WO2024025006A1

WO2024025006A1 - Method for operating fecal separation apparatus

Info

Publication number: WO2024025006A1
Application number: PCT/KR2022/011085
Authority: WO
Inventors: Hae Min Yang
Original assignee: Pluto
Priority date: 2022-07-27
Filing date: 2022-07-27
Publication date: 2024-02-01

Abstract

The present invention is a housing including an upper opening surface formed on the upper side; a drawer exposed on one side of the housing and movably assembled with respect to the housing; a cradle disposed inside the housing, exposed through the upper opening surface, and tilted by being supported by the housing; and a driving device disposed in the housing and selectively tilting the cradle, wherein the cradle includes a bucket storage space communicating with the upper opening surface and a recovery space communicating with the bucket storage space, wherein the recovery space is disposed in the tilt direction of the cradle, and wherein the bucket storage space and the recovery space are tilted together with the cradle.

Description

METHOD FOR OPERATING FECAL SEPARATION APPARATUS

The present invention relates to method for operating fecal separation apparatus.

There are various types of companion animals, such as dogs, cats, and snakes, that are kept at home as companions for hobbies or daily life. Cats refer to mammals of the feline family, and cats are often bred as pets indoors, like pet dogs, in order to stabilize human psychology.

Such, it requires a lot of attention in order to raise a cat, as well as diseases such as skin diseases, ear mites, herpes, etc., and taming a cat according to the cat's lifestyle is one of them.

For example, as they are nocturnal, they mainly live at night rather than during the day, and only by familiarizing themselves with how to improve the bond with the owner of the cat as well as the cat owner, the cat as well as the cat owner do not suffer unnecessary stress.

You can live together indoors. In particular, cats can receive severe stress when the toilet they use is dirty or when they do not have a smooth bowel movement.

It is common to fill the cat with as much sand as possible to allow the cat to defecate. One of the biggest problems when living at home with these companion animals is excrement, and it is still up to humans to dispose of the excrement.

In general, each animal species has different toilet habits, but cats have a habit of covering their excrement with soil or sand, and if this habit is not met, the pet's stress increases, which causes various problems.

For this reason, a material in the form of granules or powder called cat litter is widely used in toilets or toilets for cats. The defecation treatment device according to the prior art is a structure that can separate the sand is stored inside the chamber where the internal space is formed, a separation net rotated inside the chamber is arranged, and the separation net is rotated to separate the bowel movements buried in the sand.

However, the defecation treatment device according to the prior art has a problem that may cause a wound in the course of movement of the companion animal because the separation net is protruded into the chamber to enter the companion animal.

In addition, since the defecation treatment device according to the prior art has a structure in which the separation network is exposed inside the chamber, there is a problem that a failure or damage may occur during a collision with a companion animal.

An object of the present invention for solving the above problems is to provide a method for operating fecal separation apparatus

The present invention is a housing including an upper opening surface formed on the upper side; a drawer exposed on one side of the housing and movably assembled with respect to the housing; a cradle disposed inside the housing, exposed through the upper opening surface, and tilted by being supported by the housing; and a driving device disposed in the housing and selectively tilting the cradle, wherein the drawer is disposed below the cradle, and when the cradle is tilted, the sand and defecation stored in the cradle are stored in the cradle by their own weight. Moving in the tilted direction, the sand remains in the cradle and only the defecation falls into the drawer.

First, the present invention has the advantage that the bucket storage space in which defecation and sand are stored together and the recovery space in which the sand is filtered are separated by a grill, and defecation and sand are separated by their own weight by tilting the cradle.

Second, the present invention has the advantage that after separating the sand and defecation through the first tilting of the cradle, the separated sand is stored in the recovery housing of the cradle, and the separated defecation can be stored by dropping it into the lower drawer.

Third, the present invention has the advantage of being able to separate only defecation buried in sand by rotating the entire cradle with respect to the housing.

Fourth, in the present invention, since the entire upper side of the cradle is exposed to the outside, there is an advantage that the companion animal can approach the cradle in any direction.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a defecation treatment apparatus for a companion animal according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the body of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a plan view of FIG. 2.

FIG. 4 is a first view of the operation of FIG. 2.

FIG. 5 is a second view of the operation of FIG. 2.

Advantages and features of the present invention and methods of achieving them will become apparent with reference to the embodiments described below in detail in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. However, the present invention is not limited to the embodiments disclosed below, but may be implemented in various different forms, and only these embodiments allow the disclosure of the present invention to be complete, and common knowledge in the technical field to which the present invention pertains It is provided to fully inform those who have the scope of the invention, and the present invention is only defined by the scope of the claims. Like reference numerals refer to like elements throughout.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a defecation treatment apparatus for companion animals according to a first embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the body of FIG. 1, and FIG. 3 is a plan view of FIG. 2.

