CA1047960A - System for controlling feed of livestock - Google Patents

Abstract

SYSTEM FOR CONTROLLING FEED OF LIVESTOCK

ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE
A SYSTEM FOR ECONOMICALLY CONTROLLING FEED OF LIVESTOCK TO
EFFECT MAXIMUM CONSUMPTION OF ALL FEED INGREDIENTS SUPPLIED TO LIVE-STOCK COMPRISING CAGE STRUCTURE FOR CONFINING LIVESTOCK IN A PLURALITY
OF SEPARATE GROUPS, SEPARATE FEED TROUGHS ON THE CAGE STRUCTURE FOR
EACH OF THE GROUPS OF LIVESTOCK, AND INDIVIDUAL TRAVELLING FEED
DISPENSING HOPPERS FOR DISPENSING FEED INTO THE SEPARATE FEED TROUGHS.
THE SYSTEM ALSO INCLUDES A CONTROL MECHANISM FOR PERIODICALLY
EFFECTING TRAVEL AND RETURN OF THE FEED HOPPERS TO DISPENSE FEED
INTO THE TROUGHS NUMEROUS TIMES IN THE COURSE OF EACH DAY. EACH OF
THE FEED DISPENSING HOPPERS INCLUDES FEED DISPENSING MECHANISM FOR
CAUSING FEED TO BE DISPENSED THEREFROM INTO THE TROUGHS ASSOCIATED
THEREWITH. THE FEED DISPENSING MECHANISMS IN THE HOPPER FOR ONE
GROUP OF LIVESTOCK IS OF SUCH CAPACITY AS TO DISPENSE ALL THE FEED
THAT THE GROUP OF LIVESTOCK CAN EAT DURING THE COURSE OF EACH DAY
WITH SUCH FEED BEING DISPENSED IN SMALL QUANTITIES NUMEROUS TIMES
EACH DAY. THE FEED DISPENSING MECHANISM IN THE HOPPERS FOR ALL
OTHER GROUPS OF LIVESTOCK ARE OF SUBSTANTIALLY IDENTICAL DISPENSING
CAPACITY, BUT OF ABOUT 5-10% LESS THAN THE CAPACITY OF THAT FOR
THE ONE GROUP OF LIVESTOCK TO BE FED ALL THAT IT CAN EAT.

Description

r~ 47960 Background o~ the Inventlon 1. F~eld of the Inventlon .
i The present invention relates to systems for feeding and ~ raising livestock and in partlcular for feeding and raising poultry j or the like confined in cage batteries.
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2. Descri~tion of the Pr;or Art United States Pa~ents No. 2,536,621 [Arnold] and No.
~ 3,158,137 [Summerour] are generally representative of the type of ; prior art to which the system of the present invention appertains.
- 10 Both the Arnold and the Summerour patents disclose poultry feeding systems in which feed is dispensed from mobile hoppers3 supported above cage batteries for movement therealong, into feed troughs sup~
ported along one or more walls of the cage batteries. The feed dispensing hoppers of the Arnold patent comprising dispensing ports l -formed in the bottom of the hoppers with ~pring biased slide valves. ~- -It appears that the rate and accuracy at which feed may be dispensed -,J; by ~he Arnold system would be or could be dlfficult to control and ¦ main~ain because of the structural details discussed above.
In the Summerour patent, the feed hoppers include metering l~ ;
~20 devices which apparentiy would be more accurate and easier to con~
trol than the Arnold system insofar as accuracy and rate of dispens~
ing is concerned. The Summerour feeding system, however, lacks numerous advantageou~ features of the present invention~ which may .
be apparent from the following description and claims.
Summary of the Invention . ~ ~
In the livestock producing industry it is common knowledge .
that feed is rarely uniform a~ to grade or ingredient~. Numerous ~`
reason8 account for the lack of uniformity in feed, among which i8 the fact that live~tock, like humans, ~hould have a properly bal-. .- .
~30 ` anced diet. As the feed i8 made up of various ingredient~Q~t . ~ .

