Abstract:
A system for killing bed bugs located on the exterior crevices of an item includes a housing divided into an upper housing area and a lower housing area, front and rear flap covering apertures located in the front and rear, respectively, of the upper housing area, a horizontally disposed motorized conveyor that is located within the upper housing area, at least one heating element located in the upper housing area, two or more UV lamps located in the upper housing area, and a fan located in the upper housing area. The heating elements, one of the UV lamps, and the fan are located below the conveyor.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates to the field of pest killing devices, and more specifically, to a heated enclosure for killing bed bugs harbored on the outside of luggage or other items. 
     2. Description of the Related Art 
     Bed bugs have been making a re-appearance in recent years as a pest species that can inhabit bedding and bite people as they sleep. Sometimes these bugs find their way from the bedding or wherever luggage is stored and crawl onto luggage where they can hide in the external crevices and overlapping flaps of luggage. Bed bugs can then crawl from one luggage item to another while carried in an airplane cargo hold, or cab, or shuttle or any other location where luggage is stored. 
     It is known that beg bugs, from nymph to adult, cannot withstand temperatures over 120 degrees F. It is also known that UV radiation kills germs. It would therefore be in a person&#39;s best interest to heat a luggage item to the desired kill temperature, and to treat the outer surface with UV light so that the bed bugs and other germs or bacteria will not be accidentally brought from one environment to another. For example, this can be done from a home environment to a hotel room or vice versa. There have been numerous specialty heating ovens designed for various purposes. For example W Metzger&#39;s U.S. Pat. No. 4,336,279 for curing coated substrates, or S Kiwokawa&#39;s U.S. Pat. No. 5,680,712 for drying objects. 
     However, no one to date has designed a heated enclosure specifically designed to hold a plurality of luggage items, and to evenly heat those luggage items for a pre-selected time and temperature for the purpose of killing bed bugs. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The primary object of the present invention is to provide a heated enclosure that is heated to approximately 160 degrees F., thereby allowing luggage stored within the enclosure to be heated to approximately 120 degrees F. and remains in the housing for approximately ninety seconds, and to then automatically send the luggage out of the heated enclosure. 
     Another object of the present invention is to provide a heated enclosure that can removably retain a plurality of suitcases and other luggage items via a conveyor system. 
     Another object of the present invention is to provide a heated enclosure that uses one or more heat sources to produce the most effective heat for killing bed bugs. 
     A further object of the present invention is to provide a heated enclosure that uses one or more fans to circulate air in the enclosure and to warm it and deliver air evenly throughout the enclosure. 
     Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a heated enclosure that also includes one or more UV light sources to kill germs and bacteria on the surface of the luggage. 
     Still yet another object of the present invention is to provide a heated enclosure that includes insulated front and rear flaps to reduce the loss of heat during operation. 
     Another object of the present invention is to provide a heated enclosure that includes a timer to automatically draw in the luggage items into the housing for approximately ninety seconds, and then to cause the luggage to exit the housing. 
     Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following descriptions, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, wherein, by way of illustration and example, an embodiment of the present invention is disclosed. 
     In accordance with a preferred embodiment of the invention, there is disclosed a system for killing bed bugs located on the exterior crevices of an item. The system includes a housing divided into an upper housing area and a lower housing area, front and rear flap covering apertures located in the front and rear, respectively, of the upper housing area, a horizontally disposed motorized conveyor that is located within the upper housing area, at least one heating element located in the upper housing area, two or more UV lamps located in the upper housing area, and a fan located in the upper housing area. The heating elements, one of the UV lamps, and the fan are located below the conveyor. A timing circuit is located in the lower housing area, the timing circuit causing the motorized conveyor to draw in one or more items through the front aperture and into the upper housing area, to retain the item within the upper housing area for a predetermined period of time, and then to deliver the item out of the upper housing area via the rear aperture. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       The drawings constitute a part of this specification and include exemplary embodiments to the invention, which may be embodied in various forms. It is to be understood that in some instances various aspects of the invention may be shown exaggerated or enlarged to facilitate an understanding of the invention. 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view of the present invention. 
