Patent Publication Number: US-9889988-B2

Title: Waste receptacle attachment for composting kitchen waste

Description:
RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application claims the benefit of the priority filing date of U.S. provisional patent application Ser. No. 62/249,311, entitled “Waste Collection Device,” which was filed on Nov. 1, 2015. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND 
     The present invention generally relates to waste collection. More specifically, the present invention relates to collection of organic waste in a sealed apparatus adjacent a conventional waste receptacle. 
     Collecting and separating various forms of household kitchen waste is increasingly prevalent, as it reduces the quantity of residential waste sent to landfills. Separated organic waste from cooking and similar activities is typically stored in compost bins. When full, such compost bins may be emptied into a composting apparatus and reused. 
     Due to frequency of use, compost bins typically reside in or adjacent a user&#39;s kitchen, where the user must locate or create a convenient storage space for the compost bin. Compost bins currently known in the art are sized for keeping in a bottom cabinet or may be designed for installation in kitchen walls or cabinets, or those of an adjoining room. Some compost bins are simply placed on a kitchen countertop. 
     These existing products often take up a large amount of space and may be difficult to keep out of sight, requiring decorative elements to help hide the compost bin or help it blend in with kitchen decor. Other existing compost bins focus on functionality, offering different ways to open the receptacle and discard its contents. Some have features promoting a composting process in the receptacle, with a focus on air flow, a specialized shape, or even a mechanism for churning the organic waste. 
     Existing compost bins have various shortcomings making organic waste collection for composting a difficult and undesirable process. For example, having any receptacle filled with organic waste exposed on a countertop is undesirable. In some cases, insufficient space is available, and no matter where located, compost bins are messy by their very nature. Due to odors of decomposing organic waste, even after a few hours, compost bins must be lidded to avoid becoming a nuisance. Decomposing organic waste is also wet, thus opening and closing such a receptacle is messy regardless of the care exercised by a user. Larger compost bins maintained in cabinets or in adjoining rooms avoid the unsightly appearance of countertop compost bin, but are inconvenient due to their distance from food preparation areas, and due to their size which can make emptying theirs difficult. Furthermore, many existing products use a substantial amount of plastic or other material, which is counterproductive in terms of resource use and taking up landfill space when discarded. 
     As with any new technology designed to help conserve resources, a compost bin is more readily adopted if made as easy as possible to install and use. Hence, what is needed is a compost bin that segregates organic waste for composting away from direct contact with the ambient air, which is sized appropriately for quantities of organic waste typically produced in residential kitchens, which can be hidden away but is still located at or near food preparation areas without the limitations of existing techniques, and which is less messy. 
     SUMMARY 
     An apparatus for isolating compostable material in a kitchen waste receptacle includes a holder panel having a releasable attachment for suspending the apparatus in the waste receptacle and a cradle panel having art aperture, with the cradle panel hingedly coupled to the holder panel and movable between a first position coplanar with the holder panel and a second position non-coplanar with the holder panel. A bag retainer is seated in the aperture for releasably holding a compost bag therebetween, with the bag retainer defining an opening of the compost bag. The opening is occluded by the waste receptacle, and hanging compost bag and waste when the cradle panel is in the first position, and the opening is clear when the cradle panel is in the second position. 
     The holder panel may include an arced portion in substantially peripheral contour with the aperture, and the bag retainer may extend through the arced portion when the cradle panel is brought against the holder panel in the first position. Optionally, the releasable attachment may comprise hook members positionally adjustable relative to the holder panel, and the cradle panel may include a lock for releasably engaging the holder panel, thereby maintaining the cradle panel in the first position if the apparatus is not in use. 
     For ease of compost bag installation, the aperture is preferably elliptical, with the bag retainer extending through the aperture. The bag retainer preferably includes a lip which is larger in circumference than the aperture, and at least one catch opposite the lip for releasably engaging the aperture. A hinge mechanism couples the cradle panel to the holder panel, and may include an articulating strut and slider channel to urge the cradle panel along the waste receptacle when opening to ensure clear folding to the closed position. 
