The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
May. 29, 2001
Filed:
Jun. 15, 2000
David Schwartz, San Diego, CA (US);
Other;
Abstract
A litter box assembly is described that comprises a box for containing litter, having a base, rigid side walls, an opening in one of the side walls, and a removable lid atop the side walls; and a flexible tunnel, preferably made of an accordion plastic. The tunnel allows for the ingress and egress of a small animal, preferably a “so-called” indoor pet such as a cat, and supports the weight of the small animal during its ingress and egress to and from the litter box. The tunnel is preferably suspended above the ground via removable attachments to the opening in the litter box, the to an opening in a residence. The litter box is not fixed in a particular orientation relative to the opening in the residence, even when connected to the tunnel. The litter box is preferably substantially divided, by an interior wall, into a waste chamber for containing litter and an interior passageway. The interior passageway may comprises holes on the floor to allow the passage of litter through the holes during ingress and egress of the animal, but small enough to prevent passage of the feet of the animal through the holes. The rigid side walls of the litter box may also comprise wall holes, which may be covered by overhangs, where the wall holes are of a size to permit the free flow of air and gases into and out of the litter box, and small enough to prevent passage of the animal from the litter box through the holes.