US 5,669,331 A · Animal carrier · patentgrep

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Abstract

A pet housing expansible to hold a pet and collapsible to suitcase size for manual transport includes a pair of platforms and first and second pairs of spaced walls. The walls in the first pair (e.g. front and rear walls) are pivotably attached at opposite ends to the platforms and are hinged at intermediate positions for collapse and expansion. The walls in the second pair (e.g. side walls) are pivotable toward an individual one of the platforms with the platform as a fulcrum to collapse the housing and toward the other platform to expand the housing. In the collapsed housing disposition, detents on opposite sides of the hinge on the first pair of walls releasably engage to maintain the housing collapsed. A manually grippable handle on one of the platforms provides for a transport of the collapsed housing. With the walls in the first pair expanded, detents on the walls in the first and second pairs of housings releasably engage to maintain the expanded housing enclosure. A second handle on one of the platforms is manually grippable to provide for the housing transport in the expanded relationship. Third detents provide for a releasable closing and opening, preferably on a vertical axis, of a door in one of the second pair of walls. The walls in the first and second pairs are preferably formed from gratings of spaced wires to minimize weight and to provide a circulation of air through the housing from the atmosphere in the expanded housing.

Drawings

Claims43

Dependent claims

In combination in a portable pet housing,

top and bottom platforms defining the top and bottom of the pet housing,
front and rear collapsible walls each having opposite ends respectively attached pivotably to the top and bottom platforms and hinged at an intermediate position between the opposite ends to provide for a pivotable collapse of such walls against the top and bottom platforms for portable transport of the pet housing in a collapsed relationship and to provide for an expansion of the front and rear walls for use in housing the pet,
left and right side walls each pivotably attached to an individual one of the top and bottom platforms to facilitate the collapse of the front and rear walls when such side wall is pivoted toward the individual one of the top and bottom platforms,
first detent means disposed on an individual one of the left and right side walls, and
second detent means disposed on an individual one of the front and rear collapsible walls and providing a frictional engagement with the first detent means when the side walls are pivoted to positions closing the pet housing.

2 more elements

In combination in a portable pet housing,

top and bottom platforms respectively defining the top and bottom of the pet housing,
front and rear collapsible walls each having opposite ends respectively attached pivotably to the top and bottom platforms and hinged at an intermediate position between the opposite ends to provide for a collapse of the front and rear walls against the top and bottom platforms for a portable transport of the pet housing and to provide for an expansion of the front and rear walls for use in housing the pet,
left and right side walls each pivotably attached to an individual one of the top and bottom platforms to facilitate the collapse of the front and rear walls when such side wall is pivoted toward such individual one of the top and bottom platforms,
first detent means disposed on at least an individual one of the front and rear walls at a position above the hinge in such wall, and
second detent means disposed on at least the individual one of the front and rear walls at a position below the hinge in such wall for engaging the first detent means in the collapsed condition of such wall to retain the portable pet housing in the collapsed condition of the front and rear walls,
one of the first and second detent means being pivotable relative to the other of the first and second detent means to provide an engagement between the first and second detent means in the collapsed condition of such wall.

3 more elements

In combination in a portable pet housing,

a first pair of spaced walls hinged at an intermediate position to provide collapsed and expanded relationships of such walls,
a second pair of spaced walls disposed in a transverse relationship to the first pair of walls to define an enclosure with the first pair of walls,
a pair of platforms disposed in transverse relationships to the first and second pairs of spaced walls to cover the enclosure defined by the first and second pairs of the spaced walls, the pair of platforms being pivotably coupled to the first pair of walls to provide for the collapse and expansion of the first pair of walls and being pivotably coupled to the second pair of walls to provide for a pivotal movement of the second pair of walls between positions defining an opening and closure of the enclosure, and
detent means on the first and second pairs of walls for frictionally locking the second pair of the spaced walls to the first pair of the spaced walls in the expanded relationship of the first pair of the spaced walls, the detent means on the first and second pairs of the spaced walls being frictionally releasable to provide for the collapse of the first pair of the spaced walls.

