Background Art As well known to those skilled in the art, food waste produced by houses and/or restaurants contains moisture and/or offensive odor. Conventionally, food waste produced by houses and/or restaurants is collectively gathered, and then the gathered food waste is disposed by one of known treatment methods.

That is, the known food waste treatment methods are mainly divided into a sludge disposal method and a landfill disposal method. In the sludge disposal method, food waste is crushed together with water, and then the crushed food waste and water are discharged to sanitary sewage. Since the discharged food waste directly contaminates river, such a sludge disposal method is prohibited now. In the landfill disposal method, the gathered food waste and other general solid waste are combined, and then the combined waste is

buried underground in a landfill. Since it is difficult to obtain the landfill, the produced seepage water contaminates the surrounding water and soil, and the generated offensive odors contaminate the atmosphere, such a landfill disposal method causes many problems.

Accordingly, a newly proposed food waste treatment method, i. e. , a feed disposal method has come to the forefront. In the feed conversion disposal method, necessary additives are mixed with food waste, and then the mixture is fermented and matured, thereby being converted into a suitable feed for livestock. Such a feed disposal method is spotlighted in that the food waste is reused as a reproduced source. However, the feed disposal method has a high heat consumption rate, is uneconomical, and requires the increase of titer of the obtained feed.

The above-described known food waste treatment methods are employed to dispose a large amount of food waste produced by houses and/or restaurants, thus requiring a large amount of human power to gather food waste, forcing a collector to inhale offensive odors generated by the food waste, and additionally needing additional logistics costs.

Further, these known food waste treatment methods cause another problem of increasing investment cost to prepare equipment for disposing food waste.

In view of the above problems, many types of

miniaturized treatment devices for directly disposing food waste produced by houses and/or restaurants have been recently proposed and used. In the above conventional miniaturized treatment devices, food waste introduced into the devices is crushed and simultaneously compressed to dehydrate the waste. It is difficult to completely crush the food waste due to foreign substances contained by the food waste, and a collector indispensably inhales offensive orders generated by the food waste.

Moreover, the most important problem of the above food waste treatment devices for crushing and compressing the food waste is that contaminated water generated in the crushing and compressing the food waste cannot be disposed.

Disclosure of the Invention Therefore, the present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and it is an object of the present invention, as disclosed by Korean Patent Registration No. 362332 and Korean Patent Application No.

2002-54174, to provide a food waste treatment device with a minimal volume and a simple structure for repeatedly agitating, crushing and drying food waste without giving off offensive odors and then discharging the disposed waste with a reduced volume.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a food waste treatment device, in which a constant volume of water is always prepared for deodorizing the food waste during the agitating, crushing and drying.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a food waste treatment device, in which a drying state of the food waste is variably selected.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a food waste treatment device, in which the food waste is uniformly crushed.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a food waste treatment device, in which a conveying screw is more smoothly rotated.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a food waste treatment device, from which the disposed food waste is efficiently discharged.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a food waste treatment device, into which the food waste is easily introduced.

It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a food waste treatment device, in which used water can be reused as water for deodorizing the food waste.

In accordance with the present invention, the above and other objects can be accomplished by the provision of a food waste treatment device comprising: a case main body

including: an upper case including an entrance slidably opened and closed, and a control unit; and a lower case including a collection box drawn into and out of a front surface of the lower case, an entrance hole and a drainage hole formed at a rear surface of the lower case, and a water tank unit, installed on a bottom surface of the lower case, for receiving a sealing cover mounted thereon and provided with an opened lower end, a plurality of connection holes formed through the upper surface of the sealing cover, and an inlet and an outlet formed through one side surface of the sealing cover corresponding to the entrance hole and the drainage hole, respectively; a disposal unit installed within the lower case for repeatedly agitating, crushing and drying the food waste introduced through the entrance and for discharging the disposed waste into the collection box; and a vapor exhaust unit for supplying vapor generated by the food waste agitated, crushed and dried by the disposal unit to the water tank unit, deodorizing the vapor, condensing the vapor into water, and then discharging the condensed water.

