Side loading apparatus for trash collection system

Claim 1

In a trash collection system for loading trash into the truck body of a side loading trash collection vehicle, the improvements comprising: a. a frame member extendably secured to said truck body for horizontal movement away from and toward said truck body; b. a pair of guide rails, parallel to each other, mounted on said frame member and extending substantially vertically upwardly therefrom along side said truck body, said guide rails movable with said frame member toward and away from said truck body; each of said guide rails having a top section hingedly secured to the remainder of said rail for tilting movement about a horizontal hinge axis; c. a carriage having a lower pair of rollers mounted for rotation about a common horizontal axis of rotation and an upper pair of rollers, each of said lower pair of rollers engaging a different one of said pair of guide rails and each of said upper pair of rollers engaging a different one of said pair of guide rails for guiding said carriage along said rails from a rest position near the bottom of said rails to a dump position near the top of said rails; d. a pair of gripping arms mounted on said carriage, each of said arms pivotal about a vertical axis for movement toward and away from each other for gripping a trash container, said arms also pivotal about a horizontal axis for movement into a stowing position in a substantially vertical plane; e. lifting means for raising said carriage along said rails, said lifting means including a piston and cylinder secured at one end thereof to said frame member and having a sprocket secured to the other end, a chain secured at one end thereof to said frame member, said chain passing over said sprocket and secured at its other end to said carriage about a horizontal pivot axis to permit pivotal movement of said carriage with respect to said chain about said horizontal pivot axis, said horizontal pivot axis being coincident with said common horizontal axis of rotation; f. stop means secured to at least one of said guide rails below the top section thereof, and positioned to contact said carriage to stop said carriage with said common horizontal axis of rotation coincident with said horizontal hinge axis, whereby said horizontal hinge axis, said common horizontal axis of rotation, and said horizontal pivot axis are all coincident with each other when said carriage is in said dump position; and g. tilting means connected to the top section of said rails for tilting said top section about said horizontal hinge axis when said carriage is positioned on said top section and said common horizontal axis of rotation of said lower pair of rollers coincides with said horizontal hinge axis.