Collapsible animal enclosure
View Patent ↗An animal enclosure and method of collapsing the enclosure is disclosed. The enclosure is fabricated from a plurality of panels. One or more first panels have elongate rods whose end portions are formed into a hook. An edge rod of an adjacent second panel is disposed within the hooked end portion of the first panel. By offsetting the hooked end portion of the first panel from the plane within which the first panel resides, the first and second panels to be stacked upon each other by pivoting the second panel onto the first panel.
1. A collapsible enclosure for containing an animal, the enclosure comprising:
a top panel having front, rear, left and right rods;
a bottom panel disposed below the top panel when the collapsible enclosure is, in an erected position, the bottom panel having front, rear, left and right rods;
a front panel pivotally attached to the front rod of the bottom panel and removably attachable to the front rod of the top panel;
a rear panel pivotally attached to the rear rod of the bottom panel and removably attachable to the rear rod of the top panel;
a left panel pivotally attached to the left rods of the top and bottom panels, the left panel having a plurality of vertical rods, each of the vertical rods of the left panel defining opposed end portions that are wrapped around the left rods of the top and bottom panels in a hook configuration for pivotally attaching the left panel to the left rods of the top and bottom panels, the opposed end portions of the vertical rods of the left panel are wrapped in a common direction to the left rods of the top and bottom panels;
a right panel pivotally attached to the right rods of the top and bottom panels, the right panel having a plurality of vertical rods, each of the vertical rods of the right panel defining opposed end portions that are wrapped around the right rods of the top and bottom panels in the hook configuration for pivotally attaching the right panel to the right rods of the top and bottom panel, the upper end portions of the vertical rods of the right panel are wrapped in different directions to the left rods of the top and bottom panels;
wherein hook configuration of the opposed end portions of the vertical rods of the left and right panels place the left and right panels in a plane offset from pivot axes defined by the hook configured opposed end portions of the vertical rods of the left and right panels, and the left and right panels and the top panel are pivotably stacked and placed in a parallel configuration on top of the bottom panel for collapsing the enclosure.
2. The enclosure of claim 1 wherein the common direction is outward so that the hook configured opposed end portions of the vertical rods of the left panel are directed outward, and the left panel is in a plane offset inward from the pivot axes of the hook configured opposed end portions of the vertical rods of the left panel.
3. The enclosure of claim 1 wherein the different directions are outward and inward, the hook configured upper end portions of the vertical rods of the right panel are directed inward, the hook configured lower end portions of the vertical rods of the right panel are directed outward.
4. The enclosure of claim 1 wherein the right rod of the bottom panel is vertically offset from a plane of the bottom panel an equal distance compared to the left rod of the bottom panel.
5. The enclosure of claim 1 wherein the hook configured lower end portions of the vertical rods of the right panel are directed outward.
6. The enclosure of claim 1 wherein each of the panels is fabricated from a plurality of rods perpendicular to each other.
7. The enclosure of claim 1 wherein a single left rod of the top panel is enclosed within the hook configured upper end portions of the left panel, and a single right rod of the top panel is enclosed within the hook configured upper end portions of the right panel.