Machine For Compacting And Packaging Waste Material

Abstract

This disclosure relates to a machine for compacting and packaging waste material including a compaction chamber internally of a housing adapted to receive a container into which the waste material is to be compacted, a compacting ram, means for reciprocating the compacting ram in a first direction to compact the waste material and also discharge the container and in an opposite direction to condition the housing for the receipt of another charge of waste material, support means externally of a door of the housing upon which the discharged container is deposited for further processing, and means for moving the support means to displace the container for further processing while another container is charged in the compacting machine.

Description

The present invention relates generally to machines for compacting and packaging waste material, and more particularly to a machine which is economically manufactured, involves simplicity in use, and can operate faster than known compactors thereby expediting the disposal of waste material with an attendant saving in labor and costs.

At present it is known to dispose of waste material, rubbish, and the like by delivering it by truck or otherwise in bulk to an incinerator where it is burned, to land fill areas, or similar sites. Obviously, such practices propose numerous drawbacks, the most prevelant of which is serious air pollution in the case of incinerator burning and the use of excessive areas in land fill operations due to the bulky nature of the waste material.

In order to overcome the disadvantages heretofore mentioned as well as others which are apparent to persons skilled in the art, it is a primary object of this invention to compact or compress waste material into an extremely dense mass directly in a container which can be disposed of in a lesser volume than bulk practices, thereby overcoming the undesired air pollution heretofore noted in regard to incinerator operations and obviously lessening the volume in land fill operations.

In keeping with the foregoing the specifics of the machine for compacting and packaging waste material includes a housing having a compaction chamber which receives a container into which waste material is packaged by the movement of a compacting ram, a door being disposed such that at the end of compaction the container and the waste material therein can be discharged, and support means being provided externally of the door upon which the container is deposited for movement to a further processing station at which the container may be tied, banded, or otherwise treated during the time that a succeeding compacting operation takes place.

A further object of this invention is to provide a novel machine of the type heretofore set forth wherein the support means is mounted for pivotal movement about an axis transverse the direction of reciprocation of the compacting ram and/or is mounted for reciprocal movement transverse to the movement of the compacting ram and in both cases being operative for dispensing the finally packaged waste material with minimum effort and inconvenience.

Still another object of this invention is to provide a novel machine of the type heretofore set forth including venturi means in part defining the compaction chamber, the venturi being an open-ended tube having a first end enlarging in a direction away from the housing door, and a major portion of the tube being in spaced relationship to the housing whereby a container can be sandwiched between the housing and tube to receive the waste material during the compacting operation.

Yet another object of this invention is to provide a novel compacting and packaging machine in the manner aforesaid wherein a second end of the venturi tube is spaced from the housing door in the closed position of the latter whereby a bottom of the container is sandwiched between the door and the venturi tube second end.

Still another object of this invention is to provide a novel machine in the manner heretofore set forth wherein the support means includes a grooved support surface adapted to be traversed by twine or the like whereby the container may be securely tied for ease of subsequent handling.

Still another object of this invention is to provide a novel compacting and packaging machine wherein the container has closure flaps joined by a generally polygonal body wall along fold lines with the closure flaps being folded outboard of the body when in the housing, the machine further including means for automatically unfolding the closure flaps upon the discharge of the container from the compaction chamber.

A final object of this invention is to provide a novel method of compacting and packaging waste material by the use of the apparatus heretofore described or equivalents thereof, the prime feature of the invention being that of deflecting the closure flaps away from the bottom during the discharge of the container from the compaction chamber by imposing obstructions aligned with the closure flaps whereby the necessary discharge motion imparted to the container at least initiates the closing of the closure flaps.

With the above and other objects in view that will hereinafter appear, the nature of the invention will be more clearly understood by reference to the following detailed description, the appended claimed subject matter, and the several views illustrated in the accompanying drawings.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the novel compacting and packaging machine of this invention, and illustrates the manner in which a container containing compacted waste material is discharged through an opening normally closed by a door of the housing and is transferred to the left for subsequent processing while another charge of waste material is compacted into another container within the machine.

