Patent Publication Number: US-2022217941-A1

Title: A smart feeding device for cats

Description:
TECHNICAL FIELD 
     The present invention relates to a technical field of pet feeding, specifically an intelligent cat feeder. 
     BACKGROUND TECHNOLOGY 
     When feeding a plurality of cats with the cat feeders currently available, it is difficult to know which cat(s) has/have been fed, and identify an eating amount of each cat, therefore, it is not possible to monitor dining conditions and health conditions of each cat, and in the meanwhile, the cat feeders currently available are subject to food jamming. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Technical Problem(s) to be Addressed 
     A purpose of the present invention is to address the technical problems that it is not possible to monitor dining conditions and health conditions of each cat with the cat feeders currently available. 
     2. Technical Solution 
     To achieve the foregoing purpose, a technical solution provided in the present invention is: 
     An intelligent cat feeder according to the present invention, comprises a feeder body and a food holding mechanism provided in the feeder body, and the food holding mechanism comprises a food bowl and a weighing pallet, wherein the food bowl is provided on the weighing pallet, a pallet fixing piece is provided at a bottom portion of the weighing pallet, a load cell is provided in the pallet fixing piece; the intelligent cat feeder further comprises a cat identification device and a food unjamming device, wherein the food unjamming device is provided in a food cavity in the feeder body, and the food unjamming device comprises silica gel blades, food releasing blades and a food releasing impeller casing provided in sequence from top down, wherein the silica gel blades, the food releasing blades are coaxially provided, and the food releasing blades are provided in a food guiding groove in the food releasing impeller casing, and a food jamming prevention stopper one and a food jamming prevention stopper two are provided at an outlet of the food guiding groove. 
     Preferably, the cat identification device comprises one or more electronic tags and a pedestal provided at a lower end of the feeder body, the food holding mechanism is provided in the pedestal, a signal receiver and one or more storage batteries are provided in the pedestal, and the signal receiver is connected with the one or more storage batteries, a controller is provided in the pedestal, and the controller is connected electrically with both the signal receiver and the one or more storage batteries; the one or more electronic tags cooperate with the signal receiver and the controller is connected electrically with the load cell. 
     Preferably, stopping mechanisms are provided at both sides of the food holding mechanism, and the stopping mechanisms at the both sides form an opening, wherein the stopping mechanisms are arc-shaped stopping plates, installation bulges extending downwardly are provided at bottom portions of the stopping mechanisms, a fixing layer is provided on both sides of the feeder body, and a vertical slot is provided in the fixing layer, and the vertical slot engages with the installation bulges to connect the stopping mechanisms with the fixing layer. 
     Preferably, a ring-shaped groove and a circular groove are provided in the pedestal from bottom up, wherein the weighing pallet is provided in the ring-shaped groove, both the pallet fixing piece and the load cell are provided in the circular groove, and the pallet fixing piece is fixedly connected with an installation piece in the circular groove. 
     Preferably, a battery compartment is provided in the pedestal, the one or more storage batteries are provided in the battery compartment, a fixing block is provided at a side of the battery compartment, a fixing assembly is connected to the fixing block via screws, a fixing slot is provided in the fixing assembly, and the controller is provided in the fixing slot. 
     Preferably, a fixing cap adapted to an upper end of a shaft of the silica gel blades is provided thereon, and the food jamming prevention stopper one and the food jamming prevention stopper two are perpendicular to each other in a horizontal direction. 
     Preferably, a food outlet is provided in the feeder body close to the opening, and a food outlet direction at the food outlet is against the food bowl. 
     Preferably, a width of the opening is 10˜20 cm, and a height of the stopper mechanisms are 20˜30 cm. 
     Preferably, the installation bulges comprises an installation bulge one, an installation bulge two, an installation bulge three and an installation bulge four, wherein both sides of at least one of the installation bulge one, the installation bulge two, the installation bulge three and the installation bulge four are provided with fixing mechanisms. 
     Preferably, the battery compartment comprises a battery cover, and the battery cover is provided with battery cover bulges engaging with the battery compartment. 
     3. Beneficial Effects 
     Compared with the prior art, the technical solution provided in the present invention has following beneficial effects: 
     The intelligent cat feeder according to the present invention, comprises a feeder body and a food holding mechanism, wherein the food holding mechanism comprises a food bowl and a weighing pallet, wherein the food bowl is fixed on the weighing pallet, a pallet fixing piece is provided at a bottom portion of the weighing pallet, a load cell is provided in the pallet fixing piece; the intelligent cat feeder further comprises a cat identification device and a food unjamming device, wherein the food unjamming device is provided at a food cavity in the feeder body, and the food unjamming device includes silica gel blades, food releasing blades, and a food releasing impeller casing provided in sequence from top down, wherein the silica gel blades and the food releasing blades are coaxially provided, the food releasing blades are provided in a food guiding groove in the food releasing impeller casing, and a jamming prevention stopper one and a jamming prevention stopper two are provided at an outlet of the food guiding groove. By weighing the cat food in the food bowl with the load cell, it is possible to know weight of the cat food each time eaten by the cat, in the meantime, it is possible to identify the dining cat(s) and dining time(s) with the cat identification device, and by matching the dining cat(s) and dining time(s) and the weight of eaten cat food, it is possible to record dining conditions of each cat and know health condition of the cat(s). By guiding the cat food with the silica gel blades and the food releasing blades, movement of the food releasing blades will drive the silica gel blades to rotate, and when the food releasing blades are stuck, the silica gel blades as being flexible will provide a flexible action force to the stuck food so as to unjam the food; a jamming prevention stopper one and a jamming prevention stopper two are provided at an outlet of the food guiding groove, a fixing cap is provided on an upper end of a shaft of the silica gel blades, the jamming prevention stopper one and the jamming prevention stopper two are perpendicular to each other in a horizontal direction, any one of the jamming prevention stopper one and the jamming prevention stopper two faces the food outlet, so that the cat food moves towards the food outlet, and food jamming can be avoided. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a front view of the intelligent cat feeder in the present invention; 
         FIG. 2  is a structural diagram showing the intelligent cat feeder in the present invention; 
         FIG. 3  is a structural diagram showing the stopping mechanisms in the present invention; 
         FIG. 4  is a structural diagram showing the pedestal in the present invention; 
         FIG. 5  is a structural diagram showing the food holding mechanism in the present invention; 
         FIG. 6  is a partial view showing the pedestal in the present invention; and 
         FIG. 7  is a structural diagram showing the food unjamming device in the present invention. 
     
