Abstract:
A tray comprising a body having a front wall, back wall and a pair of side walls, a lip extending from the back wall and having a downwardly extending terminal portion to facilitate hooking on an upstanding flange. The back wall having a recess formed therein to accommodate a protuberance on a flange on which it is supported.

Description:
[0001]     This application claims priority from U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/490,524 filed on Jul. 29, 2003 and U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/529,741 filed on Dec. 17, 2003. 
     
    
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION  
       [0002]     The present invention relates to garbage receptacles.  
       DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART  
       [0003]     In environments where a working surface such as a counter is used, clean up involves wiping down the surface and any unwanted material is gathered for disposal into a trash receptacle. In a kitchen or a workshop where counter tops require frequent cleaning, it can be awkward to transfer the unwanted material to a trash receptacle that may be positioned on the ground at a lower level than the top of the counter. The distance between the counter top surface and trash receptacle opening may result in unwanted material being misplaced on the floor surrounding the trash receptacle, which creates another mess to clean. The thickness of the countertops and small overhang makes it difficult to collect the garbage so that some material may fall along the front surface of the desk or counter and especially when the material is wet or tacky, this material can stick to the front surfaces.  
         [0004]     In areas such as a kitchen, workshop or office, the counter tops that require cleaning are built on cabinets that are provided with closures such as drawers or cupboard doors beneath the counter top. These impede the positioning of a garbage receptacle and the placement of a receptacle in front of the closures likewise impedes access to the cabinets.  
         [0005]     There exists receptacle trays that are adapted to hook on the ledge of a table to collect items swept off of the table, for example poker chips. U.S. Pat. No. 2,707,141 to Witter shows a tray that includes a means for hooking onto a ledge that is provided in combination with a table. The particular application of focus is a folding game table top. This type of tray requires the installation of a bracket to accommodate the hook of the tray. In the environment described herein, the design shown by Witter would not be suitable as it requires the installation of a bracket and therefore would not be flexible as to its position along the length of the surface to which it is affixed, nor would the presence of a bracket be aesthetically pleasing. Moreover, the presence of the bracket would affect the operation of doors and drawers associated with the counter top.  
         [0006]     It is therefore an object of the present invention to obviate or mitigate at least one of the above mentioned disadvantages.  
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0007]     In one embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a tray that comprises a lip for detachably mounting the tray on an upstanding flange such as the edge of a cupboard door or the front member of a drawer. The tray includes an angled back wall extending outwardly from the lip to accommodate the presence of a handle which may be mounted on the front surface of the drawer or cupboard. The tray may also comprise spacers attached to the outer face of the back wall of the tray to support the tray against the drawer or door, keeping the tray at a substantially level horizontal position while continuing to accommodate the presence of drawer or door handles.  
         [0008]     Additional features that may be incorporated into different embodiments include removable spacers that can substitute in various lengths depending on the nature of the environment, measuring lines on the side walls, a spout for assisting in pouring out contents of the tray and removable or permanent divider walls to compartmentalize the interior of the tray. In addition, a raised front wall may be included to reduce spills while wiping the working surface, an interior ledge to support a filter or strainer, one or more auxiliary holders, adjustable lip for mounting the tray on flanges of varying sizes, a hole for draining the contents of the tray and a handle to assist in transport or movement of the tray.  
         [0009]     In another embodiment of the present invention, the tray is constructed without a bottom base. This open bottom will allow the use of a disposable waste bag which can be attached to the upper edge of the tray and can hang through the open bottom.  
