Method for transporting waste or recyclable material

• US 10,273,046 B2
• Filed: 03/27/2017
• Issued: 04/30/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 07/08/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Divert, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Divert, Inc.
• Inventors: Whitman, Nicholas L., Begin, Ryan R.
• Primary Examiner(s): Chu, King M
• Application Number:
  US15/469,622
• Publication Number:
  US 20170200135A1
• Time in Patent Office: 764 Days
• Field of Search: 206600
• CPC Class Codes: B60P 1/00 Vehicles predominantly for transporting loads and modified to facilitate loading, consolidating the load, or unloading vehicles for carrying harvested crops with means for self-loading or self-unloading A01D90/00; peculiar to refuse collecting-vehicles B65F; loading or unloading vehicles by means not incorporated therein B65G
• CPC Class Codes: B65D 19/0004 Rigid pallets without side walls
• CPC Class Codes: B65D 19/14 made wholly or mainly of wood
• CPC Class Codes: B65D 19/16 Collapsible pallets
• CPC Class Codes: B65D 21/086 Collapsible or telescopic containers B65D1/0292 and B65D21/068 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: B65F 1/06 with flexible inserts, e.g. bags or sacks B65F1/0073 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: B65F 1/1468 Means for facilitating the transport of the receptacle, e.g. wheels, rolls hand-operated refuse vehicles B65F3/005
• CPC Class Codes: B65F 2210/1026 for smelling substances
• CPC Class Codes: B65F 2210/128 Data transmitting means
• CPC Class Codes: B65F 2210/138 Identification means
• CPC Class Codes: B65F 2220/106 Collapsible
• CPC Class Codes: B65F 2220/1063 foldable
• CPC Class Codes: B65F 2240/138 Garden debris
• CPC Class Codes: B65F 2250/105 Biodegradable
• CPC Class Codes: B65F 2250/106 Carton
• CPC Class Codes: B65F 2250/114 Plastics
• CPC Class Codes: B65F 9/00 Transferring of refuse between vehicles or containers with intermediate storage or pressing presses for baling per se B30B9/30
• CPC Class Codes: B66F 9/06 movable, with their loads, on wheels or the like, e.g. fork-lift trucks vehicle aspects B60 - B62; vehicles predominantly for transporting loads and modified to facilitate loading or unloading B60P1/00; low-lift hand trucks for transporting goods B62B3/06
• CPC Class Codes: G01G 19/083 lift truck scale
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/58 Retrieval characterised by using metadata, e.g. metadata not derived from the content or metadata generated manually
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/10009 : sensing by radiation using wavelengths larger than 0.1 mm, e.g. radio-waves or microwaves
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/10316 : using at least one antenna particularly designed for interrogating the wireless record carriers antennas in general H01Q1/22
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/08 : Logistics, e.g. warehousing, loading or distribution; Inventory or stock management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/0875 : Itemisation or classification of parts, supplies or services, e.g. bill of materials
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/30 : Administration of product recycling or disposal
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/018 : Certifying business or products
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/04 : Billing or invoicing
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 7/0002 : Inspection of images, e.g. flaw detection
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 2201/06 : Recognition of objects for industrial automation
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 30/2247 : Characters composed of bars, e.g. CMC-7
• CPC Class Codes: G09F 2003/0272 : Labels for containers
• CPC Class Codes: G09F 3/0297 : including a machine-readable marking, e.g. a bar code digitally marked record carriers in general G06K19/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/01 : Protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/11 : for generating image signals from visible and infrared light wavelengths
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/45 : for generating image signals from two or more image sensors being of different type or operating in different modes, e.g. with a CMOS sensor for moving images in combination with a charge-coupled device [CCD] for still images
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/029 : Location-based management or tracking services
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/40 : for vehicles, e.g. vehicle-to-pedestrians [V2P]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/44 : for communication between vehicles and infrastructures, e.g. vehicle-to-cloud [V2C] or vehicle-to-home [V2H]
• CPC Class Codes: Y02W 30/82 : Recycling of waste of electrical or electronic equipment [WEEE]
• CPC Class Codes: Y02W 90/00 : Enabling technologies or technologies with a potential or indirect contribution to greenhouse gas [GHG] emissions mitigation

Abstract

Systems, methods and devices are provided for transporting, tracking and managing waste or recyclable materials, which may include one or more devices for transporting waste or recyclable material, such a via a bin that comprises a base; and a collapsible sleeve movable between an open state and a collapsed state, wherein the collapsible sleeve in the open state interfaces in a nesting manner with the base to form a bin for receiving and transporting waste material.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

transporting goods on a pallet, wherein the pallet comprises a base with side walls and a collapsible sleeve that is contained within the side walls of the base, wherein if the collapsible sleeve is collapsed and configured to lie flat on the base, the collapsible sleeve provides a surface for the transport of the goods, and if the collapsible sleeve is open, the collapsible sleeve, with the base, forms a bin;

transporting the goods from a first location to a second location on the pallet when the collapsible sleeve is collapsed;

upon removal of the goods from the pallet at the second location, forming the bin by opening the collapsed collapsible sleeve;

at the second location, placing waste or recyclable material in the bin; and

transporting the material in the bin from the second location to the first location.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the first location is a food distribution center and the second location is a food retailer.

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

moving the goods on the pallet at the food distribution center or the food retailer using a forklift or a pallet jack.

4. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

moving the material in the bin at the food retailer or the food distribution center using a forklift or a pallet jack.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising a step of securing the collapsible sleeve to the base, wherein securing the collapsible sleeve to the base comprises sliding an attachment mechanism on the base through an opening in a bottom of the collapsible sleeve.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

adding a liner to the bin prior to placing the waste or recyclable material in the bin.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the bin further comprises a cover.

8. The method of claim 7, further comprising:

forming the pallet with the collapsed collapsible sleeve, the cover, and the base.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising:

fitting an exterior frame of the cover over a peripheral edge of the bin for transporting material in the bin.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

tracking a location of the pallet or the bin via an RFID tag, a GPS tracker, or an asset tracker.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the collapsible sleeve is made of plastic or cardboard material.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the collapsible sleeve comprises a z-fold and wherein the z-fold is in a folded position if the collapsible sleeve is collapsed.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein the base and the side walls form a reservoir for capturing any liquid portion of the material in the bin.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein the collapsible sleeve has an opening to accommodate an attachment mechanism of the base.