A fully automatic piglet liquid milk feeding system and a control method thereof

Abstract

The application discloses a kind of full-automatic piglet liquid milk feeding system and control method thereof, and design mechanical automation field.Its structure includes milk supply unit, liquid milk conveying unit, control unit, the milk supply unit includes temperature regulating water heater, clean water control valve, acidic cleaning fluid control valve, basic cleaning fluid control valve, milk powder control valve, stirrer, the liquid milk conveying unit includes air pressure pump, liquid milk circulation pipeline, light sensor, sewage outlet control valve, milk cup, heating wire and pipeline temperature sensor placed in the liquid milk circulation pipeline, RFID module connected with the control module, pressure sensor connected with the control module, ambient temperature sensor connected with the control module.Liquid milk is automatically, timely delivered according to demand, greatly reduces the workload of workers, guarantees the freshness of liquid milk, so as to guarantee the health condition of piglet to the greatest extent.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention belongs to the technical field of feeding devices, and particularly relates to a fully automatic liquid milk feeding system for piglets and its usage method. Background Technology

[0002] With the rapid development of my country's pig farming industry, the number of piglets born to sows is increasing, and the proportion of high-producing sows in pig farms is also rising. The number of effective teats of sows in pig farms is now far lower than the number of piglets born, resulting in a severe shortage of sow's milk for piglets. Furthermore, piglets must undergo a weaning stress period after being weaned; if this stress is not properly managed during weaning, it will negatively impact their growth.

[0003] Currently, pig farms typically feed piglets artificial milk, a process that is overly cumbersome, labor-intensive, and makes it difficult to ensure the hygiene of the feed troughs, easily leading to spoilage of the artificial milk. Furthermore, it is difficult to maintain the temperature of artificially fed liquid milk, especially in winter, as piglets consuming cold liquid milk are prone to diarrhea and other diseases. Summary of the Invention

[0004] To address the shortcomings of existing technologies, this invention provides a fully automated liquid milk feeding system for piglets. This fully automated liquid milk feeding system can significantly reduce manual labor, improve the efficiency of liquid milk feeding, ensure the temperature of the artificial milk consumed by piglets, effectively reduce feed residue in the equipment, prevent residual feed from spoiling, maintain the temperature of the liquid milk, and help piglets smoothly transition through the weaning process.

[0005] The technical solution of this invention is: a fully automatic liquid milk feeding system for piglets, comprising a stirrer, a temperature-controlled water heater, a clean water control valve, a milk powder control valve, an acidic disinfectant control valve, an alkaline disinfectant control valve, a pressure pump, a liquid milk circulation pipe, a drain outlet control valve, a milk cup with one end placed inside the liquid milk circulation pipe and the other end placed outside the liquid milk circulation pipe, a light sensor placed on the liquid milk circulation pipe, a cleaning module connected to the stirrer, and components including the stirrer, temperature-controlled water heater, clean water control valve, milk powder control valve, and acidic disinfectant... The system includes a control valve, an alkaline disinfectant control valve cleaning module, a pressure pump, a light sensor, a control module connected to a drain outlet control valve, an electric heating wire and a pipe temperature sensor placed in the liquid milk circulation pipe, an RFID module connected to the control module, a pressure sensor connected to the control module, and an ambient temperature sensor connected to the control module. Its control methods include initial parameter setting, starting the stirrer, delivering liquid milk into the pipe, liquid milk circulation, replenishing liquid milk, automatic secondary heating, automatic replenishment of liquid milk, cleaning, and disinfection.

[0006] Furthermore, the control module includes an STM32F429 controller, an LCD display, a storage unit, and a power supply module.

[0007] Furthermore, the cleaning module includes an acidic disinfectant storage tank, an alkaline disinfectant storage tube, an acidic disinfectant control valve, and an alkaline disinfectant control valve.

[0008] Furthermore, the drain outlet is equipped with a drain outlet switch control valve.

[0009] Furthermore, the electric heating wires are placed in the liquid circulating milk pipe and arranged at a uniform interval, with the portion of the electric heating wires on the inner wall parallel to the pipe wall.

[0010] Furthermore, the liquid milk circulation pipe is divided into an inner wall and an outer wall. The inner wall is an insulating heat insulation layer with heat preservation function, and also has equally spaced small holes for placing the electric heating wire. The outer wall is a transparent protective layer made of PMMA. The space between the inner wall and the outer wall is hollow to provide space for the wires of the electric heating wire to connect to the control module.

