Classifications

• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A01—AGRICULTURE; FORESTRY; ANIMAL HUSBANDRY; HUNTING; TRAPPING; FISHING
  • A01M—CATCHING, TRAPPING OR SCARING OF ANIMALS; APPARATUS FOR THE DESTRUCTION OF NOXIOUS ANIMALS OR NOXIOUS PLANTS
  • A01M23/00—Traps for animals
• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A01—AGRICULTURE; FORESTRY; ANIMAL HUSBANDRY; HUNTING; TRAPPING; FISHING
  • A01M—CATCHING, TRAPPING OR SCARING OF ANIMALS; APPARATUS FOR THE DESTRUCTION OF NOXIOUS ANIMALS OR NOXIOUS PLANTS
  • A01M23/00—Traps for animals
  • A01M23/16—Box traps
  • A01M23/20—Box traps with dropping doors or slides
• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A01—AGRICULTURE; FORESTRY; ANIMAL HUSBANDRY; HUNTING; TRAPPING; FISHING
  • A01M—CATCHING, TRAPPING OR SCARING OF ANIMALS; APPARATUS FOR THE DESTRUCTION OF NOXIOUS ANIMALS OR NOXIOUS PLANTS
  • A01M23/00—Traps for animals
  • A01M23/02—Collecting-traps
  • A01M23/04—Collecting-traps with tipping platforms
  • A01M23/06—Collecting-traps with tipping platforms with locking mechanism for the tipping platform
• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A01—AGRICULTURE; FORESTRY; ANIMAL HUSBANDRY; HUNTING; TRAPPING; FISHING
  • A01M—CATCHING, TRAPPING OR SCARING OF ANIMALS; APPARATUS FOR THE DESTRUCTION OF NOXIOUS ANIMALS OR NOXIOUS PLANTS
  • A01M23/00—Traps for animals
  • A01M23/16—Box traps
  • A01M23/18—Box traps with pivoted closure flaps

