lorry with a larger collecting receptacle which furthermore comprises a compact¬ ing system so that the collecting ■ receptacle may contain a very considerable amount of waste. In connection with this new container principle - as mentioned - is used smaller containers which in order to lighten the handling by the emptying is adapted to be front loaded by means of a par¬ ticular lifting arm system with lift-forks at the front end of the collecting vehicle as the container by emptying is a- dapted to be lifted and to be swung upwards/rearwards accros the driveres cab of the vehicle to a emptying out position obave the collecting receptacle of the vehicle. By this principle is used smaller containers and a more often emp¬ tying which involves quite clear advantages both regarding the investment requirement and the milieu as it also con- cerns perishable waste and socalled risk related waste. However, known waste containers for front loading are subject to some constructive disadvantages which contributes both to impede the emptying operation itself and to reduce the practical use of front loading containers. By the known waste containers of the type in question it is in particular the cover constuction which creates problems. By way of example, a known front loading container is provi¬ ded with an upper cover in two parts which before the emp¬ tying operation has to be manually opened by swinging the respective cover parts upwards/rearwards about hinges at the front side and the rear side, respectively, of the container and by furthermore fixing at least one of the cover parts - πrost often the rearmost cover part - along the rearside of the container in order to prevent the swingable cover part to disturb the emptying operation when the bottom of the container is turned upwards. Another known front loading container is provided with an upper cover plate member which is hinged along an upper rearside edge of the container which by the emptying causes that the cover plate member projects rather long down into the collecting receptacle and thereby partly counteracts the emptying of the contents of the container. Furthermore, this constuction of the contai¬ ner causes that this should be lifted extra height by the emptying operation in order to allow the cover plate member to open sufficiently. From DK-B1-140 980 is furthermore known a container which is provided with a particularly arched cover over an upper emptying opening by which the arched cover is furthermore provided with particular guiding means being adapted to cooperate with especial guiding racks on the lorry which of course complicates and makes dearer the proper container as well as the vehicle. Finally is known a container of the type in question which is shaped with a top end with two-sided inclined sides of which one inclined side is hinge connected along "the roof ridge" so that this inclined side by emptying, i.e. when the bottom of the container is turned upwards, automatically is opened. However, also this container involves an inappropriate emp¬ tying operation, a.o. because an extra heigh lift is nedded. And the very same is the case by a waste container known from DE-A1-29 13 436. The invention has for its purpose to provide an improved container, in particular a waste container, of the introduc¬ tory described type, and by means of which the above mentio¬ ned disvantages in a simple manner may be opposed. According to the invention the container is characterized in that the wall portion which can be opened consists of an up¬ per preferable plane cover plate member which at opposite side portions are swingably and displaceably connected with upper side edge portions of the container in such a manner that the cover plate member when this is turned upwards, i.e. when the container is standing on the ground, may be displaced and be swung away from the container in order to open one side thereof, that the cover plate member, when this is turned downwards, i.e. during the emptying of the container, automatically during displacement may be swung a- way from the container in order to emptying of this, and that the cover plate member, when this is again turned up¬ wards, i.e. after the emptying of the container, automati¬ cally during displacement may again be swung backwards for closing the container. Hereby is by means of simple provi¬ sions obtained an improved container of the type in question because the combined displacement and swinging of the cover plate member in relation to the container makes possible a simple and funtional correct automatical opening with mini- mum sidewards displacement of the cover plate member when the container during the emptying is swung upwards/rearwards and is turned around over the filling opening of the collec¬ ting receptacle. Furthermore, is optained that very impor¬ tant advantage by the container that the cover plate member thereof, when the container is standing on the ground, may easily be manually pushed rearwards and be swung opwards to vertical position along the rear wall, i.e. that the contai¬ ner may be used for mechanical filling with waste or other material through a quite open top side. Also for filling in waste the cover plate member may be only partially opened without requiring larger exertion. Appropriately, the container is furthermore such constucted that it at a rear side wall is provided with interconnected engagement means being adapted to cooperate with such shaped guiding means along opposite side edge portions of the cover plate member that this by displacement and swinging, respec¬ tively, in relation to the container body may retain its orientation with said side edge portions may course approxi¬ mately perpendicular to an upper edge portion of the rear side wall, and that the container at opposite side walls is provided with upper approximate horizontal carrying side members for support rollers mounted at said edge portions of the cover plate member. Hereby is obtained a simple and fun- tional corect parallel guiding of the cover plate member in relation to the container in such a manner that the cover plate member simultaneously may also be swung upwards in re¬ lation to the container. In a preferred embodiment the container according to the invention is such constructed that said engagement means consist of gear wheels secured to opposite ends of a common shaft being pivotally arranged in suitable bearing brackets secured to the rearside wall and of outside the gear wheels on the shaft pivotally arranged support rollers, and that said guiding means consist of along said side edge portions of the cover plate member secured toothed racks and of therewith parallel side members of the cover plate member as said gear wheels at the respective ends of the common shaft are in engagement with the toothed racks which engagement is ensured by the engagement of the support rollers with said side members. In a simple manner the common shaft at the rearside of the container in this way may form a two-sided parallel guiding for the cover plate member as well as a swing axis for the this . Appropriately, said guiding means (the toothed racks) course along said side edge portions of the cover plate member from the rearside thereof and inwards to about the middle of the cover plate member which in the closed condition of the con¬ tainer project a little over said rearside wall of the con¬ tainer . In order to minimize the downwards projecting of the cover plate member into the collecting receptacles during emptying of the