Preferably, the disposal unit may include a housing member having an opened upper end so that food waste is introduced therethrough; a power-generating unit installed at the lower surface of the housing member and alternately rotated in regular and reverse directions; an agitating

rod, installed in the housing member, connected to a driving shaft of the power-generating unit and bent upward at its one end to form a crushing blade contacting the inner circumference of the housing member; a conveying screw connected to the driving shaft by a power transmission unit; and a cover member installed at the opened upper end of the housing member, and provided with a through hole disposed on the opened upper end of the housing member and an exhaust guide extended outwardly.

Further, preferably, the vapor exhaust unit may include an inflow pipe connected to the cover member and one connection hole of the sealing cover; a blower; a connection pipe for connecting the blower to another connection hole of the sealing cover; and another connection pipe for connecting the blower to yet another connection hole of the sealing cover.

Moreover, preferably, the sealing cover may include a plurality of partitions with different heights interposed between the connection holes formed through the upper surface of the sealing cover; and an inserting plate inserted into a guide groove formed along an inner side surface of the sealing cover at a certain location between the partitions so that the inserting plate is spaced from the upper surface of the sealing cover and the space between the inserting plate and the upper surface of the

sealing cover serves as a passage.

Preferably, the water tank unit may include a sloping plane formed at the front of the water tank unit; and a water level sensor attached to the rear surface of the water tank unit so that the sensor is connected to the control unit.

Further, preferably, the entrance of the upper case may be opened and connected to one end of a connection pipe so that connection pipe is connected to the disposal unit, and a lid may be connected to the other end of the connection pipe so that the lid is opened from and closed into the connection pipe.

Moreover, preferably, the agitating rod and the conveying screw, rotated by the power-generating unit, may have different r. p. m. ratios in accordance with respectively corresponding sprockets of the power transmission unit.

Preferably, the housing member may include an agitating unit in which the agitating rod is disposed; and a drying and conveying unit, in which a heater is installed on the lower and outer side surfaces, an exhaust plate with an exhaust hole is installed on the upper surface, and conveying screw is disposed, wherein the agitating unit and the drying and conveying unit are integrally formed, and the housing member is installed at a certain angle in the

lower case.

More preferably, the housing member may be installed at an angle in the lower case so that the drying and conveying unit is close to the bottom of the lower case.

Moreover, preferably, a temperature sensor, connected to the control unit, may be installed at the outer side surface of the drying and conveying unit of the housing member.

Preferably, an inflow inhibitor may be formed at a predetermined location of the inner surface of the drying and conveying unit contacting the agitating unit of the housing member.

Further, preferably, a plurality of slit plates may be interposed between the bottom surface of the drying and conveying unit and the lower end of the conveying screw.

Moreover, preferably, a crushing protrusion may be extended from the lower surface of one end of the exhaust hole of the exhaust plate.

Brief Description of the Drawings The above and other objects, features and other advantages of the present invention will be more clearly understood from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is a schematic exploded perspective view of a food waste treatment device of the present invention; Fig. 2 is a schematic assembled perspective view of the food waste treatment device of the present invention; Fig. 3 is a perspective view of a bottom surface of a sealing cover of the food waste treatment device of the present invention; Fig. 4 is a longitudinal-sectional view of Fig. 2; Fig. 5 is an exploded perspective view of an essential part of the food waste treatment device of the present invention including one embodiment of a disposal unit; Fig. 6 is an assembled longitudinal-sectional view of the essential part of the food waste treatment device including the disposal unit of Fig. 5; Fig. 7 is a perspective view of another embodiment of a disposal unit; Fig. 8 is a side view of a vapor exhaust unit of the food waste treatment device of the present invention ; Figs. 9a to 9c are longitudinal-sectional views of the food waste treatment device of the present invention in operation, and more specifically: Fig. 9a is a longitudinal-sectional view of the food waste treatment device when the introduced food waste is agitated and crushed;

Fig. 9b is a longitudinal-sectional view of the food waste treatment device when the crushed food waste is dried, conveyed and crushed; and Fig. 9c is a longitudinal-sectional view of the food waste treatment device when the disposed food waste is discharged; Fig. 10 is a schematic view illustrating a different food waste introduction method applied to the food waste treatment device of the present invention; and Fig. 11 is a schematic view illustrating a different water supply method applied to the food waste treatment device of the present invention.

