Scoop-type cat toilet

The present disclosure relates to a scoop-type cat toilet. The scoop-type cat toilet includes a housing having at least one opening through which a cat enters or exits an internal space of the housing, an excrement box having excrement sand, rails provided on inner surfaces of two opposite lateral surfaces of the housing, a collection part including gear boxes having gears configured to move along the rails, and a scooper connected to the gear boxes and configured to scoop and move excrement mixed with the excrement sand, and a collection box configured to accommodate the excrement moved by the collection part.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to a scoop-type cat toilet, and more particularly, to a scoop-type cat toilet, in which an internal space in which a cat can defecate, and when excrement occurs, a scooper may scoop the excrement while moving along a rail and discharge the excrement to a collection box.

BACKGROUND ART

In general, a cat has a habit of digging sand, defecating, and then covering the excrement with sand. Therefore, most people who have cats at home install so-called cat toilets in which sand is loaded in a container with an open upper side.

Most of the cat's excrement accumulated in the cat toilet is removed by using a tool such as a shovel to dig up the excrement and sand together and using a mesh body as a separate object to filter out the excrement. Alternatively, the user uses a shovel equipped with a mesh body through which the sand passes, and removes the excrement remaining after filtering out the excrement.

This process requires a large amount of work time and causes inconvenience to the user in that he/she needs to manually find the excrement one by one. In addition, the cat's excrement causes a terrible smell over time, and it is very unpleasant when the user removes the excrement directly.

In addition, in the process of finding the excrement, various hygiene problems may occur because the user's hand may come into contact with the sand contaminated by the excrement, the sand and dust can be blown into the air, and the bacteria can penetrate through the respiratory tract.

Related Technical Document

Technical Problem

The present invention has been made in an effort to solve the above-mentioned technical problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a scoop-type cat toilet, in which an internal space in which a cat can defecate, and when excrement occurs, a scooper may scoop the excrement while moving along a rail and discharge the excrement to a collection box.

Technical Solution

To achieve the above-mentioned object, the present invention provides a scoop-type cat toilet including: a housing having an internal space and at least one opening through which a pet enters or exits the internal space; an excrement box provided below the internal space and having excrement sand loaded therein; rails provided on inner surfaces of two opposite lateral surfaces of the housing that face each other; a collection part including gear units configured to move along the rails, and a scooper connected to the gear units and configured to scoop and move excrement mixed with the excrement sand in the excrement box; and a collection box configured to accommodate the excrement moved by the collection part.

In this case, the rail may include: a first straight portion configured to define a length from a front side to a rear side of the internal space; a first curvature portion extending from the first straight portion and configured to define a first curvature upward in the internal space; a second straight portion extending from the first curvature portion; and a second curvature portion extending from the second straight portion and configured to define a second curvature rearward in the internal space.

In addition, the first curvature may be smaller than the second curvature.

In addition, the housing and the excrement box may further include expanded portions having sliding expandable multilayered structures. In addition, the cat toilet may further include additional rails coupled to inner surfaces of expanded portions of two opposite lateral surfaces of the housing when the housing and the excrement box are sliding expanded, the additional rails each having one end fitted and coupled to the corresponding rail so as to extend from the corresponding rail.

In addition, the rail may include: an upper end divided into a first lane and a second lane in a longitudinal direction; and a lower end formed as a rack gear.

In addition, the gear unit may include: first and second rollers spaced apart from each other, the first roller being configured to move along the first lane, and the second roller being configured to move along the second lane; a pinion gear configured to engage with the rack gear; and a gear box coupled to the first roller, the second roller, and the pinion gear by means of bearings.

In addition, the rail may further include an extension lane including a stator coil therein.

The gear box may have a depressed portion into which the extension lane is inserted to be spaced apart from the depressed portion, and the gear box may further include magnets provided upper and lower portions of the depressed portion facing the stator coil.

In this case, the pinion gear may move along the rail in a magnetic induction manner.

In addition, the rail may further include: a first curved depressed portion formed in the first curvature portion of the first lane; and a second curved depressed portion formed in the first curvature portion of the second lane, in which the first curved depressed portion and the second curved depressed portion are formed at different positions of a first circle of curvature and guide the corresponding roller so that the corresponding roller moves along the first circle of curvature according to an inner curvature of the rack gear on the first curvature portion.

In this case, the first roller and the second roller may move on the corresponding curved depressed portion at the same point in time.

In addition, a distance between centers of the first and second rollers may be smaller than a diameter of the first circle of curvature, and a distance between the center of the first roller and a center of the first circle of curvature may be equal to a distance between the center of the second roller and a center of the first circle of curvature.

In addition, an inner curvature of the excrement box may be defined as a value larger by a preset value than an inner curvature of a third circle of curvature or an inner curvature of the third circle of curvature when a center of the first circle of curvature according to the inner curvature of the rack gear, a center of the second circle of curvature according to the outer curvature of the rack gear, and a center of the third circle of curvature according to a curvature corresponding to a movement route of a rake portion provided on a scooper are formed based on the single same center point.

In addition, the pinion gear configured to move via the first curvature portion may accelerate in operating speed in comparison with the first roller and the second roller. The pinion gear may be coupled to the gear box by means of a bearing, and the gear unit may further include a spring damper configured to elastically support the bearing from the gear box.

In addition, the scooper may include: a body configured to define a length in a direction from a first lateral surface to a second lateral surface of the housing and having two opposite ends coupled to the gear units at two opposite sides; a rake portion having a scoop-type rake formed downward from the body; and a cover open bar configured to define a predetermined length defined toward a rear side of the housing from two opposite ends above the rake portion.

In addition, the collection box may include: an upper end disposed rearward of the internal space and fixedly coupled to the two opposite lateral surfaces of the housing; and a collection container provided below the upper end and configured to be detachable, the upper end and the collection container may define a closed space that accommodates excrement, a cover may be hingedly coupled to the upper end, and the cover may open or close the collection box by using a cover open bar that moves as the gear unit moves. Other detailed matters of the embodiment are included in the detailed description and the drawings.

Advantageous Effects

Therefore, according to the present invention, it is possible to provide the scoop-type cat toilet, in which the internal space in which the cat can defecate, and when excrement occurs, the scooper may scoop the excrement while moving along the rail and discharge the excrement to the collection box. Therefore, the user does not directly perform the excrement treatment process, but may only remove the excrement collected in the collection box. Therefore, the cat toilet is easy to use, and hygienic cleanliness may be maintained.

In addition, the scooping structure may separate the excrement and the sand, and then only the excrement may be discharged to the collection box separated from the internal space. The cover may be provided on the separated collection box and opened only when the excrement collecting operation is performed, thereby suppressing the smell of the excrement.

In addition, the excrement box and the collection container are detachably provided, which makes it easy to replace the sand in the excrement box and treat the excrement in the collection container. A bag may be inserted into the collection container and replaced and used, which makes it easier to treat the excrement.

The effects according to the present invention are not limited to the above-mentioned effects, and more various effects are included in the present specification.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The following contents merely illustrate the principle of the present invention. Therefore, those skilled in the art can implement the principles of invention and invent various devices included in the concept and scope of the invention even though the principles are not clearly explained or shown in the present specification. In addition, all the conditional terms and embodiments listed herein need to be understood as clearly intended only for the purpose of understanding the concept of the invention, and not limited to the specially listed embodiments and conditions.

In addition, in the following descriptions, the ordinal numbers such as “first,” and “second” are intended to explain the equivalent and independent objects, and it should be understood that there is no meaning related to the order of main/sub or master/slave.

The above-mentioned objects, features, and advantages will be more apparent from the following detailed description described with reference to the accompanying drawings, and thus the technical spirit of the present invention will be easily carried out by those skilled in the art to which the present invention pertains.

Respective features of several exemplary embodiments of the present invention may be partially or entirely coupled to or combined with each other, and as sufficiently appreciated by those skilled in the art, various technical cooperation and operations may be made, and the respective exemplary embodiments may be carried out independently of each other or carried out together correlatively.

