WO2024169784A1 - Charging apparatus of animal-worn functional device, and animal feeding device and system - Google Patents

Abstract

Disclosed are a charging apparatus of an animal-worn functional device, the charging apparatus comprising a carrier, a control apparatus, a detection assembly, and a non-contact charging assembly; the carrier is used for arranging an object for attracting an animal, and a charging area; the control apparatus is in communication connection with the detection assembly and/or the non-contact charging assembly; the detection assembly is configured to detect that the animal-worn functional device enters the charging area, and transmit a detection signal to the control apparatus; and the non-contact charging assembly is configured to charge the animal-worn functional device. Further provided are an animal feeding device which uses the charging apparatus, and an animal feeding system. The present invention utilizes animal habits to implement automatic charging of the functional device worn on the body of an animal, thereby enhancing the battery life of the functional device.

Description

Charging device for animal-worn functional devices, animal feeding equipment and system

This application claims priority to Chinese patent application No. 202320218337.4 filed on February 15, 2023, with invention name “Charging device for animal-worn functional devices, animal feeding equipment and system”, the entire contents of which are incorporated by reference into this application.

Technical Field

The present invention relates to the field of Internet of Things, and in particular to a charging device for an animal-worn functional device, an animal feeding device using the charging device, and an animal feeding system.

Background Art

In some public welfare projects, it is necessary to continuously track and locate some sick or post-operative stray animals for a period of six months to three years. In this case, a locator is generally installed on the stray animal. The locator has a positioning module, so that the stray animal can be continuously located. The locator consumes electrical energy and generally uses a battery as a power source. However, the battery has limited power and needs to be charged regularly. In order to ensure that the battery has sufficient power, solar cells are used in some locators, that is, through solar energy illumination, the battery can be continuously charged to ensure power.

However, in some application scenarios, for example, when the weather is cloudy, rainy or other weather with insufficient sunlight, the battery power of the locator will be insufficient to support the normal operation of the locator, or some stray animals like to hide in cool places due to their living habits, which can easily lead to insufficient light for the battery. For example, in the hot summer, stray cats basically hide in cool places such as bushes, groves, and corners during the day and rarely move around, which makes it difficult for the locator that supports photovoltaic charging to get enough light for charging, causing the locator to run out of power in the summer and unable to continue working.

Therefore, technicians in this field are committed to developing a charging device for functional devices worn by animals, which can attract animals to the charging device and ensure that the animals can stay in the device for a long time, so that the functional devices worn by the animals can be charged using the non-contact charging components on the charging device, ensuring that the functional devices work effectively for a long time.

Summary of the invention

To achieve the above-mentioned object, the present invention provides a charging device for a functional device worn by an animal, comprising a carrier, a non-contact charging component, a detection component and a control device; the non-contact charging component is configured to charge the functional device worn by the animal; at least part of the non-contact charging component is arranged on the carrier; the detection component The component is configured to detect whether the functional device worn by the animal is in the charging area and transmit the detection signal to the control device; the charging area includes the chargeable range of the non-contact charging component; the control device is communicatively connected with the detection component and/or the non-contact charging component, and is used to control the non-contact charging component to charge the functional device worn by the animal when the functional device worn by the animal is in the charging area.

The present invention also provides an animal feeding device, comprising the charging device for the animal-worn functional device as described above, and the animal feeding device is used to feed food to a target animal.

The present invention also provides an animal feeding system, comprising the animal feeding device as described above; a server capable of being communicatively connected to the animal feeding device; and a client capable of being communicatively connected to the animal feeding device and/or the server.

The charging device for the functional device worn by an animal provided by the present invention has the following technical effects:

1. This application utilizes the habits of animals, attracts animals to the charging device, and charges the functional devices on the animals in a contactless manner, which can automatically replenish the power of the functional devices and enhance the endurance of the functional devices. When used in scenarios such as monitoring stray animals, farms or wild animals, there is no need for human participation in capturing animals to replenish the power of the functional devices and the functional devices can be guaranteed to work continuously for a long time, which strengthens the monitoring of animals and does not consume a lot of manpower and material resources, which is conducive to protecting animals.

2. The present invention can realize the combination of feeding, charging and other multi-functions by arranging the above-mentioned charging device on the feeding equipment. It can not only charge, but also monitor the data such as the work and rest rules of animals. Through the Internet of Things technology, it can realize the intelligent management of multiple feeding equipment, analyze and process the data of animal groups, so as to improve the management effect of animals.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG1 is a schematic structural diagram of a preferred embodiment of the present invention;

FIG2 is an exploded schematic diagram of FIG1 ;

FIG3 is an exploded schematic diagram from another perspective;

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of the bottom of the base.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The following describes the embodiments of the present invention through specific examples, and those skilled in the art can easily understand other advantages and effects of the present invention from the contents disclosed in this specification. The present invention can also be implemented or applied through other different specific embodiments. It should be noted that the following embodiments and features in the embodiments can be combined with each other without conflict.

