Bird control arrangement

Abstract

An anti-bird assembly for the prevention of landing of birds on the ledge of a building comprising a plurality of spaced apart brackets. Each bracket comprises a base flange for attachment of the assembly to a building. A frame portion is connected to the base flange, and an arrangement of arms are connected to the frame portion, each of the arms having a distal end with a wire attachment node thereon. A wire is arranged between corresponding wire attachment nodes of corresponding arms on adjacent spaced apart brackets to effect prevention of birds landing between spaced apart brackets on the building.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0001] 1. Field of the Invention

[0002] This invention relates to anti-bird frame assemblies which are attachable to the ledges of buildings for the purpose of preventing birds from landing and nesting thereon.

[0003] 2. Prior Art

[0004] The problems of birds sitting or nesting on buildings has been around for centuries. The upper ridges or ledges of a building provide and ideal safe location for birds to enjoy. Birds, being very gregarious will often roost on buildings in large numbers. These birds may typically be pigeons, starlings, sparrows, or finches. These birds leave behind bird guano (a.k.a. droppings). These droppings deface the stone and metal of the building, because of the acidity in that guano. This will cause permanent damage to the substrata of a building.

[0005] Anti bird arrangements have also included nets which may be arranged around the ledges or corners of the upper portions of those buildings. Other arrangements for such anti-bird devices include an array of spikes or posts of needle-like sharpness. Often devices like this might injure the birds, impale them and such devices require a high number of securement locations by which those devices are attached to the building. Such devices are often unsightly themselves. Also, by increasing the number of attachment locations on a given building, such attachment mechanisms may be dangerous to the buildings as well.

[0006] It is an object of the present invention, to provide a humane anti-bird apparatus which overcomes the disadvantages of the prior art.

[0007] It is a further object of the present invention to provide a simple easy to install assembly for buildings which will prevent the landing of birds thereon.

[0008] It is yet a further object of the present invention to provide an arrangement for keeping birds from buildings which arrangement is not readily viewable by anyone other than the birds.

[0009] It is still yet a further object of the present invention to provide an anti-bird system with a certain degree of resilience and flexure which will not harm the birds yet will provide landing discouragement to anyone of a variety of types of birds.

[0010] It is still yet a further object of the present invention which minimizes its deleterious impact on the building to which it is attached.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0011] The present invention relates to an anti-bird landing assembly which is attachable to, for example, the ledge of a structure such as for example, a building, a bridge or a monument, so as to prevent birds from landing or roosting thereon. The bird landing prevention assembly comprises a plurality of support brackets which are to be attached in a spaced apart manner to the upper surface of a ledge or the like of a building. Each support bracket comprises a generally horizontally disposed based flange. A unitary upright frame portion is arranged perpendicular to the base flange. The upright frame portion of the support bracket comprises an elongated middle arm which is in alignment with and is perpendicular to the base flange. The upright frame of the support bracket has an elongated first arm extending thereon having a longitudinal axis which is arranged at about a 45 degree angle from the longitudinal axis of the elongated middle arm. The upright frame of the support bracket has a second arm arranged opposite side of the middle arm from the first arm, and has a longitudinal axis which is also arranged in an angle of about 45 degrees with respect to the longitudinal axis of the middle arm.

[0012] The first arm has a distal end having a wire attachment node spaced thereon. The middle arm has a distal end with a wire attachment node thereon. The second arm has a distal end with a wire attachment node thereon. The wire attachment node of the first arm and the wire attachment node of the middle arm are spaced about one half to one inch apart along the longitudinal (vertical) axis of the middle arm. The same vertical spaced apart relationship exists for the wire attachment node of the second arm and the wire attachment node of the middle arm.

[0013] The wire attachment node of the first arm and the wire attachment node of the middle arm have a horizontal separation of about two and one half to three inches therebetween. The spaced apart arrangement of the wire attachment nodes of each respective arm is important so as to prevent entry by birds if those wire attachment nodes were too far apart in as much as wires are strung between corresponding arms of spaced apart support brackets arranged on the ledge of a building. If the wires are too close together, a pigeon for example, could sit on those wires or straddle it. If they were too far apart, a bird could merely get through the adjacent wires strung between adjacent support brackets.

[0014] In one preferred embodiment of the present invention, the respective wire attachment nodes are merely holes through which a flexible filament or wire may be passed or attached. In the attachment arrangement, a small coiled spring may be secured to the attachment node to give its respective wire therewith a certain uniform tension. Each respective elongated first arm, elongated middle arm or elongated second arm are formed of thin material which may have a certain slight flexibility to provide a certain yielding to the wires when a bird strikes there against. The base flange has several openings through which attachment means may be secured to the building.

