EP0994047B1 - Refuse collecting container provided with a transponder - Google Patents

Abstract

A plastic waste bin incorporates a transponder for identification by a collection vehicle and exchange of information such as weight. The transponder (6) is held in place by fixings (7, 8) which make direct contact with it and are made from material(s) that are compatible, from the point of view of recycling, with the plastic used to make the bin itself. The fixings hold the transponder in place in a cavity (4) situated e.g. beneath the collar (1) used for gripping the bin. One of the fixings (7) comprises a housing with a threaded skirt (10) and surfaces shaped to receive a tool used to unscrew it.

Description

The present invention relates to a container for collecting waste, equipped with a transponder secured to the tank of the tank by fixing means attached to the latter.

The transponder is intended to allow for example identification of the bin by a collection vehicle, thanks to a data exchange, in a manner known per se.

By weighing the bin before emptying, you can charge depending on the quantity of waste removed.

Various solutions have been proposed to subject the transponder to the bin.

The German utility model 92 12243 has been proposed place the transponder, embedded in a block of resin, in a box comprising two shells respectively attached to the faces opposite of a stiffening rib of the tank, each of these shells being provided with a first through fastening element the rib thanks to a piercing and coming to be housed in a second complementary fastening element, made on the other shell.

Patent application DE-A-43 35 180 describes a container equipped with a transponder, which is arranged in a receptacle attached to the tray. This transponder is embedded in a sealing mass.

We also proposed in the German utility model DE-U-94 02392 to insert the transponder into a slot made in the wall of the container grip flange, immediately after molding of the plastic material constituting the tank and while it is still soft.

It has also been proposed in EP-A-495 947 to place the transponder in a container housing closed by means of a riveted or snapped plate.

The transponder is housed in the housing while being protected against impact, for example by being padded; with a spacing on all sides, that is to say so "floating" in relation to the surrounding walls.

The various known solutions do not offer a whole satisfaction.

In particular, the placement of the transponder in the bin, while the plastic material constituting it is still fluid, requires adding to the molds used to make the tray relatively expensive ancillary equipment.

In addition, when the transponder is embedded in a block resin, it is necessary to extract it from the tank before grinding this last for recycling, under penalty of mixing materials plastics not compatible from a recycling point of view.

The present invention relates to a new container, easy to recycle and for which the installation of the transponder can be done without expensive equipment.

This bin is of the type in which the transponder is secured to the tank of the tank by fixing means attached to the tank.

According to the invention, the fixing means are arranged to come directly into contact with the transponder.

In other words, the transponder can be set up on the tank without having to be drowned entirely in a resin block.

The fixing means are advantageously made in one or several materials chosen to be compatible, from the point of view recycling, with the plastic used to make the tank.

Thus, it is not necessary, thanks to the invention, extract the transponder before shredding the tank for the recycling, thus avoiding a sometimes tedious operation with known bins.

In a particular embodiment, the fixing means used to secure the transponder to the bin have at least a holding part to be introduced into a housing of the tank.

Still in a particular realization, the accommodation above is located under the grip of the tray, being of preferably open at the bottom and advantageously having a smooth interior surface before fitting the workpiece maintenance.

In a preferred embodiment, the fixing means have a box inside which is housed the transponder.

This case advantageously comprises a case body and a cover snapped together and the transponder has preferably a printed circuit pinched between the housing body and the lid.

This box can be easily set up on the tank, without expensive equipment.

The housing body preferably has a groove annular and the cover a rib shaped to snap cannot be dismantled in the aforementioned groove.

In a preferred embodiment, the housing body is threaded externally, and present on its interior face, accessible from the outside of the tank, reliefs intended to cooperate with a tool for disassembly if necessary.

• la figure 1 est une vue schématique en coupe représentant un transpondeur en place sur un bac, conformément à un premier exemple de mise en oeuvre de l'invention,
• la figure 2 est une vue partielle à échelle agrandie de la figure 1,
• la figure 3 représente en perspective et en vue de dessous le corps de boítier,
• la figure 4 est une vue de dessous selon la flèche IV de la figure 3,
• les figures 5 et 6 sont des vues selon les traits de coupe V-V et VI-VI de la figure 4,
• la figure 7 est une vue en coupe axiale du couvercle,
• la figure 8 représente schématiquement et en perspective le transpondeur,
• la figure 9 est une vue en coupe, analogue à la figure 2, illustrant une variante de mise en oeuvre de l'invention, et
• la figure 10 est une vue schématique en perspective d'un bac conforme à l'invention.

Other characteristics and advantages of the present invention will appear on reading the detailed description which follows, of nonlimiting exemplary embodiments of the invention, and on examining the appended drawing in which:

• FIG. 1 is a schematic sectional view showing a transponder in place on a tank, in accordance with a first example of implementation of the invention,
• FIG. 2 is a partial view on an enlarged scale of FIG. 1,
• FIG. 3 represents in perspective and in view from below the housing body,
• FIG. 4 is a bottom view along arrow IV of FIG. 3,
• FIGS. 5 and 6 are views along the section lines VV and VI-VI of FIG. 4,
• FIG. 7 is a view in axial section of the cover,
• FIG. 8 schematically and in perspective represents the transponder,
• FIG. 9 is a sectional view, similar to FIG. 2, illustrating an alternative embodiment of the invention, and
• Figure 10 is a schematic perspective view of a container according to the invention.

