Pivoting Cover Support for Waste Bin Safety and Evacuation
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing waste collection centers with access ramps often fail to protect users from falling into bins, leading to accidents due to slipping, being dragged by waste, or inattention, as the protective chains are inadequate.
Innovation Solution
A container design featuring a box with a hinged lid and a cover support that pivots between raised and lowered positions, incorporating transverse rails and a protective structure with heddles to prevent falls and facilitate waste evacuation, ensuring user safety and efficient waste disposal.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a simple chain is used to delimit the ramp, then the device complexity is reduced, but the safety protection function is insufficient and users may fall into bins
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines the protective railing function with the waste outlet support structure. The support that holds the waste outlet also serves as the protective barrier, merging two functions into one structure. This resolves the contradiction by providing reliable safety protection without adding separate complex protective devices.
Solution Approach 2:
The support structure serves multiple functions: it supports the waste outlet, acts as a protective barrier against falls, and facilitates waste evacuation when lowered. This multi-functionality resolves the contradiction by making the protective structure versatile rather than a separate dedicated safety device.
2Ease of operation
If the cover is kept closed to maintain waste inside the box, then waste containment is improved, but waste evacuation becomes difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The support structure is designed to be movable between a raised position (for containment) and a lowered position (for evacuation). This dynamic capability resolves the contradiction by allowing the system to switch between waste containment and waste evacuation modes as needed.
Solution Approach 2:
The mechanism allows temporary opening of the cover for waste evacuation while maintaining the ability to close and secure it afterward. The support can be lowered to discard waste, then raised again to recover the containment state, enabling repeated cycles of evacuation and containment.
3Ease of operation
If the support is lowered to push waste to the receiving tray, then waste evacuation is facilitated, but user protection is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The support structure includes multiple transverse bars segmented along its length. When lowered, these segmented bars still provide distributed protective coverage, allowing waste evacuation while maintaining user protection. The segmentation enables the structure to perform both evacuation and protection functions simultaneously.
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
AI summary
The container (10) has a housing (11) and an articulated cover (12) for closing the housing. The housing comprises two side walls (11a, 11b) connected by a transverse rail (13) and a cover support (15) secured with the cover. The cover support is fitted into the housing and pivotable between raised and lowered positions. The cover support defines a waste outlet in the housing in the raised position, and pushes waste toward a waste receiving bin in the lowered position.