Background Art In general, in order to process garbage containing moisture, which is dispensed from households, restaurants, hospitals, etc., we depend mainly on primitive processing methods, such as incineration, landfill, etc. till now, without a special alternative. The conventional methods cause a social problem that excessive expenses are required. The conventional methods are also problematic in that residents living around an incineration plant or a landfill are directly exposed to offensive odor and environmental pollution, damages by which are now on the increasing trend. In particular, the environmental pollution due to the incineration and landfill becomes more serious.

If organic matters can be sort out from foreign substances contained in the garage, they can be sufficiently used as feed for livestock or fertilizer for agricultural products, whereby they can be reused as available resources in

substitute for fertilizer which is imported at high price every year. It is a poor thing that the precious resources are just lying unused since there has never been developed a proper crushing and sorting equipment still now.

Since garbage containing 85% or more moisture cannot be incinerated as it is, currently developed equipments employ a technology that is not more than a dehydrating technology for incinerating the garbage. There has not been suggested a technology that can sort out a variety of foreign substances, e. g., bones, spoons, forks, toothpicks, cotton gloves, vinyl, plastic, bottle caps, etc., from organic matters which are available recycled resources. Therefore, the garbage including the various foreign substances is reused as manure at most because it is not appropriate to feed for livestock.

That is to say, the aforementioned garbage processing equipments can perform a garbage crushing function but cannot perform a sorting function in which the foreign substances, such as bones, spoons, forks, toothpicks, cotton gloves, vinyl, plastic, bottle caps, etc. contained in the garbage are sort out in a fully automatic manner. As a result, the conventional methods basically have a drawback in sorting out proteins and organic matters which are available components in the garbage and recycling the same as feed for livestock.

This drawback results in waste of available resources, thereby causing considerable economic loss. In addition, the garbage which cannot be recycled as feed and fertilizer for animals and plants should be scraped, thereby generating a huge volume of waste and causing serious environmental pollution.

The conventional garbage processing devices have another disadvantage that the various foreign substances are caught inside the devices during working process and the devices often break down because of their structural defect.

Disclosure of Invention

Accordingly, the present invention is directed to an automatic crushing and sorting equipment of garbage and a method for sorting out foreign substances in the garbage that substantially obviate one or more problems due to limitations and disadvantages of the related art.

An object of the present invention is to provide an epoch-making and nature-friendly automatic crushing and sorting equipment of garbage and a method for sorting out foreign substances in the garbage, which can recreate available resources and minimize environmental pollution by crushing a huge volume of garbage generated in households, restaurants, etc. into a wanted size and at the same time automatically sorting out foreign substances contained in the garbage to fully separate them.

Additional advantages, objects, and features of the invention will be set forth in part in the description which follows and in part will become apparent to those having ordinary skill in the art upon examination of the following or may be learned from practice of the invention. The objectives and other advantages of the invention may be realized and attained by the structure particularly pointed out in the written description and claims hereof as well as the appended drawings.

To achieve these objects and other advantages and in accordance with the purpose of the invention, as embodied and broadly described herein, there is provided an automatic crushing and sorting equipment of garbage, comprising: a closed case divided into upper and lower portions, and having a hopper formed on an upper side thereof such that garbage containing various foreign substances which is first crushed into a predetermined size through a shredder is charged and a perforated base plate and a discharge outlet formed thereon such that organic matters are separated from foreign substances charged through the hopper and discharged; a striking cover plate installed on a part of the inner surface of the upper portion of the case, for making charged garbage colliding therewith and being crushed; a vertical partition formed on a side within the case, for isolating the perforated base plate from the discharge outlet; a drive shaft horizontally passing through the center of the case along a longitudinal direction of the case,

being supported such that both end parts thereof protruding to both sides of the case can be rotated by a bearing, and being connected to a driving source for rotating the both end parts; and a plurality of hammer mil assemblies successively and fixedly installed on the drive shaft, and being sequentially tilted while maintaining a predetermined deviation in angle between respective unit members so that the garbage is rushed into a micro-sized particles and carried by maintaining a minute gap between end parts of the hammer mill assemblies and the inner surface of the striking cover plate and stirring and rotating the end parts to collide the garbage with the striking cover plate.

Here, the striking cover plate is overlapped as wide as a predetermined arc width along the inner peripheral surface of the upper portion of the case, and a plurality of grid bars protrude on the inner surface of the striking cover plate in parallel to one another on a straight line over the entire length while maintaining an angle of 0-45'relative to a longitudinal direction of the striking plate along the cylindrical-longitudinal direction.