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frequently happen9 that the livestock prefer the taste of certain lngredients over others and will pick out the more tasty ingredients and possibly suffer deficiencies by not eating some of the less tasty ingredients. Also, as the feed ingredients differj the weight per volume of various feed will differ and a picky animal ,~ may consume more or less in weight of feed, particularly if it is , more aggressive or faster in its eating habits than that of its I
~ mates.
`~ Even in the case of poultry different types have different ~10 requirements. Examples of different types of poultry include `
' broilers, breeders, and layers. In the case of broilers, that is poultry raised primarily for consumption of its meat and sold by weight, the conversion of feed to meat would effect significant mone-¦
tary return for cost of feed. By contrast breedersj that is poultry !
,, kept primarily for breeding purposes and not for immediate sale for consumption, do not produce any monetary return for theirincr~
in weight due to being-amply fed. In-the-case--of layers, it is known, for example, that eggs laid are as great or better-when the feeding of the layers is restricted than when full feeding, that ¦

~20 is, all that the layer~ can eat, is permitted. By way o~ example, it is noted that large eggs according to commercial grading must weigh twenty-four (24) ounces per dozen or better and that as the ~ayers age to beyond their peak production the eggs that are then laid are larger and weigh as much as twenty-five (25) or twenty-f~ve and one-half (25 1/2) ounces per dozen. The poultry farmer is paid the same amount for such larger eggs produced by older layers as he paid for the slightly smaller eggs of younger layers and thus doe3 not profit from the added weight of the larger eggs.

` ~0~75~;0 feed ~he older layers are permitted to consume at least to the point that the e~gs produced by such are closer to twenty-four (24) ounces per dozen than twenty-five (25) ounces per dozen~
Because o~ the desirability of restricting the amount of feed poultry are to consume, various methods have been tried.
One method of restricting the feeding of poultry is by-covering the feed so that the poultry can eat only at given period~
during each day and not at other periods of the day. This method has not worked out with complete satisfaction as some birds eat faster and/or are more aggressive so that as long as the feed is uncovered some birds confined in the same general area, whether it be a pen or a caye, will consume more feed than others.
With the above in mind, the present invention relates to a new and improved system comprising a battery cage arrange~
ment in which livestock, such as poultry are confined, fed and raised, and in particular include6 a combination o~ elements and mechanisms with which poultry may be fed and raised in a manner whereby feed economy is attained, whereby the poultry is -induced to eat all feed ingredients supplied to it withoutwaste, thereby maintaining and raising poultry in optimum health ;
conditions, thereby controlling size and grade of eggs of ~;
layers; and quality o~ meat of fryers, and other characteristics of the poultry.
According to one broad aspect, the invention relates to a system for controlling the feed to be automatically distributed to livestock in numerous repeated cycles over the cou~se of a day or like periods whereby the feed is accurately metered and dispensed comprising in combination:
~a) mean~ for segregating livestock into a plurality o gr~ups;
(b) ~eed receptacle mean~ si~uated ad~acent to ~aid segregati~g ;~

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~OgL79~iO

means from which livestock may avail themselve~ of feed;
(c~ separate mobile feed distributing units for accurately -:
metering and dispensing feed in~o feed receptacle means of the various groups; (d) power actuated drive means operatively connected to said mobile feed distributing feed units along a line generally parallel to said feed receptacle means;-(e~ dispensing means drivingly connected to said drive means to effect dispensing of feed from units in one direction of said driving means; tf) dispensing means of one o said units 10 ~eing of such capacity as to dispense in a day a total amount of feed e~ual to all that ~he livestock of a firs~ one of said groups can eat and the dispensing means of all others of said units are each of equal capacity of each other but of less capacity than the dispensing means of said one of said units by as much as from about 5~ to 10~; and ~g) means for periodically filling each of said feed distributing units; and (h) switching means for sensing the filled condition of said feed distributing units and acilitating actuation of said units and for sensing ~ :~
the unfilled condition of said feed distributing units and sounding an alarm to alert an attendant of such condition.
Objects of the Invention An object of the present invention is to provide a new and improved system of feed and raising poultry in such a manner .
that the poultry is fed substantially all the feed that it can eat without waste, so that'it can attain optimum gr~wth.
Another object of this invention is to provide a new and improved poultry feed system for inducing the poultry to eat all the ingredients supplied to it including ingredients which poul~ry - : :.:: . - - :
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47960 ~ 4~
would normally Eind distas~:rCul as some nutr~ent ~dditive or feed supplement is apt to be.
Still another object of the present lnvention i~ to provide a new and improved feed system that is fully automatic in operation in carrying forth other objects set forth herein.
Yet another obiect of the present invention is to provide --a new and improved sys~em whereby poultry is confined in separate groups including a pilot group ~hat is automatically fed all that it can eat in the course of each day in numerous periods of feeding with very little feed being furnished to the group during each feeding period.
Still another object of the present invention is to pro~
vide a new and improved system whereby all groups of poultry other ~` -than the pilot group is supplied a predetermined amount of feed less than ~hat which is supplied to the pilot group during each feeding period.
An additional object of the present invention is to provide a system whereby each group of poultry will be fed at the same time ~ :~
and for the same number of feed periods.
It is also an object of the present invention to provide an automatic feed system in which the over-aIl amount of feed - ?
supplied to all poultry fed and raised thereby is reduced. ~-Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from ~a reading of the following description thereof ta~en in conjunction with the accompanying drawing~
Brief Description of the Drawlng3 Fig. l is an end eleva~ional view of the system from the front end thereof and 1 ooking toward the back or star~1ng end ;~
thereof;
Fig. 2 is an end elevat~onal view of the extreme right eed dispens~ng unit o~ the system of Flg. 1 looklng ~rom the bac~
end thereof toward the front end;
Fig. 3 i8 a plan view o ~he ~eed dispensing unit of Fig. 2;
Flg. 4 is an elevational ~iew taken along section 4-4 of ~g. 3;
Fig. S is an elevational view taken along section 5-5 ;
o Fig. 2;

