JP2930945B1 - Animal breeding equipment - Google Patents

Abstract

Abstract: [PROBLEMS] To stably maintain a constant ventilation rate in another accommodation cage regardless of detachment / connection of some cages. SOLUTION: A rack 2 accommodating a plurality of cages 1 includes:
A plurality of cage-side ventilation openings 16 for separately connecting the cages 1 accommodated therein, and a common ventilation path 17 for air supply or exhaust to the rack-side ventilation openings 16 are provided. Each of the openings 16 has a valve 28 that opens when the cage is connected and closes when the cage is removed.
In the animal breeding apparatus provided with the
Each of the small air passages 6 is provided with a small air passage 29 that partially allows the ventilation of the rack side ventilation opening 16 when the corresponding valve 28 is in a closed state in a ventilation amount limited state.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an animal breeding apparatus, and more particularly, to a rack accommodating a plurality of cages for animal breeding, and a plurality of ventilation openings on the rack side for ventilating the cages for separately connecting the cages. And an animal having a common ventilation path for air supply or exhaust to these rack side ventilation openings, and a valve provided at each of the rack side ventilation openings to open when the cage is connected and to close when the cage is detached. Related to breeding equipment.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art When a part of a plurality of storage cages is detached from a rack side ventilation opening and taken out of a rack, this kind of animal breeding apparatus has a ventilation volume at a rack side ventilation opening when the cage is removed. Increases due to a decrease in airflow resistance due to the separation of the cage, and as a result, the airflow of the rack-side airflow opening of this cage and the other rack-side airflow opening communicating with each other in the common airway decreases. Ventilation of the storage cage connected to the rack side ventilation opening decreases, and conversely, when the cage is connected, the ventilation of other storage cages increases This is prevented by closing the valve.

Conventionally, in this type of animal breeding apparatus, the closing of the valve upon detachment of the cage completely shuts off the ventilation at the corresponding rack side ventilation opening (in other words, the ventilation opening is completely closed). ) (See, for example, Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open No. 6-68430).

[0004]

However, in the conventional apparatus, the change in the amount of ventilation in the other housing cage due to detachment and connection of some cages can be suppressed as compared with the case where no valve is provided. Contrary to the case where no cage is provided, when some cages are removed, the corresponding rack side ventilation opening is fully closed by closing the valve, and ventilation stops until the amount of ventilation with the cage connected until then The ventilation volume of the other storage cages will increase rather than that, and when connecting the cages, the rack side ventilation openings that had been fully closed by the closing of the valve will be opened and a new one will be opened. Since ventilation (that is, ventilation for the newly connected cage) is started, the ventilation volume of other storage cages is reduced due to this effect. Animal breeding environment To Joka, also in terms of better keeping, there is still room for improvement.

[0005] In view of the above circumstances, the main problem of the present invention is that, by rational and simple improvement, it is more effective to change the ventilation volume of other storage cages due to the detachment or connection of some cages. The point is to prevent it.

[0006]

[1] According to the first aspect of the present invention, in each of the rack-side ventilation openings, a valve that opens when the cage is connected and closes when the cage is detached is provided. Each of the side ventilation openings is provided with a small ventilation path that partially allows the ventilation of the rack side ventilation opening in a ventilation amount restricted state when the corresponding valve is in a closed state,
In the state in which the cage is detached and the valve is closed, the amount of restricted ventilation at the rack side ventilation opening allowed by the small ventilation path,
The ventilation provided by the small ventilation path when the cage is detached and the valve is closed so that the ventilation amount at the rack side ventilation opening when the cage is connected and the valve is open is equivalent. Disconnection and connection of the cage by setting the ventilation cross-sectional area of the small ventilation path so that the resistance and the ventilation resistance provided by the connection cage when the cage is connected and the valve is open are equal. Irrespective of this, it is possible to keep the ventilation amount of the rack side ventilation opening constant.

That is, as compared with the above-described conventional device in which the rack-side ventilation opening is completely closed by closing the valve, the effect of cage detachment and cage connection on some of the rack-side ventilation openings causes The rack-side ventilation opening and the other rack-side ventilation opening communicating with each other in the common ventilation path can be more effectively prevented from increasing or decreasing, and the other rack-side ventilation opening can be prevented from increasing or decreasing. The ventilation volume of the other connected storage cages can be more stably maintained at a constant level, so that the breeding environment of the stored animals can be maintained at a constant level or better.

Further, as an improvement, only a small ventilation path is provided in each of the ventilation openings on the rack side. For example, regardless of the detachment or connection of some cages, the ventilation volume of other storage cages (other ventilation volumes) can be obtained. In order to keep the ventilation volume at the rack side ventilation opening constant, a control means that automatically adjusts the air supply and exhaust to the common ventilation path itself based on the air flow detection and the detection of disconnection and connection of the cage, etc. In comparison, improvements are easy,
The improvement cost can be reduced.

