WO2022053799A2

WO2022053799A2 - Toy for a pet

Info

Publication number: WO2022053799A2
Application number: PCT/GB2021/052315
Authority: WO
Inventors: Kieran Alexander THOMAS
Original assignee: Chillibongo Pets Ltd
Priority date: 2020-09-11
Filing date: 2021-09-08
Publication date: 2022-03-17
Also published as: GB202014317D0; GB2598766A; WO2022053799A3; GB2598766B

Abstract

A toy 10C for a pet comprises at least one end cap 12, a connecting element 16 and a wall element 22; the end cap 12 forming an open ended container for animal food, the connecting element retaining the wall element 22 in a position covering the open end of the end cap 12, the wall element 22 having at least one aperture for allowing food out of the end cap and a plurality of obstruction members 56 provided on the surface of the wall element for retaining a paste to be removed by licking.

Description

TOY FOR A PET

The present invention relates to a toy for a pet and particularly but not exclusively to a modular toy suitable for a dog.

BACKGROUND TO THE INVENTION

A pet owner will generally provide their pet, for example, a puppy with one or more toys to keep the puppy entertained and mentally stimulated. A problem of a pet toy, especially a toy for a puppy is that it may easily be broken by chewing and shaking, and may fail to keep the puppy occupied for more than a few minutes.

In order to improve stimulation provided by the toy, it is known to design the toy to hold a piece of food, providing a treat for the pet. A toy which holds a meal volume of food may be known as a slow feeder pet toy.

This certainly increases the duration that a pet plays with the toy, but in a recent survey of 220 respondents, 96% of respondents identified that their dogs finished using their slow feeder type toy within 5 minutes, and 63% of those respondents identified that their dogs finished using their slow feeder toy within two minutes. Typically, a dog would have reached any treat provided within the toy and eaten it within this time. 5 minutes is still a very short time for a pet to be occupied by a toy and the pet may be unlikely to be usefully stimulated in this short period of time.

One reason for the short duration of use of the toy is that current toys are generally of a singular level of difficulty for the pet to use. For example, the toy may comprise a board with a number of covers hiding one or more treats. Once a dog has worked out how to reveal the treats, it is a very simple and quick task to quickly reveal and eat all of the available treats. Another reason, is that the toy may not hold enough food.

Some toys are larger than others, allowing for a larger amount of food to be contained within the toy. For dogs, these toys are generally ball, wobble type toys or tall toys, which release food downwardly. These toys typically have a single exit point for the food and the food can be accessed by a single action or behaviour of the pet. Consequently, even these toys do not occupy a pet for very long.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a toy for a pet which reduces or substantially obviates the aforementioned problems. STATEMENT OF INVENTION

According to the present invention there is provided a toy for a pet comprising at least one end cap, a connecting element and a wall element; the end cap forming an open ended container for animal food, the connecting element retaining the wall element in a position covering the open end of the end cap, the wall element having at least one aperture for allowing food out of the end cap and a plurality of obstruction members provided on the surface of the wall element for retaining a paste to be removed by licking.

Advantageously, food in a paste form can be smeared onto the obstruction members of the wall element. To remove all of the paste, the pet has to lick in between all of the obstructions, which keeps the pet occupied for some time. Furthermore, food can be placed into the end cap and can only be accessed by a pet moving the toy around, or manipulating it, to a position in which the food falls through the aperture in the wall element.

The at least one end cap may be substantially dome shaped, causing the toy to move around, or wobble due to natural instability as the pet licks the wall element.

The substantially dome shaped end cap may have a flat portion at its end, enabling standing of the end cap on a flat surface, for example, for placing food within the end cap.

The obstruction members may comprise a plurality of spaced baffles. The baffles may be of different heights and sizes, providing many areas to be cleaned of food by licking.

In one embodiment, the wall element may be part of the connecting element.

Alternatively, the connecting element may be a locking ring which engages with the end cap and secures the wall element to the end cap. The connecting element may be removable from both the end cap and wall element, enabling food to be placed within the end cap, but also allowing for cleaning, for example, of the separated parts in a dishwasher.

