Abstract:
An animal feeder for supplying a feed to an animal of choice for feeding the animal of choice in an unprotected environment such as the outdoors. The feeder comprising a base for support the feeder on a ground surface, a support frame extending upwardly from the base and a hopper supported by the frame. The hopper having a storage reservoir for storing a supply of feed with a feed entry opening that is closeable to prevent exposure to the outdoors. The hopper further including a feed chute below the reservoir having an upper region sealingly joined to the reservoir and a lower region below the upper region that is sealingly joined to a feeding chamber. The feeding chamber having a bottom surface wherein the feed supply can move from the reservoir into the feeding chamber and rest on the bottom surface based on gravity alone. The hopper further including a horizontally extending elongated channel extending from the feeding chamber with an outer end having a feeding opening open to the outdoors wherein the feeding chamber is spaced from the opening and the feed substantially remains within the hopper and spaced from the outdoors until it is consumed by the animal of choice.

Description:
[0001]     This application claims priority on U.S. provisional application Ser. No. 60/700,818, filed Jul. 20, 2005, entitled “ANIMAL FEEDER”. 
     
    
       [0002]     This invention relates to the art of feeding animals and, more particularly, to an animal feeder that can feed multiple animals simultaneously and can maintain a large supply of feed without the feed being adversely exposed to the environment and other animals.  
       INCORPORATION BY REFERENCE  
       [0003]     The present invention relates to animal feeders and, more particularly, to an animal feeder that is adaptable to feed more than one animal and maintain a large supply of feed. United States published application No. US 2003/0005887 discloses an animal feeder having a container for maintaining the feed and multiple outlets for feeding the animals and is incorporated by reference herein as background information illustrating the same. Schultz U.S. Pat. No. 5,794,561 discloses an animal feeder including a large feed storage bin and a feed trough, and is also incorporated by reference herein as background information illustrating the same. Aldridge, III U.S. Pat. No. 5,699,753 discloses an animal feeder including a large feed storage bin and a feed trough, and is also incorporated by reference herein as background information illustrating the same. Mostun et al U.S. Pat. No. 6,199,509 discloses a gravity deer feeder with baffles, and is incorporated by reference herein as background information illustrating the same. Scheidler U.S. Pat. No. 4,315,483 discloses an animal feeder including a large feed storage bin and a feed dispenser, and is also incorporated by reference herein as background information illustrating the same. Becker Des. 245,714 discloses an animal feeder design, and is also incorporated by reference herein as background information illustrating the same. All of these patents are attached to this application and form a part of the specification of this application.  
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0004]     The present invention is particularly applicable for use in connection with feeding deer and, therefore, will be describe with reference to deer. However, the invention of this application has broader application and can be used to feed a wide variety of animals both wild and domestic.  
         [0005]     Owners of animals, and those who raise animals, keep these animals in pens, corrals or cages and the like to contain the animals for extended periods of time. These animals need to be routinely fed to maintain the animals and promote the growth of the animals. These animals can be domestic animals or even wild animals and these animals can be used for a wide range of purposes. As can be appreciated, periodically feeding the animals can be time consuming and expensive if human intervention is needed each time the animals need to be fed. In this respect, animals are conventionally fed at selected intervals, such as morning and evening. As a result, the owners often employ someone to feed their animals and the expense of employing someone to feed the animals twice daily can be substantial.  
         [0006]     In addition, it is also desirous to leave the animals unattended in the fenced area for extended periods. As a result, the feeding of the animals is sometimes attempted by merely depositing, in an open container, a supply of feed which should adequately feed the animal during the period of absence. Such practice invites other animals to enter the fenced area and consume the feed. Further, the unattended feed is exposed to the elements and can become contaminated.  
         [0007]     It is of course well known that a feeding station can be used to feed multiple animals to allow the animals to be unattended for longer periods of time. The feeding station can have a feed bin or hopper to support a supply of animal feed and can also include multiple outlets or troughs so that more than one animal can feed at one time. Further, it is also known that gravity can be used in connection with a feed flow arrangement to move the feed from the feed hopper to the feed trough.  
         [0008]     However, prior art animal feeding devices have been found to be inefficient in controlling the flow of feed and inefficient in feeding many types of animals such as deer. The prior art devices also expose at least some of the feed to the environment. This exposed feed is typically the same feed that the animals are directly feeding from. Further, the prior devices do not employ efficient mechanisms to easily control when the animals can feed and mechanisms to allow the feeder to be easily moved.  
