CA1079576A - Device for recovering comb honey - Google Patents

Abstract

Abstract of the Disclosure The device comprises a box, which is open on one side and has on the other side a bottom, which is provided only on the inside with a honeycomb pattern. When it is desired to collect honey, at least one pair of these boxes are arranged with their bottoms facing and contacting each other. When comb honey has been collected in the boxes, a comb honey package is formed in that a pair of such boxes are assembled with their open sides facing each other.

Description

This invention relates to a device ~or recov~ring comb honey.
Honey is being offered for sale almost exclusively as extracted honey, which can be recovered only when the honey is liquid so that it can be centrifuged. When the honey cannot be centrifuged -~rom the combs 7 it can be sold as comb honey consisting of chunks of honeycomb.
Whereas honey in that form is highly desirable, it is not offered for sale in s~!bstantial quan-tities because the recovery~ packaging and handling oP the comb chunks is too difficult for most beekeepers and ~or the trade.
Besides, comb honey is hygienically satisfactory only when the comb cells have not been incubated.
~or this reason it has been proposed in U.~.
Patent Specification 3~187,353 and ~ustrian Patent Spe-cification 69,003 to recover honey, mainly honey which ; cannot be centrifuged, in the ~orm of comb honey in section :EramesO These are small ~rames which fit the honeycomb ~rame and are provided with very thin partitions ?0 o~ artificial material or only with partition strips of wax.
The partitions may consist of beeswax or of a support which is covered with beeswax and may be provided on both sides with hexagonal projections for the attachment of cell walls.
It has been fo1md that the preparation of the small frames and o~ the partitions and the subsequent handling of chunks of comb comprising such frames is so complicated that these known devices have not become commercially accepted on a l~rge scale.
For reasons which are not exactly known~ mele- `
zitose-containing dew honey crops (or larch dew honey ~'7~S~

crops) have greatly increased in recen-t years, mainly in the Alpine region. In certain areas these crops are abundant and first-grade honey can be recovered from them. Because - melezitose-containing honey becomes gelatinous or beyins to crystallize two or three days after it has been collected by the bees and in that state can no longer be centrifuged, the recovery ofcomb honey is of great significance to beekeepers, who cannot recover that honey in the usual manner and cannot market it as extracted honey. It is known that many beekeepers try to avoid placing their beehives in regions in which melezitose-containing crops are available.
A great economic loss is suffered by beekeepers because the large quantities of melezitose-containing dew honey crops cannot be utilized. It is an object of the invention to provide a device which is of the kind described first hereinbefore and which is simple in structure and operation.
The device is also desired -to permit of an effective and inexpensive recovery of honey, mainly be beekeepers in Alpine forest regions.
In accordance with the above objects, the invention '' herein claimed essentially lies in the provision of a device, ; for coll'ecting honey, in the form of a box comprising: inter-connected rigid sidewalls forming a quadrilateral defining a pair of openings, one of which is unobstructed while the other ', is closed by a wall provided with a raised honeycomb pattern for the attachment'of honeycomb cells. Means are provided on the sidewalls around at least one of the openings for removably connecting the box to a li~ce box around a like opening of said ~'~
' like box so that two boxes may be secured together with their like openings facing one another.
-~ ~ The device according to the inYention is structurally '' , .
, , simple and when filled with honey can be taken from the

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beehive and sold as a whole~
- The invention will now be described with respect to - a preferred embodiment thereoE having reference to the.appended $
drawlngs wherein: ~