FIG. 2 is a front elevational view looking from left-to-right in FIG. 3, and illustrates a support mounted for sliding movement between the solid outline position in alignment with the discharge door of the compacting machine housing, and a second position shown in phantom outline at which subsequent processing takes place during a following compacting operation.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken generally along the line 3--3 of FIG. 2, and illustrates two positions of the compacting ram and the manner in which the container is sandwiched between the venturi and the housing exterior.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken generally along the line 4--4 of FIG. 3, and illustrates details of the venturi and its spaced relationship to the machine housing.

FIG. 5 is a fragmentary sectional view of another embodiment of the invention similar to FIG. 1, and illustrates a support for receiving a charged container for subsequent treatment and discharge, absent the transverse reciprocation of the embodiment shown in FIG. 1.

A novel machine for compacting and packaging waste material is generally designated by the reference numeral 10 (FIGS. 1, 2 and 3) and includes a housing 11 defined by a bottom wall 12 (FIGS. 3 and 4), a pair of side walls 13, 14 (FIG. 4) and a top wall formed by a pair of walls 15, 16 (FIG. 1). The last-mentioned walls 12 through 16 are preferably constructed from one-quarter inch steel plate double welded to form the housing 11 of a length approximating 36 inches by a cross-sectional area of 14 square inches. The housing 11 is closed at one end by a back plate 17 (FIG. 3) having an opening 18 while at an end opposite thereto a door 20 is pivotally mounted by hinge means 21, 22 to the plate 15 and may be pivoted between the solid and phantom outline positions in FIGS. 1 and 3 by means of an appropriate manually operated handle 23. The door 20 is closed by counter-clockwise movement of the handle 23, as indicated by the unnumbered arrow associated therewith in FIG. 1, while opposite motion closes the door 20.

A clamp 24 (FIG. 3) having a nose 25 is fixed to a shaft 26 which is, in turn, pivoted by suitable brackets 27 welded to the underside of the bottom wall 12. The shaft 26 terminates in a handle 27 which when moved clockwise as indicated by the unnumbered headed arrow associated therewith in FIG. 1 results in the clockwise rotation of the clamp 24, as viewed in FIG. 3, with the result that the nose 25 abuts the door 20 and prevents the opening thereof. Counter-clockwise motion imparted to the handle 27, again as viewed in FIG. 1, results in like motion imparted to the clamp 24 with the result that the door 20 can thereafter be opened.

Waste material is charged into the housing 11 through an opening (unnumbered) formed upon the counter-clockwise pivoting of a door 30 positioned between the plates 16, 15, and conventionally pivotally attached to the latter by conventional pivot means 31, 32. A latch, generally designated by the reference numeral 33 is carried by the door 30 and includes a pair of latch arms 34, 35 each pivotally mounted at one end to an end 36 of a handle 37. The end 36 is, in turn, conventionally pivotally secured as at 38 to the door 30. The arms 34, 35 are slidingly received in inverted U-bolts 40, 41 welded or otherwise conventionally fastened to the door 30. The ends of the arms 34, 35 also pass through inverted I-bolts or U-bolts 42, 43, respectively, secured to the respective side walls 13, 14. In the position of the arms 34, 35 illustrated in FIG. 1 the door 30 cannot be opened since the ends of the arms are received in the eyes 42, 43. However, upon movement imparted to the handle 37 in a counter-clockwise direction as indicated by the arrow associated therewith the arms 34, 35 are drawn in opposite directions outward of the eyes 42, 43, and the door 30 may thereinafter open to charge waste material into the housing 11.