Further, a plurality of gap adjustment coupling members outwardly protrude on the external surface of the striking cover plate such that the gap adjustment coupling members pass through the case and screwed to adjust and fix a gap between the inner peripheral surface of the case and the external surface of the striking cover plate from the outside of the case.

Here, the gap adjustment coupling members include gap adjustment bolts passing through the case and the striking cover plate such that an end part of each gap adjustment bolt is caught on the inner surface of the striking cover plate and screwed onto a lock nut which projects on the outer peripheral surface of the case, to adjust a position of the striking cover plate; and support bolts passing through the case such that an end part of each support bolt presses the external surface of the striking cover plate and screwed onto a lock nut which projects on the outer peripheral surface of the case, to inwardly support the striking cover plate and fixedly support an adjusted state of the gap adjustment bolt. In the construction, the end parts of the hammer mill assemblies and the grid bars of the striking cover

plate always keep a gap of 1 to 20mm therebetween.

Further, the vertical partition is closed across a side within the case but partially opened to allow the discharge outlet for forcibly discharging foreign substances to be disposed on an upper part inside the case, and a discharge adjustment plate is coupled on a side of the discharge outlet of the vertical partition to adjust a size of the discharge outlet.

Furthermore, the discharge adjustment plate is formed such that a plurality of projections correspondingly pass through vertical elongated holes to be fixed to wanted positions by being elevated along the plurality of vertical elongated holes which are parallel to the vertical partition, and a lever is hinge coupled with the external surface of the discharge adjustment plate and exposed to the outside of the case so as for a worker to adjust a position of the discharge adjustment plate with hands.

Moreover, the hammer mill assemblies are formed such that a plurality of hammer mill units having the same shapes are fixedly coupled while maintaining a predetermined deviation in angle, two triangular plates having the same shapes and facing each other into the center of which the drive shaft is inserted are arranged in parallel with a predetermined angle therebetween, a pair of hammers forming a substantially rectangular shape are interposed between respective angular point portions of the triangular plates to be coupled with pertinent positions by bolts and nuts, and the respective hammers are arranged in a radial direction.

Here, the hammer mill assemblies comprise three hammer mill units.

The hammer mill units are adjacently and coaxially arranged by being overlapped in a rotated state while maintaining a deviation of 40° between angular points so that angular points of the respective hammer mill units can be arranged at uniform angles. The hammer mill assemblies are respectively installed on both end parts of the drive shaft to enable the garbage to be promptly moved. In the plurality of hammer mill assemblies, the respective hammer mill units are uniformly overlapped and adjacently arranged on a common axis for the sake of delay

delivery so that the garbage can be sufficiently crushed at a central portion of the case.

Further, the hammer mill assemblies are provided with the triangular plates of a predetermined thickness at the center thereof to let the drive shaft inserted into the triangular plate. Crushing blades are respectively coupled with bolts on a side surface of the respective angular point portions of the triangular plates. A plurality of elongated holes are formed on the crushing blades along a longitudinal direction of a side of the triangular plates to release the bolts and adjust a position. The hammer mill assemblies may be adjacently and fixedly constructed to form a predetermined deviation in angle on the drive shaft.

Furthermore, the hammer mill assemblies are formed in a manner that the plurality of hammer mill units having the same shapes are fixedly coupled while maintaining a predetermined deviation in angle. The hammer mill units may be formed such that two circular plates having the same shapes and facing each other into the center of which the drive shaft is inserted are arranged in parallel with a predetermined gap therebetween. A plurality of hammers are mounted between the circular plates along the circumference at predetermined intervals, and the respective hammers are symmetrically formed in a radial direction about the drive shaft and coupled by bolts and nuts.

Further, the perforated base plate preferably has an imperforated flat part which is formed at an end part of a predetermined width adjacent to the vertical partition, so that foreign substances within the crushed garbage are rebounded to the discharge outlet on an upper side.

Further, it is preferable that a screw press for dehydration is further provided on an end part of a path of the discharge outlet so that a small amount of organic matter discharged together with foreign substances is sorted out once again.

