ANIMAL DRINKER AND DRIP CUP FOR AN ANIMAL DRINKER

Abstract

Drip cups used in animal drinkers for beaked animals feature a cup body made of plastic material for accommodating a supply of water. The cup body has a bottom surrounded by an edging. Experience has shown that beaked animals cause damage to the plastics material of cup body with their beaks. Such damage by pecking can even cause the bottom, and thus the drip cup itself, to leak water. The invention proposes to position a graduated metal insert centered in the inside bottom of the cup body. The insert thereby reinforces the bottom of the cup body such that beaked animals are no longer capable of damaging the drip cup.

Claims

1. A drip cup for an animal drinker for beaked animals such as chickens, ducks, turkeys and chicks, comprising: a cup body made of plastic material for accommodating a supply of water and having a bottom and edging surrounding the bottom, the bottom being assigned a preferably central insert made of a resistant material; and at least one supporting arm for connecting the cup body to a water supply line, wherein the insert has a graduated configuration.

2. The drip cup as claimed in claim 1, wherein the insert is graduated in the manner of a hat.

3. The drip cup as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a depression present in the insert and formed by the graduated configuration of the insert.

4. The drip cup as claimed in claim 3, wherein the depression has an inside surface and a raised collar which surrounds the inside surface.

5. The drip cup as claimed in claim 3, wherein the depression in the insert is surrounded by a ring disc.

6. The drip cup as claimed in claim 5, wherein the ring disc is joined with an upper edge of the collar of the depression surrounding the inside surface.

7. The drip cup as claimed in claim 4, wherein the inside surface has a planar configuration.

8. The drip cup as claimed in claim 4, wherein a lowest point of the inside surface is located at the center of the inside surface.

9. The drip cup as claimed in claim 5, wherein the ring disc has a planar configuration.

10. The drip cup as claimed in claim 6, wherein the inside surface and the ring disc lie in different, parallel planes, wherein the inside surface is arranged below the ring disc.

11. The drip cup as claimed in claim 10, wherein the plane of the inside surface lies below the plane of the ring disc.

12. The drip cup as claimed in claim 6, wherein the wall of the collar surrounding the inside surface runs at a right angle to the ring disc.

13. The drip cup as claimed in claim 5, wherein an outer edge of the ring disc is surrounded by a collar.

14. The drip cup as claimed in claim 13, wherein in that the collar is double-angled and has an L-shaped profile.

15. The drip cup as claimed in claim 14, wherein a limb of the L-shaped profiled collar has a free end and lies at least in part in the plane or near the plane of the inside surface of the insert.

16. The drip cup as claimed in claim 5, wherein the inside surface of the depression is circular in shape and that the ring disc, which surrounds the depression and is higher than the latter, is configured to be circular in shape.

17. The drip cup as claimed in claim 1, wherein the entire insert is formed as single piece.

18. The drip cup as claimed in claim 1, wherein the entire insert is made of steel.

19. The drip cup as claimed in claim 1, wherein the insert is recessed in the bottom of the cup body.

20. The drip cup as claimed in claim 19, wherein the insert is disc of the insert is approximately flush with the inside surface of the bottom.

21. The drip cup as claimed in claim 19, wherein the outer collar surrounding the outside of the ring disc and situated lower with respect to the ring disc is embedded in the bottom of the cup body in that it is covered by the plastic material of the inside surface of the bottom of the cup body.

22. The drip cup as claimed in claim 1, wherein a bottom side of the entire insert is covered by the plastic material of an external bottom surface of the bottom of the cup body.