Best Mode for Carrying Out the Invention Now, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the annexed drawings.

Fig. 1 is a schematic exploded perspective view of a food waste treatment device of the present invention. Fig.

2 is a schematic assembled perspective view of the food waste treatment device of the present invention. Fig. 3 is a perspective view of a bottom surface of a sealing cover of the food waste treatment device of the present invention. Fig. 4 is a longitudinal-sectional view of Fig.

2.

As shown in Figs. 1 to 4, the food waste treatment device for disposing food waste produced by houses and/or restaurants in accordance with the present invention comprises a case main body 10 including an upper case 15 and a lower case 19. The upper case 15 includes an entrance 12 which is slidably opened and closed so that the food waste produced by houses and/or restaurants is introduced into the device therethrough, and a control unit 14 having a plurality of operating buttons and lamps connected to a known control unit attached to the rear surface of the upper case 15.

The lower case 19 includes a collection box 16, an entrance hole 17, a drainage hole 17a, and a water tank unit 18 installed on the bottom of the lower case 19. The collection box 16 serves to collect the food waste under the condition in which the introduced food waste is agitated, crushed and dried by a disposal unit to be described later. The entrance hole 17 is connected to a conventional connection hose so that the water is introduced into the lower case 19 via the entrance hole 17, and vapor including offensive odors introduced via a vapor exhaust unit to be described later is deodorized and then condensed into water. The drainage hole 17a is connected to a conventional connection hose so that the obtained

deodorized water is discharged from the lower case 19 via the drainage hole 17a. The entrance hole 17 and the drainage hole 17a are formed through the rear surface of the lower case 19. A sealing cover 180 provided with an opened lower end is mounted on the water tank unit 18. A plurality of connection holes 182 are formed through the upper surface of the sealing cover 180 so that the connection holes 182 are connected to the vapor exhaust unit, thereby supplying or discharging vapor. An inlet 187 and an outlet 187a are formed through one side surface of the sealing cover 180, and correspond to the above entrance hole 17 and drainage hole 17a, respectively.

The food waste treatment device of the present invention further comprises a disposal unit 20 installed within the lower case 19. The disposal unit 20 serves to repeatedly agitate, crush and dry the food waste introduced via the entrance 12, and to discharge the disposed waste into the collection box 16.

The food waste treatment device of the present invention further comprises a vapor exhaust unit 30 for supplying vapor, generated when the food waste is agitated, crushed and dried by the disposal unit 12, to the water tank unit 18, accelerating vapor condensation due to the difference of temperature between the supplied vapor and water, deodorizing offensive odors contained in the vapor,

condensing the vapor into water, and then discharging the condensed water.

Preferably, a sensor (S), such as a limit switch or a touch sensor, is installed at the front surface of the entrance 12 of the upper case 12 and connected to the control unit. When the entrance 12 is opened, the sensor (S) senses the opening of the entrance 12 and then stops the operation of the disposal unit 20, i. e. , the agitating, crushing and drying of the food waste by the disposal unit 20, thereby allowing a user to safely introduce food waste into the device via the entrance 12.

Further, preferably, a collection space 150 is formed in the front surface of the upper case 15, in which the entrance 12 is formed, and is opened and closed by means of the sliding motion of a cover plate 152. A driver and/or other tools are stored in the collection space 150 so that these tools are conveniently used in installation or maintenance of the food waste treatment device.

The sealing cover 180 includes a plurality of partitions 185 with different heights interposed between the connection holes 182 formed through the upper surface of the sealing cover 180, and an inserting plate 186 inserted into a guide groove formed along an inner side surface of the sealing cover 180 at a certain location between the partitions 185 so that the inserting plate 186

is spaced from the upper surface of the sealing cover 180 and the space between the inserting plate 186 and the upper surface of the sealing cover 180 serves as a passage 186a.

Vapor introduced into the gap between the sealing cover 180 and the water tank unit 18 passes through the partitions 185 and the passage 186a, thereby being rapidly condensed.

