AU2007350988B2

AU2007350988B2 - Device for conveying live animals and automatic chick sexing system comprising such a device

Info

Publication number: AU2007350988B2
Application number: AU2007350988A
Authority: AU
Inventors: Patrick Le Moine; Michael Nadreau; Jean-Claude Yvin
Original assignee: Egg Chick Automated Technologies SAS
Current assignee: Egg Chick Automated Technologies SAS
Priority date: 2007-04-17
Filing date: 2007-04-17
Publication date: 2013-09-05
Anticipated expiration: 2027-04-17
Also published as: WO2008125741A1; EP2136618B1; AU2007350988A1; BRPI0721587A2; ATE515185T1; BRPI0721587B1; ES2369425T3; EP2136618A1

Abstract

The present invention relates to a device for conveying live animals, comprising, particularly in the case of chicks, a chick conveying section in which said chicks are positioned in buckets with their wings spread, and an automatic chick sexing system comprising such a conveying device. The conveying device comprises a first endless bucket conveyor (2) comprising pre-positioning buckets (21) for individually receiving and transporting a live animal, and a second endless bucket conveyor (6) comprising sorting buckets (61) for individually receiving and transporting a live animal, said first conveyor and said second conveyor being so arranged that each live animal pre-positioned in a pre-positioning bucket falls out of said pre-positioning bucket into a sorting bucket positioned underneath said pre-positioning bucket.