The present invention relates to a scoop-type cat toilet capable of scooping and collecting excrement. A structure and operation of the scoop-type cat toilet may be described with reference toFIGS.1to9.

FIG.1is a perspective view illustrating a cat toilet according to an embodiment of the present invention.FIGS.2A and2Bare views for explaining a sliding expansion structure of the cat toilet inFIG.1.FIG.3is a view for explaining a process of attaching or detaching an excrement box and a collection container inFIG.1.

Referring toFIGS.1to3, a cat toilet100according to an embodiment of the present invention may include a housing110, an excrement box120, rails130, a collection part140including gear units145and a scooper146, and a collection box150.

The housing110may include a first lateral surface111a, a second lateral surface111b, a front surface112, and an upper surface113and have an internal space that the cat may enter. In this case, the housing110may further include a lower surface (not illustrated). The excrement box120may be disposed in a lower space of the housing110without the lower surface.

That is, in the embodiment illustrated inFIG.1, the internal space may be defined by the housing110, the excrement box120disposed in the lower space of the housing110, and the collection box150disposed in a rear space of the housing110. In this case, the housing110may be made of a transparent plastic through which the interior of the housing110is visible. The housing110may have at least one opening portion110hthrough which the cat enters or exits the housing110.

The excrement box120may be provided at a lower side of the internal space, and excrement sand11(seeFIG.9) may be loaded into the excrement box120. The cat entering the internal space through the opening portion110hmay defecate in the excrement box120.

The housing110and the excrement box120may further include a multilayered sliding structure including housing expanded portions111a′,111b′, and113′ and an excrement box expanded portion120′. When the cat grows and increases in body size, the internal space may be increased by sliding and expanding the housing110and the expanded portion of the excrement box120.

The housing expanded portions may include a first lateral expanded portion111a′, a second lateral expanded portion111b′, and an upper expanded portion113′. The housing expanded portions are additionally provided inside or outside the housing110and structured to be expanded or contracted by sliding. When the housing expanded portions are expanded or contracted, the housing110and the expanded portions need to fix the sliding structure.

In addition, the excrement box120may also have an overlapping excrement box expanded portion120′ having a sliding structure that is expanded or contracted.

In this case, the rail130needs to be extended when the housing110and the excrement box120are expanded. In the present invention, the rail130may be extended by inserting an additional rail130′ into the expanded space. In this case, the inserted additional rails130′ may be coupled to the rails130installed on the lateral surfaces111aand111bof the housing110by mutual fitting or the like.

Alternatively, instead of the sliding expansion, an expanded structure may be formed by additionally coupling expanded portions of the housing and the excrement box by using fitting coupling, screw coupling, and the like.

The rails130may be respectively provided on the inner surfaces of the two opposite lateral surfaces111aand111bof the housing110that face each other. The rails130may guide a movement route so that the scooper146may scoop and move the cat's excrement placed in the excrement box120. To guide the scooping movement route, the cat toilet according to the present invention may include a structure of the rail130illustrated inFIG.4, and a specific structure thereof will be described with reference toFIG.4.

The collection part140may include: the gear units145configured to move along the rails130respectively provided on the first lateral surface111aand the second lateral surface111b; and the scooper146connected to the gear units145and configured to scoop and move the excrement mixed with the excrement sand in the excrement box12.

The gear units145may include a first gear unit coupled to the rail130provided on the first lateral surface111a, and a second gear unit coupled to the rail130provided on the first lateral surface111a. Gear boxes143of the two gear units145may be respectively coupled to the two opposite ends of a body1461of the scooper146.

In addition, the housing110may further include a frame115disposed between the gear box143and the body1461of the scooper146and provided in a space that does not hinder the movement of the scooper146in order to protect the rail130and the gear unit145, i.e., to prevent the cat from approaching the rail130and the gear unit145in the internal space. The frame115may also have a structure that is expanded by the sliding expansion.

Referring toFIGS.1,3, and9, the scooper146may include: the body1461configured to define a length in a direction from the first lateral surface111ato the second lateral surface111band having two opposite ends coupled to the gear boxes143at two opposite sides by screw coupling1461a(FIG.5) and the like; a rake portion1462having a scoop-type rake formed downward from the body1461; and a cover open bar1463configured to define a predetermined length defined toward a rear side of the housing110from two opposite ends above the rake portion1462.

