Patent Publication Number: US-6338829-B1

Title: Apparatus for breaking garbage bags

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to an apparatus for breaking garbage bags that contain waste materials like food and beverage containers. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     In conventional processes, waste materials like beverage and food containers are packed in plastic garbage bags and collected in a pit. The bags are broken and the waste materials are separated, recycled or compressed in volume. 
     Liquid waste coming out of the broken bags has offensive odors and must be cleaned by a considerable amount of water. The water used for cleaning the floor or the pit must be appropriately treated to prevent contamination of the environment. 
     An object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus for breaking garbage bags, which does not require any cleaning work to cope with liquid waste coming out of the broken garbage bags. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     According to the present invention, there is provided an apparatus for breaking garbage bags, comprising: 
     a bag breaking mechanism for breaking the Input garbage bags containing waste materials; and 
     a liquid waste processor including a removable liquid waste absorbent sheet that is arranged to absorb liquid waste coming out of the broken garbage bags, 
     wherein said liquid waste absorbent sheet containing the liquid waste is removed. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1 is a simplified illustration of an apparatus for breaking garbage bags according to the present invention. 
     FIG. 2 is a plan view of a preferred implementation of an apparatus for breaking garbage bags. 
     FIG. 3 is a front plan view of the apparatus shown in FIG.  2 . 
     FIG. 4 is a side view, partly broken away, of the apparatus shown in FIG.  2 . 
     FIG. 5 is an enlarged view of a garbage bag breaking mechanism. 
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     Referring to FIG. 1, the reference numeral  1  designates a garbage bag breaking mechanism and the reference numeral  2  a liquid waste processor. The breaking mechanism  1  is a mechanism for breaking garbage bags to allow waste materials to come out of the garbage bags. The water processor  2  includes a liquid waste absorption sheet  3  for absorbing liquid waste coming out of the bags. After absorbing liquid waste, the sheet  3  can be removed for the subsequent disposal or reuse. 
     FIGS. 2 and 3 illustrate the preferred implementation according to the present invention. A liquid waste processor  2  in this implementation includes a liquid waste absorption sheet  3  extending below a garbage bag breaking mechanism  1  between a feed reel  4  and a take-up reel  5 . A driver  6  is provided to turn the take-up reel  5  continuously or intermittently in a rotational direction to wind up the sheet  3 . 
     The function imposed on the reel  5  is to roll the sheet  3 . Thus, the simplest form of the reel is a core which may be turned to roll the sheet. 
     The liquid waste absorption sheet  3 , which is made of polyacrylic acid soda, can absorb water due to osmotic pressure. It can absorb water inward of its resin due to high affinity between hydrophilic group “—COOH” or “—COONa” within high water absorptive resin and water. It is insoluble in water and can absorb and hold water several to 1000 times as much as its own weight. 
     In FIGS. 2 and 3, a guide roller  7  is positioned between the feed and take-up reels  4  and  5  to change a direction, through 90 degrees, in which the liquid waste absorption sheet  3  is sent. The provision of the guide roller  7  is to cope with restricted Installation space within the apparatus. Preferably, the feed and take-up reels  4  and  5  are at two distant locations spaced along a line along which the liquid waste absorption sheet  3  extends below the bag breaking mechanism  1 . 
     Referring to FIG. 1, the bag breaking mechanism  1  includes a movable portion  8  and a stationary portion  9 . The movable portion  8  gives a movement to the input garbage bags B. The stationary portion  9  extends into the path of movement of the garbage bags B to break the bags B Into fragments. 
     Referring to FIG. 5, the bag breaking mechanism  1  includes, within a frame  15 , a hopper  10 , a rotary-vane feeder  11 , a conveyer  12  and a bag breaker preferably In the form of pawls  13 . The hopper  10  has, at its bottom, an aperture positioned above an upstream end of the conveyer  12 . The rotary-vane feeder  11  is mounted within the hopper  10 . The rotary-vane feeder  11  rotates in one direction and regulates flow of garbage bags B to allow the garbage bags B to drop on the conveyer  12  at a constant rate. 
     The conveyer  12  has attached thereto a plurality of distant support structures  16 . The support structures  18  are spaced equidistant along a direction of movement of the conveyer  12 . As best seen in FIG. 4, each of the support structures  18  is formed with cutouts  17 . The pawls  13  of the stationary portion  9  are suspended over the conveyer  12 . The pawls  13  are arranged in at least two trains, which trains are spaced laterally with respect to the direction of movement of the conveyer  12 . Each train of pawls  13  is aligned with one of the cutouts  17  of each support structure  18 . As shown in FIG. 4, a trough  18  below the conveyer  12  receives liquid waste coming out of the bags B to guide the liquid waste to the water absorbent sheet  3  within the liquid waste processor  2 , The trough-like gutter  18  extends obliquely in a downward direction from one side edge of the conveyer  12  toward below the opposite side edge thereof. 
     The Input garbage bags B, which contain waste materials T, thrown into the hopper  10  are discharged onto the conveyer  12  at a regulated rate determined by rotational speed of the rotary-vane feeder  11 . Each of the bags B that have been dropped onto the conveyer  12  between the adjacent two support structures  16  are transported in the one direction and come into engagement with the claws  13  to be broken into fragments. The conveyer  12  transports the waste materials coming out of the broken bag B. It has been confirmed that some garbage bags B were partially damaged by the vanes of the feeder  11  but the damaged bags B did not discharge the waste materials T upon being dropped onto the conveyer  12 . 
     The waste materials T drops from a terminal end of the conveyer  12  into a chute  19 . A fan  20  is mounted adjacent the terminal end or the conveyer  12  and operative to send air to the surface of the conveyer  12  from the terminal end thereof, thereby to separate the fragments of the bags B and the waste materials  1 . 
     Liquid waste coming out of the broken bags B drops down from the conveyer  12  onto the trough-like gutter  18 . Then, the liquid waste flows along the trough-like gutter  18  down to the liquid waste absorbent sheet  3 . The liquid waste absorbent sheet  3  can absorb all of the liquid waste coming from the trough-like gutter  18 . 
     The take-up reel  5  winds a portion of the liquid waste absorbent sheet  3  that has absorbed the liquid waste, while the feed reel  4  supplies fresh portion of the liquid waste absorbent sheet  3  under the conveyer  12 . The liquid waste absorbent sheet  3  that has absorbed the liquid waste is removed from the take-up reel  5  for appropriate treatment to the subsequent disposal or reuse. 
     The rate at which the liquid waste absorbent sheet  3  is supplied to below the conveyer  12  by the feed reel  4  is determined on the estimated amount of liquid waste coming out of the garbage bags B and the absorbent performance of the sheet  3 . The supply may be intermittent or continuous. 
     The above-described preferred implementation of the present invention is an example implementation. Moreover various modifications to the present invention may occur to those skilled in the art and will fall within the scope of the present invention as set forth below.