Abstract:
A bird decoy system comprising: a transducer located on a housing; a switch located on the housing; a transmitter located within the housing, and in communication with the transducer; an electronics compartment comprising: a receiver located in the electronics compartment; a receiving antenna in communication with the receiver; a CPU located within the electronics compartment, and in communication with the receiver, the CPU configured to send a signal to cause a decoy motor to activate causing the decoy to move; a connection plug attached to the electronics compartment and in communication with the CPU; and a motorized bird decoy with a plug removeably attachable to the connection plug. A bird decoy system comprising: a decoy stand base; a decoy stand rod extending generally orthogonally from the decoy stand base; a rotatable sleeve in rotatable communication with the decoy stand rod; a bird shaped decoy fixedly attached to the rotatable sleeve.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCES 
     The present application claims the benefit of provisional patent application No. 61/121,255 filed on Dec. 10, 2008 by Rich Elpi, the entire contents of which are fully incorporated by reference herein. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND 
     Decoys which are presently available include silhouette decoys, windsock decoys, shell decoys, and full body decoys. Windsock decoys are popular where movement is desirable to give the appearance of movement like a live bird. When prevailing wind conditions are favorable the windsock decoys are inflated by the wind simulating the appearance of a full body bird. Too much wind will damage the windsock fabric or the fabric attachment to its head. The effectiveness of windsock decoys is dependent on unpredictable wind. 
     Most decoys, with the exception of windsock decoys, are stationary objects which give a visual appearance of a bird. However, such stationary decoys are not realistic because real animals move. In this respect, it would be desirable for an animal decoy to move in a lifelike manner, rather than be stationary. 
     Of special interest are decoys which simulate waterfowl, such as ducks and geese, for hunting and to attract live birds or for other uses, including aesthetic purposes such as display, gardens, and lawns. In the prior art, waterfowl decoys are known which have wings or heads that are mechanically moved by pulling a string. 
     There is a need for a bird decoy that is more effective and easier to cause to move than prior art bird decoys. 
     SUMMARY 
     The disclosed invention relates to a bird decoy system comprising: a remote control device, the remote control device comprising: a remote control housing; a transducer located on the housing; a switch located on the housing; a transmitter located within the housing, and in signal communication with the microphone; an electronics compartment, the electronics compartment comprising: a receiver located in the electronics compartment; a receiving antenna in signal communication with the receiver, and configured to be in signal communication with the transmitter when within range of the transmitter; a CPU located within the electronics compartment, and in signal communication with the receiver, the CPU configured to send a signal to cause a decoy motor to activate causing the decoy to move; a connection plug attached to the electronics compartment and in signal communication with the CPU. 
     In addition, the disclosed invention relates to a bird decoy system comprising: a decoy stand base; a decoy stand rod extending generally orthogonally from the decoy stand base; a rotatable sleeve in rotatable communication with the decoy stand rod; a bird shaped decoy fixedly attached to the rotatable sleeve; a fixed member fixedly attached to the decoy stand rod; a motor compartment fixedly attached to a fixed member; a motor shaft extending from motor compartment; a belt in communication with the motor shaft; a first gear shaft in communication with the belt, and in rotatable communication with the motor compartment; a first gear in fixed communication with the first gear shaft; a second gear in meshed communication with the first gear; a second gear shaft in fixed communication with the second gear, and in rotatable communication with the motor compartment; an arm rotatively pinned to the second gear and the rotatable sleeve. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       The present disclosure will be better understood by those skilled in the pertinent art by referencing the accompanying drawings, where like elements are numbered alike in the several figures, in which: 
         FIG. 1  is a front view of the disclosed bird shaped decoy and decoy stand; 
         FIG. 2  is a top view of the disclosed motor compartment and rotatable sleeve; 
         FIG. 3  is a schematic diagram of the disclosed system; 
         FIG. 4  is a perspective view of an electronics compartment; and 
         FIG. 5  is a front view of a remote control device. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       FIG. 1  shows one embodiment of the bird decoy system  10 . The bird decoy system comprises a decoy stand base  14  and a decoy stand rod  18  that extends generally orthogonally from the decoy stand base  14 . A rotatable sleeve  22  is in rotatable communication with the decoy stand rod  18 . The bird shaped decoy  26  is fixedly attached to the rotatable sleeve  22 . The bird shaped decoy  26  may be attached to the sleeve  22  via a screw  30 . The bird shaped decoy  26 , and rotatable sleeve  22  are configured to rotate with respect to the decoy stand rod  18  and decoy stand base  14 . A motor compartment  34  is fixedly attached to a fixed member  38 , which in turn is fixedly attached to the rod  18 . Also fixedly attached to the fixed member  38 , is an electronics compartment  42 . A motor shaft  46  extends from motor compartment  34 . The motor shaft  46  communicates with the rotatable sleeve  22  via a gear/belt system that will be described further in  FIG. 2 . 
