SE530434C2 - Automation of carousel stall milking system - Google Patents

Description

530 434 Today, the fastening of Sp6nk0PPar is carried out within a carousel stable system. usually manually. A person manually attaches the teat cups to the teats of a dairy animal that is in an empty stable. It takes some time to attach the teat cups, normally 8 - 20 seconds, but sometimes up to 60 seconds, teat cups with a current animal, he must hurry back to the next cow that has entered the adjacent milking parlor. Sometimes a farmer is unable to attach the teat cups at the same speed as the platform moves and the platform must then be stopped. It is thus very time consuming and also very stressful work for an operator to attach the teat cups to a cow's teats.

Furthermore, a platform. very heavy and even heavier with the weight of the dairy animals included. A significant amount of time and power is required to stop it. In addition, powerful nwtors are required. Repeatedly Starting and Stopping Such Carousel Stable Systems Causes excessive wear on certain parts of the system, such as the motors, resulting in increased maintenance costs.

One way to reduce the above problems is to use an automated process for attaching the teat cups, for example a robot arm with gripping means for automatically attaching the teat cups. This is also shown in Figure 1. A robot arm 6 is arranged to attach the teat cups 5 to the teats of a cow when she has entered a milking parlor 3. However, the costs of such a robot arm are high and to include a separate robot arm for each milking parlor in a milking parlor. carousel stable platform is therefore not feasible for most farmers. stall Having a single robotic arm that serves everyone involves the same time-related problems as the manually performed fortification procedure. That is, the one when a farmer has completed: the attachment avi 10 15 20 25 530 434 3 the robot arm requires a certain amount of time to attach the teat cups during which it moves along the milking parlor. It must then be moved back to the next milking parlor and this transfer also requires a certain period of time.

Alternatively, the operator can stop the carousel and wait for the attachment to be completed. However, in addition to the above-mentioned wear of the motor, such teat cups require an approach-start-stop arrangement. Furthermore, a lot of time would be lost.

It would therefore be desirable to provide an arrangement for the carousel stable system, through which the teat cup attachment is made faster and more cost effective and which causes less wear on the non-mechanical parts of the carousel stable system.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide an arrangement for the attachment of teat cups, which is more efficient and which makes teat cup attachment operations more cost effective.

It is another object of the present invention to provide an arrangement which makes the teat cup attachment less labor intensive and which. improves working conditions for carrying out such fastening of teat cups.

These objects, among others, are achieved by an arrangement as defined in claim 1.

In accordance with the invention, an arrangement is provided for attaching teat cups to the teats of a dairy animal in a milking parlor on a carousel platform. The arrangement 10 5 comprises at least one fastening means with means for attaching teat cups in a milking parlor to the teats of a milking animal standing in the milking parlor. The arrangement further comprises a closed path, on which the fastening arm is arranged. The attachment arm is circulated from a starting point at which the attachment procedure begins, circulates along the milking parlor during the attachment procedure and continues forward along the closed path after release of the teat cups, back to the starting point. The invention makes the fastening of teat cups more efficient and makes it possible for a fastening procedure to continue in a non-stop manner, ie. without the need to stop the rotation of the carousel platform.

The milking capacity of the carousel milking system can be significantly increased. Furthermore, thanks to this non-stop rotation, i.e. by overcoming the need to start and stop the carousel platform, less wear is caused on the mechanical parts of the carousel system.

In accordance with an embodiment of the invention, the closed path is arranged partly along and adjacent to the periphery of a carousel platform. In such a solution, the design of the closed web is preferably adapted to the shape of the periphery of the carousel platform. The closed web can thereby be arranged substantially parallel to the periphery of the carousel platform, the fastening arm being conveniently close to the milking parlor during the fastening procedure.

In accordance with another embodiment of the invention, the entire carousel platform is. This embodiment provides a closed web arranged around the periphery of longer distances during which a fastening procedure can be performed.