While some exemplary embodiments of the present invention have been described for the purpose of illustration, it should be understood that the present invention may be implemented in other ways not specifically shown in the drawings.

As shown in Figures 1 and 2, the present application provides a charging device for an animal-worn functional device, including a contactless charging component 30, a carrier 10, a detection component 20, and a control device 40. Of course, the charging device also includes a necessary power source (not shown in the figure).

Functional devices worn by animals may include, for example, locators, monitoring devices for monitoring vital signs, and video cameras for photographing the living environment and habits of animals.

The non-contact charging component 30 can charge the functional device through light energy, radio, etc. In the case of charging the functional device in the form of light energy charging, the non-contact charging component 30 can be a light-emitting component driven by electric energy, such as a lighting lamp; in the case of charging the functional device in the form of radio, the non-contact charging component 30 can be an electromagnetic conversion component that can convert electric energy into electromagnetic waves. The specific form of the non-contact charging component 30 can be determined according to the charging form supported by the functional device worn by the animal. Of course, the charging device can also include multiple forms of non-contact charging components to match the various functional devices worn by the animal.

At least part of the non-contact charging assembly is disposed on the carrier 10. The detection assembly 20, the control device 40, the power source and the non-contact charging assembly 30 are all disposed at appropriate positions of the carrier 10.

The control device 40 is communicatively connected with the power source, the detection component 20, and the contactless charging component 30, and can receive the signal of the detection component 20 and control the contactless charging component 30 and the detection component 20 to turn on or off. Controlling the contactless charging component 30 to turn on means charging the functional device worn by the animal, and controlling it to turn off means stopping charging the functional device worn by the animal. Controlling the detection component 20 to turn on means starting to detect whether the functional device worn by the animal is in the charging area, that is, detecting whether there is a functional device worn by the animal in the charging area, and controlling it to turn off means stopping detecting whether there is a functional device worn by the animal in the charging area. The charging area includes the chargeable range of the contactless charging component 30, and the charging area can be a spatial subset of the chargeable range of the contactless charging component 30.

The detection component 20 can detect the functional device worn by the animal and determine whether the animal is in the charging area, and send a detection signal to the control device 40. The detection component 20 can detect whether there is an animal wearing a functional device in the charging area by using radio frequency technology, near field communication technology, Bluetooth and other short-range communication technologies, or monitoring video, electronic weighing, infrared detection and other methods, or a combination of one or more of these methods.

After the detection component 20 detects the functional device, during the period when the animal stays in the charging area, the control device 40 can control the non-contact charging component 30 to work. The non-contact charging component 30 will continue to perform non-contact charging on the functional device worn by the animal during this period to replenish the functional device with electrical energy.

In some embodiments, in order to attract animals to the charging area, objects that attract animals can be set. It may include food, smell, sound or video images, etc. These items may be set on the carrier 10, or may be set separately from the carrier 10. Furthermore, the items set on the carrier 10 for attracting animals may be controlled by the control device 40. For example, in the case where the item used to attract animals is food, the carrier 10 may also be provided with an automatic food dispensing device, and the control device 40 controls the food dispensing time and amount of the automatic food dispensing device; in the case where the item used to attract animals is smell, the carrier 10 may also be provided with an odor volatilization device, and the control device 40 controls the time and amount of the odor volatilization; in the case where the item used to attract animals is sound or video images, the carrier 10 may also be provided with a sound or video playback device, and the control device 40 controls the playback time and playback content, etc.

The contactless charging assembly, the carrier 10, the detection assembly 20, etc. can be arranged in an open field, or under a ceiling, or in a room with a ceiling and side walls.