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0010]     These and other features of the preferred embodiments of the invention will become more apparent in the following detailed description in which reference is made to the appended drawings wherein;  
         [0011]      FIG. 1  is a typical kitchen counter with drawer, cupboard and a counter top garbage tray mounted on the drawer;  
         [0012]      FIG. 2  is side view of a garbage tray attached to a drawer;  
         [0013]      FIG. 3  is a top view of a garbage tray attached to a drawer;  
         [0014]      FIG. 4  is a zoomed view of a spring tensioned, adjustable lip;  
         [0015]      FIG. 5  is a top view of a garbage tray with removable spacers;  
         [0016]      FIG. 6  is a top view of a garbage tray with interior divider walls;  
         [0017]      FIG. 7  is a top view of a garbage tray with auxiliary holders;  
         [0018]      FIG. 8  is a top view of a garbage tray with a drain hole;  
         [0019]      FIG. 9  is a zoomed view of a drain hole plugged with a stopper;  
         [0020]      FIG. 10  is a side view of a garbage tray with a raised front wall;  
         [0021]      FIG. 11  is a side view of a garbage tray with an interior ledge and strainer;  
         [0022]      FIG. 12  is a side view of a garbage tray with a carrying handle;  
         [0023]      FIG. 13  is a side view of a garbage tray with a carrying handle and feet;  
         [0024]      FIG. 14  is a side view of a garbage tray with measuring lines;  
         [0025]      FIG. 15  is a side view of a garbage tray with an open bottom and disposable garbage bag attached.  
         [0026]      FIG. 16  is a side view of a further embodiment of tray.  
         [0027]      FIG. 17  is a view of the line XVII-XVII of  FIG. 16 .  
         [0028]      FIG. 18  is a sectional view of a plurality of trays stacked.  
         [0029]      FIG. 19  is a view similar to  FIG. 18  of an alternative embodiment of trays.  
         [0030]      FIG. 20  is a view similar to  FIG. 18  of a still further embodiment.  
     
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS  
       [0031]     Referring now to the drawings and particularly to  FIG. 1 , a typical working surface includes a counter top  12  supported on a cupboard  13  with closures in the form of a door  14  and a drawer  16 . The drawer  16  has a front  32  with an upstanding flange  21 . The counter top  12  overhangs the front edge of the cupboard to protect the closures from drips or the like. A garbage tray  18  is mounted to the front of the drawer  16  so as to project beyond the edge of the top  12 .  
         [0032]     The main features of the garbage tray  18  are most apparent in reference to  FIGS. 2 and 3 , which show both the side and top views, respectively, of the tray  18  as mounted to a drawer  16 . The body of the tray  18  is integrally moulded from a plastic material and, includes a front wall  34 , bottom base  30 , sidewalls  36 , back wall  26  and open top  28 . The back wall  26  has an upper slopped portion  26   a  and lower vertical portion  26   b  to define a recess as indicated at  27  to accommodate a drawer handle  20  which is fixed to the front  32  of the drawer  16 .  
         [0033]     The tray  18  is detachably mounted on the upstanding flange  21  of the front  32  of the drawer  16  by way of a lip  22  that projects rearwardly from the upper edge of the back wall  26  and hooks around the upstanding flange  21 . The lip  22  is thin so as to allow the drawer  16  to close completely, and allow the rear portion of the tray  18  to be positioned beneath the overhang of the counter top  12 . The lip  22  has a degree of flexibility to allow it to accommodate different thickness of flange  21  as it is used in different locations. The lip  22  grips the flange  21  while allowing the tray  18  to be readily removed and placed in a different location.  
         [0034]     The tray  18  is held substantially in a level horizontal position by way of a pair of spacers  24 . The spacers  24  are attached to the exterior face of the back wall  26  and extend from this face to rest against the outer face of the front member  32  of the drawer  16 . It will be appreciated that the shape of the back wall  26  may be of any contour while continuing to extend outwardly to accommodate the presence of a handle  20 . Furthermore, the spacers  24  may be of any shape, size or orientation while continuing to prop the tray  18 , in the manner described herein.  