[0011] Furthermore, the RFID module, pressure sensor, temperature sensor, and control module are connected.

[0012] Compared with the prior art, the beneficial effects of the present invention are as follows:

[0013] This invention features a temperature-controlled water heater that automatically heats water in a tank to a set temperature. This heated water, when mixed with milk powder, controls the temperature of the resulting liquid milk, ensuring a suitable temperature and preventing diarrhea in piglets. The automatic mixing of water, milk powder, and a stirrer minimizes human intervention and reduces labor intensity. A light sensor continuously measures the liquid milk level in the circulation pipe, feeding this information to the control module. Based on the level, the module determines whether to add more milk, preventing feed waste and providing a continuous 24 / 7 liquid milk supply. Piglets ingest the liquid milk by touching the feeding nipple in the milk cup with their noses. Excess milk does not flow back into the circulation pipe, ensuring cleanliness and reducing weaning stress for piglets through self-feeding. Meanwhile, evenly spaced electric heating wires are placed in the liquid milk circulation pipeline to prevent piglets from experiencing diarrhea due to consuming excessively cold liquid milk. The pipeline consists of two layers: an inner wall and an outer wall. The inner wall is an insulating layer that allows for the evenly spaced electric heating wires, maximizing the temperature of the liquid milk within the pipeline and preventing frequent start-stop cycles, thus reducing energy consumption. The outer wall is a transparent protective layer made of PMMA, offering high impact resistance, corrosion resistance, cold resistance, and heat resistance. Furthermore, this device can predict future feed intake in piglets by analyzing data collected by sensors and deliver liquid milk into the pipeline accordingly. The device also includes a cleaning module, which, controlled by the control module, periodically cleans residual milk from the liquid milk circulation pipeline, ensuring cleanliness, preventing spoilage of the circulated liquid milk, reducing bacterial growth, and ensuring the safety of the piglets' feed. Attached Figure Description

[0014] Figure 1 Schematic diagram of a fully automated liquid milk feeding system for piglets

[0015] Figure 2 Side cross-section of liquid milk circulation pipeline

[0016] Figure 3 Automatic milk replenishment function model prediction flowchart Detailed Implementation

[0017] The technical solutions of the embodiments of the present invention will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some embodiments of the present invention, and not all embodiments. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative effort are within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0018] As shown in the figure, the fully automatic liquid milk feeding system for piglets according to the present invention includes a stirrer, a temperature-controlled water heater, a water addition control valve, a milk powder control valve, an air pump, a liquid milk circulation pipe, a drain outlet, a milk cup with one end placed inside the liquid milk circulation pipe and the other end placed outside the liquid milk circulation pipe, a light sensor placed on the liquid milk circulation pipe, a cleaning module connected to the stirrer, a control module connected to the stirrer, the temperature-controlled water heater, the water addition control valve, the milk powder control valve, the cleaning module, the air pump, the light sensor, and the drain outlet, an electric heating wire and a pipe temperature sensor placed in the liquid milk circulation pipe, an RFID module connected to the control module, a pressure sensor connected to the control module, and an ambient temperature sensor connected to the control module.

[0019] In this embodiment, the stirrer is connected to the water control valve, the milk powder control valve, the cleaning liquid control valve, and the air pressure pump.

[0020] In this embodiment, the acid disinfectant control valve is connected to the acid disinfectant storage tank, the alkaline disinfectant control valve is connected to the alkaline cleaning solution storage tank, the clean water control valve is connected to the temperature-controlled water heater, and the temperature-controlled water heater is connected to the water supply pipe of the waterworks. During cleaning and disinfection, the acid disinfectant control valve, the alkaline disinfectant control valve, and the clean water control valve are alternately opened and closed. The clean water and the acid and alkaline disinfectants are circulated in the liquid milk circulation pipeline by the air pressure pump to complete the pipeline cleaning.

[0021] In this embodiment, the control panel includes an LCD display, a control chip, and a control module. The control chip is connected to the control module, which in turn is connected to the display, a temperature-controlled water heater, a milk powder control valve, a clean water control valve, a stirring motor, an acidic disinfectant control valve, an alkaline disinfectant control valve, a light sensor, a drain control valve, and a pneumatic pump. The control chip is an STM32F429IGT6. The control chip can exchange data with the control module and also control various electronic devices in the liquid milk feeding system. During operation, human-machine interaction is performed through the LCD display on the control panel to open and close the milk powder control valve, clean water control valve, acidic disinfectant control valve, alkaline disinfectant control valve, and drain control valve. Furthermore, the set temperature of the temperature-controlled water heater can be adjusted to control the actual temperature of the hot water, and the opening and closing times of the clean water control valve and the milk powder control valve can be controlled to regulate the milk powder to water ratio.

