Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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ANIMAL FEEDER WITH ADJUSTMENT OF A FEED DISCHARGE OPENING
This invention relates to an animal feeder with an adjustable feed
discharge opening thus adjusting the amount of feed which is allowed to pass
through the opening.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Various arrangements of animal feeder are provided in which there
is a trough into which feed can be deposited from a hopper above the trough.
In
most cases the feed material to be deposited can vary in particle size and
viscosity so that it is often desirable to provide an arrangement which allows
an
adjustment of the opening through which the material can feed from the hopper
into the trough.
In many cases the opening is provided by a simple shutter at the
gap between the Hopper and the trough where the height of the shutter can be
adjusted to vary the gap at the bottom of the shutter.
In US patent 4,660,508 (Kleinsasser) issued April 28th, 1987 is
disclosed a feeder which provides a shelf above the trough with the hopper
discharging onto the shelf in a manner so that the feed remains on the shelf
but
can be moved from the shelf to the trough by the animal as required. Feeders
of
this type have achieved significant commercial success. Adjustment of the
height
of the shelf is necessary for the purpose of accommodating different types of
feed
and different feed rates and this is obtained by a hand crank screw which
operates with a threaded nut to raise and lower a strap carrying the shelf.
The
screw is used in adjustment of this device because the deposit of the feed
onto
the self requires an accurate adjustment of the distance between the shelf and
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the bottom edge of the hopper so that cruder systems with a less fine
adjustment
have been rejected.
US patent 5,603,285 also of Kleinsasser issued February 18th, 1997
discloses a further similar device where additional adjustment of the height
of the
shelf is possible but again fine adjustment is provided by a screw.
It is also known to provide arrangements in which adjustment in a
relatively crude manner is effected by selecting one of a plurality of holes
in which
to locate the pin of an adjustment lever so that the adjustment is effected
step by
step. As the holes must be necessarily a certain distance apart, such an
adjustment provides a relatively crude distance of adjustment so that the fine
tuning necessary for determining the specific dimensions of an opening to
accurately control the rate of flow of feed material is not possible in such a
system. One example is shown in US patent 6,637,368 (Bondarenko) issued
October 28, 2003. This provides a link which extends along one end wall of a
feeder and a lever can be moved to place a pin into a selected one of a number
of holes in the end wall.
In US patent 6,923,142 issued August 2 2005 is disclosed and an
arrangement in which a shelf is carried on straps which extend along the end
walls of the hopper and are movable by an adjustment linkage defined by a
plate
carried on the end wall and a manually adjustable lever mounted for pivotal
movement on the plate. The plate has an arcuate outer edge which is serrated
to
define an arcuate row of teeth and the lever is formed by a fiat of sheet
material
which lies in a plane parallel to and slides over the plate and includes a
portion
thereof which is bent out of a plane of the lever into the plane of the plate
which is
also serrated with a row of teeth shaped to mesh with the teeth of the arcuate
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portion. The portion of the lever is movable in a direction away from the
plate a
non-meshing position in which the lever is free to move around the pivot axis.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is one object of the invention to provide an improved feeder of the
above general type.
According to a first aspect of the invention there is provided an
animal feeder comprising:
a hopper for containing a feed material to be dispensed to an
animal for feeding therefrom;
a receptacle for receiving the feed from the hopper from which the
animal can take the feed;
an elongate opening through which the feed passes so that the
amount of feed discharged from the hopper to the receptacle is controlled by a
width of the opening;
the opening being defined on one side by an elongate member
extending along the opening and movable transversely of the opening to change
the width of the opening along the length of the opening:
and an adjustment linkage for operating adjustment movement of
the elongate member, the linkage including:
a plurality of upstanding support members at spaced
positions along the elongate member;
each support member being movable upwardly and
downwardly to different heights generally along its length to raise and lower
the
elongate member;
a gauge for indicating to a user a height of at least one of the
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upstanding support members such that the user can select a required height;
an adjustment bar interconnecting all of the upstanding
support members for common adjustment of the height thereof;
and a manually adjustable lever mounted for pivotal
movement about a pivot axis for rotating the bar so as to commonly adjust the
upstanding support members.
Preferably the bar is located in the hopper at a height above the
elongate member.
Preferably a respective one of the upstanding support members is
located at each respective end of the elongate member and at least one
additional upstanding support member is located between the ends.
Preferably there is provided a gauge at each end of the elongate
member.
Preferably there is provided a lock member for holding one of the
upstanding support members at a selected height.
Preferably the lock member is located at the gauge at one end wall
of the hopper.
Preferably the lever is located at the gauge at one end wall of the
hopper.
