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AssigneeDewvale Limited
InventorsEdmond Patrick Harty, SR., Edmond Patrick Harty, JR., Liam Mullane, Frank Murphy, John Fleming
Estimating the term…
A dispenser (5) for dispensing discrete predefined quantities of animal feed to animals comprises first and second primary containers (28a, 28b) for ingredients of the animal feed. Primary metering augers (34) are provided in each primary container (28) for metering predefined quantities of the ingredients to produce a discrete predefined quantity of animal feed for dispensing to an animal. A radio frequency identity detector (82) located in the dispenser (5) identifies the identity of an approaching animal, and a microprocessor (48) in the dispenser (5) operates the primary metering augers (34) for metering out appropriate quantities of the ingredients in the first and second primary containers (28a, 28b) to produce a specific discrete predefined quantity of the animal feed for consumption by the animal. The discrete predefined quantity of the animal feed is presented to the animal in a dish-shaped base (22) of the dispenser (5). Data containing particulars of the sizes of the discrete predefined quantities of the animal feed for respective ones of the animals is stored in an electronic memory cross-referenced with the identities of the respective animals for reading by the microprocessor (48).
1-99. (canceled)
Animal feed dispensing apparatus comprising an animal feed dispenser, a means for accessing data containing particulars of at least discrete predefined quantities of animal feed for dispensing to respective animals, an identifying means adapted to determine the identity of an animal approaching the dispenser and to produce an identity signal indicative of the identity of the animal, a dispensing means adapted to dispense a discrete predefined quantity of the animal feed from the dispenser appropriate to the identified animal in response to the identity signal, a monitoring means for monitoring the dispensing means, the monitoring means being responsive to failure of the dispensing means to dispense some or all of the discrete predefined quantity of the animal feed to produce an alert signal, and a communicating means adapted to communicate with a remote communications device and to communicate the alert signal to the remote communications device.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.