A second end cap may be provided. The second end cap may be engageable with the connecting element, the first and second end caps being connectable on either side of the connecting element to form a container substantially divided into two by the wall element. By providing a second end cap, a piece of food may move between the first and second end caps, through the aperture in the wall element.

The second end cap may be dome shaped. The second end cap may be similar in shape to the first end cap.

At least one aperture may be provided through the wall of the second dome shaped end cap, enabling food to be removed from the toy in this configuration. In this configuration it may not be desirable to use a paste, but small pieces of food which may move between the end caps through the wall element.

The toy may further comprise a body portion and a second connecting element.

This enables the size of the toy to be extended, enabling a greater quantity of food to be held within the toy. Effectively a meal can be delivered to a pet using the toy, rather than just a treat. The difficulty level of the toy is also increased. It has been observed that this engages the pet for a much greater length of time than a known toy.

In a second aspect of the invention there is provided a modular toy for a pet comprising a plurality of interconnecting parts including first and second end caps, a first connecting element, and at least one aperture provided through an outer wall of the toy, enabling food placed inside the toy to be removed by manipulation of the toy.

A hollow body portion and a second connecting element may be provided for lengthening the toy.

A wall element having a plurality of raised areas or elements on its surface may be provided.

An aperture may be provided through the wall element.

Advantageously the toy may be configured in a number of different ways. For example, the end parts may be connected together to form a rolling toy with an aperture. The wall element may be added to make the toy more difficult.

One end cap may be removed, the raised elements providing a food licking surface, or alternatively, the hollow body portion can be added between the end positions, connected by the connecting elements, to provide a larger containment area for food. The toy may also be accessorised by including one or more accessories including a squeaker module, a chew module, one or more textured surface modules, a light module, a sound module and a vibration module.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

For a better understanding of the present invention, and to show more clearly how it may be carried into effect, reference will now be made by way of example only to the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 shows a perspective view of an embodiment of toy for a pet;

Figure 2 shows a cross sectional view through the toy of Figure 1 ;

Figure 3 shows an exploded perspective view of the components of the toy of Figure 1 ;

Figure 4 shows a perspective view of an end cap of the toy of Figure 1 ;

Figure 5 shows a side view of a dividing wall element of the toy of Figure 1 ;

Figure 6 shows a perspective view of one side of the dividing wall element of Figure 5; and

Figure 7 shows a perspective view of three different arrangements of the components of the toy of Figure 1 , allowing for modular use.

DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Referring firstly to Figure 1 , a modular toy for a pet is indicated generally at 10. The toy 10 is constructed from a plurality of parts, best seen in Figure 3. The toy 10 includes first and second end caps 12, 14, first and second connecting elements 16, 18, a body 20 and a wall element 22. The component parts are connected together, substantially in a line to create the assembled toy of Figure 1 . However, different configurations of the toy are possible, such as those shown in Figure 7. The arrangement with all of the parts is referenced 10A, a second configuration using 3 or 4 parts is referenced 10B and a third configuration utilising only 3 parts is indicated at 10C.

The configuration of 10C utilises the first end cap 12, the first connecting element 16 and the wall element 22. In an alternative arrangement, it could utilise the end cap 14. Referring also to Figure 4, the end cap 12 is shown in more detail. The end cap 12 is substantially dome shaped with one end being substantially continuous and the other end being open. A circular ring 24 is provided at the distal open end, which serves to guide and support one of the connecting elements 16, 18, in use. A circumferential rib or flange 26 extends outwardly of the ring 24 where the dome shape starts to develop. The flange 26 serves as a stop for the connecting element, which abuts against it.

In addition, the flange 26 helps change the behaviour of the toy depending on the configuration. For example, it increases the tilt angle of the device when used in configuration 10C which leads to more erratic, unpredictable movement and enables the toy to be tipped/flipped more easily during play. In addition, in configuration 10B it allows the toy to spin more easily on its centre axis, and in configurations 10B and 10A it results in the body and end caps being raised from the floor surface which reduces noise, and helps keep much of the device clear of dirt and pet hair.

