Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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This invention relates to a repeating animal trap and
relates more particularly to a mouse or rat trap adapted to
catch and confine a number of animals while automatically
resetting itself.
Although the concepts of the instant invention are
equally applicable to traps for animals of any size, devices of
this type are primarily utilized in connection with the trapping
of mice and rats. Repeating animal traps of this type have been
well known heretofore, but such prior art traps have ordinarily
required rather complex means to insure that an already trapped
animal does not escape when the device automatically resets to
receive additional animals. The complicated nature of such
eonstructionsnot only increases the manufacturing aosts, but
additionally, results in more frequent break-downs minimizing
; 15 the effQetiveness and inereasing the eosts of maintenance with
such devices.
Another area of difficulty with repeating animal traps
and, in fact, with animal traps in general of the type with
which the instant invention is concerned, is the tendency for
an animal to be trapped to by-pass the entrance opening to the
trap means. It is a well known tendency of mice and rats to
; stay close to walls in a room, rather than running into th~
open. If a trap is set against a wall, and includes bait, most
mice, upon encountering the trap, will be attracted ~nto it.
Yet, some mioe may pass by the entrance opening and thereby
avoid being caught.
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The present invention provides a repeating animal
trap which is extremely simple and inexpensive to manufacture
and to maintain and yet which is highly efficient in operation.
The animal trap of the instant invention includes a single
mechanism which in its normal position permits entry of a mouse
or the like into the trap means while confining already trapped
mice within an enlarged container and which automatically
precludes an animal from exiting the trap portion once it has
significantly passed the entry opening, automatically resetting
itself as the mouse passes completely through the trap means
' into the confining chamber.
; The invention also provides an animal trap having
means to funnel an animal which has by-passed the entrance
opening back toward the trap, using the natural tendency of
mice to stay close to a wall or any device they encounter.
, According to the present invention there is provided
J in a rodent trap including a collection means having parallel
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~ side walls, end walls, a top and a bottom, an aperture defined
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in at least one of the end walls, said aperture being associated
with trap means for preventing a rodent entering said collection
means through said aperture from escaping therefrom, one of the
side walls being adapted to be juxtaposed to a wall in a room
_ in which the trap is to be used, and barrier means carried by
the other of the side walls of the collection means, said
barrier means including a free end portion extendable beyond
- the point at which the other side wall meets and end wall con-
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taining a said aperture whereby a rodent passing the aperture~ ;
is directed back towards the aperture owing to its natural
tendency to stay close to a wall or any device it encounters.
The present invention will be further illustrated by
`~ way of the accompanying drawings wherein:
~ Figure 1 is a perspective view of one embodiment~o~
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repeating animal trap accordin~ to the instant inventiv~ con-
cepts shown in position with the confining means extended;
Figure 2 is an enlarged top plan view, partially
broken away for illustrative clarity and convenience;
Figure 3 is a side elevational view thereof also
partially broken away for illustrative clarity and convenience;
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Figure 4 is an exit end elevational view of one of
the trap means; and
Figure 5 i8 a~longitudinal cross-sectional view
through a trap means with th0T movable members being shown in
one position in solid lines and in a further position in dott~d
lines.
Like reference characters refer to like parts throughout
the several views of the drawings.
Referring now to the drawings, and more particularly
to Figure 1, a repeating animal trap according to the instant
inventive concepts i~ designated generally by the reference
numeral 10, and is shown as juxtaposed to a wall 12 on a floor
14. Ths deviee is shown as basieally rectangular and it is to
be understood that the size and speeifie shape of the deviee
may be modified without departing from the instant inventive
eoneepts although a rectangular trap would be most eommonly
used. SimilnPly, although the various elements are preferably
formed of metal, other materials may be suitably substituted
therefor,~s~ehT~as, for example, plasties.
The trap 10 comprises basieally a eolleetion means 16
and, in the embodiment shown, a pair of trap means 18, 20.
- The eollection means 16 eomprises substantially
pa~allal side walls 22, 24, end walls 26, 28, a bottom 30 and
a preferably removable eover 32. The cover 32 ean have a down-
wardly depending lip as shown at 34 and ean be a single element
as shown or, alternatively, only a portion of the eover eould
be removable as by hinging (not shown) in order to gain aeeess
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to the enlarged container 36 adapted to confine trapped animals
in a manner to be explained in more dêtail hereinafter.
In the embodiment shown an opening 38, 40 is defined
in each of the end walls 26, 28, the number of openings in
S the collection means 16 being variable, although normally one
op~ning at each end being preferred.
In any event, a trap means is interposed in each
opening such that an animal must pasQ through a trap means to
reach the container 36. The trap means 18, 20 are identical
80 that a detailed explanation with respect to only trap means
20 will be set forth.
The trap means 20 comprises side walls 42, 44 and a
top wall 46. An entrance opening 48 communicating with the
exterior of the collection means 16 through the opening 40 is
defined at one end of the side and top walls 42, 44, 46. An
exit opening 50 is defined at the opposite end of the side and
top walls and communicates w~th the enlarged container 36, with
an elongated passageway 52 extending between the entrance and
exit openings 48, 50.
