Abstract:
The present invention to provides a dual leash for walking two dogs with a single compact leash while preventing entangling of the individual cables. Horizontal positioning of the spools achieves a more compact design as well as a new way to combine the rotation of the housing with a lock feature. The key to a compact design is to maximize the spool size for proper spring steel retraction functionality and maximization on cord length. Preferably, the companion animal is a canine. Another object of the present invention is to provide individual cable retraction with a non-entangle feature.

Description:
CROSS REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application is a non-provisional patent application, which claims the benefit of priority from U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/653,742, filed May 31, 2012, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. 
    
    
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention is a multi-cabled retractable pet leash with an independently rotating enclosure to prevent entanglement of the separate cables. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     Retractable leashes for pets, particularly dogs, are present in the prior art. A variety of leashes have been described ranging from single cord and/or leather leashes to more versatile leashes having telescoping features. Retractable leashes have become more popular in recent years because they allow the pet owner to have a lead cable of varying lengths, which translates to varying levels of control over the animal, depending on the environment and/or situation encountered by the pet owner while walking a pet. For example, in largely open areas, the pet owner can allow the animal to roam more freely by extending the lead cable further while still maintaining a level of control over the animals such that the animal is not free to run away from the pet owner. Similarly, in crowded areas or areas which may pose a hazard to the pet, the owner can restrict the extension of the lead cable and keep the animal closer and under greater control compared to when the lead cable is fully extended. 
     Pet owners who have more than one pet, in particular dogs, may wish to exercise their dogs at the same time. However, an individual may find it difficult to control two separate dogs on two separate leashes. When attempting to walk multiple dogs, a pet owner will often find that one dog walks slower than the other, one dog wants to run and explore more than the other, and/or one dog will have to stop to relieve itself when the other wants to keep walking. In order to accommodate each dog, a multi-cabled leash is necessary. Multi-cabled leashes are also known in the art, however the majority of multi-cabled leashes are simple lengths of cord and/or leather which allow a pet owner to walk two pets simultaneously without any control over the length of the lead and/or control over the animals. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 6,474,270 to Imes discloses a dog leash for use with two or more dogs that enables two dogs to be walked simultaneously comprised of an automatically retractable leash commercially known as Flexi-2® and a second leash having a nylon strap in which one end of the strap is connected to a dog collar and the other end of the strap contains a pulley that runs over the narrow cord of the first retractable leash. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 6,648,261 to Irving discloses an extendible and retractable lead that can be extended or retracted in position in a single action. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 6,792,893 to Quintero et al. discloses a retractable leash for two animals which includes two spool assemblies for individual extension and retraction of each animal&#39;s cord with each animal&#39;s cord controlled by its own button and locking mechanism. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 7,207,296 to DiDonato discloses a two-pet no-tangle retractable leash device including an axel having a rod opening perpendicular to its axis and a first spool including a first leash and a second spool including a second leash rotatably mounted on the axel. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 8,151,735 to McCrocklin discloses a leash for coupling a first animal and a second animal to an object wherein the object comprises an exterior bulbous body and an interior bulbous body and a first tether spool and a second tether spool housed within the interior bulbous body and the rotation of the interior bulbous body occurs upon a traversing of the first tether relative to the second tether and prevents the first tether from entangling with the second tether. 
     In light of the above, it is an object of the present invention to provide the desired features described herein as well as additional advantages such as providing the ability of walking two dogs with a single compact leash while preventing entangling of the individual cables. The horizontal positioning of the spools achieves a more compact design as well as a new way to combine the rotation of the housing with a lock feature. The key to a compact design is to maximize the spool size for proper spring steel retraction functionality and maximization on cord length. Preferably, the companion animal is a canine. Another object of the present invention is to provide individual cable retraction with a non-entangle feature. 
     The invention can be better visualized by turning now to the following drawings wherein like elements are referenced by like numerals. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       The novel features of this invention, as well as the invention itself, both as to its structure and its operation, will be best understood from the accompanying drawings, taken in conjunction with the accompanying description, in which similar reference characters refer to similar parts, and in which: 
         FIG. 1  illustrates two side perspective views of the dual animal leash as  1   a  and  1   b.    
         FIG. 2  illustrates a first exploded perspective view of the dual animal leash. 
