One or more embodiments are disclosed of a receptacle for collecting inedible food items discarded by spitting, such popcorn husks and seed shells. The receptacle comprises a receiving unit that has a upper end depending downward toward a collection unit and may generally have a funnel like shape. The receiving unit is configured to contain an act of spitting out inedible bits of food by an individual, making it more discrete and preventing the spread of germs. The collection unit is connected to the lower end of the receiving unit. The collection unit may include a closed end or an end that is closed by a connectable cap. The receptacle can be provided in bag having an adhesive backing that can adhere to a container, or in an alternate embodiment, the receptacle includes an attachment piece that can hook onto a lip of the container.

An apparatus includes a flexible sheet of material having a perimeter edge and a central opening forming a discharge chute, and first and second clips coupled to the flexible sheet for securing an open end of a bag around an outer circumferential surface of the discharge chute, wherein the first and second clips are spaced apart about the outer circumferential surface of the discharge chute. With the discharge chut inserted into the bag and the bag secured to the clips, the flexible sheet is laid on the group and debris or other solid materials may be raked, shoveled, or otherwise placed on the flexible sheet. Raising the flexible sheet, such as by lifting with handles around a perimeter edge, causes the debris to pass through the discharge chute and into the bag. The size of the apparatus may be adapted for the application, such as leaf collection or sandbag preparation.

A disposable oil filter containment sheath is provided for use during oil changes for combustion engines. The sheath has a closed bottom, a cylindrical sidewall, and an open top. The resilient sheath is rolled to an initial collapsed position for placement on the bottom of an oil filter mounted on the engine, and it is partially unrolled along the filter. The filter can then be loosened to allow oil to drain into the sheath for capturing a reservoir. After the filter is removed from the engine, the sheath is completely unrolled and tied at the top so as to fully enclose and contain the oil filter and oil. The sheath and its contents are then ready for disposal.

Recycling systems can include a conveyor system, an optical device, and a processor operable to detect, identify, and count redeemable objects. The conveyor system can include a plurality of bins and be configured to move the bins from a first end of the conveyor system to a second end of the conveyor system. The optical device can be situated and configured to capture an image of a plurality of objects within a bin of the conveyor system. A processor including computer-readable instructions can be configured to detect and identify the objects within an image captured by the optical device as belonging to one or more object classes. Each object class can determine whether an object is redeemable or unredeemable. The processor can be configured to provide a count of only those objects identified as redeemable.

The present invention relates to polymeric bags, particularly polymeric drawstring trash bags. The present invention comprises a trash bag having an elastic drawstring. The elastic drawstring trash bag features an integrated short seal comprising an inner seal, an outer seal, and an intermediate seal. The integrated short seal functions to reduce the upper opening of the drawstring trash bag, while the elastic drawstring utilized with the bag provides a bag that allows the bag to fit snugly on many common trash receptacles.

Embodiments of the present disclosure are directed to drawtapes for trash bags, wherein the drawtape comprises a multilayer polymer film having an improved stiffness.

A thermoplastic film which exhibits elastic-like behavior along at least one axis when stretched or elongated and then released. The thermoplastic film comprises a plurality of raised rib-like elements extending in a direction perpendicular to a main surface of the thermoplastic film. The thermoplastic film further includes a plurality of web areas positioned about the plurality of raised rib-like elements. The plurality of raised rib-like elements and plurality of web areas are arranged in a complex pattern. The complex pattern provides visual and tactile cues as the films are stretched or elongated. The complex pattern can cause the thermoplastic film to have a complex stretch profile.

A disposable oil filter containment sheath is provided for use during oil changes for combustion engines. The sheath has a closed bottom, a cylindrical sidewall, and an open top. The resilient sheath is rolled to an initial collapsed position for placement on the bottom of an oil filter mounted on the engine, and it is partially unrolled along the filter. The filter can then be loosened to allow oil to drain into the sheath for capturing a reservoir. After the filter is removed from the engine, the sheath is completely unrolled and tied at the top so as to fully enclose and contain the oil filter and oil. The sheath and its contents are then ready for disposal.

A container storage device may include a rectangular rigid member that may include multiple apertures distributed throughout. The container storage device may include multiple flexible members affixed to the rectangular rigid member where a center point of the multiple flexible members is configured to align with a center point of the multiple apertures. The multiple flexible members may be configured to hold recyclable objects within the multiple apertures. The container storage device may include at least one elongated vertical support member affixed to the rectangular frame. The container storage device may include a base portion affixed to the at least one elongated vertical support, configured to maintain the at least one elongated vertical support in a vertical orientation.

The invention is a plastic bottle crusher that includes a vacuum nozzle creating suction to compress the bottle via a manual pump or electric motor and a series of cutting blades in order to chop and shred plastic bottles of multiple sizes. The invention also includes an excess water chamber as well as variable sized detachable sleeves based on bottle size with mechanical blades to remove bottle labels as well as a vertical guide to provide maximum compression for air removal, plastic preparation for recycling and placement of crushed bottles into a recyclable housing.