1 more element

In combination in a portable pet housing,

a first pair of spaced walls hinged at an intermediate position to provide collapsed and expanded relationships of such walls,
a second pair of spaced walls disposed in a transverse relationship to the first pair of walls to define an enclosure with the first pair of walls,
a pair of platforms disposed in transverse relationship to the first and second pairs of walls to cover the enclosure defined by the first and second pairs of walls, the pair of platforms being pivotably coupled to the first pair of walls to provide for a pivotable collapse and expansion of the first pair of walls and an individual one of the platforms being pivotably coupled to the second pair of walls to provide for a pivotal movement of the second pair of walls between positions adjacent to and displaced from the individual one of the platforms, and
detent means for locking the first pair of the spaced walls in the collapsed relationship of the pet housing, the detent means including first and second detent means disposed on one of the walls in the first pair, the first detent means being pivotable relative to the second detent means to lock the first pair of walls to the second pair of walls in the collapsed relationship of the pet housing.

1 more element

In combination in a portable pet housing,

a first pair of spaced walls hinged at an intermediate position to provide collapsed and expanded relationships of such walls,
a second pair of spaced walls disposed in a transverse relationship to the first pair of walls to define an enclosure with the first pair of walls,
a pair of platforms disposed in transverse relationships to the first and second pairs of walls to cover the enclosure defined by the first and second pairs of walls, the pair of platforms being pivotably coupled to the first pair of walls to provide for the pivotable collapse and expansion of the first pair of walls and an individual one of the platforms being pivotably coupled to the second pair of walls to provide for a pivotal movement of the second pair of walls between positions adjacent to and displaced from such individual one of the platforms,
the platforms having side surfaces, and
a handle disposed on an individual one of the side surfaces of one of the platforms at an intermediate position on such platform to provide for a manual transport of the pet housing with the first pair of walls in the collapsed relationship.

2 more elements

In combination in a portable pet housing,

a pair of platforms respectively defining the top and bottom of the pet housing, the platforms having side surfaces,
a pair of collapsible walls each having opposite ends respectively attached pivotably to the platforms and hinged at an intermediate position between the opposite ends to provide for a pivotable collapse of such wall against the platforms for portable transport of the pet housing and to provide for an expansion of such walls for use in housing the pet,
a second pair of walls pivotably attached to an individual one of the platforms to facilitate the collapse of the collapsible walls when the walls in the second pair are pivoted toward the individual one of the platforms,
first and second detent means operatively coupled to at least one of the collapsible walls in the pair and respectively disposed on opposite sides of the intermediate position for retaining the collapsible walls in the collapsed relationship, the first detent means being pivotable relative to the second detent means to become engaged with the second detent means in the collapsed relationship of the collapsible walls in the pair, and
a handle attached to one of the side surfaces of one of the platforms for providing a manual transport of the pet housing with the collapsible walls in the pair in the collapsed relationship.

2 more elements

In combination in a portable pet housing,

a pair of platforms defining the top and bottom of the pet housing,
a pair of collapsible walls each having opposite ends respectively attached pivotably to the platforms and hinged at an intermediate position between the opposite ends to provide for a collapse of such walls against the platforms for a portable transport of the pet housing and to provide for an expansion of such walls for use in housing the pet,
a second pair of walls pivotably attached to an individual one of the platforms to facilitate the collapse of the collapsible walls when the walls in the second pair are pivoted toward the individual one of the platforms and to facilitate the retention of the collapsible walls in the expanded relationship when the walls in the second pair are pivoted toward the other one of the platforms,
first and second detent means pivotably coupled respectively to the pair of collapsible walls and to the second pair of walls for positioning the walls in the second pair against the pair of collapsible walls in a frictional relationship when the walls in the second pair are pivoted toward the other one of the platforms,
the platforms having flat surfaces defining the vertical dimensions of the pet housing, and
a handle disposed on one of the flat surfaces of an individual one of the platforms for manual gripping to obtain a transport of the pet housing when the collapsible walls are in their expanded relationship and the walls in the second pair are fixedly retained by the detent means against the collapsible walls.

