GB2227925A - A device for supporting a pesticidal element - Google Patents

Abstract

A device (1) comprises an arm portion for supporting a pesticidal or insecticidal element (2) and an element supporting portion (3) integrally formed therewith and extending from the arm portion vertically or along a line normal to the arm portion. The arm portion (2) is provided at each end with an engaging means (4) adapted to engage a wire member (9a) of a wire cage (9), while the element supporting portion (3) is provided at its free end with a means (7, 7a) for attachment of an insecticidal or pesticidal element (8). <IMAGE>

Description

A DEVICE FOR SUPPORTING A PESTICIDAL ELEMENT This invention relates to a device for supporting a pesticidal element and, more particularly, to a device for attachment of a pesticidal element to a cage or similar construction for domestic animals such as, for example, poultry.

So far, various pest (including insect) control measures have been employed to protect domestic animals from harmful pests. Among the control measures, animal ear tags have been used for protection of domestic animals with a large body, especially cattle. Such ear tags are generally composed of a substrate of a plastic material and impregnated with an insecticide, as disclosed in Japanese patent publication No. 63-38967, or Japanese patent publication No. 62-32828 (corresponding to US patent 4,674,445). The ear tags are capable of being attached to the ear of an animal and maintain their insecticidal function for about a half year.

However, such ear tags cannot be applied for protection of domestic animals with a compact body, such poultry or domestic fowls. To this end, control measures for such compact domestic animals consist of sprinkling a pesticide or an insecticide on individual fowl bodies, or spraying a fowl battery with a pesticide or an insecticide. However, a modern fowl battery, especially a hen house, generally includes a great number of wire cages and each hen is kept in an individual cage, thus making it troublesome to sprinkle the pesticide or insecticide on each hen bred in the individual cages, as well as to spray the hen house with the pesticide or insecticide. In addition, sprinkling and spraying pollute working environments. Thus, these control measures are a burden on the workers who conduct pest killing operations.

For these reasons, we have considered using an element serving as an insect control device to protect domestic fowl bred in wire cages from insects. However, it is necessary to use a means for attachment of an element to an individual cage. To this end, there is a demand for development of a means for securing an insecticidal tag to a wire cage.

According to the invention, there is provided for supporting a pesticidal element device comprising an arm portion, and an element supporting portion integrally formed therewith and extending from said arm portion along a line substantially normal to the arm portion, said arm portion being provided at each end with an engagement means adapted to engage a wire member of a wire cage, said tag supporting portion being provided at its free end with a means for attachment of a pesticidal element.

It is therefore an advantage of the invention to provide a device which is easy to handle, has a simple construction, and is capable of being attached with ease to any desired location of a wire cage.

Another advantage of the invention is to provide adapter device which makes it possible to secure a pesticidal or an insecticidal cage tag in an appropriate position in the wire cage without use of any tools.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the arm portion is provided at each end with at least one engagement groove extending across the width of the arm portion, into which a wire member of the cage may be firmly fitted by pressing the ends of the arm portion against the wire members of the cage. In general, the engaging grooves are so designed as to have a round or semicircular cross section with a diameter equal to or slightly smaller than that of the wire members of the cage as the wire members generally have a circular cross section. However, the engaging grooves may take any cross section corresponding to that of the wire members of the cage. A distance between two parallel engagement grooves is slightly greater than that separating two neighbouring wire members of the cage. This makes it possible to fix the device to the cage.

In another preferred embodiment, the device is a substantially T-shaped structure including an arched arm portion with a small curvature, and a straight tag supporting portion integrally formed therewith and extending from the central part of the arched portion in the direction facing the centre of the curvature.

In further preferred embodiment, the device is a substantially T-shaped structure including a straight arm portion with forked ends, and a straight tag supporting portion integrally formed therewith and extending from the central part of the arm portion in the direction perpendicular to the one side of the arm portion.

In still another embodiment, the device is a substantially T-shaped structure including an arched arm portion with a small curvature, and a straight tag supporting portion integrally formed therewith and extending from the central part of the arched portion in the direction away from the centre of the curvature. In this case, the engaging grooves provided on the both ends of the arm portion face the centre of the curvature.

In another embodiment, the device has two or more parallel engaging grooves at each end of the arm portion. The provision of two or more engaging grooves makes it possible to attach the device to various cages even when a distance between two neighbouring wire members differs from one cage to another.

Any conventionally known materials such as synthetic resins, metals and alloys may be used. For the device, it is, however, preferred to use tough, unbreakable and resilient resins. The preferred resins include thermoplastic resins and thermosetting resins such as, for example, polyethylene, polypropylene, polyvinyl chloride, fluoroplastics, ABS resins, phenolic resins, urea resins, epoxy resins and alkyl resins.