container is preferable inside the container between said rearside wall and the cover plate member interconnected such flexible link means with specific length that the cover plate member, when this is turned downwards, i.e. during emptying of the container, is automatically forced to also be rearwardly displaced in relation to the container - at the same time the cover plate member is swung outwardly in relation to the container body. And said flexible link means may appropriatly consist of simple chains which are secured inside to the rearside wall and to the underside of the co¬ ver plate member close to the internal ends of said toothed racks, respectively. Alternatively, the container may be such constructed that it along opposite upper side wall portions is provided with guiding means which are adapted to cooperate with such interconnected and such shaped engagement means at opposite side edge portions that the cover plate member by displace¬ ment and swinging, respectively, in relation to the contai¬ ner body may retain its orientation with said side edge por- tions course approximately parallel to said side wall por¬ tions, and that the container at opposite side wall are pro¬ vided with upper approximate horizontal carrying side mem¬ bers for support rollers mounted at said side edge portions of the cover plate member. In the following the invention is described in more details, reference being made to the accompanying drawing, in which:- Figs. 1A - 1C are plane side views illustrating the handling principle of the container according to the invention. Fig. 2 a view showing the combined displacement and swinging principle by the cover plate member of a container according to the invention, Figs. 3A - 3C are side views showing manual displacement and swinging of the cover plate member of a container according to the invention. Fig. 4 shows in more steps how the cover plate member of the container according to the invention is swung out whwn the container - during the emptying operation is turned around, Fig. 5 a side view - parltly in section - of an embodiment for a container according to the invention, while Fig. 6 is a cross sectional view through a corner part of a container according to the invention. In Figs. 1A - 1C is shown a lorry 2 with a collecting recep- tacle 4, a closeably filling opening 6 and a front mounted fork-lift 8 with lifting forks or lifting arms 10. Besides is shown a container 12 according to the invention with a cover plate member 14. In Fig. 1A the container 12 is ready to be emptyed by means of the fork-lift 8 of the lorry, the lifting arms 10 of which are inserted into side mountings 16 secured to the opposite external sides of the container 12. The insertion of the lifting arms 10 is carryied out by forward driving with the lorry 2 since the driver from the driver's cab may control the whole emptying operation. In Fig. IB the container 12 has already been lifted upwards/ rearwards across the driver's cab of the lorry and the con¬ tainer 12 is being turned over the filling opening 6 which before the emptying operation as been opened by swinging up¬ wards/rearwards of a lid 18 having arched side parts 20 which when the lid 18 is swung down over the filling opening are placed along opposite outer sides of the collecting re¬ ceptacle 4 which furthermore comprise an internal compacting system which continuously causes compacting and rearwards displacement of the waste towards an emptying opening at the back of the lorry 2. In Fig. 1C the container 12 has been further turned around so that the cover plate member 14 - as shown in more steps - has automatically been opened by a combined displacement and swinging movement in relation to the container 12, so that the contents of waste or other ma¬ terial may be emptyed into the collecting receptacle 4. It should be mentioned that the container 12 in Fig. 1C ought to be swung yet a little further back towards the lid 18. And it ought to be shown more clearly in Fig. 1C that the cover plate member 14 of the container 12 in fact projects down into the collecting receptacle 4. After the emptying of the container 12 this is swung and carried back and is again placed on the ground and the cover plate member 14 is simultaneously carried back to its normal closing position on the container 12. Fig. 2 shows a preferred guiding principle between the con¬ tainer 12 and the cover plate member 14. The later is at least along a partial length of opposite side edge portions provided with a toothed rack 22 and with preferable quite surrounding frame 24. The container is preferably at an up¬ per side edge of a rearside wall 26 provided with a trans¬ verse shaft 28 - se also Figs. 5 and 6 - which is pivotally supported on rearwardly projecting bearing brackets 30 secured to tyhe rearside wall 26. On opposite ends of the shaft 28 is secured gear wheels 32 which are engaging with the toothed racks 22, and outside the gear wheels 32 are pivotally arranged on the ends of the shaft 28 supporting rollers 34 which by engaging the top side of side portions of the frame 24 ensures correct and constant engagement bet¬ ween the grar wheels 32 and the toothed racks 22 so that the cover plate member 14 retains its correct orientation with the side edge portions perpendicular to the rearside wall 26 since an internal portion of the gear wheels 32 is further- more guided along the internal side of said side portions of the frame 24. Besides the cover plate member 14 by means of carrying rollers 36 mounted at front corners in the frame 24 rolling supported on an upper side edge portion of an upper surrounding frame 38 of the container body, i.e. that the cover plate member 14 is rolling supported in relation to the container body by menas of partly the gear wheels 32, the supporting rollers 34 and the carrying rollers 36 so that the cover plate member 14 is easy to displace manually in the rearward direction - as shown in Figs. 3A - 3C. In cases, where the container 12 is being filled or loaded by means of excavator or the like, it is easy to open the upper side of the container by first pushing the cover plate member 14 rearwards (Fig. 3B) and thereafter to swing the cover plate member downwards to the position shown in Fig. 3C, where the container body is open for manual or mechanical filling with material. The length of the toothed racks 22 and the position of end stop means 40 for these are such adjusted that the cover plate member 14 being almost in equilibrium when the cover plate member 14 is carried enti¬ rely rearwards in relation to the container body, i.e. that no considerable use of force is needed for manual.opening of the container 12. In Figs. 3A - 3C and Fig. 4 is shown external guiding rods 42 mounted between the cover plate member 14 and the contai¬ ner 12. These guiding rods 42 which in practice is substi¬ tuted by internal chains being secured at almost the same positions of the respective parts, the cover plate member 14 and the rearside wall 26 serve to limit the carrying down- wards of the cover plate member 14 when this - during the emptying of the container 12 - due to the influence of the gravity is swung downwards/rearwards - so that the cover plate member in stead automatically is forced also to be displaced rearwards/upwards in relation to the container 12 cfr. Fig. 4, where the swinging out of the cover plate mem- ber 14 is shown in more steps. For manual handling of the cover plate member 14 this may be provided with not shown handles at the front and rear sides.

