TWI674839B - Animal toilet - Google Patents

Abstract

An animal toilet is provided with a front-rear direction, a left-right direction, and a height direction, and includes a urine passage portion having a plurality of slits through which urine passes, and an absorber installation portion provided in the urine passage portion Further, an absorber for absorbing urine passing through the urine passing portion is provided further below. The slit surrounds the outer periphery by longitudinal ribs along the front-rear direction and lateral ribs along the left-right direction. The height of the longitudinal ribs below the urine passage portion is higher than the height of the lowest part of the lateral ribs provided on at least one of the foremost side and the rearmost side in the front-rear direction.

Description

Animal toilet

The present invention relates to an animal toilet.

In the conventional technology, animal toilets for use by animals such as cats are well known. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses an animal toilet including an upper container having an opening through which an animal can enter and exit and a liquid-permeable bottom surface portion through which excreted urine passes; and a container disposed to absorb the bottom surface. An absorbent sheet of urine behind the body; and a lower container, which is located below the bottom surface portion to receive and arrange the container while supporting the upper container.

[Previous Technical Literature] [Patent Literature]

[Patent Document 1] JP 2009-11181

The above-mentioned animal toilets are easy to make due to urine, etc. Dirty fluid permeable bottom face. For example, in the animal toilet of Patent Document 1, a plurality of openings are provided in a mesh or drain plate shape on the bottom surface of the upper container, and excreted urine passes through the openings (hereinafter, also referred to as urine). The liquid passage portion) moves toward the lower container side. In this case, since the dirt tends to be concentrated in the urine passage portion, it is necessary to periodically clean the portion using a brush or the like. However, in the animal toilet of Patent Document 1, it is difficult to pass the brush through each opening portion (mesh, etc.) of the urine passage portion, and the cleaning operation becomes complicated.

The present invention has been developed in view of the above problems, and an object thereof is to provide an animal toilet that is easy to clean the urine passage portion.

The main invention for achieving the above object is an animal toilet, which includes a front-rear direction, a left-right direction, and a height direction, and includes a urine passage portion having a plurality of slits through which urine passes, and an absorber installation portion, The absorber provided below the urine passage portion and configured to absorb urine passing through the urine passage portion is characterized in that the slit is formed by longitudinal ribs along the front-back direction and along the longitudinal ribs. The horizontal ribs surround the outer periphery, and the height of the vertical ribs is lower than the lowest of the horizontal ribs provided on at least one of the foremost side and the rearmost side in the front-back direction under the urine passing portion. The height of the section is higher.

Other technical features related to the present invention are described in this specification. The description with the attached drawings can be clearly understood.

According to the present invention, it is possible to provide an animal toilet that is easy to clean the urine passage portion.

1‧‧‧ animal toilet

10‧‧‧Upper container

11‧‧‧ bottom

12‧‧‧ Margin

12f‧‧‧ Front side edge

12b‧‧‧Rear side edge

12r‧‧‧Right edge

12l‧‧‧left edge

13‧‧‧step difference

13a‧‧‧Front Step

13b‧‧‧ Rear segment

14‧‧‧ Inclined

14b‧‧‧Rear slope

14r‧‧‧Right slope

14l‧‧‧Left slope

20‧‧‧ lower container

21‧‧‧ bottom

22‧‧‧ Margin

22f‧‧‧Front edge

22b‧‧‧Rear side edge

22r‧‧‧Right edge

22l‧‧‧left edge

23‧‧‧ sidewall

23f‧‧‧ Front side

23b‧‧‧Rear side wall

23r‧‧‧ right wall

23l‧‧‧left wall

25‧‧‧Tray storage unit

25f‧‧‧ opening

30‧‧‧tray

31‧‧‧ sidewall

32‧‧‧ Absorber installation section

33‧‧‧Handle

40‧‧‧ Cover

41‧‧‧Access opening

42‧‧‧ sidewall

42f‧‧‧left wall

42r‧‧‧ right wall

42b‧‧‧Rear side

43‧‧‧Edge

43f‧‧‧Front edge

43b‧‧‧Rear side edge

43r‧‧‧Right edge

43l‧‧‧Left edge

100‧‧‧Urine passing section

101‧‧‧Slit (hole)

111‧‧‧ longitudinal rib

111h1, 111h2‧‧‧height (longitudinal rib)

112‧‧‧ Long rib flat section

115‧‧‧ horizontal rib

115f‧‧‧ front lateral ribs

115b‧‧‧Rear lateral ribs

115fh1‧‧‧height (front lateral ribs)

115fh1b‧‧‧height (front lateral rib bottom)

115fh2‧‧‧height (transverse rib)

115fh2b‧‧‧height (transverse rib bottom)

116‧‧‧Plane Department

117‧‧‧ curved surface

117b‧‧‧ curved bottom

117h‧‧‧height (curved surface)

210‧‧‧ excrement disposal materials

220‧‧‧ Absorber

CLa‧‧‧ central position (upper container 10)

CLb‧‧‧Central position (Urine passing section 100)

FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view of the animal toilet 1.