23. An animal drinker for beaked animals such as chickens, ducks, turkeys, chicks and the like, comprising: at least one drinker valve positioned on a water supply line; and a drip cup assigned to the at least one drinker valve, wherein the drip cup comprises: a cup body made of plastic material for accommodating a supply of water and having a bottom and edging surrounding the bottom, the bottom being assigned a preferably central insert made of a resistant material, wherein the insert has a graduated configuration; and at least one supporting arm for connecting the cup body to a water supply line.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0023] Preferred exemplary embodiments of the invention will be explained in more detail below by way of the drawing in which:

[0024] FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of the first exemplary embodiment of a drip cup with only a single supporting arm,

[0025] FIG. 2 shows a vertical section through the single supporting arm of the drip cup of FIG. 1,

[0026] FIG. 3 shows a side view of the drip cup of FIGS. 1 and 2,

[0027] FIG. 4 shows an enlarged detail IV from the sectional view of FIG. 2 in the region of an insert in the bottom of a cup body of the drip cup,

[0028] FIG. 5 shows a perspective view of a drip cup with two supporting arms pursuant to a second exemplary embodiment of the invention,

[0029] FIG. 6 shows a central vertical section between the two supporting arms of the drip cup of FIG. 5,

[0030] FIG. 7 shows a side view of the drip cup of FIGS. 5 and 6, and

[0031] FIG. 8 shows an alternative exemplary embodiment of the insert in a representation analogous to FIG. 4.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0032] The shown drip cups are intended for animal drinkers. In particular, the animal drinkers are so-called strand drinkers for the floor keeping of beaked animals, especially poultry. The animal drinkers make it possible for poultry of various ages, above all hens, ducks, turkeys, geese or the like, to cover their water requirement themselves.

[0033] The animal drinker is configured as a strand drinker having an elongated, tube-like water supply line with a plurality of drinker points that are spaced apart from one another. Preferably all the drinker points are realized in an identical manner. The invention is also suitable, however, for animal drinkers with only one single drinker point having a suitable water supply.

[0034] Each drinker point comprises substantially one drinker valve and one drip cup. The respective drinker valve is screwed or inserted with a housing into the water supply line from below. The drinker valve has a valve pin which projects out of the housing by way of a bottom, free actuating end. The actuating end of the respective drinker valve can be pivoted and/or lifted by the beaks of the animals. As a result, the drinker valve is opened, thereby dispensing water, specifically water or water containing an additive. This involves relatively small quantities of water, which flows or drips out of the drinker valve until the animals let go of the actuating end with their beaks, with the valve pin then returning to its unactuated initial position, which closes the drinker valve.

[0035] When the drinker valve is opened by the beaks of the animals, the water dispensed from the same is immediately taken up by the animals only in part or not at all. The entire water or just the surplus water then accumulates in the respective drip cup. The animals then take the water, above all the remaining water, from the drip cup.

[0036] The drip cup 10 shown in FIGS. 1 to 4 has a cup body 11 and an insert 12 for accommodating a supply of water. The cup body 11 has a bottom which is surrounded by a circumferential, raised edging 14. The insert 12 is assigned to the bottom 13, specifically its inside bottom surface 15. In the shown exemplary embodiment, the insert 12 is positioned approximately at the center of the bottom 13. The insert 12 is preferably entirely or at least for the most part recessed in the bottom 13 of the cup body 11. In the shown exemplary embodiment the insert 12 is also partially embedded in the bottom 13. The bottom 13 of the insert 12 in the shown drip cup 10 is slightly concave all around, so that the lowest point is located at the center, specifically at the position where the insert 12 is also positioned.

[0037] The drip cup 10 shown in FIGS. 1 to 4 has a single supporting arm 16. The supporting arm 16 proceeds from the upper edge 24 of the edging 14 and extends vertically upwards perpendicular to the plane of the 13 of the cup body 11. A higher end of the supporting arm 16 opposite the cup body 11 is joined to a fastening means for the drip cup 10, for example to a strand-like water supply line. In the shown exemplary embodiment, this fastening means is realized as a clip closure 17. This allows for a detachable connection between the drip cup 10 and the water supply line. However, other types of fastening means are conceivable.

[0038] Apart from the insert 12, the drip cup 10 is made completely of plastic material. The drip cup is preferably made of thermoplastic material using the injection molding method. The drip cup 10, apart from the insert 12, is thereby formed as a single piece in which the cup body 11 with the bottom 13 and the edging 14, as well as the supporting arm 16 and the clip closure 17 are integrally connected.

