Patent Application
20090308869
a. Field of Invention
The invention relates generally to recycled tire trash cans. More specifically, the recycled tire trash cans includes: (a) a main member having an open top, a bottom and at least one sidewall; (b) at least one handle; and (c) a lid adapted to close the open top of the main member. There are optional wheels attached to the bottom. The main member is composed at least of a binder and rubber. The shredded rubber, also known as crumb rubber, is made predominantly of recycled shredded rubber and is preferably entirely shredded rubber from used, recycled tires.
b. Description of Related Art
The following patents are representative of the field of this invention:
U.S. Pat. No. 6,123,215 to Windle describes an improved waste receptacle and method for disposing of waste including a container portion configured to receive a liner therein. The container includes a pair of liner retainer elements secured to the outside surface on opposite sides of the container. In one embodiment, the liner retaining element includes a pair of spaced flanges protruding from the wall of the container. The liner retaining elements are configured to receive a portion of the liner disposed in the container and prevent the liner from collapsing into the container as waste is placed therein. In another embodiment, the waste receptacle includes a dispenser for storing a plurality of liners. The dispenser is engaged to the wall of the container. In one embodiment, the liners have an initial use that does not include storing waste or lining a waste receptacle. The liners are recycled by storing them in the dispenser, and each is later used as a liner for the waste receptacle as needed.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,984,134 to Mario describes a trash container is formed from an open fronted housing having a pivotally mounted front wall movable between a closed position closing the open front and an open position displaced from the open front to allow a full trash bag to be removed readily from the housing, without having to lift the bag up and clear of the open upper end of the housing. A releasable locking device releasably locks the front wall in the closed position.
Notwithstanding the prior art, the present invention is neither taught nor rendered obvious thereby.
The present invention relates to a recycled tire trash can, which includes: (a) a main member having an open top, a bottom and at least one sidewall, the main member being composed at least of a binder and rubber, the rubber being shredded rubber from recycled tires; (b) at least one handle; and (c) a lid adapted to close the open top of the main member.
In some preferred embodiments of the present invention recycled tire trash can, the main member has a top view shape selected from the group consisting of circle, oval, square, rectangle, polygon and combinations thereof.
In some preferred embodiments of the present invention recycled tire trash can, the at least one handle is integrally formed with the main member.
In some preferred embodiments of the present invention recycled tire trash can, the at least one handle is a separate attached handle and is composed of a material selected from the group consisting of recycled plastic, plastic, shredded recycled rubber, and combinations thereof.
In some preferred embodiments of the present invention recycled tire trash can, the at least one handle has an orientation with regard to the main member wherein the orientation is selected from the group consisting of recessed and protruding.
In some preferred embodiments of the present invention recycled tire trash can, there are two handles.
In some preferred embodiments of the present invention recycled tire trash can, the lid is removable.
In some preferred embodiments of the present invention recycled tire trash can, the lid is connected to the main member through the at least one handle wherein the at least one handle locks the lid in place over the open top.
In some preferred embodiments of the present invention recycled tire trash can, the lid is connected to an extension of the main member so that the lid, when removed, hangs down on at least one side wall of the main member.
In some preferred embodiments of the present invention recycled tire trash can, the lid is composed of a material selected from the group consisting of recycled plastic, plastic, shredded recycled rubber, and combinations thereof.
Another embodiment of a present invention recycled tire trash can, includes:(a) a main member having an open top, a bottom and at least one sidewall, the main member being composed at least of a binder and rubber, the rubber being shredded rubber from recycled tires; (b) at least one handle; (c) a lid connected to the open top of the main member; and (d) at least two wheels attached to the bottom of the main member.
In some preferred embodiments of the present invention recycled tire trash can of paragraph [00016], the main member has a top view shape selected from the group consisting of circle, oval, square, rectangle, polygon and combinations thereof.
In some preferred embodiments of the present invention recycled tire trash can of paragraph [00016], the at least one handle is integrally formed with the main member.
In some preferred embodiments of the present invention recycled tire trash can of paragraph [00016], the at least one handle is a separate attached handle and is composed of a material selected from the group consisting of recycled plastic, plastic, shredded recycled rubber, and combinations thereof.
In some preferred embodiments of the present invention recycled tire trash can of paragraph [00016], the at least one handle has an orientation with regard to the main member wherein the orientation is selected from the group consisting of recessed and protruding.
In some preferred embodiments of the present invention recycled tire trash can of paragraph [00016], the lid is removable.
In some preferred embodiments of the present invention recycled tire trash can of paragraph [00016], the lid is connected to the main member through the at least one handle wherein the at least one handle locks the lid in place over the open top.
In some preferred embodiments of the present invention recycled tire trash can of paragraph [00016], the lid is connected to an extension of the main member so that the lid, when removed, hangs down on at least one side wall of the main member.
In some preferred embodiments of the present invention recycled tire trash can of paragraph [00016], the wheels are attached to an axle which is attached to the bottom of the main member.
In some preferred embodiments of the present invention recycled tire trash can of paragraph [00016], the bottom of the main member includes a plurality of indentations for attaching the wheels.
Additional features, advantages, and embodiments of the invention may be set forth or apparent from consideration of the following detailed description, drawings, and claims. Moreover, it is to be understood that both the foregoing summary of the invention and the following detailed description are exemplary and intended to provide further explanation without limiting the scope of the invention as claimed.