FIG. 2 is an exploded side view of the animal toilet 1.

FIG. 3 is a 3 view of the container 10.

Fig. 4 is a diagram explaining the A-A cross section of Fig. 3.

FIG. 5 is a 3 view of the lower container 20.

FIG. 6 is a 3 view of the tray 30.

FIG. 7 is an enlarged view showing a region D in FIG. 3.

Fig. 8A is a drawing showing a B-B cross section of Fig. 7. Fig. 8B is a drawing showing a C-C cross section of Fig. 7.

Fig. 9 is a schematic perspective view when the urine passing section 100 is viewed from the lower side.

At least the following matters can be clearly understood from the description of this specification and the accompanying drawings.

An animal toilet includes a front-back direction, a left-right direction, and a height Direction, and has a urine passage portion having a plurality of slits through which the urine passes; and an absorber installation portion provided below the urine passage portion and provided to absorb the urine passage portion The absorbent body for urine is characterized in that the slit surrounds the outer periphery by longitudinal ribs along the front-rear direction and lateral ribs along the left-right direction, and below the urine passage portion, the longitudinal The height of the rib is higher than the height of the lowest part of the transverse rib provided on at least one of the foremost side and the rearmost side in the front-rear direction.

According to the aforementioned animal toilet, since the height of the lowest part of the horizontal rib is lower than the height of the vertical rib at the front or rear end of the urine passing portion in the front-rear direction, the brush is directed forward and backward. When brushing, the brush becomes less likely to get caught in the ribs. This makes it difficult to interfere with the movement of the brush in the front-back direction at the time of starting the brush staining and ending the brush staining, so that the cleaning operation of the urine passage portion can be easily performed.

In the animal toilet, it is preferable that a distance between the lateral ribs adjacent in the front-back direction in the slit is wider than a distance between the longitudinal ribs adjacent in the left-right direction.

According to the animal toilet, the slit is formed in a longitudinal shape along the front-rear direction, and when the brush is moved in the front-rear direction, the brush can easily pass through the height direction of each slit to the depth, and it becomes easy to perform Clean up.

The animal toilet is preferably such that the height of the longitudinal ribs is higher than the height of the lowest part of all the transverse ribs of the urine passage portion.

According to the aforementioned animal toilet, all of the urine passing parts In the area, the longitudinal ribs function as a guide when the brush is moved forward and backward, and the movement of the brush forward and backward cannot be easily interfered by the horizontal ribs, so it becomes easy to make the brush smoothly Move forward and backward. Thereby, cleaning of a urine passing part can be performed more efficiently.

The animal toilet is preferably such that a lower end portion of the horizontal rib is formed with a curved surface portion recessed in an arc shape on the upper side, and a position of a vertex of the curved surface portion is a portion having the lowest height of the horizontal rib.

According to the above-mentioned animal toilet, since urine does not remain along the curved portion (notch portion), and it is easy to move from above to below, it is difficult for dirt to adhere to the lateral ribs. In addition, even if dirt is adhered, since the hair end of the brush can easily reach the whole as long as the cutout portion is curved, it becomes easy to remove dirt. This makes it easier to clean the urine passage portion.

The animal toilet is preferably such that the height of the curved surface portion of the cross rib formed on at least one of the foremost side and the rearmost side in the front-rear direction is at least 1/3 of the height of the front side rib.

According to the above-mentioned animal toilet, since a curved portion (notch) having a certain size or more is formed in the horizontal rib, not only the dirt is less likely to stay in the notch portion, but also the movement of the brush in the front-back direction can be further reduced. Interference caused by horizontal ribs of the time.

It is preferable that the animal toilet bowl has a horizontal planar shape at a lower end portion of the longitudinal rib.

According to the above-mentioned animal toilet, since the protruding end portion of the longitudinal rib protruding in the height direction on the lower side of the urine passage portion is flat, Movement of the brush along the longitudinal ribs in the forward and backward directions becomes less susceptible to interference, and cleaning becomes easier.

The animal toilet is preferably provided with an upper container provided with the urine passing portion, and the central position of the urine passing portion is disposed further rearward than the central position of the upper container in the front-rear direction.