[0039] The insert 12 is made from a material that is more durably resistant in comparison to the plastic material of the drip cup 10. This material can be steel, preferably stainless steel, fiberglass reinforced plastic, aluminum or even ceramics. These materials cannot be damaged by the beaks of the animals. The beaks of the animals are therefore not capable of pecking through such inserts 12. In addition, an insert 12 made from one of the aforementioned materials can aid in wearing away the beaks of the animals, especially if the inside surface of the insert 12 is coarse or roughened.

[0040] The insert 12 is suitable, in particular designed, for being inserted or placed in an injection mold for the production of the drip cup 10. In the injection molding process, the insert 12 is then overmolded in part by plastic, in particular its entire rear side and in an outer annular region, with the insert 12 being recessed and/or embedded in the bottom 13 of the cup body 11.

[0041] FIG. 4 shows the cross-section view of the insert 12 and its arrangement in the bottom 13 of the cup body 11.

[0042] The shown insert 12 made from a sheet of preferably stainless steel is stamped, in particular by means of cold deformation. This results in the graduated or stepped insert 12. By virtue of stamping and/or cold deformation, the insert 12 is given a circular, lower-lying inside surface 18 that is surrounded by a circumferential, cylinder-like collar 19, resulting in an insert 12 having a pan-shaped depression 21. The thickness of the wall or sheet metal of the insert 12 is between 0.4 mm and 0.8 mm, preferably between 0.5 mm and 0.7 mm.

[0043] In the shown insert 12, the inside surface 18 has a planar configuration in that it runs diametrically in a linear fashion, as can be seen in FIG. 4. An edge of the collar 19 which is directed away from the inside surface 18 and lying above it is adjoined by a circumferential ring, which in the shown exemplary embodiment is realized as an planar ring disc 20. The ring surface area of the ring disc 20 also lies on a flat, lineal surface. This surface runs parallel to the inside surface 18, but slightly above the latter. The distance between the top side of the inside surface 18 and the top side of the ring disc 20 can range from 0.5 mm to 2.0 mm. Preferably the distance is between 1.0 mm and 1.5 mm. This distance corresponds to the depth of the depression 21 of the insert 12 formed between the inside surface 18 and the ring disc 20 situated above the latter. The diameter of the depression 21 corresponds to the diameter of the inside surface 18 or the inner side of the collar 19 or the diameter of the inside edge of the ring disc 20. In the case of the insert 12 shown, this diameter measures between approximately 10 mm to 20 mm, preferably approximately 14 mm to 18 mm.

[0044] The outer edge of the ring disc 20 is surrounded by a second circumferential collar 22. This collar 22 has an L-shaped profile with a shorter limb adjacent to the outer edge of the ring disc 20 which, similar to the collar 19, forms a cylinder-like part of the collar 22, and a relatively longer limb 23, which is angled by approximately 90 with respect to the shorter limb. Due to the L-shaped configuration of the collar 22, the insert 12 has a second, outer graduation or stepping. As a result, the longer limb 23 of the collar 22 lies below the ring disc 20, that is to say approximately in the plane of the inside surface 18 or slightly above it (FIG. 4).

[0045] FIG. 8 shows an alternative exemplary embodiment of the insert 12. The configuration and dimensioning of this insert 12 corresponds to that of the previously described insert 12, in particular the insert 12 shown in FIG. 4. The insert 12 of FIG. 8 is also stamped from thin-walled sheet metal made of stainless steel.

[0046] Instead of a planar inside surface 18, the insert 12 of FIG. 8 has an arcuate inside surface 18 whose deepest point lies approximately at the center of the inside surface 18 and thus of the insert 12 itself. The ring disc 20 of the insert of FIG. 8 likewise has an arcuate configuration. However, as an alternative it can also be provided that only the inside surface 18 is designed to be arcuate, but not the ring disc 20. The curvature of the insert 12, in particular that of its inside surface 18 and, if applicable, its ring disc 20 as well, run parallel to the curvature of the inside bottom surface 15 of the bottom 13 of the cup body 11. The radius of the curvature of the insert 12, especially of its inside surface 18 and/or of the ring disc 20, measures 60 mm to 100 mm, in particular 70 mm to 85 mm.