         FIG. 2  is a top plan view of the present invention. 
         FIG. 3  is a left side view of the present invention. 
         FIG. 4  is a front section view of the present invention taken along line  60  of  FIG. 2  showing suitcases on the shelves of the main housing. 
         FIG. 5  is a side section view of the present invention taken along line  70  in  FIG. 2 . 
         FIG. 6  is a perspective view of an alternate embodiment of the present invention using a roller conveyor. 
     
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     The following detailed description is of the best presently contemplated modes of carrying out the invention. This description is not to be taken in a limiting sense, but is made merely for the purpose of illustrating general principles of embodiments of the invention. The scope of the invention is best defined by the appended claims. 
     Even though the present invention has been described in connection with killing bed bugs on luggage items, the principles of the present invention are equally applicable to any item or container which may be infested by, or attracted to, bed bugs. 
     Referring now to  FIG. 1 , we see a perspective view of the system  100  for the present invention. A stainless steel wire mesh conveyor  6  extends from the front of a housing  2 . Housing  2  includes an upper housing area  52  and a lower housing area  54  separated by partition  37  (see  FIG. 5 ). A front aperture  5  acts as the entrance for upper housing area  52  and is covered by flexible flaps  4 . In the preferred embodiment, the flexible straps are lead lined. A similar cover  22  is used to close the rear aperture  23  as shown in the front section view in  FIG. 4 . 
     Referring back to  FIG. 1 , toggle switch  11  turns on the heating elements  14 ,  16  and the UV lights  26 ,  28 ,  58  and fan  36  as shown in the front section view in  FIG. 4 . The heating elements are preferably strip-type fin heaters, each having a heat rating of 750 watts. When the user wishes to have an item of luggage enter the upper housing area  52 , the user pushes the “on” button  10 , causing the conveyor  6  to turn on. The conveyor  6  automatically turns off when the luggage that has been placed on the conveyor  6  has been drawn into the upper housing area  52 . A timing circuit  40  holds the luggage inside the housing for ninety seconds and then re-starts the conveyor  6  to cause the luggage to exit the housing  2  and be placed on a table surface  50  which may include rollers for ease of sliding the luggage off the table  50 . The conveyor  6  can be manually turned off by pushing “off” button  8 . Emergency switch  12  can be pushed if there is a malfunction in the machine  100 , causing the entire machine to turn off. 
       FIG. 2  is a top plan view of the system  100 . The conveyor  6  is made of open mesh stainless steel links that allow the heat from heaters  14 ,  16 , and light from UV lamp  58  located under a top layer of the conveyor  6 , to rise up and evenly heat and illuminate the underside of the luggage, and also to heat the inside of upper housing area  52 . An optional fan  36  within housing  2 , shown in  FIG. 4 , can help spread the heat evenly. Temperature sensor  30  shown in  FIG. 4  sends heat information to a temperature controller  42  located in the lower housing area  54  which holds the desired temperature of approximately 160 degrees F. to within a tolerance of plus or minus one degree F. The temperature controller  42  is controlled by digital thermostat  56 , wherein the temperature sensor  30 , temperature controller  42 , and thermostat  56  represent a temperature control circuit. The housing  2  includes a top, or upper housing area  52  and a bottom, or lower housing area  54  as shown in the side section view in  FIG. 5 . The upper housing area  52  is heated by heaters  14 ,  16 , while the lower housing area  54  remains relatively cool. In another embodiment, additional heaters can be used to more quickly heat the luggage and thereby speed up the bug killing process. In this case, four strip heaters can be used. Each strip heater has a one thousand watt capacity. These strip heaters are powered by two hundred and twenty volts AC. In addition, other heat sources may be used, such as vortex heaters and RF heaters. 
       FIG. 3  is a side view of the system  100 . The entire system  100  can be supported by lockable wheels  20 . 