A fluid motor, generally designated by the reference numeral 45, is provided for effecting the compaction of the waste material and includes a cylinder 46 partially projecting through the aperture 18 into the housing 11 and being suitably supported by a bracket 47 and a clamp 48 in a generally horizontal plane. The end portion (unnumbered) of the cylinder 46 internally of the housing 11 may be secured by nuts and bolts 50 to a pair of angle bars 51, 52 spanning and secured to the side walls 13, 14. The latter structure lends rigidity to the machine 10 in view of the high forces generated during a compacting operation which will be described more fully hereinafter. A piston rod 53 having a piston 54 is mounted for reciprocal motion relative to the cylinder 46, and an exposed end 55 thereof is pivotally secured to the central portion of a compacting ram 56 of a generally rectangular configuration having secured conventionally to its periphery a seal 57. Upon the introduction of liquid or gas under pressure into a port 58 the piston 54 will be retracted to the position shown in solid outline in FIG. 3 whereas like introduction through a port 59 results in the movement of the rod 53 along with the ram 56 to the left which is the direction of compaction in FIG. 3, as shown in phantom out line thereat.

A compaction chamber within the housing 11 is generally designated by the reference numeral 60 and includes a flared entrance end portion 61 (FIG. 3) flared in the form of a venturi to assist the introduction of the waste material W into the compaction chamber 60. The chamber 60 includes walls 62 through 65 (FIG. 4) which for the majority of the length thereof are spaced from the respective walls 12 through 15 thus forming a gap 66 in which is received a body B of a generally polygonal container C having a closed bottom B' and an open top which can be closed by closure flaps F, one associated with each of the four side walls of the container body B. The leftmost container C shown in FIG. 1 is positioned in alignment with the opening (unnumbered) formed by an open door 20 incident to being positioned internally of the housing 11 in sandwiched relationship between the walls 62 through 65 and 12 through 15, it being noted once again that the closure flaps F are outboard of the container body B and directed toward the bottom B' thereof. From this position the container C is simply moved to the right in the direction of the unnumbered headed arrow associated therewith until fully housed in external surrounding relationship to the chamber 60, as is best shown in FIG. 3, after which the door 20 is closed and locked by the latch 24. Assuming that waste material has been deposited in the area beneath the door 30 after the latter had been opened and thereafter latched, a compaction operation is initiated by energizing a suitable system (not shown) to move the compacting ram 56 to the left at which point the waste material W will be progressively introduced into and compressed or compacted in the container C. In this regard it will be noted that the bottom wall B' of the container C is backed up by the latched door 20 and the flared portion or venturi 61 permits the material to be gradually or progressively inserted within the chamber 60 during which movement it will also be noted from the phantom outline position in FIG. 3 that the seal 57 flexes to assure that optimum amounts of the waste material are, in fact, forced into the chamber 60. At this point it will be noted that though the compressive forces are extremely high no pressure is applied to the body B of the container C since it is in exterior relationship to the chamber walls 62 through 65. Moreover, the pressure upon the bottom wall B' is immaterial since it is backed up by the door 20.

After maximum compaction of the waste material W has been achieved the pressure internally of the cylinder 46 is lessened or terminated sufficiently to permit the opening of the door 20 after which the reinstitution of pressure on the piston side of the cylinder 46 will cause continued movement of the compacting ram 56 to the left resulting in the removal of both the compacted waste W and the container C from within the housing 11 and the subsequent depositing thereof upon support means generally designated by the reference numeral 70 in FIGS. 1 through 3.

The support means 70 is defined by a pair of spaced vertical plates 71, 72 and a horizontal plate 73 spanning and welded therebetween. The plate 73 has a plurality of parallel grooves 74 whereas the plates 71, 72 have guide apertures 75, 76, respectively, which receive a guiding and conveying rail 77 carrying a plurality of antifriction elements, such as roller bearings 78. Opposite ends of the rail 77 are secured to plates 80, 81 which, in turn, include respective trunnions 82, 83 suitably mounted for pivoting movement in upstanding legs 84, 85, respectively, of a frame F. The trunnion 82 has secured thereto a handle 86 which functions in a manner to be described immediately hereinafter.

