Pet fountain with basin-straddling cover

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9826712-B2
Application number	US-201514666551-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Mar 24, 2015
Priority date	May 29, 2009
Publication date	Nov 28, 2017
Grant date	Nov 28, 2017

Abstract

A pet fountain assembly that includes a cover with a drinking bowl formed therein that straddles a sidewall of a basin that can be user-provided enclosing a pump within a pumping chamber defined therebetween. The cover has a downwardly extending sidewall divided by openings that can be generally U-shaped or V-shaped into a plurality of supports on which the cover. In a preferred embodiment, one of the supports is disposed outboard the basin sidewall resting on the ground and another one of the supports is disposed inboard the basin sidewall resting on a bottom of the basin providing a water passage enabling water from the basin to reach the pump. The inboard support can provide an overflow spillway as well as define a shroud disposed between the pump and water in a lower drinking bowl of the basin. The basin can include an outwardly offset seat that locates the pump.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A pet fountain assembly comprising:
a water-holding basin having a bottom and an upwardly extending sidewall;
a cover straddling the basin sidewall, the cover comprising a plurality of spaced apart and generally downwardly extending supports with one of the supports comprising an inboard support disposed in the basin and another one of the supports comprising an outboard support disposed outside the basin; and
a pump in fluid flow communication with the cover, the pump in water flow communication with the basin; and
wherein the cover has a water-holding portion with at least part of the water-holding portion disposed outwardly of the basin.

2. The pet fountain assembly of claim 1 , wherein the water-holding portion of the cover comprises an open drinking bowl with at least a portion of the open drinking bowl disposed outwardly of the basin.

3. The pet fountain assembly of claim 1 , wherein the pump is carried by the cover.

4. The pet fountain assembly of claim 3 , wherein the pump is disposed in the basin.

5. The pet fountain assembly of claim 1 , wherein the cover has a downwardly extending sidewall with a plurality of spaced apart basin sidewall receiving openings formed in the cover sidewall, and wherein a respective portion of the basin sidewall is received in a corresponding one of the basin sidewall receiving openings when the cover is assembled straddling the basin sidewall.

6. The pet fountain assembly of claim 5 , wherein the pump is disposed underneath the cover.

7. The pet fountain assembly of claim 6 , wherein the pump is disposed in the basin.

8. The pet fountain assembly of claim 7 , wherein at least one of the basin sidewall receiving openings formed in the cover sidewall is defined by a side edge disposed inboard of the basin sidewall that is spaced from the basin sidewall defining a water flow passage therebetween that enables water in the basin to flow through the water flow passage underneath the cover.

9. The pet fountain assembly of claim 8 , wherein the at least part of the water-holding portion of the cover is disposed outwardly of the basin sidewall.

10. The pet fountain assembly of claim 5 , wherein each one of the basin sidewall receiving openings comprises an upside down generally V-shaped or generally U-shaped basin sidewall receiving opening.

11. The pet fountain assembly of claim 5 , wherein the water-holding portion of the cover is open, wherein at least one of the inboard and outboard supports is formed of part of the cover sidewall, and wherein the cover sidewall comprises a spillway down which water from the water-holding portion flows into the basin.

12. The pet fountain assembly of claim 1 , wherein at least one of the cover supports is formed by downwardly extending sidewall of the cover comprised of at least one upside down generally V-shaped or generally U-shaped basin sidewall receiving opening formed of a pair of converging basin opening defining side edges with one of the basin opening defining side edges extending along at least a portion of an exterior side of the basin sidewall and the other one of the basin opening defining side edges extending along at least a portion of an interior side of the basin sidewall.

13. The pet fountain assembly of claim 12 , wherein the pump is carried by the cover and underlies the cover.

14. The pet fountain assembly of claim 13 , wherein the pump is disposed in the basin, and wherein the water-holding portion comprises an open drinking bowl.

15. The pet fountain assembly of claim 14 , wherein the at least part of the water-holding portion of the cover is disposed outwardly of the basin sidewall.

16. The pet fountain assembly of claim 1 , wherein the cover has a sidewall and wherein each one of the cover supports is formed of a portion of the cover sidewall with the inboard support resting on the bottom of the basin.

17. A pet fountain assembly comprising:
a water-holding basin having a bottom and an upwardly extending sidewall;
a cover having a plurality of downwardly extending supports with one of the supports extending along at least a portion of an interior side of the basin sidewall and another one of the supports extending along at least a portion of an exterior side of the basin sidewall; and
a pump in water flow communication with the basin and the cover; and
wherein the cover has a water-holding portion with at least part of the water-holding portion disposed outwardly of the basin sidewall.

18. The pet fountain assembly of claim 17 , wherein the cover has a downwardly extending sidewall with a plurality of spaced apart basin sidewall receiving openings formed in the cover sidewall, and wherein respective adjacent portions of the basin sidewall are received in a corresponding one of the basin sidewall receiving openings such that one portion of the cover sidewall that extends along at least a portion of the interior side of the basin sidewall and comprises the one of the cover supports, and another portion of the cover sidewall that extends along at least a portion of the exterior side of the basin sidewall and comprises the another one of the cover supports.

19. The pet fountain assembly of claim 18 , wherein at least one of the basin sidewall receiving openings is defined by a side edge disposed inboard of the basin sidewall, the inboard side edge spaced from the basin sidewall defining a water flow passage therebetween that enables water in the basin to flow underneath the cover.

20. The pet fountain assembly of claim 18 , wherein each one of the basin sidewall receiving openings is comprised of an upside down generally V-shaped or generally U-shaped basin sidewall receiving notch formed in the cover sidewall.

21. The pet fountain assembly of claim 17 , wherein the pump is disposed in the basin.

22. The pet fountain assembly of claim 17 , wherein the one of the supports comprises a spillway down which water from the water-holding portion of the cover flows into the basin.

23. The pet fountain assembly of claim 17 , wherein the one of the supports extends downwardly alongside an interior side of the basin sidewall until a free end of the one of the supports rests on the basin bottom.

24. The pet fountain assembly of claim 17 , wherein the another one of the supports extends downwardly alongside an exterior side of the basin sidewall until a free end of the another one of the supports rests on a portion of the ground or floor.

25. The pet fountain assembly of claim 17 , wherein the one of the supports extends downwardly alongside an interior side of the basin sidewall to adjacent the basin bottom, and the another one of the supports extends downwardly alongside an exterior side of the basin sidewall to adjacent a portion of the ground or floor upon which the basin rests.

26. The pet fountain assembly of claim 25 , wherein the cover has a downwardly extending sidewall from which the plurality of downwardly extending supports are formed.

27. The pet fountain assembly of claim 26 , wherein the cover has a generally recessed open bowl formed in a top surface of the cover that comprises the water-holding portion of the cover, and wherein the pump is removably coupled to the cover.

28. A pet fountain assembly comprising:
a water-holding basin having an upwardly extending sidewall;
a cover comprising a water-holding portion disposing water outwardly of the b

Assignees

• Pioneer Pet Products Llc

Inventors

• Lipscomb John M
• He Qing

Classifications

• A01K45/002

  Bird baths or showers · CPC title

• A01K7/02 Primary

  Automatic devices · CPC title