Abstrict A can crusher is provided utilizing a single lever arm pivoted
in two places to a pivotal link and a crusher plate respectively
and having a unique action wherein upon lifting the lever arm space
is provided for a can and a foot extended from the lever arm crushes
one end of the can, and upon depressing the arm the can is completely
crushed.
Claims What is claimed is:
1. A can crusher comprising:
(a) a base;
(b) a crusher plate havng one end pivoted to said base and the
other end free of said base;
(c) a lever arm being pivotally connected at a first pivot point
along its length to the free end of said crusher plate, said lever
arm being pivotally connected at a second pivot point to one end
of a pivotal link, the other end of said pivotal link being pivoted
to said base;
(e) said lever arm having an extended foot defined on the underside
thereof on the side of said first pivot towards said second pivot,
whereby, upon raising said lever arm said plate is raised, and upon
inserting a can between said base and said plate and further raising
said lever said foot buckles one end of said can, and upon subsequently
lowering said lever arm said can is crushed against said base by
said crusher plate.
2. Structure according to claim 1 wherein said plate is provided
with a frictional surface along the portion thereof which engages
a can to be crushed.
3. Structure according to claim 1 wherein said pivotal link comprises
a pair of side plates stradding a rest positioned on said base to
seat said foot when said crusher is in its unused orientation.
4. Structure according to claim 1 wherein said lever arm includes
a downwardly directed actuator arm and said first pivot point is
defined in the end of said actuator arm.
5. Structure according to claim 4 wherein said actuator arm and
pivotal link are substantially the same length.
Description BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The price of scrap aluminum has multiplied several times recently
creating an increased interest in recycled aluminum cans. A hard
working scavenger can eke out of living of sorts collecting cans,
and it provides a nice income for children.
The form in which aluminum recyclers want their cans is crushed,
and a currently available can crusher crushes from end-to-end, creating
a thick disc that is difficult for the shredding mechines to handle.
A number of other crushers have been developed which crush the
cans sideways, but these can be somewhat complicated due to the
fact that the most practical way to crush a can is to first buckle
one and so that the can crushes nicely flat with the two end disks
up.
SUMMARY
The present invention is extremely simple and enables the user
to first buckle in one end of the can, and then crush the can flat
with both ends up in a single up-down movement of a lever.
This is achieved by the use of a long lever arm having a hand grip
at the free end, with the other end being pivoted to a connector
like to a base plane. Between the pivotal length and the hand grip
is an extending actuator arm which connects to the top of a hinged
crusher plate, and a foot extending downward form the pivoted end
of the arm crushes one end of the can inward to create a buckle
as the arm is lifted, setting the can up for a clean, flat crush
as the crusher plate is lowered by pushing down on the lever arm.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a side elevation view of the crusher;
FIG. 2 is a side elevation view of the crusher mounted on a vertical
surface;
FIG. 3 is a top elevation view of the crusher;
FIG. 4 is a view of the crusher with the lever arm being raised
to accept a can;
FIG. 5 is a side elevation view showing the lever arm further raised
to buckle the can;
FIG. 6 is a side elevation view showing the arm depressed to crush
the can;
FIG. 7 is a perspective of a can to be crushed;
FIG. 8 is a top elevation view of a can after crushing;
FIG. 9 is a side perspective of a can having been crushed;
FIG. 10 is a end elevation view looking along lines 10--10 of FIG.
1.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
The invention utilizes a base 10 which is bolted as at 12 in FIG.
3 to either a horizontal or vertical surface, 14 or 16 respectively.
To this plate a first hinge 18 mounts a crusher plate 20 the other
end of which has a pair of flanges 22 straddling a pivotally connected
actuator arm 24 of a lever arm 26. The lever arm has a hand grip
28 mounted at its free end, and at its other end it pivoted at 30
to a pivotal link comprising a pair of side plates 32. These plates
straddle and are pivoted at 36 to a stud or rest 38 which serves
to seat a foot 40 mounted on a bar 42 extending from the end of
the pivot arm 26 when the device is in its resting position as shown
in FIG. 1. As best seen in FIGS. 4 and 5 the under surface 44 of
the crusher plate may be serrated or otherwise provided with a gripping
surface to better grip a can 46 to be crushed. This gripping surface
could equally well be applied to the top surface of the base 10.
In the use of the device, FIG. 1 shows that in its stored or quiescent
state, and in order to use it the handle 26 is raised by the hand
grip 28 to the loading position as shown in FIG. 4. A can 46 is
inserted beneath the crusher plate 20 and the user then continues
to raise the lever arm 26 until the foot 40 is forced against the
upper left edge of the can as shown in the drawings, causing the
can to buckle at 48 seen in FIG. 5. Once the can is buckled, the
two ends 50 are angled inwardly and are disposed in a position that
will permit them to be easily crushed by lowering the lever arm
26 as shown in FIG. 6.
It will be noted that the operation and movement of the crusher
as described herein is extremely smooth, and the connections of
the parts require that they all move in a single path, even though
at first the drawings would appear to lead one to believe there
would be a good deal of "play" in the mechanism. This
is not the case.
In a single upward motion on the lever arm or handle 26 the can
is buckled, and a single downward motion causes the can to be crushed,
so that the same arm, and a single arm, is used for the entire process,
distinguishing over certan prior art devices that utilize multiple
arms or crusher plates for the crushing action. Another advantage
of the device is that it is very easily wall mounted as shown in
FIG. 2 as a simple alternative to the basic floor mount. |