According to the above-mentioned animal toilet, since the urine passing portion is disposed near the rear in the front-rear direction, urine and the like become difficult to contact and it is difficult to stain the front portion of the upper container. Accordingly, since the front part with less dirt can be grasped during cleaning, it is difficult to cause discomfort to the user.

It is preferable that the animal toilet is provided with a stepped portion as a portion where a step is formed in the height direction in the region on the front side of the front-rear direction of the upper container, and the stepped portion has a front stepped portion and a position ratio. The front step portion is closer to the rear side in the front-rear direction and the rear step portion has a larger inclination than the front step portion.

According to the above-mentioned animal toilet, the user can stably perform soiling by holding the stepped portion when performing the soiling operation on the urine passing portion. In addition, since the front stepped portion formed on the front side of the stepped portion has a gentle inclination, the user can easily grasp the area of the front stepped portion and can firmly hold the upper container.

=== Implementation Form ===

<Overall Structure>

As an example of the animal toilet bowl disclosed in this embodiment, the animal toilet bowl 1 is demonstrated. FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view of the animal toilet 1. FIG. 2 is an exploded side view of the animal toilet 1. In addition, in the following description, as shown in FIG. 1, the three directions that go straight are defined as "front-rear direction", "left-right direction", and "height direction". The front-rear direction is a direction along the longitudinal direction of the animal toilet 1 and the entrance / exit side where the animal is provided is taken as the front side. The left-right direction is a direction along the width direction of the animal toilet 1. The height direction is a direction along the vertical direction of the animal toilet 1.

The animal toilet 1 is provided with the upper container 10, the lower container 20, the tray 30, and the cover 40, and the above-mentioned four components are used to form the animal toilet 1 in the use state shown in FIG. 1. The four components are As shown in Fig. 2, they can be disassembled and assembled freely. Specifically, the lower container 20 is assembled under the upper container 10 in an overlapping manner. The lower container 20 houses a tray 30 and can be provided with an absorbent body (absorbent body 220 described below) for absorbing excreted urine and the like. Then, the outer cover 40 is assembled above the upper container 10. As described above, since each member system can be disassembled from each other, cleaning work and the like become easy.

The upper container 10, the lower container 20, the tray 30, and the cover 40 are each formed of a polyolefin-based thermoplastic resin such as polyethylene, polypropylene, and polyethylene terephthalate. However, the raw material for forming each member is not limited to the above, and may be, for example, another resin, a metal plate such as a stainless steel plate or an aluminum plate.

FIG. 3 is a 3 view of the container 10. Figure 4 is for The figure explaining the A-A cross section of FIG. The upper container 10 is a substantially box-shaped member having an opening above, and animals such as cats are excreted on the upper side of the upper container 10 (that is, equivalent to the inside of the box). The upper container 10 includes a bottom portion 11, an edge portion 12, a step portion 13, and an inclined portion 14.

The bottom portion 11 constitutes a portion of the bottom surface of the upper container 10 and is positioned at the bottom in the height direction of the upper container 10 (see FIG. 4). The bottom portion 11 is provided with a urine passage portion 100 that allows urine or the like excreted by the animal to pass from the upper side to the lower side in the height direction. The urine passage portion 100 has a plurality of holes 101 penetrating in the height direction, and the excreted urine moves through the holes 101 from the upper side to the lower side of the upper container 10.

When the animal toilet 1 is used, a granular material such as cat litter is placed on the upper surface of the urine passage portion 100, and an animal such as a cat excretes the granular material. In the present embodiment, the excrement disposal material 210 is installed as a granular system as shown in FIG. 4. The excrement disposal material 210 is, for example, a granular material having a porous structure, such as zeolite or silica gel, and has the effect of deodorizing by absorbing the ammonia component by contact with urine and the like excreted by animals. , Or the effect of removing moisture. Moreover, by providing the granular excrement disposal material 210 in the urine passage part 100, an animal can easily recognize that this part (urine passage part 100) is a place where excretion is performed. In addition, in order to prevent each particle of the excrement disposal material 210 from falling down from the hole 101 of the urine passage portion 100 (bottom 11), the hole 101 is preferably capable of passing urine without passing the excrement disposal material 210. Shape, size. In this embodiment, the hole 101 is as shown in FIG. 3. The slit is elongated in the forward-backward direction. Hereinafter, the hole 101 is also referred to as a slit 101.

The edge portion 12 is a portion constituting the outer edges of the upper container 10 in the front-rear direction and the left-right direction, and includes a front edge portion 12f, a rear edge portion 12b, a right edge portion 12r, and a left edge portion 12l. The edge portion 12 has a shape that is folded back outward at the upper end portion of the upper container 10 and can overlap the edge portion 22 of the lower container 20 described below in the height direction.

