Patent ID: 7387066

Claim:
For use with a can compacting mechanism, the mechanism comprising a pair of side support members and a pair of cooperating compaction plates, said plates being movable towards one another to compact an upright can situated therebetween when a handle is rotated downwardly, a can collection bin which comprises: a unitary bin body, said bin body comprising a continuous and cylindrically-shaped sidewall having a top edge and a bottom edge, a floor wherein the bottom edge of the sidewall forms the edge of the floor, and a top surface, a pair of sidewalls rising upwardly and inwardly from the top surface, a neck rising upwardly from a top portion of the pair of sidewalls and being configured in a generally rectangular-shaped structure, the neck further comprising a pair of flanges extending outwardly therefrom, and a bin handle having one end connected to the neck and the other end of the bin handle is connected to a substantially flat portion of the top surface of the bin body; indicia from a group consisting of indicia applied directly to the sidewall, indicia applied to a paper or vinyl wrap that is attached to the sidewall, indicia applied to a paper or vinyl label that is attached to the sidewall, or indicia applied to a plastic sleeve that surrounds the sidewall; a pair of slots defined within the side support members of the compacting mechanism for accommodating the flanges extending outwardly from the bin neck; and a positively locking mechanism for preventing inadvertent detachment of the bin from the can compacting mechanism, the positively locking mechanism comprises a bump positioned on the flange and a hole formed within the side support member for capturing the bump; whereby compacted cans that drop from the mechanism are collected within the bin.