# US 4,399,771 A · Pet door

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- Number: US 4,399,771 A
- Document ID: US4399771A
- Status: Granted
- Kind: A
- Application number: 06/293,427
- Filed: 1981-08-17
- Granted: 1983-08-23
- Earliest claimed: 1981-08-17
- Inventors: Douglas G. Medley
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US4399771A

## CPC

- E06B 7/32: Serving doors; Passing-through doors {; Pet-doors}
- E06B: FIXED OR MOVABLE CLOSURES FOR OPENINGS IN BUILDINGS, VEHICLES, FENCES OR LIKE ENCLOSURES IN GENERAL, e.g. DOORS, WINDOWS, BLINDS, GATES (shades or blinds for greenhouses A01G9/22; curtains A47H; lids for car boots or bonnets B62D25/10; skylights E04B7/18; sunshades, awnings E04F10/00)

## Abstract

A pet door assembly for mounting over an opening includes a box containing a pivot arranged to be positioned beside the opening and such as to extend perpendicularly to the plane of the opening, and a door mounted on the pivot so as to be movable in its own plane between positions in which it opens and closes the opening. A rotary electric drive device such as a rotary solenoid are provided for swivelling the door between the open and closed positions, and a sensing device is provided which is operable by a pet for causing actuation of the drive device to open the door. Preferably, a tunnel is provided by tubular members which are separated by a gap in which the door can move, and weather stripping may be provided between the door and the adjacent ends of the tunnel members. For better insulation, the door may comprise 2 spaced apart planar members which are mounted to move together.

## Claims

### Claim 1

A pet door assembly for mounting over an opening, comprising:
a generally rectangular box having front and rear walls, said walls having aligned apertures,
two tubular members together defining a tunnel, each member extending through one of said apertures, said members having adjacent end faces which define a parallel sided gap,
pivot means positioned within said box but outside said tunnel, and extending generally parallel to the tunnel axis,
a planar door mounted on said pivot means so as to be movable in its own plane within said gap between a closed position in which an operable portion thereof extends fully across said gap and an open position in which a pet can pass through the tunnel, the relationship of the door to the box being such that the door rotates through about 45.degree. in moving from the closed to the open position while the operative portion thereof moves from one corner to the diagonally opposite corner of the box,
electric rotary drive means for moving the door between the open and closed positions, and
means carried adjacent an outer end of the tunnel and operable by a pet for energizing said drive means to open the door.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

A pet door according to claim 1 wherein said door includes two planar, spaced apart portions each having an outwardly facing flat surface which, in the closed position the door, lies closely adjacent one of said adjacent end faces of the tubular members to form a substantial seal therewith.

### Claim 3

A pet door assembly for mounting over an opening, comprising:
pivot means arranged to be positioned adjacent said opening and arranged to extend generally perpendicularly to the plane of the opening,
a door mounted on said pivot means so as to be movable in its own plane between positions in which it respectively opens and closes the opening,
said door including two planar, spaced apart portions each having an outwardly facing flat surface which, in the closed position of the door, lies closely adjacent to the end surface of a tunnel member extending outwardly from the door, said tunnel members together forming a tunnel providing a sealed passage through the opening,
electric drive means for moving said door between the open and closed positions, and
means carried by said tunnel and operable by a pet for causing actuation of said drive means to open the door, said means including a sensing device which is such as to sense automatically a pet entering the tunnel and to cause opening of the door, by energizing said drive means, said sensing device being connected to said electric drive means by an electric circuit including a capacitor which is arranged to maintain energization of the drive means for a period of time after said sensing device has been actuated, whereby a pet may have time to pass through the tunnel before the door closes.

### Claim 4 (depends on 3)

A pet door according to claim 3, wherein said electric drive means is a rotary solenoid.