Abstract:
A laundry cart with a lid and motion damper is disclosed. The laundry cart has a frame for supporting a bag in use such that the bag defines an open receptacle, a lid attached to the frame for pivotal movement to and from a closed position, and a motion damper attached to the lid and to the frame and adapted to resist motion of the lid to the closed position.

Description:
RELATED APPLICATION 
       [0001]    This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 61/228,733, filed on Jul. 27, 2009, the disclosure of which is entirely incorporated herein by reference. 
     
    
     TECHNICAL FIELD 
       [0002]    The present application relates to laundry carts. 
       BACKGROUND 
       [0003]    Laundry carts equipped with lids are commonly used in hospitals or other institutional settings. These lids are often hinged and, for durability, are often relatively heavy and made out of relatively hard substances. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0004]    An apparatus for use with a bag having an opening forms one aspect of the invention. The apparatus comprises a frame for supporting said bag in use such that the bag defines an open receptacle; a lid having a closed position whereat, in use, the lid occludes the receptacle, the lid being attached to the frame for pivotal movement to and from the closed position and such that the lid, when in positions away from the closed position, is biased by gravity for movement to the closed position; and a motion damper attached to the lid and to the frame and adapted to resist motion of the lid to the closed position. 
         [0005]    According to another aspect of the invention, the frame and lid can collectively define a laundry bag cart. 
         [0006]    According to a further aspect of the invention, the apparatus can further comprise a linkage for opening the lid and a foot pedal for actuating the linkage. 
         [0007]    According to further aspects of the invention: the pivot axis in use can be disposed adjacent the top of the frame and on a side of the frame opposite that associated with the foot pedal; and the lid may have an edge substantially aligned with and adjacent to the pivot axis and extend therefrom substantially horizontally, when in the closed position, and substantially vertically, when in a fully open position for receiving laundry. 
         [0008]    According to a further aspect of the invention, the damper can comprise a cylinder and a piston. This piston is mounted in the cylinder for reciprocating movement, one of the cylinder and piston is pivotally connected to the frame and the other of the piston and cylinder is pivotally connected to the lid, adjacent to the pivot axis. 
         [0009]    According to a further aspect of the invention, the damper can be configured such that movement of the lid to the closed position is associated with retraction of the piston into the cylinder, and air flows more readily into the cylinder than out of the cylinder. 
         [0010]    According to further aspects of the invention
       the frame can include: a pair of upright portions, defining, in part, the side of the frame opposite that associated with the foot pedal; and a pintle bar rigidly extending between the upright portions;   the lid can include a pair of lugs, spaced apart from one another and through which the pintle bar extends, providing for said pivotal connection of the lid and the frame;   one of the cylinder and piston can be pivotally connected to one of the upright portions; and the other of the piston and cylinder can be pivotally connected to one of the lugs.       
 