    
    
     Markups shown in the drawings are: 
       100 . Feeder body;  110 . Food outlet;  120 . Food holding mechanism;  121 . Food bowl;  122 . Weighing pallet;  123 . Pallet fixing piece;  124 . Sensor installation slot;  125 . Load cell;  126 . Ring-shaped groove;  127 . Circular groove;  128 . Installation piece;  130 . Pedestal;  131 . Controller;  132 . Fixing assembly;  133 . Fixing groove;  134 . Battery compartment;  135 . Fixing block;  136 . Signal receiver;  137 . Storage battery;  138 . Battery cover;  139 . Battery cover bulge;  140 . Cushioning layer;  150 . Fixing layer;
   200 . stopper mechanism;  210 . Transparent stopper;  211 . Sticker;  221 . Installation bulge one;  222 . Installation bulge two;  223 . Fixing mechanism;  224 . Installation bulge three;  225 . Installation bulge four;  230 . Opening;  310 . fixing cap;  320 . Silica gel blade;  330 . Food releasing blade;  340 . Food releasing impeller casing;  350 . Food guiding groove;  360 . Jamming prevention stopper one; and  370 . Jamming prevention stopper two.
 
     EMBODIMENTS 
     In order to facilitate understanding of the present invention, hereinafter a more comprehensive description of the present invention with reference to the relevant drawings will be given. The drawings show several embodiments of the present invention. However, the present invention can be implemented in many different forms and is not limited to this description. On the contrary, the purpose of providing these embodiments is to make the disclosure of the present invention more thorough and comprehensive. 
     It should be noted that when a component is referred to as being “fixed to” another component, it can be directly on the other component or there can be an intermediate component; when one component is considered to be “connected” to another component, it can be directly connected to the other component or there may be an intermediate component at the same time; the terms “vertical”, “horizontal”, “left”, “right” and similar expressions used herein are for illustrative purposes only. 
     Unless otherwise defined, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meanings as commonly understood by those skilled in the technical field of the present invention; the terms used in the specification of the present invention herein are only for describing specific embodiments instead of limiting the present invention; the term “and/or” as used herein includes any and all combinations of one or more related listed items. 
     Embodiment 1 
     With reference to  FIG. 1  to  FIG. 7 , an intelligent cat feeder provided in the present invention, comprises a feeder body  100 , and a food holding mechanism  120  provided in the feeder body  100 , wherein the food holding mechanism  120  comprises a food bowl  121  and a weighing pallet  122 , a pallet fixing piece  123  is fixed at a bottom portion of the weighing pallet  122 , a load cell  125  is provided in the pallet fixing piece  123 ; the intelligent cat feeder further comprises a cat identification device and a food unjamming device, wherein the food unjamming device is provided in a food cavity in the feeder body  100 , wherein the food unjamming device comprises silica gel blades  320 , food releasing blades  330  and food releasing impeller casing  340  provided in sequence from top down, the silica gel blades  320  and the food releasing blades  330  are coaxially provided, the food releasing blades  330  are provided in a food guiding groove  350  in the food releasing impeller casing  340 , and a jamming prevention stopper one  360  and a jamming prevention stopper two  370  are provided at an outlet of the food guiding groove  350 . In the present embodiment, by weighing the cat food in the food bowl  121  with the load cell  125 , it is possible to know weight of the cat food each time eaten by the cat(s), in the meantime, the cat identification device can identify the dining cat(s) and dining time(s) thereof, and by matching the dining cat(s), the dining time(s) and the weight of cat food eaten each time, dining conditions of each cat can be recorded so as to know health status of the cat(s). In the meantime, the silica gel blades  320  and the food releasing blades  330  are used to guide the food, and rotation of the food releasing blades  330  can drive the silica gel blades  320  to rotate, so that when food is jammed in the food releasing blades  330 , the silica gel blades  320  as being flexible can provide flexible action forces to unjam the food; a jamming prevention stopper one  360  and a jamming prevention stopper two  370  are provided at the outlet of the food guiding groove  350 , a fixing cap  310  is provided on an upper end of a shaft of the silica gel blades  320  and engages with the same, the jamming prevention stopper one  360  and the jamming prevention stopper two  370  are perpendicular to each other in a horizontal direction, one of the jamming prevention stopper one  360  and the jamming prevention stopper two  370  is provided towards to a food outlet  110 , so that the cat food will move towards the food outlet  110 , and food jamming can be prevented. 
