JP4961404B2 - Laboratory animal breeding rack equipment - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a laboratory animal breeding rack apparatus, and more specifically, for example, invasion of bacteria to a small experimental animal such as a mouse used for drug development or various medical experiments and verifications. The present invention relates to a rack apparatus for breeding laboratory animals that is bred while safety management for leakage and the like, and prevention of malodorous diffusion in the laboratory animal breeding room.

  Conventionally, small animals for experiments such as mice, rats, guinea pigs and hamsters used in various medical experiments and verifications should be adequately controlled for bacterial infection to these experimental animals or bacterial spread from these experimental animals. As shown, they are kept in a well-equipped laboratory animal room.

  In a conventional laboratory animal breeding room, these racks are used to protect laboratory animals from infection with microorganisms such as bacteria, or to prevent diffusion of microorganisms such as bacteria from the laboratory animal breeding room to the outside. Laboratory animals are bred. As a conventional rack apparatus for breeding laboratory animals, the invention disclosed in Patent Document 1 can be cited.

An animal breeding rack disclosed in Patent Document 1 is a cage in which small animals are raised and placed between upper and lower shelf boards, and a hanging wall having an I-shaped cross section is laterally formed on the lower surface of the shelf board. An exhaust port communicating with the exhaust chamber is formed on the back surface of the animal breeding rack between the hanging walls. The breeding cage can be hung by hanging the hook part of the open upper peripheral edge on the lower locking piece of the hanging wall, or on the shelf so that the gap between the hook part and the lower locking piece is slightly opened. Placed directly in the animal rearing rack.
JP 2005-95004 A

  In Patent Document 1, as described above, as an example of a method of arranging a rearing cage whose upper surface is open on a shelf between upper and lower shelves in an animal rearing rack (a rearing cage storage portion), as described above, the rearing cage is formed on the open upper peripheral portion of the rearing cage. Is placed on the lower locking piece on the I-shaped hanging wall, is pushed down to a predetermined position and suspended, and thereby the air in the exhaust chamber is exhausted to exhaust the animal breeding rack from the exhaust port. The air inside the animal cage is sucked into the animal cage and negative pressure is generated inside the animal cage, so that the air inside the animal cage comes out of the animal cage (the room where the animal rack is installed). It is explained that the purified air supplied from the exhaust port to the exhaust chamber and supplied into the breeding room enters the breeding cage at the same time.

  Specifically, in the description of Patent Document 1, as shown in FIG. 4 and FIG. 7 of Document 1, purified air in the breeding room enters the breeding cage from its upper open front, and further inside the breeding cage. It is said that the air flows out toward the upper part of the open side on the back side and flows out toward the exhaust port on the back side. However, it is considered that the generation of airflow as described in Patent Document 1 is unlikely to actually occur. That is, the purified air in the breeding room is normally sucked directly into the exhaust port through a short straight path from the front of the animal breeding rack to the exhaust port. Generally, it is considered that air is sucked and exhausted so as to be dragged to the exhaust port. Therefore, the exchange efficiency between contaminated air and clean air in the breeding cage is extremely poor.

  Moreover, in the animal breeding rack of the invention disclosed in Patent Document 1, since the upper surface of the breeding cage remains open, when it is stopped due to a problem with air conditioning or the like, contaminated air in the breeding cage will enter the breeding room. As a result, not only does a bad odor drift in the breeding room, but there is also a risk of contaminated air containing pathogenic bacteria. Furthermore, in the animal breeding rack described in Patent Document 1, since a hanging wall having an I-shaped cross section is used to suspend the breeding cage, a pathogen or the like is attached to the lower locking piece of the I-shaped hanging wall. Since the dust contained is easy to collect and is difficult to clean, when the rearing cage is placed in the rearing cage storage part, which is a shelf, or when it is pulled out from the shelf, the sliding contact between the buttocks and the lower locking piece Dust collected on the lower locking piece may be pushed into the back of the hanging wall by the buttocks to solidify or fall on the shelf, which may spread into the breeding room. This is not a preferred structure.