In the first embodiment of the present invention, if the small ventilation path has a structure capable of changing the cross-sectional area of the ventilation, if a cage having a different ventilation resistance is used due to specification change or the like, The ventilation cross section of the small ventilation channel can easily be adjusted according to the ventilation resistance of the new cage, and this adjustment keeps the ventilation volume of other accommodation cages constant regardless of the detachment and connection of the cage The above function can be favorably maintained.

[2] According to the second aspect of the present invention, as the small air passage, a small opening is formed in the valve to maintain the communication between the upstream side and the downstream side in the closed state, that is, as an improvement. Since only a small opening such as a hole or notch is formed in the valve, the improvement is extremely simple and the improvement cost can be further reduced.

[0011]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Next, embodiments of the present invention will be described.

FIGS. 1 and 2 show an animal breeding apparatus, 1 is an animal breeding cage for housing animals such as rats, and 2 is a rack for housing a plurality of animal breeding cages 1. A plurality of cages 1 are arranged side by side on each of the shelves 3 so as to be installed on the respective shelves 3 so as to form a cage housing portion 4 between the shelves 3.

Each cage 1 has a main container 5 for housing animals.
And a container cover 6 as an upper lid for the upper lid and a middle lid 7 having a mesh structure. The inner lid 7 has a recess 7a for feeding.

The container cover 6 of each cage 1 is provided with a cage-side air supply opening 8 on its rear wall in a rearward opening posture and a cage-side exhaust opening 9 on its upper wall in an upward opening posture. The clean air A, which is supplied from the rack 2 side, is supplied from the cage side air supply port 8 to the housing cage 1.
The inside air A ′ of the cage 1 is exhausted from the cage-side exhaust port 9 to ventilate the inside of the housing cage 1 for the purpose of stabilizing and improving the animal breeding environment.

Reference numeral 10 denotes a filter for the air A introduced from the cage-side air supply port 8, and reference numeral 11 denotes a filter for the air A 'discharged from the cage-side exhaust port 9 containing the hair and bait of the housed animal. The filters 10 and 11 are detachably mounted inside the container cover 6. Also, 13
Is a guide plate for turning the air A introduced from the cage side air supply port 8 downward and guiding the air A into the interior of the main body container 5, and this guide guides the air A from the cage side air supply port 8 to the cage side exhaust port 9. To prevent the air short circuit to the inside, and efficiently and uniformly ventilate the inside of the main body container 5 which is the animal container.

Reference numeral 14 denotes a water supply port for watering the housed animals. The water supply port 14 is connected to a water supply device 15 on the rack side as the cage is housed in the cage housing section 4.

On the other hand, in the rack 2, a cage-side air supply opening 8 of each cage 1 is separately connected to a rear wall portion of the cage housing portion 4 from the front to the cage housing portion 4 as the cage is housed. A rack-side air supply opening 16 (corresponding to a rack-side ventilation opening in the claims) having a front-facing opening posture is provided, whereas the rack rear wall 2A has a double wall structure.
An air supply chamber 17 (corresponding to a common ventilation path in the claims) for the rack-side air supply opening 16 is provided between the double walls.

The lower surface of each shelf 3 and the rack ceiling 2
On the lower surface of B, there is provided a rack-side exhaust port portion 18 having a downward opening posture to be separately opposed to the cage-side exhaust port portion 9 of each storage cage 1, and in contrast to this, each shelf plate 3 and rack ceiling Each of the walls 2B has a double wall structure, the space between the double walls is an exhaust chamber 19 for these rack side exhaust ports 18, and each of the left and right rack side walls 2C has a double wall structure. Between the two walls, a collective exhaust path 20 for these exhaust chambers 19 is formed.

Reference numeral 21 designates a clean air-conditioned air A for air-conditioning in a room in a rack installation room by an indoor air-conditioning device (not shown).
Is supplied, while taking in the room air A,
The intake air A is re-purified by the built-in filter 21a, and then supplied to the supply chamber 17 via the supply duct 22 by the built-in fan 21b. 2
4 is an exhaust fan filter unit that sucks air through the air filter 4, purifies the suction air A ′ with the built-in filter 23 a, and discharges the air outside the room with the built-in fan 23 b.
The air A ′ exhausted from the cage-side exhaust port 9 of each storage cage 1 is sucked into the exhaust chamber 19 from the opposing rack-side exhaust port 18 to supply the exhaust air A ′ while preventing the exhaust air A ′ from diffusing indoors. The supply air A to the air chamber 17 is supplied from the cage side air supply port 16 to the housing cage 1 connected thereto,
The inside of each accommodation cage 1 is ventilated.

In the present embodiment, both fan filter units 21 and
23 air flow rates are set, thereby preventing contamination of the housed animals in cage units. Further, by making the rack-side exhaust port 18 face the cage-side exhaust port 9 in a separated state, even if a trouble occurs on the air supply side and only the exhaust is performed, the inside of each accommodation cage 1 is kept. Negative pressure is avoided, which more reliably prevents contamination of the housed animals.

