GB2113648A - A refuse vehicle bin emptier - Google Patents

Abstract

A refuse collection vehicle has a carrier (11) which can be raised and lowered on a support (12) by means of piston and cylinder units (24) acting on a linkage 22, 23. The support and carrier can both be pivoted by means of further piston and cylinder units (17) to tip into a body of the vehicle the contents of a bin carried on the carrier. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION A vehicle This invention relates to a vehicle having apparatus for raising a bin from the ground and discharging the contents of the bin into a body of the vehicle, the apparatus comprising a carrier having formations adapted to co-operate with a bin to carry the bin on the carrier, a support for the carrier, a linkage connecting the carrier and the support for relative movement and a piston and cylinder unit having one end pivotally connected to the support and another end pivotally connected to the carrier, whereby the carrier can be raised relative to the support in use and wherein the support is connected with the vehicle body for tipping of the support and carrier relative to the body.

An example of a vehicle embodying the invention will now be described, with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein: Figure 1 shows a portion of a vehicle body, together with apparatus mounted on the body for raising a container, and Figure 2 shows a rear elevation of the parts shown in Figure 1.

The vehicle, a part of which is shown in the drawings, is a refuse collection vehicle having a body 10 adapted to contain a mass of refuse. The body is supported on a wheeled chassis (not shown) in the usual manner. Within the body, there may be disposed known means for compacting the refuse.

Refuse is required to be transferred from bins of various sizes into the body 10. There is mounted on the body at the rear thereof apparatus for raising the bins from the ground and tipping the raised bins to discharge the contents thereof into the body 10. This apparatus includes a carrier 11 for the bins and a support 12 for the carrier.

The support 12 is mounted on the body 10 for pivotal movement relative thereto about a tipping axis 14 between a lowered position indicated by a full line in Figure 1 and a tipping position indicated in Figure 1 by a broken line. This axis is spaced rearwardly from the vehicle body 10 by a relatively small distance and is spaced by a considerably larger distance upwardly from the bottom of the body 10. The carrier 11 is mounted on the support 12 for movement relative thereto between a raised position indicated by a full line in Figure 1 and a lowered position indicated in Figure 1 by a broken line.

As shown in Figure 2, the support 12 is in the form of a generally rectangular, flat frame having side members 15 disposed adjacent to respective sides of the vehicle body and transverse members 16 extending between and rigidly connected with the side members. Respective portions of the side members 15 extend upwardly from the uppermost transverse member 16 to the pivots which define the tipping axis 14. For moving the support 12 and carrier 11 about the axis 14, there is provided a pair of fluid-actuated motors, each in the form of a piston and cylinder unit 17, disposed one adjacent to each side of the body 10. Each of the units 17 has one end pivoted on a respective bracket 18 mounted on the body 10 and its other end pivoted on a respective bracket 19 secured to a corresponding one of the side members 15 at a position spaced from the tipping axis 14.Valves Tnot shown) are provided to enable a user to control the flow of hydraulic fluid to the units 17 from an hydraulic circuit of the vehicle.

In the example illustrated, the vertical distance between the base of bracket 18 and the ground is approximately 70 cm. The vertical component of the distance between axis 14 and the axis at bracket 18 lies within the range 45 to 50 cm, and the corresponding horizontal distance lies within the range 70 to 75 cm.

The carrier 11 also comprises a generally rectangular, flat, frame having side members 20 rigidly connected together by transverse members 21. The transverse members 21 are somewhat shorter than the transverse members 16 so that the side members 21 are spaced laterally inwardly of the vehicle from the side members 15. The carrier is guided for movement along an arcuate path between its raised and lowered positions by a parallelogram linkage comprising, adjacent to each of the side members 20, an upper link 22 and a lower link 23 which have substantially the same length, are parallel to each other and are pivotally connected between the carrier and the support.

For moving the carrier 11 from its lowered position to its raised position and for controlling return of the carrier to its lowered position, there is provided a further pair of piston and cylinder units 24, each unit being disposed adjacent to a respective one of the side members 20. One end of each unit 24 is pivotally connected with a bracket 25 provided on the support 12 adjacent to the tipping axis 14 and the other end of the unit is pivotally connected with a bracket 26 provided on the carrier 11 at a position remote from the tipping axis 14. The units 24 limit movement of the carrier relative to the support and a valve (not shown) is provided for controlling the flow of hydraulic fluid to and from these units.