The accompanying drawings, which are included to provide a further understanding of the invention and are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, illustrate preferred embodiments of the invention and together with the detail description serve to explain the principles of the invention. In the drawings:
Used tires are recycled by being macerated mechanically through a series of cutters with increasingly smaller pieces being produced, from full tires, to tires with sidewall beads removed, to 9″ to 12″ pieces, to 3″ to 5″ pieces, down to an inch or less and then to smaller sizes that are tenths of an inch or less. Centrifuges or other processes remove fiber from rubber and magnets remove metal fines. The resulting crumb rubber is utilized as the major constituent in forming the products of the present invention. The crumb rubber is mixed with a binder and the mixture may include other additives, such as colorants and flame retardants. Binders may be thermoset plastics, polyvinyl chloride, urethane or other material, or combinations thereof.
The crumb rubber and binder (and other constituents, where applicable) are cold blended or hot blended and then molded into the shape of the finished trash can of the present invention. The molding process may be hot melt molding and hot pressure molding is preferred. The mixture is poured into an open mold and pressed into the mold with predetermined heat and pressure. The heat is typically below the melting point of the crumb rubber in terms of temperature and exposure time, but in some preferred embodiments, sufficient heating is applied to fuse the binder and crumb rubber particles together. The molded products are ejected or removed from the molds manually or automatically using ejector systems.
As shown in box 7, the recycled trash can may have wheels or no wheels. When there are wheels, the wheels are attached to an axle which is attached to the bottom of the main member. In other embodiments, the bottom of the main member includes a plurality of indentations for attaching the wheels.
As shown in box 9, the at least one handle may be integrally formed with the main member. In other embodiments of the present invention recycled tire trash can, the at least one handle may be a separate attached handle and may be composed of a material selected from the group consisting of recycled plastic, plastic, shredded recycled rubber, and combinations thereof. The at least one handle has an orientation with regard to the main member wherein the orientation is selected from the group consisting of recessed and protruding. Furthermore, there may be two handles.
As shown in box 11, when the at least one handle is separately attached, it is composed of a material selected from the group consisting of recycled plastic, plastic, shredded recycled rubber, and combinations thereof.
As shown in box 13, the lid may be removable or connected to the main member. When the lid is connected, the at least one handle locks the lid in place over the open top. In other embodiments of the present invention recycled tire trash can, the lid is connected to an extension of the main member so that the lid, when removed, hangs down on at least one side wall of the main member.
As shown in box 15, the lid is composed of a material selected from the group consisting of recycled plastic, plastic, shredded recycled rubber, and combinations thereof.
The main member 53 is composed at least of a binder and rubber. The rubber is shredded rubber from recycled tires. In this case, the top shape is square, but the shape may also be circle, oval, rectangle, polygon and combinations thereof.
In this case, the at least one handle 55 is a protrusion, but it may also be a recess. The at least one handle 55 may be integrally formed with the main member 53, is which case, the at least one handle 55 is composed at least of a binder and rubber. The at least one handle 55 may be a separate attached handle, in which case, is composed of recycled plastic, plastic, shredded recycled rubber, and combinations thereof. The removable lid 57 includes a handle 65 which connects to the at least one handle 55 when the lid 57 is removed and hangs down on sidewall 67. In this way, the lid 57 may be stored on the recycled tire trash can without wheels 51 when the lid 57 is removed. The removable lid 57 may be composed of recycled plastic, plastic, shredded recycled rubber, and combinations thereof.
The recycled tire trash can with wheels 151 includes a main member 153, at least one handle 155, and a removable lid 157 adapted to close an open top 159 of the main member 153. The main member includes the open top 159, a bottom 161 and at least one sidewall 163. In this embodiment the recycled tire trash can with wheels 151 includes a plurality of wheels 169, 171 which are connected to an axle 173 attached to the bottom 161 of the main member 153. In the alternative, the bottom 161 of the main member may include a plurality of indentations for attaching at least two wheels.
The main member 153 is composed at least of a binder and rubber. The rubber is shredded rubber from recycled tires. In this case, the top shape is square, but the shape may also be circle, oval, rectangle, polygon and combinations thereof.
In this case, the at least one handle 155 is a protrusion, but it may also be a recess. The at least one handle 155 may be integrally formed with the main member 153, is which case, the at least one handle is composed at least of a binder and rubber. The at least one handle 155 may be a separate attached handle, in which case, is composed of recycled plastic, plastic, shredded recycled rubber, and combinations thereof. The removable lid 157 includes a handle 165 which connects to the at least one handle 155 when the lid 157 is removed and hangs down on sidewall 167. In this way, the lid 157 may be stored on the recycled tire trash can with wheels 151 when the lid 157 is removed. The removable lid 157 may be composed of recycled plastic, plastic, shredded recycled rubber, and combinations thereof.
Although particular embodiments of the invention have been described in detail herein with reference to the accompanying drawings, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to those particular embodiments, and that various changes and modifications may be effected therein by one skilled in the art without departing from the scope or spirit of the invention as defined in the appended claims. For example, in some preferred embodiments, before being melted and fused, the shredded rubber from used tires may be intermixed with an appropriate binding material, such as those used in the insides of a baseball, or any other available binder that works with rubber used in tires.
