GB2246598A

GB2246598A - A mounting device

Info

Publication number: GB2246598A
Application number: GB9016797A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Philip Roger Blanshard
Original assignee: Mars GB Ltd
Current assignee: Mars GB Ltd
Priority date: 1990-07-31
Filing date: 1990-07-31
Publication date: 1992-02-05
Also published as: GB9016797D0

Abstract

A mounting device for receiving and supporting pet accessories, comprising a support portion 1 adapted to receive an accessory 9 and an attachment portion 3 for releasably attaching the mounting device to a bar 21 or the like of a pet cage, wherein the attachment portion 3 includes a pair of arms 23, which in use straddle the bar 21, and a locking means 25 such as a threaded nut for joining the two arms 23 to retain and grip, in use, the bar 21 between the arms 23. A stabilizer 15 can also be included which prevents unwanted rotation of the mounting device relative to the bar 21 of the cage. <IMAGE>

Description

A MOUNTING DEVICE This invention relates to a mounting device which enables objects, such as pet accessories, to be releasably attached to a solid support, such as a bar of a bird cage or a perch.

It is known to mount bird feeders, which accommodate either food or drink, onto bird cages by simply forcing the open end of a feeder through a gap between vertical bars of a cage. The hopper portion of the feeder remains outside the cage and may be re-filled without the feeder needing to be removed. The feeder is usually held in position due to the resilience of the cage bars, each bar being situated between a pair of bumps extending from the side of the feeder; the feeder may also rest on a horizontal bar of the bird cage.

Alternative forms of mounting device are also known which rely upon a C-clip, to receive a tubular portion of a bird feeder or the like, and a pair of resilient flanges extending from and integral with the C-clip which enable a pair of adjacent cage bars to be held between the C-clip and flanges by means of friction.

Both of these known prior art devices have drawbacks.

These drawbacks mainly reside in the fact that the mounting devices do not grip the bird cage strongly enough, but also in that they are often not suitable for use with cages of different bar sizes and spacings. Further, the C-clip arrangement is not suited to supporting many different types of bird cage accessory, such as perches, hooks or water trays.

It is an aim of the present invention to provide a mounting device which is adapted not only to support a plurality of different pet accessories, but also to grip an object such as a bird cage very firmly.

According to the present invention there is provided a mounting device, for receiving and supporting pet accessories, comprising a support portion adapted to support an accessory and an attachment portion for releasably attaching the device to a bar or the like, wherein the attachment portion includes a pair of arms, which in use straddle a bar, and a locking means for joining the two arms to retain, in use, the bar between the arms.

In one embodiment of the invention, the support portion of the device comprises a spigot. This spigot preferably has at least one shoulder between regions having different sections to enable accessories having different sized holes to be received thereon.

In an alternative embodiment, the support portion includes an enlarged end portion to prevent removal axially of an accessory mounted thereon.

Preferably the support portion includes means to prevent rotation of an accessory mounted thereon. In this regard, the prevention means may be a region of the support portion which has a substantially rectangular cross section which is engageable by a complementary portion of a pet accessory.

The arms of the attachment portion may be flexible to enable them to accommodate different sized bars. Further, the arms may be tapered at their bases to facilitate flexing of the arms.

Preferably the arms include a pin and a corresponding recess to assist with alignment of the arms. This pin and recess may also perform a locking function.

It is preferable that the locking means passes around the outside of both arms to close the gap between the arms.

This arrangement is preferably achieved by means of a threaded nut which engages threads on the outside of each arm.

The mounting device preferably comprises a stabilizer, which, in use, engages one or more adjacent bars of a bird cage or the like to prevent relative rotation of the device about the bar to which the device is attached.

It will of course be appreciated that the mounting device is applicable to many different uses, but in particular to the pet cage field. If the device is used with a bird cage, feeders, water trays, perches, hooks and the like may all be supported by the device, subject to the pet accessory having an appropriate facility for mounting on the device.

If the support portion comprises a spigot, as described above, a spring may be mounted on the spigot and a pet accessory mounted on the spring. This arrangement enables the accessory to oscillate on the spring and thereby entertain the pet in the cage. In this instance, the mounting device is preferably mounted on a perch or other solid base within the cage itself.

Specific embodiments of the present invention are now described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 is a perspective view of a mounting device according to the present invention attached to the bars of a bird cage and a perch having a bracket adapted to engage the mounting device; Figure 2 is a plan view of the mounting device of Figure 1 in isolation and with the locking means removed; and Figure 3 is a schematic plan view in partial section of a second embodiment of mounting device according to the present invention.

With reference to Figures 1 and 2 of the drawings, a first embodiment of mounting device, which is designed to attach to the bars of a bird cage or the like, comprises a support portion generally designated at 1 and an attachment portion generally designated at 3. The support portion 1 comprises an enlarged end portion 5 which in use is accommodated in a recess 7 in a pet accessory, such as a perch 9 as shown in Figure 1. The support portion 1 of the mounting device further comprises a region 11 which is substantially rectangular in cross section and which engages a corresponding channel 13 of the perch 9. The rectangular region 11 of the mounting device slides along the channel 13 as the perch 9 is attached to the mounting device. This mutual engagement ensures that the perch does not rotate relative to the mounting device.