Definitions

• the present invention relates generally to animal traps and more specifically, to traps particularly suitable for catching mice, rats, gophers and other small rodents in a disposable container which may be readily discarded after its use and without requiring exposure of the trapped rodent.
• the art of animal traps is old and many different trap configurations have been designed in an attempt to provide a reliable and inexpensive device for capturing and disposing of small animals such as mice and other rodents.
• the most common mousetrap of current use is the well-known bait spring device which has achieved commercial success primarily because it is of simple design and relatively low cost.
• the bait loaded spring-type mousetrap is disadvantageous in a number of respects.
• One such disadvantage is the possibility of injury to the user in setting the trap if a spring loaded bar designed to kill the rodent is inadvertently released while fingers or other human body parts are in the way. The risk of injury is especially high to young children or household pets whose curiosity gets the better of them.
• Another significant disadvantage to the conventional low-cost mousetrap is the distastefulness of having to observe or even clean up the blood or other parts of the rodent that has been caught and killed by the trap.
• the patent to Pease et al discloses an animal trap including a tube that is tapered so that the greater weight of the body lies near the open end which may be closed by a gate which is adapted for vertical motion within a pair of vertical sills. When the animal runs into the trap, the animals weight unbalances the trap towards the rear causing the gate to close trapping the animal inside.
• a similar concept is disclosed in the Reich patent in which an animal trap in the form of a mailbox-shaped tube is again adapted to rotate about a foot which is integral and at right angles to a door. When the weight of the animal forces the tube to rotate rearwardly about the foot, the foot collapses forward thereby closing the door.
• a forwardly positioned plate assures that the initial weight of the trap is such that the trap will be inclined towards the forward portion thereof until the animal enters the trap.
• Still another disclosure of a device that uses a similar concept is shown in the patent to Schmuck in which a rectangular tube is again balanced on a V- shaped fulcrum support. The open end of the tube is initially inclined downwardly and includes a door or closure which is designed to lower automatically within a pair of parallel slots when the weight of the animal forces the rearward portion of the tube to be lowered and the forward open portion of the tube to be raised. It can be seen that all of the aforementioned prior art patents disclose animal traps which attempt to overcome the aforementioned deficiencies of the spring loaded conventional trap.
• the patented devices result in additional disadvantages which render them commercially undesirable for providing substitutes for the inexpensive conventional trap described above.
• the door closing mechanism is far too complex and unreliable thereby reducing the probability of trapping the animal.
• each such device is of a generally complex configuration which is not conducive to low cost manufacturing techniques and which therefore cannot be produced at a cost which would permit them to be competitive in the marketplace as compared to the aforementioned conventional spring loaded devices.
• the present invention overcomes the aforementioned disadvantages of the prior art by providing a trap of a uniform integral container configuration which is specifically designed to be manufactured by low cost techniques such as plastic molding and like, which is reliable in its operations and free of any risk of injury to the user. Furthermore, the present invention uses an integral type door which is of simple and reliable configuration and which is configured to merely swing shut to trap the animal that has entered the invention.
• the aforementioned integral swinging door and the novel shape of the container are the principal unique features of a first embodiment of the present invention.
• the container of a first embodiment of the present invention is formed of two integrated substantially rectangular, cylindrical compartments angled with respect to one another whereby the weight of the rodent entering the rear-most portion of the container activates closure of the door thereby trapping the rodent within the container.
• the container of the present invention comprises a unitary smooth surface device without pivots or feet or other affixed or odd shaped structures which would otherwise add to the complexity and cost of the device.
• a second embodiment of the invention uses a principle of operation similar to the aforementioned first embodiment, but it is configured with a stationary exterior housing for use in connection where motion of the housing may not be practical or desirable.
• FIG. 1 is a three-dimensional view of one configuration of a first embodiment of the invention
• FIG. 2 is a side view of the FIG. 1 configuration of the invention
• FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional side view of the FIG. 1 configuration of the invention shown set for trapping a rodent;
• FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional side view of the FIG. 1 configuration of the invention illustrating the manner in which the invention operates;
• FIG. 5 is a three-dimensional view of a second configuration of the first embodiment of the invention;
• FIG. 6 is a side view of the FIG. 5 configuration of the invention utilizing an alternative door structure
• FIG. 7 is a side view of the FIG. 5 configuration of the invention showing the manner in which the alternative door structure may be utilized;
• FIG. 8 is a bottom view of the FIG. 5 configuration of * the invention illustrating the manner in which the preferred door configuration operates;
• FIG. 9 is a side view of a third configuration of the first embodiment of the invention.
• FIG. 10 is a three-dimensional view of a second embodiment of the invention.
• FIGs. 11 to 14 are exterior side, front, top and rear views of the second embodiment, respectively;
• FIGs. 15, 16 and 17 are cross-sectional side views of the second embodiment illustrating the interior and method of operation thereof;
• FIGs. 18 and 19 provide side and three-dimensional views, respectively, of an alternative configuration of the second embodiment of the invention.
• the rodent trap 10 of the present invention comprises a container 12 enclosed on all sides by a roof 14, a pair of elongated sides 16, a rear wall 18, bottom surfaces 20 and 22 and a door 24 which selectively closes an opening 25 into the container.
• Container 12 is preferably made of a smooth lightweight plastic of about 1/16 of an inch in thickness and preferably at least partially translucent.
