Natural Scent Storage System
A storage cabinet for disguising a hunter's gear with a natural, outdoor scent. The device is an upright locker with a hinged door and a plurality of hooks and shelves for storing hunting clothing and gear. A removable scent tray is provided under a lowermost shelf. The tray holds natural items, such as leaves, twigs, dirt and other outdoor odorous material that have been provided to cloak a user's garments in a natural scent for disguising the user's presence in the wild. The tray and its contents are easily removed and dumped once depleted of their natural scent. Storing hunting gear in the locker for prolonged periods allows the gear to soak up a natural scent from the items below. The hunter or outdoorsman then dons the naturally scented apparel to conceal any unnatural or noticeable odors, allowing the user to blend into the natural environment of a prey habitat.
This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/430,779 filed on Jan. 7, 2011, entitled “Natural Scent Storage System.”
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of hunting and focuses on a means for removing human scent from articles of hunting gear and equipment that are used during the hunting of game animals. More specifically, the present invent aims to reduce the amount of human scent harbored in a hunter's clothing and gear by exposing and permeating the hunter's clothing and gear with scents from natural items such as dirt, leaves, branches, twigs, moss and bark.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Hunting is a very popular outdoor activity. Large game animals, in particular, provide a unique challenge to a hunter because these animals tend to have an exceptional sense of smell, enabling them to detect the scent of a human from great distances. Early detection of humans provides the animal with a chance to flee before the hunter ever even sees the animal. In addition to human scent, animals can detect other unnatural scents that are associated with humans. Laundry detergents, soaps, shaving creams, deodorants and other products commonly used by humans can be detected and warn the animal of the hunter's presence. Hunters often take care to avoid using such products prior to a hunt, or use substitute products that are designed to be unscented or naturally scented so that the hunter will better blend in with the other scents in the hunting environment and natural habitat of the prey animal.
There are several traditional practices for avoiding detection via scent by large game animals during a hunt. These techniques have been employed for many years by hunters. For example, a primary means of avoiding detection involves perching in a tree stand far above the ground to wait for an animal to wander within shooting range. The elevated position moves the hunter's scent above ground level, reducing his scent signature as the scent is carried in the wind above the nose level of a prey animal. However, this means of hunting is often uncomfortable and undesirable, as one must stay perched in a tree for extended periods of time waiting for an animal to wander within range. Furthermore, many hunters enjoy the act of stalking or following their prey, which cannot be accomplished when confined to the heights of a tree stand. Another traditional means of avoiding detection by large game animals involves the hunter taking care to stay “downwind” of the hunted animal. Remaining downwind requires maneuvering in a way as to keep the breeze blowing the hunter's scent in a direction that is away from the animal, thus evading detection. The fickle nature of the changing direction of the wind makes staying successfully downwind a challenge and sometimes ineffective means of concealing scent.
Other means for concealing a hunter's scent also exist in the art and are available in the market. For example, there are many commercially available sprays designed to reduce or eliminate the human scent from the clothing and equipment of an individual. A hunter must apply the spray over his or her entire body, making sure to apply it evenly and thoroughly on the hunter's body just prior to embarking on the hunt because the spray can wear off with time. Sprays can be expensive and inconvenient, as they require repeat application and a manual process for applying the scent. Furthermore, some sprays can be dangerous to inhale, or may cause skin or eye irritation upon application.
Another way to camouflage human scent involves exposing articles of clothing and hunting gear to natural, woodsy scents, allowing the natural scents to permeate and impregnate the hunting gear. This is a cheap, convenient alternative to high cost sprays and is easier to do than engaging in hunting techniques for avoiding detection. Exposing the gear over night or over a prescribed period to natural materials is an effective means for reducing the human scent associated with the hunting gear. The present invention provides a convenient and easy to use storage cabinet for disguising a hunter's clothing and gear with natural, outdoor scent that allows the gear to blend in with a natural environment and remove any unwanted human or unnatural scents. The device is a locker capable of being sealed and features a multitude of hooks and shelving for storing hunting items and gear. Located at the base of the device, under the lowermost shelf, is a removable scent tray, which holds natural items such as leaves, twigs and dirt that have been collected from a hunting site. The tray rests under a shelf at the base of the device such that the hunting articles contained within the locker do not come into direct contact with the natural materials. The lowermost shelf is vented to allow the scent to enter the cabinet interior and engross the hunting gear. The scent tray is made of light weight material such that the tray may be easily removed and its contents dumped out when they have been depleted of natural scent. Storing clothing and hunting equipment in the disclosed cabinet on the various hooks and shelves over a prescribed period allows the clothing to soak up the scent from the natural items that permeate the locker's interior from the tray. The hunter then accesses and dons his freshly scented hunting gear and embarks on his or her hunting expedition, replete with a natural smell and devoid of any unnatural scents that are particularly noticeable to a prey animal.