A pesticidal or insecticidal element, which serves as a pest or insect control device may be composed of a resin substrate impregnated with one or more pesticidal or insecticidal agents. Suitable materials for the substrate include, for example, polyethylene, ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymers, and the like. Suitable pesticidal agents for control and prevention of pests including Ornithonyssus sylviarum, Culicoides arakawae and Dermanyssus gallinae, are, for example, pyrethroid compounds including permethrin, empenthrin, d-phenothrin, cyphenothrin, resmethrin, fenvalerate, fenpropathrin, cypermethrin, deltamethrin, cyhalothrin, flucythrinate, cyfluthrin, ethofenprox and tralomethrin.

The device of the invention may be mounted with ease in any desired position on a cage by forcedly fitting the arm portion about two neighbouring wire members of the cage. The arm portion of the device is stretched against the two neighbouring wire members of the cage, thus making it possible firmly to fix the device on the cage and remove it from the cage without use of any tools. Thus, the invention facilitates the control of pests or insects that live on the skin or feathers of domestic animals.

These and other aims, features and advantages of the invention will be further apparent from the following description with reference to the accompanying drawings which show, by way of example only, preferred embodiments thereof. In the drawings, like parts are numbered with like reference numbers.

In the drawings: Fig. 1 is a perspective veiw of a device embodying the present invention; Fig. 2 is a perspective view of the device of Fig. 1 with a cage tag attached thereto, the device being mounted on a wire cage; Fig. 3 is an enlarged fragmentary side view of the device of Fig. 1 with a modified cage tag mounted thereon; Fig. 4 is a plan view showing another embodiment of a device of the invention; Fig. 5 is a perspective view of the device of Fig. 4 with an element attached thereto, said device being mounted on a wire cage; Fig. 6 is a plan view of another embodiment of a device according to the invention; and Fig. 7 is a plan view of another embodiment of a device of the invention.

Referring to Figs. 1 and 2, there is shown a device 1 embodying the present invention. The device 1 has an approximately T-shaped cross section and comprises an arched arm portion 2 with a small curvature, and a straight element supporting portion 3 integrally formed therewith and extending from the central part of the body 1 toward the centre of curvature.

The arm portion 2 is provided at both ends with engaging portions 4 with an approximately n-shaped cross section, each of which is composed of a grasping groove 5a having an opening 4b facing the centre of curvature, and guiding portions 5 diverging outwardly from the open ends of the groove 4a. The grooves 4a are so designed that they have a circular cross section corresponding to that of a wire member 9a of a cage 9 and that they are spaced from one another by a distance slightly greater than the distance between two neighbouring wire members of the cage 9. The distance between the two grooves 4a is determined in accordance with the material used and size of the device. The arm portion 2 is also provided with a pair of levers 6 respectively disposed opposite the engaging portions 4.

The element supporting portion 3 is provided at its free end with two mushroom-shaped pins or projections 7a, to which an insecticidal or pesticidal element 8 serving as an insect control device is attached as shown in Fig. 2. The projections 7a are integrally formed with the element supporting portion 3 and arranged along a line extending in the longitudinal direction of the element supporting portion 3. The device 1 is made up of a resilient resin such as polyethylene.

The element 8 is composed of a substrate of a resin such as, for example, polyethylene, and impregnated with one or more pesticidal or insecticidal agents such as pyrethoid compounds. As shown in Fig. 1, the element 8 is provided with ring-like projections 8a each having a hole 8b, into which each pin or projection 7a is inserted.

In use, the element 8 is attached to the cage 9 in the following manner: The element 8 is firstly attached to the device 1 by inserting the projections 7a into the holes 8b of the element 8, as shown in Fig. 2. The device 1 is then mounted on the side of the cage by inserting the element supporting portion 3 with the element 8 into the cage 9 through the space formed between a pair of vertically extending, neighbouring wire members 9a until the guide portions 5 come into contact with the wire members 9a, while bending the arm portion 2 inwardly so that the distance between two grooves 4 is substantially equal to that separating the two neighbouring wire members 9a of the cage 9, pressing the levers 6 of the adapter device 1 so that the wire members 4 are slipped into the grooves 4 of the device 1, and then removing the force applied to the levers 6.

By releasing one's hand from the levers 6, the arm portion 2 returns to its original form because of its elasticity, thus making it possible to fix the engaging portions 4 to the wire members 9a of the cage 9. The device 1 may be removed from the cage with ease by pulling the levers 6 by hand outwardly or in a direction away from the cage 9. However, the device 1 is prevented from being disengaged from the wire members 9a even when a domestic fowl, e.g., a chicken in the cage, strikes against the device 1.

In the above embodiment, the device 1 is mounted on the side of the cage 9, but may be mounted on the top of the cage 9. In this case, it is preferred to use an element 10 provided with a pair of attachment holes l0a along a line passing through an axis of symmetry of the element 10, as shown in Fig. 3.

