JPH0325567Y2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] [Industrial Application Field] The present invention relates to a drinking device for small animals, and particularly to a drinking device for small animals that provides water to experimental animals such as mice without human intervention.

[Conventional technology]

In general, in places such as laboratories where large numbers of small experimental animals are kept, feeding and watering them is not easy.
In particular, water supply is irregular and requires a lot of time.

Therefore, a water supply pipe is loosely fitted into the protection tube with its tip protruding from the protection tube, and a valve mechanism is provided at the base end of this pipe that opens when the pipe tilts within the protection tube, and the pipe protrudes from the protection tube. A drinking device for small animals is known in which water is supplied from the tip of the pipe through the inside of the pipe when the small animal touches the tip of the pipe and the pipe tilts (see, for example, US Pat. No. 4,329,941). This water drinking device can provide fresh water to small animals whenever they want it, and this work can be done without any manual effort, resulting in significant labor savings.

[The problem that the idea aims to solve]

In this type of water drinking device, the tip of the protective tube and the tip of the water supply pipe are inserted into the breeding cage, so if a small animal continues to touch the tip of the water supply pipe and the valve mechanism opens for a long time, the water supply source will close. Water tends to gush out from the tip of the water supply pipe due to water pressure. When water spills out in this way, it is difficult for small animals to drink water, and moreover, a large amount of water is likely to spill into the gauge, which is undesirable.

Therefore, the object of the present invention is to allow water to drip little by little without flowing out all at once even if a small animal touches the tip of the water supply pipe for a long time.

[Means to solve the problem]

According to the present invention, a wire that is thinner than the inner diameter of the water supply pipe and slightly bent is frictionally inserted into the water supply pipe from its tip side, and the wire is inserted between the enlarged head provided at the outer end of the wire and the tip of the water supply pipe. To form a gap.

[Effect]

With this configuration, if a small animal touches the water supply pipe and the valve mechanism continues to open and water flows out, the water flowing inside the water supply pipe will have a small flow rate because it will pass through the gap between the wire and the inner wall of the water supply pipe. It will not leak out all at once. The outflowing water first hits the enlarged head of the wire tip, so the water force is diverted and the appropriate amount flows out quietly.

〔Example〕

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

In Fig. 1, reference numeral 1 denotes a metal protection tube arranged horizontally between the interior C _i and the exterior C _p of the breeding cage C, and is placed on the outer periphery of the proximal end of the protection tube 1 located outside the breeding cage. A case body 2 having a female thread is screwed onto the case body 2 and fixed with a locking nut 3. A case lid 4 with a male thread, which has an internal recess 4a and a water introduction part 4b communicating with the recess 4a, is screwed onto the case main body 2 from the base end side of the case main body 2, and is spaced between the case main body 2 and the case lid 4. These are a flange-shaped valve seat portion 5a of the elastic member 5 and a donut disk-shaped plastic valve seat portion holder 6, which will be described in detail later.
are interposed in the form of two sheets.

A water supply source 8 is connected to the introduction part 4b of the case body 4 via a pressure reducing valve 7, and the case lid 4 is connected to the water supply source 8 via a pressure reducing valve 7.
A foreign matter removal filter 9 and a ring-shaped filter holder 10 are arranged in the recess 4a, respectively.

The elastic member 5 is made of a sufficiently flexible material such as rubber or soft synthetic resin, and has a donut disc-shaped valve seat 5a at its center on the distal end side. As shown in FIG.
c is loosely fitted into the protective tube 1.

Furthermore, a metal water supply pipe 11 whose tip protrudes from the protection tube 1 is loosely fitted into the protection tube 1 as shown in FIG. The pipe 11 is inserted into the axis of the pipe 11 and supported by the large outer diameter pipe portion 5c.
A poppet valve 12 is integrally provided at the base end of the poppet valve 12.
is seated on the base end surface of the valve seat portion 5a of the elastic member 5. The poppet valve 12 is constructed so that when a small animal touches the tip of the water supply pipe 11 and the pipe 11 tilts against the elastic force of the elastic member 5, the poppet valve 12 opens along with the pipe 11, as shown in FIG. ing.

As shown in FIG.
A ring-shaped water reservoir 13 is provided around the pipe 11, and a portion of the pipe 11 located within the water reservoir 13 is
A communication hole 14 is provided to communicate the inside of the water reservoir 13 and the inside of the pipe 11. The water introduced from the water supply source 8 into the recess 4a of the case lid 4 via the pressure reducing valve 7 is introduced into the water reservoir 13 by the opening operation of the poppet valve 12, and further into the pipe 11 via the communication hole 14. I'm starting to be guided by this.

Further, the outer periphery of both the pipe portions 5b, 5c of the elastic member 5 is provided with a structure for maintaining the holding force of the pipe 11 and preventing water leakage even if cracks occur in the pipe portions 5b, 5c due to deterioration due to use. Coil spring 15 for reinforcement
is installed. This coil spring 15
has a small diameter part 15a corresponding to the outer diameter of the small diameter pipe part 5b at a part corresponding to the connecting part of both pipe parts 5b and 5c, and the other part corresponds to the outer diameter of the large diameter pipe part 5c. It is formed to a diameter of The small diameter portion 15a prevents it from coming off.

As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, a thin wire 17 is inserted into the water supply pipe 11 from its distal end to near its proximal end. The outer end of this wire 17 is provided with an enlarged head 18, and the water supply pipe 11
As shown in FIG. 3, a gap 19 is formed between the distal end and the enlarged head 18. In order to prevent the wire 17 from coming out of the water supply pipe 11, the wire is slightly bent so that the bent portion of the wire comes into contact with the inner wall of the water supply pipe 11, causing friction. Therefore, the head 18
The wire 17 will not come out unless a large force is applied in the wire pulling direction.

