Patent ID: 7086818

Claim:
A refuse collection vehicle for loading, compacting, transporting and ejecting refuse materials comprising: (a) a hollow refuse storage enclosure for containing compacted refuse having a forward refuse receiving opening, and a rear refuse discharge opening closed by a tailgate; (b) a charging hopper disposed forward of said storage enclosure for receiving refuse from refuse containers, said charging hopper having sidewalls and a floor and being in communication with said refuse receiving opening of said storage enclosure; (c) a followerless packer-ejector panel mechanism for moving refuse materials deposited in said charging hopper from said charging hopper into said storage enclosure, packing said refuse materials into said storage enclosure and fully ejecting said refuse materials from said storage enclosure without the need of a follower panel; (d) one or more container handling devices including at least one side loading container handling device wherein said side loading container handling device further contains a container lift and dump mechanism having a pair of spaced main arms outwardly flanked by a pair of link arms, said main arms being connected to be pivoted at a fixed end and journaled on a main arm common pin at a free end, said link arm being journaled to said lift and dump mechanism at a fixed end and journaled on a link arm common pin at a free end, said link arm common pin being located at a fixed offset from said main arm common pin and a container grabbing device having opposed arms mounted in fixed relation to said fixed offset of said pins such that in a lowered stored position said main arms and said link arms align to provide a narrow profile for emptying containers into said charging hopper; (e) control system for controlling the operation of said packer-ejector panel in relation to said container handling device; and (f) wherein said control system includes controls to provide said ejector panel mechanism with a plurality of selectable packing stoke cycles of different lengths and time durations in the packing mode including a packing stroke cycle of shorter time duration than an emptying cycle of a corresponding container handling device such that said packer-ejector panel returns to a fully forward position before a new emptying cycle can allow deposit of material behind said packer-ejector panel.