WO2005006857A2

WO2005006857A2 - Bait box

Info

Publication number: WO2005006857A2
Application number: PCT/GB2004/002967
Authority: WO
Inventors: Paul Hoyes
Original assignee: Killgerm Chemicals Limited
Priority date: 2003-07-15
Filing date: 2004-07-08
Publication date: 2005-01-27
Also published as: EP1643831A2; GB0316522D0; WO2005006857A3

Abstract

A bait box (10) has a housing (11) and a lid (12) which can be secured to the housing (11). The lid (12) can be moved between a locked and closed position and an unlocked and open position, relative to the housing (11). The lid (12) and housing (11) provide between them at least one loop member (25) and at least one hook (24) which define a locking means. The at least one hook (24) can engage the at least one loop member (25) to secure the lid (12) in the locked and closed position. The housing (11) and lid (12) provide between them an elongate member (18) and at least one sustantially u-shaped member (20), the u-shaped member (20) being adapted to receive the elongate member (18) to define a hinge.

Description

BAIT BOX

The present invention relates to bait boxes, in particular bait boxes for rodents.

Existing bait boxes normally consist of a lid which is hingedly connected to a base or housing by a live hinge. The lid and housing are conventionally moulded from plastic to form a unitary or integral item. This structure requires the bait box to be made from a material which is flexible enough to enable the lid to be hinged relative to the housing. Thus, the range of materials which can be adopted is rather limited. The standard material used is polypropylene which although sufficient for use in many environments can be easily damaged if subject to heavy objects falling on it.

In use, the lid is normally locked to the housing. The conventional method for locking the lid to the housing is by means of flexible tangs which project from the underside of the lid. These tangs usually have a hook portion which can be secured under a ledge on an interior wall of the housing. This provides a reasonable locking mechanism. However, if the box is subject to accidental knocks, such as a falling object, the hooks can slip out of contact with the ledge. This can result in the lid moving to an open position. This is undesirable as bait containing poison can then be accessed.

The present invention seeks to address the drawbacks of the prior art discussed above.

According to a first aspect of the invention there is provided a bait box comprising: a housing; a lid separable from but securable to the housing, in which when the lid is secured to the housing it can be moved between a closed position and an open position relative to the housing, the housing and lid providing between them an elongate member and at least one substantially u-shaped member, the u-shaped member being adapted to receive the elongate member to define a hinge such that the lid can pivot about the longitudinal axis of the elongate member between the open and closed positions. In a servicing environment, this arrangement is advantageous in allowing an operator to detach the lid from the housing for cleaning and for recording data (eg on its inner surface).

A separable but hinged lid enables the lid and housing to be made from a wider range of materials than is currently used in existing bait boxes.

Preferably the lid is separable from the housing only in the substantially fully open position. Particularly preferably the lid is separable from the housing only in a position relative to the housing of about 180° or more.

Preferably, the elongate member is supported by, and extends between, two arms mounted to a surrounding wall of the housing. Conveniently, the lid includes the at least one substantially u- shaped member. In preferred embodiments, the lid comprises two or more u-shaped members.

In preferred embodiments, the housing and lid provide between them locating means which secures the lid to the housing as the lid in moved between the open and closed positions. The locating means may take the form of first recesses or projections on the arms and second projections or recesses on the lid.

In a further aspect of the invention there is provided a bait box comprising: a housing; a lid which can be secured to the housing, and which can be moved between a locked and closed position and an unlocked and open position relative to the housing, the lid and housing providing between them at least one loop member and at least one hook which define a locking means, in which the at least one hook can engage the at least one loop member to secure the lid in the locked and closed position.

Use of a hook and loop provides a more secure locking means than that used in conventional bait boxes. As the hook engages a loop rather than a projecting ledge on a wall of the housing it is less likely to be disengaged. In certain embodiments, the at least one loop member projects from an internal floor of the housing or the underside of the lid. The at least one hook may project from an internal floor of the housing or the underside of the lid.

Preferably the at least one loop member projects from an internal floor of the housing and the at least one hook projects from an underside of the lid.

Preferably, the bait box includes two or more loop members and two or more hooks. The or each loop member may be a substantially rectangular-shaped arch having a crossbar. The or each hook may be a finger terminating at its free end in a claw. Preferably the claw includes a flattened portion which engages the loop (eg the crossbar).

Preferably the at least one hook engages the at least one loop member longitudinally (ie along the main longitudinal axis in the bait box).

In preferred embodiments, the at least one loop member is remote (ie disposed away) from a surrounding wall of the housing. The at least one hook may be remote (ie disposed away) from a surrounding wall of the housing. Providing free-standing loops and associated hooks located away from the surrounding wall allows the hook portion to be secured firmly under the loop member without interference from the surrounding wall.

The (or each) hook may be a resilient hook with a bias towards engaging the (or each) loop member when the lid is in the closed position. Alternatively and preferably the (or each) loop member is a resilient loop member with a bias towards engaging the (or each) hook when the lid is in the closed position. In this way, the lid (in the closed position) has a tendency towards the locked and closed position from an unlocked and closed position.

Preferably the at least one hook can be accessed through one or more apertures in a surrounding wall of the housing such that the hook can be disengaged from the at least one loop member. Access may be manual or mechanical (eg using a key). Providing side-accessed locks prevents debris which falls on to the bait box building up in the apertures. The housing is generally internally compartmentalised. For this purpose, a series of baffles may for example define a plurality of compartments including a feeding compartment. Preferably one or more baffles are disposed to permit access of a rodent or the like into the feeding compartment but to prevent access of human fingers. The feeding compartment may be lined with a disposable liner which is readily replaced for repeated usage. The liner may be a vacuum formed liner.