  Even when the cage is placed directly on the shelf, dust containing pathogens accumulated on the lower locking piece of the I-shaped hanging wall may be diffused by the surrounding airflow or dropped on the shelf. There are concerns about hygiene. Therefore, the animal breeding rack described in Patent Document 1 requires frequent cleaning, and there is a problem that it takes a lot of labor and cost to properly maintain and manage such an animal breeding rack. Therefore, in the end, it is considered that it is safe to install an open / close door on the front side of the cage housing part between the shelves, as in the case of conventional laboratory animal breeding racks. Is used. However, in such an animal breeding rack, every time the breeding cage is taken out from the breeding cage storage section, or when the breeding cage is housed in the breeding cage storage section, further, when feeding the animals in the breeding cage, A big problem that the door must be opened and closed when the animal is taken out of the cage or when the animal taken out of the cage is returned. was there.

  An object of the present invention is to solve the problems of the conventional animal breeding rack, and the contaminated air in the breeding cage is effectively exhausted and clean air in the breeding room is put in the breeding cage. For the breeding of laboratory animals that can create a steady flow of airflow, and that does not bother with operations such as taking in and out of the cage of the cage, providing food into the cage, and taking in and out of the animal from the cage It is to provide a rack device.

  The present invention provides an exhaust box device for taking in and out a rearing cage consisting of a box-shaped cage body having an open upper surface from the front side and exhausting air in the rearing cage to the back side opposite to the front side. An experimental animal breeding rack apparatus installed, characterized in that the experimental animal breeding rack apparatus includes at least one shelf board supported by a frame structure and the breeding animal on the shelf board. Adjacent to the open upper surface so that a gap capable of supplying air can be formed between the cage storage portion that can be stored in a cage and the open upper surface of the cage body of the breeding cage stored in the cage storage portion. The cage upper cover attached to the frame structure as described above, and the exhaust port forming device that covers the remaining open portion on the open upper surface of the cage body, the exhaust port type An apparatus is disposed immediately above the breeding cage storage unit, and is disposed near the open upper surface of the cage body, and attached to the support plate, and from the opening formed in the support plate, the device An exhaust port forming body that enters and leaves the breeding cage storage portion and an exhaust hole formed in the exhaust port forming body, and the exhaust port is formed in the opening formed in the support plate of the exhaust port forming device. When the forming body is fitted, the exhaust hole of the exhaust port forming body is in communication with the exhaust box device.

  In one embodiment of the laboratory animal breeding rack device according to the present invention, the exhaust port forming device is disposed closer to the back side of the cage housing portion.

  In another embodiment of the laboratory animal breeding rack device according to the present invention, the exhaust port forming body is formed in a container-like portion and an upper edge portion of the container-like portion, and the container-like portion is formed on the support plate. When fitted into the opening, the flange is formed in close contact with the peripheral edge of the opening, and at least both the front and back sides of the container-like portion converge toward the cage housing. The exhaust hole is formed at the bottom of the container-like portion.

  In another embodiment of the laboratory animal breeding rack device according to the present invention, the exhaust port forming body is pivotally attached to the support plate, and the container-shaped portion is attached to the support plate on the exhaust port forming body. When the urging force that is always fitted to the opening is applied, and the rearing cage is stored in the cage storage portion from the front side, the rear side upper edge of the cage body is the exhaust port forming body. The exhaust port forming body is pivoted against the biasing force to come into contact with the inclined surface on the front side of the container-like portion and is detached from the opening of the support plate.

  In another embodiment of the laboratory animal breeding rack device according to the present invention, the exhaust port forming device is installed at an upper portion of the cage storage portion, and includes a box-shaped exhaust portion formed inside an exhaust chamber, The back side of the exhaust part is opened and communicates with the exhaust chamber of the exhaust box device, the support plate is constituted by a bottom plate forming the exhaust part, and the exhaust port forming body is pivoted into the exhaust chamber. It is worn.

  In another embodiment of the laboratory animal rearing rack device according to the present invention, the experimental animal rearing rack device surrounds at least an upper part in three directions of both sides and the back side of the rearing cage in the cage storage portion. An exhaust-hole surrounding hood formed of a falling plate is provided around the opening of the support plate.