         [0014]    Other advantages and features of the invention will become apparent to persons of ordinary skill in the art upon review of the appended claims and upon review of the following detailed description of an exemplary embodiment of the invention. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0015]      FIG. 1  is a side view of a laundry cart according to an exemplary embodiment of the invention; 
           [0016]      FIG. 2  is an enlarged perspective view of the top portion of the cart of  FIG. 1 ; 
           [0017]      FIG. 3  is a view similar to  FIG. 2 ; and 
           [0018]      FIG. 4  is a view of the cart of the exemplary embodiment. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS 
       [0019]    A laundry cart  2  with lid  16  according to an exemplary embodiment of the invention is drawn in side and perspective views in FIGS.  1 , 2  and shown in perspective in  FIGS. 3 and 4 . The cart  2  has a frame  3  formed from metal tubing. The frame  3  comprises a base  4 , two vertical supports  12 , and an upper rectangular rim  22  (hidden in  FIG. 1  by the lid  16 ). The substantially square lid  16  is made out of rigid plastic and is mounted near its back edge on top of the upper rim  22  by means of a hinge  14 . This allows the lid  16  to open or close by pivoting about the hinge  14 . A motion damper  18 , shown here as a pneumatic cylinder, is attached between the lid  16  and one of the supports  12 , acting as a linear motion damper or dashpot to slow the downward motion of the lid  16  when it is dropped or actively closed. This avoids pinched fingers and unwelcome noise associated with unrestrained closure. 
         [0020]    The base  4  has four wheels  6  rotationally mounted on its bottom surface, allowing the cart  2  to be moved easily. The base  4  also supports a foot pedal  8  mounted at its rear portion to the base  4  by means of a foot pedal hinge  9 . Forward of this hinge  9 , two arms  10  are pivotally attached to the foot pedal  8 . Each arm  10  comprises a pair of flat, elongate metal members joined end-to-end at a hinged joint  11 . The top end of each arm  10  is pivotally attached to a respective lug  19  extending along a rear protrusion  17  of lid  16  located to the rear of the lid hinge  14 . 
         [0021]    A laundry bag  24  (as indicated in dashed outline in  FIG. 1 ) can be attached to the upper rim  22  of the frame  3 , with its bottom resting on a horizontal surface  5  of the base  4 . In the exemplary embodiment shown, this surface  5  comprises a metal grill. 
         [0022]    The foot pedal assembly lifts the lid  16  in response to downward pressure on the pedal  8 . Downward motion of the pedal  8  pulls the arms  10  down, which in turn pull down the rear protrusion  17  of the lid  16 , pivoting the lid  16  about the lid hinge  14  and raising and opening the main portion of lid  16 . The joint  11  of the arms  10  allows them to bend and thereby prevents them from being bent or snapped in response to, e.g., upward pressure on the foot pedal  8 . 
         [0023]    In  FIG. 2 , the upper rim  22  of the frame  3  is seen to be an extension of the metal tubing composing the vertical supports  12 . The lid  16  is mounted on the hinge  14 , which is formed by a pintle bar  15  passing across the width of the upper rim  22  and passing through the lugs  19  attached to lid  16 . On this pintle bar  15  is also pivotally mounted a laundry bag clamp  20  which can be laid to rest atop the upper rim  22 . The bag clamp  20  is made of a dense material, such as solid iron, making it effective to hold in place a laundry bag  24  whose lip is wrapped around the clamp  20  and placed between the upper rim  22  and the clamp  20 . The upper rim  22  and bag clamp  20  thus effectively operate as a support  23  for the laundry bag&#39;s mouth, supporting the bag  24  and holding its mouth open to receive laundry items placed into it from above when the lid  16  is open. Although the weight of the bag  24  may be primarily supported by the horizontal surface  5  of the base  4 , the bag clamp  20  may be further configured to self-tighten as downward force is exerted by the weight of the bag  24 . 
         [0024]    The motion damper  18  is also shown in  FIG. 2  in more detail. The bottom end of the motion damper  18  is pivotally mounted to one of the vertical supports  12 , and the top end is pivotally mounted to the lug  19  of the lid  16  forward of the point where the pintle bar  15  passes through the lug  19 , forming the lid hinge  14 . The arms  10  of the foot pedal  8  are also shown pivotally attached to the rear protrusion  17  of the lid  16 , to the rear of the lid hinge  14 . 
         [0025]    Although but a single exemplary embodiment is shown, numerous modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the invention. 
         [0026]    For example, the motion damper  18  may be embodied as a linear dashpot or damper, such as a hydraulic cylinder or pneumatic cylinder. It may alternatively be embodied as a rotary dashpot or damper and mounted so as to damp the rotation of the lid  16  about its hinge  14 . It may allow unopposed movement in the opposite direction—i.e., lifting and opening the lid—or it may incorporate some counter-force to automatically close the lid, such as a spring. The motion damper may, in some embodiments, also include an active force component, such as pressurized gas or a compression spring, acting against the weight of the lid even when static. 
         [0027]    The various pivotal attachments of the cart  2  may be embodied as a pair of holes in the respective attached surfaces or objects, joined together by a bolt or screw and held in place by a nut and washer assembly. They may alternatively be embodied as an axle or pintle bar attached to the fixed object and passing through one or more holes in the rotating object. In one embodiment, the lid  16 , bag clamp  20 , and foot pedal  8  are mounted to the frame  3  on axles, while the other pivotal attachments use a simple nut-bolt-washer assembly. The pintle bars on which the lid  16  and bag clamp  20  pivot may be a single pintle bar  15  or two distinct pintle bars. 
         [0028]    While the base  4 , vertical supports  12 , and upper rim  22  of the frame  3  are described as being composed of metal tubing, any rigid material can be used for them, and they may have different shapes. Similarly, the lid  16  can be formed of substances other than rigid plastic, and may be circular, ovoid, semicircular, or any other shape. The bag mouth support  23  need not be embodied as the upper rim of the frame  22  and a bag clamp  20 . Any apparatus capable of supporting the top of a bag  24  and keeping its mouth open would serve the same function. 
         [0029]    The cart  2  can be embodied without wheels  6  or without the foot pedal  8  and associated arms  10 . The cart  2  in some embodiments may be fixed in place rather than movable. In some embodiments, the cart  2  may incorporate a bag or basket for laundry directly instead of having a means for attaching a separate bag  24 . In addition, the cart  2  need not be used solely for laundry: some embodiments may be carts or receptacles for refuse or for any other substance stored in a lidded container. 
         [0030]    The various embodiments presented above are merely examples and are in no way meant to limit the scope of this invention. Further variations of the innovations described herein will be apparent to persons of ordinary skill in the art, such variations being within the intended scope of the present application. In particular, features from one or more of the above-described embodiments may be selected to create alternative embodiments comprised of a sub-combination of features which may not be explicitly described above. In addition, features from one or more of the above-described embodiments may be selected and combined to create alternative embodiments comprised of a combination of features which may not be explicitly described above. Features suitable for such combinations and sub-combinations would be readily apparent to persons skilled in the art upon review of the present application as a whole. 
         [0031]    The subject matter described herein and in the recited claims intends to cover and embrace all suitable changes in technology and the invention. Accordingly, it should be understood that the scope of the present invention is limited only by the accompanying claims, purposively construed.