A stabilizer 15 comprises flanges 15a, 15b extending perpendicularly to the longitudinal axis of the mounting device. These flanges 15a, 15b contact adjacent bars 17, 19 of the bird cage and prevent the mounting means from rotating about the bar 21 upon which the device is actually mounted.

The attachment portion 3 of the mounting device comprises two arms 23 which define a channel therebetween.

A threaded nut 25 engages a corresponding thread on the outside of each arm 23.

In use, the mounting device is moved towards a bar of a bird cage and the bar passes between the two arms 23. The arms 23 are resilient, by virtue of tapered regions 27 at their bases, to enable different sized bars to be accommodated therebetween. The mounting device is made of clear polycarbonate or nylon. Other plastics materials could alternatively be used.

When the bar is positioned between the two arms 23, the threaded nut 25 is screwed onto the arms 23 and forces the bar to be gripped between the nut and the remainder of the mounting device. Obviously, the tighter the nut is screwed onto the arms, the tighter the grip between the bar and the mounting means. In this way, a very solid joint can be made between the bar and the mounting device which is far superior to the prior art, which relied upon resilient friction fits. Further, the flanges 15a, 15b of the stabilizer 15 contact adjacent bars of the bird cage to provide additional rigidity to the mounting.

When the mounting device is securely fixed to the bird cage, pet accessories can be readily fixed to the device or removed therefrom. Further, if the mounting device is to be removed, this can be simply achieved by unscrewing the threaded nut and disengaging the device from the bars of the bird cage.

In an alternative embodiment of the present invention shown in Figure 3 of the drawings, the mounting device comprises a support portion 101 and an attachment portion 103. The support portion 101 is shown as a spigot having portions 101a, 101b of different diameter and a shoulder 105 therebetween. Such a support portion 101 is able to accommodate pet accessories having one of two different diameter holes therein. Alternatively, a spring can be placed on the spigot 101 and pet accessories can be mounted thereon. This arrangement enables the pet accessories to oscillate and thereby to entertain the pet.

The attachment portion 103 of the mounting device includes arms 123, having a screw thread on their outer surfaces, and a threaded nut 125 for screwing onto the arms 123. The arms 123 have weakened or tapered regions 127 to enable the arms to define more easily an aperture for receiving a bar or perch of a bird cage. The arms 123 also include a pin 129 and corresponding recess 131, which engage when the arms 123 are closed, to ensure that the screw threads on the arms are aligned so that the threaded nut 125 can be readily screwed thereon.

The mounting means is made of a form of nylon which is relatively flexible. This enables the device to be moulded in a substantially flat form and for the arms to be bent into their functional position when in use. This particular embodiment of mounting device does not include a stabilizer, but is specifically suited to use within a bird cage for mounting pet accessories on a perch or other rod-like structure. The device provides a firm mounting for accessories which are to be orientated in many different positions within the cage.

It will of course be understood that the present invention has been described above purely by way of example, and that modifications in detail can be made within the scope of the invention.

Claims

1. A mounting device for receiving and supporting pet accessories, comprising a support portion adapted to support an accessory and an attachment portion for releasably attaching the mounting device to a bar or the like, wherein the attachment portion includes a pair of arms, which in use straddle the bar, and a locking means for joining the two arms to retain, in use, the bar between the arms.

2. A device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the support portion comprises a spigot.

3. A device as claimed in claim 2, wherein the spigot has at least one shoulder between regions having different sections to enable accessories having different sized holes to be received thereon.

4. A device as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the support portion includes an enlarged end portion to prevent removal axially of an accessory mounted thereon.

5. A device as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the support portion includes means to prevent rotation of an accessory mounted thereon.

6. A device as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the arms are flexible to enable them to accommodate different sized bars.

7. A device as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the arms are tapered at their bases to facilitate flexing of the arms.

8. A device as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the arms include a pin and a corresponding recess to assist with alignment of the arms.

9. A device as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the locking means passes around the outside of both arms to close the gap between the arms.

10. A device as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the locking means is a threaded nut which engages threads on the outside of each arm.

11. A device as claimed in any preceding claim, further comprising a stabilizer which, in use, engages one or more adjacent bar to prevent relative rotation of the mounting device about the bar to which the device is attached.

12. A mounting device substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to and as shown in Figures 1 and 2 or Figure 3 of the accompanying drawings.

13. A device as claimed in any preceding claim with a bird cage accessory mounted thereon.

14. A device as claimed in claim 13, wherein the accessory is a bird feeder, water tray, perch or hook.

15. A bird cage accessory adapted to be received and supported by a mounting device according to any preceding claim.