  According to the laboratory animal breeding rack apparatus of the present invention, the cage upper cover attached to the frame is close to form an air supplyable gap with respect to the open upper surface of the cage body disposed in the cage storage unit, Further, the support plate of the exhaust port forming device covers the remaining open portion on the open upper surface of the cage body in the same manner as the cage upper cover, and the exhaust port forming body attached to the support plate is further extended from the opening portion of the support plate. Since the cage is configured to enter and leave the cage body, when the breeding cage is inserted into the cage storage portion of the laboratory animal breeding rack device from the front side, the exhaust port forming body is detached from the opening of the support plate, and the cage When the main body is stored in a predetermined position of the cage storage portion, it enters the cage main body. As a result, when the breeding cage is housed in the cage housing portion, the exhaust port forming body is in a position that has entered the cage main body, so that contaminated air in the cage main body is discharged from the exhaust hole of the exhaust port forming body. The air is efficiently sucked and exhausted toward the exhaust chamber of the exhaust box device. In addition, when negative pressure is generated in the cage body, clean air enters the laboratory animal breeding room through a slight gap between the open upper surface of the cage body and the cage upper cover. The cage upper cover is located close to the open upper surface of the cage body so as to form a gap that can supply air, so the air inside the cage body goes out and the laboratory animals are raised. It does not drift in the room, prevents the spread of odors in the laboratory animal breeding room, and it is not necessary to install an open / close door, so it is very easy to put in and out of the breeding cage storage area, and the work efficiency is remarkably improved. Can be improved.

  Also, according to the laboratory animal breeding rack device of the present invention, the exhaust port forming device is installed closer to the back side of the cage housing portion, so the distance between the exhaust hole of the exhaust port forming body and the exhaust chamber device is short. Thus, the air can be effectively exhausted into the breeding cage without lowering the suction force from the exhaust box device.

  Furthermore, according to the laboratory animal breeding rack apparatus of the present invention, when the breeding cage is housed in the cage housing portion, the exhaust port forming body is arranged on the front side where the upper edge of the rear side of the cage body is inclined with respect to the container-like portion. Since it is lifted by coming into contact with the end face and can be detached from the opening of the support plate, the exhaust port forming body can be moved from the operating position to the avoidance position simply by taking the breeding cage into and out of the cage storage section.

  Further, according to the laboratory animal breeding rack apparatus of the present invention, the exhaust port forming body is pivotally attached to the support plate by a hinge, and the container part is attached to the exhaust plate by a spring or the like. Since the urging force is always applied in the direction to be fitted in the opening, when the breeding cage is housed in the cage storage part, the container-shaped part of the exhaust port forming body automatically moves from the support plate opening to the cage body. Enter inside. As described above, since the exhaust port forming body is automatically set, the ventilation operation in the cage body can be started only by taking the breeding cage into and out of the cage storage portion.

Also, according to the laboratory animal breeding rack device of the present invention, the exhaust port forming device forms a box-shaped exhaust portion installed right above the cage housing portion on the back side of the rack device, and the exhaust portion. Since the bottom plate is used as a support plate and is formed from an exhaust port forming body that fits into an opening formed in the bottom plate, the upper portion of the cage storage portion is made to bulge a part of the exhaust box device to the front side. Therefore, the exhaust port forming device can be easily manufactured as a part of the exhaust box device.

  Further, according to the laboratory animal breeding rack device of the present invention, since the exhaust port forming body fitted into the opening of the support plate is located near the back side of the cage storage unit, the rear side periphery of the breeding cage It is expected that inhaled clean air will be sucked in, so that the ventilation effect in the cage body may be reduced. It is possible to prevent clean air around the back side of the cage from being inhaled by short-circuiting the exhaust port.

  Hereinafter, a laboratory animal breeding rack apparatus (hereinafter simply referred to as “rack apparatus”) according to the present invention will be described in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings showing preferred embodiments thereof. FIG. 1 is an explanatory view schematically showing a rack apparatus 10 according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention installed in a laboratory animal breeding room R, and FIG. 2 shows the rack apparatus 10 shown in FIG. It is sectional drawing which expands and shows a part.