There is shown in Figure 1, in a section plane vertical, the grip collar 1 of the tank 2 of a tank for waste collection.

The tank 2 is made of a thermoplastic material such than polyethylene.

The bin is shown in Figure 10.

The gripping collar 1 has an inner wall 3, cylindrical, defining a housing 4 of circular section open downwards, opposite the hinge of the cover on the tank 2 and intended to receive a box 5 housing a transponder 6.

This transponder 6 allows the identification of the bin during the collection or any other operation concerning the management of the fleet of trays.

The case 5 comprises, as can be seen in FIG. 2, a housing body 7 and a cover 8, made of polyethylene.

FIGS. 3 to 6 show the body of housing 7.

This housing body 7 has a bottom 9 connecting, at its periphery, about halfway up a tubular skirt 10 of axis X.

The outer surface of the housing body 7 has a thread 11.

The housing body 7 further comprises, in part lower, as can be seen in Figure 3, extensions 12 which extend inward the skirt 10 in two locations diametrically opposite and which define two housings 13 allowing the pins of a tool to be inserted for disassembly, as will be explained later.

The bottom 9 has in its central part a recess 14, extending perpendicular to the X axis.

This recess 14 is connected to its periphery by a conical surface with a slightly raised annular zone 15, which also extends perpendicular to the X axis.

The housing body 7 has in the upper part a groove annular 16, intended for mounting the cover 8, produced on the inner surface of the tubular skirt 10.

The cover 8 has a raised edge with, at its end upper, a rim 18 directed radially outwards and intended to be applied to the upper edge 19 of the body of box 7.

The raised edge of the cover 8 is further provided with a rib 17 intended to snap into the annular groove 16 of the body of housing 7.

The underside of the cover 8 has a slight recess 20.

The transponder 6 comprises in the embodiment example describes a printed circuit 21 comprising a conductive track constituting the antenna and supporting on one side an integrated circuit 22 containing the active electronic components of the transponder 6 protected by insulating material.

The printed circuit is advantageously covered with a varnish protective.

The bottom 9 of the housing body 7 is dimensioned such that so that the printed circuit 21 rests on the annular zone 15 when the transponder 6 is in place.

Once the cover 8 is attached to the housing body 7, the printed circuit 21 is pinched between the body of the housing 7 and the cover 8, the recesses 14 and 20 creating a space allowing to house the integrated circuit 22.

The housing 5 is forced into the housing 4 until that the cover 8 comes to rest in the bottom of the collar 1.

The interior surface of the housing 4 is smooth, which facilitates the insertion of the housing 5.

However, the plastic material constituting the wall 3 flows and gradually penetrates between the threads of the thread 11, which allows if necessary, dismantle the case 5 by unscrewing it using the aforementioned tool.

There is shown in Figure 9 an alternative embodiment in which the bottom of the housing 4 is provided with rellefs 24 shaped to bear on the transponder 6 when the body of the housing 7 is put in place without the cover 8.

The housing body 7 and the cover 8 are produced in a compatible thermoplastic, from the point of view of recycling, with the plastic material constituting the tank 2 of the tank.

In the embodiments described, the transponder is found perfectly sheltered from bad weather and maintained without play on Baccalaureat.

Thanks to the invention, the transponder not being embedded in a resin block and advantageously held in place by means fastening made of compatible plastic, from the point of recycling, with that of the bin, we can send it recycling without having to extract the transponder first.

In addition, the transponder is easily installed on the tray.

Of course, the invention is not limited to the examples of realization which have just been described and one can still use other fixing means for securing the transponder to the tank, without departing from the scope of the present invention, as it is defined in the claims which follow.

Claims (11)

1. A bin for collecting refuse, the bin comprising a container having a transponder secured thereto by fixing means, said fixing means comprising at least one box body (7) to be placed in a housing (4) of the bin, characterized by the fact that the transponder (6) which is not embedded in a block of resin, is directly in contact with said box body.
2. A bin according to claim 1, characterized by the fact that said fixing means further include a cover (8) that is snap-fastened with the box body (7) defining a box inside which the transponder (6) is housed, and by the fact that the transponder includes a printed circuit (21) clamped between the box body and the cover.
3. A bin according to the preceding claim, characterized by the fact that the box body (7) has an annular groove (16) and the cover (8) has a rib (17) designed to snap-fasten in said groove.
4. A bin according to the preceding claim, characterized by the fact that the box body (7) is threaded on the outside.
5. A bin according to the preceding claim, characterized by the fact that the box has a bottom face that is accessible from the outside and that is provided with relief (12, 13) enabling a tool to be engaged for unscrewing the box.
6. A bin according to claim 1, characterized by the fact that the end wall of housing (4) has projections (24) designed to come into abutment with the transponder (6) when the box body (7) is put in place without the cover (8)
7. A bin according to any preceding claim, characterized by the fact that said fixing means are made from one or more materials chosen to be compatible, from a recycling point of view, with the plastics material used to make the container (2).
8. A bin according to any preceding claim, characterized by the fact that said housing (4) is situated under a handling collar (1) of the bin.
9. A bin according to claim 8, characterized by the fact that said housing (4) is open downwards.
10. A bin according to any preceding claim, characterized by the fact that the inside surface of said housing (4), before putting the transponder in place, is smooth.
11. A bin according to any preceding claim, characterized by the fact that said fixing means are made of polyethylene.

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