The partitions 185 of the sealing cover 180 may be formed integrally with the sealing cover 180 in manufacture of the sealing cover 180. Alternatively, the same as the inserting plate 186, the partitions 185 may be slidably inserted into respective guide grooves formed along the inner surface of the sealing cover 180.

Preferably, a sloping plane 18a is formed at the front of the water tank unit 18, and a water level sensor (S1) connected to the control unit is attached to the rear surface of the water tank unit 18 at a location where water is contained, thereby forcing the control unit to display the water level in the water tank unit 18 and allowing a user to rapidly check whether the water tank unit 18 contains sufficient water or not. In case that the water tank unit 18 is short of water, the water tank unit 18 can be rapidly refilled with water so that vapor supplied from the vapor exhaust unit 30 is efficiently deodorized and condensed into water.

Fig. 5 is an exploded perspective view of an

essential part of the food waste treatment device of the present invention including one embodiment of a disposal unit. Fig. 6 is an assembled longitudinal-sectional view of the essential part of the food waste treatment device including the disposal unit of Fig. 5; As shown in Figs. 5 and 6, the disposal unit 20, for repeatedly agitating, crushing and drying the food waste introduced into the device through the entrance 12, installed in the lower case 19 includes a housing member 25 having an opened upper end so that food waste is introduced therethrough, a power-generating unit 300, installed at the lower surface of the housing member 25, having a motor alternately rotated in regular and reverse directions and a decelerator, an agitating rod 40, installed in the housing member 25, connected to a driving shaft 302 of the power- generating unit 300 and bent upward at its one end to form a crushing blade 42 contacting the inner circumference of the housing member 25, a conveying screw 60 connected to the driving shaft 302 by a power transmission unit 50, and a cover member 70, installed at the opened upper end of the housing member 25 and provided with a through hole 72 disposed on the opened upper end of the housing member 25 and an exhaust guide 74 extended outwardly.

Here, the housing member 25 includes an agitating unit 22 in which the agitating rod 40 is disposed so that

the introduced food waste is agitated, and a drying and conveying unit 24, in which a heater (H) is installed on the lower and outer side surfaces and an exhaust plate 240 with an exhaust hole 242 is installed on the upper surface, extended from the agitating unit 22. The conveying screw 60 is disposed in the drying and conveying unit 24, and the drying and conveying unit 24 is formed integrally with the agitating unit 22. The housing member 25 is installed at a certain angle in the lower case 19 so that the drying and conveying unit 24 is close to the bottom of the lower case 19.

The crushing blade 42 of the agitating rod 40, located at the agitating unit 22 and connected to the driving shaft 302 of the power-generating unit 300, contacts the inner circumference of the agitating unit 22, more specifically area-contacts the connection plane between the agitating unit 22 and the drying and conveying unit 24, thereby crushing and agitating the food waste when the food waste is conveyed between the agitating unit 22 and the drying and conveying unit 24.

The conveying screw 60, installed in the drying and conveying unit 24 so that the conveying screw 60 is connected to the driving shaft 302 by the power transmission unit 50 including known sprockets and chain, conveys the crushed waste, introduced into the drying and

conveying unit 24 by the agitation of the agitating unit 22, up and down by the regular and reverse rotation of the power-generating unit 300, and then dries the crushed waste by means of the heater (H). Further, the conveying screw 60 exhausts the dried waste via the exhaust hole 242 by the one directional rotation of the power-generating unit 300.

The through hole 72 of the cover member 70 installed at the opened upper end of the housing member 25 is connected to the agitating unit 22, and the exhaust guide 74 of the cover member 70 is disposed above he drying and conveying unit 24, thereby efficiently guiding the dried waste into the collection box 16 drawn into and out of the lower case 19.

Here, the housing member 25 is installed at a certain angle in the lower case 19 so that the drying and conveying unit 24 is close to the bottom of the lower case 19.

Thereby, the food waste agitated and crushed by the agitating unit 22 is efficiently introduced into the drying and conveying unit 24, and the introduced waste uniformly contacts the inner surface of the drying and conveying unit, thus increasing drying efficiency.

