Habitat and system for cultivation of insects

• US 10,448,623 B1
• Filed: 04/13/2017
• Issued: 10/22/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 04/13/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Aspire Food Group Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Aspire Food Group USA Inc.
• Inventors: Selby, Roger Duncan, Hall, Michael Todd, Mott, Gabriel, Williams, Paul T., Shah, Redza, Cardinal, Anna D.
• Primary Examiner(s): Williams, Monica L
• Application Number:
  US15/486,636
• Time in Patent Office: 922 Days
• CPC Class Codes: A01K 67/033 Rearing or breeding invertebrates; New breeds of invertebrates

Abstract

An insert for use in an insect habitat. The insert usable to increase the overall surface space within a habitat available to cultivate the insects. The insert formed from including a plurality of members formed to mate or otherwise couple together to form a gird.

Claims

1. A insect habitat insert comprising:

a first plurality of vertical components, the first plurality of vertical components including locking slits along a bottom of each of the first plurality of vertical components; and

a second plurality of vertical components, the second plurality of vertical components including locking slits along a top of each of the second plurality of vertical components, wherein the locking slits along the top of each of the second plurality of vertical components mate with the locking slits along the bottom of each of the first plurality of vertical components to form a grid.

2. The insect habitat insert as recited in claim 1, wherein the insect habitat insert is configured to fit within an habitat for cultivating insects.

3. The insect habitat insert as recited in claim 1, wherein the first plurality of vertical components are perforated.

4. The insect habitat insert as recited in claim 1, wherein the second plurality of vertical components are perforated.

5. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein a coefficient of friction associated with the first plurality of vertical components and the second plurality of vertical components is greater than 0.5.

6. A insect habitat insert comprising:

a plurality of vertical members for the cultivating of insects, each of the vertical members defining a first half set of hexagonal regions and a second half set of hexagonal regions, such that when the plurality of vertical members are arranged in parallel, the plurality of vertical members from a hexagonal grid, the hexagonal grid including a plurality of hexagonal regions.

7. The insect habitat insert as recited in claim 6, wherein each of the vertical members are substantially identical.

8. The insect habitat insert as recited in claim 7, wherein the vertical members includes a first vertical member and a second vertical member, the first vertical member including a first a plurality of male connectors arranged to the right of a first plurality of female connects and the second vertical member including a second a plurality of male connectors arranged to the right of a second plurality of female connects, such that the first vertical member mates with the second vertical member when the first vertical member is rotated by 180°

around a center vertical axis with respect to the second vertical member.

9. The insect habitat insert as recited in claim 7, wherein the plurality of vertical members includes a first vertical member and a second vertical member, the first vertical member including a first a plurality of male connectors arranged to the left of a first plurality of female connects and the second vertical member including a second a plurality of male connectors arranged to the left of a second plurality of female connects, such that the first vertical member mates with the second vertical member when the first vertical member is rotated by 180°

around a center vertical axis with respect to the second vertical member.

10. The insect habitat insert as recited in claim 6, wherein the insect habitat insert is configured to fit within a habitat for cultivating insects.

11. The insect habitat insert as recited in claim 6, wherein individual ones of the vertical members include perforations for allowing the insects to traverse the hexagonal grid.

12. The insect habitat insert as recited in claim 6, wherein the plurality of vertical members includes a first vertical member and a second vertical member, the first vertical member including a first plurality of open portions and a first plurality of solid portions and the second vertical member including a second plurality of open portions and a second plurality of solid portions, the first plurality of open portions configured to align with the second plurality of solid portions and the second plurality of open portions configured to align with the first plurality of solid portions when the first vertical member mates with the second vertical member.

13. The method as recited in claim 12, wherein first vertical member is rotated by 180°

around a center vertical axis with respect to the second vertical member prior to mating the first vertical member with the second vertical member.

14. The method as recited in claim 6, wherein each of the hexagonal regions is less than or equal to 40 mm across.

15. A vertical member of an insect habitat insert comprising:

a first set of mating portions along a first plane;

a second set of mating portions along a second plane, the first set of mating portions to be arranged adjacent to a preceding vertical member and the second set of mating portions to be arranged adjacent to a subsequent vertical member when the insect habitat insert is fully assembled;

a plurality of interior portions connecting the first set of mating portion to the second set of mating portions; and

wherein the plurality of interior portions, the first set of mating portions, and the second set of mating portions form a continuous wall, the continuous wall defining a first set of open regions and a second set of open regions when the insect habitat insert is fully assembled, the first set of open regions located on an opposite side of the continuous wall as the second set of open regions.

16. The insect habitat insert as recited in claim 15, wherein at least one of the interior portions include an opening to allow an insect to traverse from an open region of the first set of open regions to an open region of the second set of open regions.

17. The insect habitat insert as recited in claim 15, wherein the continuous wall is equal to or less than 1.2 millimeters thick.

18. The insect habitat insert as recited in claim 15, wherein the vertical member is greater than or equal to 2 inches and less than or equal to 32 inches tall.

19. The insect habitat insert as recited in claim 15, wherein at least one of the open regions of the first set of open regions or the second set of open regions is hexagonal in shape.

20. The insect habitat insert as recited in claim 15, wherein the vertical member has a coefficient of friction greater than or equal to 0.5.