A floor means 54 extends substantially completely
along the passageway 52 and includes an entrance end portion
56 and an exit end portion 58. Transversely extending floor
pivot means60 in the form of a pin or the like rotatably secures
the floor m¢ans 54 to the side walls 42, 44 intermediate the
entrance and exit end portions 56, 58 at a point closer to the
entrance end portion 56. Thus, the position of the floor p~vot
60 would normally bias the floor means 54 to the position shown
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in solid lines in Figure 5. However, a counterbalancing weight
means 62 i9 secured to the entrance end portion 56 in any
desired manner so that the floor means 54 is normally biased
by the means 62 to the dotted line position shown in Figures
3 and 5.
A door means 64 is pivoted at its lower end portion
by a transversely extending door pivot means 66 to the side
walls 42, 44 immediately adjacent the entrance opening 48. As
will be seen from the drawings, the height of the door means
64 is greater than the height of the side walls 42, 44 so that
the doox means 64 cannot be pivoted to or pass a vertical
relationship. Thus, the weight and inclination of the door
means 64 normally biases the same to the dotted line position
shown in Figures 3 and 5 wherein it rest on the entrance end
portion 56 of the floor means 54. However, since the entrance
end portion 56 of the floor means 54 terminates at a point
just short of the door pivot means 66, as the floor means 54
is pivoted to the solid line posit~on shown in Figure 5 in a
manner to be described in more detail hereinafter, it raises
the door means 64 to the solid line position shown in Figure
are
When the floor means 54 and the door means 64/~n the
. dotted ~ine position shown in Figures 3 and 5, it will be
seen that the exit end portion 58 of the floor means 54 com-
:, 25 pletely blocks the exit opening 50 while the entrance opening
48 i5 unblocked. This position of the floor and door means 54,
64, precludes escape of already trapped animals from within the
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container 36 while permitting additioaal animals to enter the
trap means 20. As an animal passes through the entrance opening
48 onto the floor means 54 beyond the floor pivot means 60 the
T~eight of the animal moves the floor means 54 to the solid line
position shown in Figure 5 and simultaneously raises the door
means 64 to the solid line position shown in this Figure. In
this position of the elemQnts it will be seen that the entrance
opening 48 is substantially completely blocked by the door means
64 precluding escape of an animal within the trap means 20.
However, the exit opening 50 is unblocked in this position of
the elements permitting the animal to pass into the container
36 in which it will be confined. Once the animal steps from the
floor means 54, ~he counterbalancing mQans 62 returns the floor
means 54 to its dotted line position and permits the door means
64 to drop to its dotted line position under the influence of
its own weight and inclination, again precluding exit of animals
within the container 36 while permitting entrance of additional
animals into the trap m~s 20.
The sides 42, 44 may have flanges such as shown at
70, 72 to enable the trap means 20 to be secured as by spotwelding
or the like to the floor 30 of the collection means 16. Similarly,
an eleme~t such as shown at 74 may be secured over the exit
end of the trap means 20 to define a slightly smaller exit
opening 50 thereby facilitating complete blocking of this
opening by simple movement of the floor means 54 to its dotted
lin~ position.
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T~ius, it will be seen that a simple combination of
the floor means 54 and the door means 64, and the particular
relationship between these elements, provides for automatically
resetting the trap, while precluding the escape of already
5 trapped animals. Bait may be placed within the container 36 and
the floor means 54 may be provided with a multiplicity of aper-
tures to enhance the o~lor transfer of the bait if desired.
According to a further feature of the instant inventive
concepts, ccnfining means are carried by the side wall 22 of the
- 10 collection means 16 and are extendable to funnel an animal wlilich
might otherwise by-pass the various trap openings back toward
the openings. Specifically, the confining means may comprise a
pair of elongated plate members 80, 82 slidingly secured to the
side wall 22 by pins or the like 84, 86, 88 and 90 slidingly
engaged in slots 92, 94, 96 and 98 to permit the plates 80, 82
to be extended to the positions shown in the drawings. With the
plate members 80, 82 extended in this manner a mouse or the
-~ llke running along the wall 12 which engages the end 26 or 28
i~i of the collection means 16 and by-passes the entrance opening
,~,,3~.A 20 38 or 40 of the trap means 18, 20 would engage wtth one of the
~;~ plate members and have a tendency to be redirected back toward
the trap me~ns. As indicated previously, this feature is
,; particularly effective because of the tendency of a mouse not
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to run ou~ in the open.
` 25 For packaging or storing the an imal trap 10, or
when the confining means are otherwise not to be used, the plate
members 80, 82 may be slid toward each other into an out-of-the-
way position. I~ deslred, end flanges 100, 102 may be provlded
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on the plate members 80, 82 to function as an additional stop
and bottom flanges such as shown at 104, 106 may be included to
faeilitate the sliding movement, although generally the bottom
flanges 104, 106 will not be necessary.
Thus, it will now be seen that there is herein
provided an improved repeating an~al trap, the use and operation
of which i8 believed readily understood. This trap satisfies all
of the objectives of the instant invention as defined above, and
others, including many advantages of great praetical utility
and commercial importance. The trap will automatically reset
itself and may be eheeked from time to time to remove animals
confined within the container 36.
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