Carpenter bee trap
10512256 ยท 2019-12-24
Assignee
Inventors
Cpc classification
A01M1/02
HUMAN NECESSITIES
International classification
Abstract
A carpenter bee trap includes a plurality of walls surrounding a trap cavity, at least one entrance opening formed through at least one of the plurality of walls, a bottom wall coupled to a bottom of the plurality of walls, an exit opening formed through the bottom wall, a container disposed within the trap cavity and extending through the exit opening and beyond a bottom of the trap, and a funnel disposed within the cavity to direct carpenter bees into the container.
Claims
1. A carpenter bee trap comprising: a plurality of walls surrounding a trap cavity; at least one entrance opening formed through at least one of the plurality of walls; a bottom wall coupled to a bottom of the plurality of walls; an exit opening formed through the bottom wall; a container disposed within the trap cavity and extending through the exit opening and beyond a bottom of the trap; and a funnel disposed within the cavity to direct carpenter bees into the container.
2. The carpenter bee trap of claim I further comprising a door rotatably connected to the bottom of the container by way of a hinge, the door being operable between a closed position and an open position.
3. The carpenter bee trap of claim 2 wherein the hinge includes a biasing element to bias the door to a dosed position.
4. The carpenter bee trap of claim 2 wherein the door includes a plurality of perforations to allow airflow between the container and an external environment.
5. The carpenter bee trap of claim 1 wherein the container includes a main body and a flanged portion extending upward from a top of the main body at an angle between 0 and 90 degrees.
6. The carpenter bee trap of claim 5 wherein the flanged portion has an increasing diameter as it extends from the top of the main body; wherein the flanged portion is disposed with the cavity; and wherein the main body is disposed within the exit opening and extends away from and beyond the bottom of the trap.
7. The carpenter bee trap of claim 5 wherein the funnel extends from a top of the flanged portion to an opening aligned with the top of the main body.
8. The carpenter bee trap of claim 1 wherein the funnel includes flanges configured to push against an inner surface of at least one sidewall to suspend the funnel within the cavity.
9. A carpenter bee trap comprising: a plurality of walls surrounding a trap cavity; at least one entrance opening formed through at least one of the plurality of walls; an exit opening formed at a bottom of the trap; a container disposed within the trap cavity and extending through the exit opening and beyond the bottom of the trap, the container including a main portion and a flanged portion; and a door rotatably coupled to a bottom of the container by way of a hinge.
10. The carpenter bee trap of claim 9 wherein the flanged portion extends from a top of the main portion at an angle to increase a width of the flanged portion beyond a width of the exit opening.
11. The carpenter bee trap of claim 10 wherein the flanged portion extends along an inner surface of at least one wall at an angle equal to an angle of the at least one wall.
12. The carpenter bee trap of claim 10 wherein the flanged portion includes a funnel extending from a top of the flanged portion to a bottom of the flanged portion, the funnel forming a container opening at the bottom of the flanged portion.
13. The carpenter bee trap of claim 9 wherein the hinge includes a biasing element to bias the door to a closed position.
14. The carpenter bee trap of claim 9 wherein the door includes a plurality of perforations to allow airflow between the container and an external environment.
15. The carpenter bee trap of claim 9 further including a pulling device coupled to the door, the pulling device allowing a user to transition the door from a closed position to an open position from a distance.
16. A carpenter bee trap comprising: a plurality of sidewalls surrounding a trap cavity; at least one entrance opening formed through at least one of the plurality of sidewalls; a bottom wall coupled to the bottom of the plurality of sidewalls; an exit opening formed through the bottom wall; a funnel suspended within the trap cavity, the funnel separating the trap cavity into an upper trap cavity and a lower trap cavity; and a container disposed within the lower trap cavity and extending through the exit opening and away from the bottom wall of the carpenter bee trap.
17. The carpenter bee trap of claim 16 wherein the container includes a main body, a flanged portion extending from a top of the main body, and a bottom wall coupled to a bottom of the main body; and wherein the flanged portion is disposed within the lower trap cavity and the main body extends through the exit opening and beyond the bottom wall of the carpenter bee trap.
18. The carpenter bee trap of claim 17 wherein the flanged portion has a first outer diameter and the main body has a second outer diameter; and wherein the first outer diameter is greater than the second outer diameter.
19. The carpenter bee trap of claim 18 wherein the first outer diameter of the flanged portion is greater than a diameter of the exit opening.
20. The carpenter bee trap of claim 16 wherein the funnel includes at least one flange configured to push against an inner surface of at least one sidewall to suspend the funnel within the cavity.