[0022] In this embodiment, there is one light sensor, which is placed in the liquid milk circulation pipeline and connected to the control module. When the light sensor detects that the current milk volume is higher than the acceptable maximum liquid milk threshold, it feeds back information to the control module. The control module will then close the water control valve, the milk control valve, the air pump, and the stirrer, stopping the delivery of liquid milk into the liquid milk circulation pipeline. When the light sensor detects that the current milk volume is lower than the acceptable minimum liquid milk threshold, it feeds back information to the control module. The control module will then open the water control valve, the milk control valve, the air pump, and the stirrer, starting to deliver liquid milk into the liquid milk circulation pipeline to ensure that the liquid milk volume in the circulation pipeline is neither overflowing nor insufficient.

[0023] In this embodiment, the portion of the heating wire located on the inner wall of the pipe is parallel to the pipe wall, and the portion of the heating wire located between the inner and outer walls of the pipe is perpendicular to the pipe. To ensure uniform heating of the liquid milk in the liquid milk circulation pipe, the heating wires are arranged at equal intervals in the pipe. The heating wires are connected to the control module to control the start and stop of heating.

[0024] In this embodiment, the liquid milk circulation pipe is divided into an inner wall and an outer wall. The inner wall is a transparent insulating heat insulation layer with heat preservation function. At the same time, the inner wall has small holes at equal intervals for placing the electric heating wire. The outer wall is a transparent protective layer made of PMMA. The space between the inner wall and the outer wall is hollow to provide space for the wires of the electric heating wire to connect to the control module.

[0025] In this embodiment, the diameter of the outer wall of the channel is The diameter of the inner wall of the pipe is , Less than The total length of the pipeline is The flow rate of liquid milk in the pipes on both sides of one of the milk cups is... and The heights of the plumb bobs on both sides of the pipes of one of the milk cups are respectively and , Less than , Less than The water column height difference that can be measured at both ends of one of the milk cups is: The density of liquid milk is The pressure at both ends of one of the milk cups is and The kinetic energy correction factor is and Then, from Bernoulli's equation, we can obtain the following formula:

[0026] (1)

[0027] Since the liquid milk circulation pipe has a constant cross-section, v1=v2 and α1=α2. Also, since the liquid milk circulation pipe is laid horizontally, z1=z2. Therefore, the following equation can be obtained:

[0028] (2)

[0029] Where Δp is the pressure difference between the two ends of one of the milk cups, the formula for milk cup pressure-flow rate can be obtained as follows:

[0030] (3)

[0031] Where q is the pressure flow rate at the milk cup orifice, K is the pore pressure coefficient, A is the cross-sectional area of ​​the milk cup orifice, and m is the length-to-diameter ratio of the milk cup orifice. In practice, it is necessary to control parameters such as the density of liquid milk and the cross-sectional area of ​​the milk cup orifice to ensure that q is within a suitable range, so as to prevent milk from being wasted due to excessive pressure flow rate at the inner cup orifice when piglets are feeding.

[0032] Assume the electric heating wire has The first one, clockwise from the air pressure pump. Each electric heating wire is denoted as The total length of the electric heating wire is , width is The length of the electric heating wire located on the inner wall of the pipe parallel to the pipe is... , Less than The length of the portion perpendicular to the pipe, located between the inner and outer walls, is... , Less than The placement of the electric heating wire fixing point is as follows:

[0033] , =1,2,3... (4)

[0034] There are the following limitations on the length of the electric heating wire:

[0035] (5)

[0036] The following restrictions apply to the distance between two pipes:

[0037] (6)

[0038] A control method for a fully automated piglet milk supplementation system includes the following steps:

[0039] (1) Initialize parameter settings: Set the required ratio of milk powder to water through the LCD screen of the control module. The ratio of milk powder to water is initialized to 1:6 or 1:5. At the same time, set the water temperature of the temperature-controlled water heater.

[0040] (2) Turn on the mixer to mix the milk powder and the hot water from the temperature-controlled water heater evenly;

[0041] (3) The stirred liquid milk is delivered into the liquid milk circulation pipeline. The air pump at the beginning of the delivery pipeline is turned on by the control module. The liquid milk flows into the liquid milk circulation pipeline through the air pump. At the same time, under the control of the control module, the drain valve is closed to prevent the milk in the liquid milk circulation pipeline from flowing out of the drain.

[0042] (4) The liquid milk circulates normally in the pipe. Repeat steps (2) and (3). Piglets eat the liquid milk flowing in the pipe by squeezing the feeding nipple in the milk cup with their mouths. When the light sensor detects that the amount of milk in the liquid milk circulation pipe has increased significantly (the liquid milk circulation pipe is made of transparent PE pipe, so the light sensor can judge the current liquid milk content in the pipe according to the light intensity in the pipe), the information is fed back to the control module, and the clean water control valve, acid disinfectant control valve, alkaline disinfectant control valve, stirrer and air pressure pump are closed, and the milk supply is suspended.

[0043] (5) Add liquid milk to the liquid milk circulation pipe. When the light sensor detects that the amount of milk in the liquid milk circulation pipe has dropped significantly, it feeds the information back to the control module and turns on the stirrer and air pump to pump milk into the liquid milk circulation pipe.

[0044] (6) Automatic secondary heating function: When the pipe temperature sensor detects that the temperature of the liquid milk in the liquid milk circulation pipe drops significantly, it feeds the information back to the control module and turns on the electric heating wire in the pipe to start heating the liquid milk in the liquid milk circulation pipe. When the pipe temperature sensor detects that the temperature rises to a certain value, it feeds the information back to the control module and stops the heating function of the electric heating wire.

[0045] (7) Automatic replenishment of liquid milk: The piglet type is identified by scanning the ear tag of the piglet with the RFID module, the weight of the piglet is measured by the pressure sensor, and the ambient temperature of the pig house is measured by the ambient temperature sensor. The three data of piglet type, piglet weight and pig house ambient temperature are transmitted to the control module. The control module cleans the four data of piglet feeding time, piglet type, piglet weight and ambient temperature. The data is analyzed exploratoryly by several values ​​such as mean, median, mode, variance, standard deviation and correlation coefficient. Then, the optimal model data is fitted by the linear regression algorithm. The mean square error and R-squared value are used for evaluation. The fitted model is used to predict the future feed intake of piglets. The amount of water and milk powder added is controlled according to the prediction results. After being stirred by the stirrer, liquid milk is formed. Liquid milk is automatically replenished by pumping into the liquid milk circulation pipeline by the air pressure pump.

[0046] (8) Cleaning and disinfection: Disinfect twice a week. When disinfecting, turn on the disinfection module through the control module and turn on the air pressure pump to pump disinfectant into the liquid milk circulation pipeline. The liquid milk circulation pipeline is connected to the sewage outlet.

[0047] Matters not covered in this invention are common knowledge.

[0048] The above embodiments are only for illustrating the technical concept and features of the present invention, and are intended to enable those skilled in the art to understand the content of the present invention and implement it accordingly. They should not be construed as limiting the scope of protection of the present invention. All equivalent changes or modifications made in accordance with the spirit and essence of the present invention should be covered within the scope of protection of the present invention.