Assuming that the machine is in the solid outline position illustrated in FIG. 3 except that the material has been compacted to the condition shown on movement of the compacting ram 56 to its phantom outline position, the operation of the machine 10 continues as follows. Upon the unlatching of the latch 24 and the opening of the door 20 the movement of the compacting ram 56 to the left can be reinstituted by pressurizing the piston side of the cylinder 46 whereupon the waste material W which has been compacted along with the container C is moved leftward and outward of the housing with the bottommost wall (unnumbered) of the container C eventually contacting and moving along the plate 73 of the support means 70 when the latter is in the aligned position with the housing 11, as shown in solid outline in FIG. 2. During the progressive movement of the container C leftward a container is not only deposited upon the support means 70 but the flaps F are automatically urged from the folded condition toward their closed position by first being released from their confined positions in the groove 66. Moreover, the edges (unnumbered) of the plates 71 through 73 are slightly outboard of the container body B but aligned such that they will contact the flaps F on all sides but the top to progressively begin the unfolding of the flaps as the container C is pushed further to the left on the support means 70. Thereafter the support means 70 is shifted to the left as viewed in FIG. 2 to its phantom outline position at which position it may be subsequently processed by, for example, continuing the closing of the flaps F and banding or tying the same. The latter is achieved by the use of strings S, twine, bands or the like previously positioned in the grooves 74 prior to the discharge of the container C upon the support 70. During the banding operation or at any time after the support 70 has reached the phantom outline position shown in FIG. 2 the door 20 may be closed, the latch 24 moved to the position shown in FIG. 3, the ram 56 retracted, the door 30 opened, the housing recharged with waste material, the door 300 closed and latched, and another compacting operation initiated. During the performance of the latter events which may be done manually or automatically, in the case of the latter a worker could be performing the binding operation and at the conclusion thereof discharging the leftmost container of FIG. 1 by appropriately moving the handle 86 counterclockwise in the manner indicated by the arrow associated therewith at which point the rail 77 will tilt or pivot and the container will be appropriately discharged. Prior to the opening of the door 20 the support means 70 is reshifted from the phantom to the solid outline position in FIG. 2 to receive the next container from the compacting machine 10 upon the subsequent opening of the door 20.

Details such as appropriate safety switches, power sources, etc. have not been illustrated since the use thereof is considered within the domain of a person skilled in the art. However, for purposes of the invention any safety system would incorporate suitable sensors or switches which would assure that the support 70 would be aligned with the door 20 prior to the latter being capable of being opened to insure that the container discharged from the housing 11 would be received upon the plate 73 and, of course, between the plates 71, 72. Additionally, the system should include appropriate sensors which would not permit the door 30 to be opened until the ram 56 has been fully retracted to the solid outline position in FIG. 3 and, of course, movement of the latter to the left therefrom should not be permitted until the door 30 is not only closed but the latch 33 is in the position shown in FIG. 1.

Referring now to FIG. 5, illustrated therein is another compacting and packaging machine which bears refernce numeral 10' since all elements are identical to those of the machine 10. However, the machine 10' is designed for areas of use at which there is insufficient room for transverse movement of the supporting means 70'. Thus, in accordance with the machine 10' after the container C has been deposited upon the support means 70' the door 20' remains open until the container C' has been bound and discharged by the pivoting of the support means 70' and its subsequent return to the position illustrated in FIG. 5 after which the door 20' may be closed and another compacting operation begun. The operation of the machine 10' is thus slightly slower than that of the operation of the machine 10 since the banding operation must be completed prior to the recycling of the compacting operation begun by the closing of the door 20 after, of course, another container has been inserted into the housing 11'.

While preferred forms and arrangements of parts have been shown in illustrating the invention, it is to be clearly understood that various changes in details and arrangement of parts may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of this invention.