The defecation treatment device for companion animals according to this embodiment includes a main body 100 in which sand for defecation of companion animals is stored.

The defecation treatment device may further include a footrest 10 disposed in front of the main body 100. The height of the footrest 10 is formed to be lower than the height of the main body 100, thereby protecting the joints of the companion animal.

The footrest 10 is formed with a plurality of perforations, and when the companion animal comes out after defecation, it is possible to shake off the sand on the sole of the foot.

In this embodiment, the sand may be bentonite, and the bentonite refers to clay mainly containing montmorillonite, a mineral belonging to a monoclinic system having a crystal structure like mica. The color is white, gray, light brown, light green, etc., and is used in various fields such as casting-type binders, mixing agents for ceramic materials, and base agents for ointments.

The bentonite often includes quartz, feldspar, zeolite, and the like, and the colors are white, gray, light brown, light green, and the like. The bentonite has pearl luster and wax luster and is produced as a dense mass with a sense of fat.

The footrest 10 may be disposed in front of the drawer 120 disposed on the main body 100.

The defecation treatment device may further include a canopy 20 coupled to the main body 100 and selectively covering the upper portion of the main body 100. Although only half of the canopy 20 is illustrated in FIG. 1, the canopy 20 may be disposed to cover an upper half of the main body 100.

The main body 100 includes an outer housing 110 having an upper opening surface 11 formed on the upper side and a lower opening surface formed on the lower side on the lower side, and is disposed inside the outer housing 110, the lower opening The inner housing 130 covering the spherical surface, exposed to one side (front side in this embodiment) of the outer housing 110, and movably assembled to the outer housing 110, the inner housing 130 a drawer 120 supported by the cradle 200, disposed inside the outer housing 110, exposed to the upper opening surface 11, supported by the outer housing 110 and tilted; and a driving device 300 for selectively tilting the cradle 200.

The outer housing 110 and the inner housing 130 may be referred to as housings. In this embodiment, the housing is manufactured by being divided into the outer housing 110 and the inner housing 130, but unlike this embodiment, the outer housing 110 and the inner housing 130 may be integrated and manufactured.

In this embodiment, the upper and lower sides of the outer housing 110 are opened, respectively, the opened upper surface is referred to as the upper opening surface 11 , the opened lower surface is referred to as the lower opening surface, and the remaining surfaces are closed.

In this embodiment, the outer housing 110 has a rectangular parallelepiped shape as a whole. The outer housing 110 is formed to have a narrow cross-sectional area toward the upper side. The outer housing 110 is disposed with an inclined side surface.

In this embodiment, the outer housing 110 includes a front wall 114, a left wall 115, a light wall 116, and a rear wall 117.

An operation button 15 and an alarm 16 are disposed on the front side of the outer housing 110.

Unlike the present embodiment, there is no particular restriction on the shape of the outer housing 110 and may be manufactured in various shapes.

The drawer 120 is exposed on the front surface of the outer housing 110 , and the drawer 120 may be slidably moved in the front-rear direction.

The drawer 120 provides a portion of the side surface of the outer housing 110. The surface covered by the drawer 120 is defined as the drawer opening surface 13.

When the drawer 120 is separated from the outer housing 110, the drawer opening surface 13 of the outer housing 110 is opened.

The drawer 120 may slide in a horizontal direction.

The drawer 120 may pass through the front wall 114 to be inserted into the outer housing 110 and received therein. The bowel movement may be dropped and stored in the drawer 120.

The drawer 120 includes a drawer cover 122 that covers the drawer opening surface 13, and a drawer housing 124 coupled to the drawer cover 122 and storing the bowel movements of companion animals.

When the drawer 120 is inserted into the outer housing 110, the drawer cover 122 may form a continuous surface with the front wall 114.

A handle groove 123 into which a user's hand is inserted may be further formed at the lower end of the drawer cover 122.

The drawer housing 124 may have a rectangular parallelepiped shape with an open upper side.

The drawer housing 124 is disposed on the rear side of the drawer cover 122 and is inserted into a first space 131 to be described later.

When the drawer 120 is inserted into the outer housing 110, the drawer housing 124 is hidden from the outside.

The inner housing 130 is disposed inside the outer housing 110. The inner housing 130 covers the lower opening surface.

When the drawer 120 is inserted into the outer housing 110 through the drawer opening surface 13, the drawer 120 may be mounted and supported on the inner housing 130.

The drawer 120 is disposed below the cradle 200 . When viewed from a top view, the drawer 120 is completely covered by the cradle 200.