Meantime, to achieve the above objects of the present invention, there is provided an automatic method for sorting out foreign substances in a garbage,

comprising: carrying, stirring and crushing garbage in a direction by rotating a plurality of hammer mill assemblies on end parts of which a plurality of hammers are mounted to have a deviation in angle when the garbage containing foreign substances is charged into a case, such that organic matters contained in the garbage are crushed into a wanted size and discharged through a perforated base plate formed on the lower portion of the case; and at the same time, continuously carrying uncrushed foreign substances, which are not discharged through the perforated base plate, up to an end part inside the case until the uncrushed foreign substances reach a flat part of the perforated base plate, such that the foreign substances collided with the flat part and a vertical partition, wherein only the foreign substances are automatically sorted and discharged to the outside since after the foreign substances are upwardly rebounded by a repulsive force generated when the foreign substances collide with the inner wall of the case, they are forced to be discharged through an unique discharge outlet formed on on an upper part inside the case.

It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description and the following detailed description of the present invention are exemplary and explanatory and are intended to provide further explanation of the invention as claimed.

Brief Description of the Drawings Further objects and advantages of the invention can be more fully understood from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawing in which: FIG. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view illustrating a schematic construction of an automatic crushing and sorting equipment of garbage according to a

preferred embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view illustrating essential parts inside a case applied to the automatic crushing and sorting equipment of garbage according to the preferred embodiment; FIG. 3 is a perspective view illustrating a structure of hammer mill assemblies applied to the automatic crushing and sorting equipment of garbage according to the preferred embodiment; FIG. 4 is a cross sectional view illustrating an internal structure of the automatic crushing and sorting equipment of garbage according to the preferred embodiment; FIG. 5 is a perspective view illustrating an external structure of the automatic crushing and sorting equipment of garbage according to the present invention; FIG. 6 is a perspective view illustrating another embodiment of hammer mill assemblies applied to the automatic crushing and sorting equipment of garbage according to the present invention; FIG. 7 is a cross sectional view illustrating an internal structure of the automatic crushing and sorting equipment of garbage to which the embodiment of FIG. 6 is applied; FIG. 8 is a perspective view illustrating a still another embodiment of hammer mill assemblies applied to the automatic crushing and sorting equipment of garbage according to the present invention; and FIG. 9 is a cross sectional view illustrating an internal structure of the automatic crushing and sorting equipment of garbage to which the embodiment of FIG. 8 is applied.

Best Mode for Carrying Out the Invention The present invention will now be described in detail in connection with preferred embodiments with reference to the accompanying drawings. For reference, like reference characters designate corresponding parts throughout several views.

FIGS. 1 through 5 are views for explaining a structure of an automatic crushing and sorting equipment of garbage according to a first preferred embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view illustrating a schematic construction of the automatic crushing and sorting equipment of garbage. FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view illustrating essential parts inside a case 10 applied to the automatic crushing and sorting equipment of garbage. FIG. 3 is a perspective view illustrating a structure of hammer mill assemblies 50 applied to the automatic crushing and sorting equipment of garbage. FIG. 4 is a cross sectional view illustrating an internal structure of the automatic crushing and sorting equipment of garbage. FIG. 5 is a perspective view illustrating the external structure of the automatic crushing and sorting equipment of garbage.

Referring to FIG. 1, the automatic crushing and sorting equipment of garbage according to the present invention comprises: a case 10 including a hopper 11 for charging garbage containing organic matters la and foreign substances lb, and a perforated base plate 12 and a discharge outlet 13 for discharging the organic matters la and the foreign substances lb which are sorted through a crushing and sorting process; a striking cover plate 20 for letting the charged garbage being collided and crushed ; a vertical partition 30 for isolating the perforated base plate 12 from the discharge outlet 13; a drive shaft 40 rotatably fixed by passing through the case 10 in a horizontal direction, and acting as a driver for crushing and sorting the charged garbage 1 ; and hammer mill

assemblies 50 successively fixed on the drive shaft 40 to carry the garbage 1 charged through the hopper 11 to the inside of the case 10, and adapted to crush and selectively carry the charged garbage 1.

That is to say, in the automatic crushing and sorting equipment of garbage according to the present invention, the case 10 includes the hopper 11 on an upper side thereof to charge the garbage 1 which is first crushed into a predetermined size through a shredder (not shown) in a state that the garbage contains various foreign substances, and the perforated base plate 12 and the discharge outlet 13 for sorting the organic matters la from the foreign substances lb in the garbage 1 charged through the hopper 11. The striking cover plate 20 is installed on a part of the inner surface of the upper portion of the case 10 to permit the charged garbage 1 to be collided and crushed. The vertical partition 30 is installed on a side within the case 10 to isolate the perforated base plate 12 from the discharge outlet 13. The drive shaft 40 horizontally passes through the center of the case 10 along a longitudinal direction of the case 10, is supported so that both end parts protruding to both sides of the case 10 can be rotated by a bearing 41, and is connected to a driving source (not shown) which can rotate the both end parts.