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0009]     In accordance with the present invention, provided is an animal feeder that efficiently feeds animals and that can store quantities of feed over a long period of time and which can control the eating intervals of the animals. More particularly, provided is an animal feeder that includes a supply hopper for the animal feed and at least one feeding outlet that is shaped to receive the snout of the desire animal or animals to be fed.  
         [0010]     In this respect, an animal feeder according to the present invention includes a base for supporting the feeder on a ground surface and a support frame extending upwardly from the base. The feeder further includes a hopper supported by the frame wherein the hopper has a storage reservoir for storing a supply of feed with a feed entry opening. In addition, the hopper includes a feed chute below the reservoir having an upper region sealingly joined to the reservoir and a lower region below the upper region that is sealingly joined to a feeding chamber. The feeding chamber has a feed supporting surface wherein the feed supply can move from the reservoir into the feeding chamber and rest on the surface based on gravity alone. The hopper further including a horizontally extending elongated channel extending from the feeding chamber and the channel having an outer end and being enclosed except for a feeding opening at the outer end. In addition, the channel has a length such that the feeding chamber is spaced from the opening and the feed substantially remains within the hopper.  
         [0011]     In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, provided is an animal feeder having a hopper with a storage reservoir for storing a supply of feed and protecting the feed from the outdoors. The feeder further includes a plurality of feeding chambers in fluid communication with the storage reservoir each having an inner opening for receiving the feed from the reservoir based on a gravity flow alone and at least one feeding supporting surface positioned near the inner opening for receiving and stopping the gravity flow. Each chamber further including a support surface for supporting the feed within the feeding chamber and an enclosed elongated feeding channel extending outwardly away from the inner opening. This channel forms a portion of the supporting surface and has an outer opening spaced from the at least one supporting surface such that the gravity flow stops before the opening. Further, the channel has a length and a cross-sectional configuration configured to allow the snout of the animal of choice to enter the channel and reach the feed on the supporting surface.  
         [0012]     In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, provided is an animal feeder that further includes a trough that can be used as a spill tray to catch feed that inadvertently falls from the feeding outlet(s).  
         [0013]     In accordance with yet another aspect of the present invention, provided is an animal feeder that further includes a trough or spill tray that can be used to catch feed that inadvertently falls from the feeding outlet and which is selectively positionable relative to the outlet(s) to prevent an animal from feeding. 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0014]     The foregoing and more, will, in part, be obvious and, in part, be pointed out more fully hereinafter, in connection with a written description of preferred embodiments of the present invention illustrated in the accompanying drawings in which:  
         [0015]      FIG. 1  is a front side perspective view of an animal feeder in accordance with the present invention;  
         [0016]      FIG. 2  is a front view of the animal feeder shown in  FIG. 1  which is in the feeding position;  
         [0017]      FIG. 3  is a back view of the animal feeder shown in  FIG. 1  which is in the closed position;  
         [0018]      FIG. 4  is an end view of the animal feeder shown in  FIG. 1 ;  
         [0019]      FIG. 5  is a top view, partially in section, of the animal feeder shown in  FIG. 1  wherein one side is in the feeding position and one side is in the closed position; and,  
         [0020]      FIG. 6  is an enlarged sectional view taken along lines  6 - 6  in  FIG. 5 .  
     
    
     DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS  
       [0021]     Referring now in greater detail to the drawings, wherein the showings are for the purpose of illustrating preferred embodiments of the invention only, and not for the purpose of limiting the invention, the figures show many aspects of an animal feeder according to the present invention.  
         [0022]     With reference to  FIGS. 1-6 , shown is a deer feeder  10  having a hopper  12 , a support frame  14  and spill or overflow troughs  16   a  and  16   b . The feeder is utilized to feed any one of a wide range of animals including, but not limited to, domestic animals and wildlife. As is discussed above, keepers of animals must feed these animals, and it is advantageous that they have an efficient and cost effective way of feeding the animals. The invention of this application can be many different sizes without detracting from the invention of this application. This includes increasing and/or reducing the dimensions of any one component of the feeder or all components of the feeder.  
         [0023]     Hopper  12  is designed and configured to retain and support a desired quantity of animal feed F, that can be a wide range of animal feed known in the art, and can be made according to any manufacturing techniques known in the art. It has been found that plastics can be used to create a durable hopper that protects the animal feed from the elements and which is lightweight and durable. In particular, it has been found that a rotating mold can be used effectively to mold the plastic hopper as a unified one-piece hopper. The hopper is supported and maintained in a desired position by support frame  14 .  
