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BR-112021010564-B1 - ANIMAL TRAP SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR MONITORING THE SAME

BR112021010564B1BR 112021010564 B1BR112021010564 B1BR 112021010564B1BR-112021010564-B1

Abstract

ANIMAL TRAP DETECTION SYSTEM USING A GLUE BOARD. An animal trap system includes a glue board, an animal trap accelerometer sensor, and a signaling unit in close proximity to and communicating with the animal trap accelerometer sensor, wherein the signaling unit also contains an accelerometer sensor. The animal trap system is capable of detecting capture events, non-capture events, false positives, and/or the type of animal captured using differential signal analysis and machine learning techniques. When an acceleration is received by the animal trap accelerometer sensor above a predefined acceleration threshold value, it sends a capture signal to the signaling unit, and if the signaling unit does not receive such an acceleration event, the signaling unit transmits a capture signal to an off-site receiver. A method for capturing one or more animals using this system is also provided.

Inventors

  • Gaelle Fages
  • Byron Reid
  • Homare TERAMOTO
  • Fabien PELISSIER

Assignees

  • DISCOVERY PURCHASER CORPORATION

Dates

Publication Date
20260310
Application Date
20200128
Priority Date
20190130

Claims (13)

  1. 1. Animal trap system (10) comprising: an animal trap (11) including an adhesive plate, an animal trap sensor (12) affixed to or in communication with the animal trap (11), wherein the animal trap sensor (12) is an accelerometer sensor, and a signaling unit (30) in proximity to and in communication with the animal trap sensor (12), wherein the signaling unit (30) contains an accelerometer sensor (35), and CHARACTERIZED in that the animal trap sensor (12) is affixed to the adhesive plate and connects to the signaling unit (30) by means of a wired connection (13) such that the animal trap sensor (12) and the accelerometer sensor (35) located in the signaling unit (30) produce independent signal responses.
  2. 2. Animal trap system (10), according to claim 1, CHARACTERIZED in that one or both of the accelerometer sensors (12, 35) measure acceleration on one or more axes of the sensor such that, when the acceleration exceeds a predefined acceleration threshold value, the sensor is adapted to provide a motion signal, causing the signaling unit (30) to transmit a signal to an off-site receiver (34).
  3. 3. Animal trapping system (10), according to claim 1 or 2, CHARACTERIZED in that one or both of the accelerometer sensors (12, 35) are two- or three-axis accelerometers.
  4. 4. Animal trap system (10), according to claim 1, CHARACTERIZED in that the independent signal responses of any accelerometer sensor (12, 35) allow differential signal analyses.
  5. 5. Animal trapping system (10), according to claim 4, CHARACTERIZED in that differential signal analyses can be used to indicate parameters such as capture signals, movement signals, false positives and/or the type of animal captured.
  6. 6. Animal trapping system (10), according to any one of claims 1 to 5, CHARACTERIZED in that the animal trapping system (10) further comprises a processing unit configured to receive independent signal responses from any accelerometer sensor (12, 35) via the off-site receiver and, wherein the processing unit is further configured to perform differential signal analysis.
  7. 7. Animal trapping system (10), according to claim 6, CHARACTERIZED in that the animal trapping system further comprises an output unit.
  8. 8. Animal trap system (10), according to claim 7, CHARACTERIZED in that the processing unit is configured to perform a differential signal analysis to identify a non-capture event when a motion signal is created by both the accelerometer in the animal trap sensor (12) and the accelerometer in the signaling unit (35) within 10 seconds of each other and in which the output unit is configured to emit the non-capture event.
  9. 9. Animal trap system (10), according to claim 7, CHARACTERIZED in that the processing unit is configured to perform a differential signal analysis to identify a capture event when a motion signal is created by the accelerometer in the animal trap sensor (12) only and in that the output unit is configured to output the capture event.
  10. 10. Method for monitoring an animal trap system (10) CHARACTERIZED in that it comprises: providing an animal trap system (10) as defined in any of claims 1 to 9, setting the animal trap sensor (12) to a predefined acceleration threshold value, setting the accelerometer of the signaling unit (35) to a predefined acceleration threshold value, upon acceleration reaching the predefined threshold value of the animal trap sensor (12) and/or the accelerometer sensor of the signaling unit (35), creating one or more motion signals, transmitting the signal to an off-site receiver, and upon receiving one or more motion signals from the accelerometer in the animal trap sensor (12) and/or the accelerometer in the signaling unit (35), performing a differential signal analysis to identify a result.
  11. 11. Method according to claim 10, CHARACTERIZED in that differential signal analysis provides a non-capture event when a motion signal is created by both the accelerometer in the animal trap sensor (12) and the accelerometer in the signaling unit within 10 seconds of each other.
