Animal husbandry – Watering or liquid feed device – Drop-delivering
Reexamination Certificate
2003-06-12
2004-11-02
Abbott, Yvonne R. (Department: 3644)
Animal husbandry
Watering or liquid feed device
Drop-delivering
Reexamination Certificate
active
06810830
ABSTRACT:
RELATED U.S. APPLICATIONS
Not applicable.
STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT
Not applicable.
REFERENCE TO MICROFICHE APPENDIX
Not applicable.
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates generally to a drinking fountain for pet, and more particularly to a water stopping structure of the spout of the drinking fountain for pet.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
As shown in
FIG. 9
, a prior art spout
50
of the drinking fountain for pet is provided at the free end with a tapping part
51
fastened therewith. The tapping part
51
is provided at the free end with an opening
52
via which the drinking water is discharged. The tapping part
51
is provided in the inner wall of the free end thereof with a washer
53
and a steel ball
54
. The opening
52
of the tapping part
51
is shut off by the steel ball
54
at the time when the steel ball
54
comes in a full contact with the washer
53
. As a result, the flow of the drinking water is stopped by the steel ball
54
. When the steel ball
54
is moved away from the washer
53
by the licking tongue of a pet, the opening
52
is no longer obstructed by the steel ball
54
, thereby allowing the passage of the drinking water. As soon as the licking tongue of the pet withdraws from the steel ball
54
, the steel ball
54
drops back into the washer
53
so as to shut off the opening
52
. Such a water stopping structure of the prior art as described above is defective in design in that the washer
53
is not securely located and is therefore vulnerable to displacement by the licking tongue of the pet. The displacement of the washer
53
is bound to result in water leak.
As shown in
FIG. 10
, an improved version of the prior art structure described above with reference to
FIG. 9
is provided in the inner wall of the tapping part
51
with a projection
55
which is used to arrest the washer
53
so as to prevent the washer
53
from being displaced by the licking tongue of a pet. In light of the spout
50
and the tapping part
51
being located slantingly, the steel ball
54
is prone to being caught by the projection
55
in the wake of the withdrawal of the licking tongue of the pet. The failure of the steel ball
54
to return to its original position results in water leak.
As shown in
FIG. 11
, another prior art tapping part
62
is fastened to the free end of a spout
61
of a pet fountain. The tapping part
62
is provided in the inner wall with an upper tapered portion
621
, and a lower tapered portion
622
which is provided with an upper stop edge
623
and a lower stop edge
625
. A tapered washer
63
is held securely in the lower tapered portion
622
. However, both the tapered washer
63
and the lower tapered portion
622
must be made with precision at additional cost. In addition, a steel ball
64
is bound to be forced by the water pressure to sit tightly in the washer
63
, thereby making it difficult for the tongue of a pet to move the steel ball
64
by licking. Such a difficulty is particularly acute for a pet with a small tongue.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The primary objective of the present invention is to provide a pet fountain with a spout structure free of the deficiencies of the prior art structures described above.
The foregoing objective of the present invention is attained by a spout structure comprising a spout projecting from the main body of a pet fountain, and a tapping part fastened at one end to the free end of the spout. The tapping part is provided in the interior with a steel ball space of a tapered construction, and in the inner wall of other end thereof with a groove for retaining a washer. The steel ball is movably received in the steel ball space such that the steel ball is partially extended out of the other end of the tapping part. When the steel ball is moved by the licking tongue of a pet, the drinking water is let out of the other end of the tapping part via a gap which is formed between the inner wall of the steel ball space and the steel ball in motion. The tapping part is provided with a guide edge to prevent the steel ball from sitting snugly in the washer.
The features and the advantages of the present invention will be more readily understood upon a thoughtful deliberation of the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments of the present invention with reference to the accompanying drawings.
REFERENCES:
patent: 3602197 (1971-08-01), Fioretto
patent: 4589373 (1986-05-01), Hostetler et al.
patent: 5301635 (1994-04-01), Rovira Badia et al.
patent: 6553937 (2003-04-01), Cheng
patent: 6561129 (2003-05-01), Cheng
patent: 2003/0233986 (2003-12-01), Pappas et al.
Abbott Yvonne R.
Harrison & Egbert
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