The collection box150may include: an upper end151fixedly coupled to the first lateral surface111aand the second lateral surface111b; and a collection container152detachably provided at a lower end of the upper end151.

The upper end151and the collection container152may define a closed space that accommodates the excrement. In this case, when a cover151ais hingedly coupled to the upper end151and an operation of collecting excrement is not performed, the cover151amay close the collection box150. When the operation of collecting excrement is performed, the cover open bar1463of the scooper146may open the cover151a. In addition, the collection container152has a bag fixing portion (not illustrated) such as a clip, a catching projection, or the like that may accommodate and fix the collection bag therein. When the excrement is collected in the collection bag, the excrement may be removed by replacing only the collection bag.

In addition, the excrement box120and the collection container152of the scoop-type cat toilet100according to the present invention may be detachable in order to replace the excrement sand and discharge the excrement. The scoop-type cat toilet100may have supporting/fixing portions116a,116b, and116cdisposed below the housing110in order to support and fix the excrement box120and the collection container152when the excrement box120and the collection container152are mounted.

In addition, a power source unit (not illustrated) may be provided in a space114provided above the collection box150. The power source unit may be provided as a replaceable battery, a rechargeable battery, or the like.

The scoop-type cat toilet100according to the present invention may use a rack pinion structure between the rail13and the gear142to guide the movement of the scooper. In the present invention, the rail structure illustrated inFIG.4may guide the scooping operation.

FIG.4is a view for explaining a rail structure inFIG.1.FIG.5is a cross-sectional view illustrating a cross-section taken along line A-A′ inFIG.4.

Referring toFIGS.4and5, the rail130according to the embodiment of the present invention may include a first straight portion L1configured to define a length from the front side to the rear side of the internal space of the housing110, a first curvature portion C1extending from the first straight portion L1and configured to define a first curvature upward in the internal space, a second straight portion L2extending from the first curvature portion C1, and a second curvature portion L2extending from the second straight portion L2and configured to define a second curvature rearward in the internal space. In this case, the second curvature portion L2may extend to the lateral surfaces111aand111bcorresponding to a height of an upper end of the cover151a.

In addition, the first curvature of the first curvature portion C1may be smaller than a curvature of a second curvature portion C2. In addition, referring to a partially expanded view of part a of the rail130inFIG.4, an upper end of the rail130may be divided into a first lane131and a second lane132, and a lower end of the rail130may be formed as a rack gear133(FIG.7) having teeth.

The gear unit145coupled to the rail130includes a first roller141a, a second roller141b, the gear142, and the gear box143. The first roller141amay move via the first lane131, and the second roller141bmay move via the second lane132. That is, the first roller141aand the second roller141bmay have different lengths that define a level difference. The first roller141aand the second roller141bmay be connected to the gear box143through bearings. In this case, the first roller141aand the second roller141bmay have the same diameter and be placed on the rail130by gravity.

The gear142may be provided as a pinion gear and connected to the gear box143through a bearing so that the gear142may engage with the rack gear133at the lower end of the rail130and rotate. Referring toFIG.5, the gear142may move via the lower end of the rail130corresponding to the second lane132.

In this case, the rail130and the gear unit145may constitute a linear motor and operate in a magnetic induction manner. Referring toFIG.5, the rail130may further include an extension lane134including a stator coil134′ therein. The gear box143has a depressed portion143′ in which the extension lane134is inserted to be spaced apart from the depressed portion143′. Magnet parts144aand144bmay be provided at positions corresponding to the stator coil134′ of the rail130, and magnets having different polarities may be disposed. For example, the first magnet part144amay have an S-pole, and the second magnet part144bmay have an N-pole.

The stator coil134′ becomes an electromagnet when the current flows through the stator coil134′. The electromagnet, together with the magnets144aand144b, provides an attractive force or a repulsive force, such that the gear unit145may move in a direction of an electromagnetic force. Therefore, it is possible to adjust intensity of the force F (i.e., a movement speed of the gear unit145) and a direction of the force F (an excrement collecting direction or an original position returning direction) by adjusting a direction and intensity of the current flowing through the stator coil134′.