Fig. 6 is an elevational view taken along section 6-6 of Fig. S; , Fig. 7 is an elevational view taken along section 7-7 of Fig. 6 with the gate member open to permit loadlng feed into a hopper; and Figs. 8 and 9 show two halves of a control circuit for the system of the invention in which the planes A-A' a~ the bottom of Fig. 8 and at the top of Fig. 9 should be connected to complete the circuit. - ~-- ~
De~cription o the Invention Reerxing now in de~ail to the drawings and in particular to Figs. 1-4, the reader will readily appreciate that the feed sys-tem 10 according to the present invention comprises a plurallty of bat~ery cage rows 12, 14, 16, 18, 20 extending from a starting or back end of a poultry house H designated S in Fig. 4 to the other ¦
end thereof in the front or forward direction F. Each battery cage row is substantially identical 80 that they all may be considered I
; ~ described with reference to battery cage row 12, for example, which may for convenience include cages 22 ~upported on longitudinally ~paced A-frames 24 at se~eral vertical le~els and facing ~wo ai~les. ~ ~
Each cage 22 i~ formed with or has secured thereto one or more feed ~ -0 ~roughs 26 into which feed i8 dispensed and from which poultryi :~-"' ':

1~796~
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occupying ~he cage 22 may feed itself. The eed trough~ 26 preferably are V-shape in cross-sectlon. A pair o~ rails 28 extend longitudinally above the two upper cages 22 of cage row ~2 which a mobile or travelling feed unit 30 is supported and in`
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operation is driven back and forth from starting end S and forward end F.
Each mobile feed unit 30 comprises a transversely extending carriage 3Z on which is supported top loading feed hoppers 34 having top openings 36 through which feed is cyclically loaded by a system supply auger 36 extending above and across the feed system 10 at the starting end S of poultry house H. The feed hoppers 34 of each unit 30 differ only in dispensing feed toward the left or right as would be obvious from the location of tubes T in Fig. 1.
Auger 36 is disposed in a conveyor tube 38 from a feed weighing or measuring station 40. A plurality of longitudinally . spaced openings 39 i~ provided along the underside of conveyor tube~
38 above the path of each--of the hoppers 34. A gate assembly 42 i9 supported on tube 38 and has a hinged gate normally closed by ~ ;;
gravity under each of the openings 39 o~ tube 38. The gate assembly 1 ~ ~
42' above the right hal of cage row 20 differs from the other gate I ~ -assemblies 40 in that it include~ swi~ching mechanism described be~

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low.
Extending down from carriage 32 is a pair of bracketQ 44 which support a palr o~ axles 46, 47 with wheels 48, 49 on opposite ends thereof and riding on rails 28. Drivingly secured to axle 47 ' ! -~
is a driven sprocket 50 with a chain 52 extending therearound.
Chain 52 i8 in turn driven by sprocket 54 of motor-and-gear-reduction !
un~t 56 which i~ battery operated. A ~econd chain 58 transmit~ power from a sprocket secured to æ le 47 hidden behind sprocket 50 in Fig. 4 to sxle 46 via 8procket 60 show~ i~ Fig. 2. A third chain - 6 ~