  The rack apparatus 10 according to this embodiment is installed in an experimental animal breeding room R, and an administrator who breeds experimental animals usually performs breeding work in the experimental animal breeding room R. On the ceiling of the laboratory animal breeding room R, an air-conditioning indoor air outlet A is provided, which is controlled to a predetermined temperature and humidity by an air conditioner (not shown) installed outside the room. In addition, clean air having a predetermined temperature and humidity that has been sterilized by an air purifier (not shown) is supplied.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the rack apparatus 10 has a front side (right side as viewed in FIG. 2) where the breeding cage 1 is put in and out of a predetermined storage position of the rack apparatus 10 and a rear side opposite to the front side ( 2 (left side as viewed in FIG. 2) and a column 11a extending in the vertical direction (longitudinal direction) disposed on the left and right sides, and a horizontal direction (lateral direction) spanning the left and right columns 11a on at least the front side and the back side A frame structure 11 mainly composed of a plurality of horizontal beams 11b extending in the direction is provided. Further, an exhaust box device 4 having an exhaust chamber 4 a is attached to the rear surface of the rack device 10 in close contact with the frame structure 11. The exhaust chamber 4a of the exhaust box device 4 is connected to an exhaust fan installed outside by an exhaust duct B in the upper part thereof, and the air sucked into the exhaust chamber 4a of the exhaust box device 4 is sent to the experimental animal by the exhaust fan. It is discharged out of the breeding room R.

  The breeding cage 1 is mainly composed of a box-shaped cage body 2 having an open upper surface 2a. That is, the cage body 2 is formed of a square bottom plate 2b, front and rear walls 2c rising from the front and back edges of the bottom plate 2b, and side walls 2d rising from both side edges of the bottom plate 2b. Around the outer periphery of the open upper surface 2a of the cage body 2, there is formed a folded edge 2e formed by bending the upper end of each wall portion outward. The folded edge 2e functions as a reinforcing portion for the entire cage body 2. In addition, it is also used as a gripping part when carrying the breeding cage 1. The cage body 2 can be formed from a synthetic resin material or the like.

  The rack device 10 includes a bottom portion 13 provided at the lowermost portion in a region surrounded by four columns 11a, such as connecting to these columns 11a, and the above-described front side beam 11b and rear side beam 11b. And a shelf board 14 delivered to the vehicle. The shelf board 14 is installed in a plurality of stages above the bottom 13 with a dimension higher than the height dimension of the breeding cage 1. In this way, a space (space) for placing the breeding cage 1 is secured between the bottom portion 13 and the shelf board 14 and between the shelf board 14 and the shelf board 14 thereon, and this space is stored in the cage. Part 15. The width of the rack apparatus 10 when the rack apparatus 10 is viewed from the front side thereof is such a size that a plurality of breeding cages 1 can be arranged at a predetermined interval. And in the left-right direction on each shelf 14 are also formed at predetermined intervals.

  Thus, each cage storage part 15 formed in the rack apparatus 10 is provided with water supply pipes 12 for drinking water on the back side thereof, and these water supply pipes 12 are provided with an appropriate water supply source (not shown). It is connected to the. Each of the water supply pipes 12 supplies drinking water to the animals raised in the cage body 2 of the breeding cage 1, and a receptacle (not shown) into which the water supply pipe 12 is fitted in the rear wall 2 c of the cage body 2. Z). Thereby, when the breeding cage 1 is housed in the cage housing portion 15, the drinking pipe 12 is inserted into the receptacle formed in the rear wall 2 c of the cage body 2 and protrudes into the cage body 2. The animal in the cage body 2 contains water in its mouth that is produced by licking a water supply valve (not shown) provided at the tip outlet of the water supply pipe 12.

  By the way, in the rack device 10, an exhaust port forming device 16 and a cage upper cover 23 are provided immediately above the cage storage portion 15. As is clear from FIG. 3, the exhaust port forming device 16 is positioned closer to the rear side of the rack device 10 and passes in the width direction of the rack device 10 so as to pass directly above the cage storage portions 15 arranged in the lateral direction. A box-shaped exhaust portion 17 extending in the direction of the exhaust port 17 and an exhaust port forming body 18 to be described later. The exhaust part 17 is composed of a wall plate such as a bottom plate 17a located directly above the cage storage portion 15, a top plate 17b disposed on the top, an opposing side plate 17c, and an end plate 17d closing the front side. The box-shaped exhaust part 17 formed of a wall plate is joined in a state in which the opening part facing the back side is aligned with the opening part opened in the casing constituting the exhaust chamber 4a. The exhaust chamber 17e of the exhaust part 17 in the exhaust port forming device 16 and the exhaust chamber 4a communicate with each other.

