Portable Net Trap Structure for Feral Swine Capture
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current traps for feral swine are ineffective due to their size, weight, and complexity, limiting their use in remote areas and failing to provide a simple, portable, and efficient trapping solution, while ingestible poisons pose risks to native wildlife.
Innovation Solution
A net-based animal trap with a net structure and upper cord, secured by posts to the ground, featuring a larger upper circumference and smaller lower circumference, allowing animals to enter but not exit, with optional tensioning structures to maintain tension and prevent escape.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If box traps or corral traps are used to capture feral swine, then the trapping effectiveness is improved, but the weight and difficulty of transport to remote areas increases
Solution Approach 1:
The trap is divided into multiple separate components: net structure, posts, tensioning structures, and gate mechanism. These can be transported separately and assembled at the remote location, significantly reducing the weight burden on any single transport trip while maintaining the overall trapping effectiveness when assembled.
Solution Approach 2:
The trap uses a flexible net structure instead of rigid box or corral trap walls. The net is made of lightweight material that can be easily rolled and transported, yet when tensioned between posts it forms an effective barrier that swine cannot penetrate, resolving the contradiction between lightweight portability and trapping reliability.
2Reliability
If box traps with elaborate door mechanisms are used, then the trapping reliability is improved, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The complex door mechanism is completely removed from the trap design. Instead of using an elaborate gate system, the invention uses a simple net structure with a basic gate that can be manually opened and closed. The net itself serves as the primary containment mechanism, eliminating the need for complex door assemblies while maintaining trapping reliability.
Solution Approach 2:
The trap design eliminates the need for remote monitoring via cameras or complex automated door systems. The simple gate mechanism can be directly controlled by the operator who sets the trap, and the net structure self-contained the swine through its tensioned configuration between posts, reducing device complexity while maintaining reliability.
3Reliability
If corral traps with stiff wire fencing are used, then the trapping effectiveness is improved, but the ease of setup and adaptability to various terrains decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The trap uses a dynamic, flexible net structure that can adapt to various terrain conditions. Unlike rigid wire fencing that requires flat ground and extensive setup, the net can be tensioned between posts on sloped or uneven terrain, and the flexible material conforms to the ground contours, significantly improving ease of operation and terrain adaptability while maintaining trapping effectiveness.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention changes the physical parameters of the containment structure from rigid wire fencing to flexible net material. This parameter change allows the trap to be quickly deployed on various terrains without extensive site preparation, as the flexible net can accommodate ground irregularities while still providing effective containment when properly tensioned.
Data Source
AI summary
An animal trap is provided that includes a plurality of posts and a net structure. The net structure is attached to the posts. The net structure has a width that extends between an upper lateral edge and a lower lateral edge, a first length that extends between a first lengthwise end and a second lengthwise end at the upper lateral edge, and a second length that extends between the first and second lengthwise ends at the lower lateral edge. The net structure includes a net and an upper cord. The upper cord is attached to the net. The net structure is configurable in a set configuration having an interior trap region. In the set configuration, the net structure has a first circumference at the upper lateral edge and a second circumference at the lower lateral edge. The first circumference is greater than the second circumference.