In some embodiments, the carrier 10 includes a base 12 and a cover 13, and the cover 13 is arranged on the base 12 to form a cavity 11 with the base 12. The base 12 can be set to be hollow (not shown in the figure) or as shown in Figure 4, the bottom of the base 12 is provided with an installation position for installing components such as a control device 40 and a power supply. Items that attract animals to come are placed in the cavity 11 of the carrier 10. A restriction structure for animals to leave can also be set on the carrier 10. When the animal arrives on the carrier 10, it will be temporarily constrained by the structure, so that the animal needs to spend some time to leave the carrier 10, thereby achieving the purpose of extending the charging time. The structure can be set according to the habits of different animals. For example, when targeting stray cats, at least part of the side wall of the cover 13 is set to be transparent, and food that stray cats like is placed in the cavity 11. The cavity 11 is set to be one-way open 14, that is, the cavity 11 has only one opening 14, and the size of the opening 14 can be set to be smaller than the inner diameter of the cavity 11. In some embodiments, as shown in FIG3 , the cavity 11 is provided with two openings 14 opposite to each other, and the bottom of the cavity 11 is arc-shaped, and one of the openings can be larger than the other opening, that is, the bottom of the cavity 11 has different slopes, and the slope near the larger opening is smaller, and the slope near the smaller opening is larger, thereby further restricting the one-way passage of animals. In some embodiments, the side wall of the cavity 11 can be set to be similar to an ellipsoid, and the inner diameter of the middle part of the cavity 11 is the largest, and gradually decreases toward both ends, and an opening 14 for animals to enter and exit is set at one end along the long axis direction. In some embodiments, a baffle 15 is set on the upper side of the opening 14, and the baffle 15 extends along the edge of the opening 14 and protrudes outward to prevent the animal from being stuck by the edge of the opening 14, thereby increasing comfort. When a stray cat finds food and puts its head into the cover body 13 from the opening 14, the design of this small opening 14 can constrain the cat's neck, so that the cat's position on the carrier 10 is temporarily constrained. At the same time, the limiting structure also has the function of limiting the animal in a specific posture, so that the functional device and the non-contact charging component 30 are within a distance that is preferably chargeable. During this period of time, the non-contact charging component 30 can be turned on to charge the functional device on the stray cat. In order to increase the time the cat stays, the amount of food output from the cover 13 can be automatically controlled, that is, through the control device 40, the amount of supplementary food can be increased so that the stray cat can eat for a longer time to increase the charging time. It should be understood that depending on the animal, Different items may be selected and different limiting structures may be designed, and are not limited to the structures depicted in the drawings.

In some embodiments, the power source can be selected from the mains or a rechargeable battery. If conditions permit, the power source can be selected from the mains, and the control device 40 provides power for the charging device itself and provides power for charging the functional devices. In some outdoor locations, a rechargeable battery can be selected.

The detection component 20 is used to detect whether an animal with a functional device approaches and leaves, and a short-range wireless communicator can be used. If some animals without functional devices approach the carrier 10, the detection component 20 will not send a signal to the control device 40 because it cannot detect the functional device, so that the non-contact charging component 30 will not start, thereby achieving the purpose of saving energy. At the same time, after the animal wearing the functional device leaves, it can also send a signal to the control device 40 after being detected by the detection component 20 to stop the non-contact charging component 30 to save energy. In addition, since the animal may not be able to make the functional device and the non-contact charging component 30 in an effective charging range after arriving at the carrier 10, by reasonably setting the effective detection distance of the detection component 20, the detection component 20 will be triggered only when the distance between the functional device and the detection component 20 is within a limited detection range. In some embodiments, the detection component 20 can use an NFC card reader, set an NFC chip in the functional device, and design the communication distance of NFC to be less than 10 cm, preferably 4-6 cm. Taking a stray cat wearing a locator as an example, the detection component 20 is set near the opening 14 and at the bottom of the cavity 11. When the stray cat's neck extends from the opening 14, at this time, due to the design of the opening 14, the cat's neck will contact or be very close to the edge of the opening 14, and the distance between the locator and the detection component 20 is very short, so that it can accurately determine that the cat has extended its head into the cover 13, thereby starting the non-contact charging component 30. When the cat leaves, the communication distance becomes longer, and the detection component 20 loses the signal, which triggers the control device 40 to turn off the charging component. Preferably, the detection component 20 is set to periodically detect whether the functional device is close. It should be understood that according to the different habits of the animal, the different types of functional devices set on the animal, the different positions of the functional devices on the animal, and the different built-in chips of the functional devices, other detection components 20 that match the targeted functional devices can be selected and set at different positions of the carrier 10 to more accurately determine whether the animal has reached the carrier 10.

