GB2639239A

GB2639239A - Improvements in waste and recycling bins

Info

Publication number: GB2639239A
Application number: GB2403595.8A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Kashem Abul
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2024-03-13
Filing date: 2024-03-13
Publication date: 2025-09-17
Also published as: GB202403595D0

Abstract

The present invention is directed to a waste and recycling bin which is a single bin produced in sizes to suit different dwelling spaces and is able to collect and divide different types of waste, having multiple functions including a lid cover 16 which may have motorised lifting and lowering means 19, 20 hidden within the body of the bin wall and a compacting tool 24, 26 for compressing waste 25 inside the bins. The bin is comprised of a centrally disposed general waste bin which may be mounted on a rotating base which uses circular bearing rotation means, to allow it to be rotated around for the selection of a number of bin tubes vertically attached using fixture means to the exterior wall of said central bin. These bin tubes each provided to collect different types of recyclable waste, with colour coded means for the user to identify the content type of each bin tube.

Description

PATENT APPLICATION OF

ABUL KASHEM FOR

IMPROVEMENTS IN WASTE AND RECYCLING BINS

Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to waste bins which can also be used for recycling. Background The use of waste bins around the domestic home or in industry is common and provides a way to dispose of rubbish such as day to day food stuffs or non-recyclable items, these are usually disposed of into a bin which has a liner of plastic which is removed and deposited into a larger exterior bin for removal by local authorities or private contractors for waste.

Recycling involves at least one interior collection bin or bag, which is provided inside a property and into which recyclable waste, such as cardboard packaging or product wrapping and plastic bottles etc are deposited.

These items are often simply collected together in one area or receptacle and then once full are taken outside of the property to be disposed into at least one recycling bin, which is collected by a local authority or contract provider for waste.

In some locations in the UK and other territories of the world, more than one recycling receptacle may be used to collect recyclable waste, both inside and outside of the home. These are provided to divide the types of recyclable waste into different portions, such as cans, glass, plastic, paper and included in this row of bins may also be a general waste bin, as aforementioned.

These types of selective receptacles or bins are more often found in offices or business premises to aid their division prior to being recycled.

This number of bins takes up a large area of floor space and is often not practical for use in a home or smaller apartment due to this. The bins themselves are also quite costly to purchase in the first instance which restricts the home owner or smaller business owner from taking advantage of being able to select or separate between different types of recyclable waste in this way.

The prior art therefore shows that there is a need and a problem to be solved for a more effective bin for both domestic home use or use in an office which takes up much less room and also is easy to use by not complicating the process of waste disposal further.

The bin also must be cost effective in its purchasing price to ensure it falls into the pricing sequence for retail or wholesale of this type of general product range.

The present invention aims to provide an improved multi-purpose waste bin which is provided in different sizes for use in smaller residences and collects general waste and recyclable waste in a single bin arrangement, to include rotation of the bin for ease of selection, an automatically lifting lid to remove the issue of having to touch the bin and bin liners to each compartment for ease of waste transportation to the exterior of the home or building and a simple way to easily compress waste down to provide more capacity in each compartment, where achievable.

Summary of the invention

According to the present invention there is provided a single bin which may be supplied fully assembled or presented as a self-assembly option and in different sizes for use in smaller residences with limited space. The bin has multiple functions and is able to collect and divide different types of waste and it provides a solution to the problem of the space taken up by a row of recycling bins, each for different types of waste.

The bin is comprised of a centrally disposed round bin, which is the largest of the group, this bin may be for the collection of general or non-recyclable waste, including food products. This bin may be mounted on a rotating base, to allow it to be rotated or spun around, the reason for this will become clearer in the latter parts of this description.

To enable this rotation of said bin, the bottom and underneath of the bin may be engaged with a circular rotation means. This may include a round base which seats level onto the ground or floor which has a round bearing arrangement on the upper surface of the base, which may use ball bearings within a channel interlocking with a fitting to the underside of the bin bottom, as shown in accompanying Figures. The use of a bearing ensemble provides a long lasting and smoothly rotating action for the bin. As the bin is rotated by the user, the bearing balls rotate in their channel within the bearing ensemble with an interlocking ring seated thereto onto this, creating rotation of the bin.

