CA2516428A1

CA2516428A1 - Poop bagger

Info

Publication number: CA2516428A1
Application number: CA 2516428
Authority: CA
Inventors: George V. Scott
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2005-09-01
Filing date: 2005-09-01
Publication date: 2007-03-01

Abstract

A very simple, one step bagging system for cleaning up large amounts or small amounts of dog feces involving no mechanical or moving parts, no bending and next to no effort on the part of the user. Using any plastic grocery bag with punched out handles, this simple economical clean up system is the ultimate in cleaning efficiency for animal waste saving the ultimate amounts of time and energy. This system may also be used for the cleaning up of small pieces of light weight garbage such as after a child's birthday party barbeque in the back yard or small dead animals such as mice, squirrels or birds that have hit a window. There is no contact with the waste by the user and removal of the bag and reattaching a new bag is simple and efficient. If and when passage sleeve clean up is required, simply hose it down. This Poop Bagger may even be taken on walks with the dog as the handle is interchangeable or telescopic.

Description

85 Background of the Invention 1. Field of the Invention 90 This invention relates to a most efficient system to clean up animal waste and other small garbage using an efficient pick up system and a plastic punched out handle grocery bag. This is done in large or small amounts, very easily, with no bending, handling or contact, with very little effort.
95 2. Description of the Related Art.
The present invention relates to a very novel, innovative and inventive system for one step cleaning and bagging of animal and other small light weight soft waste or garbage picking up several pieces at once, over and over again very quickly as in very few seconds, until the bag is full, filling the bag in just seconds or minutes. Any plastic grocery bag with punched handles can easily be attached and removed without user contacting the waste. If sleeve requires cleaning , merely hose it down, then a new bag is 105 easily reattached . There is no bending required with this said clean up system and therefore the elderly and those with back problems will now be able to perform this, once unpleasant and possibly painful task.
Most animal waste systems are designed to pick up one piece at a time and then bag it involving at least two operations often involving two sets of hands. Even those that 110 involve bagging can only pick up one, maybe two piece at a time and involve extensive bending. All of this involves excessive time and energy which is not necessary with the present teaching. This new innovative, novel and inventive teaching will do several times more work with no bending ten times faster.

The teaching herein this invention will now allow everyone young and old, healthy 115 back or bad back, to be able to enjoy their pet even through the adverse conditions of waste clean up in the back yard, especially in the spring. Now, at any time, dog owners will actually be able to look forward to this normally slow and unpleasant smelly task and have it done, often in seconds with no bending and no handling; take off the used bag, if cleaning is required for the sleeve, simply hose it down, and put on the new bag for the 120 next job. The Poop Bagger may even be taken and used when walking the dog because the attachable, detachable handle may be changed to suit the user's needs for longer or shorter.
Of the existing U.S. patents relating to this invention there includes:

U.S. Patent No. 6, 279,975 to Gambiel, Shai; Illinois U.S. Patent No. 6, 237, 972 to Jung, Koock, Elan NY
U.S. Patent No. 4, 383, 710 to Fehr, Robert W San Diego U.S. Patent No. 4, 958, 871 to Heimans, James W. WA. All of these devises are good for the purpose that they serve but with their limitations, according to the writer's 135 research. All of the devices that involve bagging at the same time as pick up, are mechanical, requiring flaps, levers, pulleys,or removeable parts to be reattached again or strings etc. and will only pick up one or very few pieces of feces at a time.
Other devices are huge and cumbersome to be used by a household to clean the back yard. With moving parts, often two sets of hands are usually required or the user is required to carry a bag 140 separately and the pick up system separately. Most involve much bending in pick up and because of moving parts, if disfunction occurs, the task at hand doesn't get accomplished.

The present teaching is completely non-mechanical and according to the writer's research this is the only teaching involving pick up and bagging in one operation, found to be non-mechanical. Consisting of only three key simple components, one and only one 145 permanent assembly and simple, sanitary bag removal and replacement and allows for several pieces of waste to be picked up with one simple sweep, done repeatedly until the bag is ready to be easily and sanitarily removed and placed into the outdoor garbage is the present system. Hours of clean up can now be accomplished in just minutes It will now be possible that even children over the age of eleven would even want to 1 SO keep their promise to clean up after their beloved pet because it will be so easy and trouble free.
Given these departures from conventional concepts in the prior art, in so doing, this new teaching will now provide a simpler and more efficient, system that dog owners will actually not mind using. In fact, it could now be the case where animal owners will 155 not mind doing the task at hand, even in the worse case scenarios, that being spring clean up. Even the kids won't mind doing this now, not so unpleasant chore.
160 Summary of the Invention The present invention relates to a very simple, very fast, one step picking up and bagging of dog waste, in large amounts or small amounts, in one operation repeated several times in seconds, without the user having to bend or have any contact with the 165 waste; this new, innovative and novel system; known as the" Poop Bagger"

