US 5,181,480 A · Litter-box and litter dispensing hopper

Abstract

An animal litter-box includes a bed adapted to receive and store litter and manually retractable floor sections above the bed. A litter refuse container with a refuse bag holder is located beneath the floor. As the floor sections are retracted manually to transfer litter from the floor to the bed, the floor sections are cleaned by the action of scrapers in the bed which remove soiled litter from the upper surface of the floor sections and direct the soiled litter into the refuse container below. A portable litter hopper is adapted for disposal adjacent the litter-box for metering clean litter into the bed. The hopper includes a lid and an interior having four separated compartments. The litter is dispensed through a removable gate having manually rotatable inner and outer disks which each have a dispensing aperture. A compartment is selected by aligning the aperture of the inner disk with the selected compartment, and the gate is opened, for dispensing litter by gravity from a selected compartment, by rotating the outer disk until its aperture aligns with the dispensing aperture on the inner compartment. The gate is closed by rotating the outer disk out of register with the inner disk. The hopper may be filled conveniently by setting the hopper on its back and filling the compartments through the gate after it is removed.

Claims19

Dependent claims

In combination, a pet litter-box comprising a bed adapted to receive and store litter and a plurality of interconnected upstanding side walls;

a flexible, disposable litter refuse container beneath said bed;
and a portably, free-standing litter dispensing hopper having an upright front wall with a central dispensing aperture and a horizontal side wall upon which said hopper may be set remote from said litter box for storage or disposed adjacent said litter box for dispensing litter over sad upstanding side wall and onto said bed of said litter-box, said litter-box further comprising:
a floor having a manually retractable section at least partially defining said bed and covering said refuse container;
and means attached to one of said side walls for removing litter from the upper surface of said retractable section into said refuse container when said section is retracted.

1 more element

In combination, a pet litter-box comprising a bed adapted to receive and store litter and a plurality of interconnected upstanding side walls;

and a portable litter dispensing hopper adapted to be disposed adjacent one of said side walls of said litter-box for dispensing litter over said side wall and into said bed of said litter-box, said litter dispensing hopper further comprising:
a bottom wall and a plurality of interconnected side walls forming an interior, said hopper adapted to stand on one of said side walls for dispensing litter into said bed;
means providing a plurality of compartments in said interior, each compartment having an apex located adjacent the center of said interior and each compartment adapted to store a quantity of litter;
a lid on said hopper for preventing spillage of the litter from said compartments, said lid including a central aperture;
a gate carried by said hopper and closing said central aperture in said lid, said gate including a first member rotatably mounted in said central aperture of said lid and having a dispensing aperture adapted to be manually placed in communication with the apex of a selected compartment from which litter is to be dispensed, and a second member rotatably mounted adjacent said first member having a discharge aperture adapted to be manually placed in a first position wherein said discharge aperture is aligned with said discharge aperture of said second member whereby litter in said selected compartment is dispensed under gravity over said side wall and into said bed, and a second position wherein said dispensing aperture of said first member is not aligned with said aperture of said second member and said gate is closed.

2 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Litter-box and litter dispensing hopper

Life of this patent

Litter-box and litter dispensing hopper

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims19