Abstract:
Readily assembled animal trap comprising a one-piece spring-actuated jaw/torsion spring and a one-piece molded plastic base with projections for receiving the jaw/spring unit.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to animal traps and, in particular, rodent traps having a spring-actuated jaw which descends upon the animal when the animal contacts a baited trigger or release mechanism for said jaw. 
     Such traps are in such common usage that few notable improvements have been made in almost a century. 
     Conventional traps of the above-described type are generally satisfactory in operation but are tedious to assemble, because generally they consist of a number of separate parts, including a base (usually wooden), a spring-actuated jaw (usually in two parts, i.e. the jaw and a spring), a hold-down bar for the jaw and a baited trigger which secures the bar holding the jaw and then releases it when the trigger is disturbed. Staples or the like are conventionally used to fasten the various components to the base. 
     In a preferred embodiment, the traps provided by the present invention consist of only two parts, a one-piece base having all essential elements necessary for mounting thereon a one-piece combination torsion spring and striker bar. Accordingly, it is an object of this invention to provide a trap which may be readily assembled. 
     It is a further object of this invention to provide a method for such ready assembly. 
     THE PRIOR ART 
     There are several references in the patent literature that appear to suggest the use of one-piece coil torsion spring/striker bar units in rodent traps or from whose drawings such one-piece construction might be inferred. However, in all such cases the spring/striker bar units are fixed to the trap base by use of staples, screw eyes, mandrels and the like, and assembly of the trap is thus complicated if not difficult. 
     Thus Hotchkiss, U.S. Pat. No. 615,218 shows a one-piece spring/striker jaw, but the spring is mounted on the trap base by a mandrel axially oriented to the coil spring, passing through the center thereof, and attached to the base by means of one end being bent at a right angle and driven into the base, the other end being secured by a staple or screw eye. 
     The drawings of Cowel, U.S. Pat. No. 1,345,137, Woodroffe, U.S. Pat. No. 2,188,696 and Altham, U.S. Pat. No. 2,598,205 appear to show a one piece coil spring/striker bar arrangement, but the precise structure of these spring/bar parts is not clear either from the drawings or from the descriptions in the specifications. The spring/bar units in these latter three patents are either attached to the base by means of the ends of the spring/bar wire being bent at right angles and driven into the base (Cowel) or by staples (Woodroffe and Altham), and in all three cases the traps are composed of numerous separate parts thus making assembly of the traps lengthy and difficult. 
     Pearsall U.S. Pat. No. 954,045 shows an animal trap having an extended base section at one end which could function as a safety area. The concept involved in the Pearsall patent however is directed to eliminating the base portion of the trap which would normally underlie the striker jaw in its sprung position. This arrangement solves the problem of the traps becoming scented by the smells of animals that have been trapped and which would otherwise cause subsequent animals to avoid the trap. The extension of the base at the end of the trap opposite the spring striker jaw thus serves only to provide a stable base which would otherwise be lost as a result of the elimination of the base portion under the striker jaw. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The above-identified objects, and other objects, are achieved by the present invention wherein a trap is produced from a one-piece spring-actuated jaw and a thermoformed or molded plastic base having projections for receiving said jaw molded into the base. A hold-down bar means for holding said jaw in a high tension position and a feed plate (baited trigger) capable of releasing said bar when disturbed may also be moulded into the base or may be attached by means of staples, screws, etc. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the base of the present invention. 
     FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the one-piece spring-actuated jaw of the present invention before mounting on the base. 
     FIG. 3 is a top plan view of the trap of the present invention in the set position. 
     FIG. 4 is a top plan view of the base of FIG. 3. 
     FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a further base embodiment of the present invention. 
     FIGS. 6A and 6B are perspective views of a base embodiment of the present invention. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     With reference to FIGS. 1 to 3, where like numerals designate like parts, there is provided base (1) made of plastic material such as polyvinyl chloride, polyethylene or other moldable thermoplastic material. 
     On base (1) is mounted spring-actuated striker jaw (2) which consists of a single wire bent into a U-shape with right angles (3) and (3&#39;). Across the mouth of the U-shape is a straight portion (4) and a coil spring portion (5). The straight portion (4) is the initial portion of the wire, and the terminal portion of the wire (6) is also straight and extends from the end of said coil spring generally normal to the axes of the coil spring (5) and straight portion (4). 
     At about the mid-portion of base (1) and towards or at opposite sides thereof are provided two vertical projections (7) and (8) integral with said base. Towards the top of the first vertical projection (7) is a horizontal, peg-like projection (9) which peg-like projection extends towards the second vertical projection (8). 
     Vertical projection (8) provides an arch (10) under which the straight portion (4) of the spring-actuated jaw is engaged. 
     Spring-actuated jaw (2) is mounted on base (1) by forcing terminal wire portion (6) parallel to the plane of said jaw but outside the area enclosed by said jaw, i.e. in the direction of the arrow in FIG. 2. While terminal portion (6) may initially be parallel to the plane of the U-shaped jaw, it is preferred that when not under tension (prior to mounting), terminal portion (6) be outside said plane. 