         FIG. 3  illustrates a second exploded perspective view of the dual animal leash. 
         FIG. 4  illustrates a cross-section perspective view of the dual animal leash with the locking mechanism in the “up” position. 
         FIG. 5  illustrates a cross-section perspective view of the dual animal leash with the locking mechanism in the “down” position 
         FIG. 6  illustrates several close-up cross-section perspective views of the handle of the dual animal leash with the locking mechanism in the “down” position as  6   a ,  6   b  and  6   c.    
         FIG. 7  illustrates several detailed perspective views of the dual animal leash cord as  7   a ,  7   b ,  7   c  and  7   d.    
         FIG. 8  illustrates two top perspective views of the spring steel retraction feature of the dual animal leash as  8   a  and  8   b.    
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     A dual leash  10  is illustrated in side perspective views in  FIGS. 1   a  and  1   b . The dual leash  10  has a handle portion  11  with an opening for a user&#39;s hand  16  and a main body portion  12 . Extending from the body portion  12  are two clips  13  for securing to an animal collar wherein each clip  13  is attached to a retractable lead cable  14 . The retractable lead cables  14  may be locked from retracting by compression of the push button lock  15 . 
     A dual leash  10  is illustrated in a first exploded perspective view in  FIG. 2 . The main body  12  is hollow with a support spindle  21  inserted centrally within. The support spindle  21  extends across the hollow opening of the main body  12  and is mounted at the top of the main body  12  with a spindle top cap  32  and at the bottom of the main body  12  with a spindle bottom cap  33 . A compression spring (not shown) is inserted over the support spindle  21  external to the spindle bottom cap  33  and biases the hollow opening of the main body  12  towards a push button lock  15  in the handle portion  11 . Compression of the push button lock  15  causes the hollow opening of the main body  12  to move relative to the support spindle  21  by sliding along the longitudinal axis of the support spindle  21  and as a result compressing the compression spring (not shown) and engaging the spool stop features  22  on the main body  12 . Engagement of the down position lock  42  may be utilized for hands-free locking of the cord spools  31 . When the push button lock  15  is released, the compression spring forces the hollow opening of the main body  12  to move back towards the mounting point of the push button lock  15  in the handle portion  11  thereby releasing the spool stop features  22 . Two cord spools  31  are mounted on the support spindle  21  within the hollow opening of the main body  12 . The cord spools  31  rotate about a vertical rotation axis as a function of spring steel contained within the central chamber  25  of each cord spool  31 . The cord spools  31  are secured within the main body  12  on the top by a spindle top cap  32  and on the bottom by a spindle bottom cap  33 . A body top plate  35  secured by screws  36  holds a precision thin section ball bearing  34  in position above the top cord spool  31 . The ball bearing  34  enables the main body  12  to rotate freely in relation to the handle portion  11  with minimal friction thereby ensuring the non-entangling of the separate retractable lead cables  14 . Eyelets  41  provide guidance for the smooth extension and retraction of the cord within the main body  12 . 
     A dual leash  10  is illustrated in a second exploded perspective view in  FIG. 3 . The push button lock  15  is shown mounted over the support spindle  21  and provides a lever-like action to push the hollow opening of the main body  12  relative to the support spindle  21 . The cord spools  31  are secured within the main body  12  on the top by a spindle top cap  32  and on the bottom by a spindle bottom cap  33 . A body top plate  35  secured by screws  36  holds a precision thin section ball bearing  34  in position above the top cord spool  31 . The cord spools  31  within the main body  12  and the main body  12  rotate relative to the handle portion  11  about a vertical rotation axis. The push button lock  15  shares the same rotation axis as the cord spools  31  and main body  12 , providing that the push button lock  15  can be depressed no matter the rotational position of the main body  12  to the handle portion  11 . The locking of the cord spools  31  is triggered by a series of teeth  37  that extend from the circular flat surface of the cord spools  31 . The teeth  37  are arranged in a radial pattern. Spool stop features  22  (see  FIG. 2 ), not visible in  FIG. 3 , are provided within the hollow opening of the main body  12 , extending from the inner wall of the main body  12 . At least one spool stop feature  22  is configured to engage the teeth  37 . When the push button lock  15  is compressed, the hollow opening of the main body  12  is shifted such that the cord spools  31  are moved toward the spool stop features  22  inside the main body  12  and the teeth  37  on each cord spool  31  engage the spool stop features  22  to prevent the rotation of the cord spools  31 . Eyelets  41  provide guidance for the smooth extension and retraction of the cord within the main body  12 . Engagement of the down position lock  42  may be utilized for hands-free locking of the cord spools  31 . 