       FIG. 2  shows a top view of the motor compartment  34 , rotatable sleeve  22 , and gear/belt system. The decoy stand rod  18  is shown within the rotatable sleeve  22 . The motor shaft  46  extends from the motor compartment  34 . The motor shaft  46  is in communication with a belt  50 , which is in communication with a first gear shaft  54 . A first gear  58  is in fixed communication with the first gear shaft  54 . The first gear shaft  54  is rotatable communication with the motor compartment  34 . The first gear  58  meshes with a second gear  62 . The second gear  62  is in fixed communication with a second gear shaft  66 ; the second gear shaft  66  is in rotatable communication with the motor compartment  34 . The belt/gear system comprises the belt  50 , motor shaft  46 , first gear shaft  54 , first gear  58 , second gear shaft  66 , and second gear  62 . An arm  70  is rotatively pinned to the second gear  62 . The arm  70  is also rotatively pinned to the sleeve  22 . As the second gear  62  rotates, the pinned arm causes the sleeve  22  to rotate back and forth with respect to the decoy stand rod  18 . The sleeve  22  rotates in alternatively clockwise and counterclockwise directions about a reference line  74 . In one embodiment the reference line  74  may be generally coincident with the fixed member  38 . The amount of rotation is given by θ. In one embodiment, θ may be about 45 degrees. Because the bird shaped decoy  26  is fixedly attached to the sleeve  22 , the bird shape decoy  26  also rotates with respect to the decoy stand rod  18 . The belt/gear system is configured to reduce the rotational speed that is transmitted from the motor shaft  46  to the sleeve  22  (and bird shaped decoy  26 ). In one embodiment, a full rotative cycle of the sleeve  22  (where the sleeve rotates a total of 90 degrees in one embodiment) may take about 2 seconds. 
       FIG. 3  is a schematic diagram showing how the disclosed system operates. A hunter  78  wears or has nearby a remote control device  82 . The remote control device  82  comprises a transducer  90 , an on/off switch  94 , and a transmitter which is in signal communication with a transmitting antenna  98 . In other embodiments, the transmitting antenna may be omitted. In other embodiments the remote control device  82  may also comprise a key ring  102 . In other embodiments, the key ring may be replaced with a carabineer, clip, or any other suitable attachment device. In a preferred embodiment, the transducer  90  is a microphone. The hunter  78  makes a bird call, perhaps by using a bird call device  86 . The sound of the bird call is picked up by the microphone  90  located on the remote control device  82 . When the microphone  90  picks up the bird call, the transmitter transmits a signal through the transmitting antenna  98  that is picked up by a receiver  106  located in the electronics compartment  42 . The microphone may be configured to only pick up certain frequency ranges, such as those produced by certain types of bird calls. A receiving antenna  110  may be in signal communication with the receiver  106 . The receiver  106  is in signal communication with a CPU  114  located in the electronics compartment  42 . The CPU is in communication with a power supply  118  and motor  122  located in the motor compartment  34 . The motor  122  is also in signal communication with the power supply  118 . In addition, the motor shaft  46  is in operational communication with the sleeve  22  and bird shaped decoy  26 , such that the rotation of the motor shaft  46  causes the sleeve  22  and bird shaped decoy  26  to rotate back and forth about a reference line  74 . When the receiver  106  picks up the signal from the remote control device  82 , the receiver notifies the CPU  114 . The CPU  114  may be programmed to activate the motor  122  for a time period P upon each discrete notification from the receiver  106 . In one embodiment, the time period P may be about 15 seconds. Thus if the belt/gear system is configured to rotate the sleeve  22  and bird shaped decoy  26  once every 2 seconds, then in a 15 second period, the bird shaped decoy  26  will rotate about the reference line  74  about 7 to about 8 times. Of course the motor speed, the programming of the CPU, and the configuration of the belt/gear system may be modified to allow different periods P of time, and speed of rotation. 