  Such a box-shaped exhaust part 17 is a cage storage part that bulges a part of the casing forming the exhaust chamber 4a of the exhaust box apparatus 4 installed on the back side of the rack apparatus 10 toward the front side. Since it can be integrally formed with the exhaust box device 4 by projecting to the upper part of 15, the manufacture of the exhaust part 17 becomes very easy by doing so and not only the productivity can be increased, but also the manufacture. Cost can also be reduced. As is clear from the above description, the box-shaped exhaust part 17 is not formed for each cage storage part 15, but is formed over the entire width of the rack apparatus 10, and therefore the exhaust part. The side plates 17 c blocking the sides of the 17 exist only on both sides in the width direction of the rack device 10.

  The bottom plate 17a of the box-shaped exhaust part 17 constituting the exhaust port forming device 16 is close to the open upper surface 2a of the cage body 2 when the breeding cage 1 is stored in the cage storage unit 15, in other words, the open upper surface 2a. It is arranged at the position. Therefore, when the breeding cage 1 is inserted into the cage storage portion 15 of the rack apparatus 10 from the front side, the bottom plate 17a of the exhaust portion 17 comes into contact with or comes into contact with the open upper surface 2a of the cage body 2, and the cage of the breeding cage 1 Although the storage to the storage portion 15 is not hindered, the bottom plate 17a of the exhaust portion 17 is rubbed against the open upper surface 2a of the cage body 2, so that it is substantially equal to the open upper surface 2a of the cage body 2. It becomes almost the same state that the part is closed. As shown in FIGS. 2 to 4, a rectangular opening 19 is formed in the bottom plate 17 a at a portion located directly above the cage body 2 disposed in each cage storage portion 15.

  An exhaust port forming body 18 is disposed in the opening 19. The configuration and mounting state of the exhaust port forming body 18 will be described in detail. The exhaust port forming body 18 includes a container-like portion 20 having a square planar shape as clearly shown in FIG. Yes. That is, the container-like portion 20 is opposed to the rectangular bottom plate 20a, the opposing end walls 20b rising from the front and rear edges of the bottom plate 20a, and the side edges of the bottom plate 20a. It is comprised from the side wall 20c, and the upper part of this container-shaped part 20 is open | released. The size of the open upper portion of the container-like portion 20 is slightly smaller than the opening portion 19 formed in the bottom plate 17a of the exhaust portion 17, and a flange 21 is formed on the entire peripheral edge of the open upper portion. ing.

  The exhaust port forming body 18 is disposed so as to drop the container-like portion 20 into the opening 19 in the bottom plate 17 a of the exhaust portion 17. However, the exhaust port forming body 18 is disposed on the bottom plate 17a of the exhaust portion 17 in a state where the container-like portion 20 protrudes from the opening portion 19 toward the cage housing portion 15 because the flange 21 rides on the peripheral portion of the opening portion 19. Is done. Further, the front and rear end walls 20b of the container-like portion 20 of the exhaust port forming body 18 are inclined surfaces that are inclined so as to converge toward the bottom plate 20a, as is apparent from FIG. . The exhaust port forming body 18 has one blade (plate) of the hinge 22 attached to the front portion of the flange 21, and the other blade (plate) of the hinge 22 is connected to the front end plate 17 d of the exhaust portion 17. It is fixed to.

  An exhaust hole 20 d is formed in the center of the bottom plate 20 a in the container-like portion 20 of the exhaust port forming body 18. In this way, the exhaust port forming body 18 can be swung by the hinge 22, and as a result, the container-like portion 20 can enter and leave the cage housing portion 15 from the opening 19 formed in the bottom plate 17 a of the exhaust portion 17. It becomes. The hinge 22 is attached with a spring (not shown) for applying a biasing force that turns the exhaust port forming body 18 in the direction in which the container-like portion 20 is fitted to the opening 19. The container-like portion 20 of the formed body 18 is fitted so as to always protrude from the opening portion 19 toward the cage housing portion 15. In other words, the exhaust port forming body 18 normally closes the opening 19 formed in the bottom plate 17 a of the exhaust part 17, and the bottom plate 20 a of the container-like part 20 protruding from the opening 19 to the cage storage part 15. The cage storage portion 15 and the exhaust chamber 17e communicate with each other only by the exhaust hole 20d formed in the inner space.

