Abstract:
A bird feeder that includes a container having top and bottom ends spaced apart in a first direction, and a cylindrical wall surrounding a central region between the top and bottom ends to hold bird feed. The container also includes a plurality of feeding openings in the wall to provide access to the bird feed in the container. The plurality of feeding openings are spaced at a respective distance from the top end toward the bottom end. The bird feeder also includes a generally helical member having a first end portion and a second end portion. The helical member is wound around the container in a spiral manner along a generally helical path between the top and bottom ends. Top and bottom caps are also provided to close the top and bottom ends of the bird feed container. Both the top and bottom caps can be removed from the container.

Description:
BACKGROUND  
       [0001]     [1] The present invention relates to bird feeders and, more specifically, to an improved bird feeder having a container with feeding openings and a generally helical member surrounding the container.  
       OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION  
       [0002]     It is an object of the invention to provide an improved bird feeder having a container with feed ports and a generally helical perch extending spirally along the container to provide access to seed.  
         [0003]     Another object is to provide a bird feeder suitable for varied sizes and species of birds.  
         [0004]     Another object is to provide a bird feeder having a plurality of ports spaced in a spiral manner and a single, generally helical member configured to serve as a perch adjacent to the ports.  
         [0005]     It is still another object to provide a helical perch with end stops to help stabilize and to properly position the perch with respect to the seed container.  
         [0006]     It is yet another object to provide a feeder having a locking means for all caps to prevent rodents access to seed.  
         [0007]     It is an object of the invention to provide a simplified, quick cleaning means by use of removable caps.  
         [0008]     It is an object of the invention to provide a bird feeder with a seed tray with attachment means to the bottom cap.  
         [0009]     These and other objects of the invention will become apparent from the following description, drawings and claims.  
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0010]     An improved bird feeder in accordance with this invention includes a feed container that has a wall surrounding a central region and a plurality of feeding openings, or ports, in the wall through which birds are allowed access to bird feed stored inside the container. The feeder has a hollow body for receiving and storing bird feed. The ports are spaced apart along the length of the container between the ends thereof, and are so located that a generally helical member extending around and along the body passes near each of the ports. These feeding ports are provided to allow birds access to the feed contained in the central cavity area.  
         [0011]     The feed is retained in the body by providing a sealing means for the top and bottom of the feeder. The helical member is spaced from the container by a distance that allows birds perched on it to reach into each port and withdraw bird feed. The distance from the part of the perch closest to an access port is suitable for small birds, while larger birds can accommodate themselves by positioning their bodies somewhat upwards or downwards along the perch from the access ports.  
         [0012]     Using preformed wire or plastic wire, the helical perch can be attached to near the top and near the bottom of the container. For non-preformed perches, support pegs may be utilized and fixedly attached to the container to shape the non-preformed perch at a predetermined distance and position from the container. Stops near each end of the helical perch help to properly position and to stabilize the perch once it is attached to the container.  
         [0013]     The top cap of the feeder has a locking mechanism securing it to the container. The top cap can be locked or unlocked simply by rotating the cap in place. If the top cap is rotated to lock, it prevents rodents from gaining access to seed contained therein. If it is rotated to unlock, the top cap can then be lifted up and out of the feeder along a hanging means to allow feed to be inserted into the central cavity of the feeder. The bottom of the feeder has a similar locking mechanism. If the bottom cap is rotated to lock, then it helps to support the seed. If it is rotated to unlock, the bottom cap can then be pulled down and out freely from the bottom of the feeder to allow cleaning of the feeder parts.  
         [0014]     An optional seed tray can also be attached to the bottom cap to help catch uneaten seed and empty husks. The feeder is hung by a cable or wire that is attached directly to the perch through the top cap which allows the feeder to be hung from a suitable tree or other site, thus allowing the enjoyment of watching birds eat.  