Description

1 DEVICE FOR CONVEYING LIVING ANIMALS AND SYSTEM FOR AUTOMATICALLY DETERMINING THE SEX OF CHICKS COMPRISING SUCH A DEVICE 5 This invention relates to a device for conveying living animals, in particular chicks, and an automatic sexing system for chicks comprising such a conveying device. A reference herein to a patent document or other matter which is given as prior art is not to be taken as an admission 10 that that document or matter was known or that the information it contains was part of the common general knowledge as at the priority date of any of the claims. Throughout the description and claims of this specification the word "comprise" and variations of that word, 15 such as "comprises" and "comprising", are not intended to exclude other additives, components, integers or steps. The applicant is aware of, in particular via the patent document EP-I-092-347 an automatic sexing method for chicks, wherein the determination of the sex of the chicks is based on 20 an examination of the cartilage of the feathers at the upper ends of the wings. In a first step of this method, the chick is conveyed in such a way that it loses its balance and that it automatically spreads outs its wings via reflex. Photographs are taken of the spread wings, and the photographs are then 25 analysed in order to deduce the sex of the chicks, with the chicks then being sorted according to sex. This patent document proposes several conveying devices making it possible to obtain this loss of balance of the chicks. In one of the proposed embodiments, the chicks are initially placed in the centre of a 30 carrousel, they slide in the channels of the carrousel and fall into funnels that rest on the buckets of a bucket conveyor. The feet of each chick rest on the bottom of the bucket, the bucket is descended downwards in relation to the funnel in such a way that the chick loses its balance and falls again with the wings 2 spread out in the bucket, with its wings remaining spread out on an upper horizontal lip of the bucket. When the bucket descends, the chick is supported solely by its wings against the funnel and must fold its wings further upwards in order to 5 fall back into the bucket, which can 'cause certain injuries to wings. Furthermore the chick can remain blocked in the funnel, with its wings pressing against the inclined wall of the funnel. This patent document also proposes conveying devices, of 10 the endless conveyor type, wherein the chicks are arranged one after one another, with the automatic spreading of the winds being obtained by vibration, oscillation or electrical discharge. However, these devices do not make it possible to guarantee exact spacing pitch between the chicks, which is 15 needed for taking photographs. It is therefore desirable to propose a new conveying device that overcomes the aforementioned disadvantages. To that effect, this invention provides a living animals conveying device, comprising in particular in the case of 20 chicks a section for conveying chicks wherein said chicks are positioned in buckets with their wings spread out, including a first endless bucket conveyor comprising pre-positioning buckets able to individually receive and transport a living animal between upstream return means and downstream return 25 means, from an upstream loading zone to a downstream transfer zone, and a second endless bucket conveyor, comprising sorting buckets able to individually receive and transport a living animal between upstream return means and downstream return means, said first conveyor and 3 said second conveyor being arranged in such a way that each living animal pre-positioned in a pre-positioning bucket falls from said pre-positioning bucket into a sorting bucket arranged below said pre-positioning 5 bucket. According to the invention, the conveying device makes it possible to cause the falling of each living animal from a pre-positioning bucket of the first conveyor into a sorting bucket of the second conveyor. 10 According to a particularity, the pre-positioning buckets of the lower strand of the first conveyor are able to receive the living animals from above, said first conveyor comprising retaining means making it possible to retain the living animals in said buckets 15 from a loading zone to a transfer zone at the level wherein the living animals fall by the open bottom of the buckets into the sorting buckets of the upper strand of the second conveyor, with the upstream return means of the second conveyor being arranged below the 20 downstream return means of the first conveyor, with the second conveyor being for example arranged in the extension of the first conveyor. According to an embodiment, said retaining means include an endless conveyor mounted between the 25 upstream return means and downstream return means and of which the upper strand is arranged below the lower strand, in parallel to the latter, opposite the open lower ends of the sorting buckets of said lower strand and advance substantially in synchronism with said 30 lower strand, in such a way that the living animals present in said sorting buckets come to press against 4 said upper strand of the endless conveyor with their foot, the living animals falling from the pre-positioning buckets when the latter extend beyond the downstream return means of the 5 endless conveyor. According to an embodiment, the pre-positioning buckets are formed of hollow tubes mounted on rectangular plates arranged in parallel therein between one after another and assembled by their lateral ends between two synchronised 10 parallel endless tracks. Advantageously, the spacing pitch between two successive sorting buckets is higher than the spacing pitch between two successive pre-positioning buckets, with the forward speed of the sorting conveyor being higher than that of the pre 15 positioning conveyor. Advantageously, the first conveyor comprises successive transversal rows of at least two pre-positioning buckets, the sorting conveyor comprising successive transversal rows of at least two sorting buckets. 20 The conveying device may include furthermore a loading system able to bring the living animals one after the other on pre-positioning buckets, in particular on each line of pre positioning buckets. This invention also provides an automatic chicks sexing 25 system, including a conveying device such as defined previously, each sorting bucket comprising a lip, more preferably inclined, whereon are intended to rest the spread out wings of the chicks falling from the pre-positioning buckets, and image acquisition means able to obtain a 30 photograph of at least one of the wings of each chick 5 present in a sorting bucket in order to determine the sex thereof. Advantageously, said lip of sorting buckets is extended at the top by an inclined guiding wall. 5 According to an embodiment, each sorting bucket is provided with a trapdoor provided with opening/closing means, said sorting conveyor being provided with activating means for activating said opening/closing means for the ejection via the bottom of the chick 10 towards different means of recovery, for example of the conveyor with endless belt type, according to the result of the image processing. The sexing system can furthermore include blowing systems arranged above the upper strand of the sorting conveyor, able to blow air 15 in the direction of each sorting bucket when its trapdoor opens. The invention will be better understood, and other purposes, details, characteristics and advantages will appear more clearly during the detailed explanatory 20 description that follows of a specially preferred embodiment of the invention, in reference to the annexed schematic drawing. In this drawing: - figures 1 and 2 show perspective views of an automatic sexing system for chicks in accordance with 25 the invention; - figure 3 shows a side view of the automatic sexing device of figures 1 and 2; - figures 4 and 5 show respectively partially enlarged views of figures 1 and 3, showing the transfer 30 zone of the chicks from the first bucket conveyor to the second bucket conveyor; 6 - figures 6A and 6B show perspective views of a bucket of the second bucket conveyor, with the trapdoor therein in closed position; - figures 7A and 7B show side views of the bucket 5 shown in figures 6A and 6B, with the trapdoor therein in open position; and, - figure 8 shows a partial enlargement of figure 2, showing the ejection zones of the chicks from the second bucket conveyor. 10 In reference to figures 1 to 3, the automatic sexing device comprises a chicks conveying device 1 which comprises a first endless bucket conveyor 2, referred to as pre-positioning conveyor, and a second endless bucket conveyor, referred to as sorting 15 conveyor 6, with these conveyors being conformed and arranged in relation to one another in such a way that the chicks pre-positioned in the buckets of the pre positioning conveyor fall into the buckets of the sorting conveyor, with the chicks positioning 20 themselves in the sorting buckets with their wings maintained spread out. The pre-positioning conveyor 2 comprises pre positioning buckets 21 mounted in a loop one after the other around upper and lower upstream return means, 25 respectively 31 and 32, and lower and upper downstream return means, respectively 33 and 34. The transport of the chicks is carried out in the buckets 21 of the lower strand 2a of the conveyor defined between the upstream and downstream lower return means 32, 33, 30 between an upstream loading zone 25 and a downstream transfer zone 26 defined hereinafter. One or several 7 buckets, each formed of a hollow tube of circular section 210, is mounted on a rectangular plate 22. The plates are assembled in parallel to one another by their ends to the chain links of the two endless 5 parallel tracks 23 that mesh on pairs of toothed gearwheels 331 (figure 5), each pair constituting a return means defined previously. The wheels of each pair are attached to an axis 332 mounted mobile in rotation on a support frame 24. The support frame 10 comprises two lateral rectangular frames 241, 242 connected in parallel between thereof by crosspieces 243. The axes of the pairs of the upper upstream wheels are mounted between the frames, at the four corners of the latter. The support frame rests on the floor via 15 feet (not shown), in such a way that the lower strand 2a is arranged substantially horizontally. The spacing between the upper return means 31, 34 and the lower return means 32, 33 is determined in order to obtain a space between the upper strand 2b and the lower strand 20 2a that is large enough to allow for the loading and the transport of the chicks in pre-positioning buckets of the lower strand, as well as the possible intervention of an operator, in ergonomic conditions, to place chicks in said buckets. 25 The advancing of the lower strand of the pre positioning conveyor in the forward direction shown by the arrow referenced as D1, is provided using at least one motor able to drive in rotation the axis of the wheels forming the lower upstream and/or lower 30 downstream return means.