The lever can be located inside the hopper at one end of the feeder
or can be located outside the hopper on one end of the feeder at height
inaccessible by the animals.
Preferably the bar is mounted for pivotal movement around a pivot
axis fixed relative to ends of the hopper and wherein there is provided a
crank
extending from the bar to each upstanding support member so that each
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upstanding support member is commonly adjusted in height by rotation of the
bar
around the axis.
Preferably the gauge comprises a plate defining a surface over
which the crank moves, the surface defining an arcuate portion lying on an arc
of
5 a circle surrounding the pivot axis of the bar; wherein the arcuate
portion of the
surface is serrated to define an arcuate row of teeth; wherein the crank has
an
edge which is also serrated with a row of teeth shaped to mesh with the teeth
of
the arcuate portion; and wherein the crank is being movable from a meshing
position locking the upstanding support member in a locked position to a non-
meshing position in which the upstanding support member is free to move
upwardly and downwardly.
Preferably the plate lies in a radial plane of the pivot axis and the
arcuate row of teeth are located on an edge of the plate.
Preferably the edge of the plate is an outer edge facing radially
outwardly of the axis.
Preferably the crank is formed by a flat of sheet material which lies
in a plane parallel to and slides over the plate and wherein the crank
includes a
portion thereof which is bent out of a plane of the crank into the plane of
the plate
and carries the row of teeth of the crank on an edge thereof.
Preferably the feeder is of the known wet/dry type where there is
provided a trough into which the feed can fall and wherein the elongate member
comprises a shelf mounted above the trough arranged so that the animal can
take feed from the shelf or can move the feed from the shelf to the trough and
wherein the upstanding support member is connected to the shelf for adjustment
of the height thereof relative to a bottom edge of the hopper defining the
opening
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therebetween.
Preferably the feeder comprises a pair of feeders arranged end to
end each having a respective hopper, a respective trough and a respective
shelf;
wherein there is provided a water line extending along the pair of feeders
undemeath the shelf for supplying water to the troughs and wherein there is
provided a heater element at the water line and extending along the water line
along both of the feeders so as to provide heat to both feeders from a common
heater element.
Preferably the common heater element is located inside the water
line.
According to a second aspect of the invention there is provided an
animal feeder comprising:
a pair of feeders arranged end to end, each feeder comprising:
a hopper for containing a feed material to be dispensed to an
animal for feeding therefrom;
a trough for receiving the feed from the hopper from which
the animal can take the feed;
a shelf mounted above the trough arranged so that the
animal can take feed from the shelf or can move the feed from the shelf to the
trough;
the shelf defining with a bottom edge of the hopper an
elongate opening through which the feed passes so that the amount of feed
discharged from the hopper to the receptacle is controlled by a width of the
opening;
wherein there is provided a water line extending along the pair of
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feeders underneath the shelf for supplying water to the troughs:
and wherein there is provided a heater element at the water line
and extending along the water line along both of the feeders so as to provide
heat to both feeders from a common heater element.
Preferably the common heater element is located inside the water
line.
Preferably the two hoppers of the feeders are connected to a
common upper hopper extension which supplies feed to the hoppers of both of
the feeders.
Preferably the hoppers of the two feeders are spaced so as to
define a separate area therebetween and there is provided a divider member in
the common hopper extension to direct the feed into one or other of the
hoppers.
Preferably there is provided an adjustment linkage for operating
common adjustment movement of the shelf of each of the hoppers, the linkage
including:
a plurality of upstanding support members at spaced
positions along the shelves of the hoppers;
each support member being movable upwardly and
downwardly to different heights generally along its length to raise and lower
the
shelves;
a gauge for indicating to a user a height of at least one of the
upstanding support members such that the user can select a required height;
an adjustment bar interconnecting all of the upstanding
support members for common adjustment of the height thereof;
and a manually adjustable lever mounted for pivotal
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movement about a pivot axis for rotating the bar so as to .commonly adjust the
upstanding support members.
The above construction of the wet/dry feeder is well known where
the shelf holds the feed in dry condition above the trough but can be added to
water in the trough for a wet condition. In this arrangement, the link is
connected
to the shelf for adjustment of the height thereof relative to a bottom edge of
the
hopper defining the opening therebetween.
However the same construction can be used with a conventional
dry feeder where the adjustment is effected by moving a plate which extends
generally upright from a base wall of the trough so that a bottom edge of the
plate
cooperates with the base wall in defining the opening. Typical dry feeders are
commonly, but not necessarily, double sided so that the same hopper feeds two
sides of a trough with each side having its own adjustment plate. In this case
there my be two such adjustment devices as defined above at each end of the
hopper so that each plate is independently adjusted by a pair of adjustment
devices one at each end wall of the hopper. Alternatively the two plates may
be
adjusted commonly by a single pair of adjustment devices depending upon the
requirements of the customer.
