Delaval Holding Ab

Hans Holmgren

Thomas Axelsson

Bohao Liao

Björn Johansson

Matts Lenart Nilsson

Bjorn Johanson

A detecting arrangement is provided for a teat cleaning device including a teat cleaning cup in which teats of milking animals are contained during cleaning thereof. The detecting arrangement comprises a measuring device provided for automatically measuring a teat related parameter in or adjacent to the teat cleaning cup at completion of a teat cleaning process, and a processing device operatively connected to the measuring device and provided for automatically comparing the measured teat related parameter with a reference value and for automatically determining whether the teat of the milking animal has been contained in the teat cleaning cup unfolded during the teat cleaning process based on the comparison.

Detection arrangement and method

An arrangement is provided for attaching teat cups to teats of a milking animal in a rotary milking system having a milking stall for housing the milking animal during milking. The arrangement comprises a three-dimensional camera configured to be directed towards the udder of the milking animal in the milking stall and to repeatedly record three-dimensional images of the udder of the milking animal in real time. The three-dimensional camera is further configured to be directed towards the teat cups located in a magazine and to repeatedly record three-dimensional images of the teat cups in real time. The arrangement also includes an image processing device configured to repeatedly detect the teats of the milking animal and determine the positions of the teats in three spatial dimensions based on said repeatedly recorded three-dimensional images of the teats. The image processing device is also configured to repeatedly detect the plurality of teat cups and determine the positions of the teat cups in three spatial dimensions based on said repeatedly recorded three-dimensional images of the teat cups located in the magazine. The arrangement also includes a control device configured to control a robot arm, based on the determined positions of the teats of the milking animal and the determined positions of the teat cups, to automatically attach at least one teat cup to at least one teat of the milking animal in the milking stall.

Arrangement and method for determining positions of the teats of a milking animal

In an automatic milking installation including a robot arm () with a gripper () for attaching teat cups () to the teats of an animal, e.g. a cow, to be milked, for applying a teat dip to the teats after milking different members, such as spray nozzles (), dipping cups () and sponge or cloth rollers (), are provided for applying different teat dip compositions. Under the control of a computer, the robot arm collects the member () appropriate for supplying the selected composition and takes it to a position appropriate for application of that composition. The selection can e effected in dependence upon the teat skin condition, e.g. detected by a camera () and/or environmental conditions.

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Stockholm, Sweden

Hans Holmgren