• the bottom surfaces 20 and 22 form an obtuse angle relative to one another of about 160 degrees, although, as will be seen hereinafter, the operation of the present invention may be quite suitable when the angle between the surfaces 20 and 22 is even somewhat greater and certainly when it is less than 160 degrees.
• the range of preferable angles is 140 degrees to 170 degrees.
• the top of the container or roof 14 is preferably configured to be other than flat such as the partially circular or curved roof line 14 of FIG. 1 of a first embodiment of the invention or in the alternative, of a triangular roof line configuration 44 of an alternative configuration of the first embodiment of the invention to be discussed hereinafter in conjunction with FIG. 5.
• the roof line in the embodiments herein illustrated is generally parallel to the corresponding bottom surface 20 and 22 along the length of container 12, it will be seen that the roof line could be readily configured to have a uniform profile defining a straight line between the rear wall 18 and the area immediately adjacent door 24.
• door 24 is of a substantially rectangular configuration designed to entirely enclose the opening 25 of container 12 when the door is in its closed configuration.
• Door 24 is preferably attached by means of a hinge to the container 12 adjacent a flat 38 which is formed between termination of the roof 14 and the hinge 36.
• door 24 would preferably be made of the same material as the remaining portions of container 12 and, preferably, be formed in the same molding or extruding process wherein the hinge is provided in the form of a stressed line or depression at the intersection of door 24 and a flat 38 whereby to permit door 24 to swing between its open and closed position relative to container 12 while being integral thereto.
• Door 24 extends from hinge 36 toward the bottom surface 22. It is preferably of sufficient length to extend slightly beyond the surface 22 as seen best in FIG. 2.
• the door 24 is provided with a latch 26 which terminates in a perpendicularly configured hook 28 as seen best in FIGs. 3 and 4.
• the bottom -surface 22 of container 12 is provided with an aperture 30 suitably positioned in the bottom surface to receive the hook 28 when the door is fully closed.
• Hook 28 and aperture 30 act together tb provide a means for securing the door in its closed position after the trap has been actuated by a rodent entering the trap.
• An alternative or additional form of securing door 24 in its closed configuration may be provided in the form of a magnet 32 suitably affixed adjacent the opening 25 on the inside of the container 12 such as by being glued to the interior side of surface 22.
• trap 10 of the present invention is preferably provided with a suitable form of bait 34 in the form of either a piece of cheese or bacon or other similar food substance or chemical substitute particularly attractive to rodents and which preferably provides an odor which can be readily detected by rodents in the general area of the trap.
• .trap 10 of the present invention Operation of .trap 10 of the present invention may be understood by reference to FIGs. 3 and 4. More specifically, the trap 10 is set by placing it in the configuration as shown in FIG. 3 wherein the container 12 is positioned to allow it to rest on bottom surface 22 wherein the opening 25 is immediately adjacent the underlying support and the rear wall 18 is relatively elevated. In this position, the center of gravity is above bottom surface 22. Furthermore, the door 24 is placed in its opened configuration by swinging it outward from the opening 25 about hinges 36 so that door 24 may in effect rest against the underlying surface against which the latch 26 bears for supporting door 24 in its open configuration swung outwardly from the opening 25.
• the odor emanating from the bait 34 can only exit the trap 10 through opening 25 because of the otherwise substantially airtight integral relationship between the various surfaces of container 12.
• the odor attracts any nearby rodents to the container which may be carefully examined by the rodent before it decides to enter the trap.
• the material of which container 12 is manufactured is at least partially translucent particularly in the area adjacent the rear wall 18 so that the rodent may observe the location of the bait 34 contained within the trap 10 before it enters.
• the door 24 is swung away from the opening 25 whereby to permit virtually any rodent suitable for trapping within the container 12 to enter the opening 25 at first placing his weight on the bottom surface 22 from which location the rodent may more readily observe, smell and be attracted to the bait 34.
• the weight of the rodent Upon further entry into the container 12 and movement closer to the bait 34 to which the attention of the rodent has been directed, the weight of the rodent is transferred from bottom surface 22 to bottom surface 20. As a result, the weight of the rodent places a sufficient force against the bottom surface 20 of container 12 to rotate the container clockwise as seen in FIGs. 3 and 4 whereby to bring the bottom surface 20 in contact with the underlying support structure and at the same time elevate the bottom surface 22 along with the opening 25, the hinge 36 and the door 24. The rodent therefore shifts the center of gravity of the combination to a point above surface 20.
• the closed door configuration of the trap 10 alerts the user of the fact that the trap has been sprung and that a rodent is most likely contained therein.
• the user may of course open the door 24 and dispose of the rodent by allowing it to fall out of the trap 10.
• the present invention is, by means of its unique structure, configured to be manufactured at extremely low cost and therefore, may be preferably disposed of merely by discarding the entire trap including the rodent contained therein.
• the rodent of course will asphyxiate within the airtight trap within a matter of minutes after door 24 has closed.
• FIG. 5 One alternative configuration of the first embodiment of the present invention is illustrated in FIG. 5.
• the rodent trap 40 of FIG. 5 comprises a container 42 enclosed by an integral roof 44, a pair of elongated sides 48, a rear wall 50 and bottom surfaces 52 and 54.
• An opening 55 is secured by door 64 or alternatively, by an even more simply configured door 56 which is of planar configuration with no latch.
• the alternative configuration of the first embodiment of the invention illustrated in FIG. 5 is otherwise substantially equivalent to that illustrated in FIG. 1-4 with the exception of the roof configuration. More specifically, as seen in FIG. 5, the roof 44 of the present invention may be configured in the form of a triangular cross-section and be molded to exhibit a simulated shingle appearance to enhance the ornamental configuration of the trap and therefore, improve its marketability.
• the shingle roof configuration of the trap 40 of FIG. 5 may be provided with a termination plane 60 short of the opening 55 to provide convenient interconnection for a hinge 58 of the same type previously described as the first embodiment illustrated.
