Patent Application
20230240263
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The claimed subject matter relates to the field of home appliances and, more specifically, the claimed subject matter relates to the field of home appliances for pets.
A common problem associated with owning dogs or cats is that these pets tend to carry dirt, soil, filth, excrement and/or mud into one's home after taking a walk outdoors. Dirt and debris easily enter into the gaps within a pet's paws, and it can be challenging to remove it. To generally prevent dirt, soil, mud, filth, excrement, and/or bacteria from being introduced into one's home, animal paws must be cleaned before permitting the animal to enter the home. A typical method of cleaning an animal's paws may include manually washing each paw by hand with wet and/or dry towel. But because dirt and debris can get impacted within the gaps of a pet's paw, it can be difficult to remove said dirt and debris. Therefore, it can be time-consuming and tedious to manually wash a pet's paws.
Additionally, bathing a small pet such as a dog or a cat is a common chore often performed by a pet's owners. Pet washing is undertaken indoors using a conventional bathtub or basin using soapy water, or outdoors using a tub, basin and/or garden hose. Various conventional devices and apparatus have been used for the complete washing of a pet. One such conventional device is a hose nozzle that sprays water at a high pressure. These conventional devices, however, are not be particularly adapted for a thorough cleaning of the paws of a pet, which has many cracks and crevices within which dirt and debris can be lodged. Additionally, these conventional devices are not readily transportable and storable between uses. Furthermore, these conventional pet washing devices are not readily adaptable for daily use, do not provide rapid and effective cleaning of pet paws, and cannot be readily cleaned, sealed and stored between frequent uses.
Therefore, what is needed is a system and method for improving the problems with the prior art, and more particularly for a more expedient, simple and efficient method and system for cleaning pet's paws before being allowed to enter a home.
In one embodiment, an apparatus for cleaning a pet's paw is disclosed. This Summary is provided to introduce a selection of disclosed concepts in a simplified form that are further described below in the Detailed Description including the drawings provided. This Summary is not intended to identify key features or essential features of the claimed subject matter. Nor is this Summary intended to be used to limit the claim subject matter's scope.
The apparatus for cleaning a pet's paw includes a cylindrical container for holding water and/or cleaning fluid, the cylindrical container having a top opening; a cap configured to cover the top opening of the cylindrical container, the cap further including an orifice configured to accept insertion of the pet's paw while preventing water and/or cleaning fluid from exiting the cap; a cylindrical brush element located within the cylindrical container, the brush element including a plurality of bristles that extend towards a central longitudinal axis, wherein an interior volume of the cylindrical brush element is configured to accept the pet's paw; a base for holding the cylindrical container, the base including a handle; an electrical motor configured to interface with the cylindrical brush element so as to spin the cylindrical brush element to clean the pet's paw, the electrical motor further configured to spin the cylindrical brush element in a clockwise and counterclockwise direction, to move the cylindrical brush element upwards and downwards along the central longitudinal axis, and to move the cylindrical brush element radially away from and towards the central longitudinal axis; a controller configured to control the electrical motor, the controller configured to activate the electrical motor to spin in the clockwise and counterclockwise directions, to move upwards and downwards along the central longitudinal axis, and to move radially away from and towards the central longitudinal axis; and one or more ultraviolet (UV) lights located within the cylindrical container, the one or more UV lights configured to sanitize by emitting UV light.
Additional aspects of the claimed subject matter will be set forth in part in the description which follows, and in part will be obvious from the description, or may be learned by practice of the claimed subject matter. The aspects of the claimed subject matter will be realized and attained by means of the elements and combinations particularly pointed out in the appended claims. It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description and the following detailed description are exemplary and explanatory only and are not restrictive of the disclosed subject matter, as claimed.
The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute part of this specification, illustrate embodiments of the claimed subject matter and together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the claimed subject matter. The embodiments illustrated herein are presently preferred, it being understood, however, that the claimed subject matter is not limited to the precise arrangements and instrumentalities shown, wherein:
It should be understood that the embodiments disclosed herein are only examples of the many advantageous uses of the innovative teachings of the claimed embodiments. In general, statements made in the specification of the present application do not necessarily limit any of the various claimed embodiments. Moreover, some statements may apply to some inventive features but not to others. In general, unless otherwise indicated, singular elements may be in the plural and vice versa with no loss of generality. In the drawing like numerals refer to like parts through several views.
The disclosed embodiments improve over the prior art by providing a pet paw cleaning apparatus that addresses the issues with the prior art by providing a pet paw cleaning device that is quick and easy to use, as well as portable and efficient in its purpose. The claimed embodiments also provide a higher level of cleaning and completes said cleaning in a record time. Additionally, the claimed device is also easy to handle and to utilize, as well as easy to store and clean in between uses. Said features increase usability and proper usage of the pet paw cleaning devices on a daily basis. The disclosed embodiments also improve over the prior art by providing a pet paw cleaning apparatus that reduces or eliminates the ability of dirt and debris from entering into a person's home due to their pet's unclean paws. The disclosed embodiments further improve over the prior art by permitting the claimed apparatus to be held at an inclination whereby naturally allowing the animal's paw to be positioned in a relaxed extension rather than an upright standing position thereby resulting in a more comfortable and relaxed position of both the dog and the person holding the apparatus as there is no tendency of the animal to either put its weight on the paw being cleansed or tire the person with the weight of the dog supported only by the handle. The disclosed embodiments provide greater proficiency in cleaning between the pads of the paw, as well as the sides and the top of the paw, which were not properly addressed by the prior art. The circulating bristles of the claimed embodiments reach the top, sides, front, and back of the paw in their entirety.