     A dual leash  10  is illustrated in a cross-section perspective view in  FIG. 4 . The handle portion  11  with an opening for a user&#39;s hand  16  is adjacent to the push button lock  15 , shown in the “up” position such that the cord spools  31  and the retractable lead cables  14  (not shown) can retract in and out of the main body  12 . Eyelets  41  provide guidance for the retractable lead cables  14 . A down position lock  42  allows the user to stop the rotation of the cord spools  31  by securing the push button lock  15  in a compressed position without the need to continually compress the push button lock  15 . When the push button lock  15  is compressed, the spindle  21  is forced downward causing tension in the compression spring  45  at the base of the main body  12 . The precision thin section ball bearing  34 , secured in place by the body top plate  35 , allows for the free movement of the handle portion  11  in relation to the main body  12  about the vertical axis. Spring steel positioned within the central chamber  25  of the cord spools  31  provides the automatic retraction of the lead cables  14  once the tension on the spring steel is released. 
     A dual leash  10  is illustrated in a cross-section perspective view in  FIG. 5 . The compression of the push button lock  15  results in the vertical downward movement of the support spindle  21 /cord spool  31  assembly as shown by the large downward arrow, which allows for the engagement of the teeth  37  with the spool stop features  22  to prevent the rotation of the cord spools  31 . 
     A handle portion  11  of a dual leash  10  is illustrated in a close-up cross-section perspective view in  FIG. 6 . The spool stop features  22  on the main body  12  are shown in  FIG. 6   a . When the push button lock  15  is in the “down” position, as shown in  FIG. 6   b , the down position lock  42  can be pushed forward to engage a hook to secure the push button lock  15  in the “down” position without having to hold down the locking mechanism  15 , as shown in  FIG. 6   c . The down position lock  42  can be disengaged by a downward motion and a compression spring will force the support spindle/cord spool assembly upwards further allowing the cord spools to rotate and the cables to retract or extend (not shown). 
     Details of a single retractable lead cable  14  and attached cord  75  are shown in  FIG. 7 . The internal end  71  connected to the spooling portion  72  of cord  75  is shown in  FIG. 7   a . The internal end  71  is a loop that is secured about the cord spool  31  (not shown). The external end of the retractable lead cable  14  which contains a clip  13  for attaching to an animal collar (not shown) is shown in  FIG. 7   b . The securing of the internal end  71  of the spooling portion  72  is shown attached to a cord spool  31  in  FIG. 7   c . A retraction blocking element  74 , positioned on the spooling portion  72  of the cord  75  where the cord  75  connects to the external end of the retractable lead cable  14  is shown in  FIG. 7   d . The retraction blocking element  74  prevents the external end of the retractable lead cable  14  from retracting into the main body  12 . 
     The spring steel  82  within each cord spool  31  (not shown) is shown in  FIG. 8 . A single spring steel  82  placed within a cord spool  85  is shown in  FIG. 8   a . A single spring steel  82  is shown in  FIG. 8   b . When in a native position, the spring steel  82  is coiled as shown in  8   b  devoid of tension resulting in the complete retraction of the spooling portion  72  if the cord  75 . The center of the spring steel  83  is secured to the support spindle  21  (not shown) such that when the retractable lead cable  14  is extended, the cord spool  31  (not shown) rotates vertically about the support spindle  21  causing the spring steel to move into a tensioned state about the support spindle  21 . When the tension in the spring steel  82  is released the retractable lead cable  14  and the spooling portion  72  of the cord  75  are automatically retracted into the main body  12  by means of the cord spool  31  rotating about the support spindle  21 . 
     The present invention provides a multi-cabled retractable pet leash for walking two pets simultaneously using a single compact design. 
