Patent Application
20060137622
The present invention involves a collapsible pet enclosure which is capable of being shipped and stored in a substantially two dimensional configuration but which is capable of being erected on site to create a three dimensional enclosure suitable as a pet sanctuary.
The nationwide pet market is experiencing rapid growth as more and more families recognize the benefits of pet ownership. A pet owner's devotion to one's pet often time rivals that which one would ordinarily attribute to human parenting.
Veterinarians and other professionals devoted to the wellbeing of domestic pets recommend that certain pets, such as domestic cats, benefit by providing an enclosure as a sanctuary that the cat can employ whenever the need for such a sanctuary presents itself. Regardless of how outgoing, affectionate and socialized a domestic cat happens to be, the benefits derived from a separate sanctuary that the cat believes is off limits to its human companionship can be of great psychological effect.
Although pet enclosures, by and large, are somewhat inexpensive to fabricate, an inordinate fraction of the enclosure's retail price is attributable to shipping costs. Most such products are produced offshore where labor costs are relatively low. However, because enclosures tend to be three dimensional, objects of sufficient volume to provide the sought after sanctuary effect take up large volumes of a shipping container thus adding excessively to the costs of such products.
It is thus an object of the present invention to provide a suitable collapsible pet enclosure which can be shipped as a substantially two dimensional planar sheet material but which can be constructed on site creating the sought after three dimensional enclosure.
These and further objects will be more readily appreciated considering the following disclosure and appended claims.
The present invention is directed to a collapsible pet enclosure comprising a substantially planar sheet material configured in the shape of a trapezoid. The planar sheet material being foldably creased to create three subparts, each subpart being in the shape of a triangle and at least one of the subparts having an opening configured therein.
Turning to
As noted above, collapsible pet enclosure 10, comprising triangular subparts 11, 12 and 13 are foldable with respect to one another. Specifically, centrally located triangular subpart 11 is provided with a first edge 19 contiguous with first adjacent triangular subpart 12 and second edge 21 contiguous with second adjacent triangular subpart 13. As noted further in reference to
In order to achieve the results sought after herein, collapsible pet enclosure 10 is provided with complimentary closure elements 14 and 15 configured along free edges 22 and 23 of triangular subparts 12 and 13, respectively. Complimentary closure elements 14 and 15 are caused to releasably engage with one another to maintain said enclosure in a three-dimensional configuration as depicted in
When the present invention is to be used by a domestic cat, it is further contemplated that at least one surface of the planar sheet material be roughened. This would enable a feline to use collapsible pet enclosure 10 as a scratching surface. Such a roughened surface could be provided simply by carpeting one or more outer faces of any or all of triangular subparts 11, 12 and 13.
