PL68423Y1 - A cage for insects or other minor invertebrates - Google Patents

Description

Pattern description

The subject of the application is a cage for insects and / or other small invertebrates, intended for the keeping, transport and long-term breeding of insects and / or other small invertebrates. The cage is used in field work, when trapping and collecting insects, as well as in the laboratory and in breeding rooms.

From the prior art, for example from http://bugdorm.megaview.com.tw/bugdorm-41515--insect-rearing-cage-17-5x17-5x17-5-cm-pack-of-12-p-257. html there is a cage in the form of a cube made of twelve tubes connected by eight rigid connectors in the form of tees. Inside the cage, a net in the form of a cube is stretched on the frame, equipped with two sleeves placed on one of the walls, and a hatch placed on the opposite wall. A cage according to the prior art described is shown in Fig. I.

A cage is also known from the state of the art in the form of a cuboid made of sixteen pipes connected by eight rigid tees and four straight connectors. Inside the cage, on the rack, there is a net in the form of a cuboid, equipped with two sleeves placed on one of the walls, and a hatch placed on the same wall. A cage according to the prior art described is shown in Fig. II.

There are also cages with a frame made of wooden elements, most often wooden construction slats pressed together or metal rods covered with a net outside.

The disadvantage of this type of wooden skeleton solution is that insects get between the skeleton structure and the mesh covering it and injure or die. In addition, wooden frame cages are usually heavy, cannot be dismantled and are not flexible.

The essence of the cage for insects and / or other small invertebrates, cuboid-shaped, consisting of a frame made of pipes connected with connectors and a net stretched on it from the center is that the frame of the cage is made of pipes connected with each other in the form of cuboids, a net is stretched on the frame, each edge of which is provided with rubber bands securing the net to the cage frame from the inside, and on two adjacent walls of the net, at least one sleeve is provided, the individual cage elements preferably being made of lightweight materials.

Preferably, the connector has the form of a cuboid in which three adjacent walls are depressed for fixing stabilizing pins, and on the other three walls there are tube fastening elements in the form of flexible protrusions.

Preferably, the cage frame is made of aluminum or plastic tubes.

Preferably, the connector is made of polyurethane foam.

The object of the utility model is shown in the drawing, in which fig. 1 shows the cage from a perspective view, fig. 2 - the corner of the cage in a perspective view, fig. 3 - a connector in a perspective view made as a heterogeneous element, fig. 4 - a connector in a perspective view made of as a homogeneous element, and Figure 5 shows a set of cages placed on top of each other.

The cage is a cube with a side length of 30 cm. The cage frame is made of twelve aluminum tubes 1 connected with each other by eight connectors 2 in the form of cubes (cubes) 4 cm x 4 cm x 4 cm made of high-density polyurethane foam. In the three adjacent walls of the connectors 2, 0.5-1 cm recesses 3 are made for fixing the stabilizing pins 4, intended for connecting adjacent cages. On the remaining three sides, there are fasteners for 5 tubes 1 - twenty-four in total. The fastening consists in pressing the aluminum tube 1 into the fastening elements 5 in the form of a flexible, rubber short tube connected with a screw 9 for screwing into the connector 2 (ankle), shown in Fig. 3. Another form of the connector is shown in Fig. 4. the connector 2 was made as a homogeneous element. The above-described construction of the connector 2 ensures the flexibility of the entire cage.

On the cage frame, from the inside, a nylon net 6 with fine meshes is stretched. Each edge of the net 6 is equipped with three rubber bands 7 securing the net 6 on the cage frame. Two adjacent mesh walls 6 are provided with two sleeves 8 (one per wall) to facilitate access to the inside of the cage.

The advantage of the utility model cage is its flexibility. Thanks to the connectors, provided with flexible tube fastening elements, which are used to connect the cage skeleton, the cage can deform to some extent. This makes it easier to transport the cage. It can be easily adapted to the luggage compartment and can be transported even in small car trunks.

Claims (4)

The light, preferably aluminum structure of the cage ensures its sufficient strength, thanks to which it can have any, even very large sizes. The cage structure can also be made of plastic pipes or rods, however, it is associated with the limitation of the cage size and with increased susceptibility to structural damage. Another advantage of the cage is the lack of contact between the animals inside and the construction elements. As the insect net is hung on the rack on elastic bands, the animals do not come into contact with any of the construction elements. This is important when it comes to toxicology and ecotoxicology experiments where it is important that the animal is exposed only to specific substances that are controlled. The construction of the cage according to the applied utility model allows for stacking the cages on top of each other. The use of cuboid-shaped connectors made of lightweight material allows cages to be safely stacked on top of each other and combined into sets. The stability of the structure was increased by making holes in the middle of the wall connectors of adjacent cages and fixing stabilizing pins in them. Sleeves allow easy access to the inside of the cage. Placing the sleeves on adjacent walls facilitates two-handed manipulation inside the cage. The models available on the market usually have one sleeve for inserting and removing insects, food, etc. However, performing treatments with both hands inside the cage with one sleeve is impossible. Only a few cages on the market have two sleeves. They are placed on the same wall (large cages) or on opposite walls (small cages). Placing the sleeves on two adjacent walls significantly improves the comfort of working with the material inside the cage. The cage is extremely light. The use of lightweight aluminum tubes, polyurethane foam and nylon mesh makes the entire structure extremely light. With the net dimensions of 30 x 30 x 30 cm (when folded, the external dimensions of the cage: 40 x 40 x 40 cm), the weight of the cage does not exceed 300 g. makes it very easy to store and transport cages. Protective reservations 1. A cage for insects and / or other small invertebrates, cuboid in shape, consisting of a frame made of pipes connected with connectors and a net stretched on it from the center, characterized in that the cage frame is made of pipes (1) connected with each other with connectors (2) in the form of cuboids, a net (6) is stretched on the frame, each edge of which is equipped with rubber bands (7) fixing the net (6) on the cage frame from the inside, and on two adjacent mesh walls (6), there is at least one sleeve (8) each, the individual parts of the cage preferably being made of lightweight materials. 2. Cage according to claim 3. The connector (2) is a cuboid with recesses (3) for fixing stabilizing pins (4) in the three adjacent walls, and fixing elements (5) for the tubes (1) on the other three walls. , in the form of flexible protrusions. 3. Cage according to claim The cage frame is made of aluminum or plastic tubes (1). 4. Cage according to claim 3. The rod according to claim 1, characterized in that the connector (2) is made of polyurethane foam.