The plurality of hammer mill assemblies 50 are successively fixed on the drive shaft, and are sequentially titled while maintaining a predetermined deviation in angle between unit members so that the garbage 1 is crushed into a micro-sized particles and carried by maintaining a minute gap between end parts of the hammer mill assemblies and the inner surface of the striking cover plate 20 and rotating the end parts to collide the garbage 1 with the striking cover plate 20.

In the inside of the upper portion of the case 10, as illustrated in FIG. 2, the striking cover plate 20 is installed to strike the garbage 1 such that the garbage charged into the inside of the case 10 is crushed into particles of a predetermined size and carried by maintaining a predetermined gap between the end parts of the

hammer mill assemblies 50 and the striking cover plate 20 when the drive shaft 40 is rotated.

The striking cover plate 20 is overlapped as wide as a predetermined arc width along the inner peripheral surface of the upper portion of the case 10. A plurality of grid bars 22 project on the inner surface of a striking cover plate body 21 in parallel to one another in a straight line over the entire length while maintaining a predetermined angle along the cylindrical-longitudinal direction.

The grid bars 22 maintain an angle ranging from 0 to 45'witch respect to a longitudinal direction of the striking cover plate body 21. A plurality of gap adjustment coupling members 23 outwardly project on the external surface of the striking cover plate body 21 to pass through the case 10 and screwed so that a gap between the inner peripheral surface of the case 10 and the external surface of the striking cover plate body 21 is adjusted from the outside of the case.

The grid bars 22 function as a friction resistor when the hammer mill assemblies 50 are rotated with the garbage therein. As the angle of the grid bars 22 becomes smaller, more loads occur during rotation and a crushing effect by collision is increased.

The gap adjustment coupling members 23 may have any structure capable of varying a gap between the inner wall surfaces of the upper case 10 and the striking cover plate body 21 and constantly supporting the gap once the gap is fixed. That is to say, by way of example, as shown in FIG. 4, the gap adjustment coupling members 23 include a plurality of gap adjustment bolts 24 passing through the center of the striking cover plate 20 and the case 10 such that an end part of each gap adjustment bolt is caught in the inner surface of the striking cover plate body 21 and screwed onto a lock nut 24a which projects on the outer peripheral surface of the case 10 to adjust a position of the striking cover plate 20, and a plurality of support bolts 25 passing through the case 10 such that an end

part of each support bolt presses the external surface of the striking cover plate body 21, and is screwed onto a lock nut 25a which projects on the outer peripheral surface of the case to inwardly support the striking cover plate 20 and fixedly support an adjusted state of the gap adjustment bolt 24. The plurality of gap adjustment bolts 24, as shown in FIG. 5, are coupled on central points along a longitudinal direction of the striking cover plate 20, and the plurality of support bolts 25 are coupled on both sides along the longitudinal direction of the striking cover plate 20 about the gap adjustment bolts 24.

That is to say, a plurality of coupling nuts 24b and 25b are deposited at uniform intervals at predetermined positions so that the gap adjustment bolts 24 and the support bolts 25 pass through the case 10 and are fixed on the external surface of the case 10. The lock nuts 24a and 25a are arranged on upper parts of the respective coupling nuts 24b and 25b with spring washers 24c and 25c therebetween, so as to allow the gap adjustment bolts 24 and the support bolts 25 to pass therethrough.

The gap adjustment bolts 24 pass toward the inner peripheral surface of the striking cover plate body 21 and are coupled with projecting end parts, whereby the gap adjustment bolts 24 are fixedly coupled with latch nuts 24d to hold the case body 21. Plain washers 24e are interposed between the inner surface of the striking cover plate body 21 and the latch nuts 24d. In an attempt to prevent the latch nuts 24d from being released, a welding process is performed, or cotter pins 24f pass through the latch nuts 24d and the gap adjustment bolts 24.

When the equipment according to the present invention is used for a long period of time, the end parts of the hammer mill assemblies 50, namely, hammers 55 are worn away and accordingly there occur occasions that the predetermined particle size of the garbage 1 is difficult to be maintained. At this time, for the purpose of maintaining the predetermined gap, or easily performing a process that

the equipment is washed or a part of the equipment is replaced with new one because of the abrasion of the striking cover plate 20, the gap adjustment coupling members 22 are designed to be tightened or loosened, respectively.

That is to say, in the event that the end parts of the hammer mill assemblies 50, namely the hammers 55 are abraded and the gap between the end parts of the hammers 55 and the grid bars 22 becomes wider than a wanted size, or the gap itself needs to be adjusted according to characteristic of the charged garbage 1, it can be easily solved by rotating the gap adjustment bolts 24 and the support bolts 25 back and forth from the outside of the case 10. That is, when the gap needs to be narrowed, the gap adjustment bolts 24 at the center advance up to a wanted position and thus the position of the striking cover plate 20 is inwardly moved. Subsequently, the support bolts 25 on both sides are forwardly rotated in a uniform manner as far as a predetermined spaced distance to support the external surface of the striking cover plate body 21. On the other hand, when the gap needs to be enlarged, the support bolts 25 on both sides are backwardly rotated up to a wanted position to maintain a proper spaced distance. After that, the gap adjustment bolts 24 at the center is backwardly rotated until the external surface of the striking cover plate body 21 contacts with front end parts of the support bolts 25 and then fixed.

In the aforesaid construction, there should be maintained a gap of 1 to 20 mm between the grid bars 22 of the striking cover plate 20 and the end parts of the hammer mill assemblies 50.

Further, the vertical partition 30, as shown in FIG. 1, is closed across a side within the case 10, and partially opened so that the discharge outlet 13 capable of forcibly discharging the foreign substances toward the upper part inside the case 10 can be disposed. A discharge adjustment plate 31 is coupled with a side of the discharge outlet 13 of the vertical partition 30 to adjust a size of the

discharge outlet 13.

A plurality of projections 32 correspondingly passing through vertical elongated holes 3 la project on the inner surface of the discharge adjustment plate 31 so as to be elevated along the vertical elongated holes 3 la, which are formed on the vertical partition 30 in parallel, and to be fixed to wanted positions. A lever 33 is exposed to the outside of the case 10 and hinge-coupled on the external surface of the discharge adjustment plate 31 so that an operator can move a position of the discharge adjustment plate 31 with hands. Screw threads are formed on the projections 32 which are coupled with separate nuts (not shown).

According to the above construction, a size of the discharge outlet 13 can be adjusted. In other words, the discharge outlet 13 having a wanted size can be ensured in a manner that the nuts coupled with the projections 32 of the discharge adjustment plate 31 are released, the discharge adjustment plate 31 is moved up and down along the vertical elongated holes 3 la, and the nuts are tightened again.

Furthermore, the drive shaft 40, as illustrated in FIG. 1 and FIG. 5, permits the plurality of hammer mill assemblies 50 to be fixed thereon, and then performs a function of rotating the hammer mill assemblies 50 in a predetermined direction.

The drive shaft 40 is rotatively supported d by the bearing 41 which is integrally fixed with the case 10 and a frame (not shown) of a lower end part, and provided with a flywheel 42 and a pulley 43. The flywheel 42 and the pulley 43 are manufactured to have the same weight such that a weight balance is maintained, thereby preventing vibration during operation. A belt 43a connected to the driving source (motor) is wound on the pulley 43 to enable a power to be transferred therethrough.

Meantime, the hammer mill assemblies 50, as illustrated in FIGS. 1, 2 and 3, are formed such that the plurality of hammer mill units 50a having the same shape are fixedly coupled while maintaining a predetermined deviation in angle.

In the hammer mill units 50a, two triangular plates 51 having the same shape and facing each other into which the drive shaft 40 is inserted are arranged in parallel with a predetermined gap therebetween. The pair of hammers 55 having a substantially rectangular shape are interposed between respective angular point portions of the triangular plates 51 to be coupled to pertinent positions by the bolts 52 and nuts 53. Here, the respective hammers 55 are arranged in a radial direction.

The hammer mill assemblies 50 comprise three hammer mill units 50a.

It is desirable that the hammer mill units 50a are overlapped in a rotated state and adjacently arranged on a common axis while maintaining a deviation of 40° between the respective angular points so as for the angular points of the hammer mill units 50a to be arranged at uniform angles. The hammer mill assemblies 50 are respectively installed on both end parts of the drive shaft 40 to ensure a fast transfer of the garbage 1 from an inlet to the discharge outlet.

