GB2153641A - Swim feeders - Google Patents

Abstract

A swim feeder has a base panel 14, side panels, top panel 11 and rear panel 10. Lead strips 52 hold the feeder in a preferred orientation. A ground-engaging peg 46 on rear panel 10 engages in a catch 47 on the base.A line 51 can be pulled to move the feeder causing the peg to leave the catch and hinge upwardly the rear panel to increase the outlet for food from inside the feeder. An elastic band 60 may open the rear panel with a snap action. The peg 46 can be releasably held in a catch 48 on the top panel. The peg 46 may have removable wings for engaging in the ground to resist unwanted movement. The feeder is preferably formed by assembly from a flat blank having fold lines and catches. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Swim feeders This invention relates to swim feeders.

It is known to provide swim feeders as a fishing aid in the form of box-like structures which are well perforated so that water can flowthrough them and so that the contents of feeders can escape through various outlets in the structures.

According to the present invention a swim feeder has means for biassing the feeder to a preferred orientation and, when so oriented, has a ground.

engaging member connected to a panel of the feeder so that when the feeder is snatched or pulled by a line attached to the feeder, the panel opens to increase in size an outlet of the feeder.

Means may be provided for opening said panel with a snap action. Such means may comprise an elastic band engaged between the panel and a body of the feeder.

In one form of the invention the feeder is biassed to a preferred orientation by metal loading its base, so that the feeder prefers to be base downwards, and the panel which opens is the rear panel. The ground-engaging member can then be a downwardly extending peg attached to the lower edge of the rear panel and engaging a catch on the base. The rear panel may be hinged at its upper edge to hinge over a substantially 270 arc. A catch in the top panel of the feeder can then be provided to hold the rear panel open by the peg engaging the catch.

Atongue may be provided on the front of the base panel of the feeder which can be engaged buy a loop at the end of a line which passes through a hole in the base near the root of the tongue.

Means may be provided adapted to resist move mentofthefeederoverthe ground. For example the feeder may include means which tend to dig into the ground if the feeder is pulled over the ground buy a strong water current. Conveniently the peg mentioned above may have lateral wings for this purpose.

Preferably the feeder is assembled from a flat blank with fold lines and catches so that it can be rapidly assembled and held in shape.

One form of feeder according to the invention with possible modification will now be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Figure lisa plan view of a blank for assembling into a swim feeder; Figure 1A is a fragmentary section on the line A-A of Figure 1; Figure 1B is a fragmentary section on the line B-B of Figure 1; Figure 2A is a perspective view of an assembled feeder on a river bed; and Figure 2B is a view in the direction B of Figure 2A.

In Figure 1 reference is first made to the point that the Figure is broken into two parts to accommodate it to a reasonable scale on a single sheet. The break arises at the line C at the bottom left hand of the Figure and at the top right hand.

The blank is made from plastics moulded material of about 1 mm thickness and consists of six panels as follows: Panel 10 - rear panel of feeder.

Panel 11-top panel of feeder.

Panel 12 - inclined front panel of feeder.

Panel 13 - left hand side panel of feeder.

Panel 14 - base panel of feeder.

Panel 15 - right hand side panel of feeder.

The blank has the following fold lines: Line 20 between panels 10 and 11.

Line 21 between panels 11 and 12.

Line 22 between panels 11 and 13.

Line 23 between panels 13 and 14.

Line 24 between panels 14 and 15.

In orderto hold the panels in their correct positions in the assembled feeder, panel 13 has a catch tab 30 which enters into a slot 35 and panel 15 has catch tabs 31, 32 and 33 which enter respectively slots 34,36 and 37.

(The slots 34 to 37 are cross-hatched to highlight them).

Panels 11 and 12 each have spaced edge upstands 38 which give lateral support to the tab-carrying edges of panels 13 and 15. Figure 1A shows the upstands in elevation. Figure 1 B shows the profile of a catch tab 31, the others being similar. Figure 1A also show the catch tab 31 (dash outline) in the slot 35.

The panels have perforations to allow flow of water and slow escape of the contents of the feeder.

These perforations are, in the main, circular holes like hole 40. Rectangular holes 41 also exist but these serve mainly as places in which lead strip 52 Figure 2A can be located to orientate the assembled feeder in a preferred orientation with base panel 14 lowermost. There is also a race-track shaped hole 42 and an irregular shaped hole 43 in which is located a tongue 44. A leading point region 14a of the base panel has a hole 45, rim-strengthened, and the hole 45 is provided so that a line with a loop at its end can be passed upwardly through the hole 45 and then over the tongue 44.