Referring now to the drawing figures in which like reference designators refer to like elements, there is shown in
The cap 150 further includes an orifice (of width B) configured to accept insertion of the pet's paw 175 while preventing water and/or cleaning fluid from exiting the cap (see
In one embodiment, the bristles of the brush element 155 may extend further up the container. The longer bristled brush element 155 permits the paw to be cleaned by the spinning bristled brush element 155 completely, as opposed to the prior art wherein the dog had to remain flat-footed on top of the brush which can be very annoying for most dogs due to the sensitivity of the areas between the pads of their paws. With the dog's paw positioned in the prone position with the toes pointing down in a natural and relaxed position, the gentle brushes of the brush element 155 softly sweep dirt and debris away without causing anxiety or any pressure on the pads or toenails.
In one embodiment, the electrical motor 190 is conductively coupled to a rechargeable battery that is charged via the charging port 145. In one embodiment, the electrical motor 190 is conductively coupled to a timer configured to activate and deactivate the controller at predefined periods of time. In one embodiment, the electrical motor 190, the controller 165, the timer, the buttons and lights 140, 130, 135 are all communicatively coupled. The timer may enable a user to not have to turn off the apparatus, instead use both hands, and not let go of a difficult animal who might try to get away. As such, the timer may facilitate in the cleaning process.
The pet paw cleaning apparatus 100 can be held at an inclination whereby naturally allowing the animal's paw 175 to be positioned in a relaxed extension rather than an upright standing position thereby resulting in a more comfortable and relaxed position of both the dog and the person holding the apparatus 100 as there is no tendency of the animal to either put its weight on the paw being cleansed or tire the person with the weight of the dog supported only by the handle. The pet paw cleaning apparatus 100 is proficient in cleaning between the pads of the paw, as well as the sides and the top of the paw, since the circulating bristles of the apparatus 100 reach the top, sides, front, and back of the paw in their entirety.
In one embodiment, one or more elements of the apparatus 100 may be composed of a plastic, such as polyolefin, polyacrylate, polystyrene, polyamide, polyvinyl alcohol, poly(alkylene acrylate), poly(ethylene vinyl alcohol), poly(alkylene vinyl acetate), polyurethane, polyacrylonitrile, polyester, fluoropolymer, polycarbonate, or combinations thereof. In one embodiment, one or more elements of the apparatus 100, or a portion thereof, may comprise a surface that is ink-printable, i.e., the surface allows for ink printing on its surface. In another embodiment, one or more elements of the apparatus 100, or a portion thereof, may be opaque, transparent, semi-transparent, or translucent. In another embodiment, one or more elements of the apparatus 100 may be composed of at least one of a thermoplastic, a thermosetting polymer, polyethylene, polypropylene, polystyrene, polyvinyl chloride, polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE), polystyrene, polyvinyl chloride, nylon, polyester, polyethylene terephthalate, high density polyethylene, polyvinylidene chloride, high impact polystyrene, or mixtures thereof. One or more elements of the apparatus 100 may further be composed of any moldable plastic, ABS plastic, injection grade plastic, bio-plastic or biodegradable plastic. In another embodiment, one or more elements of the apparatus 100, or any portion thereof, may be composed of rubber or a similar type of polymer.
In one embodiment, brush 155 may be composed of a polymeric foam such as EVA foam, LDPE foam, nitrile rubber foam, neoprene, polyimide foam, polypropylene foam, polystyrene foam, styrofoam, polyurethane foam, PVC foam, silicone foam or microcellular foam. The material of brush 155 must be soft enough so as not to irritate or harm the animal, yet sufficiently flexible to allow for the spinning bristles to be inserted between the animal's pads as well as the fur, nails, and pads without causing irritation, harm, or alarm.
In another embodiment, one or more elements of the apparatus 100, or any portion thereof, may be composed of stainless steel, iron, silver, platinum, gold, zinc, copper, nickel, or any alloys or combinations of the above. The composition of the one or more elements of the apparatus 100, or any portion thereof, may be mixed with harder metals for strength and durability.
Embodiments of the invention, for example, are described above with reference to block diagrams and/or operational illustrations of methods, systems, and processes. While certain embodiments have been described, other embodiments may exist. Further, the disclosed processes may be modified in any manner, including by reordering stages and/or inserting or deleting stages, without departing from the invention.
Although the subject matter has been described in language specific to structural features and/or methodological acts, it is to be understood that the subject matter defined in the appended claims is not necessarily limited to the specific features or acts described above. Rather, the specific features and acts described above are disclosed as example forms of implementing the claims.