In accordance with yet another embodiment of the invention, the fastening arm is movably arranged in a loop arrangement and circulates along it. For example, the loop arrangement 10 may be a slide rail on which the mounting arm is movably mounted roller bearing. This, as a suitable coupling means, provides a solution which can be easily implemented, whereby the slide rail, for example, can be attached to the roof of a barn.

In accordance with yet another embodiment of the invention, the arrangement S ° m comprises that a loop arrangement, arranged, is circulated along the end of the track. The loop arrangement may, for example, be a circulating chain, which provides a cost-effective and yet well-functioning implementation.

In accordance with yet another embodiment of the invention, the mounting arm has individual drive means for moving it along the closed path. There may be several mounting arms and providing each mounting arm with a separate drive means makes the arrangement less sensitive to malfunctions, ie. a defective fastening arm and its associated drive means can be easily removed, while remaining fastening arms can still be used.

In accordance with yet another embodiment of the invention, the fastening arm is arranged to move at different speeds along different parts of the loop. For example, the speed of the fastening arm can be increased when releasing the teat cups.

Due to this feature, the time for the fastening arm to move along a return path of the loop arrangement can be reduced, which further increases the efficiency of the system and makes the invention adaptable in accordance with different requirements.

According to a further aspect of the invention there is provided a carousel stable milking system in which advantages similar to those above are provided. 10 15 20 25 53Ü 434 Brief description of the drawings Figure 1 illustrates in a schematic view seen from above a known carousel stable system.

Figure 2 illustrates in a schematic view seen from above an embodiment of the invention.

Figure 3 illustrates in a schematic view seen from above another embodiment of the invention.

Figure 4 illustrates in a schematic view seen from above yet another embodiment of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the invention will now be described with reference to Figure 2. A carousel milking system 10 similar to that described in the introductory part comprises 11, ascending for the purpose of being milked and completing a carousel platform on which dairy animals, example cows, off after a lap of the carousel platform.

Input direction Arrow I, 0Ch One is indicated by an exit direction indicated by an arrow II. number of milking parlors 13 are arranged on. the carousel platform 11.

Each milking parlor 13 comprises milking means 12, for example a set of teat cups and a container for receiving the milk. The milking means 12 (only one set is indicated in the figure) are preferably located so that an easy access from the outside of the carousel platform 11 is possible. Such an arrangement leaves the space in the middle of the carousel platform free. An agricultural worker is thus given plenty of money to over-monitor the dairy animals should such a need arise. space, for example in accordance with the invention an arrangement 14 is provided for attaching the teat cups associated with a milking parlor 13 to the teats of one. The milking animal 5 ° m has passed ÅJ1 in a milking parlor 13. The arrangement 14 is located next to the carousel platform 11, preferably near the entrance part of it, where the milking animals rise on the carousel platform 11. 14 is parallel to the periphery of the carousel platform 11. The side of the arrangement 14 which is parallel to the periphery of the carousel platform therefore advantageously has a shape which is adapted to the shape of the carousel platform 11.

The arrangement 14 comprises one or more robot arms, hereinafter referred to as fastening arms 151, W, 15n. The mounting arms 151, W, 15n are movably arranged along a closed path. The closed web can be considered as consisting of two parts: a first part, called a fastening track, during which certain milking operations are performed, and a second part, called a return track, the fastening arms return to during which the starting point.

A control means is included for controlling the arrangement 14 and the carousel stable milking system 10, for example for the purpose of controlling the speed at which the fastening arms 151, m, move to 15A and for controlling the fastening procedure. Furthermore, before the attachment of the teat cups, the teats must be cleaned and means for this are therefore included. The fastening arms 151, now 15n, can also be used to perform such teat cleaning operations.

In the following, the term "loop" is used to describe a physical device having the shape of a loop. However, the shape of a loop is not intended to be limited to a round or oval shape, any shape imaginable. The fastening arms 15 "m, 15n are rotated in a reversed direction relative to the carousel platform 11 and comprise means 17 for gripping the teat cups 12 in a milking parlor 13.