8 In the example shown in the figures, each plate 22 carries three buckets 21 arranged side by side, transversally to the forward direction Dl, the pre positioning conveyor comprising as such three parallel 5 lines of buckets. The tubes 210 forming the buckets are assembled perpendicularly to the plates in openings extending therethrough, in such a way that the open upper end of the tubes is substantially flush with the inner face 22b of the plates. The tubes are projecting 10 towards the exterior, with the outer opened end 21a thereof at a distance from the outer face 22a of the plates. The pre-positioning conveyor is provided with an endless conveyor 40 arranged below said conveyor in 15 order to make it possible to retain the chicks in the buckets of the lower strand 2a. As better shown in figure 5, the upper strand 40a of the endless conveyor is arranged in parallel to the lower strand 2a, opposite the outer ends 21a of the buckets, also called 20 lower ends. The endless conveyor is mounted between a upstream return roller 41, arranged substantially on the lower upstream return means 32, and a return blade 42. The upstream return roller is driven in rotation by a motor 43, in such a way that the upper strand 40a of 25 the endless conveyor advances substantially as isospeed with the lower strand, in the forward direction Dl. The end of the downstream return blade is arranged upstream of the lower downstream return means 33 of the pre positioning conveyor, in such a way that the lower 30 strand 2a of the first conveyor comprises at least one row of three buckets of a same plate that are not 9 arranged across from the upper strand 40a of the endless conveyor. Each plate advances substantially horizontally beyond the end of the return blade 42 before rolling onto the lower downstream return means. 5 When a pre-positioning bucket arrives on the transfer zone 26 defined beyond the return blade, the chick contained in said pre-positioning bucket falls downwards by gravity. The pre-positioning conveyor is furthermore 10 provided with a loading system 5 comprising three loading conveyors of the endless conveyor type 51, 52 53 in order to allow for the loading of chicks into the buckets of each line. The loading conveyors, shown schematically in the figures, are arranged 15 perpendicularly to the pre-positioning conveyor, and in parallel in relation to one another, and are intended to receive on the upper strand thereof the chicks one after another. The downstream return wheels of the loading conveyors are arranged above the lower strand 20 2a, on the loading zone 25, and are shifted transversally in relation to the forward direction D1, in such a way that a downstream end of the loading conveyor is arranged in the perpendicularity of each line of buckets. The loading conveyors are provided 25 with lateral guiding edges (not shown) in order to retain the chicks on the upper strand thereof. The sorting conveyor 6 is arranged in the extension of the pre-positioning conveyor and comprises successive rows of three sorting buckets 61 mounted in 30 a loop around an upstream return means 63 and a downstream return means 64. In reference to figures 4 10 and 5, the upper strand 6a is arranged substantially horizontally below the lower strand 2a of the pre positioning conveyor, in such a way that a row of sorting buckets 61 is arranged substantially opposite a 5 row of pre-positioning buckets 21 moving beyond the end of the return blade 42. According to figures 6A-B and 7A-B, each sorting bucket 61 is formed of a receptacle in the shape of a funnel comprising a lower tubular portion 611 that is 10 extended at the top by an intermediary portion 612 of substantially oval transversal section, defining two slightly inclined intermediary lips 612a, 612b, diametrically opposite, on either side of the symmetry plane Pl (Figure 7B), and an upper portion 613 of 15 substantially oval section defining an inclined guiding wall in order to guide the chicks towards the lower tubular portion. This upper portion presents an upper horizontal rectangular edge 614 comprising two opposite lips 615 on either side of plane P1, extending 20 perpendicularly towards the bottom, each lip being provided with two mounting flanges 616 with notch 616a. The different portions 611-613 of the receptacle, and the horizontal upper edge 614, are connected in relation to one another by angled joining zones 25 617- 619 (Figure 6B). The receptacle therefore does not include any edge likely to hurt the chick when it falls into the receptacle. The sorting buckets are mounted on parallel transversal rods 65 assembled by the ends thereof on 30 the chain links of parallel endless tracks 66 (figure 5), with synchronous displacement, with the chains 11 being mounted in a loop on upstream and downstream toothed return gearwheels, constituting the aforementioned return means 63, 64. The pairs of wheels are each attached to an axis mounted mobile in rotation 5 on a carrier frame 67, with at least one of the pairs of wheels being driven in rotation by a motor 68, in such a way that the upper strand 6a is driven in the forward direction shown by the arrow referenced as D2. The assembly of each sorting bucket is carried out by 10 the latching of two adjacent rods 65 in the notches 616a of the mounting flanges, the symmetry plane P1 of the buckets arranged in parallel to the forward direction D2, the widest dimension of the