Description
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
(1) A clear conception of the advantages and features constituting the present invention, and of the construction and operation of typical mechanisms provided with the present invention, will become more readily apparent by referring to the exemplary, and therefore non-limiting, embodiments illustrated in the drawings accompanying and forming a part of this specification, wherein like reference numerals designate the same elements in the several views, and in which:
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(16) In describing the preferred embodiment of the invention which is illustrated in the drawings, specific terminology will be resorted to for the sake of clarity. However, it is not intended that the invention be limited to the specific terms so selected and it is to be understood that each specific term includes all technical equivalents which operate in a similar manner to accomplish a similar purpose.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
(17) The present invention and the various features and advantageous details thereof are explained more fully with reference to the non-limiting embodiments described in detail in the following description.
(18) First referring to
(19) The trap 10 further includes a top wall 16 attached to the top 18 of the plurality of walls 12, in order to further enclose the cavity 14. While
(20) In this representative embodiment of the invention, the trap 10 also includes a bottom wall 24 coupled to the bottom 26 of the plurality of walls 12, in order to further enclose the cavity 14. As shown in
(21) At least one opening 32 is formed through at least one of the plurality of sidewalls 12 to act as an entrance to the trap 10. It is contemplated that the carpenter bees will enter the trap 10 through these openings 32. While
(22) While
(23) A container 34 is disposed at the bottom 36 of the trap 10, so as to extend from within the cavity 14, through the opening 28, and out into the external environment. Once the bees enter the trap 10 through the openings 32 described above, the bees transition to the container 34 and become caught in the container 34, where they can collect. As shown in
(24) In other embodiments of the invention, the hinge 42 may not include a biasing element 44. In these embodiments of the invention, a retaining device, such as, but not limited to a clip, may be used to retain the door 38 in the closed position 46. That is, a user would be able to release the door 38 from the retaining device, open the door 38 to empty the trap 10, close the door 38, and retain the door 38 in the closed position 46 by way of the retaining device.
(25) Next,
(26) The flanged portion 50 extends from the top 52 of the main body 48 at an angle between 0 and 90 degrees so that the top 54 of the flanged portion 50 has a diameter 56, while the bottom 58 of the flanged portion 50 has a diameter 60. As shown in the representative embodiment of the invention, the diameter 56 of the top 54 of the flanged portion 50 is greater than the diameter 60 of the bottom 58 of the flanged portion 50.
(27) In addition, the diameter 56 of the top 54 of the flanged portion 50 is greater than a diameter 62 of the opening 28 formed in the bottom wall 24 of the trap 10. As a result, of the increasing diameter from the bottom 58 to the top 54 of the flanged portion 50, the flanged portion 50 of the container 34 is maintained within the cavity 14 of the trap 10. In addition, the container 34 is suspended in its position of having the flanged portion 50 disposed within the cavity 14 and the main body 48 extending through the opening 28 of the bottom wall 24 of the trap 10 and beyond the bottom wall 24 of the trap 10, into the external environment.
(28) The container 34 also includes a funnel 64 to direct the carpenter bees to the main body 48 of the container 34. The funnel 64 extends from the top 54 of the flanged portion 50 to a container opening 66 aligned with the bottom 58 of the flanged portion 50 and the top 52 of the main body 48. In the representative embodiment of the invention, the funnel 64 extends from the top 54 of the flanged portion 50 at an angle between 0 and 90 degrees so as to properly direct the bees to the main body 48 of the container 34.
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(30) Referring again to
(31) Next,
(32) The trap 110 may also include a top wall 116 coupled to the top 118 of the sidewalls 112. The top wall 116 assists in further enclosing the trap cavity 114. In the representative embodiment of the invention, edges 120 of the top wall 116 extend beyond the sidewalls 112. However, in varying embodiments of the invention, each edge 120 of the top wall 116 may independently align with the outer surface 122 of a respective sidewall 112 or extend beyond the respective sidewall 112.
(33) The trap 110 may also include a bottom wall 124 coupled to the bottom 126 of the sidewalls 112. The bottom wall 124 even further encloses the cavity 114. As shown in
(34) At least one opening 132 is formed through at least one of the sidewalls 112 to act as an entrance to the trap 10. That is, each sidewall 112 may include any number of openings 132, including zero. The openings 132 are configured to operate as entrances into the cavity 114 for the carpenter bees. The configuration of the openings 132 will be further described below with respect to
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(36) The trap 110 also includes a container 134 disposed at the bottom 136 of the trap 110. The container 134 extends from within the cavity 114, through the opening 128, and out into the external environment. In this representative embodiment of the invention, the container 134 is removable from the exit opening 128, which allows a user to empty the trap 110.