     One embodiment of the present invention provides a multi-cabled retractable pet leash, the leash comprising:
         a main body extending vertically, defined by a top portion and a bottom portion and defining the main chamber within said main body;   a stationary support spindle located centrally within the main body and extending between the top portion and the bottom portion;   a first cord spool positioned vertically in relation to a second cord spool within the main body such that each cord spool may rotatably engage with the support spindle about a vertical rotational axis;   a first cord coiling about said first cord spool;   a second cord coiling about said second cord spool;   a spindle top cap positioned externally to said first cord spool;   a spindle bottom cap positioned externally to said second cord spool;   a precision thin section ball bearing located above said first cord spool;   a body top plate positioned above the precision thin section ball bearing secured with screws;   a handle positioned above the support spindle and exterior to the precision thin section ball bearing;   a first lead cable and a second lead cable extending from the main body wherein the end of each lead cable comprises a clip; and   a locking feature in said handle.       

     In another embodiment of the present invention, the multi-cabled retractable pet leash contains a main chamber within the main body which is further divided into an upper chamber positioned vertically in relation to a lower chamber within the main body. In a preferred embodiment, the lower floor of the first chamber further contains spool stop features which protrude vertically from said floor and the lower floor of the second chamber further contains spool stop features which protrude vertically from said floor. 
     In another embodiment of the present invention, the multi-cabled retractable pet leash is further comprised of a single cord spool located within each of said upper chamber and said lower chamber. In a preferred embodiment, a first cord is coiled about said first cord spool and a second cord is coiled about said second cord spool. In yet another embodiment, the lower surface of said first cord spool and said second cord spool contain teeth which engage the spool stop features in the upper and lower chamber when the locking mechanism is compressed. 
     In another embodiment of the present invention, the multi-cabled retractable pet leash is further comprised of a spring steel retractable feature located in the center of each of said first cord spool and said second cord spool. In a preferred embodiment, the spring steel is secured at one end to the support spindle. In yet another embodiment, the first cord spool and second cord spool extend and retract independent of each other. 
     In another embodiment of the present invention, the multi-cabled retractable pet leash has a retraction lock feature wherein the retraction of the cord may be locked without the user having to continue to compress the locking mechanism. 
     In another embodiment of the present invention, the multi-cabled retractable pet leash has a precision thin section ball bearing mounted at the juncture of the main body and the handle such that the ball bearing allows the main body and the handle to rotate independently with minimal friction thereby ensuring the non-entanglement of the separate lead cables. 
     In a preferred embodiment, when the push button lock is engaged, the central spindle is pressed in the downward position, causing the cord spools to interact with the spool stop features on the main body. The stop features will engage each spool independent of the position of the housing in relation to the handle and allow the housing to rotate freely about the ball bearing ring even when the locking mechanism is engaged. This feature is a key improvement over the prior art because the dual leashes described in the prior art become locked when the spools are locked. Pet owners will appreciate the continued free rotation of the housing while locking the rotation of the spools because dogs may continue to roam and move about in relation to each other and the leash housing even when the owner has the desire to control the length of leash released from the spool. 
     In addition to the rotation of the housing, even when spool rotation is locked, the simplified locking mechanism is an improvement over the prior art. The use of a central spindle for the positioning of the spools as well as the action point of the locking mechanism eliminates the requirement of the shaft mounted to the housing, which is a required element in the prior art. The direct action of the locking mechanism on the central spindle to press the spools into a locked position (i.e. engaging with the spool stop features) requires fewer components compared to the prior art. The requirement of fewer components translates to fewer points of malfunction in the locking mechanism as well as a lower cost in manufacturing because of fewer, less complex internal components. 
     It will be appreciated that details of the foregoing embodiments, given for purposes of illustration, are not to be construed as limiting the scope of this invention. Although several embodiments of this invention have been described in detail above, those skilled in the art will readily appreciate that many modifications are possible in the exemplary embodiments without materially departing from the novel teachings and advantages of this invention. Accordingly, all such modifications are intended to be included within the scope of this invention, which is defined in the following claims and all equivalents thereto. Further, it is recognized that many embodiments may be conceived that do not achieve all of the advantages of some embodiments, particularly of the preferred embodiments, yet the absence of a particular advantage shall not be construed to necessarily mean that such an embodiment is outside the scope of the present invention.