Abstract:
According to the disclosure, there is provided a background device for an aquarium/terrarium having viewable walls, comprising a first roller mounted adjacent to an edge of a wall and a second roller mounted adjacent to another edge of the same wall or another wall. The first and second rollers include a rotatably changeable background scenery therebetween to substantially cover at least one of the viewable walls.

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION  
       [0001]     This application claims priority from U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 60/734,731 filed Nov. 8, 2005 and is expressly incorporated herein by reference, in its entirety. 
     
    
     BACKGROUND  
       [0002]     The disclosure relates to a changeable decorative background or scenery for an aquarium or terrarium. Aquariums/terrariums are typically used for keeping living animals, fish, and/or plants. Millions of people keep fish and other pets in aquariums/terrariums or various other viewable enclosures. Of great concern to most owners is the appearance of the aquarium itself, which complements and adds to the visual display offered by the fish, for example, within the aquarium.  
         [0003]     The provision of a background scenery, typically in the form of a background sheet, to aquariums is known. The background scenery creates a more realistic and attractive living habitat or environment. The background sheet is usually fixedly attached to the back of the tank. In this mounting arrangement, accumulation of unwanted substance such as moisture or dust between the tank and the sheet is inevitable. This accumulation fouls the scenery and the resultant display thereby requiring periodic changing of the background sheet. Due to the fixed attachment of the background sheet to the back of the tank, changing the background scenery is cumbersome. For internal mounting arrangements, the owner must first remove the fish within the tank, and all of the other contents of the tank, thereby allowing access to the background sheet and removal thereof. For external mounting arrangements, the existing background sheet must be removed, the remnant adhesive removed, new adhesive applied, and a new sheet fixedly attached to the tank. The other drawback for the above described alternatives is that the background remains the same except for when the sheet is completely, albeit cumbersomely, replaced.  
         [0004]     The disclosure described below seeks to alleviate such problems by providing an improved background setting for an aquarium, terrarium, or any other viewable enclosure.  
       SUMMARY  
       [0005]     According to the disclosure, there is provided a background device for an aquarium having viewable walls, comprising a first roller mounted adjacent to a top edge of a rear wall. The device further includes a second roller mounted adjacent to a bottom edge of the rear wall. The first and second rollers include a rotatably changeable background scenery therebetween to cover at least the rear wall.  
         [0006]     According to the disclosure, there is provided a method for changeably displaying an aquarium background scenery. The method comprises providing a first roller to an exterior surface of the aquarium; providing a second roller to the exterior surface of the aquarium spaced from the first roller; providing a background scenery between the first roller and the second roller facing into the aquarium; and, moving the background scenery, back and forth, from the first roller to the second roller.  
         [0007]     Further according to the disclosure, there is provided a changeable background scenery for a viewable enclosure comprising a first roller mounted to the enclosure and a second roller mounted to the enclosure spaced from the first roller. A first rollable background scenery is provided and extends between the first roller and the second roller facing into the enclosure. 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0008]      FIG. 1  is a perspective view of an aquarium and a decorative background assembly according to a first embodiment;  
         [0009]      FIG. 2  is a top plan view of  FIG. 1  partially in section;  
         [0010]      FIG. 3  is a side plan view of  FIG. 1  partially in section;  
         [0011]      FIG. 4  is a perspective view of the decorative background assembly;  
         [0012]      FIG. 5  is a perspective view of the decorative background assembly and an adjustable timer adapted for controlling the movement of said assembly;  
         [0013]      FIG. 6  is a plan view of a decorative scroll having discrete scenes;  
         [0014]      FIG. 7  is a plan view of a decorative scroll having a continuous scene;  
         [0015]      FIG. 8  is a partial front elevational view of an adjustably sized decorative scroll;  
         [0016]      FIG. 9  is a cross sectional top view of the decorative background assembly including adjustable rollers;  
         [0017]      FIG. 10  is a cross section side view of one roller of the decorative background assembly;  
         [0018]      FIG. 11  is a perspective view of a second mounting arrangement of the decorative background assembly;  
         [0019]      FIG. 12  is a side view of the mounting arrangement of  FIG. 11 ;  
         [0020]      FIG. 13  is a perspective view of a second embodiment of the decorative background assembly including a third mounting arrangement;  
         [0021]      FIG. 14  is a side view of the mounting arrangement of  FIG. 13 ;  
         [0022]      FIG. 15  is a perspective view of the second embodiment of the decorative background assembly including a fourth mounting arrangement; and,  
         [0023]      FIG. 16  is a partial cross sectional side view of the mounting arrangement of  FIG. 15 . 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION  
       [0024]     Referring to the drawings, there is shown an aquarium/terrarium  10  incorporating a background setting assembly  12  embodying the disclosure. As shown in  FIGS. 1-4 , an aquarium can include, for example, an integrally molded plastic tank or glass tank  14  of a square, rectilinear, curvilinear, or other shaped structure for containing water to keep living aquatic animals or plants. Similarly, a terrarium can include a similar structure for containing insects, snakes, hampsters, etc. The tank  14  can have a transparent front wall  16 , left and right side walls  18 ,  20 , a rear wall  22  and a bottom wall  24 . It is to be appreciated, for a rectilinear tank, that the left and right side walls  18 ,  20  are typically of a smaller dimension than the front and rear walls  16 ,  22 . The aforementioned arrangement can result in a rectangular, rectilinear, curvilinear, etc. enclosure or tank which can be of any number of sizes. The various sizes of the tanks can be categorized by the number of gallons, i.e., volume, contained therein. A top lid (not shown) normally closes the tank  14  for retaining the inhabitants therein and for providing a mounting structure for a light, filter, etc.  
