Patent Application
20170086448
Not applicable
Not applicable
I. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to devices for trapping insects having an insect attractant contained within a decorative housing along with an insect neutralizer in the fowl of an adhesive coated substrate and more particularly to an insect trap in which the insect neutralizer surface is automatically replaced at predetermined, pre-programmed intervals.
II. Discussion of the Prior Art
In our earlier U.S. Pat. No. 6,886,292 there is described an insect trap which includes a base having a rear surface and a front surface, a housing mounted to cover at least a portion of the front surface of the base, an insect attractant such as a light located at least partially within the housing, an insect neutralizer such as an adhesive surface located at least partially within the housing, and an electrical plug protruding from the rear surface of the base whereby the insect trap may be mounted to an electrical socket by inserting the electrical plug into the electrical socket. The insect trap can be easily mounted and removed, making it suitable for intermittent, seasonal, or temporary use.
While the '292 patent describes a preferred embodiment that constitutes an advance in the art, it requires frequent periodic maintenance to replace the adhesive surface, sometimes referred to as a glue board, in that it becomes overly populated with dead insects and becomes incapable of performing its intended function. A need therefore exists for an insect trap of the type described that automatically replaces a used adhesive surface with a fresh one at periodic selectable intervals. The frequency of replacement should be selectable in that the insect population tends to he seasonal, especially in more northern climates in the U.S. and in Europe. Replacement of the adhesive surface in summer months must be more frequent than in winter months. The present invention addresses the stated need.
The insect trap constituting a preferred embodiment of the present invention comprises an enclosure having a substantially planar rear surface and a removable front cover member that has one or more openings therethrough. Disposed within the enclosure is an insect attractant for enticing insects through the opening(s) and into the interior of the enclosure. Also disposed in the enclosure is a take-up roller and a supply roller, the two being journaled for rotation about parallel, spaced-apart axes where the spacing is a predetermined length dimension. A flexible web is wound on the supply roller and the web is transferrable onto the take-up roller. The web has a coating of an adhesive on one major surface thereof Operatively coupled to the take-up roller is an electric motor and coupled in controlling relation to the motor is a timer circuit for establishing the “on” and “off” states for the motor. A controller is coupled to the timer circuit for initiating operation of the timer circuit “on” state at selectable frequencies. Each time the motor is turned on, it advances the web through a distance or length corresponding to the predetermined spacing between the supply roller and the take-up roller.
The foregoing features, objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art from the following detailed description of a preferred embodiment, especially when considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which like numerals in the several views refer to corresponding parts.
This description of the preferred embodiments is intended to be read in connection with the accompanying drawings, which are to be considered part of the entire written description of this invention. In the description, relative terms such as “lower”, “upper”, “horizontal”, “vertical”, “above”, “below”, “up”, “down”, “top” and “bottom” as well as derivatives thereof (e.g., “horizontally”, “downwardly”, “upwardly”, etc.) should be construed to refer to the orientation as then described or as shown in the drawings under discussion. These relative terms are for convenience of description and do not require that the apparatus be constructed or operated in a particular orientation. Terms such as “connected”, “connecting”, “attached”, “attaching”, “join” and “joining” are used interchangeably and refer to one structure or surface being secured to another structure or surface or integrally fabricated in one piece, unless expressively described otherwise.
In
Visible through the openings 16 are insect attractant members 18 which are preferably ultraviolet light sources, but alternatively may comprise a pheromone or lure of a type known to attract flying insects.
Referring next to
Also mounted on the left sidewall 26 of the enclosure back member 12 is an electronics circuit module 36 for controlling the ON/OFF state of the motor 28. As will be explained in detail below, at periodic, selectable intervals, the controller 36 will function to energize the motor 28 for a defined period of time sufficient to replace the length of the web that is exposed between the supply roller 20 and the take-up roller 24, at which point the controller again turns off the motor.
As is indicated in
As indicated earlier, it is a feature of the present invention that a fresh web segment, free of insects, be drawn from the supply roller 20 at preset, selectable intervals and with the insect-laden segment of web wound up on the take-up roller 24 and thereby encapsulating the dead insects. The controller should also function to only draw a length of web from the supply roller sufficient to span the distance between the axis of the supply roller 20 and that of the take-up roller 24 within a tolerance of, say, plus or minus 10%. The control module 40 shown in
Referring to
It is further contemplated that instead of using a one-shot circuit to establish the desired motor run time for delivering a measured quantity of web material, the same result may be achieved by having fiducial markings on the web at equally spaced intervals corresponding to the distance between the supply and take-up rollers and using an optical sensor for detecting the markings and shutting off the motor. In this arrangement, the motor 28 will be turned on by the signal from the output register 41 upon its contents being decremented to zero and will be turned off by an output from the optical sensor upon its detection of a next fiducial mark on the web as it moves into view of the sensor.
This invention has been described herein in considerable detail in order to comply with the patent statutes and to provide those skilled in the art with the information needed to apply the novel principles and to construct and use such specialized components as are required. However, it is to be understood that the invention can be carried out by specifically different equipment and devices. For example, persons skilled in the art may implement the control 40 in a variety of ways including a programmed microcontroller for carrying out the functionality described. Also, various modifications, both as to the equipment and operating procedures, can be accomplished without departing from the scope of the invention itself For example, the enclosure may also be designed to accept a conventional glue board. A braking element may also be adapted to provide a drag on the supply roller to ensure only the desired amount of the web is pulled from the supply roller as the motor runs.