The specific connection structure between the rack side air supply port 16 and the cage side air supply port 8 is as shown in FIG.
The rack-side air supply port portion 16 is formed of a tapered tube whose diameter increases toward the open end side with respect to the cage-side air supply port portion 8 in a forward facing posture,
Then, the tapered tube 16 is engaged with the flange member 25 fixed to the outer periphery thereof and the peripheral edge of the flange member 25 in a state in which the tapered tube 16 can be flexibly moved in a direction orthogonal to the tube core direction. It is attached to the front plate 27 (the front plate of the air supply chamber 17) of the rear wall 2 </ b> A of the double-wall structure through the annular engagement member 26 in a penetrating state. Reference numeral 8 denotes an insertion tube having a rearward-facing posture to be inserted into the tapered tube 16 when the cage is housed in the cage housing portion 4 from the front.

That is, according to this structure, the tapered pipe 16 as the rack side air supply port is moved in the pipe core direction (that is,
The direction of connection between the cage-side air supply port 8 and the rack-side air supply port 16) is freely movable in a direction perpendicular to the direction. As the cage is accommodated in the cage accommodating portion 4 from the front, the tapered tube 16 serving as the rack-side air supply port is automatically moved to an appropriate connection position with respect to the insertion tube 8 serving as the cage-side air supply port by the above-described flexible movement. When the cage is accommodated, the tapered pipe 16 as the rack-side air supply port and the insertion pipe 8 as the cage-side air supply port are connected in a direction perpendicular to the connection direction. Even if there is a slight misalignment, the tapered tube 16 as the rack-side air supply port and the insertion tube 8 as the cage-side air supply port are accommodated in the cage without any troublesome positioning operation. Easy and It is to be able to earnestly connection.

The reference numeral 26a is in contact with the periphery of the flange member 25 while being fitted inside the annular engagement member 26, and the flange member 2
5 is an annular packing that seals an engagement portion with respect to 5.

As shown in FIG. 3A, each of the rack-side air supply ports 16 is provided inside the air supply chamber 17 along with the insertion of the insertion tube 8 (ie, connection of the cage). The rack side air supply opening 16 which is pushed open by the tip
And a swing-type valve 28 that closes by its own weight and closes the rack-side air supply opening 16 as shown in FIG. 3B with the withdrawal of the insertion tube 8 (that is, withdrawal of the cage). In addition, these valves 28 have small air passages that allow a part of the ventilation (air supply from the air supply chamber 17 in this example) in the corresponding rack side air supply opening 16 in the closed state in a closed state. A small opening 29 is formed in the center of the valve 28.

The opening area of the small opening 29 (that is, the cross-sectional area of the small air passage) is determined by the amount of restricted air flow permitted by the small opening 29 when the cage 1 is detached and the valve 28 is closed. It is set so that the amount of air flow when the cage 1 having the airflow resistance is connected and the valve 28 is open is equal to that of the cage 1.
The other storage cage 1 connected to the other rack side air supply opening 16 due to the cage detachment and cage connection of the other 6
It is configured to prevent the amount of air supplied to the air (ie, the amount of ventilation) from increasing or decreasing.

[Another Embodiment] Next, another embodiment will be described.

In the above-described embodiment, an example is shown in which the present invention is applied to the rack-side ventilation opening (rack-side air supply opening 16) for air supply. Rack side ventilation opening (rack side exhaust port),
The present invention may be applied to a rack-side ventilation opening for exhaust in a form in which a common ventilation path (exhaust chamber, collective exhaust path) is provided for the exhaust-side rack-side ventilation opening. In addition, the present invention may be applied to both the rack-side ventilation opening for air supply and the rack-side ventilation opening for exhaust.

The valve that opens when the cage is connected and closes when the cage is detached is not limited to the oscillating valve that closes by its own weight as shown in the above-described embodiment, but may be, for example, a valve that is closed and urged by a spring. Alternatively, various structures may be employed.

When the valve is in the closed state, the small ventilation path which partially permits the ventilation of the corresponding rack side ventilation opening in the ventilation amount limited state is limited to the small opening formed in the valve as in the above-described embodiment. Instead, the valve may be formed by a pipe that bypasses the valve that allows the valve to be fully closed.When a small opening is formed in the valve as the small ventilation path, the small opening may be a hole or a notch. Any opening shape may be used.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a side view of the apparatus.

FIG. 2 is a front view of the apparatus.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged side view of a main part.

[Explanation of symbols]

 Reference Signs List 1 cage 2 rack 16 rack side ventilation opening 17 common ventilation path 28 valve 29 small ventilation path, small opening

Claims (2)

(57) [Claims] 1. A rack accommodating a plurality of animal rearing cages, a plurality of cage-side ventilation openings for separately connecting the accommodation cages, and an air supply for the rack-side ventilation openings. Alternatively, an animal breeding apparatus that provides a common ventilation path for exhaust, and provides a valve that opens with a cage connection and closes with a cage detachment in each of the rack-side ventilation openings, Each of the animal breeding apparatuses is provided with a small ventilation path that partially permits the ventilation of the rack side ventilation opening when the corresponding valve is in a closed state in a ventilation amount restricted state. 2. The animal breeding apparatus according to claim 1, wherein, as the small air passage, a small opening is formed in the valve to maintain communication between an upstream side and a downstream side when the valve is closed.