Pet toy

• US 5,934,223 A
• Filed: 01/29/1998
• Issued: 08/10/1999
• Est. Priority Date: 01/29/1998
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Erin P. Ellery-Guy
• Original Assignee: Erin P. Ellery-Guy
• Inventors: Ellery-Guy, Erin P.
• Primary Examiner(s): Carone, Michael J.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Bergin, James S.
• Application Number:
  US09/015,418
• Time in Patent Office: 558 Days
• Field of Search: 119/702, 119/707, 119/708, 40/502, 40/560, 40/473, 362/35, 362/421, 362/809, 362/811, 362/271, 362/272, 362/383, 362/386, 362/233, 362/414
• US Class Current: 119/702
• CPC Class Codes: A01K 15/025 Toys specially adapted for animals
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 362/811 Psychedelic lighting

Abstract

The pet toy projects a moving image into a room, as determined by a computer chip, so that a pet may be entertained by the moving image without requiring a person to be in the room to move the image. The pet toy comprises an upright housing containing batteries and supported by a heavy base with a ball bearing unit at the top of the housing. The ball bearing unit has a lamp unit attached thereto. A plurality of glass units with various cut-outs that may be removably attached to the lamp unit so that the glass units may be used to change the image projected by the lamp unit. A control unit contained in the housing controls the speed of the rotatable ball bearing unit to control the speed of the moving light image.

Claims

1. A pet toy for entertaining a pet animal, comprising:

a housing;

a ball bearing unit rotatably attached to the housing;

an integrated circuit in operative engagement with the ball bearing unit to move the ball bearing unit in a random pattern,

a light source attached to the ball bearing unit, the light source producing a light beam; and

a sheet material directly attached to the light source, the sheet material having a cut out defined therein, the cut out having a predetermined shape so that a light image of the predetermined shape is produced when the light beam shines through the cut out of the sheet material.

2. The pet toy according to claim 1 wherein the pet toy further comprises a switch attached to the housing for turning on and off the pet toy.

3. The pet toy according to claim 1 wherein the pet toy further comprises a speed control attached to the housing for increasing and reducing a speed of the movement of the ball bearing unit.

4. The pet toy according to claim 1 wherein the sheet material is screwed into the light source.

5. The pet toy according to claim 1 wherein the pet toy further comprises a hook shaped attachment member that is attached to the housing.

6. A pet toy, comprising:

a housing having a semi-spherical cavity defined at a top portion of the housing;

a ball bearing unit rotatably disposed inside the semi-spherical cavity of the housing;

an integrated circuit in operative engagement with the ball bearing unit to randomly move the ball bearing unit;

a light source attached to the ball bearing unit, the light source producing a light beam; and

the pet toy further comprises sheet material directly attached to the light source, the sheet material having a cut out defined therein, the cut out depicting an animal so that a light image of the animal is produced when the light beam shines through the cut out of the sheet material.

7. The pet toy according to claim 6 wherein the cut out defines an image selected from the group consisting of a mouse, bird, star, cat and dog.

8. A pet toy, comprising:

a housing having a semi-spherical cavity defined at a top portion of the housing;

a ball bearing unit rotatably disposed inside the semi-spherical cavity of the housing;

an integrated circuit in operative engagement with the ball bearing unit to randomly move the ball bearing unit;

a light source attached to the ball bearing unit, the light source producing a light beam; and

the integrated circuit being disposed within the ball bearing unit.