portions 612 and 613 with oval section arranged perpendicularly to 15 the forward direction D2. Once assembled on the transversal rods, the sorting buckets of a same row and of a same line are arranged edge-to-edge. Each bucket comprises a trapdoor 620 formed of a plate mounted to pivot around an axis 621 which is 20 assembled between two fixing semi-clamps 622, 623 clamped using screws 624 on the tubular portion 611. The pivoting axis of the trapdoor is arranged perpendicularly to the forward direction D2. An elastic blade 626 extending from the bottom to the top is fixed 25 via one end on one of the faces of a semi-clamp parallel to the forward direction and has one lower free end 626a, curved outwards, able to latch at rest with a lateral flange 625 of the trapdoor in order to maintain the latter in closed position. The blade has 30 on the outer face thereof an actuation rivet 628 on which a pressure can be exercised in order to unlatch 12 the curved end 626a of the flange of the trapdoor and thus allow the opening of the trapdoor. The automatic sexing device comprises image acquisition means 70 arranged downstream of the 5 transfer zone above the upper strand 6a of the second conveyor. These means comprise a digital camera 71 arranged above each line of sorting buckets. The three digital cameras are mounted on a support ramp 74 arranged transversally above the sorting conveyor on 10 the downstream portion thereof, and fixed to the frame 67. Each camera is able to take a photograph of the wings of each chick arranged in the successive buckets of a line. Light sources are mounted on the ramp in order to illuminate the wings of the chicks at the 15 moment when photographs are taken. Two light sources 72, 73 are for example arranged on either side of the camera, one 72 upstream, the other 73 downstream of the camera. Advantageously, the light sources are of the blue LED type, in order to accentuate the difference 20 between the cartilage in relation to down. These cameras are connected to a control unit (not shown) that processes the images taken by the cameras in order to determine the sex of the chicks. The spacing pitch between two successive sorting 25 buckets of a same line is sufficient to allow the photographs to be taken. This spacing pitch is higher than the spacing pitch of two successive pre positioning buckets of a same line of a pre-positioning conveyor, with the forward speed of the pre-positioning 30 conveyor being less than that of the sorting conveyor. The pre-positioning conveyor can therefore operate at a 13 speed that is reduced enough to allow an operator to manually place in the buckets the chicks arriving from the loading conveyors. By way of example, the spacing pitch between the sorting buckets is twice that of the 5 pre-positioning buckets, with the forward speed of the sorting conveyor being substantially two times higher than that of the pre-positioning conveyor. The motors of the sorting conveyor and of the pre-positioning conveyor are controlled by the control unit. According 10 to an alternative embodiment, the sorting conveyor is driven by the motor 68 such as described hereinabove, and the pre-positioning conveyor is advantageously driven by the sorting conveyor via a mechanical synchronisation, such as a transmission chain or a 15 toothed belt connecting for example the axes of the upstream return means 63 and the lower downstream return means 33. According to figure 8, the sexing device further comprises activating means 69, connected to the control unit, and arranged downstream of the 20 cameras, below the upper strand 6a of the pre positioning conveyor in order to activate the trapdoors of the buckets in order to evacuate the chicks downwards. Each activating means comprises a control piston able to displace a cam between a rest position 25 wherein the cam is at a distance from the rivets 628 of the blades of the buckets of a line, and an active position wherein the rivet of a bucket comes to press against said cam in such a way as to displace the blade 626 and thus release the curved end 626a from the 30 flange 625 of the trapdoor in order to allow for the opening of the latter. The device comprises three sets 14 of three activating means. The three activating means of each set are arranged transversally side-by-side in order to each actuate the trapdoors of the sorting buckets of a same line, with the three sets being 5 shifted along the transport path of the sorting conveyor. A activating means of each set is shown under references 69a, 69b and 69c in figure 8. The sexing device comprises from upstream to downstream a first, a second and a third recovery 10 endless conveyors, respectively 81, 82 and 83, arranged substantially transversally to the pre-positioning conveyor, between the upper strand 6a therein and the lower strand 6b therein. Each recovery conveyor is associated with a set of activating means in order to 15 recover on the upper strand thereof the chicks falling from the sorting buckets. By way of example, the chicks of which the sex was not able to be determined subsequent to image processing by the control unit will be transferred onto the first recovery conveyor 81, to 20 be redirected subsequently to the pre-positioning conveyor for processing again. Chicks identified as males and those identified as females will be transferred respectively onto the second recovery conveyor 82 and the third recovery conveyor 