         [0015]     The invention will be described in greater detail in connection with the drawings, in which like serial numbers in different figures indicate the same item. 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0016]      FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a helical perch bird feeder with detachable top and bottom caps according to one embodiment of the present invention.  
         [0017]      FIG. 2  is a cross-sectional exploded view of the helical perch bird feeder along line  2 - 2  shown in  FIG. 1 .  
         [0018]      FIG. 3  is a cross-sectional view of the top cap of the helical perch bird feeder along line  3 - 3  shown in  FIG. 1 .  
         [0019]      FIG. 4  is a cross-sectional view of the bottom cap of the helical perch bird feeder along line  4 - 4  shown in  FIG. 1 .  
         [0020]      FIG. 5  is a top view of the base plate used in the bottom cap as shown in  FIG. 1 .  
         [0021]      FIG. 6  is a cross-sectional view of the base plate along line  6 - 6  shown in  FIG. 5 .  
         [0022]      FIG. 7  is a cross-sectional view of the base plate along line  7 - 7  shown in  FIG. 5   
         [0023]      FIG. 8  is a top view of the seed tray illustrated as being attached to the bottom cap in  FIG. 1 .  
         [0024]      FIG. 9  is a cross-sectional view of the seed tray along line  9 - 9  shown in  FIG. 8 .  
         [0025]      FIG. 10  is a top view of the top cap shown as being attached to the top of the cylindrical body of the bird feeder in  FIG. 1 .  
         [0026]      FIG. 11  is a cross-sectional view of the top cap along line  11 - 11  shown in  FIG. 10 .  
         [0027]      FIG. 12  is a top view of the bottom cap shown as being attached to the bottom of the tube feeder in  FIG. 1 .  
         [0028]      FIG. 13  is a cross-sectional view of the bottom cap along line  13 - 13  shown in  FIG. 12 .  
         [0029]      FIG. 14  is a top view of the relaxed helical perch used in  FIGS. 1-4 . 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION  
       [0030]      FIG. 1  and  FIG. 2  illustrate a bird feeder  100  according to one embodiment of the present invention. The bird feeder  100  includes a seed container that has a hollow tubular body  112  surrounding a central region into which a quality of seed can be poured. The hollow tubular body  112  can be cast or molded from such material as transparent butyrate, poly-carbonate, and the like. The tubular body  112  can also be cut from a longer plastic tube into sections having the hollow tubular body  112  dimensions.  
         [0031]     According to one embodiment, the container is round, and the wall has a plurality of feeding openings, or feed ports,  114  spaced apart longitudinally along the body  112  and angularly around it relative to an arbitrary plane through the axis of the tubular body  112 . These feed ports  114  are positioned to generally follow the same path directionally as a helical perch  116 . The feed ports  114  can be formed into the hollow tubular body  112  by the mechanical means of a stamping process.  
         [0032]     The bird feeder  100  also includes the helical perch  116 , which is wound helically around the hollow tubular body  112 . The helical perch  116  can be made of either plastic or metal materials. If it is made of plastic, then a suitable UV-resistant and rodent-resistant material like poly-carbonate could be used. The shape of the plastic helical perch  116  can be formed using a plastic-injection process. If metal is chosen for the helical perch  116  then a rust-resistant material like stainless steel should be utilized. The shape of the metal helical perch  116  can be formed using a process similar to that, which is used to form the shape of coil springs.  
         [0033]     A first cable ferrule  102  forms a top cable loop  101  for a cable  104 , which comprises part of the hanging means of the bird feeder  100 . The first cable ferrule  102  must be crimped with a tight clamping force with a crimping tool, or the like, for the purpose of forming the top cable loop  101 . The bottom end of the cable  104  is inserted through a small grommet hole  105  in removable top cap  106  which is then securely fastened to the helical perch  116  inside the removable top cap  106 . The bird feeder  100  may be hung by the hanging means, which is partially shown in  FIG. 1 , to a post, to a side of a house, or in the branches of a tree. The removable top cap  106  protects the seed inside the bird feeder  100  from the environment and rodents. The portion below the top cap  106  is an overhang  107 , which is made larger than the hollow tubular body&#39;s  112  outside diameter. The overhang  107  helps to prevent moisture runoff from the outer surface of top cap  106  from seeping into the inside of the tubular body  112 .  
