Abstract:
The invention relates to a device for protecting different articles against birds, insects and dust. The inventive device consists of a tubular element ( 11 ) comprising a flexible mesh or a non-woven fabric, which can be closed at the upper and lower openings thereof and which encloses the article to be protected ( 9   a,    9   b ). The invention is also equipped with a series of hoops ( 17 ) or supports which keep the tube ( 11 ) at a certain distance from the article to be protected.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/558,241, filed Nov. 23, 2005 now U.S. Pat. No. 7,941,966, which was the National Stage of International Application No. PCT/ES04/000233, filed May 24, 2004, and which claims the benefit of Spanish Patent Application No. P200301220, filed May 23, 2003 and Spanish Patent Application No. P200400289, filed Feb. 9, 2004, the entireties of which are incorporated by reference herein. 
    
    
     This invention relates to a device for protecting different articles against birds, insects and dust and, more specifically, for fruit, such as bunches of grapes while still on the vine, or foodstuffs, such as cold-cuts, dairy produce and herb products, and for all products that require protection against the mentioned aggressive agents. 
     BACKGROUND 
     In the world of cultivation, the care of certain products that are easily attacked by animals and/or insects has become the warhorse of many industries in the sector. 
     It is well-known that grapes on the vine and other fruit growing on trees are, in general, attacked by birds and insects that peck at the fruit to taste the juice, resulting in the fruit being spoiled and no longer suitable for sale. 
     Similarly, certain delicate flowers, such as roses, orchids and similar ones, are also damaged, by the attacking insects, inclement weather or dust and contamination. 
     Again referring to insects. these not only attack fruit. but they land on delicatessen products, on recently painted elements (lampposts and benches etc), ruining its quality and appearance. 
     SUMMARY 
     With the protective device of this invention, the previously described problems are resolved, since it will protect the object in question from inclement weather, insects and birds. 
     The same basically consists of a close-woven net in the form of a tube that can be closed at both top and bottom or only at one the ends, which contains the fruit or other article that is to be kept out of reach of birds. 
     The tube or tubular element should be understood as being the definition found in the Dictionary of the Royal Academy for the Spanish Language, namely, a hollow piece, commonly in cylindrical form and generally open at both ends. 
     This assumes that even through it preferably has a cylindrical form, it can also have other appropriate configurations depending on the case. 
     The fruit or flowers etc are placed inside the device, but at a certain distance from the net, because if the said fruit or flowers etc are touching the net, the insects, birds and other pests can still attack and damage them in order to extract the juice. 
     At the same the hoops provide the device with rigidity, otherwise it would be easy for the animals to stand on and use their own weight to bring them close to the contents so that they may attack them. 
     The inventors have also observed that, on occasion, the articles to be covered are firmly fixed to a support, for example, a ham on a ham stand, a recently painted wall lamp etc, which means it is not possible to employ this protective device with these products in a convenient fashion. 
     To this end, the invention has been modified and improved as requested, so that for the types of articles mentioned in the previous paragraph, a cut has been made that divides at least one of the hoops and part of the tubular element. 
     This facilitates the positioning of the protective device because the said cut defines two ends which, once the protective device is in position, overlap and prevent the entry of insects, dust and animals etc. In this way, the device can be adapted to any types of articles so that they become protected. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       In order to facilitate understanding of the following description, eight pages of drawings are included, in which: 
         FIG. 1  illustrates an elevation view of the device prior to installation. 
         FIG. 2  is another elevation view of the same device, once installed and surrounding a bunch of grapes. 
         FIG. 3  shows the cited device when it is folded and not in use. 
         FIG. 4  is another elevation view of the cited device with a variation of its elements. 
         FIG. 5  is a view of the device in  FIG. 4  once it has been installed. 
         FIG. 6  is a perspective view of the device applied to a ham on a ham stand, and 
         FIG. 7  is another perspective view once the device has been folded over the upper end of the ham leg and not in use. 
         FIG. 8  is a view of the device applied to a hanging ham. 
         FIG. 9  is a view of the device applied to a tree. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     With reference now to the said figures ( FIG. 1 ), the protective device of this invention consists mainly of a flexible anti-mosquito type of net  1 , or non-woven fabric in tubular form and, in general, cylindrical, with upper  3  and lower  5  ends open and, in any case, the lower one  5  closed, inside of which are installed a series of rigid hoops  7  at regular distances that ensure that the inside of the cited tube  1  maintains a certain distance from the fruit  9  or articles to be protected. 
     Once installed ( FIG. 2 ), the cited tube surrounds the said fruit  9  or articles, the upper  3  and lower  5  ends are closed using conventional closing elements, such as clips. 