47~60 ~ 7~
62 in turn transmi~s power from sproclcet 64 on axle 46 to sprocket 66 secured on intermedia~e dri~e slla~t elcment 68 wh~ch extends outwardly to~ard each hopper 34 oE unit 30 and is connected by one-way clutches 70 to shaft segmen~s 72 which extend into and through each hopper 34. One-way clutches 70 provide driving connection between drive shaft element 68 and shaft segments 72 preferably when feed units 30 driven in the direction toward forward end F
and permit an idle relationship between shaft segments 72 and shaft element 68 when feed units are returning toward starting end S.
On the outer end 74 of each shaft segments 72 is secured an input sprocket 76 with drive chain 78 engaged therearound and which drives a pinion sprocket 80 fixed to a stub extension 82 of a feed dispensing auger 84 rotatably disposed i~ the lower end of each hopper 34 for dispensing feed ~hrough ~ubes T in~o troughs 26. :~
Cons-truction of auger 84, which is schematically indicated in Fig.4, may include such features as are disclosed in copending applica~
tions Serial No. 244,261, filed January 27, 1976, and Serial No.
244,259, filed January ~7, 1976, and commonly assigned to the as-signee of the present application.
Consistent with structure described above, the presence :~
of one-way clutches 70 in the dri~e train will effect feed dis- ~;
pensing from hoppers 34 into troughs 26 as they are driven toward forward end F and no dispensing as they are returned toward start- :`
ing end S
A significant feature of the present invention resides in the fact that the means for dispensing feed into the troughs 26 of the various groups or battery cage rows 12, 14, 16, 18, and 20 are arranged to dispense feed into the various troughs so that the total amount of feed dispensed into the troughs for one. group or battery cage row in a day, for eYa~ple ca~e row 12, is all that or.
as much as the cage occupants can eat in a day and the total amount g~
~f feed dispensed into the troughs for all o~her groups or battery cage row~ 14, 16, 18, and 20 in a day i~ signl~icantly less than the amount dispen~ed ~nto the troughs of cage row 12. For example, the amount of feed to be dispensed into the troughs 26 of cage rows 14, 16, 18 and 20 may by the system 10 of the present invention be from 5-10% less than the amount to be dispensed into the troughs 26 of cage row 12. In carrying forth ~he concept of the present invention, pinion sprockets 80 of either or both hoppers 34 of 1l :
mobile feed unit 30 for cage row 12 is smaller and therefore faster l ~-than that for cage rows 14, 16, 18 and 20. With the speed-of pinion 80 and therefore the speed of auger 84 of cage row 12 driven faster ¦ : :
than augers of cage rows 14, 16, 18 and 20, it will be clear that ..
a proportionately lesser amount of fe~d will be dispensed into the :-troughs 26 of the cage rows 14, 16, 18 and 20. While gear or speed ratio of the driven augers 84 is used to control the amount of feed ¦~
,to be dispensed into the variou~ troughs 26, it is within the con-`templation of.this invention that ;nstead of or in addi~Dn to di~ferent gear ratios variable size feed dispensing ports may be ~.
used to control the smount of feed to be dispensed into the troughs ;~`
26 of the various cage rows 12, 14, 16, 18, and 20.
A further feature of the feed system 10 according to the present invention resides in the fact that mobile feed units 30 for each of the battery cage rows 12, 14, 16, 18, and 20 are opera~le to dispense feed in very small quantities over numerous i~
feed period~ over the course of each day, such for example as at the rate of about one ounce per fifteen inches along the length o~ ~1 ~
the troNgh 26 during each feeding period. E~ch mobile feed unit 30 ~. .
as d~clo~ed is self-propelled by a ~elf-contained electric motor ~ ; :
unit 56 powered by a storage battery B connected via a relay con-trol box 86 which may lnclude manu~lly operated disconnect ~witches.

