This device is applicable to vehicles to which mechanisms are fitted for picking up and dumping refuse containers, said mechanisms comprising a container lifting assembly being arranged below the intake opening giving access to the refuse receiving hopper, said lifting assembly once having lifted the container proceeding to tip and thus overturn it in order to thus have it dumped.

The container lifting assemblies include a container supporting structure forming a strip upwardly forming a by way of hook, a gripping device cooperating with said strip, the rim of the open top of the container being gripped between said strip and the pressing section being provided in said device, the container at its lower portion resting on a front rest being formed on the lifting assembly.

There are different means for actuating the gripping devices, some being made up by springs, whereas others comprise hydraulic or pneumatic cylinders, all of them being of complex makeup, requiring maintenance and increasing the cost of the assembly making up the gripping device.

This invention has as its object a gripping device being of a simple makeup and effectively operable and not requiring complex systems being potential trouble sources.

A characterising feature of this novel gripping device lies in the fact that the axle on which the lifting and tipping assembly is swivelled at one end is linked to the lifting means and at the opposite end is solidly attached to a cam against which the pressing section leans by means of a cam follower, said cam forming a stop being fit to withhold said section for as long as the rim of the open top of the container is not pressed, said stop being then cleared by the cam follower so as to have the pressing section swivelled together with the lifting and tipping assembly.

The gripping device comprises cushioning, resilient means that in case of a wrongly arranged container or in face of an excess pressure between the pressing section and the container supporting strip yield and thus offset said excess.

An also characterising feature lies in the presence of a spring being fit to hold the pressing section in its initial, passive position.

These and other features will be best made apparent by the following detailed description whose understanding will be made easier by the accompanying two sheets of drawings showing a practical embodiment being cited only by way of example not limiting the scope of the present invention.

In the drawings:

• Figs. 1 and 2 are perspective views representing a container lifting and tipping assembly being equipped with the gripping device being the object of the invention, as seen from the back and from the front, respectively;
• Fig. 3 illustrates said assembly as seen in a side elevation; and
• Figs. 4 and 5 are each a sectional view as per lines IV-IV and V-V of Fig. 3.

According to the drawings this gripping device comprises a pressing section (1) at its backward face being integral with two brackets (2) being each linked in a pin-jointed connection on a respective pin (3) being fitted to a respective upright bracket (4) of the lifting and tipping assembly.

Numeral (5) designates the supporting strip matingly receiving the container (not shown) at the rim of its open top, the lifting and tipping assembly comprising the conventional arm (6) being linked in a pin-jointed connection on the upright pin (7), the different types of containers being grabbed with said arm, said lifting and tipping assembly inferiorly having resilient front rests (8) being provided for the lower portion of the container to come to rest on them.

Numeral (9) designates the axle on which the lifting and tipping assembly is swivelled (Fig. 4), said axle at one (10) of its ends being linked to a block (11) being fit to ascend along upright guides (not shown) being fixedly secured to the vehicle body, whereas at the other end (12) said axle is solidly attached to a cam (13) against which the pressing section (1) leans by means of the cam follower (14), said cam forming an inflexion acting as a by way of stop (15) being fit to withhold said section (1) for as long as the rim of the open top of the container is not pressed, said stop being then cleared by the cam follower (14) so as to have the pressing section swivelled together with the lifting and tipping assembly.

The pressing section (1) is linked to the lifting and tipping assembly by means of two springs (16) being fit to offset any excess pressure between the pressing section (1) and the container supporting strip (5). These springs are covered by a cowling (17).

Said pressing section is besides linked to the lifting and tipping assembly by means of a spring (18) being fit to hold said section in its initial, passive position.

The lifting and tipping assembly is solidly attached to the sleeve (19) (Fig. 4) being fit to rotate on the axle (9) by means of ball joints (20) being provided at the end (10) and by means of rolling bearings (21) being provided at the end (12).

The toothed wheel (22) is solidly attached onto this sleeve (19) and will bring about the tipping of the container when meshingly acting in cooperation with a respective toothed rack (not shown) during its ascending travel along this latter.

In the case being shown here the lifting and tipping assembly is made up of two end portions, the represented assembly being here the one that corresponds to the right-hand side portion.

Numeral (23) designates a detector being fit to detect the presence of the container, and numeral (24) designates the cap being provided for covering the end (10) of the axle (9).

The invention can within its essentiality be put into practice in other embodiments differing only in detail from the one having been described above only by way of example, said other embodiments also falling within the scope of the protection being sought.