         [0024]     Hopper  12  is constructed to include a top opening  20  having a protective lid  22  for sealing the opening is configured to protect the feed after it has been loaded into the hopper. As can be appreciated, feeder  10  can be utilized outdoors such that the feed must be protected by the feeder in that it must remain dry and free of contaminations. Hopper  12  further includes a storage reservoir  24  sized based on the amount of feed that is desired to be maintained at one time in the animal feeder.  
         [0025]     Hopper  12  can further include a feed directing chute  26  to direct the gravitational flow of the feed downwardly in the feeder as will be discussed in greater detail below. In one embodiment, feeder  10  include chutes  26   a - 26   h  to allow the feed in the hopper to be directed from reservoir  24  to a respective one of feeding chambers  28   a - 28   h . While eight feeding arrangements are shown, the invention of this application can include more or less than eight feeding arrangements without detracting from the invention of this application. Chutes  26   a - 26   h  can be used to “funnel” the feed into the respective feeding chambers. Chutes  26   a - 26   h  can respectively be formed by walls  33 ,  34 ,  35  and  36 , as is shown on chute  26   a , to direct the flow to the feeding chambers that are configured to be accessed by the desired animal. Some or all of these walls can be tapered inwardly such that the feeding chamber is a desired size. As is shown, walls  33 ,  34  and  35  are tapered inwardly while wall  36  is basically vertical.  
         [0026]     Feeding chambers  28   a - 28   h  have feed supporting surface  29   a - 29   h , respectively to support the feed in the feeding chamber and to maintain the feed within the animal feeder while allowing the animal to access the feed in the feeding chamber through openings  30   a - 30   h . Elongated channels  32   a - 32   h  can be anyone of a number of configurations including the cylindrical configuration shown. The channels are configured to allow snout S of animal A to enter the feeder and access the feed. Further, in this embodiment, the feeding chamber is partially formed by the channel and, therefore, the supporting surface for the feed is a single surface for each station. However, if other configurations, such as an octagonal cross-sectionally configured channel would result in multiple surfaces being utilized for the supporting surfaces  29   a - 29   h.    
         [0027]     By spacing the feeding chamber from opening  30 , the feed remains spaced from the outside and is, therefore, at least partially protected form the environment such as from rain and snow. However, since channel  32  is configured to the size and the shape of the snout of the desired animal, the snout of the animal can enter the animal feeder and feed on the feed within the feed chamber at any time. Further, it has been found that other animals, such as raccoons and birds, do not and/or cannot enter the channels to steel food. In this respect, the channels are too small for raccoons to enter and too long to allow them to pull the food out. With respect to birds, they could move into the channel, but the bird would be required to back out of the channel which is a motion that they are not willing to make.  
         [0028]     As can be appreciated, feed chambers  28   a - 28   h  can be a portion of channels  32   a - 32   h , respectively, can be completely formed by the channel and/or can be separate components with out detracting from the invention of this application. Further, each of the feed chambers and/or channels can be configured differently. For example, it has been found that it can be advantageous to configure one or more of the feeding channels and chambers for younger animals. This allows free access to younger animals even when larger dominant adults are around. Since the channel and chamber are too small for the larger animals, the larger animals will loose interest in that particular station a find a larger channel for feeding.  
         [0029]     As is discussed above, channels  32   a - 32   h  are designed to prevent food from falling from the hopper and to protect the food from the elements. In this respect, elongated channels  32   a - 32   h  can have a length  38  that is long enough to prevent the feed from falling from outlet  30  while being short enough to allow snout S of animal A to enter and reach the respective feeding chamber. Again, length  38  can be adjusted or changed based on the snout size of the animal to be fed. Further, the cross-sectional opening configuration of opening  30  and elongated channel  32  can be configured based on the animal to be fed and, further, to prevent unwanted animal feeding of other species and/or ages. Again, while elongated channel  32  is shown to be a cylindrical channel, other configurations could be utilized without detracting from the invention of this application. In addition, while the elongated channel is shown to have a uniform cross-sectional configuration, a tapered channel could be used, or other configurations could be used without detracting from the invention of this application.  