         [0025]     As described above, the front  16 , rear  22 , bottom  24 , and side walls  18 ,  20  can define a rectilinear structure with a selectively closeable top. According to a first embodiment, the rear wall  22  can include a first or top scroll roller  40  mounted adjacent to or on a top edge  42  and a corresponding second or bottom scroll roller  44  mounted adjacent to a bottom edge  46 . It is to be appreciated that the mounting of the bottom roller  44  can be such to provide uninhibited placement of the tank, for example, flush with a cabinet, shelf, or table  50  located thereunder. Further, the rollers  40 ,  44  can be mounted such that rotation of the rollers is unencumbered by the placement of the tank  14 . According to the first mounting arrangement, the pair of scroll rollers  40 ,  44  can be mounted in a horizontal orientation relative to the rear or back wall  22  of the tank  14 . Roller  40  can include a knob  52 , or similar, for manually turning the roller  40 . Similarly, roller  44  can include a knob  53  for manually turning the roller  44 .  
         [0026]     A background scenery sheet or sheet roll  60 , having opposite ends ( FIG. 4 ) or a continuous loop  62  ( FIG. 5 ), can be wound on the pair of scroll rollers  40 ,  44 . The scenery sheet  60 ,  62  can be positioned between the rollers and can be displayed such that one looking through the front wall  16 , side walls  18 ,  20 , and the interior of the tank will view a portion of the scenery sheet  60 ,  62 . In this manner a portion of the scenery sheet roll is viewed through the front wall (and/or side walls), interior, and back wall of the tank. The scenery can be either a continuous scene  62 , as detailed in  FIG. 7 , or a multitude of discretely printed scenes  70 ,  71 ,  72 ,  73 ,  74 ,  75 ,  76 , and  77  compiled on one roll  60 , as detailed in  FIG. 6 . The discrete scenes  70 - 77  can have a size in conformance with the size of the tank, i.e., at least substantially the height  80  and width  82  of the rear wall. The continuous scene  62  provides the feature of changing as little or as much of the scene as the user desires. As shown in  FIG. 5 , the continuous scene  62  (or discrete scenes) may comprise a loop of scenery around the pair of rollers  40 ,  44 .  
         [0027]     In use, the background  60 ,  62  can easily be changed from one scene to another by simply rotating the rollers, for example back and forth, a selected amount. In the case of the scenery having discrete scenes  60 , rotation of the rollers, in one example, can include advancing the sheet from an end of one scene  70  to an end of another scene  71 , skipping to the end of still another scene  73 , or advancing/reversing the rollers to still any other scene  76 . The number of discrete scenes can be any number of scenes, limited only by the length of the sheet roll  60 . In the case of a continuous background scenery  62 , the rollers can be rotated in either direction as little or as much as desired in order to reflect a varied background scenery. It is to be appreciated, that the background scenery can include a continuous loop around the pair of rollers  40 ,  44  such that only one roller manually or automatically driven in a single direction will provide the necessary means for continuously movement of the background scenery. It is also to be appreciated that at least one of the rollers can be controlled by a motor  90  ( FIG. 5 ) for selective automatic rotation of the roller  44  and the associated scenery roll  62 . The rate of rotation can be controlled by an adjustable timer  92  to vary the elapsed time, frequency, timing, amount of advancement, etc. for controlling the changing of the scene. The motor  90  and timer  92  can be connected to a power supply  94 , such as, for example, a battery or electrical outlet.  