  Further, in each cage storage portion 15, an exhaust port surrounding hood 25 is provided on the lower surface of the bottom plate 17 a of the exhaust portion 17 so as to surround at least the upper part in the three directions on both sides and the rear side of the breeding cage 1 arranged in the cage storage portion 15. It is attached. In other words, the exhaust port peripheral hood 25 has a falling plate attached to the bottom surface of the bottom plate 17 a of the exhaust unit 17 so as to surround the three directions on both sides and the back side of the breeding cage 1 arranged in the cage storage unit 15. The reason why such an exhaust port peripheral hood 25 is provided is that the exhaust port forming body 18 that fits into the opening 19 formed in the bottom plate 17a of the exhaust unit 17 is located near the back side of the cage storage unit 15 and the exhaust unit 17. Since there is a gap between the bottom plate 17b and the open upper surface 2a of the cage body 2, it is expected that clean air around the rear side of the breeding cage 1 will be actively sucked from there. If it does so, the ventilation effect in the cage main body 2 will fall. However, as described above, if at least the upper part in the three directions on both sides and the back side of the breeding cage 1 is surrounded by the exhaust port surrounding hood 25, clean air around the rear side of the breeding cage 1 is short-circuited to the exhaust hole. As a result, it is possible to establish an airflow in which mainly the air in the cage body 2 flows to the exhaust hole 20d of the exhaust port forming body 18 as a result.

  On the other hand, the cage upper cover 23 disposed immediately above the cage storage portion 15 includes a cover portion 23 a disposed at substantially the same height as the bottom plate 17 a of the exhaust portion 17. Accordingly, the cover portion 23a of the cage upper cover 23 is disposed at a position on the open upper surface 2a of the cage body 2 of the breeding cage 1 disposed in the cage storage portion 15 in the same manner as the bottom plate 17a of the exhaust portion 17. As described above, the cover portion 23a of the cage upper cover 23 is in a position where the cover upper surface 2a of the cage main body 2 of the breeding cage 1 passes, but a slight gap 24 with the open upper surface is opened. Functions as an entrance for supplying clean air in the animal breeding room R into the breeding cage 1.

  The front end portion of the cage upper cover 23 is slightly lifted from the cover portion 23a as shown in FIG. 3, and the tip end portion thereof is formed into an inverted U-shape to form a downward groove portion 23b. The groove 23 b is fitted in the cross beam 11 b of the frame structure 11 in the rack device 10. Further, the rear side end of the cage upper cover 23 is bent along the end plate 17d of the box-shaped exhaust part 17, and is stacked on the top plate 17b. Further, the tip 23c is formed on the back of the rack device 10. It is in contact with the casing of the installed exhaust chamber 4a. As is clear from this configuration, the cage upper cover 23 can be easily installed and removed simply by being supported using the frame structure 11 and the exhaust port forming device 16 of the rack device 10. Therefore, it can be easily disassembled and cleaned. The shelf plate 14 is bridged between the upper surface of the groove portion 23b which is the front side end portion of the cage upper cover 23 and the rear side end portion 23c overlapping the top plate 17b of the exhaust portion 17. It is arranged in the state. Further, the shelf plate 14 and the cage upper cover 23 are not formed for each cage storage portion 15 like the box-shaped exhaust portion 17 in the exhaust port forming device 16, but are installed over the entire width of the rack device 10. Has been.

  Next, a method of using the laboratory animal breeding rack apparatus 10 according to the above-described embodiment will be described. When the breeding cage 1 is stored in the cage housing portion 15 of the laboratory animal breeding rack apparatus 10, the breeding manager holds the breeding cage 1 containing the experimental animals in the cage body 2 and pushes it from the front side of the rack apparatus 10. Enter. On the back side of the cage housing portion 15, as described above, the container-like portion 20 of the exhaust port forming body 18 constituting the exhaust port forming device 16 is opened from the opening 19 formed in the bottom plate 17 a of the exhaust portion 17. Jumped out. Therefore, in the breeding cage 1 placed in the cage housing portion 15, the folded edge portion 2 e located on the back side of the cage body 2 abuts on the front end wall 20 b of the container-like portion 20 of the exhaust port forming body 18. . However, since this end wall 20b is an inclined surface, the exhaust port forming body 18 is pushed up into the exhaust chamber 17e against the urging force of the spring as shown by the phantom line in FIG. As a result, the container-like portion 20 is detached from the opening 19 to allow the breeding cage 1 to pass therethrough.