         [0030]     As animal A feeds from feeding chamber  28 , feed F continually replenishes the feeding chamber based on a gravitational flow from reservoir  24 . This feeding chamber configuration allows the animal to feed upon demand while continuously preventing the feed from being exposed to the elements. As can be appreciated, feed which is deposited in an open tray can be damaged by rain, snow or other environmental factors. By maintaining the feed in a protective position in the feeder, these factors are minimized. Further, the feed is also shielded from sunlight in addition to the other environmental factors discussed above.  
         [0031]     In one embodiment, feeder  10  can include trough or spill trays  16   a  and  16   b . These trays are not designed to be used primarily as a feeding tray. Conversely, troughs  16  are configured primarily to catch the overflow and spillage from the animal when it feeds from the feed chamber. In this respect, the feeding action of animals can cause some of the feed to exit opening  30 . Accordingly, trough  16  can be used to catch the falling feed and prevent it from accumulating on the ground. This configuration prevents the animals from feeding on the ground wherein the feed has been exposed to the environment. Further, it allows for the easy clean-up of spilled feed to reduce the attraction of unwanted animals such as raccoons. As can be appreciated, the animals may eat the spilled food, however, this spilled food is not on the ground. Spill troughs  16   a  and  16   b  can include an opening  40   a  and  40   b , respectively, which can be used to clear the overflow feed periodically. As can be appreciated, the overflow feed is exposed to the elements; and this opening can be used to easily remove the feed from the tray into a container to safely carry the discarded feed away from animal feeder  10 . In addition, opening  40  can also be used as a drain point for moisture in the tray such as from rain or snow. Opening  40  can be positioned anywhere in tray  16 . Tray  16  can be made from any material known in the art and is preferably made from a weather resistant material. As is shown, trays  16   a  and  16   b  are made from a plastic material to minimize the effect of the environment on this component. As can be appreciated, rust and other environmental damages to this component part could have an adverse effect especially since it is positioned near the feeding point(s) of the animal feeder. As is stated above, the animals may feed from the feed which has fallen from the outlets.  
         [0032]     With reference to  FIGS. 5 and 6 , in yet another embodiment, trough  16   a  and/or  16   b  can be pivotally connected to frame  14  to allow the trays to pivot from an opened or feeding position  42  to allow the animal to feed from the animal feeder to a closed position  44  which prevents animal feeding. As is shown, trough  16   b  is in closed position  44  and trough  16   a  is in opened position  42 . As is stated above, it is desirous to have control over the time and frequency that a particular animal feeds. By including a pivotal tray configuration, the feeding of the animals can be easily controlled. Further, this tray configuration prevents the feed from being exposed to the elements by at least partially closing opening  30 . While, as shown, the animal feed is not sealed, moisture is prevented from entering opening  30  when tray  16  is in closed position  44 . This configuration can also allow moisture in the feeding chamber to evaporate, which would not be possible if openings  30  were completely sealed. The pivotal action of each tray  16  is achieved by hinges  50  each having several hinge plates  52  connected to hinge rods  54 . Hinge rod  54  is allowed to pivot relative to the frame about an axis  56 , such that tray  16  pivots about axis  56  between the feeding position and the closed position. While one particular hinge assembly is shown, other assemblies known in the art could be used for either tray without detracting from the invention of this application. Hinge plate  52  is secured the trays by fasteners  60 , which can be any known fasteners in the art.  
         [0033]     Tray  16  and hinge  50  can further include a lock assembly, not shown, which can be any known lock assembly and can be fashioned to prevent the animal from overriding the lock assembly and moving the tray from the closed position to the open position. Further, tray  16  does not need to cover all outlets on one side, wherein multiple trays could be used on either side to selectively close one or more of the feeding openings without closing all openings. Further, the trough on the back side can be the same or different than the trough on the front side of feeder  10 . As will be discussed in greater detail below, the openings and feeding chambers can also be configured differently from one station to the next to allow the animal feeder to be used with multiple species of animals and also animals of different sizes or ages. Further, reservoir can also be sectioned to allow different feed to exit out of different feeding stations.  
