JP2593059Y2 - Straw tube melting equipment - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed description of the invention]

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a straw tube melting device for melting straw tubes in which semen and fertilized eggs of cattle and other livestock are frozen and stored.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, in the field of livestock, fertilized egg transplantation technology for livestock has been developed and put into practical use.
This has helped increase production efficiency. As a method for transplanting such a fertilized egg, for example, a superovulated cow is subjected to artificial insemination to conceive, a fertilized egg is taken out of the body, frozen and stored in a transparent small-diameter straw tube, and then thawed. Then, a method of transplanting a fertilized egg to a cow is known. Here, in order to perform artificial insemination on a cow, a method is used in which a straw tube in which semen is frozen and stored in advance is thawed, opened, put into an injector, and semen is put into the uterus of the cow.

By the way, when a fertilized egg is transplanted or subjected to artificial insemination, a straw tube as shown in FIG. 4 is conventionally used to melt a straw tube in which a fertilized egg or semen is frozen and stored. In FIG. 4, reference numeral 1 denotes a melting device. The melting device 1 includes a cylindrical device body 2 having a bottom, a lid 3 that seals an upper opening of the device body 2, and a cage 4 that stores a straw tube. This is a schematic configuration. Device body 2
Is provided with a heater (not shown) and a temperature sensor embedded in a peripheral wall 2a, and further provided with a temperature controller (not shown) connected to the heater and the temperature sensor at the bottom. The space 2b to be filled is filled with water.

[0004] The lid 3 is formed so as to hermetically seal the upper opening of the apparatus main body 2 and has a heat insulating material therein, so that when the lid 3 is attached to the apparatus main body 2, the inside of the space 2 b It enhances the heat retention. The lid 3 has a through-hole 5 formed at the center thereof, and a bottomed cylindrical cage 4 communicating with the through-hole 5 is attached to the through-hole 5. The basket 4 is made of a resin having a depth sufficiently longer than the entire length of the straw pipe, and a plurality of through holes 6 are formed in the peripheral wall so that the inside of the basket 4 communicates with the space 2b. I have.

[0005] Further, a lid 7 for hermetically sealing the through hole 5 is detachably attached to the through hole 5 of the lid 3. A through-hole 8 is formed at the center of the lid 7, and a take-out rod 9 is inserted through the through-hole 8 so as to be movable in the length direction (the vertical direction of the through-hole 8). The take-out rod 9 is wire-shaped, and has a dish 9a at the lower end for placing a straw tube, and a ring 9b at the upper end to lift the take-out rod 9.

[0006] In order to thaw a frozen straw tube using such a thawing apparatus 1, first, a space 2 in a main body 2 of the apparatus is thawed.
b is filled with water, and the lid 3 is attached to the apparatus main body 2, and the lid 7 is also attached to the through hole 5 of the lid 3. Next, the temperature controller is adjusted to set the water temperature to 38 ° C. When the water temperature reaches 38 ° C. by the operation of the heater, the lid 7 is removed, and the straw tube S which has been prepared in advance and is frozen is used.
Is put in the basket 4 as shown by a two-dot chain line in FIG. 4, and is placed on the plate 9a of the take-out rod 9, and then the lid 7 is attached again. If the semen or the fertilized egg in the straw tube S has melted after a predetermined period of time has elapsed, the lid 7 is removed again, and the take-out rod 9 is pulled up to take out the straw tube S ... from the cage body 4 for use. Offer.

[0007]

By the way, in the above-mentioned melting apparatus, water is always required when using the melting apparatus. However, usually when transplanting fertilized eggs or performing artificial insemination, it is performed in a livestock barn. In such a case, there is not always a water supply nearby, and therefore, there is a complaint that if there is no nearby water source, water must be prepared in advance. Further, in the melting device, water is used as a heat medium for melting.However, water tends to cause temperature unevenness in an upper layer and a lower layer due to convection, and therefore, when melting, water as a heat medium is appropriately used. There is a problem that it has to be stirred.
That is, if a stirring device is provided in the space 2b of the device main body 2, the device becomes complicated, and if stirring is performed manually, the lid 3 must be opened each time.
This is because it becomes difficult to keep the temperature of the water in the inside uniform.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object thereof is to provide a melting apparatus capable of melting semen or fertilized eggs in a straw tube in a dry manner without using water as a heat medium. To provide.