The reason for the rotation of the bin is the addition of a number of more narrow bin tubes located vertically onto the bins exterior which will all provide individual recyclable bins for different types of recycling material and thus the user will want to rotate the whole ensemble of bins to select the one they wish to use each time.

The vertically disposed bins are attached to the general waste bin forming a group of tubes around its entire circumference and each one is at the exacting height to the rim of the now centrally positioned larger general waste bin and are also of equal length. Each vertical tube has an opening at the top and a closed end which is the bottom of the bin.

Each bin tube is equally spaced apart with a small gap between each one, as shown. Therefore, the size of each of the tubes, their diameter, may have to be equal to ensure that they surround the central bins exterior without any unwanted remaining space between them. This equal spacing of the tubes around the central general waste bin may also be achieved by the space between each vertical tube being widened to ensure they all form an even number around the central bin. This is shown in Figure 10 wherein only 8 (eight) bin tubes surround the larger central bin by way of making each of the tubes of a larger equal diameter.

Wherein in Figure 1, for example, the bin tubes are smaller in diameter and therefore 13 (thirteen) tubes are able to equally surround the same sized larger centrally disposed bin.

The number of vertical bin tubes therefore may vary from any amount and size which is able to surround the centrally positioned bin. The bin tubes may be provided inside the central bin when purchased to aid ease of shipping and as a self-assembly option. The bin tubes may be attached to the central bin via push fittings which are short horizontal pegs moulded onto the exterior of each bin tube in a row vertically and which are pushed into corresponding fitting holes located into equally positioned locations around the central bins vertical body.

The push fitting pegs have a slightly wider end which can be pushed through said corresponding hole on the bin to then expand when through the hole and prevent the vertically fitted bin tube from moving or being removed.

To achieve the best results the waste and recycling bin to be referred to as the bin ensemble for the remainder of this summary, may be of a plastic variant in construction with metal composition of the bearing fittings.

The vertically disposed bin tubes and the general waste central bin onto which they are attached, all may have bin liners inserted within them, as shown in accompanying Figures.

The central bin may be larger than all other bin tubes and has a single inserted bin liner of a known and available size. The narrowed bin tubes which surround its exterior each have a narrow bin liner which may be inserted into the tubes and rolled over the rim edge in the known way.

The whole bin ensemble is now able to receive waste. The user may put general waste, including food waste in the larger central bin and choose which recycling they wish to add to each of the surrounding bin tubes.

For example, they may choose to put plastics into one or more tubes and card and cardboard in another single tube and paper into two of the tubes and cans into six of the other tubes and so on.

This selective process may be totally random and selected by the user in any number and any order, until some or all of said vertical disposed tubes are filled.

This may be done and the contents of each tube may be determined by simply looking to the tube and seeing what it contains and adding more of the same items.

Furthermore; the tubes may have different coloured bin liners to indicate to the user what the contents of each tube are; for example; plastics may have a Red bin liner, with paper and card having a Blue bin liner, cans into a Grey bin liner and mixed recycling being put into a Green bin liner. These are examples only but do relate to known colour to waste type colour keys that are commonly used.

The main larger general bin to the centre of the ensemble may have a Black bin liner for general waste.

The bin liners may be sold as an ongoing purchase product specifically sized for the narrow bin tubes used on this.

The bin may also have written labels stating the type of waste in each bin but because the bin may be located in the usual areas such as in a kitchen in domestic dwellings, the written wording of the tube contents on each tube may not be desirable. For example; the Paper tube having a label or a printed graphic of the word 'Paper' and the Plastic tube having the word 'Plastic' on the tube itself. Therefore, the use of coloured bin liners may be more suited to this particular product environment.

However, should the bin ensemble be used in an office environment it may be desired to have written indication or livery on each tube to identify the contents.

To cover the bin ensemble an automatic lid cover may be provided, this may be presented as a circular single lid cover which covers all bins and tubes. The bin is attached in at least one corner by a lifting rod which is partially threaded to around % of its length, all of which passes through a motorised worm wheel. The worm wheel is a rotating threaded metal wheel which engages with the corresponding thread on the vertically presented lifting rod. The threaded part of the lifting rod may pass through the centre of the worm wheel which has its threaded surface within the hole through which the lifting rod passes and is fully engaged with it. Therefore, should the worm wheel be rotated the lifting rod will either move upwards or downward through the worm wheel, dependant upon which direction the worm wheel rotates. These components are hidden within the body of the bin wall between the bin tubes.