Preferably, a temperature sensor (S2), connected to an operating switch of the control unit, is installed at the outer side surface of the drying and conveying unit 24 of the housing member 25 so that a temperature condition in

the drying of the food waste after the agitating and crushing the waste is controlled, thereby controlling a drying state of the disposed waste.

The sprockets of the power transmission unit 30, into which the agitating rod 40 and the conveying screw 60 are respectively inserted, have different numbers of screw teeth, i. e. , twelve and thirteen, at approximately 1/100 rate, so that the agitating rod 40 and the conveying screw 40 have different r. p. m. ratios. Accordingly, the crushing blade 42 of the agitating rod 40 and the conveying screw 60 continuously contact the food waste at different locations, thus evenly crushing the food waste.

A plurality of slit plates 62 are interposed between the bottom surface of the drying and conveying unit 24 and the lower end of the conveying screw 60, so that the conveying screw 60 can be smoothly rotated, even when there is friction between the bottom surface of the drying and conveying unit 24 and the lower end of the conveying screw 60 due to the remaining crushed waste therebetween and the overload of the conveying screw 60.

Preferably, a crushing protrusion 244 is extended from the lower surface of one end of the exhaust hole 242 of the exhaust plate 240. When the food waste agitated, crushed and dried by the agitating unit 22 is exhausted from the drying and conveying unit 24 through the exhaust

hole 242, the disposed waste is crushed again by the crushing protrusion 244, thereby being more efficiently exhausted.

Fig. 7 is a perspective view of another embodiment of the disposal unit of the food waste treatment device of the present invention.

As shown in Fig. 7, an inflow inhibitor 24a is formed at a predetermined location of the inner surface of the drying and conveying unit 24 contacting the agitating unit 22 of the housing member 25, thereby preventing large bone or metal substance fragments from being caught to the conveying screw 60, when the food waste is agitated by the agitating unit 22 and then introduced into the drying and conveying unit 24, and re-exhausting the large bone or metal substance fragments into the agitating unit 22 when the disposed waste is exhausted from the drying and conveying unit 24 due to the reverse rotation of the crushing blade 42 of the agitating rod 40.

Accordingly, it is possible for the disposal unit 20 to continuously agitate, and crush the food waste without stoppage.

Fig. 8 is a side view of the vapor exhaust unit of the food waste treatment device of the present invention.

As shown in Fig. 8, the vapor exhaust unit 30, for deodorizing vapor containing offensive odors generated by

the disposal unit, condensing the vapor into water and then exhausting the condensed water, includes an inflow pipe 32 connected to the cover member 70 and one connection hole 182 of the sealing cover 180 for allowing vapor, generated when the disposal unit agitates, crushes and dries the food waste, to efficiently flow into the vapor exhaust unit 30, a known blower 35, a connection pipe 36 for connecting the blower 35 to another connection hole 182 of the sealing cover 180 for allowing the blower 35 to supply suction force for sucking the vapor into the housing member via the inflow pipe 32, and another connection pipe 36a for connecting the blower 35 to yet another connection hole 182 of the sealing cover 180 for allowing the sucked vapor to collide with the plural partitions 185 and to pass through the passage 186a formed by the inserting plate 186, thus accelerating the vapor condensation, deodorizing the vapor, condensing the vapor into water, and then exhausting the condensed water via the outlet of the lower case.

Under the condition in which the food waste is introduced into the agitating unit and the drying and conveying unit of the housing member, the blower 35 is always operated so that the inside of the housing member is maintained in a pressure state lower than the atmospheric pressure. Thereby, offensive odors are not generated by the food waste in the housing member.

Accordingly, even when the introduced food waste is disposed by the disposal unit or the introduced food waste is stored in the disposal unit before a designated amount of the waste is gathered, offensive odors are not generated by the food waste in the disposal unit.

Figs. 9a to 9c show the food waste treatment device of the present invention in operation. More specifically, Fig. 9a is a longitudinal-sectional view of the food waste treatment device when the introduced food waste is agitated and crushed.

As shown in Fig. 9a, the entrance 12 of the upper case 15 of the case main body 10 is opened, and food waste to be disposed is introduced into the device through the entrance 12. Then, the entrance 12 is closed.