The direction of rotation of the carousel platform ll is indicated by arrow III and the direction of rotation of the mounting arms 151, W, l5n by arrow IV. The number of mounting arms 151, m, 15n can be selected depending on the number of milking parlors 13 on the carousel stable platform 11 and it is easy to add one or more mounting arms to increase the capacity should such a need arise. 15, ready when a cow enters a milking parlor 13 to carry out the milking operations necessary, such as cleaning the teats and attaching teat cups to the teats.

The attachment arms 151, W, 15 move along the closed path parallel to the carousel stable platform 11 or more specifically, follow the milking parlor 13 in question in a synchronized manner, for a certain period of time in order to clean the teats if this has not been done before the cone enters the carousel stable platform. 11 and attaches the teat cups 12 to the teats of a cow standing in the specific milking parlor 13. This time period should be long enough to allow satisfactory cleaning and attachment of the teat cups and may be, for example, about 30 seconds to about 1 minute for teat cleaning and a further 30 -60 seconds for fastening. When the attachment procedure is completed, the teat cups are released and the attachment arm continues along the closed path, returns to the starting point and awaits attachment of the teat cups in a subsequent milking parlor. 10 15 20 25 30 530 434 The cleaning operations can be performed before the animal enters a milking parlor or before the start of the attachment path. If the teat cleaning in the system 10 is carried out when the milking parlor 13 with an animal reaches the starting point of a fastening arm on the closed track, then so be it. there is sufficient time to perform both teat cleaning operations and attachment of teat cups 12 associated with the milking parlor 13. Accordingly, the length of the closed path adjacent to the carousel stable platform 11 should be selected accordingly.

However, if the time required is still not long enough, the carousel platform ll can be stopped. This can possibly be done when handling a cow which is particularly difficult to milk, but the inventive arrangement reduces at least the number of required stops of the carousel stable system compared to previous solutions.

A loop arrangement 16 may be provided along the closed web and such loop arrangement 16 may be, for example, a rail attached to the roof, on which roller bearings or the like are arranged.

The fastening arms 151, -V 15 "are attached to the roller bearings or the like, thus they are easily rotated or circulated on the loop arrangement 16. A convenient and cost-effective loop arrangement 16 is provided with a suspension bracket therewith. Alternatively, it can be implemented as a movable chain or any other suitable guide means to enable the fastening arms 151, M, 15n to be moved along the carousel stable platform 11 at a certain distance.

Figure 3 shows another embodiment of the invention. In this embodiment, the mounting arms 15, m, l5n are arranged to move around the carousel stable platform 11 all the way around.

The return path can in this case be defined as the part of the loop that remains when the teat cups are released. At the entrance and / or exit part (s) of the carousel system 1, the mounting arms 151, W, 15n can be raised against the ceiling to enable them to pass the entrance part of the carousel stable system. This is indicated by a dashed line. Alternative solutions are also conceivable, for example to guide the fastening arms 151, W, 15 ”below the entrance part.

In this lesser at all, embodiment, the carousel stable platform 11 is still needed to stop, if a few after the fastening arms 15, m, 15 follow the milking stables 13 all the way around. The time period during which the milking operations such as the cleaning and fastening operations are carried out is thus made very flexible. However, care must be taken so that two consecutive mounting arms do not collide. It will be appreciated that, in contrast to the previous embodiment, the directions of rotation of the carousel platform 11 and the mounting arms 151, W, 15n are the same.

Figure 4 illustrates yet another embodiment of the invention. This embodiment is a combination of the embodiments shown in Figures 2 and 3.

The loop arrangement comprises a closed path corresponding to that described with reference to Figure 2. In addition, the loop arrangement comprises a closed path corresponding to that described with reference to Figure 3. The two loop arrangements are joined at two branch points J; and Jz. If the fastening procedure is not completed when a fastening arm reaches the branch point J, then the fastening arm follows the circular loop around the carousel stable platform ll. However, if the fastening procedure is completed at this branch point, the fastening arm takes the shorter route back to the starting point (branch point J1). If the fastening arm follows the shorter path, it may be arranged to pass the branch points J, and / or J2 and then change direction as soon as possible. In all the embodiments described above, the speed at which the fastening arms 151, W, 15 move can be selected so that it differs between the fastening path of the closed path and the return path of the closed path. 151, ..., The speed of the fastening arms 15non the fastening path, i.e. the part of the closed web where the attachment of the teat cups 12 is made can be adjusted depending on the time required to attach the teat cups 12.