When in use, a simple plastic grocery bag is attached to the fixtures by stretching each punched handle from the bottom of the side fixtures to the either of the top fixtures , which ever gives the tightest hold with the pick up sleeve sitting inside the bag or 170 alternatively the bag may be put through the sleeve and attached in the same fashion with the front of sleeve completely encapsulated by the bag. The sleeve is tilted slightly toward the user with the handle and the sleeve pulled forward quickly with gentle pressure on the bottom hand holding the handle with the upper hand at the upper handle end in almost the same fashion as one would use a rake, then tilting the open front of said 175 sleeve upward for flow through of waste to bag. The "Poop Bagger"is so simple with no mechanical or moving parts that almost anyone can use it with the user having no contact with the waste. When clean up is done, take off the bag the opposite way it was put on, put it in the garbage and if necessary, hose down the sleeve and put another bag on for the next job.

How the Present Invention Works The "Poop Bagger"includes three major components plus a plurality of hardware fixtures being machine screws with nuts and washers and lock washers as well as sheet 185 metal screws. Alternatively, said sleeve could have all permanent fixtures. Through a plurality of suitable holes suitably placed on the top of the pick up sleeve and a plurality of suitable holes in a coupler base, all holes which line up with each other, the machine screws now adjustably attach , with a suitable length of the machine screw vertically protruding, attach said threaded coupler made of plastic or metal or other suitable 190 material to the top of the pick up sleeve which is also made of plastic or metal or other suitable material. Said machine screws are adjustably attached so as to also act as top fixtures for attaching the bag to the top on each side of said coupler.
Alternatively a single fixture could also be used, located in a central area on top of said sleeve. A handle of sufficient length so as to not require the user to bend their back and made of a suitable 195 material to withstand low to medium downward pressure by the user, is now threaded into said coupler, or alternatively, said coupler could also be permanently attached or even internally threaded as in a punched die thread.
Said sleeve is a 360 degree enclosure, closed on the ends, top and bottom but open in front to slide waste into sleeve and open at the back so waste can slide through 200 the sleeve by sliding like a rake, said sleeve between the surfaces, that of the waste and the surface it sits on, grass, concrete, or any other surface and into the attached plastic used grocery bag by lifting front of sleeve up and foreward in a quick motion.
This system will also pick up 98% of liquid or semi- solid feces in the same fashion as with picking up all of the solid feces. At each end of said sleeve, a suitable hole or holes are 205 suitably placed and a suitable sheet metal screw is turned into each hole leaving a suitable length protruding vertical to said sleeve end but horizontal to the ground.
Alternatively, permanently attached fixtures could be used. Now by inserting said sleeve into a plastic grocery bag with the handle side of the sleeve facing out or facing the user, with the fixtures just outside the bag and the punched bag handles at the ends of the 210 sleeve one now attaches said plastic bag, by now, on one side of the bag, the bottom of the open handle of the bag is placed to catch on the underside of the sheet metal screw fixture and the top of the open handle is now stretched to either of the top machine screw fixture on that side or on the other side of the sleeve and may or may not be twisted on the top fixture for tightness. Repeat this same operation on the other end of the sleeve 21 S with bag handle. Alternatively, as was discussed earlier in this teaching the bag may be put through the sleeve and attached the same way with front of sleeve being completely encapsulated by the bag.
The "Poop Bagger"is now ready for operation.

The Present Invention Includes the Following A). A suitably sized sleeve, of rectangular or other suitable shape, made of a suitable material such as metal, plastic or other suitable material with the ends, the top and bottom 225 being a continuous surface, closed in on said surfaces, by surfaces of said material creating a 360 degree enclosure with the front and back being open, thus creating a passageway means, large enough, so as to allow the passage of material into the front open side to pass through said sleeve and out the opposite open side into an attached plastic bag with punched handles. Said sleeve has a hole punched through each end, for a 230 fixture, or alternatively, this could be a permanently attached fixture, each the same suitable size and suitable placement for fixture placement for bag attachment or alternatively permanently placed fixtures for same. As well, on the top of said sleeve is a plurality, or alternatively permanent fixture or fixtures, of holes of a suitable size and suitable placement so as to be able to adjustably attach a coupler with fixtures that will 235 also act as posts or anchors for bag attachment by being adjustably attachable when attaching said coupler to said sleeve.