4 ~ ~ ~ ~ 9~ .
A9 ~een in Fig. 3, a sllde bar 88 1~ provlded with ~lots gO through pins 92 extend to qecure bar 88 in slidlng relation~hip with carriage 32. Bar 88 includes an electrlcal con~act end 94 with a plurality of individual termlnals for establlshing contact w~h terminals 96 of a board 98 at starting end S. Contact between the terminals of bar 88 with terminals 96 of board 98 will close a circuit for charging battery B and also for simul~aneous starting of j all mobile units 30 toward forward end S in a feed dispensing run - upon actuation of suitable relays when all "go" conditions in a control circuit to be described below are fully satisfied. Control bar 88 is provided with a cam 100 extending along one side thereof which is adapted to move longitudinally with bar 88. Secured to carriage 32 is a reverslng switch 102 having reversing stem 103 with a cam follower roller 104 projecting into the path of cam 100.
As.shown in Fig. 3, carriage 32 is travelling in a feed dispensing ~direction toward forward end F with bar 88 having been pushed for- -;~ ~
ward by coming into contact with terminal~ 96 of terminal board 98 ~ :
so that cam 100 is free of roller 104. Upon reaching forward end ~
F the forward end 106 of bar 88 will strike an abutment 108 extending .: ::
: in ita~ path whereupon as carriage 32 continues for a short distance .
toward forward end F roller 104 will ride up cam 100 to deflect stem ;
i 103 and reverse the polar~ty of motor unit 56 as pins 92 move forward-~ ly in slots 90. With the polarity of motor unit thus reversed ~ :
: carriage 32 will be driven~in the reverse direction toward starting end S until carriage 32 arrives at starting end S and pins 92 slide I :
toward starting end S in ~lots 90 when contact end 94 of bar 88 strikes terminals ~6 80 that roller 104 i8 off of cam lO0 and ~- ~
stem 103 is free and undeflected so that the polarity of motor unit ¦ :
56 resumes the polari~y or forward drive. As an ad~unct to the c~rcuitry of dri~e motor unlt 56 power cut-off switch 110 with a 4~g~V - I o-resiliently secured actuating stem 112 extending ther~from which w~ll cu~ off motor unit 56 upon being deflected by an abutment ¦ placed in ~ts path, which abutment may be located at ~orward end F and relocated toward or away from starting end S, lf, or exam-ple, use of fewer cages ~n any row is desired.
As mentioned above, a hinged gate assembly 42 is pro- ¦
vided for each openlng 39 of conveyor tube 38 a~ illustrated in Fig.
1 with the exception that a hinged gate assembly 42' illustrated at ¦
the extreme right position includes switching mechanism not provided in the gate assemblies 42 to the left of gate assembly 42'. With the foregoing in mind and reference to Figs. 4-8, it will be noted that each gate assembly 42 and gate assembly 42' comprises a semi-cylindrical sleeve portion 114 extending around the upper surface of tube 38, spaced apart generally vertical side walls 116 with ;~
semi-circular cut-out edges 118' extending around the under surface of tube 38. To secure sleeve portion 114 and side walls 116 together clamping flanges 118, 120, respectively, on opposite sides thereof which are secured together by nut and bolts 122, 124, ;
respectively. A second pair of generally vertical walls 126 are interconnected with side walls 116 to define an open bottom skirt ;~
around the opening 39 in tube 38. Sleeve portion 114 is formed ~
with upturned ears 128 through which extends a generally horizontal ~ ~ -pivot post 130. Hingedly supported by post 130 laterally outwardly ~ `
o~ ears 128 is a pair of spaced apart generally vertically extendlng 8ide walls 132 with each having a cut-out portion 134 to allow for pàssage of tube 38 in the closed condîtion of gate assemblies 42 and 42' a~ seen in Fig. 5. Spaced apart wall~ 132 are interconnected - ;
by a back wall 136 and a bot~om wall 138. Bottom wall 138 i9 adapted to extend under opening 39 when hinged side wall~ hang -freely 30 under th~ force of gravity to clo3e opening 39 or to be urged away :

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'79 ~ 0 ~rom opening 39 to allow feed to dlscharge ~rom openlng 39 to load hopper 34. A horizon~ally extending contact rod 140 i9 secured to side walls 132 and projec~ing to one side of one of the ~ide walls 132. To open opening 39 to allow feed to discharge from tube 38 and into a hopper 34 standing thereunder a ~triker mem-ber 142 is provided at an upper edge of hopper 34 intermediate the ¦ front and back ends of the hopper so that ~hen the hopper is moved back into a position at the s~ar~ing end S of the system opening 39 will be open thereabov~ and as hopper 34 is moved forward therefrom bottom wall 138 will close under opening 39 depending l I
upon contact and absence of contact between striker member 142 and contact rod 140. ¦
Each gate assembly 42 and gate assembly 42' Lncludes all I ~
structure described in detail above. Gate assembly 4Z', however, , ~;
includes additional structural elements identified herein with primed reference numbers which gate assemblies 42 do not ;nclude.
The gate assembly 42' in the extreme right position in Fig. l may -- .
now be seen in detail in Figs. 5-7 as including a pair of side ~
plates 144' hingedly supported on a rod 146' secured to side walls ~ ;
116 by brackets 148' extend;ng forwardly therefrom. Extending generally at 90 to contact rod 140 forwardly therefrom is an inter-media~e portlon 150' from which extends at the forward end thereof at 90 support portion 152'. Stabilizing connector plate 154' extends between the side plates 144' and connects same together.
Support portion 152' is adapted to ~upport connector plate 154' and siae plates 144~ in a raised position as may be seen in Fig. 5 when bottom wall 138 i~ closed under opening 39 of tube 38. When bottom wall 138 i$ pushed out from under opening 39 by rea~on of str~ker . .
member 142 moving against contact rod 140 and support portion 152'

3~ ~8 withdrawn from beneath connector plate 154' side plates 144' under the force of gravity swing about rod 146' from the position -- .