A small battery powered motor is connected to the worm wheel and rotates it by a cog method with selection using a foot pedal and switch with battery which is further connected from the foot pedal via cable to said small battery powered motor. For example; the user pushes their foot down on the pedal and the motor rotates, lifting the lifting rod and thus the bin lid cover upwards, this can either be done as a single switch pre-set action, therefore requiring just a single press of the foot pedal, then the pre-set raising height of the lid cover is completed in one action. The foot of the user is removed directly after the single press of the foot pedal. The foot pedal may also be touch sensitive, which may allow the user to decide when the lid cover is high enough from the tops of the bin ensemble, therefore the switch would only stop raising the lid cover when either the users foot is removed or the thread of the lifting rod has reached its last riding position.

It may be chosen that the lid cover is manually pulled upward by hand and the lifting rod acts solely as a slotted lifting guide.

The lid cover may also not have any lifting rod or motor arrangement and may simply be a round or shaped lid cover that is lifted on and off with a handle, as shown in Figure 10.

The lid cover is able to be swung away from the bin openings to allow for more space when removing the bin liners, this is due to a fitting on the underside of the lid cover where the end of the lifting rod is engaged being a rotating end. This is swung back into place before the lid cover is lowered automatically.

To aid the increased space for further recycling waste in the bin tubes a waste compacting tool may be provided in the form of a durable and washable handheld plunger with a rounded smooth bulbous end, to push the waste downward within the liner in the tubes. The rounded smooth end ensures that the plastic bin liners do not rip or tare during this compacting process, as shown in Figure 9.

In this respect, before explaining at least one embodiment of the invention in detail, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited in its application to the details of construction and to the arrangements of the components set forth in the following description or illustrated in the drawings. The invention is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced and carried out in various ways. Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology employed herein are for the purpose of description and should not be regarded as limiting.

As such; those skilled in the art will appreciate that the conception, upon which this disclosure is based; may readily be utilized as a basis for the designing of other structures, methods and systems for carrying out the several purposes of the present invention. It is important; therefore, that the claims be regarded as including such equivalent constructions insofar as they do not depart from the spirit and scope of the present invention.

Further, the purpose of the foregoing abstract is to enable the Patent Office and the public generally, and especially the scientists, engineers and practitioners in the art who are not familiar with patent or legal terms or phraseology, to determine quickly from a cursory inspection the nature and essence of the technical disclosure of the application. The abstract is neither intended to define the invention of the application, which is measured by the claims, nor is it intended to be limiting as to the scope of the invention in any way.

It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a new and improved waste and recycling bin which has all the advantages of the prior art waste and recycling bins and none of the disadvantages.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a new waste and recycling bin which may be easily and efficiently manufactured and marketed.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a new and improved waste and recycling bin which is of durable and reliable construction.

An even further object of the present invention is to provide a new and improved waste and recycling bin which is susceptible of a low cost of manufacture with regard to both materials and labour, and which accordingly is then susceptible of low prices of sale to the consuming public, thereby making such a product available to the buying public.

Still yet another object of the present invention is to provide a new arid improved waste and recycling bin which provides in the apparatuses and methods of the prior art some of the advantages thereof, while simultaneously overcoming some of the disadvantages normally associated therewith.

These together with other objects of the invention, along with the various features of novelty which characterize the invention, are pointed out with particularity in the claims annexed to and forming a part of this disclosure. For a better understanding of the invention, its operating advantages and the specific objects attained by its uses, reference should be had to the accompanying drawings and detailed descriptive matter in which there is illustrated preferred embodiments of the invention.

Brief description of figures

Figure 1 shows a dimensional view of the waste and recycling bin.

Figure 2 shows a dimensional view of the waste and recycling bin having bin liners installed.

Figure 3 shows a dimensional view of the waste and recycling bin and its rotation means.

Figure 4 shows a plan view of the waste and recycling bin.

Figure 5 shows a dimensional view of the general waste bin having vertical bin tubes added.