The step portion 13 is a portion in which a step is formed between the front side edge portion 12f and the bottom portion 11, and includes a front step difference portion 13a as a front side area in the front-back direction and a rear step difference as a rear-side area.部 13b. 13b. The front step difference portion 13a and the rear step difference portion 13b have different inclination angles. In the animal toilet 1, the inclination angle of the front step difference portion 13a is more gentle than the rear step difference portion 13b. As a result, a step as shown in FIG. 4 is formed between the front step 13a and the rear step 13b.

The inclined portion 14 includes a rear inclined portion 14b, a right inclined portion 14r, and a left inclined portion 14l. The rear inclined portion 14b is used to connect the rear edge portion 12b and the bottom portion 11, the right inclined portion 14r is used to connect the right edge portion 12r and the bottom portion 11, and the left inclined portion 14l is used to connect the left edge portion. 12l and the bottom part 11. Each part is formed as an inclined part between the edge part 12 and the bottom part 11, and the upper container 10 is formed into a substantially box shape as shown in FIG.3 and FIG.4.

FIG. 5 is a 3 view of the lower container 20. The lower container 20 is a substantially box-shaped member having an opening above. When the animal toilet 1 is used, As shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, they are assembled under the upper container 10 so as to overlap each other. The lower container 20 includes a bottom portion 21, an edge portion 22, a side wall portion 23, and a tray storage portion 25. The bottom portion 21 constitutes a portion of the bottom surface of the lower container 20. The edge portion 22 is a portion constituting the outer edges in the front-rear direction and the left-right direction on the upper portion of the lower container 20 and includes a front edge portion 22f, a rear edge portion 22b, a right edge portion 22r, and a left edge portion 221. When assembling the lower container 20 to the upper container 10, the edge portion 12 of the upper container 10 and the edge portion 22 of the lower container 20 are overlapped. The side wall portion 23 is a wall member that is erected upward from an end edge portion of the bottom portion 21, and includes a front side wall portion 23f, a rear side wall portion 23b, a right side wall portion 23r, and a left side wall portion 23l.

The tray accommodating portion 25 is a portion for accommodating the tray 30. As shown in FIG. 5, an opening portion 25f is provided below the front side edge portion 22f, and the tray 30 is moved from this opening portion 25f along the tray accommodating portion 25 indicated by the dotted line portion in FIG. 5 toward the front and rear. The side slide can accommodate the tray 30 inside the lower container 20.

FIG. 6 is a 3 view of the tray 30. The tray 30 is a shallow box-shaped flat container provided with an absorber for absorbing urine and the like. The tray 30 includes a side wall portion 31, an absorber installation portion 32, and a handle portion 33. The side wall portion 31 is a wall surface that surrounds the outer periphery of the tray 30, and in this embodiment, the tray 30 is formed in a rectangular shape that is symmetrical in the front-rear direction. In addition, an absorbent body installation portion 32 for forming an absorbent body is formed in an inner region surrounded by the side wall portion 31.

FIG. 6 shows a state in which the absorber 220 (shown by the hatched portion in the figure) is provided on the absorber installation portion 32. Absorber 220 It is a liquid-absorbable sheet member for absorbing urine excretion of cats and other animals, and is formed of a liquid-absorbent material such as pulp fiber or a superabsorbent polymer. In addition, the absorbent body 220 may contain deodorizing microcapsules or an antibacterial agent to seal the taste of urine after absorption and prevent the saprophytic bacteria from multiplying. In addition, although the absorbent body 220 is shown as a rectangular sheet member in FIG. 6, the shape of the absorbent body 220 is not limited as long as it can be held by the absorbent body installation portion 32.

The handle portions 33 are formed at both ends of the tray 30 in the front-rear direction. When the tray 30 is housed in the lower container 20 or pulled out from the lower container 20, the handle portion 33 is carried out by holding the handle portion 33. By operating, the tray 30 can be slid in the front-rear direction. In addition, as described above, since the tray 30 of the present embodiment has a symmetrical shape in the front-rear direction, it can be accommodated in the lower container 20 by changing the front-rear direction.

The cover 40 includes an access opening 41, a side wall portion 42, and an edge portion 43, and is disposed above the upper container 10 and the lower container 20 (see FIG. 1). The entry / exit opening 41 is a portion which is enlarged to the front side in the front-rear direction, and an animal can enter / exit the animal toilet 1 through the entry / exit opening 41. That is, the access opening 41 is equivalent to the entrance of the animal toilet 1. The side wall portion 42 is formed around the access opening 41 and includes a left side wall portion 42f and a right side wall portion 42r covering both sides in the left-right direction of the cover 40, and a rear side wall portion 42b covering the rear side in the front-rear direction of the cover 40. By providing the side wall portion 42, the granular absorbent body 220 or excrement is prevented from being spilled or scattered to the outside of the animal toilet 1 (upper container 10).