The contactless charging component 30 is configured to charge the functional device to replenish electrical energy. In some embodiments, the functional device is powered by a solar cell. In this case, a lighting lamp can be selected as the contactless charging component 30. After determining that the animal has arrived at the carrier 10, the control device 40 starts the lighting lamp, and the light emitted by the lighting lamp can convert the photovoltaic panel on the functional device into electric current. Taking stray cats as an example, a plurality of lighting lamps are selected to form a light source, and the light source is installed on the inner wall of the cover body 13, and arranged around the inner wall of the cover body 13 to maximize the irradiation area. Generally speaking, the wavelength range absorbed by the photovoltaic panel on the functional device is 300-1200nm. Therefore, the wavelength of the light emitted by the lighting lamp can be designed according to the wavelength range that the photovoltaic panel can absorb. In addition, factors such as the habits of the animal need to be considered to select the wavelength. For example, when targeting stray cats, it is not recommended to use light with a longer wavelength. Because light with a larger wave transmission rate has a higher wavelength when irradiating When irradiating an object, it will cause the temperature of the object to rise faster. Cats are very sensitive animals. During the eating process, they must not be allowed to clearly feel the heat in their necks, otherwise they will be frightened and leave. Therefore, it is recommended to use a lighting lamp with a wavelength of less than 600nm and a color temperature of 3500-4500K. It should be understood that different wavelengths of light can be used for different animals. At the same time, the installation position and arrangement of the lighting lamp can also be changed according to the position of the functional device on the animal, so as to charge the functional device to the maximum extent. Furthermore, in some embodiments, the cover body 13 of the charging area can be set to a transparent material to facilitate external light to shine into the cover body 13, so as to make full use of the external light to charge the functional device when there is sufficient light outside the cover body 13.

A light intensity sensor may also be provided in the cover 13 to detect the light intensity in the cover 13. At least one light intensity threshold may be pre-set, and multiple light intensity intervals may be determined by the light intensity threshold, and different target brightnesses of the lighting lamp may be set for each light intensity interval, and a matching light intensity interval may be determined according to the light intensity detected by the light intensity sensor, and the target brightness of the lighting lamp may be determined according to the light intensity interval, and the control device 40 controls the lighting lamp to reach the target brightness of the lighting lamp. Accordingly, the lighting lamp may operate at multiple brightnesses, and the control device 40 may control the brightness of the lighting lamp when it is operating. By providing a light intensity sensor, the control device 40 can control the brightness of the lighting lamp according to the actual light intensity in the cover 13, so that the intensity of the lighting lamp can be reduced to save electric energy when the external light is strong, and the intensity of the lighting lamp can be increased to ensure the charging effect of the functional device when the external light is weak, that is, it can save electric energy while ensuring the charging effect of the functional device.

In some implementations, a wireless charging chip may be provided in the functional device, and then the contactless charging component 30 may use a wireless charging transmitting module.

A preferred embodiment of the present application is described in detail below in conjunction with charging the locator on a stray cat:

As shown in Figures 1-3, the cover 13 is transparent and one-way open. After the stray cat sees the food in the cover 13, it needs to lie down and put its head in to eat the food. At least part of the cover 13 is transparent, which not only allows the cat to easily see the cat food inside from the outside, so as to attract the cat to eat, but also allows the cat to observe the surrounding situation after putting its head into the feeding tray, so as to eat more safely. An NFC card reader is set at the bottom near the opening 14 to periodically detect whether the locator is close. When the cat eats, the locator on the neck will be close to the NFC antenna. Since the communication distance designed by NFC is only a few centimeters, it can be accurately judged that the cat has put its head into the feeding tray and is eating. After the control device 40 obtains the cat's information through NFC, if it is judged that the cat is wearing a photovoltaically rechargeable locator, the luminaire is lit through the luminaire driving circuit. The irradiation angle of the luminaire and the wavelength of the light are designed to ensure that the light emitted by the luminaire can maximize the conversion of the flexible photovoltaic panel on the cat's neck into current. While the cat is eating, the control device 40 still controls the NFC card reader to periodically detect whether the locator exists. When the cat leaves, the lighting lamp driving circuit is immediately turned off to avoid wasting energy of the rechargeable battery in the feeding tray.

Because cats are small in size, the built-in lithium battery capacity of the general matching locator is about 150mAh. The power consumed every day for Bluetooth broadcasting, WIFI scanning, GPS positioning, data uploading and other functions is about 3-4mAh (although the locator will dynamically control the reporting cycle according to the power situation, the continuous use time is generally about more than one month). To ensure that the locator can work uninterruptedly for a long time, it is only necessary to ensure the power consumption of the locator in the summer, because in the spring, autumn and winter seasons, due to the cool weather, cats generally like to rest in the open sun, and the photovoltaic panels of the locator can get enough exposure to generate electricity for a long time, and there is basically no problem of insufficient power. Considering that the entire summer lasts about 4-5 months, the locator needs to consume about 500-600mAh of power.