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Fig. 1 shows a honeycomb frame and boxes inserted therein, ~ Fig. 2a is a sectional view taken on line A-B of Fig. 2c and showing a box, Fig. 2b is a side elevation-showing said box, Fig. 2c is a top plan view of the box oriented as shown in Fig. 2a, Fig. 3 shows a honeycomb frame and boxes to be inserted into the same and ~ _ _ Figs. 4 to 6 show how the boxes are prepared for - being dispatched a~d sold.
The devicé according to the invention is simple in structure and consists essentially of boxes 2, which are open -~, on one side and have bottoms 3 which are embossed on the inside to form hexag~nal'ribs for the attachment of honeycomb cells.
As is apparent from Figs. 3 and 1, the boxes according to the invention are inserted from both sides into empty ,.: , i -; ~ ~ honeycomb frames 1 in such a manner that the bottoms 3 abut each other. The boxes may be secured in the honeycomb frame 1 ; 20 by retaining pins 4 and holes 5 with which the bottom 3 o~
each box 2 is provided. As a result, the bottoms contact each other. In the honeycomb frame 1, the bottoms 3 in contact with `~ each other form vertical walls, which divide the frame into ... ,, . ~ ~, . . .
i ~ two halve~. Before the boxes 2 are used th~ey are provided with : . : - : . . : - . : - ~ ` . . . .
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coating of beeswax9 which is applied in a hot, liquid ~tate.
The resulting boxes are entirely acceptable to the bees regardless o~ the material of which the boxes are made.
When the bees can collect honey, they soon form a very thin comb in each box, fill said comb with honey~ and subsequently cover the cells of the comb with wax.
To recover the honey, the boxes which ha~e been ~illed in the manner described hereinbefore are assembled in pairs of superimposed boxes h~ing open sides facing each other9 as is shown in Fig~ 4. In the resulting package the pins 6 and holes 7 at the corners 8 of the boxes 2 interfit. ~his packaging operation requires only ~ew manipulations and ensures that the honey and comb need not be touched with the hand. When the boxes 2 have been assembled~ they are strapped with adhesive tape as shown in Fig. 6 to form an ab~olutely tight package which is ready ~or dispatch.
The boxes accordi~g to the i~ention are preferab-ly made ~rom a plastics material which is permissible for foods~u~f packages and which can be shaped, eOg., by deep-drawing. Other materials, such as cellophane or the like may also be used.

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Claims (11)

The embodiments of the invention in which an exclusive property or privilege is claimed are defined as follows:

1. A device for collecting honey, comprising:
a box comprising: interconnected rigid side walls forming a quadrilateral defining a bottom and a top opening, said top opening remaining unobstructed; a bottom wall over said bottom opening and provided, on the inside only, with a raised honeycomb pattern for the attachment of honeycomb cells, and means on said sidewalls around said top opening for remov-ably connecting said box to a like box around the top opening of said like box so that two like boxes may be secured together with their top openings facing one another.

2. A device as set forth in claim 1, in which said honeycomb pattern is an embossed pattern.

3. A device as set forth in claim 1, in which said box is rectangular.

4. A device as set forth in claim 1, in which said box has bottom corner members at the junction of said side-walls;
said connecting means comprise axially outwardly pro-jecting pins and axial holes, respectively, at alternating ones of said corner members, and said pins are adapted to fit like holes of said like box.

5. A device for collecting honey, comprising at least one pair of boxes, each of which is open on one side and has on the other side a bottom which is provided only on the inside with a raised honeycomb pattern, said boxes being arranged with their bottom facing and contacting each other, and in which said boxes are provided around their bottom openings with detachably interfitting means holding said boxes in registry with each other.

6. A device as set forth in claim 5, which comprises a honeycomb frame in which said at least one pair of boxes are installed.

7. A device as set forth in claim 5, which comprises a honeycomb frame and a plurality of said pairs of boxes installed in said honeycomb frame.

8. A comb honey package, comprising a pair of boxes, each box comprising:
- interconnected rigid sidewalls forming a quadrilateral defining a bottom and a top opening, said top opening remaining unobstructed; a bottom wall over said bottom opening and provided, on the inside only, with a raised honeycomb cells, and means on said sidewalls around said top opening for removably connecting said boxes together around their top openings so that said boxes may be secured together with their top openings facing one another.

9. A device as set forth in claim 8, in which said boxes contain each a honey-filled honeycomb, and said honeycombs have been formed in situ in said boxes and have been filled with honey in said boxes.

10. A device as set forth in claim 8, in which each of said boxes has top corner members at the junction of said sidewalls and is provided with axially outwardly projecting pins and with axial holes, respectively, at laternating ones of said top corner members, said pins of one of said boxes fit in said holes of the other of said boxes, and said open sides of said boxes form a joint which is strapped with adhesive tape.

11. A device for collecting honey, in the form of a box comprising: interconnected rigid sidewalls forming a quadrilateral defining a pair of openings, one of said openings remaining unobstructed while the other one is closed by a wall provided on the inside only with a raised honeycomb pattern for attachment of honeycomb cells, and means on said sidewalls around at least one of said openings for removably connecting said box to a like box around a like opening of said like box and so that two boxes may be secured together with their like openings facing one another.