Further, in this embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the heights of the left wall portion 42 f and the right wall portion 42 r are formed to be lower toward the front side. Thereby, the scattering of the absorber 220 is suppressed on the rear side, and the field of view of the animal is widely secured on the front side, making it easy to check the outside from the inside of the toilet. By ensuring a sufficient field of vision even during excretion, animals can use the animal toilet 1 with peace of mind. The edge portion 43 is a portion constituting the outer edge below the cover 40 and includes a front edge portion 43f, a rear edge portion 43b, a left edge portion 43l, and a right edge portion 43r. The edge portion 43 can be attached to and fixed to the animal toilet 1 by engaging the edge portion 22 of the lower container 20.

When an animal such as a cat is excreted, it enters the animal toilet 1 through the access opening 41, and then excrete urine from a portion of the urine passage portion 100 in which the granular excrement disposal material 210 is disposed on the upper container 10.液 等。 Liquid and so on. The excreted urine falls downward while passing through the plurality of slits 101 of the urine passage part 100 while being in contact with the excrement disposal material 210. After that, it is absorbed by the absorbent body 220 disposed below the urine passage part 100 and stored in the tray 30. The user can cleanly use the animal toilet 1 by periodically replacing the absorbent body 220 after absorbing urine.

<About cleaning of the urine passage part 100>

When the animal toilet 1 is used, it must be cleaned regularly. In particular, since the urine passage portion 100 provided at the bottom portion 11 of the upper container 10 is a portion that comes into contact with urine each time the animal excretes, it is an animal One of the most easily soiled parts of the toilet 1. In the urine passage part 100, although urine moves from the upper side to the lower side and falls to the lower side, the urine remaining on the lower side without falling to the lower side easily becomes a cause of contamination. Therefore, when cleaning, it is desirable to sufficiently clean the lower surface side of the urine passage portion 100. Specifically, it is desirable to remove the dirt adhering to the slit 101 by brushing the entire lower surface of the urine passage part 100 by turning the upper container 10 upside down.

In the animal toilet 1 according to this embodiment, the shape of the lower surface of the urine passage portion 100 is made different from that of the animal toilet of the conventional technology, so that it can be easily stained and can be cleaned. Structure for efficient cleaning. The structure of the urine passage portion 100 will be described below.

<Structure of the urine passage part 100>

FIG. 7 is an enlarged view showing a region D in FIG. 3 and is a partially enlarged view of the urine passage portion 100. As described above, the urine passage portion 100 is provided in the bottom portion 11 of the upper container 10 and has a plurality of slits 101 (holes 101) penetrating in the height direction. Each of the slits 101 is formed around the outer periphery by vertical ribs 111 arranged along the front-rear direction and horizontal ribs 115 arranged in the left-right direction, and is arranged side by side in the front-rear direction and left-right direction. In addition, the vertical rib 111 is shown by oblique lines in FIG. 7.

As shown in FIG. 7, the slit 101 is a vertically long hole extending in the front-rear direction. That is, the interval between two adjacent horizontal ribs 115 The distance is longer than the interval (the distance in the left-right direction) between the two adjacent vertical ribs 111. In addition, as shown in FIG. 1 or FIG. 3, the upper container 10 itself has a vertically long structure that is elongated in the front-rear direction, and is formed to be easily smeared along the longitudinal direction.

In addition, among the plurality of lateral ribs 115 of the urine passage part 100, the frontmost side arranged in the front-back direction is referred to as a front lateral rib 115f (see FIG. 7). Similarly, the rear side rib 115b (not shown) is used as the rear side rib 115b which is arrange | positioned in the front-back direction among the several horizontal ribs 115. The rear lateral rib 115b has a structure substantially the same as the front lateral rib 115f. The details of the shape of the ribs will be described below.

Fig. 8A is a view showing a B-B cross section of Fig. 7. That is, FIG. 8A is a diagram showing the shapes of the longitudinal ribs 111 and the front lateral ribs 115f. However, since the B-B cross section is viewed from the front side in the front-rear direction, the boundary portion between the longitudinal rib 111 and the lateral rib 115h cannot be identified, so the shape of the longitudinal rib 111 is indicated by a dotted line. Fig. 8B is a drawing showing a C-C cross section of Fig. 7. That is, FIG. 8B is a drawing showing the shapes of the vertical ribs 111 and the horizontal ribs 115. Fig. 9 is a schematic perspective view when the urine passing section 100 is viewed from the lower side.

