SMART LITTER DEVICE WITH ENTRY BARRIER

1 . A litter device comprising:

a) a chamber having an entry opening and configured to hold litter and to allow an animal to enter and excrete a waste;

b) a waste receptacle in communication with the chamber and configured to receive the waste;

c) a bezel encircling about the entry opening;

an entry barrier located adjacent to and/or within the entry opening which is configured to open and close;

wherein the chamber is configured to rotate about an axis of rotation for a cleaning cycle to be executed; and

wherein the axis of rotation extends through the entry opening.

2 . The litter device of claim 1 , wherein the entry barrier is configured to automatically open to expose the entry opening, configured to automatically close to at least partially cover the entry opening, or both based upon one or more conditions; and

wherein the entry barrier is in communication with one or more sensors, controllers, or both of the litter device and which are configured to sense the one or more conditions.

3 . The litter device of claim 2 , wherein the one or more conditions include an absence and/or a presence of an animal within proximity of the litter device, initiation and/or ending of the cleaning cycle, the presence of one or more litter conditions within the litter device, or any combination thereof.

4 . The litter device of claim 2 , wherein the one or more conditions include one or more animals entering a sensing field, leaving a sensing field, one or more identification tags entering a sensing field, one or more identification tags leaving the sensing field, or a combination there.

5 . The litter device of claim 2 , wherein the one or more conditions include a predetermined amount of time; and

wherein the predetermined amount of time is an amount of time elapsed after an animal has exited the chamber, an amount of time prior to the cleaning cycle being initiated, an amount of time after the cleaning cycle has ended, or any combination thereof.

6 . The litter device of claim 1 , wherein the entry barrier includes one or more rotating doors, one or more iris openings, one or more folding doors, one or more sliding doors, one or more swing doors, or any combination thereof.

7 - 9 . (canceled)

10 . The litter device of claim 1 , wherein the entry barrier includes one or more entry barrier portions; and

wherein at least one of the one or more entry barrier portions is rotatable such as to place the entry barrier in a closed position, open position, or both.

11 . The litter device of claim 10 , wherein the one or more entry barrier portions include a first barrier portion and a second barrier portion.

12 . The litter device of claim 11 , wherein the first barrier portion remains fixed relative to a frame, the bezel, a bonnet, a base, or any combination thereof.

13 . The litter device of claim 12 , wherein the second barrier portion is rotatable relative to the first barrier portion, the frame, the bezel, the bonnet, the base, or any combination thereof.

14 . The litter device of claim 13 , wherein the second barrier portion rotates about a rotational axis into the closed position, the open position, or both while first barrier portion remains fixed.

15 . The litter device of claim 10 , wherein at least one of the one or more entry barrier portions have a cross-sectional shape which is reciprocal with at least a portion of a cross-section shape of the entry opening, a bezel, or both.

16 - 22 . (canceled)

23 . The litter device of claim 1 , wherein the entry barrier includes one or more frames which affix the entry barrier to a portion of the litter device.

24 . The litter device of claim 23 , wherein the one or more frames are affixed to the bezel, a bonnet, a base, the chamber, or any combination thereof.

25 . (canceled)

26 . The litter device of claim 23 , wherein the one or more frames are affixed to the bezel located about the entry opening.

27 . The litter device of claim 23 , wherein the one or more frames are removably affixed, semi-permanently affixed, and/or permanently affixed to the bezel.

28 . The litter device of claim 27 , wherein the one or more frames are removably affixed to the bezel via an interference fit, a snap fit, or both.

29 - 30 . (canceled)

31 . The litter device of claim 23 , wherein the one or more frames have a shape substantially reciprocal to a shape of the entry opening, the bezel, or both.

32 - 35 . (canceled)

36 . The litter device of claim 1 , wherein the litter device includes one or more identification sensors configured to sense the one or more identification tags within a proximity of the litter device.

37 - 43 . (canceled)

44 . The litter device of claim 1 , wherein the litter device includes one or more controllers, one or more communication modules, or both.

45 . The litter device of claim 44 , wherein the litter device is integrated into a network.

46 . The litter device of claim 45 , wherein the network includes a smart home system.

47 - 51 . (canceled)

52 . The litter device of claim 1 , wherein the litter device includes one or more image sensors.

53 - 62 . (canceled)

63 . The litter device of claim 1 , wherein the litter device includes a base which supports the chamber; and

wherein the waste receptacle is located below the chamber.

64 . (canceled)