       FIG. 4  is a front section view that vertically bisects the system  100  along the line  60  in  FIG. 2 . Heater strips  14 ,  16  and UV lamp  58  can be clearly seen suspended between the top and bottom layers of the conveyor  6 . Alternatively, the heaters  14 ,  16  and lamp  58  can be located underneath the lower level of the conveyor  6  in the area where the fan  36  currently resides. A gear reduced drive motor  24  powers the stainless steel wire mesh conveyor track  6 . UV lamps  26 ,  28  are mounted within the upper housing area  52 . A table  50  is at the same height of the top surface of the conveyor  6  allowing a surface for luggage or suitcases to rest after exiting from rear flaps  22 . 
       FIG. 5  shows a side section view of the system  100  taken along lines  70  shown in  FIG. 2 , which clearly shows the placement of heater strips  14 , UV lamps  28  and fan  36 . The heater strips shown in this embodiment have a power rating of 750 watts each. However, other embodiments can be provided having more heating elements and having greater wattage per element. The housing is made of polished aluminum which helps reflect the UV light to all areas within the housing  2 . A special type of aluminum, such as that manufactured by Anomet Inc., can be designed to allow maximum reflectivity of UV light. 
     The present invention allows users to use a treatment method for killing bedbugs that is free from any Insecticide or Aerosol applications. The combination of heat and the ultraviolent rays control and kill bacteria, viruses, and spores, and aid in the sterilization of the items that pass through the housing  2 . Additionally, the system  100  helps eliminate unwanted insects such as flea eggs and all stages of bedbugs. 
     The easy-to-use portable conveyor can be moved from one location to another with ease. The easy-lock and unlock wheels  20 , allows the system to be placed anywhere. As convenient as it is to move from one location to another, the conveyor motor, heating strips, UV lights and fan all operate on 120 VAC and the plug  22  and cord  20  can therefore be plugged into any standard wall socket. This feature makes it readily available for use, rather than to have specially designed  220  electric run to a specific location. 
     A piece of luggage or bag or other item entering the conveyor  6  will complete the process of killing bed bugs in a matter of 90 seconds. After treatment is completed, the baggage or item has been subject to a germicide treatment which will aid in controlling bacteria, viruses, spores, and in many cases, the sterilization of the exterior of the bag or item. Occasional invaders such as flea eggs or bedbugs have little chance for survival after being subjected to this treatment. 
     The system  100  is already “Pre-Set” for use. The user simply places his luggage on the conveyor  6  and presses the Start button  8 . All the guess work has been taken out, making the experience one that is enjoyable and brings peace-of-mind knowing that unwanted bugs and bacteria have been removed. 
     Because the process is completed in a matter of 90 seconds, there is no danger to the luggage or item from the heat or exposure to light. The temperature within the unit does not exceed 160 degrees, causing mortality to the insects, but doing no harm to the luggage or item. 
     The UV lighting is at a controlled amount of exposure within the housing&#39;s mirror-like lining. As the lighting reflects off the top, bottom and sides of the unit, it causes a bouncing effect of light-rays in all directions, killing any bacteria, viruses, and spores that it comes in contact with. 
     The unit is outfitted with an Emergency Stop switch  12  should for any reason the system  100  needs to be stopped prior to completing the cycle. 
     In an alternate embodiment shown in  FIG. 6 , a roller type conveyor  66  is used at the entrance point to opening  5  instead of the powered mesh conveyor  6  in the original embodiment. This configuration allows the mesh conveyor  6  to remain inside the heated upper housing interior  52 . The item is delivered to an exit conveyor  66 A. 
     We know that in most cases these pests are “hitch-hikers” by nature. Harborage areas for most travelers consist of luggage or suitcase tucks or seams next to pockets or zipper liners. The present invention&#39;s nonintrusive method of combining heat and UV rays to the exterior of luggage provides protection without the need for opening personal effects. 
     The present invention is made to handle everyday use in an average size hotel or motel. However, larger or smaller units can be built and remain within the spirit of the present invention. 
     While the description above refers to particular embodiments of the present invention, it will be understood that many modifications may be made without departing from the spirit thereof.