Patent ID: 6575118
Filing Date: 2003-06-10
Classification: A01K

Abstract:
A combination of a valve assembly and an animal feeding teat,said teat including: an outer casing having a resiliently flexible teat part, the resiliently flexible teat part having two ends, one of said two ends being connectable to a source of fluid and the other of said two ends allowing the fluid to flow to feed an animal, a first aperture located at the one end of the casing for communication with the source of fluid, a second aperture located at the other end of the casing through which the fluid flows to feed the animal, said valve assembly including: a valve member including a piston shaft with a piston head located at a first end of said piston shaft and a valve head located at an opposite second end of the piston shaft, said piston shaft being moveably mounted relative to said teat so that said valve head of said valve member is seated against said first aperture on one side and said piston head is on an opposite side of said first aperture, and a spring co-operable with said piston head, said spring biasing said valve member so that said valve head normally covers said first aperture at least when said teat and valve assembly are in a substantially horizontal orientation, and allows pressure on said piston head against said spring from forces acting on said resiliently flexible teat part to unseat said valve head and open said first aperture to allow fluid to flow through said first aperture into said outer casing and subsequently out of said second aperture and closes said first aperture with a bias force when the forces acting on said resiliently deformable flexible teat part are removed.