         [0034]     As is stated above, feeder  10  is supported by a frame  14 . This frame can be designed from any known framing techniques in the art. As is shown, frame  14  includes base members  70  and  72  to support the animal feeder on a desired ground surface. These base members can be skid-like members to allow the animal feeder to be pushed or pulled over a wide variety of terrain. As is shown, frame  14  is a steel frame, wherein the steel is coated with a weather-resistant coating, such as a paint. The components of the frame are welded and/or bolted together based on the desired characteristics of the particular joint. As will be discussed below, some components of the frame are designed to be removable such that components, such as the hopper, can be removed without damaging the frame. Frame  14  further includes inverted U-shaped end assemblies  74  and  76  that are secured to base members  70  and  72 . End assembly  74  includes cross members  80  and  82 , and end assembly  76  includes cross members  84  and  86 . End assemblies  74  and  76  are joined by base members  70  and  72  and also by intermediate members  90  and  92 . Again, as is stated above, the joints between these members can be joined by any known means in the art; and as is shown, these components are welded together to create a secure and rigid base for the frame of the animal feeder. Tray  16  can be pivotally joined to one or more of these frame components to allow the pivotal rotation about axis  56 . Further, these joints can include joint-reinforcing cross member  94 , which can be sized and configured based on the desired strength characteristic of the particular joint.  
         [0035]     Frame  14  can further include removable frame sections  100  and  102  that, in part, support the weight of hopper  12  and position the hopper over the trays. Frame sections  100  and  102  can be removable to allow hopper  12  to be removed from frame  14  without damaging the hopper or the frame. Frame sections are positionable in recesses  101  and  103 , respectively which in part support the hopper. As is shown, frame section  100  includes end plates  104  and  106 ; and frame section  102  includes end plates  108  and  110 . End plates can be selectively joined to inverted U-shaped end assemblies  74  and  76  by fasteners  112 . While fasteners  112  are shown to be threaded fasteners, they can be any fasteners known in the art without detracting from the invention of this application. By utilizing threaded fasteners, or other quick-release fasteners, hopper  12  can be easily removed from the frame assembly.  
         [0036]     While base members  70  and  72  are shown to include skid configurations to move the animal feeder across a ground surface, other types of movement configurations could be used with the invention of this application. This can include, but is not limited to, wheels utilized on one or more ends of the frame assembly and even a solid base assembly, such as a sled-like configuration. With respect to a base which includes wheels, the axles of the wheels could be movable relative to the bottom of the frame, such that the surface of the wheels is spaced from the ground surface when in a stationary position, and the wheels could be moved downwardly to engage the ground surface when the animal feeder is to be moved.  
         [0037]     Frame  14  can further include a central support member  120  to further support the hopper  12 . As is shown, hopper  12  includes directing chutes  26   a - 26   h  which direct the feed outwardly toward the feeding stations. This creates a central V-shaped area  122  in the hopper portion of the animal feeder. This central support member can be used to further support the hopper by supporting the underside of this V-shaped arrangement. This assembly can also be selectively detachable to help remove the hopper from the frame.  
         [0038]     As can be appreciated, the animal feeder of the invention of this application can have many configurations. This includes changes to the number of outlets or feeding stations, including but not limited to, one station, or more than eight feeding station. This further includes a feeding stations on only one side or outlets on more than two sides. Further, the feeder could include multiple outlets  30  and feeding chamber  28  wherein some or all feeding stations are configured differently. For example, as discussed above, one or more the stations could be configured for a younger animal which includes lowering the particular feeding station. This can further include, an animal feeder that includes one or more smaller outlets which are lower to the ground while having other, larger outlets higher from the ground. Again, this particular arrangement allows certain outlets to be used by smaller or younger animals, while the larger outlets can be used by the adult animals. By having this multiple outlet size arrangement, adult animals cannot feed from the smaller outlets and will not feed from these outlets, thereby allowing the smaller, less dominant animals to feed. Multiple outlet configurations could also be used for the use of the animal feeder with more than one species. For example, one side of the animal feeder could be used for one species, while the other side of the animal feeder could be used for another species. The animal feeder could then be positioned such that it is between two different animal pens, such that the outlets from one side extend into one pen, while the outlets from the other side extend into another pen. Furthermore, hopper  12  could be a single-chamber hopper, or it could be a multiple-chamber hopper, wherein different types of feed could be simultaneously contained within one animal feeder.  
         [0039]     While considerable emphasis has been placed on the preferred embodiments of the invention illustrated and described herein, it will be appreciated that other embodiments can be made and that many changes can be made in the preferred embodiments without departing from the principles of the invention. Accordingly, it is to be distinctly understood that the foregoing descriptive matter is to be interpreted merely as illustrative of the invention and not as a limitation.