     Then the end portion (11) of said coil is placed over horizontal projection (9), and straight wire portion (4) is urged under arch portion (10) of the second vertical projection (8). The spring-actuated jaw is then under relatively low or no tension. In this manner the spring-actuated jaw (2) is pivotally mounted on base (1). 
     In an alternative embodiment, shown in FIGS. 6A and 6B, a first vertical projection (7&#39;) having a unitary horizontal projection (9) attached thereto can be swingably mounted on base (1) by a live hinge (28) which is located on the underside of first vertical projection (7&#39;). The live hinge (28) thus permits deflection of the first vertical projection either outward from its usual position perpendicular to the plane of the base as shown in FIG. 6A or return thereto by deflection in the opposite direction as shown in FIG. 6B. 
     Projection (7&#39;) snugly nests in base (1) as follows. On side wall (31) of base (1), there is provided recess (32) which is large enough to accommodate the lower portion of vertical projection (7&#39;) in its normal position, perpendicular to the plane of the base. Projection (7&#39;) is retained in recess (32) in a positive manner as follows. Lugs (29) and (29&#39;) horizontally protrude from the bottom of the lower side portion of projection (7&#39;) and these lugs snugly nest in slots (33) and (33&#39;) which slots are recesses in base (1) adjacent to recess (32). The forward portions of the top surface of slots (33) and (33&#39;) are defined by downwardly protruding projections (30) and (30&#39;), and the top surface of lugs (29) and (29&#39;) snappingly engage the bottom surface of said projections (30) and (30&#39;) to hold projection (7&#39;) firmly in vertical position, i.e. perpendicular to the plane of base (1), and yet permit projection (7&#39;) to swing outwardly and inwardly for ready disassembly or assembly of the trap. 
     Assembly of a trap employing this embodiment comprises forcing the terminal wire portion (6) parallel to the plane of the striker jaw but outside the area enclosed thereby; urging the first vertical projection (7&#39;) outwardly and out of perpendicular with the plane of the base (1); placing the straight wire portion (4) under arch portion (10) of the second vertical projection (8); and returning the first vertical projection (7&#39;) to a position perpendicular to the plane of the base (1) while inserting horizontal projection (9) into the end portion (11) of the coil. 
     When the spring-actuated jaw (2) is swung 180° from a relatively low tension position into a relatively high tension position, it is held in such high tension position by a holddown means, e.g. bar (12) which is pivotally mounted at or near the rear of base (1). The mounting of bar (12) on base (1) is preferably via a live hinge portion (13), whereby the bar and its hinge are an integral and unitary extension of the base assembly, i.e. the bar and its hinge are molded into the base as an integral part thereof. 
     The bar (12) desirably has a downwardly curved or J-shaped portion (14) which constitutes the terminal or free end thereof and is adapted to fit over the top of coil (5). 
     Bar (12) is held in place by interaction with feed plate (15) as follows. Feed plate (15) is also pivotally mounted on base (1) preferably via a live hinge (19). The feed plate is thus able to pivot through the plane of the base. The feed plate has a recess (16) therein in proximity to its pivotal mounting point and is engagable with a protrusion (17) on the free end of J-shaped portion (14) of bar (12). It is thereby possible to lock spring-actuated striker jaw (2) in place under hold-down bar (12) while the striker jaw is maintained under relatively high tension. 
     When locked in position, the feed plate is desirably on a diagonal to the plane of the base with the hinged portion (19) being below the opposite edge (20) of said feed plate. 
     The feed plate (15) may have indentations (18) or any other suitable means for holding bait. 
     When the animal contacts the feed plate, the plate is urged from the diagonal towards the plane of the base, releasing bar (12) which in turn releases spring-actuated striker jaw (2) which descends on and traps the animal. 
     In a preferred embodiment, the base may have a cradle (21) molded thereon, which is shaped to fit the bottom surface of the coil, in order to thereby limit its horizontal movement. 
     In another preferred embodiment, there is provided a lug (22) which limits the movement of the terminal straight portion (6) of the spring-actuated jaw. 
     A third vertical projection (26) may also be provided to limit lateral movement of the spring. 
     Both the hold-down bar (12) and feed plate (15) may be affixed to the base by conventional means such as screws, staples, adhesives, etc. However, the provision of live hinges joining each of these parts to the base permits the base to be formed as a unitary article. 
     As shown in FIG. 5, the hold-down bar may alternatively be formed of wire (23) attached to base (1) by a loop (24) formed in one end of wire (23) which is pivotally attached to base (1) by closure of the loop through lug 34, which is molded into the base, said wire being engagable with recess (16) of feed plate (15). In this embodiment, it is desirable to have the bar set on the diagonal in order to minimize the possibility of premature release. 
     Feed plate (15) of FIG. 5 may be provided with hook-like projections (27) for holding bait. 
     Base (1) is also desirably provided with safety areas or extensions (25), (25&#39;) shown in FIGS. 1, 3 and 4 which facilitate grasping base (1) while either setting the striker jaw (2) or assembling the trap. 
     As a result of the provisions of the foregoing specific base and spring-actuated jaw, the assembly of the trap is greatly simplified as described above. 
     It is apparent that numerous modifications of the foregoing embodiments may be made without departing from the inventive concept.