4~96 in Fig. 5 to the posLtion ln Fig. 7.
An outwardly directed spring clip 156' i9 secured on the ¦ outer face of each side plate 144' wlth a fir~t mercury switch MRS~
held in one clip 156' and a second mercury ~witch MRS-2 held in the other clip 156'. Switch MRS-l is provided with leads on one end ~hereof while switch MRS-2 is provided with leads on both ends thereof, which function as a single-throw double-pole switch.
Switches MRS-l and MRS-2 extend generally parallel to each other.
It is clear that when bottom wall 138 is closed under opening 39, ' ~ -as seen in Fig. 5, and side plates 144' are supported in the raised position the leads in the upper end of switch MRS-l are disconnected . .
so that the circuit thereof is open. In this regard the circuit of i~
switch MRS~l supplies current to a motor for driving hopper loading ; cross auger 36 and also to a motor for a bulk bin motor which delivers feed to weighing station 40. Thus with switch MRS-l in the position of Figo 5 auger 36 oannot be driven. When bottom wall ¦ ;
138-is out ~rom under opening 39 plates 144! drop to the position where the leads of switch MRS-l are closed in its circuit allowing the motors for cross auger 36 and for supplying feed to weighing station 40 and a bulk bin to be driven at the same time leads at the ~;
corresponding end of MRS-2 are connected to close a circuit which will sound an alarm to advise an attendant in due course that i9 a~ter a lapse of time of predetermined length that feed has not been delivered to all hoppers 34~ by auger 36 and to take corrective action, either to turn off motors if necessary and/or see to it that feed is delivered to all hoppers 34.
Where feea has been supplied to all hoppers 34 each in ~urn from left to right in Fig. 1, feed in each hopper starting from the first hopper 34 on the left in Fig. 4 i9 filled unt~l feed builds up ~n a mound to close up opening 39 before feed can be Vi~7~
and is delivered ~o ~h~ next hopper 34 and so on down the 1~ne.
I~ there Is enough feed supplled in the system 10 ~o 111 the last hopper 34 on the right in Fig. 1, the feed will build up a mound to push against connec~or plate 154', to urge it to hinge in the clockwise direction about rod 146' whereby the leads o~
switch MRS-l will be opened and the leads in the corresponding end of switch MRS-2 for sounding an alarm will be open, but the leads at the other end of switch MRS-2 will be closed in a circuit which upon passage o time will be activated by a clock mechani~m 10 to operate starting mechanisms for starting up motor units 56 of ~ ;
all mobile feed units 30 Such control circuitry as are necessary to sound o~f an alarm, if necessary, to turn on various motors ~or driving a bulk bin conveyor, hopper loading conveyor, mobile feed units, simul- ~ ;
taneous operation of all units at various times of th~ day9 and other accessories are clearly illustrated in Fig~. 8 and 9 and are further described below: -For an embodiment of electrical circuitry which may be used to control the apparatus of the present invention, reference :~
is made to Figs. 8 and 9. This circuit diagram is for controlling the operation of a cage system 10 having five mobile feeding units ;
30 which move along a path over five cage rows 12, 14, 16, 18 and 20, designated in Fig. 8 as Rows 1-5, respectively. In a similar man-ner additional mobile units to travel along additional rows may be added as needed, each unit connected as shown for the units in Figs.
8 and 9.
The circu~t ~how~ the instant when all units 30 in Row-l ~hru Row-5 are away from ~he front end of each cage row; either travelling down the row distributing feed to the birds or returning , ~o the front end after the feed distribution.

