Automatic feeder for fish aquarium

Claim 2

An electromechanical device for automatically feeding aquarium fish comprising: a generally horizontal conduit; means defining an inlet of said conduit; a fish food hopper positioned over said conduit at one location and adapted to dispense fluent fish food into said conduit through said inlet; said conduit having a portion, displaced axially downstream from said one location, adapted to be disposed over the water of an aquarium; means defining an outlet of said conduit at said position; a piston slidingly received in said conduit and having a face which faces downstream; means for slowly advancing said piston from a fully retracted position wherein said piston face lies upstream of said conduit inlet, to a fully extended position wherein said piston face lies adjacent said conduit outlet, and for retracting said piston from said fully extended position to said fully retracted position; surface means on said piston configured and arranged to present flow of fish food from said hopper into said conduit after said piston face has passed said conduit inlet in travelling toward said conduit outlet and until said piston face has reached said conduit inlet in travelling away from said conduit outlet; said means for slowly advancing the piston and for retracting it comprising: an electric motor having a vertically extending output shaft; crank arm means mounted on said shaft and extending laterally, horizontally therefrom; a piston rod connected to said piston and extending axially therefrom; means piVotally connecting the distal end of the crank arm to the distal end of the piston rod; and said device further including housing means; and means pivotally mounting said conduit on said housing means for pivotal oscillation about a generally vertical axis, the oscillation being induced by rotation of said crank arm.

Claim 3

An electromechanical device for automatically feeding aquarium fish comprising: a generally horizontal conduit; means defining an inlet of said conduit; a fish food hopper positioned over said conduit at one location and adapted to dispense fluent fish food into said conduit through said inlet; said conduit having a portion, displaced axially downstream from said one location, adapted to be disposed over the water of an aquarium; means defining an outlet of said conduit at said position; a piston slidingly received in said conduit and having a face which faces downstream; means for slowly advancing said piston from a fully retracted position wherein said piston face lies upstream of said conduit inlet, to a fully extended position wherein said piston face lies adjacent said conduit outlet, and for retracting said piston from said fully extended position to said fully retracted position; surface means on said piston configured and arranged to present flow of fish food from said hopper into said conduit after said piston face has passed said conduit inlet in travelling toward said conduit outlet and until said piston face has reached said conduit inlet in travelling away from said conduit outlet; said means for slowly advancing the piston and for retracting it comprising: an electric motor having a vertically extending output shaft; crank arm means mounted on said shaft and extending laterally, horizontally therefrom; a piston rod connected to said piston and extending axially therefrom; means piVotally connecting the distal end of the crank arm to the distal end of the piston rod; and said device further including housing means; and means pivotally mounting said conduit on said housing means for pivotal oscillation about a generally vertical axis, the oscillation being induced by rotation of said crank arm.

Claim 4

An electromechanical device for automatically feeding aquarium fish comprising: a generally horizontal conduit; means defining an inlet of said conduit; a fish food hopper positioned over said conduit at one location and adapted to dispense fluent fish food into said conduit through said inlet; said conduit having a portion, displaced axially downstream from said one location, adapted to be disposed over the water of an aquarium; means defining an outlet of said conduit at said position; a piston slidingly received in said conduit and having a face which faces downstream; means for slowly advancing said piston from a fully retracted position wherein said piston face lies upstream of said conduit inlet, to a fully extended position wherein said piston face lies adjacent said conduit outlet, and for retracting said piston from said fully extended position to said fully retracted position; surface means on said piston configured and arranged to present flow of fish food from said hopper into said conduit after said piston face has passed said conduit inlet in travelling toward said conduit outlet and until said piston face has reached said conduit inlet in travelling away from said conduit outlet; said means for slowly advancing the piston and for retracting it comprising: an electric motor having a vertically extending output shaft; crank arm means mounted on said shaft and extending laterally, horizontally therefrom; a piston rod connected to said piston and extending axially therefrom; means piVotally connecting the distal end of the crank arm to the distal end of the piston rod; and said device further including housing means; and means pivotally mounting said conduit on said housing means for pivotal oscillation about a generally vertical axis, the oscillation being induced by rotation of said crank arm.

Claim 5

The device of claim 1 wherein said motor is a continuously operating, 1-revolution-per-day synchronous motor.

Claim 6

The device of claim 1 further comprising jogger means which includes: a pin member and a serrated member having a plurality of serrations in a line positioned to be relatively traversed by the pin member; one of said pin member and said serrated member being stationarily mounted on said housing and the other of said pin member and said serrated member being mounted with respect to said conduit for oscillation therewith; whereby, as said conduit oscillates, the serrations are jogged by the pin member thus producing vibrations which even the flow of the fluent fish food into and from said conduit.