However. For example, the speed of the mounting arms 151, now 151, should be substantially synchronized with the speed of the carousel stable platform II. advantage The invention thus makes the speed of the fastening arms adaptable, for example depending on the specific circumstances.

On the return track, ie. the part of the closed path where the fastening arms 151, W, 15 reach back to the starting point near the entrance part of the carousel stable platform 11, the speed can advantageously be increased. Alternatively, the speed can be increased immediately upon release of the teat cups. Due to this increased speed, in most cases there is always a fastening arm 151, 151 W, 151 ready to carry out the fastening procedure immediately when needed.

However, as mentioned earlier, care must be taken so that the mounting arms do not collide. If the speed of the mounting arms increases When the teat cups are released, the mounting arms can increase their speed at different points along the closed path. want to complete its say, a specific fastening arm can have fastening procedure before the fastening arm immediately in front of it. Thus, the speed of a fastening arm may not be increased immediately upon release of the teat cups. A safety measure should then be included to prevent collisions between the mounting arms.

Each fastening arm 151, 152 now 151 may have their own, separate drive means, such as a stepper motor or the like, or they may be driven by a single, common drive means. In another alternative, if the fastening arms 151, 152.1, 15 are arranged to have different speeds along different parts of the closed path, a drive means may be provided for each respective part of the closed path which drives the fastening arms. 151, 152. ", in each part of the closed path at a desired speed.

The alignment or positioning of the fastening arms 151, 152 m, near a milking parlor 13 can be accomplished in any suitable manner, for example by optical arrangements. Furthermore, the positioning of the teat cups 12 in a milking parlor 13 is performed by the teats of an animal in a known manner, for example by including detecting the position of the cow to be milked and then the position of her udder and teats.

In the embodiments described above and throughout the description, the arrangement 14 is shown and described as being located outside and next to the carousel platform 11.

However, in an alternative embodiment (not shown), the arrangement 14 is located inside the carousel stable platform 11.

That is, the milking is not performed from the outer periphery of the carousel platform, but from the center of it. In yet another embodiment, the arrangement 14 is located on the carousel platform 11 itself. In such embodiments, it will be appreciated that the mounting arms 151, 152., 11, in the arrangement 14 are circulated in the same direction as the carousel platform 11.

Furthermore,. it is mentioned that the fastening arms 15 ,, 15, 'V 15n can be movably arranged along the closed path in different ways. To 151, 15,. ", 15n the loop arrangement 16 arranged along the closed path is exemplary, the fastening arms can move while fixed. the fastening arms 151, 152. ", 15also moves. By means of the invention, the milking capacity of a carousel stable system1 can be significantly increased. For example, if the carousel stable platform 11 rotates at a speed that allows 15 seconds for a cow to enter a milking parlor 13, then a set of four attachment arms 151, 152, 153 and 15, may have a capacity to attach teat cups 12 to the teats of a cow continuously, ie. on a nonstoP "Mode- The milking capacity in this example would be four cows per minute or 240 cows per hour.

Since fasteners at the speed of the arrangements described above can be made so that. it 'varies along different parts of the closed path, the speed of the return path is increased after the release of the teat cups and the use of the fastening arms can thereby be optimized.

The loop arrangement in accordance with the invention can also be implemented with other types of solutions with movable floors.

For example, the invention may also be utilized with an arrangement comprising conveyor belts or tracks with carriages.

Furthermore, in the figures, the milking parlors are shown to be arranged in such a way that the animals stand in a head-to-tail arrangement along the circumference of the carousel stall platform.