         [0028]     The sheet rolls  60 ,  62  can have a variety of displays and colors. The displays can be simulated ‘natural’ environments (i.e. marine, desert, etc.) desired for the inhabitants within the enclosure or can be any other display the owner fancies.  
         [0029]     As shown in  FIG. 9-10 , the rollers  40 ,  44  can include telescoping rods  41 ,  45  for effectively changing the dimension (length) of the rollers  40 ,  44  in association with different sized tanks, i.e., dimension of rear wall  82 . It is to be appreciated that the background scenery can include perforated sections  63  ( FIG. 8 ) that can be selectively torn off, cut or removed in order to adjust the dimension, i.e. width  65  or height (not illustrated), of the scenery sheet in conjunction with the changing dimension (telescoping) of the rollers. Thus, the desired width or height can be achieved by tearing off or cutting the unnecessary sections  67  and sliding the telescoping rods inward in conformance with the tank dimensions.  
         [0030]     Referring now to  FIGS. 11-12 , wherein another mounting arrangement is therein shown. Roller  40   a ,  44   a  can be mounted within a supporting frame  55 . The mounting frame  55  supports the rollers  40   a ,  44   a  and assists in maintaining their orientation relative to the tank  14 . The mounting frame  55  can further include a plurality of supporting rods  57  for maintaining the scenery rolls adjacent to the back wall  22  of the tank  14 . Referring to  FIG. 12 , it is to be appreciated that the viewable portion of the scenery roll passes between the supporting rods  57  and the exterior of back wall  22  thereby maintaining the viewable portion of the scenery roll in close proximity to the back wall  22 .  
         [0031]     Referring now to  FIGS. 13-16  wherein a second embodiment  100  of the decorative background assembly  112  including a scenery sheet roll  160  is therein shown. In one exemplary mounting arrangement, the rear wall  22  can include a first or left scroll roller  140  mounted adjacent to a left edge  150  and a corresponding second or right scroll roller  144  mounted adjacent to a right edge  152 . It is to be appreciated that the mounting of the left and right rollers  140 ,  144  can be such to provide uninhibited placement of the tank, for example, flush with a shelf or table  50  located thereunder. Further, the rollers  140 ,  144  can be mounted such that rotation of the rollers is unencumbered by the placement of the tank. In another exemplary mounting arrangement, as shown in  FIG. 15 , the pair of scroll rollers  140 ,  144  can be mounted in a vertical orientation proximal to opposing sides of the front wall  16  of the tank  14 . It is to be appreciated that the mounting configuration shown in  FIG. 15-16  can be nearly flush with a wall therebehind (not illustrated). A continuous scrolling scenery sheet roll  162  can ‘travel’ first from one side  18 , across the back wall  22 , and around an opposing side  20 , and then can ‘travel’ back in a reverse direction. Each of the rollers  140 ,  144  can include a frame  141 ,  145  to conceal and protect the scenery roll  162  therein. The tank  14  can include corner mounts  150  for supporting the scenery sheet roll  162  and providing adequate spacing as it travels around the tank  14 . It is to be appreciated that the mounts  150  also provide a curvilinear surface  151  at the intersections of the respective side wall  18 ,  20  and the back wall  22  of the tank  14  thereby reducing wear on the sheet roll  162 .  
         [0032]     It is to be appreciated that the mounting of the rollers can be by any number of conventional means including clip and double sided adhesive tape. The mounting can be adapted to not interfere with other periphery equipment associated with an aquarium or terrarium. The rollers  40 ,  44 ,  40   a ,  44   a ,  140 ,  144  can include a generally planer mounting surface having adhesive faces  164  on opposing ends for attaching to the exterior of the tank walls. Alternatively, the roller mount(s) can include clips  166  (refer to  FIGS. 14 and 15 ) for engaging a top edge  42  of the back wall or top edges  43 ,  45  of the side walls  18 ,  20  of the tank.  
         [0033]     It will be appreciated that various of the above-disclosed and other features and functions, or alternatives thereof, may be desirably combined into many other different systems or applications. Various presently unforeseen or unanticipated alternatives, modifications, variations or improvements therein may be subsequently made by those skilled in the art which are also intended to be encompassed by the following claims.