According to a third aspect of the invention there is provided an
animal feeder comprising:
a pair of feeders arranged end to end, each feeder comprising:
a hopper for containing a feed material to be dispensed to an
animal for feeding therefrom;
a receptacle for receiving the feed from the hopper from
which the animal can take the feed;
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an elongate opening through which the feed passes so that
the amount of feed discharged from the hopper to the receptacle is controlled
by
a width of the opening;
the opening being defined on one side by an elongate
member extending along the opening and movable transversely of the opening to
change the width of the opening along the length of the opening;
and an adjustment linkage for operating common adjustment
movement of the elongate members of the feeders, the linkage including:
a plurality of upstanding support members at spaced
positions along the elongate member;
each support member being movable upwardly and
downwardly to different heights generally along its length to raise and lower
the
elongate members;
a gauge for indicating to a user a height of at least one of the
upstanding support members such that the user can select a required height;
an adjustment bar interconnecting all of the upstanding
support members for common adjustment of the height thereof;
and a manually adjustable lever mounted for pivotal
movement about a pivot axis for rotating the bar so as to commonly adjust the
upstanding support members.
Preferably the two hoppers of the feeders are connected to a
common upper hopper extension which supplies feed to the hoppers of both of
the feeders.
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BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
One embodiment of the invention will now be described in
conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:
Figure 1 is an isometric view of a feeder according to the present
5 invention.
Figure 2 is a cross-sectional view through one end of the feeder of
Figure 1.
Figure 3 is an elevational view on an enlarged scale of the
adjustment mechanism of Figure 1.
10 Figure 4 is an isometric view on an enlarged scale of the
adjustment mechanism of Figure 1.
Figure 5 is an elevational view of the other end adjustment
mechanism of Figure 1.
Figure 6 is an isometric view on an enlarged scale of the
adjustment mechanism at the center support of Figure 1.
Figure 7 is an isometric view showing two feeders arranged end to
end.
Figure 8 is an isometric view on an enlarged scale of one end only
of the feeders of Figure 7.
Figure 9 is an isometric view partly broken away on an enlarged
scale of the junction between the feeders of Figure 7.
In the drawings like characters of reference indicate corresponding
parts in the different figures.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
An elongate feeder is generally indicated at 10 and includes a
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hopper 11 and a trough 12. The trough is connect to the hopper by end walls 13
so as to form an integral structure with generally open top 14 through which
feed
can be inserted for containing in the hopper and for discharge into the trough
12
for feeding by a plurality of animals side by side. In the embodiment shown
there
is provided a shelf 15 with a generally horizontal surface 16, an upturned
edge 17
and a downwardly turned lip 18 all of which are substantially as described in
the
above patents of Kleinsasser. Further details of the structure therefore can
be
obtained by reference to the above patents so that no further detailed
description
is necessary herein. A water supply 100 into the trough is provided with a
supply
line 101 spanning the length of the feeder underneath the shelf and including
a
series of longitudinally spaced nozzles 102 under control operation or
operation
by the animal as is known in the above patents.
The shape and arrangement of the hopper and trough can be
varied and can provide either a two sided structure as shown or a single sided
structure.
The height of the shelf relative to the end wall of the hopper is
adjusted by raising straps 20 where two straps are arranged at a respective
ends
of the shelf with one or more intermediate straps part way along the feeder.
As
the feeder in this arrangement is relatively long, additional straps are
typuicallyu
required. Each of the end straps lies along the end wall 13 parallel to the
end
wall as shown in Figure 1. The strap is raised and lowered by a lever 105
mounted on a bar 106 carried on the support plate 22 by a pivot pin 23. The
support plate 22 as best shown in Figure 4 includes an upper mounting flange
24
which is attached to the end wall 13. A bend portion 25 is arranged at right
angles to the flange portion 24 and therefore supports the plate 22 at a
spaced
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position from the wall 13 leaving a space 26 at the rear of the plate 22 and
inside
the end wall 13. The plate 22 is formed from sheet metal which is bent and cut
to
form the required shape as defined above so that the plate is suspended along
the end wall with a bottom edge 27 and at two side edges 28 and 29. The pivot
pin 23 is arranged adjacent the side edge 28 and approximately at a mid height
of the plate.
The bar 106 is attached to a locking and gauge arrangement
generally indicated at 107.