It will be appreciated that any other arrangement is possible, for example the milking parlors may be arranged in a herringbone pattern or in parallel.

Furthermore, the means for attaching teat cups may comprise any suitable grippers. For example, grippers can be provided which grip each teat cup separately, i.e. one at a time, or means may be provided for gripping a cluster of teat cups simultaneously. The retrieval of the teat cups from a magazine in which they are located and moving them to a udder can be carried out so that teat cups at the same time, a few at a time or one at a time.

Yet another modification of the invention is to provide a separate loop for certain milking procedures. For example, a separate loop comprising arms for performing cleaning of the teats may be provided. Such an arrangement can be placed before the dairy animals enter the carousel stable platform or as a separate loop along the circumference of the carousel stable platform.

In summary, the device according to the invention makes the attachment of teat cups more cost-effective, eliminating reducing the need for or at least personnel.

Working conditions for agricultural workers are also improved, as the stressful manual attachment procedure is eliminated. Furthermore, the solution according to the invention causes less wear on the mechanical parts of the carousel system, since the need to stop the carousel stall from time to time is overcome. The ability of the attachment arms to be moved back to a starting point after completion of the attachment procedure and therefore always be ready to serve a milking parlor, makes the carousel stable system very flexible and time efficient and therefore optimizes capacity. The invented arrangement allows several fastening operations to be carried out simultaneously, which also contributes to making the carousel stable system more efficient.

Claims (15)

10 15 20 25 30 530 434 15 Patent claims Arrangement (14) for attaching teat cups (12) to the teats of a dairy animal in a milking parlor (13) on a carousel stable platform (11) or the like, characterized by a fastening arm (151, 15U "q (12) of the teats of a dairy animal i (13), (151, 15n) comprising means (17) for (13) said milking parlor 152,, lsn) for attaching teat cups to a milking parlor at said fixing arm being movable along a closed path and circulating from. a starting point at which the attachment procedure begins, circulating together near (13) said milking parlor forward for a distance and continuing along closed path after releasing the teat cups (12), back to said starting point. Arrangement (14) according to claim 1, wherein said closed path is arranged partly along and adjacent to the periphery of the carousel stable platform (11). An arrangement (14) according to claim 2, wherein said circulation is performed in the opposite direction to the direction of rotation of said carousel stable platform (11). An arrangement (14) according to claim 1, wherein said closed path is arranged around the whole (II). the periphery of the carousel platform An arrangement (14) according to claim 4, wherein said circulation is made in the same direction as the direction of rotation of said carousel platform (11). Arrangement (14) according to any one of claims 2-5, wherein the design of said closed path adapts to the shape of the circumference of the carousel stable platform (11) adjacent said closed path to be placed substantially with the periphery of a carousel stable platform (11). parallel 10 15 20 25 53Ü 434 16 An arrangement according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein said fastening arm (151, 152, ", 15n) is movably arranged in a loop arrangement (16). Arrangement (14) according to claim 6, wherein said loop arrangement (16) is a slide rail and said fastening arm is movably arranged along the slide rail through roller bearings. Arrangement (14) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the fastening arm (151, 152p ", 15n) has a drive means for moving the fastening arm (151, 152p", 15n) along the closed path. Arrangement (14) according to claims 1-6, comprising a loop arrangement (16), which is arranged to circulate along said closed path according to any of. ll. An arrangement (14) wherein the loop arrangement (16) is a circulating chain; according to claim 10, Arrangement (14) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the fastening arm (151, 152, ", 15n) is arranged to move at different speeds along different parts of said closed path. Arrangement (14) according to claim 12, wherein the fastening arm (15U 152p ", 15n) is arranged to increase its speed after releasing said teat cups (12). Arrangement (14) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the fastening arm (151, 152P ", 15¿ is arranged to move at a speed which is synchronized with the speed of the carousel platform (11) during a fastening procedure. Carousel stall milking system (10) comprising a carousel stall platform (11) comprising at least one milking stall (13), characterized in that the system (10) further comprises an arrangement according to any one of the preceding claims.