         [0034]     The removable top cap  106  has a top locking slot  110  that can be punched, stamped, or formed into the body of the removable top cap  106 . Once the removable top cap  106  is fully seated into the hollow tubular body  112 , the removable top cap  106  can then be rotated laterally in-place-counter clockwise, as viewed from the top, to lock the removable top-cap  106  in place to the helical perch  116 . This prevents rodents from lifting the removable top cap  106  off to gain access to any bird seed contained within the hollow tubular body  112 . The top locking slot  110  also helps prevent the removable top cap  106  from inadvertently falling out and spilling the contents contained within the hollow tubular body  112  in the event of accidentally dropping the bird feeder  100  to the ground.  
         [0035]     A first female threaded cap nut  108  is secured to the top of the helical perch  116  as a means to fasten the helical perch  116  to the hollow tubular body  112 . The helical perch  116  has bottom perch stops  126 , which are molded or machined into the helical perch  116  to help stabilize the helical perch&#39;s position with respect to the outer diameter of the hollow tubular body  112 . These perch stops  126  help keep the helical perch  116  stable as a whole, with its own position with respect to the distance from the outer walls of the hollow tubular body  112 . The bottom perch stop  126  can also be crimped or molded directly into the helical perch  116 .  
         [0036]     The bottom of the bird feeder  100  has a removable bottom cap  122  that is very similar to the removable top cap  106 . The removable bottom cap  122  can be locked and unlocked in place by the use of a bottom locking slot  120 . The bottom locking slot  120  provides a similar use as the top locking slot  110 . Additionally, the bottom locking slot  120  also makes it easier to clean the inside of the bird feeder  100 .  
         [0037]     The removable bottom cap  122  includes a removable base piece  118 . The removable base  118  helps prevent seed from entering the bottom cap  122 . The helical perch  116  has a bottom perch straight end  117  that also helps prevent seed from falling through to the removable bottom cap  122 . However, moisture buildup is allowed to run through small gaps left by the space between the bottom perch straight end  117  and a slot that is molded into the center of the removable base piece  118 .  
         [0038]     A seed tray  124  can be attached to the removable bottom cap  122  to help catch spilled seed and empty shells. The seed tray  124  has a plurality of external drain holes  128  for allowing water buildup to leak out. In addition, a plurality of seed tray gussets  130  is molded into the seed tray for additional strength.  
         [0039]      FIGS. 2-14  illustrate the assembly of the bird feeder  100  in detail. In particular,  FIG. 2  depicts a cross-sectional view of the bird feeder  100  along line  2 - 2  shown in  FIG. 1 . To help prevent moisture from seeping into the hollow tubular body  112 , a first o-ring  206  is inserted into a top tube slot  205  in the top cap  106 . The cable  104  can be partially pre-assembled by having the top cable loop  101  formed prior to assembly by the use of first cable ferrule  102 . These partially assembled parts help speed up the final assembly process of bird feeders  100  in  FIG. 1 . Prior to the insertion of cable  104 , a rubber cable grommet  202  is inserted into the removable top cap  106 . The purpose of this cable grommet  202  is twofold: (1) to help prevent moisture from seeping into the hollow tubular body  112  from the top of removable top cap  106 ; and (2) to help prevent chafing of the plastic coating of cable  104  from the edges of the grommet hole  105 . The lower end of cable  104  can then be inserted through the cable grommet  202  and removable top cap  106 .  
