A combination cart lifter for automatically engaging and lifting residential refuse collection carts of different styles having either one or two lift pickup points, said lifter comprising:
- a support frame for mounting on a main supporting structure of a refuse collection vehicle or a relatively larger refuse container box;
- drive means, supported on said support frame, and having a rotatable output shaft, said drive means controllably positioning the rotary orientation of said output shaft;
- a main lift carriage for receipt and dumping of a residential refuse collection cart, said main lift carriage comprising a generally planar member having relative base and top portions and oriented in a generally vertical position with said top portion up and said base portion down whenever said main lift carriage is in a lowered upright position thereof, and said main lift carriage being movable to a generally raised inverted position thereof with said base portion thereof substantially higher than said top portion thereof for dumping the contents of a refuse collection cart received thereon;
- a pair of torque arms fixedly received on opposing respective ends of said drive means output shaft for being rotated therewith, and respectively pivotably mounted adjacent said base portion of said main lift carriage;
- a pair of idler arms pivotably supported at respective first ends thereof on said support frame and at respective second ends thereof on said main lift carriage respectively relatively displaced from said base portion thereof, so that said main lift carriage is raised and inverted by said torque and idler arms responsive to predetermined rotation of said drive means output shaft;
- a first support bar and clamp bar assembly associated with said main lift carriage for securing thereto a refuse collection cart of the style having a single lift pickup point comprising either a lift lip at the top of the cart or a lift pocket near the top of the cart, said first support bar comprising an engagement support element fixedly mounted on said main lift carriage relatively adjacent said top portion thereof, and wherein said clamp bar assembly includes a clamp bar pivotably mounted on said main lift carriage adjacent said top portion thereof and clamp bar actuation means responsive to operation of said drive means for closing said clamp bar towards said fixedly mounted engagement support element as said main lift carriage is raised so as to clamp the single lift pickup point of the cart being lifted and dumped;
- a lift saddle pivotably mounted on said main lift carriage relatively adjacent said first support bar, said lift saddle projecting out from said first support bar so as to make lifting engagement with the relative underside of an upper of two lift pickup points of a refuse collection cart of the style having two such pickup points, said lift saddle by appropriate physical contact thereto being freely rotatable generally towards said main lift carriage top portion into a retracted position of said saddle so as to permit cart pickup by said clamping operations for appropriate cart styles, and said lift saddle being resiliently biased towards an engaging position thereof relatively rotated towards said main lift carriage base portion so as to permit cart pickup with said lift saddle for appropriate cart styles;
- a slider latch assembly comprising a carriage extension member received adjacent said main lift carriage base portion for controlled alternate extension relatively therefrom and retraction relative thereto, and further comprising carriage extension member actuation means responsive to operation of said drive means for relatively extending said carriage extension member in correspondence with raising of said main lift carriage with said drive means and for relatively retracting said carriage extension member in correspondence with lowering of said main lift carriage with said drive means;
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- a lift hook pivotably mounted on a distal end of said carriage extension member, said lift hook projecting out from said main lift carriage so as to make securement engagement with the relative topside of a lower of two lift pickup points of a refuse collection cart of the style having two such pickup points, whenever said carriage extension member actuation means is operative for relatively extending said carriage extension member, said lift hook by appropriate physical contact thereto being freely rotatable generally away from said main lift carriage top portion into a retracted position of said lift hook so as to permit cart pickup by said clamping operations for appropriate cart styles, and said lift hook being resiliently biased towards said main lift carriage top portion so as to permit cart pickup and lift securement engagement with said lift hook for appropriate cart styles;
- such that said cart lifter automatically uses said first support bar and clamp bar assembly for lifting cart styles having one lift pickup point with said lift saddle and lift hook pivoted into their respective retracted positions, while automatically using said lift saddle and lift hook resiliently biased into their respective engaging positions and projecting beyond said first support bar and main lift carriage respectively for lifting cart styles having two respective upper and lower pickup points.