Patent Publication Number: US-6668761-B2

Title: Device for collecting excrements

Description:
This application claims the benefit of provisional application No. 60/221,160 filed Jul. 27, 2000. 
    
    
     TECHNICAL FIELD 
     The present invention relates to a device for collecting excrements. 
     More particularly it relates to a device for collecting animal excrements. More particularly, it relates a manual device for collecting excrements, for example after pet animals, when an owner walks the pet animal. 
     BACKGROUND ART 
     Devices for collecting excrements of the above mentioned general type are known in the art. Some devices include an elongated rod with a mechanical scoop at the end, which is used for scooping excrements. Thereafter, the excrements have to be removed from the scoop, and the scoop has to be cleaned. Another device of this type includes a bag which is mounted at the end of the elongated rod, and also is used for collecting excrements. It is believed that the existing devices can be improved. 
     DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION 
     Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a device for collecting excrements, which avoids the disadvantages of the prior art. 
     In keeping with these objects and with others which will become apparent hereinafter, one feature of present invention resides, briefly stated, in a device for collecting excrements, which includes a one-piece body which is foldable in a middle region between an open position in which two parts of the body at both sides of a fold are spaced from one another, and a closed position in which both parts of the body at both sides of the fold are in contact with one another and form an enclosed space in which the excrements can be accommodated, and locking means for locking the parts of the body with one another in the closed position, so that the locked parts with the excrements inside can be discarded. 
     When the device is designed in accordance with the present invention, it is easy to operate manually, it reliably scoops the excrements from a surface, and it locks the device in its closed position, so that the excrements can not escape and the device together with the excrements can be disposed as a disposable item. 
     The novel features which are considered as characteristic for the present invention are set forth in particular in the appended claims. The invention itself, however, both as to its construction and its method of operation, together with additional objects and advantages thereof, will be best understood from the following description of specific embodiments when read in connection with the accompanying drawings. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a device for collecting excrements in accordance with the present invention in an open position; 
     FIG. 2 is the device for collecting excrements in accordance with the invention in the closed position; 
     FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the inventive device for collecting excrements from below; 
     FIG. 4 is a plan view of the inventive device for collecting excrements in an open position; and 
     FIG. 5 is a cross-section of the device for collecting excrements in accordance with the present invention. 
    
    
     BEST MODE OF CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION 
     The device for collecting excrements in accordance with the present invention has a body which is identified as a whole with reference numeral  1 . The body  1  is composed of two parts  2  and  3  which merge into one another in the middle of the body  1  along a line which forms a film hinge. The body  1  with its parts  2  and  3  can be composed of any suitable plastic. Each part  2 ,  3  has a side wall  4 ,  5 , a bottom wall  6 ,  7 , and two end walls  8 ,  9  and  10 ,  11 . 
     As can be seen from the drawings, each part has a substantially triangular cross-section, or in particular the cross-section formed of a right triangle. The cross-section of the device in the closed position with two parts which are in contact with one another is formed as an isosceles triangle. 
     As can be seen from the drawings, the side walls  2 ,  3 , have depressions  12 ,  13 , into which fingers of the user can engage so as to hold and operate the device. The depressions  12  and  13  can be formed for example as inwardly punched portions of the side walls  2 ,  3 . One of the depressions can be provided with a groove or a throughgoing opening  14 , while the other of the depressions  3  can be provided with a projection  15  which can be undercut, so as to form together a lock as will be explained herein below. 
     Side walls  2  and  3  are provided with a plurality of corrugations  16 ,  17 , to increase the rigidity of the parts  2 ,  3 . The end walls  8 ,  9  and  10 ,  11  can be provided with flanges  18 ,  19 , at both ends of the device, to further improve the rigidity of the side walls  2 ,  3 , of the device. The free edges  20 ,  21  of the bottom walls  6 ,  7  are thin and/or even sharpened for the purpose which will be explained herein below. Also, all walls of the body  1  are inclined, so that in a storage conditions the devices can be stacked into one another. 
     The device operates in the following manner: 
     In the initial position the device is open as shown for example in FIG.  1 . The user engages his fingers into the recesses  12  and  13  and grasps the sides  2  and  3  of the device. Then the user puts the device on a surface on which the excrements are deposited and presses the parts  2  or  3  of the device toward one another to cause a movement of the parts  2  and  3  toward one another, and the edges  20  and  21  of the bottom walls  6  and  7  slide over the surface and scoop the excrements from the surface because they are thin and/or sharp. Then, the parts  2  and  3  approach one another so as to be brought in direct contact with one another, at which point the undercut projection  15  engages into the recess or groove  14  because of the springy property of the plastic material, so that the parts  2  and  3  are locked with one another, and the excrements are reliably confined inside the device. The device can be disposed with the excrements inside. 
     It will be understood that each of the elements described above, or two or more together, may also find a useful application in other types of constructions differing from the types described above. 
     While the invention has been illustrated and described as embodied in device for collecting excrements, it is not intended to be limited to the details shown, since various modifications and structural changes may be made without departing in any way from the spirit of the present invention. 
     Without further analysis, the foregoing will so fully reveal the gist of the present invention that others can, by applying current knowledge, readily adapt it for various applications without omitting features that, from the standpoint of prior art, fairly constitute essential characteristics of the generic or specific aspects of this invention.