         [0040]     Once this is accomplished, a bottom cable loop  301  is formed by the use of a second cable ferrule  208  as illustrated in  FIG. 3 . The bottom cable loop  301  is then slid over a perch straight end  217  of the helical perch  116 . This is accomplished after the perch straight end  217  is inserted into a first top perch hole  209  that is punched or formed into the top portion of the hollow tubular body  112 . The straight end  217  is inserted across the hollow tubular body  112  and through a second top perch hole  207  until a top perch stop  226  prevents the straight end  217  from proceeding further through the top perch holes  209  and  207  in the hollow tubular body  112 .  
         [0041]     The first female threaded cap nut  108  can then be screwed onto the top threaded male perch end  216 . The uncoiled helical perch  116  may then be inserted into the bottom end of the hollow tubular body  112 . This is accomplished by uncoiling and stretching the helical perch  116  vertically until the bottom end part of the perch  116  can be inserted safely through similar bottom perch holes  215  and  221  in the bottom of the hollow tubular body  112 . However, the bottom of the helical perch  116  is now inserted from the opposite side of the hollow tubular body  112  through the first bottom perch hole  215  and continues on across the hollow tubular body  112  until it passes through the second bottom perch hole  221 . At this point, the bottom perch stop  126  prevents the helical perch  116  from proceeding further through the holes  215  and  221  in the lower part of the hollow tubular body  112 . A second female threaded cap nut  210  can then be screwed onto the bottom threaded male perch end  219  to hold the helical perch  116  firmly in place to the hollow tubular body  112 . The top cap  106  can now be inserted into the top of the hollow tubular body  112  and turned to lock in place.  
         [0042]     The bottom cap  122  has a preformed bottom tube slot  213  into which a second o-ring  212  is inserted. The removable base plate  118  is then inserted in the bottom cap  122  until it rests against a base stop  211 . As shown in  FIG. 5 , the removable base plate  118  has a base plate slot  500  that has to be aligned parallel to the bottom perch straight end  117 . The bottom cap  122  with the second o-ring  212  and the removable base plate  118  are then inserted up into the inside of the hollow tubular body  112  and turned to lock in place against the bottom perch straight end  117 .  
         [0043]     For catching fallen seed and husks, an optional seed tray  124  can be attached to the bottom cap  122 . Part of the seed tray  124  has a pre-formed threaded male seed tray protrusion  218  that is screwed into a thread female seed tray hole  214  that is milled or molded into the bottom cap  122 . The seed tray  124  has an inner drain hole  220  to help prevent water buildup inside the bottom cap  122 . The material used for the seed tray  124  and removable base piece should be clear plastic poly-carbonate material that has an UV inhibitor. These materials allow for both parts to be manufactured using standard plastic-injection techniques.  
         [0044]     The o-rings  212 ,  206  and the cable grommet  202  can be molded as rubber parts with UV inhibitors. The removable top and bottom caps  106  and  122  can be manufactured out of metals such as cast, corrosion resistant aluminum, or a plastic material like UV-resistant PVC or ploy-carbonate. The cap nuts  108  and  210  should be made of a rust-resistant material such as stainless steel.  
         [0045]     The cable ferrules  102  and  202  should be made of any corrosion-resistant metal material, such as aluminum, that forms a tight clamping force to the cable  104  once the first cable ferrule  102  is crimped with a crimping tool, or the like, for the purpose of forming the top cable loop  101 . For safety reasons, the cable  104  must be manufactured using multiple strands of intertwined and twisted steel wires that when combined, formulate a tensile strength of at least 150 pounds of holding force to prevent any injures that may be caused by a breakage in the cable  104 . A plastic coating can be applied to the exterior of the cable  104  to protect it from the environment.  
         [0046]     Prior to assembly, the helical perch  116  is formed in the shape of a coiled large spring with straight lengths at its ends for insertion through holes in top and bottom portions of the hollow tubular body  112 .  
         [0047]     Several embodiments of the present invention are specifically illustrated and described herein. However, it will be appreciated that modifications and variations of the present invention are covered by the above teachings and within the purview of the appended claims without departing from the spirit and intended scope of the invention.