     An alternative embodiment apparatus for collecting compostable organic kitchen waste is characterized by a compost bag having an opening turned around a bag retainer, with the bag retainer seated in an aperture of a cradle panel, such that the compost bag is held between the bag retainer and the aperture. The cradle panel is hingedly coupled to a holder panel, and the cradle panel is configured to rotate the bag retainer sufficient to occlude the opening with the compost bag. 
     The opening preferably faces a waste receptacle when cradle panel rests against the holder panel, and an adjustable releasable attachment is coupled to the holder panel for suspending the apparatus in a waste receptacle. The cradle panel also comprises a lock for releasably engaging the holder panel, with the lock comprising a thumb tab for grasping the cradle panel. The bag retainer extends through the aperture and the aperture and the bag retainer define an ellipse for east of installation of the bag retainer in the aperture. The bag retainer also comprises a lip larger in circumference than the aperture, and a catch for releasably engaging the aperture. Preferably the compost bag is biodegradable. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES 
         FIG. 1  illustrates a compost collecting apparatus for waste receptacles in a closed configuration; 
         FIG. 2  illustrates the apparatus in an open configuration; 
         FIG. 3  illustrates the apparatus in the open configuration with a compost bag installed thereon for receiving compostable kitchen waste; 
         FIG. 4  illustrates the apparatus in the closed configuration with the compost bag installed thereon; 
         FIG. 5  illustrates the apparatus in the open configuration installed in a kitchen waste receptacle with the compost bag installed thereon; 
         FIG. 6  illustrates the apparatus in a closed configuration installed in a kitchen waste receptacle with the compost bag installed thereon: 
         FIG. 7  illustrates the apparatus having an alternative embodiment hinge mechanism with a flexible attachment mechanism; and 
         FIG. 8  illustrates the apparatus having an alternative embodiment attachment mechanism. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     The following description is presented to enable any person skilled in the art to make and use the invention, and is provided in the context of a particular application and its requirements. Various modifications to the disclosed embodiments will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, and the general principles defined herein may be applied to other embodiments and applications without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. Thus, the present invention is not limited to the embodiments shown, but is to be accorded the widest scope consistent with the principles and features disclosed herein. 
     Referring to  FIGS. 1-2 , a collection apparatus  10  for storing organic waste (not shown) prior to transfer for compositing comprises a holder panel  12  and a cradle panel  14  connected together by one or more hinge mechanisms  16 . The holder panel  12  includes one or more releasable attachments  18  for anchoring the apparatus  10  to a waste receptacle  100  ( FIGS. 5-6 ), preferably a conventional lipped kitchen waste receptacle  100 . The cradle panel  14  includes an aperture  20 , and a bag retainer  22  seats in the aperture  20 . Using the hinge mechanism  16 , the cradle panel  14  moves relative to the holder panel  12  from a first position coplanar with the holder panel  12  as shown in  FIG. 1  to a second position non-coplanar with the holder panel  12 , preferably but not necessarily perpendicular thereto, as shown in  FIG. 2 . 
     The releasable attachment  18  may comprise hook members  24 , adjustable relative to the holder panel  12 . In one embodiment the hook members  24  may include channels  26  for sliding relative to the holder panel  12 . For ease of adjustment, the hook members  24  may be aimed to the holder panel  12  using thumb screws  28 , allowing users to quickly and easily adjust the hook members&#39;  24  positions. By providing adjustable hook members  24 , the holder panel  12  can be suspended from a variety of kitchen waste bins  100  having a variety of different rim  102  thicknesses, and can even be suspended across a corner  104  of a waste bin  100 . 