The locking and gauge arrangement generally 107 includes a lever
21 is also formed of sheet metal which is stamped and punched to form a
generally elongate member with an end 30 at the pivot pin 23 and a second end
31 extended beyond the edge 29 of the plate. The lever is formed of flat sheet
metal similar to that of the plate so that it lies in contact with the front
face of the
plate. The lever 21 is attached to the strap 20 by a pin 32 which passes
through
a hole in the lever and a hole in the strap. The lever includes an actuating
arm
109 which is mounted on the bar 106 at a collar 110 so that rotation of the
bar
106 operated by the lever 105 acts to cause the collar 110 to rotate and thus
drive rotation of the lever 21 and the arm 109.
A slot 35 is provided in the plate 22 which guides movement of the
pin 32 so that the pin is constrained to move vertically and thus move the
strap
20 vertically. The length of the slot 35 between an upper end 36 and a lower
end
37 provides a length of adjustment equal the allowable movement of the lever
21.
A slot 38 in the lever 21 and in the arm 109 allows the pin to move in the
vertical
direction while accommodating the arcuate movement of the lever 21 and Arm
109 around the axis of the bar 106.
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The edge 29 of the plate 22 faces away from the pivot axis 23A of
the pivot pin 23 and is cut to form a series of teeth 39 along the edge 29
from an
upper edge 40 to a lower edge 41. Thus the edge of the plate 29 forms an
arcuate edge around the axis 23A with the teeth punched in the edge of the
plate
and facing away from the plate as a serrated edge.
The lever 21 is held flat against the surface of the plate 22 by a
spring on the pin 32. The spring is held in place by a nut on the pin 32 So
that the
spring is compressed between the nut and the outer face of the lever 21. The
pin
32 has a head behind the strap 20. The pivot pin 23 provides enough
flexibility to
allow the lever 21 to be moved away from the plate 22 compressing the spring
43
against the bias of the spring. The lever 21 has a hole 48 formed in the
lever.
The lever further has a recessed portion 49 which is bent downwardly from the
plane of the lever into the plane of the plate 22. The hole and the recessed
portion are formed by cutting through the plate along a line 50 which extends
from an edge along the lever to a semi-circular portion and back along the
lever
to a second edge. This slit or cut in the sheet metal forming the lever allows
a
serrated edge 54 to be formed having teeth 55 at an edge of the hole 48 and
forming an edge of the recessed portion 49. Thus the
lever is in its normal
position flat against the surface of the plate thus causing the teeth of the
edge of
the lever to be in meshing engagement with the teeth of the arcuate edge of
the
plate 22. The width of the teeth is equal on both surfaces so that the teeth
are
directly meshing. The number of teeth on the edge of the lever is very much
less
than the number of teeth on the arcuate edge of the plate since the lever is
intended to move around the arcuate edge of the plate in an adjustment
movement. However the amount of adjustment is equal the pitch of the teeth.
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The lever 21 includes an end piece 58 which is bent in a direction
away from the plate 22 so as to provide a handle or tab which can be readily
grasped since it is sufficiently spaced from the end wall of the feeder to be
readily
accessible by the hand of the user.
Markings 59 are provided on the plate counting the number of teeth
and numbered from zero at one end through to the total number at the other end
of the arcuate edge of the plate. The hole 48 allows viewing of the markings
through the hole onto the front surface of the plate so that the user can line
up a
centre line of the hole with a selected one of the markings.
In operation the meshing teeth arrangement of the lever and the
plate allow a fine adjustment, bearing in mind that the teeth have a
relatively fine
pitch and bearing in mind that the distance of the pin 32 from the pivot
access
23A is significantly less than the distance of the teeth from the pivot axis.
Thus
movement of one pitch of one tooth can be arranged to provide a movement of
the shelf of a distance of the order of 1/32 to 1/16 inch.
However when required, the shelf can be moved rapidly down to a
lowered position simply by grasping the lever and dropping it downwardly to
the
bottom end of the adjustment thus rapidly increasing the spacing between the
bottom of the hopper and the shelf for cleaning or other operations where the
distance needs to be rapidly opened. However when rapidly opened, the shelf
can be rapidly returned back to its set position simply by the user recalling
the
number to which it was originally set and by adjusting it rapidly back to the
selected number marked on the arcuate edge of the plate 22.
Therefore the adjustment linkage for operating adjustment
movement of shelf includes the plurality of upstanding support members or
straps
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20 including the end straps 20A, 20B and at least one intermediate strap 20C
at
spaced positions along the elongate shelf. Each support strap is movable
upwardly and downwardly to different heights along its length to raise and
lower
the shelf. At each end there is provided a gauge for indicating to a user a
height
5 the respective strap such that the user can select a required height. That
is at
the end 13 there is provided the locking and gauge arrangement 107. At the
opposite end there is provided a gauge 108 which includes a symmetrically
arranged plate 22 and a lever 21 with meshing teeth as previously described.