Claims

We claim:

1. A machine for compacting and packaging waste material comprising a housing including a compaction chamber adapted to receive a container into which the waste material is to be packaged, a compacting ram, means for reciprocating said compacting ram whereby movement in a first direction results in the introduction and compaction of the waste material in a container adapted to be housed in said compaction chamber and movement in a second direction conditions the housing for receipt of another charge of waste material, a door disposed in opposed relationship to said compacting ram's movement in said first direction whereby upon the opening of said door after compaction movement of said compacting ram in said first direction discharges said container and the waste material therein from said compaction chamber, support means externally of said door upon which the discharged container is deposited for further processing, means for moving the support means to displace the further processed container, and said moving means includes the mounting of said support means for pivoting movement about an axis transverse to the direction of reciprocation of said compacting ram.

2. A machine for compacting and packaging waste material comprising a housing including a compaction chamber adapted to receive a container into which the waste material is to be packaged, a compacting ram, means for reciprocating said compacting ram whereby movement in a first direction results in the introduction and compaction of the waste material in a container adapted to be housed in said compaction chamber and movement in a second direction conditions the housing for receipt of another charge of waste material, a door disposed in opposed relationship to said compacting ram's movement in said first direction whereby upon the opening of said door after compaction movement of said compacting ram in said first direction discharges said container and the waste material therein from said compaction chamber, support means externally of said door upon which the discharged container is deposited for further processing, means for moving the support means to displace the further processed container, and said moving means includes the mounting of said support means for reciprocal movement transverse to the directions of movement of said compacting ram.

3. A machine for compacting and packaging waste material comprising a housing including a compaction chamber adapted to receive a container into which the waste material is to be packaged, a compacting ram, means for reciprocating said compacting ram whereby movement in a first direction results in the introduction and compaction of the waste material in a container adapted to be housed in said compaction chamber and movement in a second direction conditions the housing for receipt of another charge of waste material, a door disposed in opposed relationship to said compacting ram's movement in said first direction whereby upon the opening of said door after compaction movement of said compacting ram in said first direction discharges said container and the waste material therein from said compaction chamber, support means externally of said door upon which the discharged container is deposited for further processing, means for moving the support means to displace the further processed container, said moving means includes the mounting of said support means for pivoting movement about an axis transverse to the direction of reciprocation of said compacting ram and also for reciprocal movement transverse to the directions of movement of said compacting ram.

4. A machine for compacting and packaging waste material comprising a housing including a compaction chamber adapted to receive a container into which the waste material is to be packaged, a compacting ram, means for reciprocating said compacting ram whereby movement in a first direction results in the introduction and compaction of the waste material in a container adapted to be housed in said compaction chamber and movement in a second direction conditions the housing for receipt of another charge of waste material, a door disposed in opposed relationship to said compacting ram's movement in said first direction whereby upon the opening of said door afer compaction movement of said compacting ram in said first direction discharges said container and the waste material therein from said compaction chamber, support means externally of said door upon which the discharged container is deposited for further processing, means for moving the support means to displace the further processed container, a venturi means in part defining said compaction chamber, said venturi means being an open ended tube having a first end enlarging in a direction away from said door, and a major portion of said tube being in spaced relationship to said housing whereby a container may be sandwiched between said housing and tube.

5. A machine for compacting and packaging waste material comprising a housing including a compaction chamber adapted to receive a container into which the waste material is to be packaged, a compacting ram, means for reciprocating said compacting ram whereby movement in a first direction results in the introduction and compaction of the waste material in a container adapted to be housed in said compaction chamber and movement in a second direction conditions the housing for receipt of another charge of waste material, a door disposed in opposed relationship to said compacting ram's movement in said first direction whereby upon the opening of said door after compaction movement of said compacting ram in said first direction discharges said container and the waste material therein from said compaction chamber, support means externally of said door upon which the discharged container is deposited for further processing, means for moving the support means to displace the further processed container and including a venturi means in part defining said compaction chamber, said venturi means being an open ended tube having a first end enlarging in a direction away from said door, a major portion of said tube being in spaced relationship to said housing whereby a container can be sandwiched between said housing and tube, and a second end of said tube is spaced from said door in the closed position of the latter.