• Door 64 is again of substantially rectangular configuration and is provided with a latch 62 which operates in an identical manner to that of latch 26 described previously in conjunction with FIGs. 1-4. The relative configuration of latch 62 and therefore of identical latch 26 is illustrated best in FIG. 8.
• FIGs. 6 and 7 An alternative door configuration which can be used with the present invention is illustrated in FIGs. 6 and 7 wherein it is shown that a door 56 extends beyond the underlying bottom surface 54 which together with flat 60 and elongated sides 48 define the opening 55. Latchless door 56 may still be supported by the underlying surface when the trap is set as shown in FIG. 7 wherein the door 56 is of sufficient length to engage the underlying surface while still providing suitable access to opening 55 to provide entry to the trap 40 to the rodent. It will be understood that operation of the first embodiment of the trap 40, whether with the door 64 including latch 62 or the door 56 which does not employ a latch, is the same as that previously described for the configuration of the trap 10.
• the trap is set by opening door 64 and placing the trap in a configuration whereby bottom surface 54 is in contact with the underlying surface and whereby the bottom surface 52 and rear wall 50 are elevated.
• the trap 40 rotates clockwise thereby allowing door to swing freely into its closed position sealing the opening 55 and trapping the rodent.
• a flat top surface configuration having top surfaces 72 and 74 and bottom surfaces 76 and 78, is shown in FIG. 9. This configuration has the advantage of being an especially low cost illustration of the first embodiment of the invention.
• the second embodiment 80 of the present invention comprises a rectangular housing 81 which is defined by a top surface 82, a pair of elongated side walls 84 and 86, a rear surface 88 and a bottom surface 89.
• the remaining surface comprises a swingable hinged door 90 which in FIG. 10 is shown in its fully opened position and which in FIG. 17 is shown in its fully closed position.
• the door 90 is adapted to swing open and close about a hinge 91 as illustrated in FIG.
• the bottom surface 89 terminates adjacent the closed position of door 90 with a ramp 92 which is adapted to present a relatively smooth and encumbered appearing surface to a rodent contemplating entry of the trap 80.
• a tilt plate 93 which is a rectangular elongated plate having two surfaces oriented at an obtuse angle relative to one another, namely, entry surface 96 and activating surface 94.
• tilt plate 93 serves a function which is analogous to the bottom surfaces of the first embodiment of the invention illustrated in FIGs. 1 through 9.
• tilt plate 93 is provided with a fulcrum 95 of elongated cylindrical configuration which extends the full width of the housing 81 between side walls 84 and 86 and which is secured in that position by a pin 99 which extends into and through a pair of apertures 100 in the respective side walls 84 and 86.
• the tilt plate 93 is also provided with a trap plate 98 which is hinged to the entry surface 96 by means of a hinge 102 which is initially positioned immediately behind ramp 92 when the trap is configured for catching a rodent.
• the interior surface of bottom surface 89 is provided with a plurality of indentations
• FIGs. 15, 16 and 17 which as shown in FIGs. 15, 16 and 17 may be of triangular configuration and which extend along the entire width of bottom surface 89 between side walls 84 and 86.
• the indentations 97 are adapted to receive the end of trap plate 98 whereby to prevent tilt plate 93 from resuming its entry configuration after the rodent has been caught as will be hereinafter described.
• the operation of the second embodiment of the invention may be best understood by referring to FIGs. 16 and 17 in that sequence. More specifically, as seen in FIG.
• the trap 80 of the present invention is initially set and adapted for catching a rodent or other animal when the door 90 is in its fully open position and the tilt plate 93 is configured so that the activating surface 94 is elevated above the bottom surface 89 of the trap and the entry surface 96 is at its lower-most position substantially at the same level as the top of ramp 92. It will be understood that in this configuration, the trap plate 98 is fully folded about hinge 102 to be parallel and substantially contiguous with the entry surface 96 and in fact supports the entry surface so that it lies substantially parallel but spaced from the bottom surface 89 of the housing 81.
• the second embodiment of the invention illustrated in FIGs. 10 through 17 is of course adapted for trapping a variety of different animals including rodents but it has been found especially useful in trapping larger rodents such as gophers and rats.
• the door 90 of the second embodiment of the invention is shown in a configuration in FIGs. 10 through 17 which is provided for the sole purpose of allowing the user to selectively close the door in the event it is desired to asphyxiate the captured animal.
• door 90 is not used to actually capture the animal as that function is served by the combination of tilt plate 93 and trap plate 98.
• door 90 is available for closing to asphyxiate the animal if that is a desired result of capturing it.
• door 90 is shown in a configuration which requires manual closing of the trap for asphyxiating the animal, it will be understood that a variety of various interconnections may be provided between door 90 and tilt plate 93 or trap plate 98 in order to implement a means of closing door 90 automatically upon activation of tilt plate 93.
• trap 110 comprises an elongated, open-end tube 112 enclosed at one end by an end cap 114.
• End cap 114 is adapted to be slip fit or press fit over the otherwise open end of tube 112 opposite the entry end of the trap 110.
• the end cap may be optionally provided with an air passage 116 and a pair of tabs 118, the latter providing convenient means for applying pressure to the end cap for either engaging or disengaging the end cap from tube 112.
• End cap 114 provides two advantages, namely, permitting even lower cost manufacture of the trap and permitting access to the end of tube 112 opposite the entry opening for filling a bait tray 120.
• the activating surface of the tilt plate would preferably be provided with a recess 122 to accommodate bait tray 120.
• Lower cost manufacture is achieved by providing tube 112 as a plastic extrusion thereby requiring that only the end cap portion of the container be produced by plastic molding techniques.
• the present invention provides a reliable and safe rodent trap which is of sufficiently low cost configuration to be commercially competitive or even more attractive than conventional spring loaded rodent traps while providing a containerized trap which may be readily discarded, rodent and all.

