US3826030A - Eartags - Google Patents

Eartags Download PDF

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Publication number
US3826030A
US3826030A US00355457A US35545773A US3826030A US 3826030 A US3826030 A US 3826030A US 00355457 A US00355457 A US 00355457A US 35545773 A US35545773 A US 35545773A US 3826030 A US3826030 A US 3826030A
Authority
US
United States
Prior art keywords
spike
tab
eartag
cavity
head
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Expired - Lifetime
Application number
US00355457A
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English (en)
Inventor
A Read
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
UNIVERSAL TAG CO Ltd
Original Assignee
UNIVERSAL TAG CO Ltd
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by UNIVERSAL TAG CO Ltd filed Critical UNIVERSAL TAG CO Ltd
Application granted granted Critical
Publication of US3826030A publication Critical patent/US3826030A/en
Anticipated expiration legal-status Critical
Expired - Lifetime legal-status Critical Current

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    • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
    • A01—AGRICULTURE; FORESTRY; ANIMAL HUSBANDRY; HUNTING; TRAPPING; FISHING
    • A01K—ANIMAL HUSBANDRY; AVICULTURE; APICULTURE; PISCICULTURE; FISHING; REARING OR BREEDING ANIMALS, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; NEW BREEDS OF ANIMALS
    • A01K11/00—Marking of animals
    • A01K11/001—Ear-tags

