Snap trap

Abstract

Snap trap with a base plate (10) and a striker bar (11) pivotally mounted on the base plate (10) and tensionable against the force of at least one tension spring (13), which can be latched into a retaining notch (17) in the tensioned state, wherein the retaining notch (17) is operatively connected to a trigger (15) comprising a bait receptacle (16) when the striker bar (11) is engaged, in order to release the striker bar (11) upon actuation of the trigger (15), wherein an electric motor (20) is provided which is connected to the striker bar (11) via a pull cable (23) in order to tension the striker bar (11) after its release against the force of the at least one tension spring (13) and to latch it into the retaining notch (17), characterized in that the electric motor (20) drives a winding reel (22) for winding up the pull cable (23) and via a first and second limit switch and a trigger sensor and a control device communicating with them can be controlled,wherein the release of the striking bar (11) can be detected by means of the trigger sensor and, after a predeterminable time interval has elapsed, the electric motor (20) can be driven in a first direction of rotation (D1) until the first limit switch is triggered by means of the control device in order to tension the striking bar (11) and engage it in the retaining catch (17) and then the electric motor (20) can be driven in the opposite direction of rotation (D2) until the second limit switch is triggered in order to release the traction cable (23).

Description

[0001] The invention relates to a snap trap with a base plate and a striking bar which is pivotally mounted on the base plate and can be tensioned against the force of at least one tension spring and which can be latched into a holding notch when tensioned, wherein the holding notch is operatively connected to a trigger comprising a bait receptacle when the striking bar is engaged in order to release the striking bar when the trigger is actuated, wherein an electric motor is provided which is connected to the striking bar via a pull cable in order to tension the striking bar after its release against the force of the at least one tension spring and to latch it into the holding notch.

[0002] Snap traps of the type mentioned above are widely known and, depending on their size, have been used for a long time as mouse or rat traps. The snap traps work purely mechanically: the striking bar is clicked into the retaining catch under the spring tension of at least one tension spring and the bait receptacle of the trigger is baited with a suitable bait for the target animal. As soon as the target animal, attracted by the bait, touches the trigger, the striking bar is released and, when it falls, the applied spring tension ideally kills the target animal immediately by breaking its neck. The disadvantage of such snap traps is that after the striking bar has been triggered once, it has to be manually retensioned, usually by hand, so that it is ready to catch. The snap trap must therefore be visited regularly and, if necessary, reset to a capturing state.

[0003] Such snap traps have so far proven to be particularly unsuitable for controlling larger pest populations, as they are no longer effective once triggered and require enormous time for catch control and disposal of captured target animals. Therefore, poison baits have so far been significantly more effective for large pest populations. However, recent legislative initiatives suggest that the use of poison baits will be made more difficult or even prohibited, as these are often ingested by pets or even children, which must be avoided at all costs.

[0004] EP 4 108 083 A1 already discloses a mechanical safety device in the form of a snap trap which, after being triggered, is automatically re-tensioned and re-captured by an electric motor-driven spindle drive via a Bowden cable. The mechanical construction effort required for this prevents cost-effective production of such a snap trap. In addition, the motor-driven tensioning mechanism must be released sufficiently after tensioning that the striking bar can move as independently of the tensioning mechanism as possible after it has been released, so that it achieves the desired impact energy. In the known safety device, the electric motor is supposed to release the Bowden cable after the striking bar has engaged. Since the Bowden cable is guided several times over deflection pulleys, there is a risk that it will jump out of its guide and subsequently become blocked.

[0005] The object of the invention is to develop such an automatic snap trap in such a way that it overcomes the disadvantages of the prior art.

[0006] To achieve the stated object, the invention proposes the design of a snap trap with the features of claim 1.

[0007] Advantageous embodiments and further developments of the invention are the subject of the dependent claims.

[0008] The invention proposes that the electric motor drives a winding reel for winding up the traction cable and can be controlled via a first and second limit switch as well as a trigger sensor and a control device communicating with these, wherein the release of the striking bar can be detected by means of the trigger sensor and by means of the control device after a predeterminable time interval, the electric motor can be driven in a first direction of rotation until the first limit switch is triggered in order to tension the striking bar and engage it in the holding detent and then the electric motor can be driven in the opposite direction of rotation until the second limit switch is triggered in order to release the traction cable.

