WO2001074146A1

WO2001074146A1 - Method and device for milking animals

Info

Publication number: WO2001074146A1
Application number: PCT/NL2001/000269
Authority: WO
Inventors: Jacobus Petrus Maria Dessing; Pieter Adriaan Oosterling
Original assignee: Prolion B.V.
Priority date: 2000-04-05
Filing date: 2001-04-05
Publication date: 2001-10-11
Also published as: NL1014846C2

Abstract

The invention relates to a method and device for milking animals. According to the invention, the milking using each milking cup is ended when the flow of milk out of this milking cup becomes lower than a first value, and the milking using the other milking cups is ended when the total flow of milk becomes lower than a second value.

Description

Method and device for milking animals

The invention relates to a method for milking animals according to the preamble of claim 1. A method of this type is known and is used to prevent blind milking. One drawback of the known method is that the milking may take a long time, since each quarter of the udder is milked until the flow of milk has fallen below a low level and the quarter is empty. To restrict this drawback, the method is carried out in accordance with the defining part of claim 1. This shortens the milking time, since the emptying of the quarters of the udder is no longer the decisive factor, since it is checked whether the flow of milk is still sufficiently high. Consequently, the animal can leave the milking stall more quickly and the capacity of the milking stall is increased.

According to one embodiment, the method is carried out in accordance with claim 2. This prevents prolonged milking.

According to one embodiment, the method is carried out in accordance with claim 3. This prevents prolonged milking and further increases the capacity of the milking stall. Acco'rding to one embodiment, the method is carried out in accordance with claim 4. This prevents the teat from being overloaded as a result of blind milking.

According to one embodiment, the method is carried out in accordance with claim 5. This prevents overloading of the teat while ensuring that the udder is milked to a sufficient extent.

The invention also comprises a device in accordance with the preamble of claim 6. A device of this type is known and is used to prevent blind milking. This device has the drawback described above.

To avoid this drawback, the device is designed in accordance with the defining part of claim 6. This makes it possible to prevent both blind milking and prolonged milking.

According to one embodiment, the device is designed in accordance with claim 7. This makes it easy to increase the capacity of the milking device.

The invention is explained below with the aid of a drawing, in which:

Figure 1 diagrammatically depicts a device for milking a mammal, and Figure 2 shows a diagram of the flow of milk as it is measured or determined during milking using the device shown in Figure 1.

Figure 1 diagrammatically depicts a known device for milking cows. The device comprises four milking cups 1, which are connected to a manifold 5 via separate milk lines 2. The manifold 5 is connected to an outlet 6, which is connected, in a known way, to an air separator (not shown) . The milk is pumped out of the air separator, in a known way, to a milk tank. The air separator is connected to a vacuum source, so that the milk flows through the milk line 2 under the influence of the sub-atmospheric pressure in the air separator. Once the cow is in the milking stall, the milking cups 1 are positioned round the teats of the udder. This can take place manually or using a milking robot (not shown) , by means of which the milking cups 1 are automatically placed around the teats.

The milking cups 1 are provided with a pulsating connection, by means of which the rubber lining in the milking cup executes a pulsating movement around the teat so that the milk flows out of the teat into the milking cup 1 and the milk line 2. An electrically actuated shut-off valve 3 and a milk flowmeter 4 are arranged in each milk line 2. The milk flowmeter 4 can measure the quantity of milk which flows through the milk line 2 per unit time. In a simple embodiment, the milk flowmeter 4 is designed in such a manner that it emits a signal when the flow of milk is greater or lower than a specific value. The shut-off valves 3 and the milk flowmeters 4 are coupled to a control unit 7.

After the milk flowmeter 4 has established that the flow of milk in a milk line 2 is lower than a first value a, the shut-off valve 3 is closed and milking of that quarter of the udder is stopped. This prevents the teat from being milked while milk is no longer emerging. To shorten the overall milking time, shut-off valves 3 are closed when the total flow of milk becomes lower than a second value b, which is established in a control unit 7 in which each flow of milk which is measured by a milk flowmeter 4 is added to the other measured flows of milk in order, in this way, to acquire the total flow of milk. In addition to the abovementioned components, the device may, in a known way, be equipped with means which are used during milking and primarily fully automated milking. For example, it will be possible to provide features for cleaning teats, for discharging the initial milk, means for checking the quality of the milk, means for separating out milk of lower quality, etc. There will also be features for applying the pulsating movement to the milking cup 1, it being _, possible to adapt this pulsating movement to the progress of milking, to the identity of the animal or to the phase of lactation for the animal in question.