The operating switch of the control unit 14 is turned on so that the motor of the power-generating unit 300 is operated. The driving force from the motor is transmitted to the driving shaft 302 via the decelerator, and then the driving shaft 302 is rotated in a regular direction.

The agitating rod 40 in the agitating unit 22 of the housing member 25 of the disposal unit 20 is rotated in a regular direction, and simultaneously the crushing blade 42 bent from the agitating rod 40 is rotated. Thereby, the introduced food waste in the agitating unit 22 is agitated and simultaneously pushed into the drying and conveying

unit 24 so that the food waste located at the connection plane between the agitating unit 22 and the drying and conveying unit 24 is crushed by the area-contact between the connection plane and the crushing blade 42.

Fig. 9b is a longitudinal-sectional view of the food waste treatment device when the crushed food waste is dried, conveyed and crushed.

As shown in Fig. 9b, the food waste, agitated and crushed by the regular rotation of the agitating rod 40 in the agitating unit 22 due to the regular rotation of the power-generating unit 300, is introduced into the drying and conveying unit 24. Then, the crushed food waste is heated by the heater (H) installed in the drying and conveying unit 24, and simultaneously conveyed upward by the conveying screw 60 rotated in a regular direction by means of the power transmission unit 50 including the sprockets and chain, thus being dried.

After the conveying screw 60 is rotated in the regular direction by a predetermined rotational frequency, the conveying screw 60 is rotated in the reverse direction by the reverse rotation of the motor of the power- generating unit 300 so that the dried waste located at the upper portion of the conveying screw 60 is conveyed downward by the conveying screw 60 rotated in the reverse direction and then discharged from the drying and conveying

unit 24 into the agitating unit 22. Here, the food waste located at the connection plane between the agitating unit 22 and the drying and conveying unit 24 is re-crushed by the area-contact between the connection plane and the crushing blade 42 rotated in the reverse direction.

Since the agitating rod 40 and the conveying screw 60, rotated in the regular and reverse directions by the power-generating unit 300, have different r. p. m. ratios in accordance with respectively corresponding sprockets of the power transmission unit 50, the agitating rod 40 and the conveying screw 60 contact the food waste at different locations when the food waste is introduced into or exhausted from the agitating unit 22 and the drying and conveying unit 24, thereby evenly crushing the food waste.

The food waste introduced into the housing member 25 repeatedly reciprocates between the agitating unit 22 and the drying and conveying unit 24 by the regular and reverse rotations of the power-generating unit 300, thereby being simultaneously agitated, crushed and dried.

Further, when the crushed waste is introduced from the agitating unit 22 into the drying and conveying unit 24, the inflow inhibitor 24a formed at a predetermined location of the inner surface of the drying and conveying unit 24 contacting the agitating unit 22 of the housing member 25 catches large bone or metal substance fragments,

thereby preventing the fragments from being introduced into the drying and conveying unit 24, and allowing the conveying screw 60 in the drying and conveying unit 24 to smoothly rotate and then to dry the introduced waste.

Further, the temperature sensor (S2) installed at the outer side surface of the drying and conveying unit 24 sets the drying temperature in the drying and conveying unit 24 through the control unit 14, thereby controlling a drying state of the waste.

When the food waste is introduced into the housing member 25 or the introduced food waste is agitated, crushed and dried, the blower (35 in Fig. 8) is continuously operated. Thereby, vapor containing offensive odors generated for the agitating, crushing and drying steps is introduced into the gap between the sealing cover 180 and the water tank unit 18 of the lower case 19, thus being deodorized and condensed into water by means of the vapor condensation due to the difference of temperature between the vapor and the supplied water, and then being discharged via the outlet. Accordingly, it is possible to dispose the food waste without giving off offensive odors.

Fig. 9c is a longitudinal-sectional view of the food waste treatment device when the disposed food waste is discharged.