Several patents and patent applications address the removal of human scent from hunting gear. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,793,881 to Himes describes a transportable trunk with a horizontally hinged lid for the storage of hunting clothing and gear. The device is compartmentalized such that there is a space at the bottom of the trunk, and within the lid of the device for holding woodsy items and also features a space in the middle of the trunk for holding a hunter's garments and equipment. The two compartments for holding the woodsy items are covered with grating having small holes for the purpose of letting the natural scent reach the clothing items without putting the garments and equipment in direct contact with the natural materials, thus not spoiling the garments with dirt and debris. However, natural materials, such as leaves, bark and small twigs, naturally decompose and break down as they dry out. The grating covering the woodsy item storage compartment in the device lid will not prevent small quantities of natural debris from raining down through the grating and onto clothing and equipment that is stored inside the trunk. Furthermore, the natural materials within the grated compartments require frequent changing, refreshing and replenishing because the scent associated with the natural materials will become exhausted over time.
When the natural materials are placed into the compartment located at the bottom of the Himes trunk, they are placed directly on the floor of the trunk and then covered with the grate. To access the natural materials, a hunter must remove all of his or her belongings from the trunk and lift the grate to access the scent providing materials. Furthermore, removal of the natural materials is a complicated endeavor. A hunter could attempt to scoop up a majority of the natural materials from the bottom of the trunk; however, a small quantity of natural debris will remain at the bottom of the trunk. A small whisk broom and dustpan could be used to sweep up the debris. Neither method completely removes the remnants of the natural material from the bottom of the trunk, thus some small amount of old, scent-depleted debris will exist at the bottom of the Himes trunk.
The present invention is an upright standing locker, with a hinged door. The purpose of the present invention is similar to the Himes device in that it is also intended to serve as a human scent reduction device for hunting apparel and gear. Inside the disclosed locker, located at the base of the device, there is an easily removable scent tray for holding natural materials that differs from the Himes device. A hunter opens the locker, slides the scent tray out and places assorted natural materials inside the tray, finally sliding the tray back into its original position. Once the scent has been depleted from the materials, the hunter opens the locker and removes the tray. The tray is made from lightweight materials and is thus easy to turn upside down as to dump the scent-depleted contents out of the tray. The hunter may replenish the scent tray with new, fresh natural materials. Refreshing the natural materials stored in the present invention does not require the disruption of any of the garments and items stored within the locker.
U.S. Patent Application No. 2007/0051722 to Van Zee describes an air-tight, portable enclosure for use storing and removing any undesirable human scent from hunting gear. The device is a tub with handles, having four walls, a bottom and a lid that is completely removable. A platform rests inside the tub, close to the bottom, and features optional boot rods, which are for holding a hunter's boots in place, preventing them from jostling around inside the tub during transport of the device. A hunter places his boots upside down on the boot rods, with the rod inserted into the boot; one boot per rod. Additionally, a hunter rests his or her folded clothing and gear inside the device on the platform. Inside the lid of the device is a holding compartment with a slotted vent. A scent removing material is stored inside the holding compartment and the slotted vent allows for the scents from the articles contained inside the device to filter up through the vent and into the scent removing material. A variety of scent absorbing materials may be stored in the holding compartment, including charcoal, activated carbon or, possibly, baking soda.
The Van Zee device does not introduce natural scents into the hunting gear that it houses. Rather, the device aims only to remove human scents. To accomplish this, the Van Zee device is equipped with a scent absorbing material located in the lid of the device. A common problem associated with scent absorbing materials is that they become saturated and must be either replaced or rejuvenated. The present invention introduces natural scents into hunting clothing and gear. A tray filled with natural materials—such as branches, leaves and pinecones—is located at the bottom of the present invention storage locker. The natural scents filter upward, filling the interior cavity of the locker where a hunter stores his or her hunting apparel and gear. The natural scents permeate the gear, replacing any human scent with a variety of disguising natural smells that are commonly found in the hunting environment. The overall affect of the present invention is a reduction in human scent that is detectible from the hunting garments and gear.
Similar to the Van Zee device is a device described in U.S. Patent Application No. 2007/0251390 to Lombardi. The device described by Lombardi is a sealable, transportable storage chamber lined with activated carbon to absorb scents. The chamber has four sides, a bottom and a removable lid. The chamber also has a check valve, which is capable of attaching to a vacuum pump. Use of the vacuum results in the hermetically sealed chamber by removing some of the air from the interior chamber of the device, putting the contents of the device under reduced pressure that is slightly lower than atmospheric pressure. Hermetically sealing the chambers prevents scents from entering or exiting the chamber. One embodiment of the Lombardi device describes use of the chamber as a storage vehicle for hunting gear and equipment.
A limitation to the Lombardi device, shared by the Van Zee device, is that neither device introduces natural scents into the hunting gear housed within the device. Rather, the device is intended to remove smells from the clothing via activated carbon. A common problem associated with scent absorbing materials, such as activated carbon, is that they become saturated and must be either replaced or rejuvenated. The present invention introduces natural scents into hunting clothing and gear. A scent tray filled with natural materials is located at the bottom of the present invention storage locker. Placing the hunting gear inside the locker and sealing the device over night, allows the natural scents to filter upward from the tray, filling the interior cavity of the locker with natural scents; which permeates the gear. The overall affect of the present invention is a reduction in human scent that is detectible by animals from the hunting garments and gear.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,585,107 to Vickers also describes a storage device that employs the use of activated carbon to eliminate human scents from hunting gear. The Vickers device has an outer, air-impermeable garment bag device that comprises of a lining made of activated carbon sheets for the purpose of removing the associated human scent from hunting clothing and gear. The device is a large, air tight garment bag that has a lining made from a material that is impregnate with activated carbon. Prior to embarking on a hunt for large game animals, an individual hunter places his or her garments and gear inside the device, making sure to tightly secure and seal the device. While inside the device, the garments and equipment are in close proximity to the activated carbon material, such that the activated carbon absorbs any human scent from the clothing and gear. Additionally, once the human scent has been absorbed from the clothing, a hunter dresses him or herself and embarks on a hunting excursion for large game animals without the slightest concern as to being detected by the hunted animal's sense of smell. The Vickers device is recommended for storing garments and equipment overnight in the device to ensure the complete removal of human scent from the items contained there within.
The Vickers device employs the use of activated carbon as a means of drawing human scent out of the hunter's clothing contained within the device and does not introduce natural scents into the hunting gear. Activated carbon has a limited absorption capacity before the carbon becomes saturated with human scent and must be refreshed and rejuvenated. To rejuvenate saturated activated carbon, an individual exposes the carbon to a relatively low temperature heat source. The Vickers patent prescribes placing the activated carbon lining in a home laundry dryer for 10 to 15 minutes to reactive the carbon. This is a time consuming and involved process as the hunter must disassemble the device, place the lining in the dryer, run the dryer for the recommended time and then reassemble the device before use. The present invention requires minimal effort, maintenance or upkeep by the hunter. A hunter fills a scent tray at the bottom of the present invention locker with various natural items, such as dirt, leaves, branches, twigs, moss and bark. The scent from the natural items permeates the hunting clothing and items contained within the locker. No disassembly or reassembly is required from the hunter to use the present invention. A hunter merely places his or her clothing and other items inside the locker and seals the device over night.
U.S. Patent Application No. 2010/0,226,819 to Elrod describes several methods and systems to reduce or eliminate human odors that are detectable by animals by utilizing an oxidizing agent, such as ozone and/or a combination of hydroxyl and hydro peroxide ions. Gaseous ozone is known to effectively kill bacteria and eliminate odors in clothing. It has a pleasant, natural scent and it has been used to descent hunter's clothing and artifacts. The Elrod method for using oxidizing agents as a means for de-scenting a hunter's gear, apparel, body, breath and local environment. Several embodiments are described including a portable ozone generating device to be worn on the body at all times during the hunt. A second embodiment describes direct treatment of the hunting garments and gear with ozone immediately prior to, or while, wearing the clothing or using the treated equipment. Another embodiment addresses the use of gaseous ozone around a campsite, blind, or hunting area to reduce the presence of human smells in that area. While the various methods for exposing the clothing, artifact or local environment to oxidizing agents vary based on the particular embodiment of the Elrod invention, all are accomplished with the use or oxidizing agents.
