Construction for automatically milking animals

The invention relates to an apparatus for automatically milking animals in a milking compartment with a milking robot that has a controllable arm for moving the teat cups under the animal to be milked in the milking compartment and connecting the teat cups to the teats of the animal to be milked.

With known apparatuses, prior to connecting the teat cups, a controllable robot arm pivots under the udder of the animal to be milked to position the teat cups there. For this purpose, known apparatuses are often provided with a freely movable electronically controlled robot arms. This has, inter alia, the disadvantage that the robot arm is sensitive to operational failures.

An object of the invention is to provide a mechanical guide element for the robot arm to follow which causes the teat cups to follow a path that takes them from outside of the milking compartment to a position wherein the teat cups are under the teats of an animal in the milking compartment. The use of the mechanical guide element for a pivoting movement, which is each time substantially the same, results in a very robust and reliable milking robot. The guide element enables an accurate pivoting movement of the robot arm.

The invention will now be explained in further detail with reference to the accompanying figures.

FIG. 1 shows schematically a side view of a part of the apparatus according to the invention; and

FIG. 2 shows schematically the apparatus of FIG. 1 as seen from the direction of the arrow II in said figure.

FIG. 1 shows schematically a part of the apparatus according to the invention. This apparatus for automatically milking animals comprises a milking compartment 1 with a milking robot 2 which is well known to those skilled in the art and is provided with a controllable robot arm 3 for connecting teat cups 4 to the teats of an animal that is to be milked in milking compartment 1 .

Robot arm 3 can be moved in the longitudinal direction of milking compartment 1 with the aid of control means appropriate therefor, such as rail construction 5 and a suspension element 6 that is movable along said rail construction. Of course, the control means may also be different, such as, for example, a parallelogram construction, a telescoping construction, a piston and cylinder construction or a hingeable construction. As shown, however, construction 5 comprises two superposed, parallel, tubular rails, along which suspension element 6 , equipped with four wheels, can be moved.

A guide element 7 for robot arm 3 is fitted to suspension element 6 . Said guide element 7 is formed as a curve so that robot arm 3 when moving along guide element 7 pivots teat cups 4 between a first position beyond reach of the animal to be milked and a second position under the udder of that animal. For accurate positioning of teat cups 4 in transverse direction under the animal to be milked, the curved path of guide element 7 is configured to permit the positioning in various further positions under the udder.

Robot arm 3 is movable along guide element 7 with the aid of a drivable pulling element, such as a chain or a cable, that is connected to milking compartment 1 . In the embodiment shown, robot arm 3 is movable along guide element 7 with the aid of drivable wheels 8 that are connected with robot arm 3 . Of course, alternative roller elements are possible as well. Viewed in cross-section, guide element 7 has a curved shape which is configured so that at its lower side a running surface for wheels 8 is formed. During the pivoting movement, the upper part of robot arm 3 , that is fastened to wheels 8 , extends through a groove in the lower side of guide element 7 . Wheels 8 or the guide element 7 or both are preferably provided with gear teeth.

The lower part of robot arm 3 is movable in vertical direction with the aid of control means appropriate therefor. Said control means are shown as a telescoping construction, but may of course also be designed differently, such as a parallelogram construction, a piston and cylinder construction or a hingeable construction.

Although we have disclosed the preferred embodiments of our invention, it is to be understood that it is capable of other adaptations and modifications within the scope of the following claims.