[0015] The securement openings are arranged in perpendicular alignment to the plane of the support bracket so as to maximize the ability of the support bracket to stay attached to the building even after numerous "landings" by birds on the wire. If the securement openings were arranged parallel to the plane of the support bracket those openings would be more likely to cause damage to the building by being too close to the edge of a ledge, and not provide resistance to back and forth rocking of the frame assembly and thus and come loose more easily.

[0016] The invention thus comprises an anti-bird assembly for the prevention of landing of birds on the ledge of a building comprising a plurality of spaced apart brackets. Each bracket preferably comprises a base flange for attachment of the assembly to a building, a frame portion connected to the base flange, and an arrangement of arms connected to the frame portion, each of the arms having a distal end with a wire attachment node thereon, and a wire arranged between corresponding wire attachment nodes of corresponding arms on adjacent spaced apart brackets.

[0017] The arms may include a first arm, a second arm and a middle arm. The first arm, the middle arm and the second arm each have a longitudinal axis, the first arm and the second arm are separated by an angle of about 90 to about 120 degrees between one another. The middle arm is spaced apart from both the first and second arms by an angle of about 45 degrees to about 60 degrees. The spaced-apart angle is preferably the same for both the first and second arms with respect to the middle arm. The wire attachment node of the middle arm is preferably spaced a vertical distance away from the base flange of about 1/2 to 1 inch further apart from the wire attachment node of the first arm. The wire attachment node of the middle arm is preferably spaced a horizontal distance away from the wire attachment node of the first arm by a distance of about 2 and 1/2 inches to 3 inches. The base flange has at least two spaced apart openings and preferably three therein for easier securement of the bracket to spaced apart mortar joints or the like, in any building ledge, at least two of the spaced apart openings in the bracket being in perpendicular alignment with the frame portion. The preferred triangular pattern of the openings in the base flange prevents twisting of the bracket when the arms and their connecting wires are tensioned and that pattern allows single fix attachment when wires are attached immediately between adjacent brackets. Fewer location points for the attachment process results in fewer penetration points in the building's substrata. At least one of the brackets preferably has an arm with a spring secured to the wire connected to an arm thereof.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0018] The objects and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent when viewed in conjunction with the following drawings in which:

[0019] FIG. 1 is a side elevational view of the bird landing prevention support bracket of the present invention shown attached to a portion of a ledge of a building;

[0020] FIG. 2 is a side elevational view of the support bracket shown in FIG. 1;

[0021] FIG. 3 is a plan view of the support bracket shown in FIG. 1;

[0022] FIG. 3A is a plan view of a further embodiment of the support bracket shown in FIG. 3; and

[0023] FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a plurality of bird landing prevention support bracket shown attached to a ledge of a building.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0024] Referring now to the drawings in detail, and particularly to FIG. 1, there is shown the present invention which comprises an anti-bird landing assembly 10 which is attachable to, for example, the ledge 12 of a structure such as for example, a building so as to prevent birds from landing or roosting thereon. The bird landing prevention assembly 10 comprises a plurality of support brackets 14, one bracket 14 being shown in FIG. 1, which are to be attached in a spaced-apart manner to the upper surface of a ledge 12 or the like of a building, as also represented in FIG. 4. Each support bracket 14 comprises a generally horizontally disposed base flange 16. A unitary upright frame portion 18 is arranged perpendicular to the base flange 16.

[0025] The upright frame portion 18 of the support bracket 14 comprises an elongated middle arm 20 which is in central alignment with and is perpendicular to the base flange 16. The upright frame portion 18 of the support bracket 14 also has an elongated first arm 22 extending thereon having a longitudinal axis L1 which is arranged at an angle "A" in a range of for example, about a 45 degree to a 60 degree angle from the longitudinal axis LM of the elongated middle arm 20. The upright frame portion 18 of the support bracket 14 has a second arm 24 arranged opposite side of the middle arm 20 from the first arm 22, and has a longitudinal axis L2 which is also arranged at an angle "B" in a range for example, of about a 45 degree angle to about a 60 degree angle with respect to the longitudinal axis LM of the middle arm 20. Angle "A" and angle "B" preferably have the same number of degrees in one preferred embodiment.

[0026] The first arm 22 has a distal end 26 having a wire attachment node 28 spaced thereon. The middle arm 20 has a distal end 30 with a wire attachment node 32 thereon. The second arm 24 has a distal end 34 with a wire attachment node 36 thereon. The wire attachment node 28 of the first arm 22 and the wire attachment node 32 of the middle arm 20 are spaced apart a distance "d" about one half to one inches apart along the longitudinal axis LM of the middle arm 20. The same vertically spaced-apart relationship exists for the wire attachment node 36 of the second arm 24 and the wire attachment node 32 of the middle arm 20. The wires may for example, be attached or may merely pass through the respective "attachment" nodes.

