Abstract:
Devices, apparatuses, systems and/or methods related to animal enclosures. Specifically, the disclosed devices, apparatuses, systems and/or methods relate to animal enclosure floor seal systems that may be coupled to an animal enclosure wall and may impede, restrict and/or reduce debris from entering or exiting the animal enclosure. In this manner, likelihood of contamination of the animal enclosure may be reduced.

Description:
BACKGROUND 
       [0001]    Animal enclosures such as cages are generally intended to keep multiple animals enclosed as safely and effectively as possible. In many environments, such as kennels and animal boarding environments, multiple animal enclosures may be organized next to each other (e.g., configured in rows). An issue with most animal enclosures is how well an enclosure wall adheres to the floor, as the floors often contain imperfections. Imperfections such as slight waves, channels, dips and the like, make it difficult for an enclosure wall to touch and/or adhere to the floor. 
         [0002]    When an enclosure wall does not touch and/or adhere to the floor, gaps may be created that allow debris to travel out of the animal enclosure into another animal enclosure or into a community area, or into the animal enclosure from another animal enclosure or a community area. This may allow animal waste (e.g., feces, urine), food, bacteria and/or other debris to travel through the gaps. When debris travels under an enclosure wall to another animal enclosure or from another animal enclosure, cross-contamination may occur. Such cross-contamination may lead to spreading of disease, bacteria and/or odor. 
         [0003]    It is desired that animal enclosures impede, restrict and/or reduce debris flow from inside an animal enclosure to an area outside the animal enclosure. Further, it is desired that animal enclosures impede, restrict and/or reduce debris flow from outside an animal enclosure to inside the animal enclosure. 
         [0004]    Therefore, it is be desirable to have an animal enclosure floor seal system that decreases the likelihood of contamination of an animal enclosure. 
       SUMMARY OF THE DISCLOSURE 
       [0005]    This disclosure is drawn to devices, apparatuses, systems and/or methods related to animal enclosures. Specifically, the disclosed devices, apparatuses, systems and/or methods relate to animal enclosure floor seal systems that may be coupled to an animal enclosure wall and may impede, restrict and/or reduce debris from entering or exiting the animal enclosure. In this manner, likelihood of contamination of the animal enclosure may be reduced. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0006]    The foregoing and other features of the present disclosure will become more fully apparent from the following description and appended claims, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. Understanding that these drawings depict only several embodiments in accordance with the disclosure and are, therefore, not to be considered limiting of its scope, the disclosure will be described with additional specificity and detail through use of the accompanying drawings. 
           [0007]    In the drawings: 
           [0008]      FIG. 1  is a diagram depicting an example embodiment. 
           [0009]      FIG. 2  is a diagram depicting another example embodiment. 
           [0010]      FIGS. 3A and 3B  are diagrams depicting another example embodiment. 
           [0011]      FIG. 4  is a diagram depicting another example embodiment. 
           [0012]      FIG. 5  is a diagram depicting another example embodiment. 
           [0013]      FIG. 6  is a diagram depicting yet another example embodiment. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0014]    In the following detailed description, reference is made to the accompanying drawings, which form a part hereof. In the drawings, similar symbols typically identify similar components, unless context dictates otherwise. The illustrative embodiments described in the detailed description, drawings, and claims are not meant to be limiting. Other embodiments may be utilized, and other changes may be made, without departing from the spirit or scope of the subject matter presented here. It will be readily understood that the aspects of the present disclosure, as generally described herein, and illustrated in the Figures, may be arranged, substituted, combined, and designed in a wide variety of different configurations, all of which are explicitly contemplated and make part of this disclosure. 
         [0015]    In an example embodiment, as generally depicted in  FIG. 1 , an animal enclosure floor seal  100  is provided. The floor seal  100  may be adapted to impede, restrict and/or reduce debris flow (e.g., liquids, solids, gases and/or bacteria) to and/or from an animal enclosures having one or more wall. An example floor seal  100  may include a mounting portion  110  and barrier portion(s)  112 ,  114 . The mounting portion  110  may be coupled to a bottom portion of the wall. Barrier portions  112 ,  114  may be coupled to the mounting portion  110  such that each barrier portion  112 ,  114  extends toward the floor of the animal enclosure. 
         [0016]    In some embodiments, the mounting portion  110  may be substantially the same length as the wall. In some examples, the mounting portion  110  may include one or more extension  116 . Extensions  116  may be used to couple the mounting portion  110  to the bottom portion of the wall. Extensions  116  may run the entire length of the mounting portion  110 , or may run shorter or longer than the length of the mounting portion  110 . Some animal enclosures may include a wall where the bottom portion thereof includes an extrusion for receiving the mounting portion  110 . 
         [0017]    In some examples, barrier portions  112 ,  114  may be coupled to the mounting portion  110  such that the mounting portion  110  and barrier portions  112 ,  114  are integrated as a single unit (as depicted in  FIGS. 1 ,  4  and  5 , for example). In some examples, barrier portions  112 ,  114  may be coupled to the mounting portion  110  such that the mounting portion  110  and barrier portions  112 ,  114  are separate elements coupled together (as depicted in  FIGS. 2 ,  3 A and  3 B, for example). Example coupling mechanisms may include glues or other adhesives, fusing, mechanical couplers (e.g., nails, screws) and/or other similar mechanisms for coupling. 