[0009]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In a straw tube melting apparatus according to the present invention, a metal straw tube holder for covering the outer peripheral surface of a straw tube and holding it in a detachable manner is provided. A melting device main body having a storage portion for hermetically sealing, a heater and a temperature sensor are provided near the storage portion of the melting device main body, and a temperature controller connected to the heater and the temperature sensor in the melting device main body. The provision is provided as means for solving the problem.

[0010]

The straw tube melting device of the present invention uses a metal straw tube holder, and indirectly heats the straw tube sandwiched and held by heating the straw tube holder in the storage section, Since the semen or fertilized egg frozen and stored inside is thawed, the disadvantages of using water as a heat medium can be avoided, and the straw tube is made of metal and has good heat conductivity. Since the holder is sandwiched and held, uniform heating of the straw tube is possible.

[0011]

1 to 3 show one embodiment of a liquid filling device for a straw tube according to the present invention. In these drawings, reference numeral 10 denotes a straw tube melting device. The straw tube melting device 10 is generally constituted by a straw tube holder 11 for holding the straw tubes S, and a melting device body 12 for accommodating the straw tube holder 11.

As shown in FIG. 2, a straw tube holder (hereinafter abbreviated as a holder) 11 has a rectangular plate-shaped holder body 13 and a rectangular plate-shaped lid plate 1 hinged thereto.
4 made of a metal having good thermal conductivity such as aluminum. The holder body 13 has four holding grooves 15a on its inner surface (the surface that contacts the cover plate 14).
15b} are formed along the longitudinal direction. These holding grooves 15a, 15b # are each formed in a U-shaped cross section and have a depth substantially equal to the diameter of the straw tube S, whereby the straw tube S is easily held. It can be worn. In this example, the holding groove 15a is formed in a large-diameter straw tube,
5b is formed to have a predetermined width so as to fit into a small-diameter straw tube.

On the inner surface of the holder body 13,
At its center, a groove 16 having a U-shaped cross section is formed perpendicular to the sandwiching grooves 15a and 15b.
On one side of 5b, a notch 17 is formed from the edge of the holder body 13 to the inside. The groove 16 and the notch 17 are both for inserting a finger when removing the straw tube S from the holding groove 15a or 15b. That is, since both of the holding grooves 15a and 15b are formed so as to closely hold the straw tube S, it is convenient to have a guide portion for hooking a finger when removing the straw tube S.

The cover plate 14 has a surface having the same size and shape as the inner surface of the holder main body 13 and is in close contact with the inner surface of the holder main body 13 by being hingedly connected thereto. The melting device main body 12 is a rectangular cylindrical outer cylinder 1.
8 and a temperature controller 19 disposed below the inside thereof
And an inner cylinder 20 disposed above the temperature controller 19.
And a lid 21 for closing the upper opening of the outer cylinder 18. The outer cylinder 18 has a lower part formed with a window forming a marking part of the temperature controller 19 and an opening part for operating a temperature setting key. The temperature controller 19 is a known device connected to a heater and a temperature sensor described later, and can perform temperature control from room temperature to about 60 ° C. The power supply of the temperature controller 19 can be obtained from a normal power supply via an adapter, and can be obtained from a battery type.

The inner cylinder 20 is provided inside the outer cylinder 18 via a heat insulating material 22 made of a foamed resin or the like, and includes an inner cylinder main body 23 and heater mounting parts respectively attached to front and rear surfaces thereof. It is schematically constituted by plates 24, 24. The inner cylinder main body 23 is a square cylinder having a storage space A (storage portion) for storing the holder 11 therein, and is formed of a metal having good heat conductivity such as aluminum similarly to the holder 11. Things. In addition, this inner cylinder main body 23
The storage space A is formed in substantially the same size and shape as the holder 11, so that the holder 11 comes into close contact with the inner surface of the inner cylinder main body 23. A substantially U-shaped notch 25 is formed at each upper end of the short side wall of the inner cylinder main body 23. These notches 25, 25 serve as portions where fingers are hooked when the holder 11 is taken out of the storage space A, and even if the holder 11 is stored in close contact with the inner cylinder body 23, the notches 25, 25
The holder 11 is formed so that the holder 11 can be easily taken out.