       FIG. 3  shows the reduced space occupied by the described device when not in use: its flexible mesh  1  enables it to be significantly compressed, together with its hoops. 
     When convenient ( FIG. 4 ), the tube can comprise a flat portion  11  of mesh of non-woven fabric that is rolled into the desired tube shape, which is then similarly supported by means of a series of adjustable flexible strips  17  which, in this case, are incorporated on the outside of the tube  11 , with the ends of each strip  17  fitted with respective series of matching closing devices, for example, buttonholes  15   a  and buttons  15   b  that are suitably fastened. 
     This second version ( FIGS. 4 and 5 ) has an advantage over the first in that the protective tube  11  diameter can be adjusted using the cited adjustable hoops  17 ;  FIG. 5  shows the referred tube  11  with its maximum diameter housing two bunches of grapes  9   a  and  9   b.    
     In any case, the cited mesh tube  1 ,  11  should be sufficiently close-woven so that it prevents birds and insects from accessing the inside of the tube through the holes, and which will be made of a mesh or non-woven fabric that is innocuous to the food products inside. 
     The strips  17  can be joined to the protective tube  11  either by the inside of the same (as illustrated in  FIG. 2 ), or by the outside of the same (as shown in  FIG. 5 ). 
     With reference now to the other figures, the protective device of this invention ( FIG. 6 ) principally consists of a tubular element  1 , manufactured from a flexible anti-mosquito type of net or non-woven fabric in tubular form and, in general, cylindrical, with upper  3  and lower  5  ends initially open and subsequently closed by means of closing elements  13 , and where the inside of the non-woven fabric  1  is supported on a series of rigid hoops  7  at regular distances, which ensures that the inside of the cited tubular element  1  remains at a certain distance from the ham  9  or other articles to be protected. 
     It is necessary to point out that a cut is made which, in this case, is from the lower end  5  to the closest hoop, so that the ham  9  can be positioned inside, in spite of the fact that the said ham is secured to a ham stand  6 , which has a support  12  that raises the ham  9  into a cutting position, holding thus immobile so that the ham  9  can be cut, without be able to move. 
     The said cut  8  defines two ends and these ends tend to close when they surround the ham  9 , with one end overlapping the other. In the illustrated embodiment, a cut has been made from the lower end  5  to the hoop closest to the said end  5 , although it could be made from the upper end  3 , or cutting more than one hoop. 
     When it becomes necessary to cut the ham  9 , the lower means of closing, for example, some clips, are removed and then the tubular element  1  is folded towards the ham  9  foot leaving an area of ham  9  exposed for cutting ( FIG. 7 ). 
     Subsequently, once the ham  9  has been cut, the reverse operation is performed, so that, in order to cover the lower part of the ham again, the ends defined by cut  8  are overlapped and the tubular element  1  is closed, thus preventing the entrance of insects and dust, maintaining the ham&#39;s  9  characteristics intact ( FIG. 6 ). 
     In the same way as the previous example, in any case, the cited non-woven fabric of the tube  1  must sufficiently close so as to prevent birds and insects from passing through and also be made of a material that is innocuous to the food products. 
       FIG. 8  is a new option in which a ham is used hanging from a cord  32  fixed to a hook  31  that is secured to a support  30 , for example, a bar. As is well-known, hams have to be hung during their curing process but, at the same time, they have to be protected from insects that could spoil them. 
     Just as can be seen, the hook is inside the tubular element  1  and when the ham  9  is hung, the hook  32  pinches the tubular element, but without tearing it and the said ham is hung from the bar  30 , which prevents insects entering the tubular element. 
     Lastly,  FIG. 9  is a final variation in relation to a tree  9 , for example, a fruit tree. The fruit of certain trees is highly-prized and because of this, damage to just one fruit or flower can lead to great economic losses to agriculturists. 
     Thus, it can be observed that in this case, the upper end  3  is closed by some means of closing  13  and the lower end  5  is in contact with the ground  25 , with the said tubular element  1  fixed to the ground  25  by some means of securing  24 , so that the tree is protected from any type of inclement weather and/or insects etc. 
     Through the previous description, the efficient protection that this device provides to fruit and other various products against aggression by birds, insect and dust is quite evident. 
     In any case, it must be understood that the said protection is not limited to just these articles, but can be extended to elements of other natures, such as a recently painted element to which access by insects is not desired since they will stick to it and spoil its finish. 
     Having fully described the nature of this invention, it is stated for the record that this protective device for fruit and other various articles from birds, insects and dust can be manufactured using the most suitable materials and the most suitable size, with all of this falling into the spirit of the following claims.