This can be seen more clearly in Figure 2, which shows the 10A configuration. A plurality of protrusions 28, for example, detents, are spaced around the outer surface of the ring 24, which engage in recesses of the connecting elements as described further below.

An aperture 29 is provided through the wall of the end cap 12, through the domed part, which is of relatively small size, say around 17 to 18mm in diameter. This aperture is intended to release food contained within the end cap. The sidewall of the dome is also dished in several places around its periphery at 30. In fact, four dishes 30 are provided equi-spaced around the periphery. There may be more than four dishes or fewer than four dishes. The dishes facilitate gripping the toy, for example, if a person has dexterity difficulties. There is also a small aperture 32, around 3mm in diameter, disposed centrally at the upper end of the dome. An icon, indicated generally at 33, is disposed on the closed end of the end cap and indicates a movement required to connect and disconnect the end cap from a connecting element using the detents 28.

The second end cap 14 is identical the first end cap, save that it does not have an aperture in the side wall.

As most clearly seen from Figure 3, the connecting elements 16, 18 are also identical. Each connecting element 16, 18 is formed as a circular ring or collar. A plurality of protrusions 34 extend inwardly of the ring, approximately on a plane extending laterally through the centre of the ring. These protrusions 34 are triangular in shape and engage with the wall element 22. There are four protrusions 34, equi-spaced. On either side of the protrusions 34, bayonet type slots 36 are provided in the inside wall of the connecting element. The slots 36 extend substantially in a peripheral direction around the inside of the ring and terminate at one end with an undercut 38. The undercut 38 extends towards an adjacent end of the ring. The other end of the slot 36 opens out to the adjacent edge of the ring at 40.

Referring now to Figure 5 and 6, the wall element 22 is shown in more detail. The wall element 22 includes a substantially flat base 42. The wall element 22 is circular and is sized to slide inside the connecting elements 16, 18, with a clearance fit. On one side of the base 42, a flat protrusion 44 extends perpendicularly from the base 42. This protrusion 44 forms a finger grip for enabling rotation or positioning of the wall element 22, for example, relative to a connecting element 16,18 to which it is connected. Otherwise, this side of the wall element is flat or slightly recessed.

The periphery of the wall element 22 has a substantially circumferential flange or wall 46. For the most part this wall 46 follows the circular periphery of the wall element base 42, but in four places, spaced around the periphery, the wall 46 sweeps inwardly to form four substantially triangular lands 48. These lands 48 correspond in shape and peripheral position to the protrusions 34 on the inner surface of the or each connecting element 16,18. The lands 48 are external of the wall 46. Internally of the wall, a tray is effectively created.

There are also four cutaways 50 in the upper edge of the wall 46. These cutaways 50 lie between the positions of the lands 48. A separate component, namely a lickable surface insert 52, lies inside the tray formed by the wall 46 and sits on the base 42. The lickable surface insert 52 is a tight fit and includes four spades which engage with and sit in the cutaways 50. The upper surface of the lickable surface insert 52 is formed with a plurality of protrusions 56 for receiving a food paste or the like for licking off by a pet. The protrusions 56 are formed by a plurality of fingers, which are spaced apart.

The fingers are effectively formed by a number of concentric circular walls or flanges, which are cut-away so as to be discontinuous. By way of example, five spaced fingers 58 form the innermost discontinuous circular wall. Adjacent spaced fingers 60, forming a larger discontinuous circular wall are offset in their radial position relative to the positions of the fingers 58. This aids access for the pet’s tongue and provides for more even distribution of spreadable food. Furthermore, as the walls become larger, the fingers may be of different sizes in a single discontinuous wall. An aperture 62 extends through the base 42 and maze insert 52. This aperture is approximately 1 /6^th the diameter of the base 42 and serves to allow food through the wall element 22, in use. The aperture is around 16mm.

