The invention comprises an animal trap of the generic type shown in claim 1. This type of trap is for catching burrowing animals, especially voles, water voles and also field mice.
Traps used for voles living under the surface have long been in common use. An example of a comparable trap of the same type is described in WO 03/061375. The trap described there shows a cylindrical housing, which has two openings on the underside which can be placed in a tunnel. In this housing is a hollow, tubular (or cylindrical), closing part, which is placed in the housing and slides lengthways so that in the closed position the opening is blocked. When setting the trap it must be placed in the vole tunnel so that the tunnel is clear to allow the mouse to pass through the openings. At the lower part of the trap is a trigger pin, which is mounted inside the housing and which swivels about a trigger spindle which extends lengthways. The end of the triggering pin furthest from the trigger spindle is U-shaped. The furthest point of the U-shaped end holds in place the rocker which is joined to the closing part. The rocker is swivel-linked to a loading handle on the closing part. To set the trap, (i.e. to place it in the open position), the clamp lever must first be pulled up with the rocker. The rocker is then pressed against the housing cover and finally the tip of the U-shaped end of the trigger is placed on the rocker, thus holding the closing part in the open position. This trap is difficult to operate. Furthermore it has been shown in practise that the use of coil springs to tension the closing part is undesirable.
It is therefore an aim of this invention to avoid the disadvantages of the known design and to create a trap of the type in question, characterised by simple operation.
In terms of design, the aim will be met with a trap which incorporates the features in claim 1. The closing part moves from the closed position to the open position in such a way that when the open position is reached, it self locks with the help of a triggering mechanism with a snap catch fastening. To set the trap only the closing part needs to be moved. The trap is locked open automatically without the need for further actions. The ability to self lock assures the simple operation of the trap. The closing part is moved chiefly by sliding. When the trap closes the animal receives a blow from the front edge, which is preferably lethal. Depending on the animals being trapped, an appropriate spring configuration is envisaged with which a sufficient closing force is achieved.
In a first version the closing part is locked open with a snap catch in the housing. With such a snap catch design a self-lock is simply achieved.
The snap catch design requires at least one retaining member on the closing part, which is supported by a shoulder on the triggering mechanism. With this design it becomes very easy to achieve a good lock of the closing part in the open position.
It is also advantageous to have a triggering mechanism with a swivel-mounted triggering part in the housing, where the swivel axis is offset, or at right angles to the direction of movement of the closing part. The triggering part is a unit which extends along the direction of movement. By this simple and reliable method, the animal disturbs the front end of the part, which swivels and triggers the trap. With this design it is impossible for parts to be missed from the triggering mechanism, like for example the trigger pin used in the WO 03/061375. A triggering failure is therefore practically impossible.
Of particular merit is a triggering mechanism containing a triggering part with at least one lead-in face, along which the locking member can be moved during opening. In this way the triggering part is swivelled by sliding the closing part into the open position.
The triggering mechanism consists of a triggering part with support members, in which the upper end of the support member acts as a support shoulder in the direction of opening.
It is of particular advantage that the triggering part contains a support element with support members configured with single rather than double spacing. In this way a guide channel is created between the support members, in which the retaining element can be routed. In addition there is a wedge shaped lead-in along the guide channel, running in direction of opening. This design insures a good interface between the retaining member and the support element.
The support members form an arrowed support element in the direction of opening, the surfaces of which form external lead-in faces. This way the retaining element can move externally on the arrow surfaces and internally on the guide channel.
It is an advantage if the closing part has a handle which protrudes from the housing, and with which the closing part is moved to the open position. The action of opening is thus made easy by manually gripping the handle. The handle protrudes from the housing at different lengths in the open and closed positions. It is therefore easy to see if the trap has been actuated or not. For example a long handle protruding from the housing (closing part in the open position), would indicate that the no animal has yet been caught. This visual management could be further strengthened through the use of colours on the handle.
The closing part can be produced as a single plastic injection moulded component. Such a closing part is simple and cost effective to make.
Regarding the spring preloading, a coil spring for example, or many coil springs could be used. However the inclusion of at least one torsion spring is considered a particular advantage. Thanks to its non-linear spring force distribution, a torsion spring has advantages in the processes of opening and closing, both in terms of operation and trapping effectiveness.
The idea of one torsion spring for each side of the triggering part creates advantages. With this type of arrangement one-sided spring action is avoided.
To support each of the torsion springs a spring holder in the triggering part is foreseen, where holders for spring pairs may or may not be displaced from one another.
The edge is formed by the front end of a wall section, which blocks the opening in the closed position. As, in general, the animal must be killed for a successful outcome, a relatively shorter edge section could instead be chosen, which only partially blocks the opening, or not at all.
The housing comprises two openings, located opposite one another. The wall section can be further developed, along the lines of a hollow cylinder, where both openings are blocked in the closed position. However, the closing part obviously cannot be formed entirely as a hollow cylinder.
Instead it is better if only the front end is designed as a hollow cylinder for the wall section and that an extended connecting part is added along the line of movement, (i.e. the direction of opening). The top end of this connecting part forms the handle. The connecting part could for example be a rectangular section with a rectangular cross section. Other profile forms could also be chosen.
For a guaranteed kill, it is better to design the edge of the closing part with a wedge-shaped cross section. This is especially advantageous if the edges are relatively thick in cross section, i.e. with a large wall thickness. As a rule however the wedge should not be sharp as it is not desirable to cause cuts. Dismembering of the animal is not desirable for hygiene reasons.
On the floor of the opening a circular floor section is envisaged, which, at least in the closed position, is offset inwards relative to the closing element, so that the edge of the closing part overlaps the floor section,—at least in part. In addition it would be possible here to define the front end of the floor section facing the closing part, with a wedge-shaped cross section.
The housing can be developed as a hollow cylinder,—at least the lower part. The housing has a cylindrical cover. The floor section can then be offset inwards of the housing cover when looking from above, so that the edge lies between the housing cover and the floor section.
For process and cost reasons plastic should be specified for the housing and/or the closing part.
Further advantages and individual features of the invention are found in the drawings and in the following description of working examples.
As seen in
In the closed position, the opening is clearly blocked by wall section 17 of closing part 3. Closing part 3 has a front edge 10, which exerts a closing force on the animal through the closing motion.
The animal is thus dealt a deadly blow. In order to apply the closing force a spring arrangement is envisaged for the trap (compare
On the floor of opening 11 a circular floor section is foreseen. Based on
The spring arrangement is shown in
Housing 2 consists of 2 halves, which can be divided along their length. A single housing shell part 22 is shown in
As shown in
In Trap 1's closed position in
From
A spring end bent in this way sits conveniently in closing part 3, (as in
As shown in
In
Running from the guide channel 12 along the direction of opening is a wedge shaped lead-in section 13. Support element 7 therefore has outer and inner guide surfaces (12, 13 and 14), along which the retaining member moves. In the open position a retaining member (not shown here), sits on support shoulder 9 and, as such, prevents the closing part from moving back into the closed position. When triggered, triggering part 4 swivels so that the retaining member is released, causing the closing part to move by the spring mechanism force to the closing position. The trigger part is shown in
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
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06119958.4 | Sep 2006 | EP | regional |
Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind | 371c Date |
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PCT/EP2007/056768 | 7/4/2007 | WO | 00 | 7/7/2009 |