The electromagnetic force is applied in a direction perpendicular to the direction of the magnetic field and the direction of the current. Therefore, when the current applied to the stationary coil134′ from a power source unit (not illustrated), the directions of the current I, the magnetic field B, and the force F may be determined, and the gear unit145may move along the rail130in the direction of the force F.

Alternatively, a general motor may be provided in the scooper body1461without a configuration of the rail extension portion134, and a pinion gear may be connected to the motor and operated.

In addition, in the present invention, curved depressed portions131aand132amay be formed at the first curvature portion C1, at which the motion direction of the gear unit145is changed, so that the gear unit145may smoothly move along the rail130at a predetermined speed.

That is, the first straight portion L1, the second straight portion L2, and the second curvature portion C2may each have a predetermined thickness. The first curvature portion C1may have the curved depressed portions131aand132a. Therefore, when the gear unit145may move rectilinearly on the first straight portion L1and then move in the route in which the direction is changed to the vertical motion while the gear unit145passes through the first curvature portion C1, the gear unit145may stably move at a predetermined speed.

In this case, the first roller141aand the second roller141bpassing through the first curvature portion C1may move at the same speed. In contrast, the gear142moves along the outer curvature of the rack gear133, such that the operating speed increases. Therefore, the gear unit145may stably move.

In the present invention, the positions and depths of the curved depressed portions131aand132amay be determined based on a circle of curvature according to the first curvature. In this case, the curved depressed portions131aand132aneed to have a depth that does not affect the rack gear133. The description thereof will be described with reference toFIGS.6A,6B and7.

FIGS.6A and6Bare views for explaining a first curved depressed portion and a second curved depressed portion formed in a rail inFIG.4.FIG.7is a view for explaining the curvatures of the excrement box and the first curvature portion of the rail according to the embodiment of the present invention.

The curved depressed portions131aand132aneed to be formed within a range in which the teeth of the rack gear133are maintained. Therefore, based on the teeth engaging with the pinion gear142, the curved depressed portions131aand132amay be formed so that the first roller141aand the second roller141bmove along the first circle D of curvature according to the inner curvature of the rack gear133. That is, both a circle of curvature according to the curvature of the route in which the first roller141amoves and a circle of curvature according to the curvature of the route in which the second roller141bmoves need to be placed on the first circle D of curvature having the same center point o.

In addition, when the first roller141aand the second roller141bmove along the first curvature portion C1, the direction of the rectilinear motion is rapidly changed to the direction of the vertical motion. Therefore, a route in which the first roller141aand the second roller141bmay move while maintaining a spacing distance therebetween needs to be ensured so that the first roller141aand the second roller141bstably move without deviating from the route. To this end, in the present invention, a dual rail divided into the first lane131and the second lane132is used as the rail130, thereby implementing a structure in which the first roller141aand the second roller141bmove along the different lanes131and132.

For example, the lengths of the first roller141aand the second roller141b, which protrude from the gear box143, may be different from each other so that the first roller141amoves along the first lane131, and the second roller141bmoves along the second lane132.

Referring toFIG.6A, the curved depressed portions are respectively formed in the first lane131and the second lane132so that the first roller141aand the second roller141bmove along the movement route corresponding to the first circle D of curvature according to the inner curvature of the rack gear133according to the present invention. At a point in time at which the first roller141acomes into contact with the first curved depressed portion131aof the first lane131, the second roller141balso comes into contact with the second curved depressed portion132aof the second lane132, such that the positions and depths of the first curved depressed portion131aand the second curved depressed portion132amay be determined, as illustrated inFIG.6Bso that a route is formed, in which the rollers141aand141bmove at the same point in time on the curved depressed portions131aand132a.

In addition, to define the movement route corresponding to the first circle D of curvature, a distance A between the centers of the first and second rollers141aand141bneeds to be smaller than a diameter G of the first circle D of curvature, and a distance between the center of the first roller141aand the center o of the first circle D of curvature may be equal to a distance between the center of the second roller141band the center o of the first circle D of curvature.

