Patent Application
20240349704
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The disclosure relates to bird feeder apparatus and more particularly pertains to a new bird feeder apparatus for preventing large birds from accessing birdseed.
Bird feeders filled with birdseed are often used to attract birds. But some birds interfere with other bird species' access to bird feeders. For example, blue jays, while not typically predators of other birds, are very territorial and will often attack or harass smaller birds to prevent those birds from feeding at a bird feeder. When a user of a bird feeder does not want to attract blue jays, wants to attract a greater variety of birds, or wants to attract birds which would otherwise be prevented from accessing a bird feeder due to a blue jay or other large bird, a means of prevention of blue jays and other large birds is needed.
The prior art discloses several bird feeders which provide a protective enclosure that allows only birds which are small enough to fit through openings in the enclosure to access the birdseed in the bird feeder. However, these apparatuses obscure the view of the birds while they feed. The prior art fails to describe a bird feeder which has guards positioned to extend outwardly from the bird feeder adjacent to a perch to prevent larger birds from landing on a perch adjacent to the bird feeder. Such an arrangement blocks larger birds from landing while allowing the birds which are able to land to be viewed without significant obstruction.
An embodiment of the disclosure meets the needs presented above by generally comprising a housing is configured for holding birdseed and comprises a base, a hopper, and a bird support. The base has a platform with an upper surface for supporting the birdseed thereon. The hopper is coupled to and extends upwardly from the base, and the hopper is configured to contain the birdseed and dispense the birdseed out of the hopper and onto the platform. The bird support is coupled to the base and is configured to support desired birds adjacent to the base, wherein the desired birds are defined as having a smaller size than the undesired birds. A plurality of guards is coupled to the housing and is configured to prevent undesired birds from landing on the bird support. The plurality of guards extends outwardly away from the hopper and is distributed along the bird support. Each pair of adjacent guards of the plurality of guards is spaced from each other at a spacing configured to obstruct the undesired birds from landing on the bird support between one of the pairs of adjacent guards.
There has thus been outlined, rather broadly, the more important features of the disclosure in order that the detailed description thereof that follows may be better understood, and in order that the present contribution to the art may be better appreciated. There are additional features of the disclosure that will be described hereinafter and which will form the subject matter of the claims appended hereto.
The objects of the disclosure, along with the various features of novelty which characterize the disclosure, are pointed out with particularity in the claims annexed to and forming a part of this disclosure.
The disclosure will be better understood and objects other than those set forth above will become apparent when consideration is given to the following detailed description thereof. Such description makes reference to the annexed drawings wherein:
With reference now to the drawings, and in particular to
As best illustrated in
The hopper 18 is coupled to and extends upwardly from the base 16. The hopper 18 is configured to contain the birdseed 14 and dispense the birdseed 14 out of the hopper 18 and onto the platform 22. The hopper 18 comprises an outer wall 28 which bounds an interior space 30. The outer wall 28 has a plurality of openings 32 extending therethrough and into the interior space 30, each of which is positioned adjacent to the platform 22 such that birdseed 14 contained in the hopper 18 flows outwardly of the hopper 18 through each of the plurality of openings 32 and onto the platform 22. The plurality of openings 32 is circumferentially arranged around the hopper 18, and the openings 32 are evenly spaced from each other. At least a portion of the outer wall 28 is translucent to facilitate viewing of the interior space 30 through the outer wall 28. The hopper 18 also may have an alternative conventional structure which dispenses the birdseed 14 onto the platform 22. The hopper 18 may also have a door or similar structure which is movable to gain access to the interior space 30 to fill the hopper 18 with the birdseed 14.
The bird support 20 is coupled to the base 16 and is configured to support desired birds 34 adjacent to the base 16, wherein the desired birds 34 are defined as having a smaller size than the undesired birds 36. The bird support 20 comprises a plurality of perches 38, each of which is outwardly spaced from the base 16. Each perch 38 of the plurality of perches 38 is radially aligned with one of the openings 32 of the hopper 18.
A plurality of guards 40 is coupled to the housing 12 and is configured to prevent undesired birds 36 from landing on the bird support 20. The plurality of guards 40 extends outwardly away from the hopper 18 and is distributed along the bird support 20. Each pair of adjacent guards 40 of the plurality of guards 40 is spaced from each other at a spacing configured to obstruct the undesired birds 36 from landing on the bird support 20 between one of the pairs of adjacent guards 40. The spacing is less than 7.5 inches. The spacing is also large enough not to prevent the desired birds 34 from landing on the bird support 20 and may, for example, be greater than 6.5 inches. Each guard 40 of the plurality of guards 40 is positioned between adjacent perches 38 of the plurality of perches 38 and comprises a wire 42. The wire 42 of each guard 40 of the plurality of guards 40 extends arcuately from the hopper 18 to the bird support 20 and has a concave side 44 facing the hopper 18. The wire 42 of each guard 40 of the plurality of guards 40 also has a first hooked end 46 and a second hooked end 48. The first hooked end 46 engages one of a plurality of apertures 50 which extend through the outer wall 28 of the hopper 18. The second hooked end 48 engages one of a plurality of holes 52 which extend through the bird support 20.
In use, the birdseed 14 is dispensed via gravity onto the platform 22 from the hopper 18. The plurality of perches 38 are provided to allow the desired birds 34 to land on the bird support 20 and access the birdseed 14 on the platform 22. The spacing between each adjacent pair of guards 40 of the plurality of guards 40 is such that the guards 40 interfere with the undesired birds' 36 ability to land on the bird support 20.
With respect to the above description then, it is to be realized that the optimum dimensional relationships for the parts of an embodiment enabled by the disclosure, to include variations in size, materials, shape, form, function and manner of operation, assembly and use, are deemed readily apparent and obvious to one skilled in the art, and all equivalent relationships to those illustrated in the drawings and described in the specification are intended to be encompassed by an embodiment of the disclosure.
Therefore, the foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the disclosure. Further, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the disclosure to the exact construction and operation shown and described, and accordingly, all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the disclosure. In this patent document, the word “comprising” is used in its non-limiting sense to mean that items following the word are included, but items not specifically mentioned are not excluded. A reference to an element by the indefinite article “a” does not exclude the possibility that more than one of the element is present, unless the context clearly requires that there be only one of the elements.