The rotation of the cradle 200 is to move the bowel movement stored in the cradle 200 to the drawer 120. The cradle 200 rotates less than 360 degrees.

For the defecation and separation of sand, the cradle 200 may be tilted forward or backward at a predetermined angle.

A space formed inside the drawer housing 124 is defined as a drawer storage space 125.

The cradle 200 is disposed on the inner housing 130. The cradle 200 may be supported by the inner housing 130.

When viewed from the top view, when the cradle 200 is rotated to the rear side, at least a portion of the drawer 120 is exposed toward the opening surface 11 side, and the bowel movement of the cradle 200 slides and the drawer 120 ) can be dropped.

The cradle 200 must be rotated so that defecation can slide into the drawer 120 by its own weight.

When the cradle 200 returns to its original position, defecation dropped into the drawer 120 is covered by the cradle 200.

The inner housing 130 has a space for accommodating the drawer 120 and a space for rotation of the cradle 200.

A space for accommodating the drawer 120 is defined as a first space 131, and a space for rotation of the cradle 200 is defined as a second space 132.

In the present embodiment, the first space 131 is opened at the front and the upper side, respectively, and the second space 132 is opened only at the upper side.

The front of the cradle 200 is disposed above the first space 131, and the rear of the cradle 200 is disposed above the second space 132.

The drawer 120 may be disposed in the first space 131 . The drawer 120 may slide forward and backward with respect to the first space 131.

The first space 131 and the second space 132 may be connected to each other. In the present embodiment, a partition 133 dividing the first space 131 and the second space 132 is disposed.

When the drawer 120 is inserted into the first space 131, the drawer storage space 125 is disposed inside the first space 131. When the drawer 120 is inserted into the first space 131, the rear end of the drawer housing 124 may be supported by the partition 133.

The inner housing 130 includes a base 134 covering the lower palate of the outer housing, a first sidewall 135 protruding upward from the left edge of the base 134, and the base (A second sidewall 136 protruding upward from the right edge of the base 134, a third sidewall 137 protruding upward from the rear edge of the base 134, and the base 134.) and a partition 133 disposed to protrude upward from the middle portion, and an inner wall 138 forming a second space 132.

The width W1 of the drawer cover 122 is wider and longer than the width W2 of the drawer housing 124. Both ends of the drawer cover 122 may be bent toward the rear side.

The left end 122a of the drawer cover 122 may be supported in contact with the first sidewall 135, and the right end 122b of the drawer cover 122 may be connected to the second sidewall 136.

The second space 132 is disposed on the rear side of the first space 131.

The rear of the cradle 200 is positioned above the second space 132.

When the cradle 200 is rotated, a rear portion of the cradle 200 may be inserted into the second space 132. The second space 132 may be a space for avoiding interference between the cradle 200 and the inner housing 130.

A rear stopper 140 for limiting a rotation angle of the cradle 200 may be further disposed in the inner housing 130. The rear stopper is disposed on the rear side of the rotation center C of the cradle 200.

The rear stopper may be manufactured as a separate part, but in this embodiment, a step is formed on the inner wall 138 of the inner housing 130 and manufactured.

The inner wall 138 is formed in a concave arc shape from rear to front when viewed from the side. The center of curvature of the inner wall 138 is disposed above the inner wall 138. The center of curvature of the inner wall 138 is disposed toward the center of rotation C of the cradle 200 to be described later.

The inner wall 138 is disposed below the rotation center (C).

The inner wall 138 is formed in contact with the rear wall 137, a first inner wall 138a inclined downward, and extending from the first inner wall 138a, the first inner wall (It includes a second inner wall 138b disposed to intersect with 138a), and a third inner wall 138c extending from the second inner wall 138b and inclined downward.

The second inner wall 138b is disposed in front of the first inner wall 138a, and the third inner wall 138c is disposed in front of the second inner wall 138b.

In this embodiment, the second inner wall 138b functions as a rear stopper. The second inner wall 138b is disposed in a horizontal direction.

The second inner wall 138b is disposed to protrude forward from the first inner wall 138a.

The second inner wall 138b is disposed within the rotation radius of the cradle 200, and when the cradle 200 is rotated, the rear end 202 is in contact with the second inner wall 138b to cause mutual interference.

The first inner wall 138a is disposed outside the rotation radius of the cradle 200 and does not come into contact with the cradle 200.

The inner wall 138 may further include a fourth inner wall 138d extending from the third inner wall 138 and connected to the partition 133. When the cradle 200 is rotated, the bottom surface 253 of the cradle 200 may contact the fourth inner wall 138d. Also, when the cradle 200 is rotated, a bottom surface of the cradle 200 may be disposed to face the fourth inner wall 138d.

Hereinafter, the operation of the cradle 200 will be described.