     This invention includes systems that can be retrofitted to already existing decoys and decoy systems, including decoy systems that may cause a decoy to move upon the manual activation of a remote control device, where the remote control device is activated by the user manually activating the remote control by pressing a button, or manually activating a switch. Such decoys may be decoys that use a stand, or may float in the water. The disclosed invention may be retrofitted onto such systems so that a sound such as a bird call, the user&#39;s voice, or a clapping sound made by the user, or any other suitable audible sound will activate a transducer located in the remote control, rather than a hunter having to manually activate the remote control.  FIG. 4  shows an electronics compartment  140  for such a retrofittable system. The electronics compartment may contain a CPU  114  and a receiver  106 , which are both not visible being inside the electronics compartment. A receiving antenna  110  is attached to the electronics compartment  140  and is in signal communication with the receiver  106  inside the compartment  140 . A plug  144  is attached to the electronics compartment  140 , the plug is in signal communication with the CPU  114 . The plug is configured to plug into an off the shelf bird decoy, and thereby put into the signal communication the CPU  114  with a power source and motor located on the off the shelf bird decoy. Thus, in order to retrofit an off the shelf bird decoy, one merely removes the electronics compartment that came with the off the shelf bird decoy, and unplug the electronics compartment plug from a socket located in the bird decoy that is in signal communication with the motor and power source. Then one replaces the original electronics compartment with the electronics compartment  140  disclosed above, and attach the plug  144  to socket in the off the shelf bird decoy. Now the off the shelf bird decoy will work with the disclosed bird decoy system, and may be sound activated, in addition to being manually activated. One may use a remote control device shown in  FIG. 3 , or the remote control device described below in  FIG. 5 . The electronics compartment  140  may be waterproofed, in order to work with bird decoys that are left out in the elements or are meant to float on water and protect the electronics within the compartment  40 . It should be noted that the bird decoy  26  does not have a microphone transducer. This is because a microphone used on a waterfowl bird decoy could easily become damaged by the elements, especially water or snow. Thus the microphone is located on the remote control device, and a wireless signal is transmitted from the remote control device to a receiver on the bird decoy, said receiver being more robust than a microphone which is susceptible to damage from the elements. Thus this gives the hunter greater range with respect to the decoy. The signal range between the remote control device and the decoy is much greater than the range between a microphone located on the decoy and a hunter producing an activating sound. 
       FIG. 5  shows another embodiment of a remote control device  150  that is configured to communicate with the electronics in the electronics compartment  140  shown in  FIG. 4 , and the electronics compartment  42  shown in  FIG. 3 . The remote control device  150  comprises a transmitting antenna  98  (shown as a telescoping antenna but any suitable antenna may be used). The remote control device may comprise a power indicator light  154  and a first switch  158 . The first switch may have three positions, the first position may be configured to activate the “sound” activation mode of the remote control device, the second position may be an “off” position, and the third position may be a “manual” position. The remote control device may also comprise a microphone  162  and a button  166  for when the remote control device is in a manual mode. There may also be an available slot  170  on the remote control device for other functions and/or accessories. In addition, the remote control device  150  may also comprise a key ring  174 . In other embodiments, the key ring may be replaced with a carabineer, clip, or any other suitable attachment device. In operation, when the switch  158  is set to sound operation, then when the hunter either makes a birdcall, or otherwise makes a sound, which the remote control  150  is configured to pick up via the microphone  162 , the remote control device  150  transmits a signal to the receiver  106  located in the electronics compartment  140  (or  42 ), and the bird decoy motion is activated as described above with respect to  FIG. 3 . The operational range between the receiver  106  and the transmitter may be between about 0 feet and 600 feet, and preferably about 200 feet. 
     The disclosed invention has many advantages. One is that a user will not have to manually press a button or throw a switch in order to make his or her decoy activate and move, rather all a user need do is make a bird call, or talk, or clap, in order to activate the transducer/microphone in the remote control, which in turn sends a signal to the bird decoy, activating the movement of the bird decoy. This saves the user from having to reach for the remote control, when his or her hands are already occupied by holding his or her weapon. This also increases the safety of the hunting environment by allowing the hunter to not have to hold on to three things, e.g. (1) the bird call, (2) the weapon and (3) the remote control device, but rather the hunter can simply hold the (1) bird call, and his or her (2) weapon, with the remote control device clipped on to his person, or gear, or located in his pocket. 
     It should be noted that the terms “first”, “second”, and “third”, and the like may be used herein to modify elements performing similar and/or analogous functions. These modifiers do not imply a spatial, sequential, or hierarchical order to the modified elements unless specifically stated. 
     While the disclosure has been described with reference to several embodiments, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes may be made and equivalents may be substituted for elements thereof without departing from the scope of the disclosure. In addition, many modifications may be made to adapt a particular situation or material to the teachings of the disclosure without departing from the essential scope thereof. Therefore, it is intended that the disclosure not be limited to the particular embodiments disclosed as the best mode contemplated for carrying out this disclosure, but that the disclosure will include all embodiments falling within the scope of the appended claims.