Animal Litter Box with Downward Ventilation and Absorbent Tray
Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional animal litter boxes struggle with efficiently removing unpleasant odors such as urine and fecal odors, which can cause discomfort to owners and accumulate inside the litter box.
Innovation Solution
The animal litter box incorporates a ventilation fan in the lower container that sends internal air outside, along with a tray for an absorbent body to absorb urine and a liquid passage portion in the upper container with holes for urine to pass through, effectively directing odors downward for removal.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Object-affected harmful factors
If a conventional animal litter box structure is used, then the basic function of containing urine and feces is achieved, but unpleasant odors accumulate inside the litter box and spread from the opening portion
Solution Approach 1:
The litter box is divided into an upper container for receiving excrement and a lower container for collecting urine, with a tray positioned between them. This segmentation allows odors to be directed downward through the tray rather than accumulating in the upper container, effectively separating the functions of excrement containment and urine collection to improve odor removal.
Solution Approach 2:
A tray is introduced as an intermediary component between the upper and lower containers. The tray includes a liquid passage portion with holes that allows urine to pass through while blocking feces. This intermediary structure directs air flow downward and prevents odors from the lower container from rising back up, serving as a mediator in the odor removal process.
2Ease of operation
If the opening portion is positioned in the upper part for animal access, then ease of operation is improved, but unpleasant odor is more likely to spread to the owner
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of allowing air to rise naturally from the lower container to the upper opening, the liquid passage portion and tray structure are designed to invert the air flow direction, forcing air to move downward from the upper container through the tray to the lower container. This inversion prevents odors from spreading upward to the opening portion while maintaining easy animal access.
3Productivity
If urine passes through the liquid passage portion to the lower container, then urine absorption is improved, but urine odor accumulates in the lower part
Solution Approach 1:
The tray with the liquid passage portion is extracted as a separate component that can be removed from the lower container. This allows the tray to be taken out for cleaning and maintenance, and when installed, it creates a barrier that prevents urine odor from the lower container from rising back up through the liquid passage holes, while still allowing urine to pass through for absorption.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This configuration efficiently removes unpleasant odors by sucking them downward through the liquid passage portion and ventilating them outside, preventing odor accumulation and enhancing litter box hygiene.
Implementation Method 1
a ventilation fan that sends internal air to an outside and that is provided in the lower container
Implementation Method 2
a tray on which an absorbent body for absorbing the urine that has passed through the liquid passage portion is placed
Data Source
AI summary
An animal litter box includes an upper container, a tray, a lower container, and a ventilation fan. The upper container includes a liquid passage portion having holes through which urine passes downward. An absorbent body is disposed on the tray to absorb the urine that passes through the liquid passage portion. The lower container supports the upper container from below and detachably accommodates the tray. The ventilation fan is disposed in the lower container and sends internal air in the lower container to an outside.