83. The 25 recovery conveyers operate continuously or discontinuously, under the control of the control unit, with the first recovery conveyor 81 evacuating the chicks to the right of the pre-positioning conveyor in relation to the forward direction, while the second and 30 third recovery conveyor 82, 83 evacuate the chicks towards the left. The arrows referenced as D3, D4 and 15 D5 in figure 2 show respectively the forward directions of the upper strands of the first, of the second and of the third recovery conveyers. In order to provide for the evacuation of the 5 chicks out of the buckets when the trapdoors are opened, the sexing device comprises three ramps 91, 92, 93 arranged transversally above the upper strand 6a of the sorting conveyor, each bearing three blowing systems 94, each blowing system being able to blow air downwards 10 via a nozzle 94a directed towards the sorting buckets of a line. A ramp is arranged at the level of each recovery conveyor. A description of the operation will now be carried out. The chicks are brought one after another on the 15 lower strand 2a of the pre-positioning conveyor, on the loading zone 25, the chicks fall into the buckets of the three lines streaming in the forward direction Dl. Any chicks falling onto the plates are manually positioned by one or several operators in empty pre 20 positioning buckets. Each chick placed in a bucket has its feet pressing on the upper strand 40a of the endless conveyor streaming substantially at the same speed as the pre-positioning conveyor. The spacing between the open lower end 21a of the pre-positioning 25 buckets and the upper strand 40a of the endless conveyor makes it possible to prevent a blocking of the feet in the event of a possible difference between the linear speed of the lower strand 2a of the pre positioning conveyor and the linear speed of the upper 30 strand of the endless conveyor. The depth of the pre- 16 positioning buckets is determined in such a way that the chick cannot escape from it. When a row of pre-positioning buckets arrives beyond the end of the downstream return blade 42, on 5 the transfer zone 26, the chicks fall by the open lower end of the pre-positioning buckets in the row of empty sorting buckets arranged opposite. As soon as the chicks lose contact with the endless conveyor, the instinctively spread out their wings. When a chick 10 falls into a sorting bucket, the inclined guiding wall of the upper portion 613 guides the chick with its wings spread out towards the bottom of the bucket in the lower tubular portion 611. The chick is pressing with the ends of its feet against the plate forming a 15 trapdoor, and its spread out wings rest on the intermediary lips 612a, 612b. The inclined wall of the upper portion has an angle of inclination between 60 and 30* in relation to the horizontal, for example of about 45*. The slight inclination of the lips makes it 20 possible to prevent the chick from taking support from these latter with its wings in order to leave the receptacle. The angle of inclination for these lips is between 5 and 100 in relation to the horizontal, for example of about 100. 25 The rows of buckets advance successively under the cameras 71. The three cameras simultaneously take a photograph of the wings of the chicks arranged in the three buckets of each row. The photographs are recovered and processed by the control unit in order to 30 determine the sex of the chicks contained in the buckets. For each bucket of a line, the control unit 17 controls the displacement of one of the three pistons of the activating means 69 corresponding to said line, in order to evacuate the chick either onto the first recovery conveyor 81 when the processing of the 5 photograph has failed to determine the sex of the chick, or onto the second recovery conveyor 82 when the chick has been identified as a male, or onto the third recovery conveyor 83 when said chick has been identified as a female. During the actuation of one of 10 the pistons to open the trapdoor of a bucket, the control unit controls the nozzle 94a of the blowing system 94 arranged above said bucket to blow air in the direction of the bottom of the bucket. The buckets advancing beyond the third set of activating means have 15 the trapdoor thereof in open position, with the trapdoors closing automatically, possibly by simple gravity, during the winding of the buckets around downstream return means 64. In an alternative embodiment, by replacing the 20 endless conveyor 40 making it possible to retain the chicks in the buckets 21 of the lower strand 2a, the pre-positioning conveyor comprises pre-positioning buckets provided with trapdoors, the activating means then being provided to allow for the simultaneous 25 opening of the trapdoors of the three buckets of a same row, when the latter is arranged opposite a row of sorting buckets of the second sorting conveyor. Of course, the conveying device according to the invention can be used to carry out the sorting of 30 different living animals, in particular poultry, 18 according to their sex, or according to another criterion such as their colour, size and/or weight. Although the invention has been described in liaison with special embodiments, it is evident that it 5 is in no way limited and that it comprises all of the technical equivalents of the means described as well as their combinations if the latter enter into the scope of the invention.