Further, the hammer mill assemblies comprise the three hammer mill units 50a, and the hammer mill units 50a are uniformly overlapped and adjacently arranged on a common axis. This is for the purpose of delaying the transfer of the garbage 1 so that the garbage can be sufficiently crushed at the central portion of the case 10 by means of the hammer mill units 50a. Accordingly, the plurality of hammer mill units 50a are installed at the central part of the drive shaft 40.

In the meanwhile, FIGS. 6 through 9 are views illustrating other embodiments of the hammer mill assemblies 50 applied to the automatic crushing and sorting equipment of garbage according to the present invention. FIGS. 6 and 7 are a perspective view illustrating another embodiment of the hammer mill assemblies having crushing blades 57 and a cross sectional view illustrating an internal structure of the automatic crushing and sorting equipment of garbage to which the embodiment of FIG. 6 is applied, respectively. FIGS. 8 and 9 are a

perspective view illustrating still another embodiment of the hammer mill assemblies 50 using general circular plates 51b, and a cross sectional view illustrating an internal structure of the automatic crushing and sorting equipment of garbage to which the embodiment of FIG. 8 is applied, respectively.

Initially, the hammer mill assemblies 50 according to the another embodiment in FIGS. 6 and 7 are provided with the triangular plates 5 la of a predetermined thickness, into which the drive shaft 40 is inserted, at the center thereof. The crushing blades 57 are coupled with the bolts 52 at a side surface of each angular point of the triangular plate 51a. A plurality of elongated holes 58 are formed on the respective crushing blades 57 along a longitudinal direction of a side surface of the triangular plates 51a to release the bolts 52 and adjust a position. The plurality of hammer mill assemblies 50 are adjacently and fixedly arranged to form a predetermined deviation in angle on the drive shaft 40.

The embodiment has an advantage of crushing with a small amount of power since the foreign substances included in the garbage 1 can be cut with a relatively small resistance, by virtue of the crushing blades 57.

Furthermore, the hammer mill assemblies 50 according to the still another embodiment in FIGS. 8 and 9 are formed in a manner that a plurality of hammer mill units 50b having the same shape are fixedly coupled while maintaining a predetermined deviation in angle. In the hammer mill units 50b, the two circular plates 5 lb having the same shape and facing each other into which the drive shaft 40 is inserted are arranged at the center of the hammer mill units 50b in parallel with a predetermined gap therebetween. The plurality of hammers 55 are mounted between the circular plates 51b along the circumference at predetermined intervals. The respective hammers 55 are symmetrically arranged in a radial direction about the drive shaft 40 and coupled with the bolts 52 and the nuts 53.

The previously described hammer mill assemblies 50 according to the

respective embodiments have no limit in the number of the hammer mill units which are integrally coupled and an angle deviation setting among the components, but may be used by being coupled in the plural number in various shapes at need.

It is efficient, however, that the triangular plates 51 and 51a are provided inside the equipment to charge the garbage 1 in great quantity and stir the same.

Meanwhile, the perforated base plate 12 is provided with an imperforated flat part 12a which is formed at an end part of a predetermined width adjacent to the vertical partition 30 so that the foreign substances lb in the crushed garbage 1 are rebounded to the discharge outlet 13 on the upper part. This is for the purpose that the foreign substances lb collide with the flat part 12a, the vertical partition 30, etc., and thereafter are rebounded, resulting in a smooth discharge to. the discharge outlet 13.

As shown in FIG. 1, a screw press 15 for dehydration is preferably further provided on a lower end part of a path of the discharge outlet 13, namely, a guide path 14 so that a small amount of organic matter la discharged together with the foreign substances is sorted once again and separated from the foreign substances lb.

Here, a size of meshes of the perforated base plate 12, and a size of the gap between the hammers 55 of the hammer mill assemblies 50 and the grid bars 22 of the striking cover plate 20 have a close relationship therebetween. To be specific, as the size of the gap between the hammers 55 of the hammer mill assemblies 50 and the grid bars 22 of the striking cover plate 20 becomes smaller, the size of meshes of the perforated base plate 12 becomes smaller in direct proportion.