Referring back to Figure 3, the body 20 is formed as a cylinder with connection means at its ends similar to that of the connection means on the end caps 12, 14. The cylinder terminates at each end with a ring 24a, 24b, similar in form and size to the ring 24 on the end caps 12, 14. Furthermore, similar flanges 26a, 26b to the flanges 26 on the end caps 12, 14 are provided, which provide a boundary between the rings 24a and 24b and a central section 61 of the body 20. Protrusions 28a, 28b, are spaced around the circumference of the rings 24a, 24b. The central section 61 has dished portions 64, which aid grip of the central section 61 when connecting/disconnecting components. These portions 64 form raised restrictions inside the body 20, which disrupt the path of food and stop food from simply passing directly through the body, thus adding complexity for the pet.

In use, the toy 10 can be assembled in different ways to deliver different quantities of food from a treat to a full meal and to entertain a pet, such as a dog, for different periods of time. It also changes the difficulty level of the toy for the pet and allows the user to change its behaviour and purpose.

In its simplest form, as shown in Figure 7 and indicated at 10C, one of the end caps 12 is assembled with one of the connecting elements 16 and the wall element 22. Firstly, some food, for example a treat, is placed inside the dome of the end cap 12. The wall element is then fitted to one side of the connecting element 16, by sliding it into the connecting element 16 until the protrusions 34 engage against the lands 48. The protrusions 28 of the end cap 12 can then be engaged with the slots 36 of the connecting element 16, by pushing the parts together and then twisting them in different directions until they latch together. The wall element 16 is then held between the end cap 12 and the connecting element 16. A food paste can then be spread onto the protrusions 56.

In use, a pet, for example, a dog, will lick the paste off the protrusions 56, but will also play with the toy, moving it around, until the treat falls through either the aperture 62 in the wall element or the aperture 29 in the domed end cap.

The toy 10C can be extended by adding a further end cap 14, to achieve the arrangement shown at 10B. The end cap 14 is connected to the other side of the connecting element 16 in the same way as the end cap 12 is connected to the first side. This extended toy can hold more food. However, if the toy is still too small, for example, to hold a full meal of for example, 350g food, then a larger toy 10A can be created, by connecting the body 20 centrally between the two connecting elements 16, 18 and end caps 12, 14 fitted at the ends. A wall element may also be fitted as described with reference to the arrangement 10C.

Due to the shape of the toy, the internal wall and obstruction members, and the apertures to release food, and the licking wall element, it has been found that the toy 10 slows a pets eating, thus reducing the incidence of twisted gut and obesity. The toy also moves around freely and randomly, thus increasing mental stimulation and exercise. The toy also serves as a pet puzzle, by virtue of the internal wall with aperture and apertures in the ends.

It is envisaged that an enhancement such as a squeaker could be added, for example to one of the end caps 12, 14, or to the body section 20

In alternative embodiments, the periphery of the parts may by multi-faceted, for example, to form a pentagon, hexagon or other multi-sided shape.

The toy can be taken apart by twisting of the parts in the opposite direction to that for assembly. The parts may also connect together using screw threads or other connection means other than detents and slots forming bayonet type connectors. The or each aperture 29, 62 is also optional.

When we use configuration 10A, the centre of gravity is approximately in the middle of 20, and due to the increased friction of 16 and 18 providing two points of contact with the ground, the dominant behaviour is to roll. Spinning is reduced as is accidental flipping. Lift and drop is still possible depending on the size of pet and overall size of toy.

When we use configuration 10B, the centre of gravity is different to that of the other configurations and is towards the connector. When empty, it would be substantially central. With food applied, the centre of gravity would vary based on the distribution of food. For example, the centre of gravity may tend towards whichever side has the most weight of food, but (in reality) this is may not necessarily produce visibly different behaviour due to the flat outer edge of the connector 16. As a result, the change in centre of gravity changes the dominant behaviour to make roll and spin both equally likely depending whether/how the pet touches the toy. For example, touching the pod or end cap may typically make it roll, while touching the connector may typically make it spin. Lift and drop & flipping become easier due to shorter length giving closer centre of gravity.

When we use configuration 10C, the centre of gravity is different to that of the other configurations. In this configuration spin is still possible as is roll, but a new circular rotation behaviour is introduced. Lift and drop is very easy, and flipping also seems to be made easier.