3 more elements

In combination in a portable pet housing,

a pair of platforms defining the top and bottom of the portable pet housing,
a pair of collapsible walls each having opposite ends pivotably attached to the platforms and each hinged at an intermediate position between the opposite ends to provide for a pivotable collapse of such walls against the platforms for portable transport of the pet housing in a collapsed relationship and to provide for an expansion of the collapsible walls for use in housing the pet,
a pair of pivotable walls each pivotably attached to an individual one of the top and bottom platforms to facilitate the collapse of the collapsible walls when such pivotable wall is pivoted toward the individual one of the top and bottom platforms,
first and second detent means respectively disposed on the collapsible walls and the pivotable walls for providing a frictional relationship between the collapsible walls and the pivotable walls when the collapsible walls are in their expanded relationship and the pivotable walls are pivoted to the other one of the platforms, the frictional relationship being removed when the pivotable walls are pivoted toward the individual one of the platforms,
a door disposed on an individual one of the pivotable walls for pivotal movement relative to an individual one of the pivotable walls with the collapsible walls in the expanded relationship and with the pivotable walls pivoted to the other one of the platforms, and
third and fourth detent means for releasably detaining the door in a closed relationship with respect to such individual one of the pivotable walls and for providing for a release of such detention with the collapsible walls in the expanded relationship and with the pivotable walls pivoted to the other one of the platforms.

3 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Description3,145 words

Summary890 words

#This invention relates to housings for pets. More particularly, the invention relates to collapsible pet housings which can be manually gripped and easily transported or stored when the housings are not in use.

#There are millions of pets in the United States. This results in part from the belief that pets help a child to grow up. It also results in part from the companionship which pets offer to people of all ages. Many of these pets reside inside of their owners' homes. This is particularly true of cats since cats are fastidious in their habits. However, many of these pets, particularly dogs, reside in housings outside of the homes such as in the backyards of their owners. Housings are generally provided for these pets to protect them from the atmospheric elements such as rain or snow.

#The pet housings now in use are generally permanent structures. This makes it difficult for the pet housings to be transported. For example, when a family moves from one location to another, the pet housings cannot be disassembled at the home being vacated and re-assembled at the home being newly occupied. The pet housing thus has to be shipped in its assembled state so that it occupies a considerable amount of space in the van transporting the owners' possessions from the previously occupied home to the newly occupied home.

Brief description of the drawings15 figures

#In the drawings:

#FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view of a person manually carrying a pet housing of this invention with the pet housing in an expanded relationship;

#FIG. 2 is a schematic perspective view of a person manually carrying the pet housing shown in FIG. 1 with the pet housing in a collapsed relationship;

Detailed description1,677 words

#In one embodiment of the invention, a pet housing generally indicated at 10 is provided with an expanded relationship (FIG. 1) to hold a pet such as a dog and with a collapsed relationship (FIG. 2) to facilitate the manual transport of the housing. The housing 10 includes a top platform 12, a bottom platform 14, a front wall 16, a rear wall 18, a wall 20 on the left side and a wall 22 on the right side.

#Preferably the platforms 12 and 14 and the walls 16, 18, 20 and 22 have rectangular configurations to define, in the expanded disposition of the housing 10, a space defined by six (6) peripheries of rectangular configuration. The platforms 12 and 14 and the walls 16, 18, 20 and 22 may be formed from a suitable material such as a thermosetting plastic or a thermoplastic material or from a suitable material such as aluminum.

#The platforms 12 and 14 may preferably be formed from a solid material. Each of the front and rear walls 16 and 18 may be provided with spaced ribs 24 extending from one of the wall extremities to a hinge 26. Each of the hinges 26 extends along the length of the associated wall at an intermediate position between the top and bottom of the wall. The upper and lower portions of each of the front and rear walls 16 and 18 are pivotable relative to each other on the hinge 26 as a fulcrum. The pivotal relationship for the front wall 16 is facilitated by a pivot pin 27 disposed on the top platform 12 and a pivot pin 29 disposed on the bottom platform 14. A similar pivotal arrangement is provided for the rear wall 18.