The Elrod method of eliminating human scent, regardless of specific application, involves the generation of oxidizing agents to eliminate human odors. Equipment capable of producing such oxidizing agents, while effective, is often costly. An additional concern, besides the cost associated with the Elrod method, is that while ozone is a natural smell, it is not a common smell, and is typically associated with a lightning bolt strike. Theoretically, it is possible that an animal will recognize the detection of ozone when there is no associated rain storm as an indication that the ozone is not naturally occurring, and thus is being artificially produced by humans. Rather than having a concealing or luring effect, the generation of ozone may inadvertently alert the animal to the presence of humans.
The present invention aims to introduce natural scents into a hunter's clothing and equipment by exposing the garments and gear to the scents which emanate from natural materials that are found in and around the hunting site. Prolonged exposure of the natural materials, in close proximity to the clothing and other equipment, allows for the natural scents to permeate the clothing and disguise or replace any human scent on the clothing and gear. Since the scents come from materials found at the hunting site, it is difficult for an animal to detect a human in the area, since the hunter's clothes and gear have been permeated with natural scents from the surrounding environment. The hunter's gear and natural odor blends in with the hunting area surroundings. The present invention is a storage locker for hunting clothing and gear that incorporates an easily removable and replaceable scent tray at the base of the locker for placing natural items gathered from the hunting area. The natural items are both plentiful and free for the hunter to take and use in the locker for scenting purposes. Above the tray, the hunter stores clothing and hunting equipment in the locker on various hooks and shelves over night, and allows the clothing to soak up the scents from the natural items that waft upwards into the locker's interior. The hunter may then don the freshly scented hunting apparel and embark on the hunting expedition.
It is therefore submitted that the present invention substantially diverges in design elements from the prior art and consequently it is clear that there is a need in the art for an improvement to existing de-scenting devices in use by hunters. In this regard the instant invention substantially fulfills these needs.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTIONIn view of the foregoing disadvantages inherent in the known types of human scent reducing devices now present in the prior art, the present invention provides a new means of permeating hunting gear with natural scent wherein the same can be utilized as an inexpensive means for disguising unnatural or human scent associated with hunting gear and for providing a convenience and easily operated and replenished scent storage locker.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a new and improved human scent reducing storage locker device for hunting gear that has all of the advantages of the prior art and none of the disadvantages.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a means of reducing human scent in hunting gear that is more affordable and easier to use than other commercially available options, wherein the replenishable scent material may be gathered from the wild or from an outdoor location, requiring no further purchased material for operation.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a means of reducing human scent in hunting gear that does not require the hunter to engage in overly-involved hunting techniques to avoid scent detection by the hunted animal.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a hunting locker that permeates a wide array of hunting gear items with the scent from woodsy natural materials.
Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a hunting gear storage locker with a means of storing natural items inside the locker that is easily removable, while removal of the natural items does not require the disruption of the other articles stored inside the locker.
Other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.
Although the characteristic features of this invention will be particularly pointed out in the claims, the invention itself and manner in which it may be made and used may be better understood after a review of the following description, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings wherein like numeral annotations are provided throughout.
Reference is made herein to the attached drawings. Like reference numerals are used throughout the drawings to depict like or similar elements of the natural scent storage locker. For the purposes of presenting a brief and clear description of the present invention, the preferred embodiment will be discussed as used for storing and scenting hunting articles with natural, woodsy scents. The figures are intended for representative purposes only and should not be considered to be limiting in any respect.
Referring now to
Inside the locker 11 are a plurality of hooks 20, which attach to the two side walls 12 and the back wall 13. Hooks may further be placed on the inside of the door 16. It is not desired to limit the present disclosure to a specific garment support architecture, but to provide an illustrative example embodiment that has been shown to be effective for the purposes of applying a natural scent. There are also multiple shelves 21 located inside the locker 11. The shelves are constructed such that air may adequately flow through the shelf. Shelving of this construction also allows for scents to circulate within the locker. For example, the shelving could be constructed from plastic with small holes drilled through the height of the shelf, or alternatively, the shelves could be made from a sturdy, slotted rack or grill configuration. It is important for the shelving inside the device to allow for air to easily pass therethrough, since the primary function of the present invention is to expose hunting articles stored inside the locker to the scents emanating from natural items that are temporarily stored at the bottom of the locker in a scent tray 22.