Figure 6 shows a dimensional view of the general waste bin n the Lenore having a bin liner installed.

Figure 7 shows a dimensional view of the waste and recycling bin with lid cover and its lifting and lowering means.

Figure 8 shows a dimensional view of the waste and recycling bin with the lid cover lifted.

Figure 9 shows a dimensional view of the waste and recycling bin with the lid cover swung away and waste compacting tool.

Figure 10 shows a dimensional view of a waste and recycling bin with larger bin tubes and a manually operated lid cover.

Detailed description of figures

A typical embodiment of the waste and recycling bin is shown in Figure 1. It comprises the bin 1, which is a single bin which has multiple functions and is able to collect and divide different types of waste.

The bin is comprised of a centrally disposed general waste bin 9 with opening 2, which is the largest of the group, this bin may be for the collection of general or non-recyclable waste, including food products. This bin may be mounted on a rotating base 7, to allow it to be rotated or spun around. To enable this rotation of said bin 1, the bottom and underneath of the bin may be engaged with a circular rotation means. This may include the round rotating base 7 which seats onto the ground or floor which has a round bearing arrangement 8 which may use ball bearings within a channel interlocking with a fitting to the underside of the bin bottom.

The reason for the rotation of the bin 1 is the addition of a number of more narrow bin tubes 6 each located vertically onto the bins exterior 11 which all may provide individual recyclable bins for different types of recycling material and thus the user will want to rotate the whole ensemble of bins 1 to select the one they wish to use each time.

The vertically disposed bin tubes 6 are attached to the general waste bin 9 forming a group of tubes 6 around its entire circumference, each vertical tube is at the exacting height to the rim of the now centrally positioned larger general waste bin and also may be of equal length to it and each other.

Each bin tube 6 is equally spaced apart with a small gap 10 between each one, as shown.

Each bin tube 6 has an opening 4 into which a bin liner 3 may be inserted, which each bin liner 3 being usually folded over the rim 5 to hold it in place around said opening 4.

Between said small gap of two of the bin tubes 6 is a lifting rod 15 for use with a lid cover, to be explained.

The insertion of bin liners 3A into the openings 4A of the bin tubes 6A which surround the general waste bin 9A and its opening 2A, is shown in Figure 2, with each being folded over the rim 5A.

As aforementioned, the bin tubes 6A may have different coloured bin liners 3A to indicate to the user what the contents of each tube are; for example; plastics may have a Red bin liner, with paper and card having a Blue bin liner, cans into a Grey bin liner and mixed recycling being put into a Green bin liner. These are examples only but do relate to known colour to waste type keys that are commonly used.

Figure 3 shows the bin 1B and its general waste bin 9B with opening 2B and vertical wall body 13 and further bin interior 12 mounted onto the round rotating base 7B which seats onto the ground or floor which has the round bearing arrangement 8B which may use ball bearings 14 within the channel interlocking with a fitting to the underside of the bin 9B bottom.

A plan view of the bin 1C shows the general waste bin 9C and opening 2C with the individual bin tubes 6C with openings 4C attached onto the general waste bin 1C bin exterior 11C with the small gap 10C between each of them which is equal throughout the arrangement. The round rotating base 7C which seats onto the ground or floor has the round bearing arrangement 8C, as shown from this view. The top of the lifting rod 15C is shown which will engage with the lid cover to raise and lower it, to be explained further.

The bin tubes 6D may be attached to the centrally disposed general waste bin 9D via push fittings which are short horizontal pegs 27 moulded onto the exterior of each bin tube in a row of at least three vertically and which are pushed into corresponding fitting holes 28 located into equally positioned locations around the central bins exterior 11D through the vertical wall body 13D.

The push fitting pegs 27 have a slightly wider frontal end which can be pushed through said corresponding holes 28 when forced on the bin exterior 11D, due to the slightly flexing nature of the plastic used, to expand once through said hole and prevent the vertically fitted bin tubes 6D from moving or being removed.

Figure 6 shows the general waste bin 9E having its bin liner 3E being inserted into the opening 2E.

To cover the bin ensemble an automatic lid cover 16 may be provided, this may be presented as a circular single lid cover which covers all of the bins and bin tubes and has a slightly raised lip 17 to its underside which seats into the rim of the general waste bin opening (not shown here). The bin lid cover 16 is attached in at least one corner by a lifting rod 15F which seats into a swivel fitting so the lid cover can be swung away once fully raised. The lifting rod 15F is partially threaded to around 3/4 of its length, all of which passes through a motorised worm wheel 19. The worm wheel 19 is a threaded metal wheel which engages with the corresponding thread on the vertically presented lifting rod 15F. The threaded part of the lifting rod may pass through the centre of the worm wheel 19 which has its threaded surface within the hole through which the lifting rod passes and is fully engaged with it. Therefore, should the worm wheel 19 be rotated the lifting rod 15F will either move upwards or downward through the worm wheel, dependent upon which direction the worm wheel rotates.

A small battery powered motor 20 is connected to the worm wheel 19 and rotates it by selection using a foot pedal 23 and switch with battery 22 which is further connected from the foot pedal via cable 21 to said small battery powered motor 20. For example; the user pushes their foot down on the pedal 23 and the motor 20 rotates, lifting the lifting rod 15F and thus the bin lid cover 16 upwards, this can either be done as a single switch pre-set action, therefore requiring just a single press of the foot pedal, then the pre-set raising height of the lid cover is completed in one action. The foot of the user is removed directly after the single press of the foot pedal.

The foot pedal may also be touch sensitive, which may allow the user to decide when the lid cover is high enough from the tops of the bin ensemble, therefore the switch would only stop raising the lid cover when either the users foot is removed or the thread of the lifting rod has reached its last riding position.

The lid cover 16G is therefore raised by way of the lifting rod 15G, as shown in Figure 8 as previously described where the small battery powered motor 20G is connected to the worm wheel 19G and rotates it by selection using a foot pedal 23G and switch with battery 22G which is further connected from the foot pedal via cable 21G to said small battery powered motor 20G.

The lid cover 16H may be swung away to reveal easier access to all bin openings, as shown in Figure 9. To aid the increased space for further recycling waste in the bin tubes a waste compacting tool 24 and 26 may be provided in the form of a hand-held plunger with a rounded smooth bulbous end 24, to push the waste 25 downward within the liner in the tubes. The rounded smooth end ensures that the plastic bin liners do not rip or tare during this compacting process.

The bin 11 has its bin tubes 61 equally spaced apart with a small gap between each one, as shown and previously described herein.

Therefore, the size of each of the bin tubes 61, their diameter, may have to be equal to ensure that they surround the central bins exterior without any remaining space. It may also be possible or desired to have bin tubes of differing diameters but they may all be spaced and sized to ensure they surround the central general waste bin equally. This equal spacing of the tubes around the central general waste bin may also be achieved by the space between each vertical bin tube being widened to ensure they all form an even number around the central bin.

This is shown in Figure 10 wherein only 8 (eight) bin tubes 61 surround the larger central bin by way of making each of the tubes of a larger equal diameter.

It may be chosen that the lid cover 161 is manually pulled upward by hand and the lifting rod acts solely as a slotted lifting guide.

The lid cover 161 may also not have any lifting rod or motor arrangement and may simply be a round or shaped lid cover that is lifted on and off with a handle 29, as also shown in Figure 10.