         [0018]    In some examples, barrier portions  112 ,  114  may include a first barrier portion  112  and a second barrier  114 . The first barrier portion  112  may extend from the mounting portion  110  toward the interior of the animal enclosure (e.g., the area configured to enclose an animal), while the second barrier portion  114  may extend from the mounting portion  110  toward the exterior of the animal enclosure (e.g., the area outside the animal enclosure, which may include a community area or a second animal enclosure). In this manner, as generally depicted in  FIG. 1 , the first barrier portion  112  and the second barrier portion  114  may appear to be angled away from the wall or a plane coplanar with the wall (not shown in  FIG. 1 ). In some examples, the first barrier portion  112  and the second barrier portion  114  may be angled toward the wall or a plane coplanar with the wall. 
         [0019]    In some example embodiments, as generally depicted in  FIG. 2 , an animal enclosure floor seal  200  for reducing debris flow between an animal enclosure wall and an animal enclosure floor is provided.  FIG. 2  depicts a cross-sectional view of example animal enclosure floor seal  200 . The floor seal  200  may include a mounting strip  210  and a first barrier flange  212 . The mounting strip  210  may include a wall-facing surface  218  and a floor-facing surface  220 . The wall-facing surface  218  may be coupled to the animal enclosure wall (not shown). The first barrier flange  212  may include a first end  222  and a second end  232 . The first end  222  may be coupled to the floor-facing surface  220  of the mounting strip  210 . In some examples, the floor seal  200  may also include a second barrier flange  214  having a third end  224  and a fourth end  234 . The third end  224  may be coupled to the floor-facing surface  220  of the mounting strip  210 . 
         [0020]    In some examples, the first barrier flange  212  and the second barrier flange  214  may be coupled to the mounting strip  210  such that the first barrier flange  212  opposes the second barrier flange  214 . In some examples, the first barrier flange  212  and/or the second barrier flange  214  are angled away from a plane that is coplanar with the animal enclosure wall (not shown). In some examples, the second end  232  and the fourth end  234  may be angled away from a plane that is coplanar with the animal enclosure wall (not shown). In some examples, the second end  232  and the fourth end  234  may be farther from a plane that is coplanar with the animal enclosure wall than the first end  222  and the third end  224 , respectively. 
         [0021]    In another example embodiment, as generally depicted in  FIGS. 3A and 3B , an animal enclosure floor seal system  300  is provided.  FIGS. 3A and 3B  depict cross-sectional views of example animal enclosure floor seal system  300 . The seal system  300  may be adapted to impede, restrict and/or reduce debris flow (e.g., liquids, solids, gases and/or bacteria) between animal enclosures that share a wall  340 . An example floor seal system  300  may include an extrusion  340  and a floor seal  302 . An example extrusion  342  may have a first end  344  and a second end  346 . The extrusion may be coupled to the wall  340  at the first end  344 . The floor seal  302  may be coupled to the second end  346  of the extrusion  342 . The floor seal  302  may include a mounting strip  310  and barrier flange(s)  312 ,  314 . The mounting strip  310  may include an extrusion-facing surface and a floor-facing surface. The extrusion-facing surface of the mounting strip  310  may be coupled to the second end  346  of the extrusion  342 . The barrier flange  312 ,  314  may be coupled to the floor-facing surface of the mounting strip  310 . 
         [0022]    In some examples, the extrusion  342  may have a substantially inverted T-shaped cross-section, as depicted in  FIGS. 3A and 3B , for example. In some embodiments, the extrusion  342  may have other cross-sectional shapes and/or dimensions. In some examples, the extrusion  342  may also include two floor-facing flanges  350 ,  352 . In some examples, the mounting strip  310  may be coupled to the second end  346  of the extrusion  342  between the two floor-facing flanges  350 ,  352 . 
         [0023]    In some examples, the extrusion  342  and/or the mounting strip  310  may be substantially the same length as the wall  340  (e.g., the distance between one end of the wall  340  to the other end of the wall  340 ). In some examples, the barrier flange(s)  312 ,  314  may be slanted outwardly from a plane  360  that is coplanar with the wall  340 . In some examples, an angle between the floor-facing surface and the barrier flange(s)  312 ,  314  may be less than ninety degrees. Some examples provide that an angle between the floor-facing surface and the barrier flange(s)  312 ,  314  may be greater than or equal to ninety degrees. 
         [0024]      FIG. 4  depicts an exploded perspective view of an example floor seal  402  and example extrusion  442 .  FIG. 5  depicts a perspective view of an example floor seal  502  engaging an example extrusion  542 .  FIG. 6  depicts an exploded perspective view of an example floor seal system  600  and an example animal enclosure  620 . For simplicity,  FIG. 6  depicts an embodiment in which only one animal enclosure wall has a corresponding floor seal system. It is within the scope of the present disclosure that any number of walls has a corresponding floor seal system, including, without limitation, one wall, two walls, three walls, four walls, all walls and/or less than all walls. 
         [0025]    It should be noted that the embodiments described herein may be of any dimension and/or shape, and shall not be limited by example dimensions and/or example shapes depicted the FIGS. 
         [0026]    Further, embodiments (or portions thereof) described herein may be constructed of any material such as, without limitation, plastics, rubbers, composites, metals and/or other materials. For example, some embodiments may include barrier portions or barrier flanges made of flexible rubber or plastic, while some embodiments may include relatively rigid plastic barrier portions or barrier flanges. 
         [0027]    Following from the above description and invention summaries, it should be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art that, while the methods and apparatuses herein described constitute exemplary embodiments of the present invention, it is to be understood that the inventions contained herein are not limited to the above precise embodiment and that changes may be made without departing from the scope of the invention. Likewise, it is to be understood that it is not necessary to meet any or all of the identified advantages or objects of the invention disclosed herein in order to fall within the scope of the invention, since inherent and/or unforeseen advantages of the present invention may exist even though they may not have been explicitly discussed herein.