B). A suitable coupler or alternatively a permanently attached threaded or other fit type system or an internaly threaded or otherwise system for attaching handle, made of a suitable material such as metal or plastic consisting of a base with a plurality of suitably 240 sized and suitably placed holes so as to line up with the plurality of holes punched into the top of said sleeve for attachment of coupler to top of sleeve. As well, said coupler has a threaded sleeve of a suitable size, or alternative attaching system suitably placed with a suitable thread to accommodate a suitably elongated handle.
C). An elongated handle, made of a suitable material such as metal, wood or 245 plastic, or other suitable material of sufficient length that when attached with said handle's suitably threaded end or other suitable attaching system, by turning it into the threaded sleeve on said coupler, will be of a sufficient length so as to not necessitate bending for the average height adult or child. Said handle is removeably attachable to allow for different handle lengths to be used or may be a telescopic handle.
250 D). A plurality of fixtures consisting of machine screws, nuts, washers, lock washers and sheet metal screws for easy assembly, all of which, when suitably placed, accommodate easy attachment of any handle hole punched grocery bag. Said fixtures could alternatively be permanent fixtures.
255 Brief Description of the Drawings FIG. 1 Illustrating in sectional orthographic view, how the hardware fixtures are put in place for simple assembly and for handle attachment. Fixtures show where bag attachments are. The illustration shows only the section of one half the sleeve and coupler as both halves are the same.

260 FIG. 2 Illustrating the complete assembly of the "Poop Bagger" inclusive with bag and handle in sectional view.
FIG. 3 Illustrates the alternate system of attaching said grocery bag through said sleeve rather than over the sleeve so the sleeve is outside the bag but with said bag totally surrounding and encapsulating only the front of the sleeve thereby keeping the sleeve 265 clean and with the sleeve now surrounding and housing the open portion of the bag but giving the same support to the bag when full.
Specific Description of the Preferred Embodiments Beginning with Fig. l, the illustration shows an orthographic sectional view of the coupler and sleeve assembly with fixtures in place for this section which is identical for 275 the other section as will be the case in Fig. 2 Now understood, with Fig.
1, 1 shows the passage sleeve also with passageway 16 being the frontal entrance with rear passage 21 just shown as the throughway through which the waste passes from front to back and into the attached plastic grocery bag 13. 20 and 19 illustrate the sectioning lines 20 for Fig. 1 and 19 for Fig. 2. 2 shows the base for attaching said coupler to sleeve 1.
Nuts 7, lock 280 washers 8, washers 9, and machine screw fixture 6, illustrate the hardware fixtures for attaching coupler 2 to sleeve 1 as well as being fixtures for attaching bag 13. 5, dotted lines, illustrate how fixtures 5, 6, 7, 8, and 9 are adjustably attached so height of fixture 6 is adjustably tightened to a desired height for fixture 6, as well as securing coupler 2. 12 illustrates the hole through the top surface 24 of sleeve land 22 illustrates the hole 285 through said coupler to allow the passage of fixture 6 through said sleeve and said coupler 2 and 10 shows the hole through end surface 23 of sleeve 1 to allow fixture 11 to be attached to side 23. 3 shows coupler 2 sleeve and hidden lines 4 show threading for attachment of elongated handle 26. 25 shows bottom surface of sleeve 1.
Now to Fig. 2, a sectional view showing hidden lines 21 showing the continuous 290 surfaces, ends 23, top 24 and bottom 25 creating a 360 degree enclosure and 17 shows the exit opening for waste to exit sleeve into plastic bag 13. 14 shows the punched handle of bag 13 stretched from underside of fixture 11 to the far side of fixture 18, the far side of fixture 6. 15 illustrates the stretched bag handle from fixture 11 to fixture Now to Fig. 3, a sectional view with 31 showing the front of the sleeve with 295 surfaces 23, 24 and 25 encapsulated on the outside perimeter of the sleeve front entry by the bag as well as the bag folding to the inside of the sleeve and 32 showing the bag fully through said sleeve while 33 shows the back exit portion 23, 24 and 25 surfaces of the sleeve outside said bag for waste passage to not be in contact with said sleeve but only said plastic bag. 27shows the front portion of the bag in wrapped position around the 300 front entrance of the sleeve with 29 showing the punched bag handle stretched the same as 15 in Fig. 2 . 28 illustrating the outside surface of the bag covering the outside surfaces 23, 24 and 25 of the front portion of said sleeve and 30 shows the waste as has been picked up by said bagger. Further to Fig. 2 and Fig 3, 34 shows the alternative attaching system whereby the die punched handles 15 of said bag are stretched to the 305 opposite fixture 6 in the event the handle is a longer stretch for snug fit.
As such, an invention has been disclosed in terms of preferred embodiments there of and orientations of use which fulfill each and every one of the objects of the invention as set forth herein above and provide a new and vastly improved teaching because of it's simplicity and having no mechanical and/or moving parts, system for the clean up of dog 310 or other animal feces.

Claims

Claims What is claimed is:

(1) An animal refuse clean up sleeve comprising:
(i) A sleeve:
(ii) A threadably attachable detachable handle to the sleeve (iii) The sleeve defining a flat bottom to the 360 degree structure and a plurality of openings therein being defined to allow for mechanical fixtures for threaded coupler attachment and further end fixtures for bag attachment:
(iv) Said fixtures for attaching coupler are also defined further to allow for top of said sleeve to assist in bag attachment:
(2) Said sleeve in claim 1 has a flat bottom, flat ends and a flat top to create a rectangular sleeve structure. It is open in the front and back for free passage of waste into a bag which is added for collection of waste.