6. A machine for compacting and packaging waste material comprising a housing including a compaction chamber adapted to receive a container into which the waste material is to be packaged, a compacting ram, means for reciprocating said compacting ram whereby movement in a first direction results in the introduction and compaction of the waste material in a container adapted to be housed in said compaction chamber and movement in a second direction conditions the housing for receipt of another charge of waste material, a door disposed in opposed relationship to said compacting ram's movement in said first direction whereby upon the opening of said door after compaction movement of said compacting ram in said first direction discharges said container and the waste material therein from said compaction chamber, support means externally of said door upon which the discharged container is deposited for further processing, means for moving the support means to displace the further processed container and said support means includes a grooved support surface adapted to be traversed by twine or the like whereby the container may be securely tied for ease of subsequent handling.

7. A machine for compacting and packaging waste material comprising a housing including a compaction chamber adapted to receive a container into which the waste material is to be packaged, a compacting ram, means for reciprocating said compacting ram whereby movement in a first direction results in the introduction and compaction of the waste material in a container adapted to be housed in said compaction chamber and movement in a second direction conditions the housing for receipt of another charge of waste material, a door disposed in opposed relationship to said compacting ram's movement in said first direction whereby upon the opening of said door after compaction movement of said compacting ram in said first direction discharges said container and the waste material therein from said compaction chamber, support means externally of said door upon which the discharged container is deposited for further processing, means for moving the support means to displace the further processed container and said support means and housing are of like transverse cross-sectional configurations thereby enabling ease of transition of the container from said housing to said support means.

8. A machine for compacting and packaging waste material comprising a housing including a compaction chamber adapted to receive a container into which the waste material is to be packaged, a compacting ram, means for reciprocating said compacting ram whereby movement in a first direction results in the introduction and compaction of the waste material in a container adapted to be housed in said compaction chamber and movement in a second direction conditions the housing for receipt of another charge of waste material, a door disposed in opposed relationship to said compacting ram's movement in said first direction whereby upon the opening of said door after compaction movement of said compacting ram in said first direction discharges said container and the waste material therein from said compaction chamber, support means externally of said door upon which the discharged container is deposited for further processing, means for moving the support means to displace the further processed container, said container has closure flaps joined to a generally polygonal body wall along fold lines with the closure flaps being folded outboard of the bodyhen in said housing, and means for automatically unfolding at least one of said closure flaps upon the discharge of said container from the compaction chamber.

9. The compacting and packaging machine as defined in claim 2 including venturi means in part defining said compaction chamber, said venturi means being an open ended tube having a first end enlarging in a direction away from said door, a major portion of said tube being in spaced relationship to said housing whereby a container may be sandwiched between said housing and tube, and a second end of said tube is spaced from said door in the closed position of the latter.

10. The compacting and packaging machine are defined in claim 2 wherein said support means includes a grooved support surface adapted to be traversed by twine or the like whereby the container may be securely tied for ease of subsequent handling.

11. The compacting and packaging machine as defined in claim 2 wherein said container has closure flaps joined to a generally polygonal body wall along fold lines with the closure flaps being folded outboard of the body when in said housing, and means for automatically unfolding at least one of said closure flaps upon the discharge of said container from the compaction chamber.

12. The compacting and packaging machine as defined in claim 4 wherein said support means includes a grooved support surface adapted to be traversed by twine or the like whereby the container may be securely tied for ease of subsequent handling.

13. The compacting and packaging machine as defined in claim 4 wherein said container has closure flaps joined to a generally polygonal body wall along fold lines with the closure flaps being folded outboard of the body when in said housing, and means for automatically unfolding at least one of said closure flaps upon the discharge of said container from the compaction chamber.

14. A method of compacting and packaging waste material comprising the steps of providing a container having a generally polygonal body closed at one end by a bottom and having closure flaps joined thereto by fold lines at a second end, folding the closure flaps outboard of said body and directed toward said bottom, confining the thus folded closure flaps by a housing, compacting waste material in said container, removing the container from the housing by linear movement bottom first, and deflecting at least one of the closure flaps away from the bottom during the linear movement of the container by imposing obstructions aligned with the closure flaps.