[0027] The wire attachment node 28 of the first arm 22 and the wire attachment node 32 of the middle arm 20 have a horizontal separation "h" of about two and one half to three inches therebetween. The spaced-apart arrangement of the wire attachment nodes 28, 32 and 36 of each respective arm 22, 29 and 24 is important so as to prevent entry by birds if those wire attachment nodes 28, 32 and 36 were too far apart in as much as wires 40 are strung between corresponding arms of spaced-apart support brackets 14 arranged on the ledge 12 of a building, as represented in FIG. 4. If the wires are too close together, a pigeon for example, could sit on those wires or straddle it. If they were too far apart, a bird could merely get through the adjacent wires 40 strung between adjacent support brackets 14.

[0028] In one preferred embodiment of the present invention, the respective wire attachment nodes 28, 32 and 36 are merely holes through which a flexible filament or wire 40 may be passed or attached. In the attachment arrangement, a small coiled spring 42 may be secured to the attachment node 28, 32 and 36, as represented in FIG. 4, to give its respective wire 40 therewith a certain uniform tension. Each respective elongated first arm 22, elongated middle arm 20 or elongated second arm 24 are formed of thin material such as for example, thin stainless steel, which may have a certain slight flexibility to provide a certain yielding to the wires 40 when a bird strikes thereagainst. The base flange 16 has several openings 48 through which an attachment means may be secured to the building.

[0029] The securement openings 48 are arranged horizontally in perpendicular alignment to the plane of the support bracket 14, in base flange 16, as represented in FIG. 3 so as to maximize the ability of the support bracket 14 to stay attached to the building even after numerous "landing attempts" by birds on the wire. If the securement openings 48 were arranged parallel to the plane of the support bracket those openings would be more likely to cause damage to the building by being too close to the edge of a ledge, and not provide resistance to back and forth rocking of the frame assembly and thus and come loose more easily. The holes 48, preferably three in number, permit easier attachment to joints in the building. Having to drill spaced apart holes in the building may damage the building because of stress and fractures therein. The base flange 16 is shown with a triangular array of openings 48, as a further preferred alternative spacing embodiment in FIG. 3A, to permit greater attachment options in the securement of the bracket 14 to the ledge of a building, particularly in mortar and/or cracks between sections thereof.

[0030] The invention thus comprises a unique arrangement for discouraging birds to land on a ledge of a building. The brackets of the present invention are spaced apart far enough to minimize the number of holes or securement means needed to be drilled or otherwise secured to a side/ledge with the assembly 10 to a building. The wires connecting adjacent brackets are spaced apart a proper distance, both vertically and horizontally to prevent straddling or nesting of any birds therein.

Claims

I claim:

1. An anti-bird assembly for the prevention of landing of birds on the ledge of a building comprising a plurality of spaced apart brackets, each bracket comprising: a base flange for attachment of said assembly to a building; a frame portion connected to said base flange; and an arrangement of arms connected to said frame portion, each of said arms having a distal end with a wire attachment node thereon; and a wire arranged between corresponding wire attachment nodes of corresponding arms on adjacent spaced apart brackets.

2. The anti-bird assembly as recited in claim 1, wherein said arms include a first arm, a second arm and a middle arm.

3. The anti-bird assembly as recited in claim 2, wherein said first arm, said second arm and said middle arm each have a longitudinal axis, said longitudinal axis of first arm and said second arm having a spaced apart angle range of about 90 to 120 degrees between one another.

4. The anti-bird assembly as recited in claim 3, wherein said longitudinal axis of first arm and said second arm are spaced apart by an angle of about 90 degrees.

5. The anti-bird assembly as recited in claim 1, wherein said wire attachment node of said middle arm is spaced a vertical distance away from said base flange of about 1/2 to 1 inch further apart from said wire attachment node of said first arm.

6. The anti-bird assembly as recited in claim 1, wherein said wire attachment node of said middle arm is spaced a horizontal distance away from said wire attachment node of said first arm by a distance of about 2 and 1/2 inches to 3 inches.

7. The anti-bird assembly as recited in claim 1, wherein said base flange has at least two spaced apart openings therein, said spaced apart openings being in perpendicular alignment with said frame portion.

8. The anti-bird assembly as recited in claim 1, wherein at least one of said brackets has an arm with a spring secured to said wire connected to an arm thereof.

9. The anti-bird assembly as recited in claim 1, wherein said base flange has a triangular array of securement openings therein to optimize the attachment options of said assembly to a building while still maintaining simplicity and building integrity.