KR-20260066024-A - PEDAL-OPERATED FOOD WASTE DEWATERING APPARATUS

Abstract

The present invention relates to a power-free mechanical food waste dehydration device that compresses and dehydrates food waste using only the user's footsteps as a power source. The device according to the present invention comprises a main body having an internal space, a drainage basket detachably housed in the internal space and having a plurality of drainage holes, a pressure plate that moves vertically back and forth above the drainage basket, a footrest exposed to the lower outer side of the main body and rotates by the user's footsteps, and a power transmission link module that converts and transmits the rotational force of the footrest into vertical downward power for the pressure plate. According to the present invention, the moisture content of food waste can be effectively reduced without an external power source, and in an embodiment where the base is configured as an opening and closing door, the compressed food waste is automatically transferred to a detachable storage unit at the bottom, allowing for hygienic discharge without the user's hand coming into contact with the food waste.

Inventors

• 안범주

Assignees

• 안범주

Dates

Publication Date

20260512

Application Date

20260423

Claims (2)

1. A main body having an internal space for accommodating food waste and a base provided on one side; A drainage basket detachably provided in the above internal space, with a plurality of drainage holes formed on the side or bottom surface for draining moisture; A pressure plate located at the top of the drainage basket, which moves in a straight reciprocating motion in the up-and-down direction and pressurizes the food waste when descending; A footrest portion positioned to be exposed to the lower outer side of the above-mentioned main body and rotating by the user's footsteps; and It includes a power transmission link module that mechanically connects the footrest and the pressure plate to convert and transmit the rotational force of the footrest into vertical downward power of the pressure plate. A foot-operated food waste dewatering device characterized by the above-described power transmission link module being configured such that the pressure plate descends toward the bottom of the drainage basket in proportion to the pressure applied by the user stepping on the foot plate, thereby compressing and dewatering the food waste.
2. In paragraph 1, The base of the main body is composed of an opening and closing door that supports the bottom surface of the drainage basket from below in a closed state and communicates vertically between the internal space and the lower region of the main body in an open state. In the lower region of the main body, a removable storage unit is disposed to receive the food waste compressed within the drainage basket when the opening/closing door is opened. A foot-operated food waste dehydration device characterized in that the detachable storage unit is configured to be detachable from the main body, allowing the contained food waste to be discharged to the outside without the user's hand coming into contact with the food waste by separating and reassembling the detachable storage unit.

Description

Foot-operated food waste dewatering apparatus The present invention relates to a foot-operated food waste dehydration device, and more specifically, to a power-free mechanical food waste dehydration device that converts the rotational force of a foot plate, which rotates by a user's footstep, into vertical downward power of a pressure plate through a mechanical power transmission link module, thereby compressing and dehydrating food waste contained in a drainage basket and reducing its moisture content. Food waste generated from households, restaurants, and collective meal facilities generally contains about 70 to 85 weight percent moisture, and this high moisture content causes various environmental and economic problems, such as increased weight of garbage bags, generation of odors and leachate, increased transportation and processing costs, and increased energy consumption in feed production and composting processes. Therefore, removing moisture above a certain level at the discharge stage is recognized as an essential pretreatment process to ensure the practical effectiveness of the food waste volume-based charging system and to reduce the burden on subsequent resource recovery processes. In response to these needs, conventional dehydration devices driven by electric motors, such as screw press type dehydration devices, centrifugal dehydration devices, and vacuum or heat drying type dehydration devices, have been proposed. However, electric screw press type devices require a drive motor, reduction gear, control circuit, and power supply unit, resulting in a high cost; furthermore, food waste can adhere between the screw and the filter mesh, causing malfunctions, and cleaning and maintenance are cumbersome. Centrifugal type devices suffer from significant vibration and noise from the rotating body, while drying type devices have the disadvantages of high power consumption and long processing times. Meanwhile, manual appliances used in kitchen environments include manual compactors for general waste, foot-operated trash cans with lids that open and close via a foot pedal, and dehydration compactors using compression screws. However, since these manual appliances have developed in independent technological fields, manual compactors for general waste do not include components for moisture separation, foot-operated trash cans perform only simple power transmission for opening and closing lids, and dehydration compactors still rely on electric drive; consequently, no device in which these three technological elements are combined has been presented. Furthermore, conventional electric food waste dehydrators are predominantly installed as built-in units beneath sink drains; however, their application to existing residential environments is limited due to regulations on disposers, sewage pipe contamination, and the complexity of installation work. Moreover, among standalone manual devices, unsanitary and physically burdensome methods are generally used, such as users squeezing food waste by hand or placing it in a container and pressing it down with their body weight. Accordingly, there is a need to develop a power-free mechanical food waste dehydrator that can sufficiently compress and dehydrate food waste solely through the user's foot movements without external power, prevents the user's hands from coming into direct contact with the food waste, allows for easy installation in existing kitchen environments, and has a low risk of breakdown even after long-term use. FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the overall appearance of a foot-operated food waste dehydrator according to one embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a front view of a foot-operated food waste dehydration device according to one embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing the opening cover of a foot-operated food waste dehydrator according to one embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 4 is a vertical cross-sectional view showing the internal configuration of a foot-operated food waste dehydration device according to one embodiment of the present invention, illustrating the standby state before stepping. FIG. 5 is a vertical cross-sectional view showing the intermediate state of a foot-operated food waste dehydration device according to one embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 6 is a vertical cross-sectional view showing the completely compressed state of a foot-operated food waste dehydration device according to one embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 7 is an exploded perspective view of a foot-operated food waste dehydration device according to one embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 8 is a partial enlarged view showing the combined relationship of the side wall of the main body, the inlet cover, and the side opening/closing door. FIG. 9 is a plan view and a cross-sectional view AA' showing the configuration of the collection tray and drainage channel of the base. Figure 10 is an oper