As shown in FIG. 8A, the longitudinal rib 111 is a plate-shaped member having a height of 111h1 from the bottom of the bottom 11 (the upper container 10) in the height direction and gradually narrowing the width in the left-right direction from the top to the bottom. . Moreover, in FIG. 8A, the space | interval of the short side direction of the space system slit 101 between the two vertical ribs 111 adjacent to the left-right direction is formed. In addition, the longitudinal rib 111 includes a longitudinal rib flat portion 112 at a lower end portion. Long rib flat section 112 The end portion of the vertical rib 111 is formed into a horizontal planar shape. The height 111h1 of the vertical rib 111 is represented by the distance between the lower surface of the bottom portion 11 and the vertical rib flat portion 112. The urine excreted on the upper side of the urine passage portion 111 moves downward while flowing through the surface of the longitudinal rib 111, and then escapes from the longitudinal rib 111 by the longitudinal rib flat portion 112 and falls downward.

On the other hand, the front lateral rib 115f is a plate-shaped member having a height of 115fh1 from the lower surface of the bottom portion 11 of the upper container 10 in the height direction and extending in the left-right direction. Between 111. The height 115fh1 of the front lateral rib 115f is the same height as the height 111h1 of the vertical rib 111. That is, the front lateral ribs 115f and the lower end portions of the vertical ribs 111 are located on the same plane together (see FIGS. 8A and 9). In addition, the lower end portion of the front lateral rib 115f has a horizontal rib flat portion 116 formed in a horizontal planar shape similarly to the vertical rib 111. In FIG. 9, although the horizontal rib flat portion 116 is drawn to protrude from the vertical rib 111 in the left-right direction for the sake of explanation, the width of the horizontal rib flat portion 116 in the left-right direction is actually about 2 mm. The protruding part of the direction is not big.

Further, a lower end portion of the front lateral rib 115f is formed with a curved surface portion 117, which is a notched portion recessed in an arc shape or a parabolic shape at an intermediate position between two adjacent longitudinal ribs 111 in the left-right direction. In addition, a portion corresponding to the vertex of the parabola of the curved surface portion 117 is referred to as a curved surface bottom portion 117b, and the curved surface bottom portion 117b is a portion having the lowest height of the front side rib 115f. That is, in the front lateral rib 115f, the distance between the lower surface of the bottom portion 11 and the curved surface bottom portion 117b is the shortest, and the height of this portion is used 115fh1b.

Next, in FIG. 8B, the longitudinal rib 111 has a height of 111 h2 from the position of the upper surface of the bottom portion 11 (the upper surface of the urine passage portion 100) in the height direction. Except for the height, it is substantially the same as the vertical rib 111 described in FIG. 8A. The lateral ribs 115 have a height of 115 h 2 from the position of the upper surface of the bottom portion 11 (the upper surface of the urine passage portion 100) in the height direction. In addition, a curved surface portion 117 having a notch is formed at the lower end portion of the lateral rib 115 similarly to the front lateral rib 115f, and the curved bottom portion 117b is a portion having the lowest height of the lateral rib 115. The height of this part (the distance between the lower surface of the bottom 11 and the bottom 117b of the curved surface) is represented by 115h2b. The structure other than the height of the lateral rib 115 is substantially the same as the front lateral rib 115f described in FIG. 8A.

As shown in FIG. 8A, the position of the flat portion 112, which is the lower end portion of the longitudinal rib 111, in the urine passage portion 100 of this embodiment is formed at the bottom of the curved surface, which is the lowest portion in the height direction of the front lateral rib 115f. 117b is even lower. In other words, the height 111h1 of the longitudinal rib 111 is higher than the height 115fh1b of the lowest part in the height direction of the front side rib 115f (115fh1b <111h1). Similarly, as shown in FIG. 8B, the position of the flat portion 112 of the vertical rib 111 is formed lower than the position of the curved bottom portion 117 b of the horizontal rib 115. In other words, the height 111h2 of the longitudinal rib 111 is higher than the height 115fh2b of the lowest part in the height direction of the transverse rib 115 (115fh2b <111h2). That is, in the entire area of the lower surface side of the urine passage portion 100, the height of the longitudinal rib 111 is formed more than the height of the lowest portion of the lateral rib 115, the front lateral rib 115f, and the rear lateral rib 115b. high.