Definitions

  • ABSTRACT A animal identification eartag comprises a male member having a tab and spike and a female member with an aperture which can be forced over the head of the spike.
  • the male member is formed with the spike joined to the tab by a universal joint formed by a part spherical end on the spike resiliently retained in a socket in the tab, so permitting not only rotation of the tab about the axis of the spike but also limited angular movement about any transverse axis.
  • the socket has an open end so that the jaw of an applicator can bear directly against the part spherical end of the spike so that the spike is held located when applying the tag to an animal.
  • eartags Livestock can be marked in a number of different ways but eartags however are a particularly convenient way and have been used for many years. Many types of eartags have been proposed and used. Amongst the requirements for an eartag are that it can be readily fitted to the animal without injury thereto and that in use it should not be a cause of disease to the ear. It is essential that the tag should remain attached to the ear and should not pull out through engagement with snags, wire or the like. The tag should also be weatherproof so that it will not deteriorate and will remain visible.
  • eartags have most commonly been made of plastics material rather than metal. Such materials can readily be made weatherproof and permit of the use of various different colours for tags thereby facilitating identification. Also it is possible clearly to mark plates of plastics material with identification characters, e.g., letters or numbers in contrasting colour with the plate.
  • eartags In order to facilitate the pulling of an eartag free from wire or other snags, it is known to use eartags as described in U.S. Pat. Specification No. 3,214,856 formed in two parts, one part being a male member comprising a flat tab with an upstanding spike near one end of the tab and the other being a female member comprising a flat tab with an aperture near one end of the tab.
  • the spike has a shank of smaller diameter than the aperture but is terminated with a pointed tip formed by a conical head which is of larger crosssection than the shank of the spike to provide a shoulder between the head and the shank.
  • the aperture is of slightly smaller size than the head such that the head can be forced through the aperture by the resilience of the material of the tab and will be retained in the aperture.
  • such an eartag can be applied to the animal, using pilers, in a single operation, the spike and female tab cooperating to punch a hole in the animals ear and to secure the two parts of the tag together.
  • the two parts can rotate freely relative to one another.
  • the hole in the animal s ear is punched cleanly and rapidly heals permitting the spike and hence the male member to rotate on the ear. If, for example, wire gets caught between one of the tabs and the ear, as the animal moves its head, the wire will bear against a side edge of the tab and cause the tab to rotate. The tab will move round under such pressure until it lies clear of the wire.
  • the present invention is directed to reduce even further the risk of an eartag getting caught up in wire or other snaps.
  • an animal identification eartag comprising a male member having a tab and spikeand a female member of hard plastics material with an aperture for receiving the head of the spike, the male member beiing formed in two parts, one part being the spike which is of hard plastics material, e.g., moulded nylon, and the other part being the tab portion, the spike at one end having a head with a pointed tip which head is of larger cross-section than the shank of the spike to form a shoulder between the head and the shank of the spike, the aperture in the female member being slightly smaller than the size of the head with the pointed tip such that the head can be forced through by the resilience of the plastics material so as to be retained thereon after the shoulder has passed through the aperture
  • the spike, at its other end has a part spherical portion which is retained within a part spherical cavity in the male member tab, which cavity is open on both faces of the tab whereby the end of the spike within or protruding from the cavity is exposed.
  • the two parts of the male member are assembled together, e.g., in a factory before sale of the eartag, so that the user has a two part tag which can be applied to the animal, in a single operation, in the known way using pliers.
  • the pilers can engage this end so that the spike is held at the required angle for application.
  • this end may have any shape (provided it is not spherical or cylindrical centered on the centre of the cavity) so long as the pliers are cooperatively shaped.
  • the end of the spike most conveniently however is flatin a plane at right angles to the axis of the spike or has a recess engaged by a projection on the pliers.
  • the male tab and female member rotate relative to one another about the spike axis but also limited pivotal movement in planes transverse to this axis is permitted by the universal joint so further facilitating the ease with which the eartag disengages from wire or other snags.
  • the spike and the female member are both made of hard plastics material. This is to ensure that these parts can cooperate to punch the hole in the ear and to be cooperatively interengaged in a single operation.
  • hard plastics material is used to define a material suitable for this purpose. Such materials are well known to manufacturers of eartags, typically a moulded nylon is employed. It will be appreciated that all plastics materials have some resilience; for the present purposes, the spike and the female member are made of material which is as stiff as possible commensurate with avoiding brittleness and permitting the two parts to engage one another by forcing the pointed tip into the aperture. It becomes impossible to separate the two parts without cutting or breaking one of them. The dimensioning of the aperture and spike and the choice of material can thus follow known practice.
  • the male tab portion is also conveniently made of the same hard plastics material.
  • the part spherical end on the spike and the cooperating cavity in the male tab portion are preferably formed so that the end of the spike can be forced into the cavity by reason of the resilience of the material and is retained therein.
  • the female member may be a tab, e.g., a plate of uniform thickness. Preferably such a plate has a thickened portion around the aperture to provide a firm cutting edge for punching the hole in the ear.
  • Other shapes of female member however may be employed and one convenient form is star-shaped, for example, a threepointed star.
  • the aperture may extend completely through the female member so that the head of the spike with the pointed tip protrudes beyond the surface of the female member.
  • the female member may be shaped to have a cavity enclosing this head, the head being retained by the aperture forming the mouth of the cavity.
  • Identification characters may be marked on the tab or tabs.
  • the tabs may be shaped in any or a number of forms.
