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:
Jun. 15, 2004
Filed:
Aug. 05, 2002
Edward A. Ulman, New Brunswick, NJ (US);
Barrie Hopewell, Higganum, CT (US);
Nathan B. Price, New Haven, CT (US);
Dominic Sarica, Lambertville, NJ (US);
Frederick E. Jackson, Wethersfield, CT (US);
Daniel E. Shapiro, Branford, CT (US);
Research Diets, Inc., New Brunswick, NJ (US);
Abstract
An animal feeder has a hopper for storing pieces of food. The bottom of the hopper has an opening accessible by an animal. The opening is smaller than a piece of food, but large enough for the animal to gnaw the food through the opening. The hopper has a surface adjacent the opening, to receive fallen gnawed food and hold the fallen gnawed food in a position accessible by the animal for eating. The hopper engages a mounting bracket. The bracket has a lip which partially covers the receiving surface of the hopper to physically limit the animal from leaning on the hopper and to prevent the hopper from tipping back so far that it falls off the conical mount. A conical mount transmits a downward force from the conical bottom surface to a sensor, but does not transmit an upward force or moment to the sensor.