In addition, referring toFIG.7, the inner curvature of the excrement box120may be determined based on the movement route of the end of the rake portion1462of the scooper146. In this case, the circles of curvature defined by the inner curvature of the rack gear133, the outer curvature of the rack gear133, and the inner curvature of the excrement box120define the single same center point o, the scooper146may scoop and move the excrement.

That is, a center of the first circle D of curvature according to the inner curvature of the rack gear133, a center of a second circle E of curvature according to an outer curvature of the rack gear133, and a center of a third circle F of curvature according to the curvature corresponding to the movement route of the rake portion1462of the scooper146may be defined based on the single same center point o. In this case, the inner curvature of the excrement box120in which the rake portion1462moves may be formed as the inner curvature of the third circle F of curvature. Alternatively, the inner curvature of the excrement box120may be set to a value larger by a preset value than the inner curvature of the third circle F of curvature so that the scooper146may be moved by the gear unit145without hindrance caused by friction of the excrement box120.

Alternatively, the first straight portion L1, the first curvature portion C1, the second straight portion L2, and the second curvature portion C2of the rail130may have the same predetermined thickness, and a spring damper160may be used as a means for stably moving the gear unit145at a predetermined speed on the first curvature portion C1.

FIG.8is a view for explaining the spring damper of a gear box according to the embodiment of the present invention. Referring toFIG.8, the pinion gear142may be coupled to the gear box143through a bearing142a, and the gear unit145may further include the spring damper160configured to elastically support the bearing142afrom the gear box143.

Therefore, intervals between the pinion gear142, the first roller141a, and the second roller141bmay increase correspondingly to the first curvature when the gear unit moves along the first curvature portion C1. Therefore, the gear unit145may stably move without forming the curved depressed portion.

As described above, the scoop-type cat toilet according to the present invention may move the excrement in the excrement box120to the collection container152by means of the structure illustrated inFIGS.1to8. The scooping operation will be described with reference toFIG.9.

FIG.9is an operational view for explaining an operation of collecting excrement in the cat toilet inFIG.1.

The cat toilet100according to the present invention may have a sensor or the like disposed below the excrement box120and configured to measure a weight. A weight measured when sand11is loaded into the excrement box120is set to a first reference weight, a cat weight or preset weight is set to a second reference weight, and an excrement collecting operation may be performed when a weight larger than the first reference weight and smaller than the second reference weight is sensed. In addition, when the second reference weight is measured, a state in which the cat defecates may be determined, and power may be cut off.

Alternatively, a power button may be provided, the excrement collecting operation may be performed at a particular point in time under the user's operation control.

In this case, after the excrement collecting operation is completed, an operation of returning the scooper146to the original position may be performed.

Specifically, during the excrement collecting operation, the power source unit (not illustrated) applies the current to the stator coil134′ of the rail130, and the gear unit145may move from the front side to the rear side in the internal space along the rail130by the magnetic induction.

When the body1461coupled to the gear box143is moved by the movement of the gear142, the rake portion1462scoop and move the excrement11mixed with the sand11, the cover open bar1463at the end of the rail130pushes the cover151aupward and open the collection box151, such that the scooped excrement11is dropped into the collection container152.

In addition, during the returning operation, the direction of the current is changed, the magnetic induction occurs in the returning direction, and the cover open bar1463moves away from the cover151a, such that the cover151amay close the collection box151, and the gear unit145may move to the original position. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the smell of the excrement from leaking to the outside.

Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings, the present invention is not limited thereto and may be modified in many different forms without departing from the technical concept of the present invention. Therefore, the embodiments disclosed in the present invention are provided for illustrative purposes only but not intended to limit the technical spirit of the present invention. The scope of the technical spirit of the present invention is not limited thereby. Therefore, it should be understood that the above-described exemplary embodiments are illustrative in all aspects and do not limit the present invention. The protective scope of the present invention should be construed based on the following claims, and all the technical spirit in the equivalent scope thereto should be construed as falling within the scope of the present invention.