GB2385295A

GB2385295A - Novelty can crusher

Info

Publication number: GB2385295A
Application number: GB0203880A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Danny Siggers
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2002-02-19
Filing date: 2002-02-19
Publication date: 2003-08-20
Also published as: GB0203880D0

Abstract

A novelty can crusher that is similar in shape as a standard beverage can. The body 10 has a cylindrical inner chamber to place the beverage can. The plunger 11 can be withdrawn from the chamber by controlling the height of the shaft tube 16 and the position of the slide sleeve 15. The crusher can be detached from its fixed home base to be used elsewhere or to release the crushed can.

Description

NOVELTY CAN CRUSHER This invention relates to a novelty can crusher.

Can crushers are designed to reduce in size the can packaging material after consumption of the contents. There are many manual can crushers that have designed over the years, some differ greatly whilst others are similar in design and function.

There are two basic distinct ways in which a can is crushed. One is by application of force to the side of the body. It is the central region of the can body that is the weakest focal point. By squeezing this area, prior can crushers reduce the diameter of the body then the base and end both cave in producing a long flat shape. The other distinct method is to crush the can longitudinally. This method produces a flat round shape though more force is required. All of these prior designs have open crushing mechanisms that risk injury to the operator. They are not very ergonomic or aesthetic but they do the function. Most are either wall or bench mounted requiring a permanent location to carry out the act which is a further disadvantage.

The objectives of this invention are to provide a novelty can crusher that is very ergonomic with all the crushing mechanism enclosed in a chamber. A novelty can crusher that is very eye pleasing, so much that it could be considered a state of the art gadget. A novelty can crusher with a fixed home base where the crusher body be detached from easily and still function elsewhere without the base. To promote the reclamation and recycling of beverage cans and have a means of advertising on the crusher body.

A specific embodiment of the invention will now be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings in which :- Figure 1 shows in perspective the novelty can crusher.

Figure 2 shows the front elevation of the novelty can crusher.

Figure 3 shows the side view of the novelty can crusher.

Figure 4 shows the section view of the novelty can crusher on the line A-A.

Referring to the figure 1 the novelty can crusher comprises the crusher body 10 that is cylindrical inside the inner chamber with an entrance 12 at the top and an exit 13 at the bottom. The crusher body 10 has a similar shape profile of any standard beverage can. This makes the novelty can crusher very aesthetic and provides a means of advertising beverage brands of both alcoholic and soft drinks. The bottom wall of the crusher body 10 contains a hole in order to locate with the home base 18 where a spigot is positioned at the centre. When secured in the home base 18, the crusher body 10 is firmly locked in situ. At the top of the crusher body 10 is a bracket with a dowel 17 and a slot to hold the pivot lever 14. The pivot lever 14 can swivel about the dowel 17. Attached to the pivot lever 14 is the shaft tube 16. The pivot lever 14 provides a spigot that the shaft tube 16 fits over up to the shoulder. The slide sleeve 15 is a horseshoe shaped sleeve that has the ability to slide easily up and down the shaft tube 16. The slide sleeve 15 has a dowel through as shown and a slot for the plunger 11 to be secured. The plunger 11 can swivel about this dowel. With the novelty can crusher assembled as shown in figure 1 the raising of the shaft tube 16 causes the pivot lever 14 to rotate on the dowel 17. The slide sleeve 15 can be held and controlled by the operators other hand. So by raising the shaft tube 16 the plunger can be withdrawn from the chamber. Any standard beverage can of any size and any material type either aluminium, steel or bi-metal can easily be dented in the central region of the can body by squeezing gently between the thumb and index finger. This causes a deformation initiation site however not absolutely necessary. The can is placed in the entrance 12 and allowed to drop to the bottom of the chamber. By controlling the sliding action of the slide sleeve 15, the plunger 11 is placed in the chamber and allowed to slide down to the top of the can. By referring to fig 2 and fig 3 it is shown that at the bottom face of the plunger 11 is a series of grooves. By controlling the side sleeve 15 so that it remains directly above the centre of the chamber allows the maximum force to be distributed along the plunger 11 and onto the can when the shaft tube 16 is pushed downwards. The grooves in the bottom face of the plunger 11 allow the air to escape from the can while it is being crushed. This reduces the force required for axial collapse when the shaft tube 16 is fully pressed downwards. The can is crushed to a flat disc with a height small enough to fit through the exit 13. So the crusher is removed from the home base 18 and tilted so to allow the crushed can to fall out of the exit 13. The crusher can be used with or without the home base 18. The separate home base 18 has 4 holes so it can be fastened firmly in a fixed location This novelty can crusher will promote the reclamation and recycling of beverage cans at the disposal stage by means of an attractive gadget With the novelty can crusher a common household device anybody can be involved in recycling. It can be operated by the young so with this device in the home kids can be given a responsibility that is of a very good cause that is important to the environment and industry

Claims

CLAIMS 1 A novelty can crusher comprising a crusher body similar in shape as the standard beverage can to promote recycling and have a means of advertising beverage brands.

2 A novelty can crusher as claimed in claim 1 wherein the crusher being designed to be able to detach from its fixed home base 3 A novelty can crusher as claimed in claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the plunger has grooves on the bottom face so to allow the air to escape from the crushing can.

4 A novelty can crusher as claimed in claim 2 or claim 3 wherein the slide sleeve can be controlled by moving along the shaft so to adjust the alignment of the plunger and provide a means of fully extracting the plunger.

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Amendments to the claims have been filed as follows CLAIMS 1 A novelty can crusher comprising a crusher body similar in shape as the standard beverage can to promote recycling and have a means of advertising beverage brands.
2 A novelty can crusher as claimed in claim 1 wherein the crusher being designed to be able to detach from its fixed home base
3 A novelty can crusher as claimed in claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the plunger has grooves on the bottom face so to allow the air to escape from the crushing can.
4 A novelty can crusher as claimed in claim 2 or claim 3 wherein the slide sleeve can be controlled by moving along the shaft so to adjust the alignment of the plunger and provide a means of fully extracting the plunger.
5 A novelty can crusher as claimed in any proceeding claim wherein the crusher body has an inside diameter and an outside diameter, and has two ends, one open to be able to insert a can or extract the plunger, the other end being mated with the fixed home base. A section of the body between the inside diameter and the outside diameter is open so to provide a means for releasing the crushed can.
6 A novelty can crusher substantially as described herein with reference to Figures 1- 4 of the accompanying drawings