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CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application is a national phase application of, and claims priority under 35 USC §119 from, PCT Patent Application PCT/IL2008/001421, filed Oct. 29, 2008, which claims priority U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 60/984,399, filed Nov. 1, 2007, which are incorporated herein by reference. 
    
    
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates generally to disposing pet waste and the like and more particularly to improved apparatus and methods by which pet waste and the like may be disposed without soiling one&#39;s hands, while eliminating bad odor and microbial contamination. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     Due to increasing pet populations, certain large cities have adopted ordinances requiring pet owners to clean up after their pets. Even in areas where such cleanliness is not a prescribed ordinance, it is often desirable to dispose of pet waste and the like in order to maintain attractive lawns and streets which are safe to walk on without soiling one&#39;s shoes. 
     There have been various attempts to deal with these problems in the past. Some individuals have been known to place one of their hands inside a bag of flexible material, such as plastic, as if it were a glove, pick up the waste material using the “gloved” hand, and pull the end of the bag off of the hand in a manner so as to invert the bag around the waste material and package it for later disposal. However, this “gloved” hand method is esthetically unpleasing and otherwise unpleasant to the pet owner, particularly if the bag breaks at an opportune moment. 
     Other devices utilize a plastic bag and a frame, or multiple frames that may be collapsible and are used as scoops or shovels to place the waste material within the bag so that the bag may be inverted around the excrement and packaged for disposal. However, all these methods suffer from the fact that the waste is biologically active and therefore possess environmental hazards. 
     A gel composition containing oxidizing agents and thickening or gelling agents has also been proposed to detoxify chemical and biological agents by application directly to a contaminated area. The gelling agent is a colloidal material, such as silica, alumina, or alumino-silicate clays, which forms a viscous gel that does not flow when applied to tilted or contoured surfaces. After decontamination, the residue can be washed away or vacuumed up for disposal. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention seeks to provide improved apparatus and methods for disposing pet waste by means of combustion, as described more in detail hereinbelow. 
     Animal droppings (pet waste, feces or exudates, the terms being used interchangeably) are composed of organic matter that in principle may be incinerated or at least sterilized to eliminate bacterial activity and bad odor. However, a major problem associated with fresh feces is their high water content that inhibits incineration and unfortunately provides a good medium for bacterial growth and propagation. Furthermore, the high water content makes the feces sticky and dirty. An attempt to burn fresh feces by an external heat source, such as a gas burner, is typically associated with a formation of external layer of inorganic matter that insulates the wet interior and inhibits heat transfer and combustion thereto. Efficient heat transfer to the interior parts of the feces and water evaporation therefrom are essential components of fecal disposal by heat. 
     The present invention solves these problems, as described more in detail below, by using a portable waste collection receptacle disposed on a handle, and a heat source mounted together with the waste collection receptacle, capable of incinerating or sterilizing waste disposed in the waste collection receptacle. An oxidizing agent (e.g., potassium permanganate) can be mixed with the waste to generate heat to the waste. This provides efficient heat transfer to the interior parts of the feces and water evaporation therefrom. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       The present invention will be understood and appreciated more fully from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the drawing in which: 
         FIG. 1  is a simplified pictorial illustration of apparatus for pet waste disposal, constructed and operative in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS 
     Reference is now made to  FIG. 1 , which illustrates apparatus  10  for pet waste disposal, constructed and operative in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
     Apparatus  10  may include a waste collection receptacle  12 , which may be a chamber disposed at the end of a handle  13 . Receptacle  12  may be open at an end or side thereof (e.g., open at its bottom surface) or may be closed with a hinged or trap door for allowing entry therein of feces and exit therefrom of ash or other combustion products. 
     Apparatus  10  includes a heat source  14  capable of incinerating or sterilizing waste  15 . Heat source  14  may include, without limitation, a gas burner, oxidizing agent, laser heater, microwave heater, radiofrequency heater, electric resistance heater and the like, which is capable of drying and burning the organic waste  15  in a relatively short period of time without damaging the environment in general and the operator in particular. Heat transfer elements  16  (e.g., metal rods or plates) may be provided to contact or even pierce the waste  15  to accelerate heat transfer and water evaporation. 
     In a preferred embodiment, heat is generated by mixing the organic waste  15  with sufficient amount of an oxidizing agent  18 , such as but not limited to, potassium permanganate or any other safe oxidizing agent. Oxidizing agent  18  may be stored in a compartment  20  in apparatus  10  and dispensed via one or more valves  22 . Alternatively, oxidizing agent  18  may be manually dispensed by the operator from an external source (e.g., a bag carried by the operator). A mixing device  23  (such as but not limited to a beater, electrically or manually operated) may be provided for mixing oxidizing agent  18  with the feces. 
     In another embodiment, the device may contain one or more thermoelectric electrodes  24  that may convert heat to electricity by the Seebeck effect, i.e., the conversion of temperature differences directly into electricity. The electricity produced by the electrodes may be used for electrolysis of the water in the waste to molecular oxygen and molecular hydrogen that may contribute to the incineration of the organic waste. The electricity produced may also be used to charge a battery or operate an electrical device. 
     Additionally, apparatus  10  may include a collapsible shovel  26  that may be used to pick up the feces and dispose of the byproducts of combustion (mainly ash). Apparatus  10  may be constructed of light materials and have a telescopic body for folding into a small size convenient for carrying. Apparatus  10  may be operated in any open space, such as but not limited to, pavements, lawns, parks etc., without causing any damage. 
     In an experiment carried out with an embodiment of the invention, 50 gr of dog feces were mixed with about 20 gr of potassium permanganate. After about 20 seconds an exothermic reaction occurred, causing a temperature rise of about 100° C., and converting the feces to a dry odorless material which could be burned easily by a gas burner. The resulting ash was disposed directly on a green lawn. No phytotoxic signs were observed in a period of 30 days, indicating that the disposed material is environmentally safe. 
     It will be appreciated by persons skilled in the art that the present invention is not limited by what has been particularly shown and described hereinabove. Rather the scope of the present invention includes both combinations and subcombinations of the features described hereinabove as well as modifications and variations thereof which would occur to a person of skill in the art upon reading the foregoing description and which are not in the prior art.

Summary:
Apparatus ( 10 ) for pet waste disposal including a portable waste collection receptacle ( 12 ) disposed on a handle ( 13 ), characterized by a heat source ( 14 ) mounted together with the waste collection receptacle ( 12 ), capable of incinerating waste ( 15 ) disposed in the waste collection receptacle ( 12 ).