After the companion animal defecates, when the user presses the operation button 15, the cradle 200 rotates to separate the litter and sand buried in the sand of the bucket 250.

First, the front end 201 of the cradle 200 is rotated downward based on the rotation center (C). In this embodiment, this is defined as the first tilting R1.

The cradle 200 is tilted forward through the first tilting R1.

The recovery space 232 is disposed in the first tilting R1 direction. The recovery space 232 is disposed in the first tilting direction with respect to the rotation center C, and the drawer storage space 125 of the drawer 120 is disposed below the rotation space 232.

The first tilting is a direction in which the height of the front end 201 is lowered and the height of the rear end 202 is raised.

Through the first tilting, the slit 236 of the grill 235 facing the rear end 202 is changed to face upward.

The rotation of the cradle 200 is made gradually, and through this, the sand and defecation of the bucket storage space 252 are gradually moved to the recovery housing 230 side by their own weight, and the sand of the bucket 250 is buried in the sand. The stool and sand are separated.

At this time, the sand may be moved to the recovery space 232 inside the recovery housing 230 through the grill 235, but large bowel movements are left outside the grill 235.

The gradual rotation of the cradle 200 is to secure sufficient time for the sand to be moved to the recovery space by its own weight.

When the cradle 200 is rotated and the grill 235 is inclined downward toward the drawer storage space 125, defecation is dropped into the drawer storage space 125 by its own weight.

In this embodiment, the inclination of the grill 235 is arranged to be almost vertical.

Based on the fact that the front end 201 and the rear end 202 are horizontally maintained, the first tilting R1 of the cradle 200 in this embodiment may be formed to be greater than 45 degrees and less than 120 degrees.

Thereafter, the control unit stops the cradle 200 for a predetermined time and then rotates the cradle 200 in the opposite direction.

This is called a second tilting R2, and in the second tilting, the front end 201 of the cradle 200 is rotated upward based on the center of rotation C, the front end 201 is raised, and the rear end 202 is is the downward direction.

The cradle 200 is tilted backward through the second tilting R2.

The tilt direction of the cradle 200 by the first tilting and the second tilting may be disposed to cross the insertion direction of the drawer 120. In this embodiment, the tilt direction of the cradle 200 and the insertion direction of the drawer 120 are disposed to be perpendicular to each other.

The second tilting is an operation for returning the sand in the recovery space 232 to the bucket storage space 252.

In this embodiment, the rotation angle of the first tilting is formed to be larger than the rotation angle of the second tilting.

The recovery housing 230 is raised through the second tilting, and the grill 232 is through the second tilting, the slit 236 of the grill 235 facing upward is changed to face downward at the rear end.

The second tilting rotates the cradle 200 so that the rear end 202 is lower than the stationary position, and through this, the slit 236 faces downward, thereby removing the sand in the recovery space 232 by its own weight. It can be moved to the bucket storage space (252).

The sand moved to the bucket storage space 252 by the second tilting can be prevented from being separated out of the bucket 250 by the screen 260.

On the other hand, a third rotation for flattening the sand moved to the bucket storage space 252 may be further arranged.

The third rotation rotates the cradle 200 in the same direction as the first tilting, but rotates the cradle 200 at a rotation angle smaller than the rotation angle of the first tilting.

Since sand can be driven toward the screen 260 by the second tilting, the rear end 202 is raised to a height lower than the first tilting to move the sand driven into the screen 260 to the front side by its own weight.

Those of ordinary skill in the art to which the present invention pertains will understand that the present invention may be embodied in other specific forms without changing the technical spirit or essential features thereof. Therefore, it should be understood that the embodiments described above are illustrative in all respects and not restrictive. The scope of the present invention is indicated by the claims to be described later rather than the above detailed description, and all changes or modifications derived from the meaning and scope of the claims and their equivalent concepts are included in the scope of the present invention. should be interpreted.

Claims

A fecal separation apparatus comprising:

a housing including an upper opening surface formed on the upper side;

a drawer exposed on one side of the housing and movably assembled with respect to the housing;

a cradle disposed inside the housing, exposed through the upper opening surface, and tilted by being supported by the housing; and

and a driving unit disposed in the housing and selectively tilting the cradle,

wherein a insertion direction of the drawer and the tilt direction of the cradle are disposed to be perpendicular to each other.
The apparatus of claim 1,

wherein the cradle includes:

a bucket storage space communicating with the upper opening surface; and

a recovery space communicating with the bucket storage space.
The apparatus of claim 2,

wherein the recovery space is disposed in the tilt direction of the cradle, and

wherein the bucket storage space and the recovery space are tilted together with the cradle.

the first axis of rotation and the second axis of rotation are disposed to face each other in the left and right directions,