There is provided on the uppermost of the transverse members 21 of the carrier 11 a row of upwardly extending projections 27 which are spaced apart from each other in a direction laterally of the vehicle. The known bins with which the carrier 11 is intended to be used have at their upper ends laterally outwardly extending flanges with down turned lips. The projections 27 are so dimensioned that they can be received between the lips and the side walls of the bins to engage the underside of the flanges. In this way, the bins hook onto the carrier 11. Abutments 28 are provided on the carrier at positions spaced downwardly from the projections 27 to abut the side walls of the bins and maintain the bins in an attitude in which the side wall of each bin is approximately parallel to the carrier.

When the apparatus is to be used, the carrier 11 is lowered with the support 12 in its lowered position until the carrier contacts the ground or almost does so. The bin or bins to be emptied are then moved into a position adjacent to the carrier so that the flanges of the bins overlie the projections 27. The piston and cylinder units 24 are then operated to move the carrier along an arcuate path, the initial portion of which extends upwardly and rearwardly of the vehicle, thereby ensuring that the projections 27 engage between the lips and side walls of the bins. In this way, the bins are raised from the ground until, when the carrier is in its raised position, the upper end of each bin is at a level slightly above that of the tipping axis 14.There is provided on the support 12 a further abutment 29 positioned to lie above but near to the projections 27 when the carrier is in its raised position. Accordingly, once the carrier with bins carried thereon has reached the raised position, the abutment 29 prevents the bins becoming unhooked from the projections 27.

After the carrier has reached its raised position, the units 17 are extended to tip the support 12, carrier 11 and bins thereon until the bins are inclined at an angle of approximately 45Q to the horizontal with their bottoms uppermost. The contents of the bins then fall freely into the body 10. It will be understood that movement of the bins relative to the carrier towards the interior of the body 10 is prevented by engagement of the bin flanges with the abutment 29. When the contents of the bins have been discharged, the units 17 are contracted and the units 24 are then extended to return the bins to the ground. The bins are then removed before the carrier is raised once more and the vehicle is driven away.

It will be noted that each of the units 17 is arranged, when the carrier is in its raised position or is in its lowered position, with its length substantially parallel to a the support 12 and to a tangent drawn to the path of movement of the carrier 11 at a position mid-way between the raised and lowered positions of the carrier. This enables a relatively simple and inexpensive piston and cylinder unit to be used and a simple parallelogram linkage to be used. It will be noted from Figure 1 that the upper links 22 may be adjustable in length, in order that the position of the projections 27 relative to the abutment 29, when the carrier is in its uppermost position, can be adjusted.

There are hinged to the carrier 11 a pair of arms 20 which are biased by springs 31 towards positions in which they lie against the carrier. When a single large bin is to be raised by the carrier, the arms can be moved apart to receive the bin between them and to engage lugs provided on opposite ends of the bin in a known manner. The arms 30 can be used to raise a large bin which cannot be adequately supported by the projections 27.

Claims (5)

1. A vehicle having apparatus for raising a bin from the ground and discharging contents of the bin into a body of the vehicle, the apparatus comprising a carrier having formations adapted to co-operate with a bin to carry the bin on the carrier, a support for the carrier, a linkage connecting the carrier and the support for relative movement and a piston and cylinder unit having one end pivotally connected to the support and another end pivotally connected to the carrier, whereby the carrier can be raised relative to the support in use and wherein the support is connected with the vehicle body for tipping of the support and carrier relative to the body.

2. A vehicle according to Claim 1 wherein the support is arranged for pivoting relative to the body about a tipping axis which is generally horizontal in use and there is provided a second piston and cylinder unit having one end pivotally connected with the vehicle body and another end pivotally connected with the support at a position spaced from the tipping axis.

3. A vehicle according to Claim 1 or Claim 2 wherein the support is in the form of a substantially flat frame and the piston and cylinder unit which is connected to the support and to the carrier is disposed with its length substantially parallel to the support when the carrier is at either limit of its movement relative to the support.

4. A vehicle having apparatus for raising a container substantially as herein described with reference to and as shown in the accompanying drawings.

5. Any novel feature or novel combination of features disclosed herein or in the accompanying drawings.