[0047] Furthermore, the insert 12 of FIG. 8 corresponds to the insert of FIG. 4, which is why reference is made to the insert 12 described in connection with FIGS. 1 to 7.

[0048] The insert 12 is centrally recessed and/or embedded in the bottom 13 of the cup body 11. In order to make this possible, the overall height of the insert 12 between the top side of the ring disc 20 and the bottom side of the inside surface 18 is less than the thickness of the bottom 13 of the cup body 11 in the region of the insert 12. The thickness of the bottom 13 is preferably 1 to 2 times greater than the overall height of the insert 12 (FIG. 4).

[0049] The insert 12 is recessed in the bottom 13 from above to the extent that the top side of the ring disc 20 sits approximately centrally flush with the inside bottom surface 15 of the cup body 11. As a result, the inside bottom surface 15 of the cup body 11 makes a continuous transition to the top side of the ring disc 20 of the insert 12. The top side of the ring disc 20 as well as the depression 21 of the insert 12 are thereby not covered by the plastic material of the bottom 13 of the cup body 11. The top side of the ring disc 20 and the depression 21, in particular its inside surface 18, are thus exposed, with the result that animals wishing to access remaining water from the depression 21 peck their beaks on the inside surface 18 of the depression 21 and possibly the ring disc 20, but not on the outer part of the bottom 13 which surrounds the ring disc 20 and is made of plastic material.

[0050] In contrast to the ring disc 20 and depression 21, the outer collar 22, in particular the limb 23 of same that forms an circumferential ring, is completely embedded in the plastic material of the bottom 13 which surrounds the insert 12 on account of its graduated configuration. As a result, a thin layer of the inside bottom surface 15 of the cup body 11, which is made of plastic material, is located above the outer collar 22, in particular above its circumferential limb 23. The insert 12 is thereby embedded in a form-fit manner in this surrounding plastic of the bottom 13 and thus fixed in the bottom 13.

[0051] In contrast to the top side of the insert 12, the complete bottom side of the insert 12 is covered or overlaid by the plastic of the bottom 13 of the cup body 11 (FIG. 4). As a result, an outside bottom surface 25 of the cup body 11 is made completely of plastic material and the insert 13 is not visible from the outer bottom surface 25 under the bottom 13.

[0052] FIGS. 5 to 7 show a drip cup 26 which has two opposing and identical supporting arms 27 which are connected to each other at their upper ends by a web 28, with a clip closure 17 or other attachment means being centered on the web. Furthermore, the drip cup 26 corresponds to the drip cup 10 of FIGS. 1 to 4. For that reason, the same reference numbers will be employed for the same parts involved. In particular the cup body 11 and the insert 12 in the case of the drip cup 26 have the same configuration as the drip cup 10. Above all, the insert 12 in the drip cup 26 also has a graduated or stepped configuration and is recessed and/or embedded in the bottom 13 of the cup body 11. Further, in order to avoid repetition in the following, reference is made to the description of the drip cup 10, in particular its cup body 11 and its associated insert 12.

[0053] The shown drip cups 10 and 26 have identical cup bodies 11. These cup bodies 11 have a square base area with highly rounded corners. Accordingly, a free upper rim 24 of the edging 14 of the respective cup body 11 runs along square-shaped course with rounded corners. However, the invention is also suitable for drip cups whose cup bodies have a different base area or geometry. For example, the cup bodies may have round or even oval base areas with a round or oval rim. It is also conceivable to configure the bottoms of the cup bodies to be planar or nearly planar.

LIST OF DESIGNATIONS

[0054] 10 drip cup [0055] 11 cup body [0056] 12 insert [0057] 13 bottom [0058] 14 edging [0059] 15 inside bottom surface [0060] 16 supporting arm [0061] 17 clip closure [0062] 18 inside surface [0063] 19 collar [0064] 20 ring disc [0065] 21 depression [0066] 22 collar [0067] 23 long limb [0068] 24 upper edge [0069] 25 outer bottom surface [0070] 26 drip cup [0071] 27 supporting arm [0072] 28 web