Claims: C L A I M S : 1. A waste container being adapted to handle - e.g. by emp¬ tying - by means of lifting arms or lifting forks mounted at the front of a vehicle, said container by emptying being adapted to be lifted and swung upwards/rearwards across the driver's cab of the vehicle to an emptying position over a collecting receptacle on the vehicle as the container com¬ prises one or more filling shutters or doors and a wall por¬ tions which can be opened for emptying and/or filling and insertion means for said lifting forks, c h a r a c t e ¬ r i z e d in that the wall portion which can be opened con¬ sists of an upper preferable plane cover plate member which at opposite side portions are swingably and displaceably connected with upper side edge portions of the container in such a manner that the cover plate member when this is turned upwards, i.e. when the container is standing on the ground, may be displaced and may be swung away from the container in order to open one side thereof, that the cover plate member, when this is turned downwards, i.e. during the emptying of the container, automatically during displacement may be swung away from the container in order to emptying of this, and that the cover plate member, when this is again turned upwards, i.e. after the emptying of the container, automatically during displacement may again be swung back- wards for closing the container. 2. A container according to claims 1, c h a r a c t e r i ¬ z e d in that it at a rear side wall comprises interconnec¬ ted engagement means being adapted to cooperate with such shaped guiding means along opposite side edge portions of the cover plate member that this by displacement and swing¬ ing, respectively, in relation to the container body may retain its orientation with said side edge portions may course approximately perpendicular to an upper edge portion of the rear side wall, and that the container at opposite side walls is provided with upper approximate horizontal carrying side members for support rollers mounted at said edge portions of the cover plate member. 3. A container according to claim 2, c h a r a c t e r i ¬ z e d in that said engagement means consist of gear wheels secured to opposite ends of a common shaft being pivotally arranged in suitable bearing brackets secured to the rearside wall and of outside the gear wheels on the shaft pivotally arranged support rollers, and that said guiding means consist of along said side edge portions of the cover plate member secured toothed racks and of therewith parallel side members of the cover plate member as said gear wheels at the respective ends of the common shaft are in engagement with the toothed racks which engagement is ensured by the engagement of the support rollers with said side members. 4. A container according to claim 2, c h a r a c t e r i ¬ z e d in that said guiding means stretching along said side edge portions of the cover plate member from the rearside thereof and inwards to about the middle of the cover plate member which in the closed condition of the container project a little over said rearside wall of the container. 5. A container accoring to claims 1 - 4, c h a r a c t e ¬ r i z e d in that preferable inside the container between said rearside wall and the cover plate member being inter¬ connected such flexible link means with specific length that the cover plate member, when this is turned downwards, i.e. during emptying of the container, is automatically forced to also be rearwardly displaced in relation to the container at the same time the cover plate member is swung outwardly in relation to the container body. 6. A container according to claim 5, c h a r a c t e r i ¬ z e d in that said flexible link means consist of simple chains which are secured inside to the rearside wall and to the innerside of the cover plate member close to the inner ends of said toothed racks, respectively. 7. A container according to claim 1, c h a r a c t e r i ¬ z e d in that it along opposite upper side wall portions is provided with guiding means which are adapted to cooperate with such interconnected and such shaped engagement means at opposite side edge portions that the cover plate member by displacement and swinging, respectively, in relation to the container body may retain its orientation with said side edge portions course approximately parallel to said side wall portions, and that the container at opposite side wall are provided with upper approximate horizontal carrying side members for support rollers mounted at said side edge por¬ tions of the cover plate member.

Inventors: JENSEN TORBEN BUSK, JENSEN, TORBEN, BUSK
Applicants: VECTO HYDRAULIC A S, VECTO HYDRAULIC A/S
Application year: 1989
Main classification: B65F1
IPC codes: B65F1