Claim 7

The device of claim 3 wherein the means pivotally mounting the conduit on the housing means comprises a jogger plate having a depending pivot axle; said conduit being mounted on said jogger plate; said jogger plate further including two laterally spaced, axially extending horizontal arms; said serrated member being received between said arms for limited axial travel laterally restricted and guided by said arms; and spring means mounted on the jogger plate between the arms and disposed to urge the serrated member outwardly of the arms to ensure interfering contact between the serrations and the pin member.

Claim 8

The device of claim 1 wherein the crank arm is constituted by a cam disk having means defining a cam track on the outer periphery thereof; an electric light circuit for an aquarium light said electric light circuit incorporating a switch having an actuator disposed for running contact with said cam track, whereby the electric light circuit may be alternated between an ''''ON'''' condition and an ''''OFF'''' condition in coordination with travelling of said piston.

Claim 9

The device of claim 5 further including a second cam disk having means defining a cam track on the outer periphery thereof; the second cam disk being mounted on the output shaft of said motor axially adjacent the first-mentioned cam disk; the cam track of the second cam disk also being disposed for running contact with said switch actuator; detent means defined on the first-mentioned and second cam disks and disposed to permit selection of and holding of any of a plurality of relative angular positions of said first-mentioned and second cam disks, whereby the durations of the ''''ON'''' and ''''OFF'''' conditions of the electric light circuit may be adjusted.

Claim 10

An electromechanical device for automatically feeding aquarium fish comprising: a generally horizontal conduit; means defining an inlet of said conduit; a fish food hopper positioned over said conduit at one location and adapted to dispense fluent fish food into said conduit through said inlet; said conduit having a portion, displaced axially downstream from said one location, adapted to be disposed over the water of an aquarium; means defining an outlet of said conduit at said position; a piston slidingly received in said conduit and having a face which faces downstream; means for slowly advancing said piston from a fully retracted position wherein said piston face lies upstream of said conduit inlet, to a fully extended position wherein said piston face lies adjacent said conduit outlet, and for retracting said piston from said fully extended position to said fully retracted position; surface means on said piston configured and arranged to present flow of fish food from said hopper into said conduit after said piston face has passed said conduit inlet in travelling toward said conduit outlet aNd until said piston face has reached said conduit inlet in travelling away from said conduit outlet; the conduit being constituted by a cylinder of rectangular internal transverse cross-sectional shape, said piston likewise having a generally rectangular transverse cross-sectional shape; the inlet of said conduit being constituted by means defining a vertically upwardly directed opening in the top of the cylinder; the outlet of said conduit being constituted by means defining a vertically downwardly directed opening in the bottom of the cylinder; means defining a raked bottom surface on said piston having raking thereon oriented to slide over grains of fluent fish food during retraction of the piston and to urge said grains forwardly when the piston is advancing; and means defining a stepped upper surface on said piston so that said piston is of lesser thickness near said face.

Claim 11

An electromechanical device for automatically feeding aquarium fish comprising: a generally horizontal conduit; means defining an inlet of said conduit; a fish food hopper positioned over said conduit at one location and adapted to dispense fluent fish food into said conduit through said inlet; said conduit having a portion, displaced axially downstream from said one location, adapted to be disposed over the water of an aquarium; means defining an outlet of said conduit at said position; a piston slidingly received in said conduit and having a face which faces downstream; means for slowly advancing said piston from a fully retracted position wherein said piston face lies upstream of said conduit inlet, to a fully extended position wherein said piston face lies adjacent said conduit outlet, and for retracting said piston from said fully extended position to said fully retracted position; surface means on said piston configured and arranged to present flow of fish food from said hopper into said conduit after said piston face has passed said conduit inlet in travelling toward said conduit outlet aNd until said piston face has reached said conduit inlet in travelling away from said conduit outlet; the conduit being constituted by a cylinder of rectangular internal transverse cross-sectional shape, said piston likewise having a generally rectangular transverse cross-sectional shape; the inlet of said conduit being constituted by means defining a vertically upwardly directed opening in the top of the cylinder; the outlet of said conduit being constituted by means defining a vertically downwardly directed opening in the bottom of the cylinder; means defining a raked bottom surface on said piston having raking thereon oriented to slide over grains of fluent fish food during retraction of the piston and to urge said grains forwardly when the piston is advancing; and means defining a stepped upper surface on said piston so that said piston is of lesser thickness near said face.

Claim 12

The device of claim 7 wherein said piston further includes an auxiliary portion spaced downstream from said face thereof; and means connecting the auxiliary portion to the piston to define a gap between the piston and the auxiliary portion for receipt of fluent fish food from said hopper.