The rear panel 10 has an integrally moulded peg 46 and this peg is capable of latching into two keepers 47 (on base panel 14) and 48 (on top panel 11). When the blank is assembled, peg 46 can either be in keeper 47 (rear panel held closed) or free of either keeper (rear panel hinged free) or in keeper 48 (rear panel held fully open whilst resting on the top panel). Keeper 47 is of springy C-shaped and keeper 48 is a pair of springy upstands.

Figure 2A shows the assembled feeder. Panels 10, 11 and 15 are fully shown and base panel 14 is partly shown. The feeder is shown resting on a river bed 50 and it is seen that the peg 46 supports the rear end of the feeder and a line 51 is secured below the tongue 44. Lead strip 52 is shown in the holes 41. Flow of water over the feeder is represented by arrows 53.

If the feeder is left undisturbed food (such as maggots in the feeder) will slowly escape through the holes 40. Should a quicker escape of food be required then the line 51 can be pulled or snatched and, as the peg 46 is ground-engaged, the peg 46 will move out of keeper 47 and the rear panel 10 will open by hinging upwardly and the flow of water through the feeder will sweep the food quickly through the open rear panel.

If it is required to use the feeder with the rear panel 10 always open (such as when stuffed with bread) then the panel 10 can be hinged back and the peg 46 engaged in the keeper 48.

In a modification shown in Figures 2A and 28, a looped elastic band 60 is provided in a state of tension around the peg 46 of the feeder: inside the rear panel 10: through a hole 61 in the panel 10: outside the panel 10: outside the panel 11: outside the inclined front panel 12: through holes 62 in the edge 63 of panel 12: and around a flange 64 on the inside of the panel 12 at edge 63.

In use, the elastic band 60 acts to provide a snap opening of the rear panel 10 once the peg 46 (not shown in Figure 2B) has been dragged clear of its keeper 47 in the manner described above. The band 60 remains captive even when the rear panel 10 has opened. Thus the panel 10 can be re-closed back to the state shown in Figure 2A when the feeder has been recharged with feed.

In a further modification the feeder is provided with means adapted to resist movement along the ground, additional to the relatively small resistance provided by peg 46 which extends outwardly from panel 10 away from aperture 42. Thus in the case shown there may be moulded to the panel 14 an upstand 79 having a central hollow boss 80 and flat opposed wing portions 81,82. The upstand is connected to the panel 14 by a thin frangible web so that the upstand can readily be snapped off, if desired, and then placed onto the peg 46 with the peg disposed in boss 80. The wing portions 80, 81 will extend laterally from the peg 46 and are adapted to dig into the ground as the feeder is drawn over the ground, thus resisting any tendency in soft loose ground forthe peg 46 not to be released from the keeper 47. In a modification the wings 81,82 are moulded integral with peg 46 as shown dotted in Figure 2A.

There has been described a feeder in which an outlet can be fixed at one side and then rapidly and easily increased in size for a faster escape of the contents. The feeder can be made in various sizes.

The invention includes a swim feeder however defined and a flat blank however defined for assembly into a swim feeder.

Claims (15)

1. A swim feeder having means for biassing the feeder to a preferred orientation and, when so orientated, has a ground-engaging member connected to a panel of the feeder so that when the feeder is snatched or pulled by a line attached to the feeder, the panel opens to increase in size an outlet of the feeder.

2. A swim feeder as claimed in claim 1, including means for opening said panel with a snap action.

3. A swim feeder as claimed in claim 2, in which the opening means comprises an elastic band engaged between the panel and a body of the feeder.

4. A swim feeder as claimed in any preceding claim, in which the biassing means comprises metal loading a base of the feeder, so that the feeder prefers to be base downwards, and the panel which opens is the rear panel.

5. A swim feeder as claimed in claim 4, in which the ground-engaging member comprises a downwardly extending peg attached to the lower edge of the rear panel and engaging a catch on the base.

6. A swim feeder as claimed in claim 4 or claim 5, in which the rear panel is hinged at its upper edge to hinge over an arc of substantially 270".

7. A swim feeder as claimed in claim 6, including a catch in a top panel to hold the rear panel open by the peg engaging the catch.

8. A swim feeder as claimed in any preceding claim, including means adapted to resist movement of the feeder over the ground.

9. A swim feeder as claimed in claim 8, in which said movement resisting means comprises means tending to dig into the ground if the feeder is pulled over the ground.

10. A swim feeder as claimed in claim 9 and claim 5, in which said peg has lateral wings to form movement resisting means.

11. A swim feeder substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to and as shown in the accompanying drawings.

12. A swim feeder as claimed in any preceding claim assembled from a flat blank with fold lines and catches.

13. Aflat blank having fold lines and catches for assembly into a swim feeder as claimed in any preceding claim.

14. A swim feeder however defined.

15. A flat blank however defined for assembly into a swim feeder.