According to the size of stray cats, the power of the flexible photovoltaic panel selected by the locator is about 0.2W, the voltage is 1.5V, and the maximum output current is 130mA. Considering the charging conversion efficiency and the lithium battery voltage of 3.4-4.2V, the charging current of the lithium battery is about 50mA after conversion. According to tracking observation, stray cats generally eat 2-3 times a day, each eating time varies from 2 to 3 minutes, and the average total eating time per day is about 5-6 minutes. Based on the above conditions, it is calculated that the daily charging capacity of stray cats when eating is 4.15-5mAh, and the charging capacity in summer is about 620-750mAh, which can achieve the expected effect.

It should be understood that although the above embodiments describe the situation for stray cats, the concept of the present application can also be used to design a charging device for other types of animals, and the habits of the specific animal can be used to attract the animal to the charging device, so as to achieve the purpose of charging the functional device on the animal. For example, the present invention can be used for monitoring wild animals, monitoring farms or household pets, etc. The functional device on the animal is not limited to the locator described above, but can also be other functional devices that realize specific functions, such as physical condition monitoring devices, etc.

The present invention also provides an animal feeding device, which includes the charging device as described above, and can charge the functional devices worn by the animal while feeding food to the animal.

The present invention also provides an animal feeding system, including the above-mentioned animal feeding equipment; a server capable of being connected to the animal feeding equipment in communication; and a client capable of being connected to the animal feeding equipment and/or the server in communication. A communication device is provided on the above-mentioned animal feeding equipment, and real-time communication is achieved with the server and the client through the communication device, so that information such as the animal's foraging time, the power of the functional device and the working condition are transmitted to the server. The communication method can be wired or wireless communication. Multiple animal feeding devices can be set up in the system, and the server can remotely manage these animal feeding devices and comprehensively analyze and manage the animal's life patterns, the working conditions of the functional devices, etc. The staff can monitor and manage the animal feeding equipment and receive server instructions through the client. It should be understood that the animal feeding system can realize centralized operation and maintenance with the help of the Internet of Things technology, so as to monitor, analyze and process animals in a large area and improve management efficiency. The functional allocation of the server and the client can be customized according to actual needs.

The above embodiments are only illustrative of the principles and effects of the present invention and are not intended to limit the present invention. Those skilled in the art may modify or alter the above embodiments without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. Therefore, all equivalent modifications or alterations made by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and technical concept disclosed by the present invention shall still be covered by the claims of the present invention.

Claims (11)

A charging device for an animal-worn functional device, characterized in that it comprises a carrier, a non-contact charging component, a detection component and a control device; The contactless charging assembly is configured to charge a functional device worn by an animal; At least part of the contactless charging assembly is disposed on the carrier; The detection component is configured to detect whether the functional device worn by the animal is in a charging area, and transmit a detection signal to the control device; the charging area includes a chargeable range of the non-contact charging component; The control device is communicatively connected with the detection component and/or the contactless charging component, and is used to control the contactless charging component to charge the functional device worn by the animal when the functional device worn by the animal is within the charging area. The charging device for an animal-worn functional device as described in claim 1 is characterized in that the carrier is also used to set items to attract animals; and/or, an automatic food dispensing device is also provided on the carrier, and the control device is also used to control the automatic food dispensing device. The charging device for an animal-worn functional device as described in claim 1 or 2 is characterized in that the carrier includes a base and a cover at least partially disposed on the base, the cover and the base form a cavity, and the cavity includes the charging area and at least one opening. The charging device for an animal-worn functional device as described in claim 3 is characterized in that the size of the opening is smaller than the inner diameter of the cavity; and/or the opening is provided with a smooth edge, and the opening and the edge are in an arc-shaped transition. The charging device according to claim 3 or 4, characterized in that at least part of the side wall of the cover is transparent. The charging device according to claim 3, characterized in that the detection component is arranged near the opening of the cavity. The charging device according to claim 1, characterized in that the detection component includes a short-range wireless communicator. The charging device according to claim 1 or 3 is characterized in that the non-contact charging component includes a lighting source; and/or the lighting source serving as the non-contact charging component is arranged inside the cover body. The charging device according to claim 8, characterized in that the wavelength of light emitted by the lighting source is less than 600nm and the color temperature is 3500-4500K. An animal feeding device, characterized in that it comprises the animal wearing function as described in any one of claims 1 to 9 The device is a charging device for a device, wherein the animal feeding device is used to feed food to a target animal and charge the functional device worn by the animal at the same time. An animal feeding system, characterized in that it comprises: The animal feeding device according to claim 10; A server capable of communicating with the animal feeding equipment; and The client can be connected to the animal feeding device and/or the server for communication.