         [0035]     As can been seen most clearly in  FIG. 3 , the spacers  24  are positioned at spaced locations along the tray  18 , between the two side walls  36  so as to avoid the drawer handle  20 . Also shown in  FIG. 3 , is a typical location for a cupboard door knob  38 . It can be seen that the position of the spacers  24  also accommodates the typical location of a cupboard door knob  38 . This view furthermore shows the nature of the lip  22  that hooks over the upstanding flange  21  of the front member  32  of the drawer  16 . It can be appreciated that the lip  22  may be provided as one continuous piece or provided as shown with two symmetrical members and any number of spacers  24  may be used as needed in the particular application. It is also possible to exclude the spacers  24 , particularly if there is no need to prop the tray  18  in a level, horizontal manner and rely upon the tray  18  resting against the drawer or door handle  20  if necessary. This is possible due to the slanted and outwardly extending nature of the back wall  26 .  
         [0036]     When in use, the tray is positioned on the drawer front by sliding the lip  22  over the flange  21 . With the drawer closed, the tray is positioned beneath the edge of the counter top. In this position the tray  18  collects any unwanted material that is wiped or swept from the surface of the counter top  12  in the direction of the tray  18  to fall within the basin of the tray  18 . To perform this task most effectively, the drawer  16  must be in a closed position with the tray  18  positioned partially beneath the overhang of the counter top  12 . This creates a continuous surface to ensure that all of the material being wiped or swept from the surface of the counter top  12  is collected within the tray  18 . The tray  18  however, is mounted such that the drawer  16  may be opened if access to the drawer  16  is required.  
         [0037]     The tray  18  is mounted by hooking the lip  22  around the upstanding flange  21  of the front member  32  of the drawer  16  and allowing the spacers  24  to rest against the front face of the drawer  16  which maintains the tray  18  in a substantially level and horizontal orientation. The spacers  24  prop the tray  18  away from the drawer handle  20  which allows the tray  18  to be used on any drawer  16  or cupboard door without the need for additional hardware such as a bracket or without any modifications such as the removal of a drawer handle  20 .  
         [0038]     When the tray is full or the preparation finished, the tray may be removed and taken to the garbage for disposal.  
         [0039]     The lip  22  may be adjustable as shown in  FIG. 4 . An inner L-shaped lip  40  is slideably attached within the upper horizontal member  42  of the back wall  26  and tensioned using a spring  44 . This configuration allows the tray  18  to be adjustable to accommodate drawers  16  and drawer handles  20  of various sizes. It is appreciated that the lip  22  may be adjustable by means other than that of a spring  44 , such as by use of a pin and a series of holes or any other known method of securing a pair of relative moving members in multiple positions.  
         [0040]     Further modifications can be made to maintain adjustability of the tray  18  to accommodate different configurations of drawer. Making reference now to  FIG. 5 , the spacers  24  may be removable. The rear wall  26  is formed with a pair of slots  52  that receive a t-shaped removable prop  50 . The prop may vary in size to accommodate various drawer  16  configurations.  
         [0041]     In some situations it may be beneficial to be able to empty the contents of the tray  18  while it remains in its operable position. As illustrated in  FIG. 8  and  FIG. 9 , to allow this to occur the tray  18  can be modified to include a drain hole  80  within the bottom base  30  and a stopper  90  which seals the tray  18  until emptying is required. In a situation where continuous quantities of small material is accumulated within the tray  18 , the user may remove the plug  90  from the bottom base  30  allowing the contents to drain or if necessary to be rinsed from the tray  18  into a bucket or additional garbage receptacle located beneath the drain hole  80 . It may be appreciated that the stopper  90  may plug the drain hole  80  by being applied to either the inner or outer surface of the bottom base  30  and is up to the discretion of the user.  
         [0042]     In other situations, it may be desirable to empty the tray by pouring its contents using a spout  60  as seen most clearly in  FIG. 6 . The material collected in the tray  18  may be of a desirable kind and could, for example, be vegetables that have been chopped on the surface of the counter top  12 . In this situation, as shown in  FIG. 14 , the side walls  36  can be of a transparent material that would allow measuring lines  140  to be marked. The user may then empty the contents of the tray  18  using the spout  60 , when the proper amount of material is accumulated as indicated by comparison with the measuring lines  140 . Also shown in  FIG. 6  is a set of dividers  62  that can compartmentalize the tray  18  if desired. This may be especially useful when the tray  18  is used to accumulate desirable material from the counter top  12 . The dividers  62  may be permanent, but it is most desirable for them to be removable.  