[0009] To tension the striker bar, the invention replaces the known Bowden cable tensioned by a spindle drive via pulleys with a flexible cable connection between the striker bar and a winding reel driven by the electric motor. This winds up the cable while shortening its length, thereby tensioning the striker bar and ultimately locking it into the retaining catch. The electric motor then rotates in the opposite direction and unwinds the wound cable from the winding reel so that it extends freely between the winding reel and the striker bar and does not impede the free movement of the striker bar after it is reactivated.The actuation of the electric motor after detecting the release of the striking bar in a first direction of rotation to tension the striking bar and the subsequent reversal of the electric motor in the opposite direction of rotation is controlled by the limit switches and a corresponding control device. Before the electric motor is activated in the first direction of rotation, the control device waits a predetermined time interval, for example, a few seconds, so that the striking bar can reliably kill the target animal before it releases the target animal during its renewed tensioning process.

[0010] According to a proposal of the invention, the striking bracket can comprise a tensioning bracket to which the traction cable engages, wherein the tensioning bracket is preferably arranged at an angle of approximately 70° to 100°, preferably approximately 90°, to the striking bracket.

[0011] The first and / or second limit switch can preferably be designed as an incremental encoder in order to be able to signal to the control device the exact required (partial) number of revolutions of the electric motor and the winding reel both in the first and the opposite second direction of rotation.

[0012] According to a further proposal of the invention, the traction cable can preferably be formed on the basis of synthetic fibers, in particular polyester, polypropylene, polyethylene or a polyamide, in order to achieve high flexibility, tensile strength and weather resistance.

[0013] The traction rope can also be designed as a dynamic rope with an elastically stretchable tendon and a tensile sheath in order to have the shortest possible length when relaxed.

[0014] The trigger of the snap trap according to the invention can be designed in a manner known per se in the form of a trigger rocker.

[0015] Further embodiments and details of the invention are explained below with reference to the drawings illustrating an exemplary embodiment. They show: Fig. 1 shows a perspective view of the snap trap according to the invention; Fig. 2 the side view of the snap trap according to Fig. 1 in triggered state; Fig. 3 the side view of the snap trap according to Fig. 1 in tensioned state.

[0016] The figures show a schematic representation of a snap trap, for example for catching mice or rats as target animals, which in a manner known per se has a rigid base plate 1, for example made of wood, metal or a possibly fiber-reinforced plastic, and is formed with pivot bearings 14 on both longitudinal sides.

[0017] In the two pivot bearings 14, a striking bar 11, for example made of metal, is pivotally mounted, which in the Fig. 1 and Fig. 2 in its relaxed location and in Fig. 3 is shown in its tensioned position, in which it is pre-tensioned against the force of two tension springs 13 designed as torsion springs towards the relaxed position. The tensioned striker bar 11 according to Fig. 3 is locked and held in this pre-tensioned position in a retaining catch 17, which can be released for a bait via a rocker-like trigger 15 with bait receptacle 16. Upon actuation of the trigger 15, the pre-tensioned striking bar 11, which is provided with a coating 120, quickly and with high impact energy returns to its relaxed position according to Fig. 1 and Fig. 2, whereby the target animal, not shown here and occupied at the bait receptacle 16, is reliably killed by breaking its neck by means of the striking bar 11.

[0018] In order to set the snap trap again after such a triggering, the striking bracket 11 is connected to a tensioning bracket 12 projecting upwards at approximately a right angle, which forms a part of the striking bracket 11, so that when the tensioning bracket 12 is moved in the direction of arrow P1, the striking bracket 11 moves in the direction of arrow P2 from its relaxed position against the spring force of the tensioning springs 13 into its tensioned position according to Fig. 3 is raised and finally the tensioning bracket 12 engages again in the retaining catch 17 in order to secure the striking bracket in its tensioned catching position.

[0019] In order to reliably and automatically effect this tensioning process without manual intervention, a flexible tension cable 23, for example made of synthetic fibers, is attached to the tensioning bracket 12, the other end of which is guided onto a winding reel 22, which is also rotatably mounted on the base plate 10 in a manner not shown in detail. The winding reel 22 is mounted on a drive shaft 21 of an electric motor 20 and can be rotated by the electric motor 20 in order to wind up the tension cable 23 accordingly.

[0020] The electric motor 20 is controlled by a control device (not shown) in such a way that a trigger sensor registers the release of the striking bar 11 from the retaining notch 17 and initially waits for a predetermined time interval of, for example, several seconds, during which the released striking bar 11 remains in its relaxed position according to Fig. 1 and Fig. 2 remains to kill the target animal.

[0021] The electric motor 20 is then activated by the control device in a first direction of rotation D1, so that it winds up the traction cable 23 on the winding reel 22 and, in the process, moves the tensioning lever 12 in the direction of the arrow P1 until it engages in the retaining notch 17. The required number of revolutions of the electric motor 20 is monitored by the control device via a first limit switch designed as an incremental encoder, and the electric motor 20 is switched off when the tensioning lever 12 engages in the retaining notch 17. The striking bar 11 is thus returned to its Fig. 3 visible position and is maximally pre-tensioned by the tension springs 13.

[0022] The control device then causes the electric motor 20 to rotate by the same angular amount or the same number of revolutions in the opposite direction of rotation D2 according to Fig. 3, whereupon the traction cable 23 is released from its Fig.3 is released from the tensioned position indicated by the solid line 23.1 and assumes a curled shape indicated by dashed lines 23.1, which does not hinder or slow down the renewed movement of the striking bar 11 with its tensioning bar 12 into the relaxed position, so that the striking bar 11 can reach its maximum impact energy. The reversing of the electric motor 20 in the direction of rotation D2 is also monitored by a corresponding limit switch of the control device.

[0023] The electric motor 20 receives its drive energy from a voltage supply not shown, for example a battery pack, a power supply unit or a rechargeable battery, which can also be designed as a power bank.

[0024] The result is a simply constructed snap trap which, once triggered, can be easily and reliably and efficiently re-tensioned and made ready to catch. List of reference symbols: 10 Base plate 11 striking bar 12 clamps 13 Tension spring 14 swivel bearings 15 triggers 16 Bait intake 17 Holding rest 20 electric motor 21 Axis 22 winding reel 23 Pull rope 120 sheathing P1 Pull direction P2 clamping movement D1 first direction of rotation D2 opposite direction of rotation QUOTES CONTAINED IN THE DESCRIPTION

[0000] This list of documents submitted by the applicant was generated automatically and is included solely for the convenience of the reader. This list is not part of the German patent or utility model application. The DPMA assumes no liability for any errors or omissions. Cited patent literature

[0000] EP 4 108 083 A1

[0004]

Claims

[1] Snap trap with a base plate (10) and a striker bar (11) pivotally mounted on the base plate (10) and tensionable against the force of at least one tension spring (13), which striker bar can be engaged in a retaining notch (17) when tensioned, wherein the retaining notch (17) is operatively connected to a trigger (15) comprising a bait receptacle (16) when the striker bar (11) is engaged, in order to release the striker bar (11) upon actuation of the trigger (15), wherein an electric motor (20) is provided which is connected to the striker bar (11) via a pull cable (23) in order to tension the striker bar (11) after its release against the force of the at least one tension spring (13) and to engage it in the retaining notch (17), characterized byin that the electric motor (20) drives a winding reel (22) for winding up the traction cable (23) and can be controlled via a first and second limit switch as well as a trigger sensor and a control device communicating with these, wherein the release of the striking bar (11) can be detected by means of the trigger sensor and, after a predeterminable time interval has elapsed, the electric motor (20) can be driven in a first direction of rotation (D1) until the first limit switch is triggered, in order to tension the striking bar (11) and to engage it in the holding detent (17), and then the electric motor (20) can be driven in the opposite direction of rotation (D2) until the second limit switch is triggered, in order to release the traction cable (23). [2] Snap trap according to claim 1, characterized by that the striking bracket (11) comprises a tensioning bracket (12) to which the pulling cable (23) is attached. [3] Snap trap according to one of claims 1 or 2, characterized bythat the first and / or second limit switches are designed as incremental encoders. [4] Snap trap according to one of claims 1 to 3, characterized by that the traction rope (23) is made of synthetic fibres. [5] Snap trap according to claim 4, characterized by that the synthetic fibers are made of polyester, polypropylene, polyethylene or a polyamide. [6] Snap trap according to one of claims 1 to 5, characterized by that the traction rope (23) is designed as a dynamic rope with an elastically stretchable core and a tensile sheath. [7] Snap trap according to claim 1, characterized by that the trigger (15) is designed as a trigger rocker.

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