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When all the unlts in Row-l thru Row-5 re~urn to the starting end S , they make contact wl~h contac~ors T-l through . . .
T-5, M-l through M-5, and s-l through s-5, respectively, mounted on the back end of each cage row The contacts on limit switch i LS-l through LS-5 are reversed. Mercury switch MRS-2-reverses its contact~.
Predeterminin~ counter PC-I is set for a predetermined number equivalent to the number of dumps of feed to be delivered - ~
to birds every day and is provided with automatic reset unit RS which ~-resets the numbers at a pre-set time on time clock assembly TC-l. ~ -As long as the predetermining counter PC~l does not zero out or as long as feed remains to be delivered for the day, relay - :-; RY-l stays energized. When all the units return to the front end I -j ' closing the contacts on mercury switch MRS-l, the contactors CR-l i and CR-2 are energized and the contacts are closed. This starts I bulk bin, feed screen, and cross auger motor~. Bulk bin and feed i~ screen motors convey feed from the bulk bin to the cross auger boot, i;~ `
1~ whereas, ~he cross auger motor-conveys the eed from the boot to each unit at a time in a numerical order. 1 ~
~ If too much feed accumulates in the cross auger boot, ~ill 1 ;
I y ~:
switch FS-l opens the contacts~ thereby, de-energizing and opening contacts of contactor CR~2. This shuts off the bulk bin motor.,; :
When feed level in cross auger boot falls below a certain level9 fill switch FS-l closes the contacts, thereby~ energizing and ! ~ closing contacts of contactor CR-2. This itarts bulk bin motor, `~
conveying feed from the bulk bin to cro~s auger boot.
Before the feed i~ conveyed ~o the cro3s auger boot feed i8 screened to remove all foreign materials and weighed in a feed scaleO The con~acts on limit ~witch MnS-l are closed for each dump of feed conveyed from bulk bin to the individual unit$ through , ' . ~)4~;~;~
cro~s a~ge~ boot. Thi~ energ~zes relay RY-2 clo~ing ~ts contacts, ¦ thereby ~ubtracting one count on predetermining counter PC-l and addlng one count on totalizlng counter AC-l. Thl~ allows ~otaliz-in~ counter AC-l to register the total number of feed dumps conveyed and then distributed to the birds in a day. Predeter~in~ng counter PC-l shows the number of dumps of feed remalning to be distributed to the birds from a preset number of dumps for the day.
When the last unit in the last row or Row-5 in the present illustration is filled with feed to its proper level, mer-cury switch MRS-l opens its contacts and de-energizes the contactors CR-l and CR-2 which in turn shut off the bulk bin, feed screen, and cross auger motors. Also when the unit in Row-5 is filled to its proper level, mercury switch MRS-2 reverses its contacts.
' When time clock assembly TC-l closes contacts on switch TCS-R, the relay RY-3 is energized closing all the contacts. This gives a momentary 'start' signal ts each un~t in a cage row by way ll of the leads designated as top contactor and middle contactor for ¦ each row in Fig. 8 which are connected to two terminals 96 on board 98 and through two cooperating terminals on contact end 94 leading to a motor unit 56. As a result, each unit travels down the l;
length of the complete cage row distributing feed. Each unit reverses itself at the end of the row and comes back to the fron~
end making contact with all the contactors T-l through T-5, M-l through M-5, and B-l throu~h B-5, respectively.
The complete process ~ repeated again till the preset number of dumps are distributed to the birds. T~me clock assembly TC-l i8 set so that the units make 15 to 20 trip8 in a day depending ` on the amount of feed to be distributed to the blrds.
`1 , :.
~ When the un~ts return to the 3tarting end S and are : .
being filled with feed for the next trip, the ba~tery on each un~t ', '' L ~ . . . ' ' ' . . ' 1;04~9~iO
~s charged through the battery charger~ BC-l through BC-5, respec-ti~ely, mounted near the s~àrting end S o each cage row. In thi8 regard, the battery B of each mobile unit is charged by way of two leads designated top contactor and bottom contactor in Fig. 8 which are connected to two terminals 96 on board 98 and through I cooperating terminalg on contact end 94 leading to a battery B. I
It is noted that contact end 94 is shown to Include four terminals in Fig. 3; it is clear that one of these four terminals may be a neutral terminal and another one of such terminals provides dual ~10 functions of charging and starting in the manner that the three~ , ~ . . .
contactors designated as top contactor, bottom contactor and middle contactor in Fig. 8 with the top contactor being common to ~, .
the charglng and starting circuits. ~
When a predetermined quantity of eed is conveyed from the -bulk bin and distributed to the birds by the units for the day, the !
predetermining counter PC-l shows all zeros. ` ;
At-'0000' an integral snap action SPDT switch I5 opens the contacts and de-energizes relay RY~ hereb~, opening the contacts. This turns off the complete system till the predetermining counter PC-l is reset with the predetermined number of dumps of feed for the next day. ;; ;
At a preset time on the time clock assembly TC-l, con ~ ;
tacts on time clock switch TCS-F are closed, which results in -~
' automatiç resetting of numbers on counter PC-l and the complete /~ ~ cycle is repeated the next day. Counter AC-l requires manual resettlng of numbers each day before the beginning of the next day or af~er PC-l zeros out.
If for some rea~on the unit ln the la~t row or Row-5 of the present invention Is not filled to its proper level, mercury , - , 8witch MRS-2 does not reverse its contacts. As a resul~, all the I

