Rodent containment cage monitoring apparatus and methods

• US 9,516,858 B2
• Filed: 02/25/2013
• Issued: 12/13/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 10/11/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Innovive, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Innovive, Inc.
• Inventors: Conger, Dee L., Spivey, Cory, Roes, Michael A., McGuffie, Francesca, Jenson, Leroy
• Primary Examiner(s): TSANG, LISA L
• Application Number:
  US13/776,645
• Publication Number:
  US 20130228134A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,387 Days
• Field of Search: 119416- 19, 119/421, 119/452, 119/455, 119/456, 312/234, 312/234.1, 312/234.3, 109/38, 109/39, 340/573.3, 340/568.1
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: A01K 1/0047 Air-conditioning, e.g. ventilation, of animal housings
• CPC Class Codes: A01K 1/031 Cages for laboratory animals; Cages for measuring metabolism of animals

Abstract

Methods, apparatuses and systems for convenient management of animals within a rodent containment cage system that includes labeling components, receiving data, associating the data, reporting the data and/or associations and locating components within the cage system. The management of the system may be self-contained, networked through a controller, local server and/or main server.

Claims

1. A method for detecting one or more identifiers on a rodent containment cage, comprising:

engaging the rodent containment cage with a first cage mount assembly and a second cage mount assembly of a rack, wherein the cage contacts the first cage mount assembly and the second cage mount assembly;

the first cage mount assembly comprises an attached detector and the second cage mount assembly comprises an attached detector;

the cage comprises a first cage component comprising one or more detectable identifiers, whereby when the cage is engaged with and contacts the first cage mount assembly and the second cage mount assembly, the detector attached to the first cage mount assembly, or the detector attached to the second cage mount assembly detects the one or more detectable identifiers.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein each of the one or more detectable identifiers is configured to serve as a clocking identifier, a cage position identifier, a content identifier, or a combination thereof.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the one or more detectable identifiers are selected from the group consisting of a bar code, a serial number, a discoloring polymer, a reflective identifier, a non-reflective identifier, a symbolic code, a radio frequency identifier, a magnetic identifier, a chemical sensor identifier, and a combinations thereof.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the detector attached to the first cage mount assembly and the detector attached to the second cage mount assembly employ materials selected from the group consisting of a magnetic optical sensing component, an automatic sensing component, a fluorescence sensing component, a mechanical sensing component, a magnetic sensing component, an optical sensing component, a chemical sensing component and a combination thereof.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the detector attached to the first cage mount assembly and the detector attached to the second cage mount assembly are selected from the group consisting of a pen type reader, a laser scanner, a charged coupled device (CCD) reader, a camera based reader, a magnetic reader or a radio frequency identifier (RFID) reader.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the first cage component is selected from the group consisting of a cage lid component, a cage base component, an air supply or air exhaust component, a water supply component, a sensor component, a filter component, a baffle component, a feeder component, and a bedding component.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the first cage component is a cage base component.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the cage comprises a cage lid.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the first cage mount assembly and second cage mount assembly each comprise a rail guide which contacts the cage lid when the cage is engaged with the first cage mount assembly and the second cage mount assembly.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the one or more detectable identifiers comprise a first detectable identifier and a second detectable identifier arranged in-line.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the one or more detectable identifiers comprise a first detectable identifier and a second detectable identifier that include regions of overlap.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the detector attached to the first cage mount assembly is part of a front module of the first cage mount assembly and the detector attached to the second cage mount assembly is part of a front module of the second cage mount assembly.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein the detector attached to the first cage mount assembly and the detector attached to the second cage mount assembly comprise an optical detector, and the one or more detectable identifiers are for optical detection.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the one or more detectable identifiers are bar codes.

15. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the first cage component comprises a first detectable identifier;

the cage comprises a second cage component; and

the second cage component comprises a second detectable identifier;

whereby when the cage is engaged with and contacts the first cage mount assembly and the second cage mount assembly, the detector attached to the first cage mount assembly detects the first detectable identifier and the second detectable identifier, or the detector attached to the second cage mount assembly detects the first detectable identifier and the second detectable identifier, or the detector attached to the first cage mount assembly detects the first detectable identifier and the detector attached to the second cage mount assembly detects the second detectable identifier.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the first and second cage components are selected from the group consisting of a cage lid component, a cage base component, an air supply or air exhaust component, a water supply component, a sensor component, a filter component, a baffle component, a feeder component, and a bedding component.

17. The method of claim 15, wherein the first cage component is a cage base component and the second cage component is a cage lid or the first cage component is a cage lid component and the second cage component is a cage base component.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein the first cage mount assembly and second cage mount assembly each comprise a rail guide which contacts the cage lid when the cage is engaged with the first cage mount assembly and the second cage mount assembly.

19. The method of claim 15, wherein the first and second detectable identifiers are configured to serve as a clocking identifier, a cage position identifier, a content identifier, or a combination thereof.

20. The method of claim 15, wherein the first and second detectable identifiers are selected from the group consisting of a bar code, a serial number, a discoloring polymer, a reflective identifier, a non-reflective identifier, a symbolic code, a radio frequency identifier, a magnetic identifier, a chemical sensor identifier, and a combination thereof.

21. The method of claim 15, wherein the detector attached to the first cage mount assembly and the detector attached to the second cage mount assembly employ materials selected from the group consisting of a magnetic optical sensing component, an automatic sensing component, a fluorescence sensing component, a mechanical sensing component, a magnetic sensing component, an optical sensing component, a chemical sensing component and a combination thereof.

22. The method of claim 15, wherein the detector attached to the first cage mount assembly and the detector attached to the second cage mount assembly are selected from the group consisting of a pen type reader, a laser scanner, a charged coupled device (CCD) reader, a camera based reader, a magnetic reader or a radio frequency identifier (RFID) reader.

23. The method of claim 15, wherein the first detectable identifier and second detectable identifier are arranged in-line.

24. The method of claim 15, wherein the first detectable identifier and the second detectable identifier include regions of overlap.

25. The method of claim 15, wherein the detector attached to the first cage mount assembly is part of a front module of the first cage mount assembly and the detector attached to the second cage mount assembly is part of a front module of the second cage mount assembly.

26. The method of claim 15, wherein the detector attached to the first cage mount assembly and the detector attached to the second cage mount assembly comprise an optical detector and the first and second detectable identifiers are for optical detection.

27. The method of claim 26, wherein the first and second detectable identifiers are bar codes.

28. The method of claim 1, wherein the one or more detectable identifiers comprise a first detectable identifier and a second detectable identifier, whereby when the cage is engaged with and contacts the first cage mount assembly and the second cage mount assembly, the detector attached to the first cage mount assembly detects the first detectable identifier and the detector attached to the second cage mount assembly detects the second detectable identifier.