  • the spike and the aperture are preferably arranged in a comer or at one end of the respective tabs.
  • one or each tab may be elongate with substantially parallel sides and rounded or partly rounded ends.
  • one or each tab is of elongate form with a maximum width nearer one end than the other and with the spike or aperture on the longitudinal axis between the position of maximum width and the nearer end.
  • Such a tab may be symmetrical about the longitudinal axis and may have straight sides converging from the position of maximum width towards the further end, these sides merging in smooth curves to the end.
  • one or each tab may be pentagonal, e.g., in the form of a regular pentagon with the spike or aperture near one apex.
  • the two tabs may be of the same or different shapes and may be of the same or different sizes.
  • the tab for the male portion conveniently is a plate with a thickened part in which the part spherical cavity is formed. This cavity may have furrows in its surface to allow any trapped hairs to get out of the way.
  • FIG. 1 is a perspective view of one form of an eartag
  • FIG. 2 is an exploded view of the eartag of FIG. 1;
  • FIG. 3 is a cross-section of the eartag of FIG. 1;
  • FIGS. 4 and 5 are views similar to FIGS. 2 and 3 but of another form of eartag.
  • the end 15 is therefore a close fit within the cavity 14; the dimensions are such that the end 15 can be forced into the cavity due to the resilience of the material and will be retained therein. Removal is not possible in normal usage and would require cutting or breaking of the tab 10.
  • the fit of the end 15 in cavity 14 is such however that the two parts can move relatively to one another quite freely.
  • Furrows may be provided in the surface of the cavity to allow any hairs which might be trapped between the end 15 and the wall of the cavity 14, owing to relative movement of the parts, to get out of the way of the end 15 and so pull out of the cavity.
  • the spike is also formed of hard moulded nylon and has a cylindrical shank 16. On the end of the shank opposite to the part spherical end 15, is a short cylindrical portion 17 of larger diameter than the shank terminated in a pointed conical tip 18. The cylindrical portion strengthens the tip and forms, at the junction between the conical portion 18 and the cylindrical portion 17, an edge 19 which cooperates with an aperture 20 in the female tab 12 for punching the hole in the animals ear.
  • the female tab 12 is also in the form of a flat plate. It may be shaped, in plan, to be similar to the male portion or it may be of different shape. As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the aperture in this embodiment is spaced away from the centre of tab which is elongate in form with one curved end.
  • the tab is preferably made symmetrical about a longitudinal axis and the widest portion is preferably made to be across a line at right angles to the longitudinal axis, the aperture being located in the longitudinal axis between this line and that end of the axis which is nearer this line.
  • a strengthening boss 21 is formed around the aperture.
  • the part spherical end 15 is terminated in a flat portion 22 which, when the spike axis is normal to the plane of the tab portion 10, lies flush with the outer surface of the tab.
  • This construction is for use with pliers having a flat jaw face so that the pressure of the jaw face on the tab and spike causes the spike to assume and keep the required direction with its axis normal to the plane of the tab when the eartag is being applied to the animal.
  • Other shapes may be used for this end surface 22 of the spike provided the jaw of the pliers is cooperatively shaped. It may, for example, be preferred to have a projection on the jaw of the pliers engaging in a correspondingly shaped recess in the end of the spike.
  • Both tab portions 10 and 12 in the regions remote from the spike and aperture may be made very thin provided the material is tough and not brittle. These portions can be made so thin that they are flexible under manual pressure thus providing yet a further advantage in enabling them to pull clear of snags.
  • FIGS. 4 and 5 illustrate a modification of the construction of FIGS. 1 to 3.
  • the spike 11 and male tab 10 of FIGS. 4 and 5 are the same as the corresponding parts of FIGS. 1 to 3, but the female member 30 is starshaped being formed as a plate of uniform thickness and of approximately triangular form with each side edge formed of two straight portions at an obtuse angle to one another.
  • the center of the member 30 has a thickened boss 31 with an aperture 32 similar to the boss 21 and aperture of the construction of FIGS. 1 to 3.
  • the corners of the member 30 are made blunt by thickened portions 30. It will be seen that the shaping of the member 30 is such that it will, if caught in a wire or snag, pull clear easily, rotating if necessary on the spike to facilitate disengagement from the wire or snag.
  • An animal identification eartag comprising a male member having a tab and spike and a female member of hard plastics material with an aperture for receiving the head of the spike, the male member being formed in two parts, one part being the spike which is of hard plastics material and the other part being the tab portion having two substantially planar faces, the spike at one end having a head with a pointed tip which head is of larger cross-section than the shank of the spike to form a shoulder between the head and the shank of the spike, the aperture in the female member being slightly smaller than the size of the head with the pointed tip such that the head can be forced through by the resilience of the plastics material so as to be retained thereon after the shoulder has passed through the aperture, the male member tab having a part spherical cavity and the spike, at its other end, having a part spherical portion which is retained within said part spherical cavity in the male member tab, which cavity is open on both faces of the tab whereby the end of the spike within or protruding from the cavity is exposed.
  • An eartag as claimed in claim 5 wherein at least one of the tabs is of elongate form with a maximum width nearer one end than the other and with the spike or aperture on the longitudinal axis between the position of maximum width and the nearer end.
  • An eartag as claimed in claim 10 wherein at least one of the tabs is symmetrical about the longitudinal axis and has straight sides converging from the position of maximum width towards the further end, these sides merging in smooth curves to the end.
  • an animal identification eartag comprising a male member of plastics material with a tab portion and an upstanding pointed spike and a female member having an aperture, the spike at its pointed end having a head portion with a shoulder which is forcible through said aperture to secure the male and female members together; the improvement comprising the provision in said male member of a part spherical cavity and the provision of a part spherical head on said spike at the end remote from the point, the partspherical head and the cavity being cooperatively shaped with the cavity partially embracing the head to form a universal joint holding the spike on the tab, said cavity being open on both faces of the tab.