With the above-mentioned structure, it becomes easy to stain the brush in the front-rear direction on the lower surface side of the urine passage portion 100 during cleaning. It is assumed that, when the brush is to be moved in the left-right direction, the brush is easily caught in the vertical rib 111 formed high, and the movement of the brush is easily restricted (see FIG. 9). On the other hand, when the brush is moved in the front-rear direction, since the height of the lateral rib 115 is formed at the curved bottom 117b, the brush is less likely to be stuck than the longitudinal rib 111 and the movement of the brush is not easily restricted. Moreover, since the longitudinal rib 111 exhibits a guide-like function to support the movement of the brush in the front-back direction when the brush is moved, it becomes easy to smoothly move the brush.

In particular, in this embodiment, the height of the lowest portion of the front lateral rib 115f formed at the front end of the urine passing portion 100 in the front-rear direction and the rear lateral rib 115b formed at the rear end It is formed to be lower than the longitudinal rib 111, so that it becomes difficult to interfere with the movement of the brush in the front-rear direction when the brushing starts and ends. Thereby, the operation of brushing can be stabilized more easily, and cleaning can be performed efficiently.

In addition, as shown in FIG. 7, by forming the slit 101 in a longitudinal shape along the front-rear direction, when the brush is moved in the front-rear direction, the brush can easily pass through the height direction of each slit 101 to the depth. It becomes easy to clean. It is assumed that when the slit 101 is formed to be horizontally long (long shape in the left-right direction), when the brush is moved forward and backward, it is difficult for the hair end of the brush to enter the slit 101 to the depth and it becomes difficult. Remove dirt sufficiently. However, in the present embodiment, since the interval between the lateral ribs 115 adjacent in the front-back direction is formed to be wider than the interval between the longitudinal ribs 111 adjacent in the left-right direction, the brush easily enters the slit 101 to the depth. It can be cleaned efficiently.

In addition, in this embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 8A and 8B, the horizontal rib flat portion 116 projects in the left-right direction. However, as described above, the width of the horizontal rib flat portion 116 is about 2 mm. Actually, the area of the part protruding in the left-right direction is small without interfering with the back-and-forth movement of the brush.

Next, focus on the shape of the horizontal ribs 115 (including 115f and 115b). As described above, the horizontal rib 115 is provided with a notch portion for reducing the height of the rib portion. In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 8, the curved surface portion 117 is formed as a cutout portion of the lateral rib 115. By forming the cutout portion into an arc shape like the curved surface portion 117, it becomes possible to perform cleaning. Efficiently removes dirt.

When the animal toilet 1 is used, urine excreted by the animal flows through the surface of the horizontal ribs 115 (and the vertical ribs 111) and moves from above to below. Then, after reaching the horizontal rib flat portion 116 which is the lower end portion of the horizontal rib 115, it is separated from the horizontal rib flat portion 116 and dropped downward. At this time, when the shape of the notch portion of the lateral rib 115 is formed in a rectangular shape, urine tends to stay in a corner portion of the rectangle. In addition, when the cutout portion does not reach the lower end portion of the horizontal rib 115 and merges with the longitudinal rib 111 midway, a step or an angle may be generated at the merged portion, and urine may easily stay in this portion. When the above-mentioned "corner" is formed, the urine becomes difficult to move straight. Until the bottom, it is easy to become a cause of dirt. In contrast, as long as the arc-shaped notch like the curved portion 117 reaches the lower end of the lateral rib, it will be easy to move smoothly to the flat portion of the lateral rib because it does not stagnate urine. As of 116, it becomes difficult to cause dirt on the surface of the horizontal ribs 115 to adhere to urine. In addition, even if dirt is adhered to the curved surface portion 117, since the "corner" as described above is not formed, it is easy to bring the hair end of the brush to a dirty portion. That is, since it becomes easy to smudge the brush over the entire area of the surface of the curved surface part 117, it becomes easy to remove the dirt.

In this embodiment, by making the curved surface portion 117 as large as possible, it is made easier for the brush to stain the portion of the curved surface portion 117. Specifically, the curved surface portion 117 is formed such that the height 117h of the curved surface portion 117 formed on the front lateral rib 115f is 1/3 of the entire height 115fh1 of the front lateral rib 115f on the frontmost side of the urine passage portion 100. the above. Here, the height 117h of the curved surface portion 117 is expressed by the difference between the height 115fh1 of the highest portion of the transverse rib 115f and the height 115fh1b of the lowest portion (that is, the distance between the flat portion 116 and the bottom portion 117b of the curved surface) (see No. 8 Figure A). By limiting the size of the notch portion (curved surface portion 117) in the lateral rib 115f as described above, not only the dirt is less likely to stay in the notch portion, but also the interference when the brush is moved forward and backward can be reduced. The same applies to the rear-side rear side ribs 115b in the front-rear direction of the urine passage portion 100.

