Timed Release Door Mechanism for Animal Trap Safety

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Solution Overview

Problem

Conventional animal traps require manual intervention to release trapped animals, exposing users to potential attack as they must stand adjacent to the trap and open the door, posing a safety risk.

Innovation Solution

An animal trap equipped with a latch mechanism that includes a time delay release mechanism, allowing the door to open automatically after a predetermined period, which can be mechanical or electronic, ensuring the user is at a safe distance during release.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If manual intervention is used to open the door, then the door can be opened reliably, but the user is exposed to potential attack by the released animal

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvedoor opening reliabilityVSAvoiduser safety risk

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSObject-affected harmful factors

Solution Approach 1:

The latch mechanism is pre-configured with a time delay feature that automatically opens the door after a predetermined period, eliminating the need for manual intervention at the moment of release. This preliminary timing action ensures the door opens reliably while keeping the user at a safe distance

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

A time delay mechanism serves as an intermediary between the user's initial action and the door opening. This intermediary component delays the door opening by a predetermined time period, allowing the user to move to a safe position before the door opens, thus resolving the safety contradiction

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

2Object-affected harmful factors

If a time delay release mechanism is added, then user safety is improved, but the device complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveuser safety riskVSAvoidlatch mechanism complexity

Core Design Contradiction:

Object-affected harmful factorsVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The latch mechanism is designed to be self-operating through a simple time delay feature that automatically releases the door without requiring additional complex control systems. The mechanism serves itself by using a predetermined time period to trigger the door opening, adding minimal complexity while maintaining safety

Inventive Principle:

Principle #25Self-service

Solution Approach 2:

The time delay mechanism changes the temporal parameter of door opening from immediate to delayed. This parameter change is achieved through a relatively simple time delay component rather than a complex control system, thus improving safety while minimizing the increase in device complexity

Inventive Principle:

Principle #35Parameter changes

Data Source

PatentUS8104221B2Animal trap having timed release door

Publication Date: 2012.01.31 WOODSTREAM CORP

AI summary

An animal trap includes a housing having an opening, a door coupled to the housing, and a latch mechanism. The door is movable between a closed position in which the door obstructs the opening and an open position in which the opening is unobstructed. The latch mechanism is coupled to either the housing or the door and is configured to enable the door to be opened after a period of time has elapsed.