     The cat identification device comprises one or more electronic tags, and a pedestal  130  fixed on a lower end of the feeder body  100 , the food holding mechanism  120  is provided on the pedestal  130 , a signal receiver  136  and one or more storage batteries  137  are provided in the pedestal  130 , the signal receiver  136  is connected with the one or more storage batteries  137 , a controller  131  is provided in the pedestal  130 , and the controller  131  is simultaneously connected electrically with the signal receiver  136  and the one or more storage batteries  137 , the one or more electronic tags  136  are adapted to the signal receiver  136 , and the controller  131  is electrically connected with the load cell  125 . The one or more electronic tags are hanging on the cat(s), when the cat(s) come(s) close to the feeder body  100  for dining, the signal receiver  136  can receive radio frequency signals from the one or more electronic tags to identify the cat(s) and know how many times and how long the cat(s) have dined, so as to manage dining of a plurality of cats. In the present embodiment, the signal receiver  136  is an electronic tag reader, and the electronic tag reader can be provided at any position in the feeder body  100 . 
     Stopping mechanisms  200  are provided at both sides of the food holding device  120 , an opening  230  is formed by the stopping mechanisms  200  at both sides, the stopping mechanisms  200  are arc-shaped stoppers, installation bulges extending downwardly are provided at bottom portions of the stopping mechanisms  200 ; a fixing layer  150  is provided at both sides of the feeder body  100 , and vertical slots are provided in the fixing layer, engagement of the vertical slots and the installation bulges fixes the stopping mechanisms  200  and the fixing layer  150 . By providing the stopping mechanisms  200  at the both sides of the food holding device  120 , and with the opening  230  formed by the stopping mechanisms  200 , only one cat can eat at one time, so that scrambling for food of more than one cat can be avoided. 
     The pedestal  130  in the present embodiment comprises a ring-shaped groove  126  and a circular groove  127  that are intercommunicated from top down, the weighing pallet  122  is provided in the ring-shaped groove  126 , both the pallet fixing piece  123  and the load cell  125  are provided in the circular groove  127 , and the pallet fixing piece  123  is fixed with an installation piece  128  in the circular groove  127 . 
     In the present embodiment, the pedestal  130  is provided with a battery compartment  134 , the one or more storage batteries  137  are provided in the battery compartment  134 , a fixing block  135  is provided at a side of the battery compartment, the fixing block  135  is connected with a fixing assembly  132  by screws, a fixing slot  133  is provided in the fixing assembly  132 , and the controller  131  is fixed in the fixing slot  133 . 
     The signal receiver  136  in the present embodiment is a ring-shaped signal receiving structure. And with the ring-shaped signal receiving structure it is possible to receive radio frequency signals from different directions, which is more accurate and stable for identification of the electronic tags. 
     The food outlet  110  is provided at a side of the feeder body  100  that is close to the opening  230 , a food outlet direction of the food outlet  110  is directly against the food bowl  121 . 
     In the present embodiment, a width of the opening  230  is 10˜20 cm, when the width is smaller than 10 cm, movement of a cat head is not easy, and when bigger than 20 cm, it is possible that there are simultaneously two cats before the food outlet  110 . A height of the stopping mechanisms  200  is 20˜30 cm. 
     In the present embodiment, the installation bulges include an installation bulge one  221 , an installation bulge two  222 , an installation bulge three  224  and an installation bulge four  225 , and at least one of the installation bulge one  221 , the installation bulge two  222 , the installation bulge three  224  and the installation bulge four  225  is/are provided with a fixing mechanism  233 . 
     In the present embodiment, the battery compartment further comprises a battery cover  138 , and the battery cover  138  is provided with one or more battery cover bulges  139  cooperating with the battery compartment  134 . A cushioning layer  140  is provided under a lower end of the pedestal  130 , a transparent stopper  210  is provided at a side wall of each of the stopping mechanisms  200 . One or more stickers  211  are provided on the transparent stopper  210 . 
     The above-mentioned embodiments only show an embodiment of the present invention. The description is more specific and detailed, but it should not be construed as a limitation on the scope of the present invention; it should be pointed out that for those of ordinary skill in the art In other words, without departing from the concept of the present invention, a number of modifications and improvements can be made, which belong to the scope of protection of the present invention; therefore, the scope of protection of the patent for the present invention shall be defined by the appended claims.