A device for dispensing material consumed by an animal and monitoring the animal’s consumption of the material, and related systems and methods

Abstract

A device for dispensing material consumed by an animal and monitoring the animal's consumption of the material, includes a sensor, a valve, and a controller. The sensor is operable to sense an amount of a material that is held in a container and to be consumed by an animal. The valve is operable to control the flow of the material into the container from a source of the material. The controller is coupled with the sensor and with the valve, and operable to direct the valve to open in response to the sensor sensing an amount of material in the container being less than a minimum amount. The controller is also operable to direct the valve to close in response to the sensor sensing an amount of material in the container being above a maximum amount. The maximum amount of material that triggers the controller to direct the valve to close is greater than the minimum amount of material that triggers the controller to direct the valve to open. With the ability to sense the amount of material held in a container, as opposed to sensing that the amount of material held in the container does equal a predetermined amount, the minimum amount of material that triggers the controller to direct the valve to open may be substantially less than the maximum amount of material that triggers the controller to direct the valve to close. This allows one to track remotely an animal's consumption, and based on changes in the consumption, generate and send an alert concerning the animal's health to one not located with animal.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.