L796~ ~ / 7~
nits from Row-l through Row-5 do no~ lea~re or ~eed dl8tribution even though time clock TC-l closes contacts on switch TCS~R to give a 'start' signal. Thig energizes Coil B of latching relay LRY-l whlch in turn energizes relay ~Y-4 and sounds the alarm.
A reset button PB-l i8 provided to turn off ~he alarm.
.~. If anyone of the uni~s does not leave for distributing feed to the birds or does not return from the last trip, a time ~ delay relay TDR-l is energ;æed and an alarm sounds.
~ Toggle switches TS-l through TS-5 are provided to remove ~ 10 any.of the units from operation without af~ecting the operation of I the other units. Whenever a toggle swi~ch TS-l through TS-5, mounted near the front end o~ each cage row is turned to 'off' position, a pilot light, PL-l through PL-5, goes 'on' indicating ~ .
the unit in that particular row is not in operation.
~ . Manual shut-off switch MS-l is provided to shut-off the -i~ complete system without disturbing the time clock TC-l. Lamp LP~
goes 'on' whenever M~-l is turned to loffl position.
Whenever feed packs in cross auger near t~e drive end, ;.
mercury switch MRS-3 opens its contacts and shuts off the cross ~- 20 auger, bulk bin, snd feed screen motors and hence the ~omplete . ~ .
~` . system.
: With the feed system 10 as described above in combination with the control circuit of Figs. 8 and 9, it is to be understood :;
that all hoppers 34 are sup~lied with feed from conveyor tube 38 numerous times each time as directed by counter AC-l and time clock ::~
assembly TC-l and thereafter started on a feed dispensing cycle and .~ returned to the stsrting end S for the next cycle of operation, with - ~ :
. each unit 34 being dri~en on motorized carriages 32 as described :~
~ . above. While the cont~ol circuit of Figs. 8 and 9 may be set to -;
i, . ~ -30 efect a given nu~er, for example twenty cycle~ a day for supplying 1~7960 ;~ feed to the hopper~ 34 and effect~ng feed dispensing into troughs 26, where the feed supply is exhausted af~er less than the twenty cycles and feed i9 supplied to any number of hoppers 34 but less than all hoppers 34, the last gate assembly 42' will not close the switch MRS-2 in the circuit to allow any of the hoppers 34 to be driven down toward forward end F to dispense feed. Thus all cage~
rows will be given the same number of feed each day, either the ~ s~heduled number of feeding or less than the scheduled number of ¦ , 3 :`~ ; feeding by the same num~er.
.~ 10 It will be obvious to those skilled in the art that ~ ~
~j various changes may be made withou~ departing from the scope ,.~. . .
of the invention and the invention ls not to be considered limited to what is shown in the drawings and described in the specif;cation.
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Claims (5)

THE EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION IN WHICH AN EXCLUSIVE
PROPERTY OR PRIVILEGE IS CLAIMED ARE DEFINED AS FOLLOWS:

1. A system for controlling the feed to be automatically distributed to livestock in numerous repeated cycles over the course of a day or like periods whereby the feed is accurately metered and dispensed comprising in combination:
(a) means for segregating livestock into a plurality of groups;
(b) feed receptacle means situated adjacent to said seg-regating means from which livestock may avail themselves of feed;
(c) separate mobile feed distributing units for accurate-ly metering and dispensing feed into feed receptacle means of the various groups;
(d) power actuated drive means operatively connected to said mobile feed distributing feed units along a line generally parallel to said feed receptacle means;
(e) dispensing means drivingly connected to said drive means to effect dispensing of feed from units in one direction of said driving means;
(f) dispensing means of one of said units being of such capacity as to dispense in a day a total amount of feed equal to all that the livestock of a first one of said groups can eat and the dispensing means of all others of said units are each of equal capacity of each other but of less capacity than the dis-pensing means of said one of said units by as much as from about 5% to 10%; and (g) means for periodically filling each of said feed distributing units; and (h) switching means for sensing the filled condition of said feed distributing units and facilitating actuation of said units and for sensing the unfilled condition of said feed dis-tributing units and sounding an alarm to alert an attendant of such condition.

2. The system as defined in claim 1 wherein said dis-pensing means comprise auger members having a driven gear or sprocket member connected to one end thereof.

3. The system as defined in claim 2 wherein the driven gear or sprocket member of said one of said units has fewer teeth than each of the gear or sprocket members of the others of said units whereby said one of said units will dispense feed at a greater rate than the others of said units when all of said units are driven together.

4. The system as defined in claim 3 wherein said feed receptacle means are troughs which are V-shaped in cross-section and said feed dispensing means all dispense feed into said troughs in such very small quantities during each dispensing cycle that what little feed that is dispensed will gather at the bottom of said troughs and will be easily consumed by the livestock feeding therefrom.

5. The system as defined in claim 4 wherein said feed dispensing means are of such capacity as to dispense feed at the rate of about one ounce per fifteen inches length of said troughs.