     The cradle panel  14  includes a catch tab  30  for engaging a catch  32  on the holder panel  12  when the cradle panel  14  is folded up against the holder panel  12 . The catch tab  30  and catch  32  are preferably positioned to engage each other in a pressure fit and the catch tab  30  is sized such that a user can grasp the catch tab  30 , easily dislodge it from the catch  32  and allow the cradle panel  14  to fall into an open position under its own weight. The bag retainer  22  is preferably sized to extend both through the aperture  20  and extend around the edge of the aperture  20  to effectively trap and secure a compost bag  34  ( FIGS. 3-4 ) into which organic kitchen waste is placed prior to composting. The aperture  20  and bag retainer  22  are preferably formed in an ovoid shape to promote a user&#39;s ability to insert the bag retainer  22  (with a compost bag  34  placed thereon) through the aperture  20 , rotate it, and seat it in the aperture  20 . The bag retainer  22  includes a lip  36  that prevents it from falling through the aperture  20  under the weight of organic material in the compost bag  34 , and one or more releasable clips  38  located on the bag retainer  22  opposite the lip  36  hold the bag retainer  22  in the aperture  20  until released. Preferably the bag retainer  22  is sufficiently flexible to allow a user to easily deform the clips  38  for removing the bag retainer  22  and compost bag  34 , while also sufficiently resilient such that the lip  36  supports a significant amount of weight in the compost bag  34 . 
     The hinge mechanism  16  comprises a strut  40  and slider  42  allowing the cradle panel  14  to slide upward along the holder panel  12  as it rotates outward to allow access to the compost bag  34 . Preferably the strut  40  is hingedly attached to the holder panel  12  and to the cradle panel  14  by pegs  44 . A peg  44  also travels in the channel  46  of the slider  42 . The peg  44  extending through the slider  42  may also have a tab (not shown) or similar structure to prevent it from dislodging from the channel  46 . To make the apparatus  10  less expensive to manufacture and assemble, the slider  42  may be constructed separately from the holder panel  12  and attached thereto during assembly. 
     Referring to  FIGS. 3-6 , the collection apparatus  10  is shown with a compost bag  34  installed on the bag retainer  22  ( FIGS. 1-2 ) with the cradle panel  14  in open ( FIG. 4 ) and closed ( FIG. 5 ) positions, respectively. The compost bag  34  has an opening  48  which is held open by wrapping around the bag retainer  22  seated in the aperture  20 . When the cradle panel  14  is in the open configuration, the opening  48  is oriented upward, preferably co-planar with an opening (not shown) of the waste receptacle  100  on which the apparatus  10  is installed, allowing a user to easily separate kitchen waste into non-organic waste disposed in the waste bin, and organic waste disposed in the compost bag  34 . 
     When the cradle panel  14  is moved to a closed position, the opening  48  is oriented to the side, facing the waste receptacle  100 . Thus, the opening is obscured by the waste receptacle  100  preventing odors from decomposing organic material from escaping the compost bag  34 . In many instances, depending on the level of organic material in the compost bag  34 , moving the cradle panel  14  to a closed and upright position will also cause the compost bag  34  to fold over the opening  48  which also prevents odors from escaping the compost bag  34 . 
     Referring to  FIGS. 7-8  alternative embodiments of the apparatus  10  having different arrangements of hinge mechanisms releasable attachments may be employed according to preference. Referring to  FIG. 7 , an alternative embodiment hinge mechanism  116  is shown. The alternative embodiment hinge mechanism  116  represents a more conventional connection between the holder panel  12  and the cradle panel  14 . In this embodiment, a stop  118  is provided to support the cradle panel  14  in a substantially horizontal orientation when open. In this embodiment, flexible clips are preferably used to allow the apparatus  10  to be installed in a variety of positions. Referring to  FIG. 8 , an alternative embodiment releasable attachment  124  is shown. In lieu of hooks, the releasable attachment includes a series of engagements  126  on two arms  128  oriented to hold the engagements  126  on corresponding structures on a waste receptacle. 
     The foregoing descriptions of embodiments of the present invention have been presented only for purposes of illustration and description. They are not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the present invention to the forms disclosed. Accordingly, many modifications and variations will be apparent to practitioners skilled in the art. Additionally, the above disclosure is not intended to limit the present invention. The scope of the present invention is defined by the appended claims.