The heater mounting plate 24 is a rectangular plate having the same size and shape as the long side wall (front and rear side walls) on the long side of the inner cylinder main body 23. As shown in FIG. A groove 26 for accommodating the heater is formed along
6, a hole 27 for accommodating the temperature sensor is formed in the center, and a groove 28 for leading out a lead wire of the temperature sensor is formed from the hole 27 to the side edge. As shown in FIG. 1, these heater mounting plates 24, 24 accommodate a temperature sensor 29 in a hole 27, pull out a lead wire (not shown) thereof from a groove 28, and
9 and fitted closely to the inner cylinder body 23 with the planar heating element 30 (heater) housed in the groove 26,
It is screwed in that state. The sheet heating element 30
Is electrically connected to the temperature controller 19 as well. The lid 21 has a rectangular plate shape detachably attached to the upper end of the outer cylinder 18 and is hinged to the outer cylinder 18 to thereby hermetically seal the upper opening of the storage space A. I have.

The straw tube melting apparatus 10 having the above-described configuration is used.
In order to thaw the straw tube S frozen and stored by using the temperature controller 19, first set the temperature controller 19 and set the sheet heating element 28,
The storage space A is normally adjusted to 38 ° C. by operating the temperature sensor 29 while energizing the power supply 28. Separately, the straw tube S frozen and stored is stored in the holding groove 15a (15b) of the holder body 13 of the holder 11, and the lid 14 is closed in that state, and the straw tube S is placed in the holder 11.
Let me hold. The storage space A of the melting device body 12 is 38
When the temperature reaches ° C, the lid 21 is removed, the holder 11 prepared previously is stored in the storage space A, and the lid 21 is attached again. When a predetermined time has elapsed and the semen or fertilized egg in the straw tube S has melted, the lid 21 is removed again, and the straw tube S is taken out of the holder 11 and used for use.

In such a straw tube melting apparatus 10, a metal holder 11 is used.
Is heated in the storage space A, thereby indirectly warming the straw tube S sandwiched and held therein, whereby the semen or the fertilized egg frozen and stored therein can be thawed. In addition, since water is not used as a heating medium,
It is possible to quickly and stably heat at a uniform temperature without the necessity of stirring during heating as in the conventional case. further,
Since the holder 11 is made of metal and is detachable from the storage space A, the holder 11 can be easily sterilized by boiling or the like before use. In this embodiment, the holder 11 has four holding grooves 15.
a, 15b} are formed so that up to four straw pipes S can be simultaneously melted. However, it is needless to say that the number of pinching grooves may be three or less or five or more. .

[0019]

As described above, the liquid filling device for a straw tube according to the present invention uses a metal straw tube holder,
By heating the straw tube holder in the storage section, the straw tube sandwiched and held is heated quickly and indirectly at a stable and uniform temperature, and the semen or fertilized egg frozen and stored inside is thawed. Therefore, unlike the conventional melting apparatus, it is possible to avoid the inconvenience of using water as a heat medium. In addition, since the straw tube is sandwiched and held by a holder made of metal and having good heat conductivity, the entire straw tube can be heated uniformly, thereby making the entire melting tube uniform without melting. Can be uniformly melted. Further, since the straw tube holder is made of metal and is detachably attached to the storage portion, the holder can be easily sterilized by boiling disinfection or the like before use.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a schematic configuration of an embodiment of a straw tube melting device of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a schematic configuration of a straw tube holder.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a schematic configuration of a heater mounting plate.

FIG. 4 is a schematic configuration diagram of a conventional straw tube melting device.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Straw tube melting device 11 Straw tube holder 12 Melting device main body 15a, 15b Nipping groove 19 Temperature controller 29 Temperature sensor 30 Planar heating element (heater) S Straw tube A Storage space (storage section)

Claims (1)

(57) [Scope of request for utility model registration] An apparatus for thawing a straw tube in which semen or a fertilized egg of a domestic animal is frozen and stored, comprising a metal straw tube holder for covering an outer peripheral surface of the straw tube and detachably holding the straw tube. A melting device main body having a storage portion for detachably storing and sealing the straw tube holder; a heater and a temperature sensor provided near a storage portion of the melting device main body; and the heater and the temperature sensor provided in the melting device main body. And a temperature controller connected to the straw tube melting apparatus.