As shown in FIGS. 1, 4, and 5, a drainage gutter 21 is provided so as to surround the lower side of the tip of the protection tube 1 from below. The drain gutter 21 has inner surfaces of both side walls 21a, 21a fixed to the outer surface of the protective tube 1 by welding or the like, and a water guiding space 22 is formed between the lower surface of the protective tube 1 and the drain gutter 21. and,
The bottom surface of the drain gutter 21 gradually descends in the direction from the distal end to the proximal end of the protective tube 1, that is, from the inside of the cage to the outside of the cage. Also,
The drain gutter 21 includes a water receiving portion 21b that protrudes further than the water outlet end at the tip of the water supply pipe 11. The water receiving portion 21b is formed so that the amount of protrusion increases as it goes downward.

Next, the effect will be explained.

In a normal state, that is, when a small animal is not touching the tip of the water supply pipe 11, the pipe 11 is held horizontally by the elastic member 5, and the poppet valve 1
2 is seated on the valve seat portion 5a in a normal state. Therefore, water sent from the water supply source 8 via the pressure reducing valve 7 is guided to the recess 4a via the introduction part 4b, but is not supplied to the water supply pipe 11.

If a small animal touches the tip of the water supply pipe 11 in this state, the pipe 11 will tilt within the protection tube 1 against the elastic force of the elastic member 5. Then, as shown in FIG. 2, the poppet valve 12 integrated with the water supply pipe 11 also tilts, and the water in the recess 4a passes between the valve seat 5a and the poppet valve 12, is led to the water reservoir 13, and then flows into the communication hole 14. The water is guided into the water supply pipe 11 through the water supply pipe 11, and is discharged and supplied from its tip.

When the small animal leaves the water supply pipe 11, the pipe 11 automatically returns to a horizontal state due to the restoring force of the elastic member 5, and accordingly, the poppet valve 12 closes and the water supply is automatically stopped. Thereafter, the same operation as described above is repeated depending on whether the small animal comes into contact with the water supply pipe 11 or not.

By the way, the entire amount of water introduced into the water reservoir 13 when the poppet valve 12 is opened flows through the water supply pipe 1.
1, but not supplied to poppet valve 1.
A portion of the water remains in the water reservoir 13 even after the water reservoir 2 is closed. The odor of the water stored here is constantly radiated from the distal end 19 through the communication hole 14 and the water supply pipe 11. This allows small animals to easily know the location of water holes.

The wire 17 inserted into the water supply pipe 11 has the function of preventing the water supply from flowing excessively by gradually reducing the force of the water flow passing between the two, and flowing an appropriate amount of water for small animals to drink. and,
Water pressure can be finely adjusted by appropriately sliding the wire. Further, the head 18 prevents water from gushing out from the tip of the water supply pipe, prevents oral bacteria of small animals from entering the water supply pipe, and further prevents excessive insertion of the wire.
Further, the wire can be easily pulled out and cleaned.

Even when a small animal drinks water supplied from the tip of the water supply pipe 11, some of the water spills out. The water receiving portion 21b of the drain gutter 21 receives the water and flows it to the outside of the cage C due to the slope of the bottom. Drainage gutter 2
The water in the cage 1 falls from the outer end of the cage onto suitable drainage means (not shown).

[Effect of idea]

According to the present invention, water spilling from the tip of the water supply pipe is diverted by the inserted wire within the water supply pipe, and is prevented from spilling out by the enlarged head of the wire, so that the amount of water is reduced to an appropriate amount. In other words, since the narrow gap between the wire and the inner wall of the water supply pipe continues over the entire length of the wire insertion part, the force of the water flow is gradually diverted by passing through that long gap, and the water flows away from the tip of the water supply pipe. The water will flow out quietly. The water flow and water pressure can be finely adjusted by changing the length of the wire inserted. Furthermore, the tip of the wire contaminated with small animals can be easily cleaned by simply pulling out the wire, and reattaching the wire is also very easy. Also, since the wire is cheap, the cost of the device is also reduced accordingly.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Fig. 1 is an overall sectional view showing the small animal drinking device of the present invention, Fig. 2 is an enlarged sectional view of the main part of Fig. 1, and Fig. 3 is an enlarged sectional view of the main part of Fig. 1.
4 is a front view of a portion of FIG. 1, and FIG. 5 is a left side view of FIG. 4. DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1... Protection tube, 5... Elastic member, 7... Pressure reducing valve, 8... Water supply source, 11... Water supply pipe, 12...
... Poppet valve, 13 ... Water reservoir, 15 ... Coil spring, 17 ... Wire, 18 ... Wire head, 21 ... Drain gutter, 21a ... Side wall, 2
1b...Water receiving part.

Claims (1)

[Scope of utility model registration request] A protection tube, a water supply pipe that is loosely fitted into the protection tube with its tip protruding, and a small animal that touches the tip of the water supply pipe and tilts the pipe in the protection tube, opens and passes through the water supply pipe. A water drinking device for small animals, comprising a valve mechanism provided at the base end of the water supply pipe so as to discharge water from the tip, and in which the tip of the protection tube and the tip of the water supply pipe are inserted into a small animal breeding cage from the outside, A wire that is thinner than the inner diameter of the water suction pipe and slightly bent is frictionally inserted into the water suction pipe from its tip side to form a gap between the enlarged head provided at the outer end of the wire and the tip of the water suction pipe. A water drinking device characterized by: