Broadcast Feeder Housing With Guide Plates Against Varmint Feed Loss
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Solution Overview
Problem
Broadcast feeders for wildlife are susceptible to consumption by varmints, leading to increased feed costs and frequent refilling due to inefficient dispensing and access by undesirable animals.
Innovation Solution
A broadcast feeder design with a housing, adapter section, dispenser section, and motor section, featuring a chute control member, and guide plates to prevent access by varmints, while allowing efficient feed dispensing and versatile attachment to feed hoppers.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If broadcast feeders are made accessible to animals for efficient feed dispensing, then feed dispensing efficiency is improved, but access by varmints increases leading to feed loss
Solution Approach 1:
The feeder employs different structural characteristics in different zones: an outer peripheral region with elevated walls that are inaccessible to varmints but allow animal access, and an inner region containing the feed supply mechanism. This spatial differentiation of access rights resolves the contradiction by allowing efficient dispensing to target animals while blocking varmint access to the feed source.
Solution Approach 2:
The feeder is divided into distinct functional zones: a feed supply section with controlled dispensing mechanisms, a distribution area where feed is scattered, and an outer protective perimeter. This segmentation isolates the vulnerable feed supply from varmint access points while maintaining efficient dispensing in the controlled inner region.
2Productivity
If feed is made accessible in open areas for efficient dispensing, then feed distribution efficiency is improved, but access by undesirable animals increases
Solution Approach 1:
The feeder creates localized access zones with different properties: the outer peripheral region provides protected access for target animals through elevated wall openings, while the inner feed supply region remains inaccessible to varmints. This resolves the contradiction by spatially separating feed distribution efficiency from varmint access vulnerability.
Solution Approach 2:
The elevated outer peripheral walls act as an intermediary structure that mediates between feed distribution needs and varmint exclusion. These walls create a protective barrier that allows controlled feed scattering while physically blocking varmint access to the feed supply mechanism.
3Reliability
If frequent refilling is required to prevent varmint consumption, then feed security is improved, but operational efficiency deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The feeder implements preliminary protective structures (elevated outer peripheral walls and controlled access mechanisms) that prevent varmint access before feed consumption can occur. This proactive design ensures feed security is maintained throughout the refill interval, reducing the frequency of refilling operations needed.
4Ease of manufacture
If simple attachment design is used for versatility, then ease of installation is improved, but adaptability to different feed hoppers deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The attachment mechanism is designed with universal features that enable compatibility with multiple feed hopper types and configurations. Standardized mounting interfaces and adjustable components allow the same feeder design to be installed on various hopper sizes and shapes, achieving both installation simplicity and broad adaptability.
Data Source
AI summary
A feeder assembly for dispensing feed to wildlife and other animals. The assembly includes a hopper, such as a conventional gravity-feed hopper. The assembly includes a broadcast feeder that sprays feed from a spinning tray driven by a motor. The feeder housing includes domed plates above and below the tray to direct the spray of feed peripherally and prevent varmints from operating the tray manually. The feeder housing may include an attachment plate to attach the feeder to the inside or outside of the bottom of the hopper. The housing may include a collar that is threadedly connectable to a downwardly extending neck on the attachment plate so the housing can be easily connected to and disconnected from the hopper. A chute control plank in the neck of the housing opens and closes the chute to allow removal of the feeder from the hopper without spilling feed.