Landscapes

  • Life Sciences & Earth Sciences (AREA)
  • Environmental Sciences (AREA)
  • Birds (AREA)
  • Zoology (AREA)
  • Animal Husbandry (AREA)
  • Biodiversity & Conservation Biology (AREA)
  • Orthopedics, Nursing, And Contraception (AREA)
  • Clips For Writing Implements (AREA)
  • Toys (AREA)
  • Catching Or Destruction (AREA)
  • Housing For Livestock And Birds (AREA)
  • Adornments (AREA)
  • Coating Apparatus (AREA)
US00355457A 1972-05-08 1973-04-30 Eartags Expired - Lifetime US3826030A (en)

Applications Claiming Priority (1)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
GB2144072A GB1372769A (en) 1972-05-08 1972-05-08 Eartags

Publications (1)

Publication Number Publication Date
US3826030A true US3826030A (en) 1974-07-30

Family

ID=10162996

Family Applications (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
US00355457A Expired - Lifetime US3826030A (en) 1972-05-08 1973-04-30 Eartags

Country Status (16)

Country Link
US (1) US3826030A (de)
JP (1) JPS527319B2 (de)
AT (1) AT322899B (de)
AU (1) AU468839B2 (de)
BE (1) BE799173A (de)
CA (1) CA991850A (de)
CH (1) CH547601A (de)
DE (1) DE7317050U (de)
DK (1) DK143481C (de)
FR (1) FR2183889B1 (de)
GB (1) GB1372769A (de)
IE (1) IE37583B1 (de)
IT (1) IT987164B (de)
NL (1) NL160148C (de)
SE (1) SE390785B (de)
ZA (1) ZA732966B (de)

Cited By (16)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US4721064A (en) * 1985-01-17 1988-01-26 Gencorp Inc. Animal ear tag
US4878302A (en) * 1987-08-13 1989-11-07 Itw New Zealand Limited Identification tag
US4958452A (en) * 1989-09-27 1990-09-25 Zoecon Corporation Animal identification ear tag assembly
US5308351A (en) * 1989-07-11 1994-05-03 Caisley International Gmbh Ear tag
US6055752A (en) * 1998-07-02 2000-05-02 Ritchey; Eugene B. Ear tag with locking member for multi-purpose storage
US6095915A (en) * 1998-02-09 2000-08-01 Destron Fearing Corporation Premise identification system
WO2000063869A1 (en) * 1999-04-19 2000-10-26 Ampro Security label suitable for presentation purposes and the use of such label
US6145225A (en) * 1998-07-02 2000-11-14 Ritchey; Eugene B. Animal ear tag assembly and component locking member
US6497062B1 (en) 2000-09-22 2002-12-24 Gene T. Koopman Identification tag
US20040116940A1 (en) * 2001-02-21 2004-06-17 Gottfried Brem Device for marking livestock and simultaneously taking tissue samples
US20040194358A1 (en) * 2002-05-29 2004-10-07 Volk Daniel J. Combined animal information tag and system
US8398652B2 (en) 2010-04-29 2013-03-19 Ritchey Manufacturing, Inc. Ear tag installation tool and method
US8486088B2 (en) 2010-04-29 2013-07-16 Ritchey Manufacturing, Inc. Ear tag installation tool and method
US20140083367A1 (en) * 2012-09-24 2014-03-27 Y-Tex Corporation Insecticide strip and combination with identification ear tag
USD815679S1 (en) * 2012-02-03 2018-04-17 Really Right Stuff, Llc Stiletto for tripod
USD853664S1 (en) * 2017-08-30 2019-07-09 Craig E. Ritchey Ear tag component

Families Citing this family (8)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
IE42176B1 (en) * 1974-11-19 1980-06-18 Dalton Rototag Ltd Improvements in or relating to eartags
EP0031227A1 (de) * 1979-12-12 1981-07-01 Roy Caisley Ohrmarke zum Identifizieren
GB2119319B (en) * 1982-04-20 1986-07-30 Albo Tierzuchtgeraete Ear tag and pliers
US4741117A (en) * 1986-10-23 1988-05-03 Fearing Manufacturing Co., Inc. Animal ear tag
US5228224A (en) * 1988-09-21 1993-07-20 Gardner Michael S Stand-alone ear tag
US5983540A (en) * 1997-05-02 1999-11-16 Ashley; Roger D. Method and tagging system for marking and identifying birds
US6840195B1 (en) 2002-04-06 2005-01-11 Roger D. Ashley Avian medicament or pest control product and method
JP4498013B2 (ja) * 2004-05-28 2010-07-07 サージミヤワキ株式会社 動物用の個体識別具及びこの個体識別具を使用した動物管理方法