Under the bottommost shelf 21 in the locker is a volume that accommodates the storage of the removable scent tray 22. The scent tray 22 easily slides out of the locker 11, allowing a hunter to place a variety of natural items 23 thereinto. Fresh natural items exude their natural scent. Upon filling the scent tray with natural items that have been collected from the prospective hunting grounds, placing the tray back inside the locker and then sealing the locker door, with the hunting gear locked inside, a hunter leaves the hunting gear in the locker over night or for a prolonged period to allow scent permeation into the gear. During that duration, the scent from the natural items filters upward from the scent tray and into the interior of the locker, penetrating the clothing and gear and effectively eliminating the human scent on the clothing or replacing it with the disguising natural scents of items found in the hunting environment. The hunter may then don the clothing without fear of it containing his or her scent, which would otherwise be detected by a hunted game animal.
Referring now to
Referring now to
The scent of natural materials has a tendency to deplete over time and needs to be replaced or refreshed frequently to maximize the effectiveness of scent transfer as a result of exposing the hunting gear to the natural materials. Using the present invention simplifies the process of removing scent-depleted natural materials from the locker. The scent tray 22 is made from light weight material, such as plastic or thin sheet metal that is very easily removed from the locker 11. When it is time to change the natural materials, a hunter removes the scent tray from the locker and dumps the scent-depleted contents of the tray out and replenishes its contents with fresh natural materials from a prospective hunting site.
Referring now to
A convenient storage cabinet for disguising a hunter's clothing and gear with natural, woodsy scents is described. The device is an upright locker with a hinged door capable of being locked so that a hunter can safely store his or her gun in the locker as well. Inside are a multitude of hooks and shelves for storing hunting clothing and gear. Under the shelf closest to the ground is an area to accommodate an easy-to-remove scent tray. The tray holds natural items, such as leaves, twigs and dirt, which have been gathered from a prospective hunting site. The tray is made of light weight material such that the contents of the scent tray easy to remove by quickly dumping the contents once depleted of natural scent. Storing hunting gear in the locker over night allows the gear to soak up the scents from the natural items that waft upwards into the locker's interior. In the morning, the hunter dons his freshly scented hunting apparel and embarks on his or her hunt.
It is therefore submitted that the instant invention has been shown and described in what is considered to be the most practical and preferred embodiments. It is recognized, however, that departures may be made within the scope of the invention and that obvious modifications will occur to a person skilled in the art. With respect to the above description then, it is to be realized that the optimum dimensional relationships for the parts of the invention, to include variations in size, materials, shape, form, function and manner of operation, assembly and use, are deemed readily apparent and obvious to one skilled in the art, and all equivalent relationships to those illustrated in the drawings and described in the specification are intended to be encompassed by the present invention.
Therefore, the foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the invention. Further, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact construction and operation shown and described, and accordingly, all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the invention.
Claims
1) A convenient storage cabinet for disguising human scent on clothing and gear with natural scents from natural materials, comprising:
- an enclosed interior having side walls, a back wall, a bottom, a top and a hinged door;
- wherein said door capable of sealing said interior;
- wherein said door has two configurations: an open configuration, whereby an individual can access articles contained within said interior; and a closed configuration, whereby said door of said locker is shut, forming an air-tight seal around periphery edges of said door;
- said air-tight seal created by a sealing material located along said periphery door edges, which is compressed between said door is in said closed configuration;
- a plurality of shelves and hooks for supporting articles within said interior;
- a scent tray located at said bottom of said locker, wherein said scent tray holds said natural materials and is removable from said cabinet interior.
2) The device of claim 1, wherein said scent tray easily slides into and out of said compartment.
3) The device of claim 1, wherein said shelves are of a construction such that air and scents may adequately flow therethrough.
4) The device of claim 3, wherein said shelves are air permeable racks.
5) The device of claim 1, wherein said sealing material is a rubber gasket.
Type: Application
Filed: Jan 3, 2012
Publication Date: Jul 12, 2012
Inventor: Darrel Woods (New Virginia, IA)
Application Number: 13/342,631
International Classification: A47B 96/02 (20060101);