As shown in Fig. 9c, the temperature senor (S2)

senses whether the temperature of the food waste, agitated, crushed and dried by the repeated reciprocation between the agitating unit 22 and the drying and conveying unit 24 by the regular and reverse rotations of the power-generating unit 300, reaches the set temperature or not. When the temperature sensor (S2) senses the temperature of the dried waste to reach the set temperature, the agitating rod 40 of the agitating unit 22 and the conveying screw 60 of the drying and conveying unit 24 are continuously rotated in one direction, thereby allowing the disposed waste in the agitating unit 22 and the drying and conveying unit 24 to be discharged into the collection box 16 of the lower case 19 through the exhaust hole 242.

Here, when the disposed waste is discharged into the collection box 16 through the exhaust hole 242, the crushing protrusion 244 extended from the lower surface of one end of the exhaust hole 242 of the exhaust plate 240 crushes the disposed waste, thus allowing the disposed waste to be more efficiently discharged into the collection box 16.

Accordingly, a user can simply gather the disposed waste, obtained by crushing and drying the food waste, in the collection box 16.

Fig. 10 is a schematic view illustrating a different food waste introduction method applied to the food waste

treatment device of the present invention.

As shown in Fig. 10, the food waste treatment device of the present invention is installed within a sink so as to allow food waste produced by houses and/or restaurants to be directly introduced into the food waste treatment device. An entrance of the upper case 15 is opened. One end of a connection pipe 15b is connected to the entrance so that the connection pipe 15b is connected to the disposal unit, and the other end of the connection pipe 15b is connected to the upper surface of the sink. A lid 15a is installed on the upper surface of the sink so that the lid 15a can be opened from and closed into the connection pipe 15b.

A user opens the lid 15a on the upper surface of the sink from the connection pipe 15b, and then throws the food waste to be disposed into the agitating unit of the housing member through the connection pipe 15b. Accordingly, this configuration of the food waste treatment device provides convenience to the user.

Fig. 11 is a schematic view illustrating a different water supply method applied to the food waste treatment device of the present invention.

As shown in Fig. 11, the entrance hole 17 of the lower case 19 is connected to a drainage hole of a sink basin via a connection hose, and the drainage hole 17a of

the lower case 19 is connected to a sewage ditch via another connection hose, so that water, which was already used in the sink, is reused as water to be supplied to the water tank unit of the lower case for deodorizing the vapor and condensing the vapor into water.

Thereby, this configuration of the food waste treatment device allows the used water to be reused as the water to be supplied to the water tank unit and then drained, thus reducing a water consumption rate.

Industrial Applicability As apparent from the above description, the present invention provides a food waste treatment device with a minimal volume and a simple structure for agitating, crushing and drying food waste without giving off offensive odors and then discharging the disposed waste with a reduced volume. Thus, the food waste treatment device may be installed even in a narrow space, easily handled, and adapted to dispose food waste cleanly and economically.

Since a constant volume of water is always supplied to a water tank unit, the food waste treatment device continuously maintains the deodorized state of the food waste when the food waste is disposed.

A drying condition is selected by a temperature

sensor installed at a drying and conveying unit, thus allowing a user to select a drying state of the food waste.

Since a conveying screw of the drying and conveying unit and an agitating rod of the agitating unit have different r. p. m. ratios, the agitating rod and the conveying screw crush the food waste at different locations, thus evenly crushing the food waste.

Since a plurality of slit plates are interposed between the bottom surface of the drying and conveying unit and the lower end of the conveying screw, the conveying screw is smoothly rotated even when the crushed waste remains therebetween or the conveying screw is overloaded.

When the disposed waste in the drying and conveying unit is discharged through an exhaust hole, the disposed waste is crushed by a crushing protrusion extended from the lower surface of one end of the exhaust hole of the exhaust plate, thus being efficiently discharged into a collection box.

Food waste from the upper surface of a sink can be directly introduced into the agitating unit of the housing member of the food waste treatment device, thereby allowing the user to conveniently and simply dispose the food waste.

The food waste treatment device of the present invention reuses used water, which was already used in the sink, as water to be supplied to the water tank unit of the

lower case, and then drains the reused water, thus deodorizing vapor containing offensive odors generated by the food waste and reducing a water consumption rate.

Although the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been disclosed for illustrative purposes, those skilled in the art will appreciate that various modifications, additions and substitutions are possible, without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention as disclosed in the accompanying claims.