(37) Next,
(38) Referring to
(39) In addition, the diameter 156 of the flanged portion 150 is larger than the exit opening 128 formed in the bottom wall 124 of the trap 110. As a result of the above, the container 134 is able to maintain its position within the flanged portion 150 disposed in the cavity 114, the main body 148 extending through the exit opening 128, and the main body 148 extending beyond and away from the bottom 136 of the trap 110 without the assistance of a coupling means.
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(41) While the representative embodiment of the invention illustrates the funnel 164 including two (2) flanges 168, it is contemplated that the funnel 164 may include any number of flange 168 more or less than two (2), in other embodiments of the invention.
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(43) Referring again to
(44) Referring next to
(45) In the representative embodiment of the invention, there are three (3) sidewalls 212 and one (1) sidewall 216b formed by the second portion 216b of the hood 216. In other embodiments of the invention, the trap 210 may include more or less than three (3) sidewalls 212 and the second portion 216b of the hood 216 may form any number of additional sidewalls 216b. It is further contemplated that alternative embodiments of the trap 210 may be in a variety of shapes, not just the rectangular shape shown in
(46) In addition, while
(47) In this representative embodiment of the invention, the bottom 226 of the plurality of walls 212 surrounded an opening 228 at the bottom 236 of the trap 210. Opening 228 operates as an exit of the trap cavity 214. In addition, the plurality of sidewalls 212 may include at least one opening 232 is formed through at least one of the plurality of sidewalls 212 to act as an entrance to the trap 10. It is contemplated that the carpenter bees will enter the trap 210 through these openings 32. While the representative embodiment of the invention depicts an opening 232 in each sidewall 212, it is contemplated that any number of openings 232 may be formed through any number of sidewalls 212. For example, each sidewall 212 may individually include any number of openings 232, including no openings 232. In addition, sidewalls 216b may or may not include any number of openings 232. The configuration of the openings 232 will be further described below with respect to
(48) While
(49) A container 234 extends from within the cavity 214, through the opening 228 at the bottom 236 of the trap 210, and out into the external environment. Once the bees enter the trap 210 through the openings 232 described above, the bees transition to the container 234 and become caught in the container 234, where they can collect. As shown in
(50) In alternative embodiments of the invention, the hinge 242 may not include a biasing element 244. In these embodiments of the invention, a retaining device, such as, but not limited to a clip, may be used to retain the door 238 in the closed position 246. For example, a user would be able to release the door 238 from the retaining device, open the door 238 to empty the trap 210, close the door 238, and retain the door 238 in the closed position 246 with the retaining device.
(51) Next,
(52) The container 234 further includes a flanged portion 250 that extends from the top 252 of the main body 248 of the container 234 at an angle between 0 and 90 degrees. As a result of the flanged portion 250 extending upward and outward from the top 252 of the main body 248, the width of the funnel portion 250 increases from the bottom 258 to the top 254 of the funnel portion 250. As a result, the top 254 of the funnel portion 250 is sized larger than the bottom 258 of the funnel portion 250.
(53) As shown in
(54) In alternative embodiments of the invention, the flanged portion 250 may include a biasing feature that applies a force to the inner surface 270 of at least one sidewall 212 to assist in suspending the flanged portion 250 of the container 250 within the cavity 214 without the assistance of a coupling device or material.
(55) In addition, the container 234 includes a funnel 264 within the flanged portion 150 to direct the carpenter bees to the main body 248 of the container 234. The funnel 264 extends from the top 254 of the flanged portion 250 to a container opening 266 at the bottom 258 of the flanged portion 50, which is aligned with the top 252 of the main body 248. As shown in
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(57) Next,
(58) In varying embodiments of the traps 10, 210, 310 described above, each of the doors 84, 284, 384, respectively, may include a plurality of perforations 84, 284, 384, respectively. The perforations 84, 284, 384, allow airflow between the inside of the container 34, 234, 334 and the external environment. In varying embodiments of the trap 110 described above, the bottom wall 138 may include a plurality of perforations 184 that allow airflow between the inside of the container 134 and the external environment. One benefit of allowing airflow, is that the scent and sound associated with the carpenter bees within the container can act as an attractant for more carpenter bees.
(59) While the embodiments described above and shown in
(60) It is specifically intended that the present invention not be limited to the embodiments and illustrations contained herein, but includes modified forms of those embodiments including portions of the embodiments and combinations of elements of different embodiments as come within the scope of the following claims.