  Next, when the folded-back edge 2e on the back side of the cage body 2 passes through the exhaust port forming body 18 and the breeding cage 1 is placed in a predetermined position of the cage storage unit 15, the exhaust port forming body 18 is turned by a spring force. Then, the container-like portion 20 enters the inside of the cage body 2 from the opening 19 of the bottom plate 17a. In this way, when the breeding cage 1 is housed in the cage storage portion 15 of the rack device 10, the bottom plate 17a of the exhaust portion 17 is in a position where the bottom surface 17a of the cage main body 2 in the breeding cage 1 passes. Since the container-like portion 20 of the exhaust port forming body 18 enters the inside of the cage body 2, the air drifting below the open upper surface 2 a in the cage body 2, that is, near the center of the cage body 2, is The exhaust hole 20d formed in the bottom plate 20a of the exhaust gas 20 is exhausted into the exhaust chamber 17e of the exhaust part 17, and is exhausted to the outside through the exhaust chamber 4a.

  As a result, negative pressure is generated in the cage body 2 of the breeding cage 1, so clean air in the laboratory animal breeding room R is supplied from a slight gap 24 between the cage upper cover 23 and the open upper surface 2 a of the cage body 2. Then, the cage body 2 is ventilated. At this time, since the gap 24 between the cage upper cover 23 and the open upper surface 2a of the cage body 2 is very narrow, clean air flows into the cage body 2 from the gap 24 at a relatively high flow rate. As a result, clean air in the animal breeding room R is taken from the three directions of the gap body 24 between the cage upper cover 23 and the open upper surface 2a of the cage body 2 on both sides and the front side of the cage body 2. Since the airflow collides and flows toward the bottom 2b of the cage body 2, and an airflow is established to exhaust the contaminated air near the center in the cage body 2, ventilation in the breeding cage 1 is performed very effectively. In the rack device 10, when the breeding cage 1 is stored in the cage storage portion 15, the open upper surface 2 a of the cage body 2 is almost closed by the exhaust port forming device 16 and the cage upper cover 23. Since it is the same state, there is no possibility that the contaminated air in the cage body 2 will enter the animal breeding room R from the gap 24.

  When experiment animals are raised by the breeding cage 1 housed in the cage storage section 15 of the rack device 10, when feeding the breeding animals in the breeding cage 1, when taking the breeding animals out of the breeding cage 1, or When pulling out the breeding cage 1 from the cage storage portion 15 when returning the animal taken out from the breeding cage 1, the inner edge of the open upper surface 2 a on the back side of the cage body 2 is the container-like portion 20 of the exhaust port forming body 18. Since the exhaust port forming body 18 is pivoted to the avoidance position in contact with the inclined end wall 20b on the back side, the removal of the breeding cage 1 from the cage storage portion 15 is not obstructed by the exhaust port forming body 18. .

  Thereby, according to the rack apparatus 10 which concerns on this embodiment, the exhaust port formation body 18 is automatically set and the cage main body 2 only by putting the breeding cage 1 having an open upper surface into and out of the cage storage portion 15 from the front side. Since the inside ventilation operation is started, the operation is very simple, and labor of breeding and managing laboratory animals is remarkably reduced as compared with the conventional rack apparatus. Further, when the breeding cage 1 is housed in the cage housing portion 15 of the rack device 10, the exhaust port forming device 16 and the cage upper cover 23 are placed into the cage body 2 between the cage upper surface 2 a and the open upper surface 2 a. Since the air gaps are arranged close to each other so as to form a gap 24 that can supply air, clean air in the laboratory animal breeding room R is removed from the gaps 24 in the three directions of the cage body 2 on both sides and the front side. The airflow entering the cage body 2 and flowing in from three directions collides with each other to become a processed flow, and then the air near the center in the cage body 2 can establish an airflow toward the exhaust port. As a result, the breeding cage 1 The inside of the cage body 1 can be ventilated reliably and quickly, and the air inside the cage body 1 does not go out and drift in the laboratory animal breeding room R. To prevent Kill.