The diagram illustrated in Figure 2 shows a flow of milk Q for each teat and the total flow of milk, over the course of time t after the start of milking. A line LF denotes the flow of milk out of the left front teat. A line RF denotes the flow of milk out of the right front teat. A line RR denotes the flow of milk out of the right rear teat, and a line LR denotes the flow of milk out of the left rear tear. The total flow of milk from the four teats is denoted by a line T. A line a denotes the value of the flow of milk at which the milking of a teat is ended, and a line b denotes the value of the total flow of milk at which the milking of the other teats is ended. The graph shows that the front teats give more milk, for a longer period, that the rear teats. At time ti, the flow of milk from the right rear teat falls below the first value a. This is established by the milk flowmeter 4 which is measuring the flow of milk and transmitting it to the control unit 7. The control unit 7 then closes the relevant shut-off value 3 and the pulsation in the milking cup 1 is terminated. At time t₂, the same happens to the flow of milk from the left rear teat, and the milking of this teat is also stopped.

The first value a at which the milking of a teat or quarter of an udder is ended is preferably an adjustable value. A customary value is a first value of the flow of milk a of 25 grams/minute.

Total milk yield, which is denoted by the line T, is the sum of the milk yields from the separate teats. When the total milk yield T falls below the second value b, . the milking of the teats by the milking cups for which milking has not yet been stopped is also stopped, by closing the shut-off valves 3 which have not yet been closed. A conventional value for the second value of the flow of milk b is 300 g/min. Fpr certain animals and/or for low milk yields and/or at certain times of day, it is possible, for example, to select a value of' 150 g/min. The fact that the milking is stopped when the total milk yield is lower than a specified value restricts the duration of milking. As a result, the milked cow can leave the milking stall earlier and more cows can be milked per hour in a milking stall. This increases the capacity of the milking stall, which is of advantage in particular when large amounts have been invested for each milking stall, as is the case with fully automated milking using a milking robot.

It would appear that the milk yield of the milked animal would fall as a result of the milking being ended before a certain quarter of an udder has been completely emptied. However, this is only a superficial impression, since it has been found that a limited quantity of remaining milk does not have any adverse effect on the milk yield of the mammary glands. The fact that a small quantity of residual milk remains in the udder has proven not to have any adverse effect. Also, the residual quantity of milk is small, for example approximately 100-200 grams per quarter.

The second value of the flow of milk b at which milking is ended, in animals with four teats, is at least six times the first value a at which milking of the separate teats is ended. As a result, the teats which are milked longest are not completely emptied, which allows the milking time to be shortened.

In addition to the embodiment of the device with four separate milk flowmeters 4, with the total flow of milk being established by calculating the total flow of milk by adding the four measured flows of milk in the control unit 7, as shown here, it is possible to use an alternative embodiment, in which the milk flowmeter 4 in each milk line 2 establishes whether the flow of milk is greater or lower than the first value for the flow of milk a, and in which a fifth milk flowmeter (not shown) is accommodated in the manifold 5, which fifth milk flowmeter establishes whether the total flow of milk to the outlet 6 is higher or lower than the second value for the flow of milk b. In this alternative embodiment, the milk flowmeters can be of more simple design, and the control unit 7 can also be of more simple design.

Claims

Claims :

1. A method for milking animals with the aid of a milking device having milking cups (1) , the milking cups being placed around the teats of the udder of the animal to be milked, the milk which is collected in the milking cup (1) being passed, via a milk line (2) and a manifold (5), to a collector (6), it being determined, for each milking cup, whether the flow of milk has fallen below a first value (a) , after which milking using this milking cup is ended, wherein, after it has been established that the total flow of milk is lower than a second value (b) , the milking using the other milking cups is ended.

2. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the second value (b) is 150 grams of milk per minute.

3. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the second value (b) is 300 grams of milk per minute.

4. The method as claimed in claim 1, 2 or 3 for milking animals with four teats, wherein the first value (a) of the flow of milk, beneath which milking using a milking cup (1) is ended, is less than 1/6 of the second value (b) .

5. The method as claimed in one of the preceding claims, wherein the first value (a) of the flow of milk, below which the milking using a milking cup (1) is ended, is 25 grams per minute.

6. A device for milking animals, comprising milking cups (1) for collecting milk, a milk line (2) for transporting the collected milk, if appropriate via a manifold (5), to a collector (6), means (4) for measuring the flow of milk in the milk line (2), and means (3, 7) for ending the milking using a milking cup

(1) when the flow of milk becomes lower than a first value (a), wherein there are means (4, 7) for determining the total flow of milk, and means (3, 7) for ending the milking using all the milking cups (1) when the total flow of milk falls below a second value

(b).

7. The device as claimed in claim 6, wherein each milking line (2) is provided with a milk flowmeter (4) for measuring the flow of milk through the milk line (2), and there are means for determining the total flow of milk on the basis of the measurement carried out using the milk flowmeters (4).