Patent Application
20090317219
Not applicable
Not applicable
I. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to refuse collecting vehicles and, particularly, to any, rear-discharging refuse vehicle having a packing panel system which utilizes a follower panel and a wiper member such that it can accommodate deposition of refuse with the system in any position of a packing cycle. The packing system, which includes a packing panel with connected follower, is provided with a long-wearing, abrasion-resistant wiper blade fixed in position to engage the top surface of the packer panel so that retraction of the follower/packer panel causes the wiper blade to sweep off any deposited refuse material. Particular applications include front and side loading vehicles.
II. Related Art
Refuse hauling vehicles commonly include a heavy-duty chassis including a forward cab and a separately manufactured truck body mounted on the chassis and dedicated to receiving, compacting, hauling and discharging refuse materials. The truck body which attaches to the chassis generally includes all the associated hydraulic, pneumatic and/or electrical operating mechanisms associated with heavy-duty packing and ejection equipment. In front or side-loading systems, a charging or receiving hopper or section is provided behind the cab and forward of the storage volume to accept deposited refuse. The receiving section further contains a packing system for packing deposited refuse rearward into a storage enclosure. As indicated, the receiving area or section is located behind the truck cab and refuse to be hauled is loaded into the receiving area as by tipping containers, either manually, with a cart tipper or other mechanized container handling system which, in the case of a side-loading vehicle, is mounted on one side of the charging hopper or to the truck chassis. Thus, loading of the charging area is accomplished through side openings or an open top. The packing system includes a reciprocating or sometimes rotating ram, usually hydraulically operated, which compacts the material moving it rearward into the storage compartment where it is eventually compacted against a heavy-duty tailgate, normally in the shape of a pressure vessel.
It is known to provide a front, rear or side-loading refuse vehicle body with a packing and ejecting mechanism that packs refuse from a charging area or section into an associated hollow storage enclosure. The body is usually designed to be tipped to fully eject the refuse from the storage enclosure, but it may have an ejector design that enables it to fully eject refuse without tipping. In front loading vehicles, it is known to provide frontal forks or a mechanized lifting and emptying apparatus situated on one side of the receiving hopper such that a container of interest may be engaged and emptied into the receiving hopper. A side-loading apparatus typically includes a holding or grasping device generally connected to an arm or extensible boom which is connected, in turn, to a base mounted on the vehicle. The arm or boom and grasping device are operated in concert to engage a container of interest, lift and dump the container into the receiving hopper in the vehicle. Such systems are typically operated using one or more hydraulic devices to extend or retract the boom, pivot the arm and open and close the grabbing device. Examples of such booms are shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,657,654; 5,769,592; and 5,931,628.
Side loading refuse collection truck bodies may be manually loaded, have cart tipper or automatic loading devices, or combine or accommodate both manual and automated-type container loading abilities. Packer panel systems have also been provided with connected follower members that enable the loading of refuse to proceed with the packer panel in any position, including a fully extended packing position. While all of these types of systems have also been provided with wiper devices to remove material deposited on the top of the packer panel and follower, known wiper devices have been subject to early deterioration and have required frequent replacement, thus, there remains a need for a packer panel system including a wiper system that produces more efficient material removal and longer wiper life.
The present development pertains to any refuse collection vehicle of a type using a packer panel that operates reciprocally along in the vehicle body with a connected follower panel in which the receiving and packing arrangement enables refuse to be deposited into a receiving section or area at any time regardless of the position of the packer panel. The development provides an efficient, low maintenance wiper system, including a wiper member design in conjunction with a follower panel attached to the packer panel such that the top surface of both the follower panel and the packer panel are cleaned, i.e., deposited material is swept off during the return or retraction stroke of the packer panel. The new wiper has a much longer, useful life and exhibits more efficient refuse material removal characteristics.
In accordance with one preferred embodiment, the wiper assembly includes an elongate wiper blade member that addresses the surface to be cleaned with a beveled edge. A hollow wiper mounting member is provided having a front surface disposed to receive the wiper blade at the proper angle to address the surfaces to be wiped, a wiper guard member is designed to overlay the wiper blade member and a plurality of spaced threaded connector members connect the wiper guard member to the wiper mount through aligned corresponding openings in the wiper blade member thereby capturing the wiper blade member therebetween. The openings in the wiper blade member are slotted to allow adjustment of the height of the downward directed beveled edge. The wiper blade member can be provided with bevels on both edges so that it can be reversed and a second edge exposed when a first edge becomes worn. Presenting a beveled edge has been found to provide better efficiency in material removal.
The wiper blade member itself is preferably made of a material that has a rather low friction coefficient, is abrasion resistant and is substantially inert to the many corrosive constituents of the refuse environment. One such preferred material is a composite polyurethane material which may be fiber reinforced and/or which may be used to cover a solid core, such as a metallic core. While polyurethane may be a preferred material, other materials which meet the necessary qualifications may also be used. These include, for example, high density polyethylene or polypropylene and polyamide materials.
The wiper member is designed to operate in conjunction with a packer panel and connected followers such that the wiper cleans the refuse off the packer and follower during a retraction stroke of the packer panel so that any material deposited in the area of the receiving hopper is swept off the upper surfaces and deposited in front of the packer panel.
In accordance with one embodiment, and by way of example, the system is shown on a manual/automated side-loading refuse collection vehicle body for receiving, compacting (packing), transporting and ejecting refuse materials a front loading refuse body is also shown.
In the drawings wherein like reference characters denote like parts throughout the same:
The detailed description features embodiments in the form of a manual/automated side-loading, or front-loading rear-discharging refuse collection vehicle. These embodiments are meant as examples only and are not intended to limit the scope of the inventive concepts in any manner.
The front or side-loading refuse collection vehicle bodies include a refuse packing system having a low profile packer panel designed to operate reciprocally along the vehicle body charging area to push deposited refuse rearward and include a packer panel and hinged follower panel and a unique long-life wiper system that cleans deposited refuse from the upper surface of the follower panel and packer panel in an efficient manner that enables deposit of refuse with the packer panel in any state of packing or retraction.
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The side-loading system further includes a container handling apparatus 60 (shown in
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In
Fluid cylinders, one of which is shown at 126 are utilized to operate the arms, pivot them about pivot points as shown at 124. As illustrated in
A low profile packer panel system is shown in
As indicated previously, the blade wiper member itself is preferably made of a material that combines a rather low friction coefficient with abrasion resistance and is one that is substantially chemically inert to materials and liquids likely to be contained in refuse to be processed. It is desirable that the wiper blade member have a long useful life in what is a very hostile environment. In this regard, certain available composite polyurethane materials which, if desired, can be fiber reinforced and have been found to be quite successful in this application. This wear surface can be used as a coating over other material such as a metallic core or the wiper blade member may be made entirely of the same material. While success has been achieved with polyurethane materials, it is contemplated that other polymer materials such as high density polyethylene or polypropylene may also be used.
This invention has been described herein in considerable detail in order to comply with the patent statutes and to provide those skilled in the art with the information needed to apply the novel principles and to construct and use embodiments of the example as required. However, it is to be understood that the invention can be carried out by specifically different devices and that various modifications can be accomplished without departing from the scope of the invention itself.