The adjustment bar 106 acts to interconnect all of the upstanding
10 straps 20 for common adjustment of the height thereof by single
adjustment of
the manually adjustable lever 105 mounted for pivotal movement about the pivot
axis of the bar 106 for rotating the bar so as to commonly adjust the
upstanding
straps.
The bar is mounted for rotation on the plate 22 at the gauge 107
15 and a symmetrical plate 22A at the end gauge 108. In the center for the
strap
20C there is provided a similar plate 22B supported on cross beam 22D which
carries the bar in a bearing 110. At each plate there is provided an arm 109
which actuates the movement of the strap 20 as the bar 106 rotates.
Thus the gauge 107 also provides a locking function in that the user
releases the plate 21 from meshing engagement with the plate 22 allowing the
adjustment to occur at the lever 105. The gauge indicates to the user the
height
adjustment so that the user can select a required height. The gauge at the
other
end confirms that the correct height selection has been entered. The center
strap
has no need of a gauge. Only one locking location is required. The lever 105
provides a sufficient length and strength that it can apply a relatively large
force
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to the bar 106 to effect the adjustment when the hopper is filled with feed
resting
on the shelf.
The lever, as shown, is located inside the hopper at one end 13 of
the feeder. However in an arrangement (not shown) the lever 105 can be outside
the hopper on the outside of the end wall 13 at height inaccessible by the
animals. As this arrangement is used with long feeders of greater height than
might be typical in order to provide the adjustment at one location with a
strong
lever action, the feeder is often much higher than typical so that the lever
is
above the height which might be accessed by the animals at the feeder.
The bar 106 is mounted for pivotal movement around the pivot axis
fixed relative to ends 13, 14 of the hopper and there is provided a crank 109
extending from the bar 106 to each upstanding support strap 20 so that each
strap is commonly adjusted in height by rotation of the bar around the axis.
This
simplifies the adjustment and ensures that the lever 106 is accessible even
when
the hopper is filled.
As described above, the feeder is of the known wet/dry type where
there is provided a trough into which the feed can fall and the elongate
member
comprises a shelf mounted above the trough arranged so that the animal can
take feed from the shelf or can move the feed from the shelf to the trough.
The
straps are connected to the shelf for adjustment of the height thereof
relative to a
bottom edge of the hopper defining the opening therebetween.
As shown in Figures 7, 8 and 9, the feeder comprises a pair of
feeders 131, 132 arranged end to end each having a respective hopper 11, a
respective trough 12 and a respective shelf 15. There is provided a water line
101 fed from a supply pipe 104 at one end of one of the feeders. The water
line
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extends along both of the pair of feeders 111, 112 underneath the shelf 15 for
supplying water to the troughs. As shown in Figure 9 the water line of each of
the
feeders is connected to the water line of the next by a coupling 106. As shown
in Figure 2, there is provided an electric heater element 103 connected to an
electric coupling 133 at one end of one of the feeders so that the electric
heating
elements passes from the coupling 133 inside the water line and extends along
the water line along both of the feeders so as to provide heat to both feeders
from
a common heater element. This prevents the water lines from freezing in a
situation where the feeders are located in an un-heated area. The use of a
single
heater along both feeders significantly reduces the cost of the system
including
the controls. ,
As shown in Figure 7, the two hoppers 11 of the feeders 131 and
132 are connected to a common upper hopper extension 135 which supplies feed
to the hoppers of both of the feeders. This extends along both feeders to end
walls 137 and 138 at the end walls of the hoppers 11 of the two feeders and
has
no dividing wall at the center. Thus both hoppers are fed by a common hopper
supply above the feeders to increase the capacity for the animals to reduce
filling
frequency.
The hoppers of the two feeders are spaced at end walls 139, 140
but the extension portion is common and bridges the area 141 between the end
walls 139, 140. Thus the feeders define a separate area 141 therebetween and
there is provided a divider member 142 in the common hopper extension to
direct
the feed into one or other of the hoppers 11 and not into the area
therebetween.
= In Figure 7, the adjustment devices are maintained separate so that
each feeder is adjusted independently. However it is also possible to provide
an
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adjustment linkage for operating adjustment movement of the shelf of each of
the
hoppers. In this case the linkages include a common bar is provided which
adjusts the straps of both the shelves in a common adjustment action.
i