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• Life Sciences & Earth Sciences (AREA)
• Pest Control & Pesticides (AREA)
• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Insects & Arthropods (AREA)
• Wood Science & Technology (AREA)
• Zoology (AREA)
• Environmental Sciences (AREA)
• Catching Or Destruction (AREA)
• Preparation Of Compounds By Using Micro-Organisms (AREA)

Priority Applications (1)

Applications Claiming Priority (4)

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Citations (9)

Family Cites Families (5)

• 1985
  • 1985-10-07 GB GB08524666A patent/GB2173085B/en not_active Expired
  • 1985-10-11 KR KR1019850007482A patent/KR890001060B1/ko not_active IP Right Cessation
  • 1985-10-15 IT IT22491/85A patent/IT1185439B/it active
  • 1985-10-15 IT IT8523420U patent/IT8523420V0/it unknown
  • 1985-10-22 DE DE19853537583 patent/DE3537583A1/de active Granted
  • 1985-10-23 NL NL8502887A patent/NL8502887A/nl unknown
  • 1985-11-28 CA CA000496467A patent/CA1260268A/en not_active Expired
  • 1985-11-30 CN CN85109141A patent/CN1006840B/zh not_active Expired
  • 1985-12-27 MX MX1113A patent/MX162431A/es unknown
• 1986
  • 1986-01-08 NZ NZ214763A patent/NZ214763A/en unknown
  • 1986-01-14 DK DK16986A patent/DK16986A/da not_active Application Discontinuation
  • 1986-01-16 GR GR860111A patent/GR860111B/el unknown
  • 1986-01-28 NO NO860313A patent/NO860313L/no unknown
  • 1986-02-06 BR BR8600535A patent/BR8600535A/pt unknown
  • 1986-02-07 FR FR868601720A patent/FR2579418B1/fr not_active Expired
  • 1986-02-26 ES ES1986296963U patent/ES296963Y/es not_active Expired
  • 1986-03-11 BE BE0/216393A patent/BE904388A/fr not_active IP Right Cessation
  • 1986-03-19 AU AU54903/86A patent/AU5490386A/en not_active Abandoned
  • 1986-03-26 SE SE8601400A patent/SE8601400L/ not_active Application Discontinuation
  • 1986-03-28 WO PCT/US1986/000638 patent/WO1986005656A1/en active Application Filing
  • 1986-03-31 MA MA20882A patent/MA20657A1/fr unknown
  • 1986-04-01 TN TNTNSN86049A patent/TNSN86049A1/fr unknown
  • 1986-12-01 FI FI864907A patent/FI864907A/fi not_active IP Right Cessation
• 1990
  • 1990-02-02 AU AU49090/90A patent/AU4909090A/en not_active Abandoned

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