Because the size of crushed particles is determined by the gap, the perorated base plate 12 should have the minimum size to allow the crushed particles to pass therethrough. The size of the gap between the hammers 55 of the hammer mill assemblies 50 and the grid bars 22 of the striking cover plate 20 and the size of the

meshes of the perforated base plate 12 preferably range from 1 to 20mm as mentioned earlier.

Herein below is set forth a detailed explanation of a procedure for processing the garbage of the automatic crushing and sorting equipment of garbage according to the present invention and a method for automatically sorting the foreign substances contained in the garbage 1 with reference to FIG. 1.

In utilizing the garbage processing equipment according to the present invention, it is required a first processing step in which the garbage 1 and the charged foreign substances lb contained in the garbage 1 are first crushed into an approximately 50mm size by means of the shredder. That is, the garbage 1 which is crushed into the predetermined size through the shredder is stored in a storage tank (not illustrated). Next, a predetermined amount of crushed garbage 1 is supplied through a constant feeder which is not shown and charged to the inside of the case 10 through the hopper 11 of the present invention.

The garbage 1 charged into the inside of the case 10 through the hopper drops to the hammer mill assemblies 50 which are arranged at an end part of the drive shaft 40, which is rotated in a predetermined direction, while maintaining a predetermined deviation in angle between members, thereby achieving fast transfer of the garbage 1 to the inside of the case 10. The garbage 1 is continuously carried in a state that it is crushed into a wanted size between the hammer mill assemblies 50 of the central part which are rotated at a high speed and have no deviation in angle between the members and the striking cover plate 20 disposed on the upper portion of the case 10. Organic matters, proteins, etc. which are main components of the garbage 1 are discharged through the perforated base plate 12 formed on the lower portion of the case 10, and then drop to the inside of the storage (having no reference numeral) and are stacked.

Uncrushed various foreign substances lb in the garbage 1 are not discharged

through the perforated base plate 12 but carried to the discharge outlet 13 which is formed on the upper portion of the case 10 by a strike of the hammers 55 of the last hammer mill assemblies 50 which are arranged at other end part of the drive shaft 40 while maintaining a deviation in angle between the members. After that, the foreign substances are forcibly discharged through the discharge outlet 13 along the guide path, resulting in discharge to the outside.

At this time, a small amount of organic matter la contained in the foreign substances lb is subjected to press filtration once again by the screw press 15, such that the organic matters la and the foreign substances lb are collected in a state that they are completely separated from each other.

The above process of the present invention can be summarized as follows. When the garbage 1 contained in the foreign substances lb is charged into the case 10 of the automatic crushing and sorting equipment of garbage through the hopper 11, the plurality of hammer mill assemblies 50 having the, plurality of hammers 55, which are arranged to have a predetermined deviation in angle, at the end part thereof are rotated to carry the garbage 1 in a predetermined direction and stir and crush the same. In this course, the organic matters la contained in the garbage 1 are crushed into a wanted size and discharged through the perforated base plate 12 formed at the lower portion of the case 10. The rest foreign substances lb are not crushed and accordingly not discharged through the perforated base plate 12. They are continuously carried to an end part of one side within the case 10, reach the flat part 12a of the perforated base plate 12, and then collide with the flat part 12a and the vertical partition 30. The foreign substances lb are upwardly bounced by the repulsive force generated when the foreign substances lb collide with the inner wall of the case 10, and thereafter are forced to be discharged through the discharge outlet which is uniquely disposed on the upper part of the inside of the case 10. Based on this principle, only the

foreign substances are automatically sorted and discharged to the outside.

Industrial Applicability As described above, the automatic crushing and sorting equipment of garbage according to the present invention has an advantage of drastically reducing personnel expenses and various processing and maintenance costs for equipment operation since the garbage preprocessing and equipment are simplified and automated.

The present, invention has another advantage of drastically reducing a working time since a crushing and sorting process is carried out by a centrifugal force in a physical and forced manner.

The present invention has a further advantage of recycling precious organic matter resources since an organic matter crushing process and a foreign substance, sorting process are simultaneously performed and then the organic matters and the foreign substances are separately discharged, as well as decreasing error rates in the pre-processing.

The present invention has yet another advantage of contributing to an environmental pollution control since the garbage that is difficult to be disposed up to date can be effectively processed.

While the present invention has been described with reference to the particular illustrative embodiments, it is not to be restricted by the embodiments but only by the appended claims. It is to be appreciated that those skilled in the art can change or modify the embodiments without departing from the scope and spirit of the present invention.