In addition, if the pet flips the device so that it is facing with the lickable surface downwards, the centre of gravity is moved again. It is now directly down through the middle of the end of the cap & connector (potentially best indicated by the position of the reference 32). As a result, it becomes more static, or introduces a very limited slide effect, as if the dog tries to move it via pushing, it tends to grip into the floor surface and doesn’t move easily.

On carpet it tends to grip and can be tipped fairly easily. On smooth surfaces (such as kitchen tiles, etc), it slides slightly easier thus making tipping more challenging than on carpet, but again, hardly moving compared to the force applied. This provides a new challenge as the pet typically has to return it to another orientation in order to proceed and unless 12 is used as the cap, access to food is prevented until it does.

It will be appreciated that the external surface of the toy 10 can be made of different materials to facilitate chewing and teeth cleaning, for example, different rubbers and plastics. Any food stuff may be used with the device, for example, kibble, pastes or purees, biscuit crumb, frozen liquid, chopped fruit or vegetables, or cooked meat or fish products (dry or wet meal products), dependent on the pet being fed.

The toy is predominantly designed for dogs, but may also be used appropriately for other animals.

The embodiments described above are provided by way of example only, and various changes and modifications will be apparent to persons skilled in the art without departing from the scope of the present invention as defined by the appended claims.

Claims

1. A toy for a pet comprising at least one end cap, a connecting element and a wall element; the end cap forming an open ended container for animal food, the connecting element retaining the wall element in a position covering the open end of the end cap, the wall element having at least one aperture for allowing food out of the end cap and a plurality of obstruction members provided on the surface of the wall element for retaining a paste to be removed by licking.

2. A toy for a pet as claimed in claim 1 , in which the at least one end cap is substantially dome shaped.

3. A toy for a pet as claimed in claim 2, in which the substantially dome shaped end cap has a flat portion at its end, enabling standing of the end cap on a flat surface.

4. A toy for a pet as claimed in claim 1 or 2, in which the obstruction members comprise a plurality of spaced baffles.

5. A toy for a pet as claimed in claim 3, in which the connecting element is a locking ring which engages with the end cap and retains the wall element to the end cap.

6. A toy for a pet as claimed in any preceding claim, further comprising a second end cap.

7. A toy for a pet as claimed in claim 6, in which the second end cap is engageable with the connecting element, the first and second end caps being connectable on either side of the connecting element to form a container substantially divided into two by the wall element.

8. A toy for a pet as claimed in claim 6 or 7, in which the second end cap is substantially dome shaped.

9. A toy for a pet as claimed in claim 8, in which at least one aperture is provided through the wall of the second dome shaped end cap.

10. A toy for a pet as claimed in any one of claims 6 to 9, further comprising a body portion and a second connecting element.

11 . A toy for a pet as claimed in claim 10, in which one end of the body portion is connectable to the first connecting element, the other end of the body portion is connectable to the second connecting element, and the second end cap is connectable to the second connecting element.

12. A toy for a pet as claimed in claim 10 or 11 , in which the body portion is substantially cylindrical.

13. A toy for a pet as claimed in any preceding claim, in which the aperture through the wall element is positioned proximate the outer periphery of the wall element.

14. A toy for a pet as claimed in claim 13, in which the aperture through the wall element is positioned on a radius between the periphery and its centre, around a third of the length of the radius away from the periphery.

15. A toy for a pet as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 4, in which the wall element is formed as part of the connecting element.

16. A modular toy for a pet comprising a plurality of interconnecting parts including, first and second end caps, a first connecting element in the form of a circular collar, connection means provided at both ends of the collar which can engage with the first and second end caps, and at least one aperture provided through an outer wall of the toy, enabling food placed inside the toy to be removed by manipulation of the toy.

17. A modular toy for a pet as claimed in claim 16, further comprising a hollow body portion and a second connecting element in the form of a circular collar.

18. A modular toy for a pet as claimed in claim 17, further comprising a wall element having a plurality of raised areas on its surface.

19. A modular toy as claimed in claim 18, in which an aperture is provided through the wall element.

20. A toy or modular toy for a pet as claimed in any preceding claim, including one or more accessories including a squeaker module, a chew module, one or more textured surface modules, a light module, a sound module and a vibration module.