  In the laboratory animal breeding rack device 10 according to the embodiment of the present invention, the exhaust port forming body 18 in the exhaust port forming device 16 is pivotable by attaching a hinge 22 to the front side portion of the flange 21. A hinge 22 may be attached to the portion on the back side of the 21 so as to be turned. In addition, the above-described embodiments are examples that are optimum for the present invention, and the present invention is not limited to these embodiments. The present invention includes various modifications without departing from the scope of the invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The structure explanatory drawing which shows schematically the state which installed the laboratory animal breeding rack apparatus which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention in the experimental animal breeding room. The expanded sectional view which fractures | ruptures and shows a part of the rack apparatus for experimental animal breeding shown by FIG. The partial perspective view which decomposes | disassembles and shows a part of the rack apparatus for laboratory animal breeding shown by FIG. The partial expanded sectional view which expands and further shows a part of the rack apparatus for laboratory animal breeding shown in FIG.

Explanation of symbols

R Experimental Animal Breeding Room 1 Breeding cage 2 Cage body 2a Open upper surface 4 Exhaust box device 4a Exhaust chamber 10 Laboratory animal breeding rack device 11 Frame structure 14 Shelf plate 15 Cage storage unit 16 Exhaust port forming device 17 Exhaust unit 17a Bottom ( Support plate)
18 Exhaust port forming body 19 Opening portion 20 Container-like portion 21 Flange 22 Hinge 23 Cage upper cover 25 Exhaust port surrounding hood

Claims (6)

An evacuation box device for installing and removing a rearing cage made of a box-shaped cage body having an open upper surface from the front side and exhausting air in the rearing cage on the back side opposite to the front side is installed. In a laboratory animal breeding rack device,
The laboratory animal breeding rack device is accommodated in at least one shelf board supported by a frame structure, a cage storage section on which the breeding cage can be stored on the shelf board, and the cage storage section. A cage upper cover attached to the frame structure so as to be close to the open upper surface so as to form a gap capable of supplying air between the open upper surface of the cage main body and the cage upper surface; An exhaust port forming device that covers the remaining open portion on the open top surface,
The exhaust port forming device is disposed immediately above the cage housing portion, and is disposed close to the open upper surface of the cage body, and an opening formed in the support plate supported by the support plate. An exhaust port forming body that enters and leaves the cage storage portion from the portion, and an exhaust hole formed in the exhaust port forming body,
When the exhaust port forming body is fitted in the opening formed in the support plate of the exhaust port forming device, the exhaust hole of the exhaust port forming body communicates with the exhaust box device. A rack device for breeding laboratory animals.   The laboratory animal breeding rack device according to claim 1, wherein the exhaust port forming device is installed closer to the back side of the cage housing portion.   The exhaust port forming body is formed at a container-like portion and an upper edge portion of the container-like portion, and when the container-like portion is fitted into the opening of the support plate, the exhaust-port-forming body is in close contact with the peripheral edge of the opening. And at least the front and back sides of the container-like portion are formed with inclined surfaces that are inclined so as to converge toward the cage housing portion, and the exhaust holes are The rack apparatus for breeding laboratory animals according to claim 1 or 2, formed at the bottom of the container-like part.   The exhaust port forming body is pivotally attached to the support plate, and the exhaust port forming body is given a biasing force that always fits the container-like portion into the opening of the support plate, and the cage When the rearing cage is stored in the storage unit from the front side, the rear upper edge portion of the cage body comes into contact with the inclined surface on the front side of the container-like portion of the exhaust port forming body and the exhaust The laboratory animal breeding rack device according to claim 3, wherein the mouth forming body is turned against the biasing force to be detached from the opening of the support plate.   The exhaust port forming device includes a box-shaped exhaust unit that is installed at an upper portion of the cage housing portion and is formed in an exhaust chamber. The exhaust chamber of the exhaust box device is opened by a rear side of the exhaust unit. The laboratory animal breeding rack apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the support plate is configured by a bottom plate that forms the exhaust portion, and the exhaust port forming body is pivotally mounted in the exhaust chamber.   The laboratory animal rearing rack device is an exhaust formed by a falling plate around the opening of the support plate so as to surround at least the upper part in the three directions of the rear side and the rear side of the rearing cage in the cage storage part. The rack apparatus for breeding laboratory animals according to claim 1, further comprising a hood around the mouth.

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