         [0043]     Other additional features can be incorporated, especially for use in a kitchen environment. As see in  FIG. 7 , auxiliary holders can be built in to the walls of the tray  18 . One form could be of a pouch shape  70  to hold large objects such as a scraper  74 . Another form could be of a rack with slots  72  to hold utensils such as knives. It may be appreciated that these are only examples of useful auxiliary holders and may exist in various forms as required by the particular environment and situation. As shown in  FIG. 11 , an inner ledge  110  may be incorporated to accommodate the use of a strainer or filter  112 . This may also be useful in a kitchen environment where unwanted fluids can be strained into the basin of the tray  18 .  
         [0044]     The basic shape of the tray  18  may be modified to incorporate other additional features depending on the application. As can be seen in  FIG. 10 , the front wall  100  can be extended to be of a higher profile then the top opening  28  of the tray  18 . A high front wall  100  is beneficial for catching material as it is swept off of the working surface  12  towards the opening  28  of the tray  18 . Referring now to  FIG. 12  and  FIG. 13 , protrusions  120  of the front wall  34  can act as a handle for transporting or moving the tray  18 . Additionally, modifications to the shape of the bottom base  122 ,  130  are useful for standing the tray  18  in an upright position.  
         [0045]     In another embodiment of the present invention, the tray  18  described herein may comprise of an open top and an open bottom  150  as shown in  FIG. 15 . This particular configuration is most useful in an environment where the material being cleaned from the working surface  12  is of the type that will be discarded. The open bottom  150  allows for a disposable garbage bag  152  to be folded over the top rim  154  of the tray  18  and the remainder of the bag will fall through the open bottom  150 . The rim  154  is formed with a flared skirt  156  and hooks  158  along its forward and side edges to secure the bag to the tray  18 . A groove  160  is formed on the rear edge to accommodate the bag  152  and allow the drawer to close.  
         [0046]     A further embodiment is shown in  FIGS. 16 and 17 . A tray  18  has a sloped front wall  34  that merges smoothly with base  30 . The back wall  26  has a pair of channels  130  integrally moulded in the back wall  26  to provide spacers  24 . The upper edge of back wall  26  is inclined to merge with the lip  22 .  
         [0047]     A seal  132  is secured to the lip  22  so as to project upwardly along the major extent of the lip. The seal  132  is flexible and tapers to its upper tip so as to be able to conform to the underside of countertop  12 . The seal  132  may be formed from a number of plastics or rubber material and may be integrally moulded with the tray  18  if preferred.  
         [0048]     In operation, the lip  22  may engage the top edge of a drawer or door with the cannels  130  abutting the front. As the drawer is closed, the seal engages the countertop and forms an effective seal to prevent ingress of debris into the drawer.  
         [0049]     The tray  18  is contoured to be stackable with similar trays by virtue of the tapered front wall, sidewalls and channels to facilitate storage and transportation. As shown in  FIG. 18 , the stackability may be enhanced by the provision of a foot  130 , similar to that shown in  FIG. 13  to maintain separation of the units.  
         [0050]     Alternatively, as shown in  FIG. 19 , the skirt  162  can depend from the rim of front face  34  and sides  26  and the rim of the lower tray in the stack.  
         [0051]     As a further alternative, as shown in  FIG. 20 , ribs  164  may be moulded on the exterior of rear face  26  and on the interior of front face  34  to support the trays in stacked configuration.  
         [0052]     In each embodiment, the tray  18  is positioned to provide a container beneath the edge of the counter top that does not interfere with the use of the drawer or cupboard on which it is mounted. It may readily be removed to facilitate storage when not in use or work at different areas of the counter top.  
         [0053]     Although the invention has been described with reference to certain specific embodiments, various modifications thereof will be apparent to those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as outlined in the claims appended hereto.