Figs. 4 and 5 show another form of a device 11 according to the present invention. In this embodiment, the device 11 comprises a straight arm portion 12 having forked or U-shaped ends, and a straight element supporting portion 3 extending from the central part of the arm portion 2 in the direction perpendicular to the arm portion 2. Each forked or U-shaped end provides an engaging groove 14 formed between guiding portions 15 in pair. The grooves 14 are so designed that they have a distance slightly greater than that separating two neighbouring wire members 9a of the cage 9. The arm portion 2 is provided at its central part with a knob 16 extending in the direction perpendicular to the element supporting portion 7. The other parts are the same as those of device 1 of Fig. 1.

This device 11 may be mounted in any desired region, for example, the top, side or bottom, of the cage 9. The device 11 may be mounted on the cage 9 by placing the device 11 between two neighbouring wire members 9a, with the forked ends facing the wire members 9a, and turning the tag adapter device 11 clockwise or counterclockwise about the centre of the arm portion 12 until the grooves 14 are engaged with the wire members 9a as shown in Fig. 5. In this case, the two neighbouring wire members 9a are spread apart by the arm portion 12, so that the device 11 is firmly fixed to the cage 9.

Referring to Fig. 6, there is shown a third embodiment of an insecticidal or pesticidal tag device of the invention. In this embodiment, the device 21 also has an approximately T-shaped cross section and is composed of an arched arm portion 2 with a small curvature and a straight element supporting portion 3.

The element supporting portion 3 extends from the central part of the arched arm portion 2 outwardly, ie in the direction opposite to the centre of curvature of the arched arm portion 2. The arm portion 2 is provided at both ends with engaging portions 4 with an approximately n-shaped cross section, each of which is composed of a grasping groove 4a having an opening 4b facing the centre of curvature, and guiding portions 5 extending divergently from the open ends of the grooves 4a.

This device may be attached to a pair of side, top or bottom wires of the cage in the same manner mentioned above. However, the approach to the wires of the cage is carried out from the inside of the cage.

Referring now to Fig. 7, there is shown a fourth embodiment of the device of the invention. A cage tag adapter device 31 has the same structure as that of the cage tag adapter device 1 of Fig. 1 except that an arched head portion 32 is provided at each end with three pairs of engaging grooves 4a.4a, 4b.4b, and 4c.4c. These engaging grooves are so designed that the distance separating the members of each pair of grooves is smaller for pairs of grooves disposed closer to the mid-point of head portion 32.

Thus, the distance between the grooves 4b and 4b in pair is smaller than that of the grooves 4a and 4a in pair, but larger than that of the grooves 4c and 4c in pair. The device 31 may be applied to various cages which are different in size and include differing distances between the neighbouring wire members.

In the above embodiment, the arm portion 32 is provided with three pairs of engaging grooves, but each end of the arm portion 32 may have two or four engaging grooves in pairs. Also, it is not necessarily required to provide the engaging portions in pair on the both ends of the arm portion. Thus, the ends of the arm portion may have one or more engaging grooves different from each other.

Claims (9)

WHAT IS CLAIMED IS:

1. A device for supporting a pesticidal element comprising an arm portion, and an element supporting portion integrally formed therewith and extending from said arm portion along a line substantially normal to the arm portion, said arm portion being provided at each end with an engagement means adapted to engage a wire member of a wire cage, said element supporting portion being provided at its free end with a means for attachment of a pesticidal element.

2. A device as claimed in claim 1 wherein said arm portion is provided at each end with at least one engagement groove extending across the width of the arm portion.

3. A device as claimed in claim 2 wherein the engagement grooves are so designed as to have a round or semicircular cross section with a diameter equal to or slightly smaller than that of the wire members of the cage.

4. A device as claimed in any preceding claim wherein a distance between two parallel engagement grooves is slightly greater than that separating two neighbouring wire members of the cage.

5. A device as claimed in any preceding claim wherein the device is a substantially T-shaped structure including an arched portion with a small curvature, and a straight tag supporting portion integrally formed therewith and extending from the central part of the arched portion in the direction facing the centre of the curvature.

6. A device as claimed in any of claims 1 to 4 wherein said device is a substantially T-shaped structure including a straight arm portion with forked ends, and a straight tag supporting portion being integrally formed therewith and extending from the central part of the arm portion in the direction perpendicular to the arm portion.

7. A device as claimed in any of claims 1 to 4 wherein said device is a substantially T-shaped structure including an arched arm portion with a small curvature, and a straight tag supporting portion being integrally formed therewith and extending from the central part of the arched portion in the direction away from the centre of the curvature.

8. A device as claimed in any preceding claim wherein said arm portion is provided at each end with two or more parallel engaging grooves.

9. A device generally as herein described, with reference to or as illustrated in the accompanying drawings.