Claims

Claims 1) A waste and recycling bin comprising; a single bin which is able to collect and divide different types of waste and has multiple functions including a lid cover which may have motorised lifting and lowering means hidden within the body of the bin wall and a compacting tool for compressing waste inside the bins, the bin is comprised of a centrally disposed general waste bin which may be mounted on a rotating base which uses circular bearing rotation means, to allow it to be rotated around for the selection of a number of bin tubes vertically attached using fixture means to the exterior wall of said central bin, these bin tubes each provided to collect different types of recyclable waste, with colour coded means for the user to identify the content type of each bin tube.
2) A waste and recycling bin as claimed in claim 1 wherein to enable rotation of said centrally disposed bin, the bottom and underneath of the bin may be engaged with the circular rotation means which may include a round base which seats onto the ground or floor which has a round bearing arrangement which may use ball bearings within a channel interlocking with a fitting to the underside of the bin bottom.
3) A waste and recycling bin as claimed in claim 1 wherein each vertically fixed bin tube is at the exacting height to the rim of the centrally positioned larger general waste bin and may also be of equal length to it and each other, each vertical tube having an opening at the top and a closed end which is the bottom of the bin.
4) A waste and recycling bin as claimed in claim 3 wherein each bin tube may be equally spaced apart with a small gap between each one.
5) A waste and recycling bin as claimed in claim 4 wherein the number of vertical bin tubes surrounding and attached to the central bin may vary from any amount and size of bin tube, providing they are able to fully surround the centrally positioned bin.
6) A waste and recycling bin as claimed in claim 5 wherein the bin tubes may be attached to said central bin via said fixing means which may be short horizontal pegs moulded onto the exterior of each bin tube in a row vertically, which are pushed into corresponding fitting holes located into equally positioned locations around the central bins vertical body.
7) A waste and recycling bin as claimed in claim 6 wherein the push fitting pegs may have a slightly wider end which may be pushed through said corresponding holes on the bin and expand once through to prevent the vertically fitted bin tubes from moving or being removed from the centrally disposed bin.
8) A waste and recycling bin as claimed in claim 1 wherein the vertically disposed bin tubes and the general waste central bin onto which they are attached may use colour coded means to identify the intended contents of each, which may be in the form of coloured bin liners to indicate to the user what the contents of each tube are; for example only; the general waste bin may have a black bin liber, plastics may have a Red bin liner, with paper and card having a Blue bin liner, cans may be put into a Grey bin liner and mixed recycling being put into a Green bin liner, these colours and number of each colour to bins may vary.
9) A waste and recycling bin as claimed in claim 1 wherein said automatic lid cover may be provided a circular single lid cover which covers all bin and tube opening.
10) A waste and recycling bin as claimed in claim 9 wherein the bin may be attached in at least one corner to a vertically presented lifting rod which is partially threaded to around % of its length.
11) A waste and recycling bin as claimed in claim 10 wherein said lifting rod passes through a motorised worm wheel which is a threaded metal wheel which engages with the corresponding thread on the vertically presented lifting rod The threaded part of the lifting rod may pass through the centre of the worm wheel which has its threaded surface within the hole through which the lifting rod passes and is fully engaged with it.
12) A waste and recycling bin as claimed in claim 11 wherein should the worm wheel be rotated the lifting rod moves upwards or downward through the worm wheel, dependent upon which direction the worm wheel rotates.
13) A waste and recycling bin as claimed in claim 12 wherein a small battery powered motor is connected to the worm wheel and rotates it by selection using a foot pedal and switch with battery, which is further connected from the foot pedal via a cable to said small battery powered motor.
14) A waste and recycling bin as claimed in claim 13 wherein, in use, the user pushes their foot down on the pedal and the motor rotates, lifting the lifting rod and thus the bin lid cover upwards, this may either be done as a single switch pre-set action, therefore requiring just a single press of the foot pedal, then the pre-set raising height of the lid cover is completed in one action, the foot of the user is removed directly after the single press of the foot pedal.
15) A waste and recycling bin as claimed in claim 13 wherein the foot pedal may be touch sensitive, which may allow the user to decide when the lid cover is high enough from the tops of the bin ensemble, therefore the switch would only stop raising the lid cover when either the users foot is removed or the thread of the lifting rod has reached its last riding position.
16) A waste and recycling bin as claimed in claim 15 wherein the lid cover may also manually pulled upward by hand and the lifting rod acts alone as a slotted lifting guide.
17) A waste and recycling bin as claimed in claim 16 wherein the lid cover may also not have any lifting rod or motor arrangement and may simply be a round or shaped lid cover that is lifted on and off with a handle.
18) A waste and recycling bin as claimed in claim 17 wherein, in use, the lid cover is able to be swung away from the bin openings to allow for more space when removing the bin liners, this is due to a fitting on the underside of the lid cover where the end of the lifting rod is fixed being a rotating end, this is swung back into place before the lid cover is lowered automatically.
19) A waste and recycling bin as claimed in claim 1 wherein the waste compacting tool may be provided in the form of a washable and durable hand-held piunger with handle attached onto a rounded smooth bulbous end, to push the waste downward within the liners in the tubes.