Citations (3)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US3214856A (en) * 1965-03-19 1965-11-02 Brierley Cuthbert Eartags
US3260007A (en) * 1965-01-14 1966-07-12 Norman J Hayes Animal tags
US3503148A (en) * 1968-03-18 1970-03-31 Dana Co C H Animal marker

Patent Citations (3)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US3260007A (en) * 1965-01-14 1966-07-12 Norman J Hayes Animal tags
US3214856A (en) * 1965-03-19 1965-11-02 Brierley Cuthbert Eartags
US3503148A (en) * 1968-03-18 1970-03-31 Dana Co C H Animal marker

Cited By (20)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US4721064A (en) * 1985-01-17 1988-01-26 Gencorp Inc. Animal ear tag
US4878302A (en) * 1987-08-13 1989-11-07 Itw New Zealand Limited Identification tag
US5308351A (en) * 1989-07-11 1994-05-03 Caisley International Gmbh Ear tag
US4958452A (en) * 1989-09-27 1990-09-25 Zoecon Corporation Animal identification ear tag assembly
US6095915A (en) * 1998-02-09 2000-08-01 Destron Fearing Corporation Premise identification system
US6055752A (en) * 1998-07-02 2000-05-02 Ritchey; Eugene B. Ear tag with locking member for multi-purpose storage
US6145225A (en) * 1998-07-02 2000-11-14 Ritchey; Eugene B. Animal ear tag assembly and component locking member
WO2000063869A1 (en) * 1999-04-19 2000-10-26 Ampro Security label suitable for presentation purposes and the use of such label
US6497062B1 (en) 2000-09-22 2002-12-24 Gene T. Koopman Identification tag
US20040116940A1 (en) * 2001-02-21 2004-06-17 Gottfried Brem Device for marking livestock and simultaneously taking tissue samples
US20040194358A1 (en) * 2002-05-29 2004-10-07 Volk Daniel J. Combined animal information tag and system
US6907684B2 (en) 2002-05-29 2005-06-21 Volk Enterprises, Inc. Supplemental animal information tag
US7146757B2 (en) 2002-05-29 2006-12-12 Volk Enterprises, Inc. Combined animal information tag and system
US8398652B2 (en) 2010-04-29 2013-03-19 Ritchey Manufacturing, Inc. Ear tag installation tool and method
US8486088B2 (en) 2010-04-29 2013-07-16 Ritchey Manufacturing, Inc. Ear tag installation tool and method
USD815679S1 (en) * 2012-02-03 2018-04-17 Really Right Stuff, Llc Stiletto for tripod
US20140083367A1 (en) * 2012-09-24 2014-03-27 Y-Tex Corporation Insecticide strip and combination with identification ear tag
US8985059B2 (en) * 2012-09-24 2015-03-24 Y-Tex Corporation Insecticide strip and combination with identification ear tag
US9572324B2 (en) 2012-09-24 2017-02-21 Y-Tex Corporation Insecticide strip and combination with identification ear tag
USD853664S1 (en) * 2017-08-30 2019-07-09 Craig E. Ritchey Ear tag component

Also Published As

Publication number Publication date
IE37583B1 (en) 1977-08-31
IT987164B (it) 1975-02-20
DE2322855B2 (de) 1975-06-12
CA991850A (en) 1976-06-29
ZA732966B (en) 1974-06-26
SE390785B (sv) 1977-01-24
FR2183889A1 (de) 1973-12-21
CH547601A (de) 1974-04-11
AU468839B2 (en) 1976-01-22
DE2322855A1 (de) 1973-11-29
NL160148B (nl) 1979-05-15
AU5531273A (en) 1974-11-07
NL160148C (nl) 1979-10-15
JPS4970599A (de) 1974-07-08
JPS527319B2 (de) 1977-03-01
NL7306356A (de) 1973-11-12
DK143481C (da) 1982-01-11
IE37583L (en) 1973-11-08
DK143481B (da) 1981-08-31
DE7317050U (de) 1984-06-14
GB1372769A (en) 1974-11-06
FR2183889B1 (de) 1976-05-28
AT322899B (de) 1975-06-10
BE799173A (fr) 1973-08-31

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