Claims

1. Living animals conveying device, comprising in particular in the case of chicks a section of conveying chicks 5 wherein said chicks are positioned in buckets with their wings spread out, including a first endless bucket conveyor comprising pre-positioning buckets able to individually receive and transport a living animal between upstream return means and downstream return means, and a second endless bucket conveyor, 10 comprising sorting buckets able to individually receive and transport a living animal between upstream return means and downstream return means, said first conveyor and said second conveyor being arranged in such a way that each living animal pre-positioned in a pre-positioning bucket falls from said pre 15 positioning bucket into a sorting bucket arranged below said pre-positioning bucket.

2. Conveying device according to claim 1, the pre positioning buckets of the lower strand of the first conveyor are able to receive the living animals from above, said first 20 conveyor comprising retaining means making it possible to retain the living animals in said buckets from a loading zone to a transfer zone at the level wherein the living animals fall by the open bottom of the buckets into the sorting buckets of the upper strand of the second conveyor. 25

3. Conveying device according to claim 2, wherein said retaining means include an endless conveyor mounted between upstream return means and downstream return means and of which the upper strand is arranged below the lower strand, in parallel to the latter, opposite the open lower ends of the 30 sorting buckets of said lower strand and advance substantially in synchronism with said lower strand.

4. Conveying device according to claim 3, the pre positioning buckets are formed of hollow tubes mounted on rectangular plates arranged in parallel therein between one 20 after another and assembled by their lateral ends between two synchronised parallel endless tracks.

5. Conveying device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the spacing pitch between two successive sorting 5 buckets is higher than the spacing pitch between two successive pre-positioning buckets, with the forward speed of the sorting conveyor being higher than that of the pre-positioning conveyor.

6. Conveying device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, 10 wherein the first conveyor comprises successive transversal rows of at least two pre-positioning buckets, the sorting conveyor comprising successive transversal rows of at least two sorting buckets.

7. Conveying device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, 15 wherein it further comprises a loading system able to bring the living animals one after the other on pre-positioning buckets.

8. Automatic chicks sexing system, including a conveying device according to any one of claims 1 to 7, each sorting bucket comprising a lip, whereon are intended to rest the 20 spread out wings of the chicks falling from the pre-positioning buckets, and image acquisition means able to obtain a photograph of at least one of the wings of each chick present in a sorting bucket in order to determine the sex thereof.

9. An automatic chicken sexing system according to claim 25 8 wherein the lip is inclined.

10. Automatic sexing system for chicks according to claim 9, wherein said lip is extended at the top by an inclined guiding wall.

11. Automatic sexing system for chicks according to any 30 one of claims 8 to 10, wherein each sorting bucket is provided with a trapdoor provided with opening/closing means, said sorting conveyor being provided with activating means for activating said opening/closing means for the ejection via the 21 bottom of the chick towards different recovery means according to the result of the image processing.

12. A living animals conveying device substantially as herein described with reference to any of the accompanying 5 drawings of embodiment of the invention.