The lid and housing may be made from one or more of a nylon material, Zytel (TM), glass- filled nylon or polypropylene.

The bait box is preferably adapted to be secured to a fixed surface in a tamper-resistance manner. For this purpose, the bait box further comprises a base member which can be secured to a support surface. A preferred base member is disclosed in WO-A-03/045138.

An embodiment of the present invention will now be illustrated by way of example only in the following figures in which:

Figure 1 shows a perspective view from above of a bait box of the present invention in a closed position;

Figure 2 shows the bait box of Figure 1 in a partially open position;

Figures 3A, 3B, and 3C show respectively a plan view from above, a side view and an end view of a housing of the bait box;

Figures 4A, 4B, and 4C show respectively a plan view from above, a side view and an end view of a lid of the bait box;

Figure 5 is a detailed view of the locking means between the lid and the housing; and

Figure 6 is a detailed view of the hinge between the lid and the housing. The bait box (10) shown in Figures 1 to 6 consists of a housing (11) and a lid (12) connected to the housing (11) by a hinge (13). The housing (11) has a floor (14) connected to a surrounding wall (15). The surrounding wall (15) has a pair of entrance holes (16, 17) through which small rodents can enter the bait box.

The hinge (13) is formed by an elongate member (18) which is supported by two arms (19) connected to one side of the surrounding wall (15), and a u-shaped member (20) which projects from one edge of the lid (12). The u-shaped member (20) can be clipped over the elongate member (18) to form the hinge (13). This is best illustrated in Figure 6. The u-shaped member (20) has a pair of projections (21) which can be received in corresponding recesses (22) located on the arms (19) to form a locating means for the hinge (13). Thus, as the lid (12) is moved between an open and closed position, as shown in Figure 2, it remains secured in position as it is pivoted about the elongate member (18) relative to the housing (11).

The bait box (10) also includes a locking means (23) indicated generally in Figures 2 and 5. In the embodiment shown in these figures the locking means (23) consists of a pair of hooks (24) which are formed as part of the underside of the lid (12) and a pair of loop members (25) which project upwardly from the floor (14) of the housing (11). The hooks (24) each take the form of a finger (26) which terminates at a free end with a claw (27). The loop members (25) take the form of arches having a crossbar (28). The claws (27) include a flattened portion (29) which can be engaged under the crossbar (28) to secure the lid (12) in a locked position relative to the housing (11). One of the side walls (30) of the surrounding wall (15) is provided with a pair of apertures (31). The apertures (31) allow the claws (27) to be accessed when the lid (12) is in the locked position. A key (not shown) can be inserted into the apertures (31) to force the claws (27) out of engagement with the looped member (25).

Rodents are attracted into the bait box (10) by blocks of bait of variable sizes which sit in bait receiving frames (32). The bait (not shown) is normally laced with a rodenticide which is ingested by the rodent. In most cases the rodenticide is arranged to kill the rodent up to several days after ingestion/exposure therefore the death of the animal in most cases occurs outside the bait box. Baffles (33) define a gap (34) which allows the rodent to pass into the feeding area but prevent people, in particular children, from gaining access to the bait if fingers are poked in to the bait box via the entrance holes (16, 17).

Claims

Claims:

1. A bait box comprising: a housing; a lid separable from but securable to the housing, in which when the lid is secured to the housing it can be moved between a closed position and an open position relative to the housing, the housing and lid providing between them an elongate member and at least one substantially u-shaped member, the u-shaped member being adapted to receive the elongate member to define a hinge such that the lid can pivot about the longitudinal axis of the elongate member between the open and closed positions.

2. A bait box as claimed in claim 1 in which the elongate member is supported by, and extends between, two arms mounted to a surrounding wall of the housing.

3. A bait box as claimed in claim 1 or 2 in which the lid includes the at least one substantially u-shaped member.

4. A bait box as claimed in any of claims 1 to 3 in which the housing and lid providing between them locating means which secures the lid to the housing as the lid in moved between the open and closed positions.

5. A bait box as claimed in any of claims 1 to 4 wherein the lid is separable from the housing only in the substantially fully open position.

6. A bait box as claimed in any of claims 1 to 5 wherein the lid is separable from the housing only in a position relative to the housing of about 180° or more.

7. A bait box comprising: a housing; a lid which can be secured to the housing and which can be moved between a locked and closed position and an unlocked and open position relative to the housing, the lid and housing providing between them at least one loop member and at least one hook which define a locking means, in which the at least one hook can engage the at least one loop member to secure the lid in the locked and closed position.

8. A bait box as claimed in claim 7 in which the at least one loop member projects from an internal floor of the housing.

9. A bait box as claimed in claim 7 or 8 in which the at least one hook projects from an underside of the lid.

10. A bait box as claimed in any of claims 7 to 9 in which the at least one loop member is disposed away from a surrounding wall of the housing.

11. A bait box as claimed in any of claims 7 to 10 in which the at least one hook can be accessed through one or more apertures in a surrounding wall of the housing such that the hook can be disengaged from the at least one loop member.

12. A bait box as claimed in any of claims 7 to 11 wherein the (or each) loop member is a resilient loop member with a bias towards engaging the (or each) hook when the lid is in the closed position.