In addition, the vertical rib 111 has a structure that is easy to clean by having a flat portion 112 at a lower end portion. That is, because in urine The protruding end portion of the vertical rib 111 protruding in the height direction from the lower surface side of the liquid passage portion 100 is formed in a flat shape. When the brush is moved along the vertical rib 111 in the front-rear direction, there are fewer factors that interfere with the action, so it changes. Makes cleaning easier.

<About the shape of the upper container 10>

Although the structure of the urine passage part 100 has been described, in the animal toilet 1, the upper container 10 itself is formed in a structure in which the urine passage part 100 can be easily cleaned.

In FIG. 3, CLa indicates the central position in the front-rear direction of the upper container 10, and CLb indicates the central position in the front-rear direction of the urine passage portion 100. When the central position CLa of the upper container 10 and the central position CLb of the urine passage portion 100 are compared, it can be seen that CLb is positioned further behind than CLa. The above description shows that in the upper container 10, the urine passing portion 100 is arranged near the rear in the front-back direction. Therefore, in the upper container 10, a wide space can be secured in the area on the front side in the front-back direction, and the step portion 13 can be formed in the area on the front side.

When performing the staining operation on the urine passing part 100, the user can stably perform the staining by holding the stepped portion 13. In addition, since the inclination of the step portion 13 a formed at the front side of the step portion 13 is gentle, the area can be easily grasped and the upper container 10 can be firmly held. Thereby, the user can naturally clean the urine passage portion 100 with the other hand while holding the front part of the container 10 with one hand while cleaning, Make.

In addition, since the urine passage portion 100 is arranged near the rear in the front-rear direction, urine and the like become difficult to contact and are not easily stained as the step portion 13 as the front portion of the upper container 10. That is, it is possible to grip a portion that is less soiled (here, referred to as the step portion 13) during cleaning, so that it is difficult for a user to feel uncomfortable.

=== Other implementations ===

Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the above embodiments are for easy understanding of the present inventors, and are not intended to limit or interpret the present invention. In addition, the present invention can be changed or improved without departing from the meaning thereof, and the present invention naturally includes the equivalents thereof. For example, it can be modified as shown below.

Although the animal toilet 1 is provided with the outer cover 40 as shown in FIG. 1 in the above-mentioned embodiment, it is not limited to this, and the outer cover 40 may not be provided.

Although in the above-mentioned embodiment, a granular waste disposal material 210 such as cat litter is provided on the bottom portion 11 of the upper container 10, it is not limited to this and other granular materials may be provided. Alternatively, no particulate matter may be provided.

Claims (6)

An animal toilet includes a front-back direction, a left-right direction, and a height direction, and includes: a urine passage portion having a plurality of slits through which urine passes; and an absorber installation portion provided in the urine passage portion. An absorber for absorbing urine passing through the urine passing portion is further below, and the slit is formed by longitudinal ribs along the front-rear direction and lateral ribs along the left-right direction. Around the outer periphery, below the urine passage portion, the height of the longitudinal rib is higher than the height of the lowest part of the transverse rib provided on at least one of the foremost side and the rearmost side in the front-rear direction; The upper container having the urine passing portion, and in the front-rear direction, the central position of the urine passing portion is disposed on the rear side than the central position of the upper container; the front side of the upper container in the front-rear direction is The area is provided with a stepped portion as a portion in which the step is formed in the height direction, the stepped portion has a front stepped portion, and is located at a position higher than the stepped portion. Side step portion closer to the rear side of the front-rear direction and an inclination greater than that of the rear stepped portion of the front step portion. The animal toilet according to item 1 of the patent application scope, wherein in the slit, an interval between the transverse ribs adjacent in the front-back direction is wider than an interval between the longitudinal ribs adjacent in the left-right direction. . For animal use as described in item 1 or item 2 of the patent application In the toilet, the height of the longitudinal rib is higher than the height of the lowest part of all the transverse ribs of the urine passage portion. The animal toilet according to item 1 or 2 of the scope of patent application, wherein a lower end portion of the horizontal rib is formed with a curved surface portion recessed into an arc shape on the upper side, and the position of the vertex of the curved surface portion is the aforementioned The lowest height of the transverse ribs. The animal toilet according to item 4 of the scope of patent application, wherein the height of the curved surface portion of the cross rib formed on at least one of the foremost side and the rearmost side in the front-rear direction is the height of the front side rib. More than 1/3 of the height. The animal toilet according to item 1 or 2 of the scope of patent application, wherein the lower end portion of the longitudinal rib has a horizontal planar shape.