  12. 12. Method according to claim 10, CHARACTERIZED in that differential signal analyses provide a capture event when a motion signal is provided by the accelerometer only on the animal trap sensor (12).
  13. 13. A method, according to any one of claims 10 to 12, characterized in that the result of the differential signal analyses is shown to a user.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED REQUESTS [001] This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. Serial 62/798.538, filed January 30, 2019, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety. BASIS OF THE INVENTION Field of Invention [002] The invention relates generally to the field of animal trap systems. More specifically, the invention relates to animal trap detection systems that include an adhesive plate. The present application also relates to wireless event reporting and, more particularly, to wireless animal trap status reporting. Previous Technique [003] Animal traps have been used for years, and most of these devices use an adhesive board, spring load, or live trap device. Animal traps are often placed in many locations and can also be moved as needed. While these devices may be suitable for locations that are easy to monitor, they are not suitable for remote locations that are difficult to monitor. One problem with these conventional traps is that they are often placed, for example, in the attic of a house, and there is no easy way to know when the traps are activated other than by visual inspection. Another problem with standard adhesive board and spring traps is that animals are often left for long periods of time to the point of beginning to decompose, attracting even more animals. [004] In addition, an individual must normally remember where each trap was placed and frequently check the traps visually to see if they have captured animals. The task of checking traps becomes even more critical in certain sensitive establishments (e.g., commercial food) or for wildlife (e.g., raccoon, squirrels, nut species), where current laws invoke penalties if an animal remains trapped for too long in a period of time. [005] To date, animal trap activation detection systems have been able to provide basic on/off alert information for users with very limited and narrow applications. Examples include a spring-loaded trap that emits a local audio signal when activated. While this attempts to solve the problem of alerting that a remote trap has been activated, it does not solve the fundamental problem if the trap is a considerable distance from the trap user. Furthermore, the battery-operated audio device has the disadvantage of causing the battery to run out. Another type of alert system uses sophisticated and expensive detection techniques, such as infrared or motion sensors, which alert the trap user as soon as trap activation is detected. Still other alert systems use various imaging systems to report the presence of an animal in a trap; however, digital image transmission has high bandwidth and power demands. The cost and sophistication of these devices may limit their use in a high-volume, low-technology field such as pest control. In general, these previous approaches are very expensive, very sophisticated, and have a limited scope of application. [006] US patent 2013/0342344 describes an animal trap system that uses a single digital accelerometer to provide an alert if an animal trap has moved, which may indicate an animal has been captured, whereby a wireless signal is then sent to an off-site, non-dedicated receiver. [007] US patent 2004/0020100 describes an alert system in which a battery-operated wireless radio frequency (RF) sensor/transmitter is incorporated with traps, such as live traps and spring traps, together with a receiver configured to receive signals from the wireless RF transmitter. [008] U.S. Patent No. 9,380,775 describes a device powered by a long-life battery for monitoring and communicating the status of worm or pest traps. After an alarm is triggered, the device transmits a wireless communication to a server, which interprets the communication to determine the nature and origin of the alarm and sends the communication to a user. [009] U.S. Patent No. 8,418,396 describes a cruelty-free animal trap with a trigger circuit coupled to an electronic sensor. The trigger circuit includes a detection circuit to determine the presence of an animal inside the trap. A wireless warning circuit can be coupled to the detector circuit to provide remote signaling from an alarm unit when the animal trap has been triggered. [010] U.S. Patent No. 6,775,946 describes wireless transmitters in association with each of a plurality of animal traps and a central display unit, which receives signals from the traps and displays indications of the trap's state. When an animal bites the bait and triggers the trap, the moving part of the trap moves to catch the animal. The sensor will detect the movement of the moving part, and when the controller reads the sensor next, a signal will be sent to the display unit to reflect the change of state. [011] There remains a need for a detection system that uses simple and economical detection technology, with minimal bandwidth and energy demands that are well suited to high-volume, low-cost fields, such as pest control, and allo