Claims

1. A fully automatic liquid milk feeding system for piglets, characterized in that, The liquid milk feeding system includes: a temperature-controlled water heater, a milk powder storage tank, a stirrer, an acidic disinfectant storage tank, an alkaline disinfectant storage tank, and feeding pipelines. The temperature-controlled water heater and the stirrer are connected by a water pipe, which is equipped with a clean water control valve. The milk powder storage tank and the stirrer are connected by a delivery pipe, which is equipped with a milk powder control valve. The stirrer mixes the milk powder and hot water evenly and then delivers the mixture to each milk outlet through the feeding pipelines. The acidic disinfectant storage tank and the stirrer are connected by a pipe, which is equipped with an acidic disinfectant control valve. The alkaline disinfectant storage tank and the stirrer are connected by a pipe, which is equipped with an alkaline disinfectant control valve. The feeding pipelines include: a liquid milk delivery pipe, a liquid milk circulation pipe, a milk cup, an electric heating wire, a light sensor, a temperature sensor, a pressure sensor, and a drain pipe. One end of the liquid milk delivery pipe is connected to the stirrer. One end is connected to a liquid milk circulation pipe, and a pneumatic pump is installed on the liquid milk delivery pipe. A drain pipe is connected to the liquid milk circulation pipe, and a drain outlet control valve is installed on the drain pipe. Milk cups are evenly spaced on the liquid milk circulation pipe through a thin tube, one end of which is connected to the bottom of the milk cup, and the other end is connected to the liquid milk circulation pipe. All milk cups are at the same horizontal position. The overall shape of the liquid milk circulation pipe is a circular pipe with a circular cross-section. The pneumatic pump is used to circulate the liquid milk throughout the pipe. The electric heating wires are evenly spaced inside the liquid milk circulation pipe. The light sensor, temperature sensor, and pressure sensor are all installed inside the liquid milk circulation pipe. The light sensor, temperature sensor, and pressure sensor collect the corresponding data inside the liquid milk circulation pipe and send it to the control module. The control module controls the operation of the pneumatic pump and electric heating wires based on the received data and the ambient temperature. The liquid milk circulation pipe is divided into an inner wall and an outer wall. The inner wall is a transparent insulating heat insulation layer with heat preservation function. At the same time, the inner wall has small holes at equal intervals for placing the electric heating wire. The outer wall is a transparent protective layer made of PMMA. The space between the inner wall and the outer wall is hollow to provide space for the wires of the electric heating wire to connect to the control module. The diameter of the outer wall of the pipe is The diameter of the inner wall of the pipe is , Less than The total length of the pipeline is The flow rate of liquid milk in the pipes on both sides of one of the milk cups is... and The heights of the plumb bobs on both sides of the pipes of one of the milk cups are respectively and , Less than , Less than The water column height difference that can be measured at both ends of one of the milk cups is: The density of liquid milk is The pressure at both ends of one of the milk cups is and The kinetic energy correction factor is and Then, from Bernoulli's equation, we get the following: （1）； Since the liquid milk circulation pipe has a constant cross-section, v1=v2 and α1=α2. Also, since the liquid milk circulation pipe is horizontal, z1=z2. Therefore, the following equation is derived: （2）； Where Δp is the pressure difference between the two ends of one of the milk cups, the formula for milk cup pressure-flow rate can be obtained as follows: （3）； Where q is the pressure flow rate at the milk cup orifice, K is the pore pressure coefficient, A is the cross-sectional area of ​​the milk cup orifice, and m is the length-to-diameter ratio of the milk cup orifice. By controlling the density of the liquid milk and the cross-sectional area of ​​the milk cup orifice, q is ensured to be within a suitable range to prevent milk from being wasted due to excessive pressure flow rate at the inner cup orifice when piglets are feeding.

2. The fully automatic liquid milk feeding system for piglets according to claim 1, characterized in that: The control module includes an STM32F429 controller, an LCD display, a storage unit, and a power supply module.

3. The fully automatic liquid milk feeding system for piglets according to claim 1, characterized in that: An electric heating wire is placed in the liquid milk circulation pipe. The electric heating wire is placed perpendicular to the pipe and embedded in the bottom of the pipe. In order to ensure uniform heating of the liquid milk in the liquid milk circulation pipe, the electric heating wire is arranged at equal intervals in the pipe. The electric heating wire is connected to the control module to control the start and stop of heating.

4. The fully automatic liquid milk feeding system for piglets according to claim 3, characterized in that: [the system is equipped with...] The electric heating wire has The first one, clockwise from the air pressure pump. Each electric heating wire is denoted as The total length of the electric heating wire is , width is The length of the electric heating wire located on the inner wall of the pipe parallel to the pipe is... , Less than The length of the portion perpendicular to the pipe, located between the inner and outer walls, is... , Less than The placement of the electric heating wire fixing point is as follows: ， =1,2,3... （4）； There are the following limitations on the length of the electric heating wire: （5）； The following restrictions apply to the distance between two pipes: （6）。 5. A control method for the fully automated liquid milk feeding system for piglets as described in claim 1, characterized in that: Includes the following steps: (1) Initialize parameter settings, set the required ratio of milk powder to water, initialize the ratio of milk powder to water to 1:6 or 1:5, and set the water temperature of the temperature-controlled water heater at the same time. (2) Turn on the mixer to mix the milk powder and the hot water from the temperature-controlled water heater evenly; (3) The stirred liquid milk is delivered into the liquid milk circulation pipeline. The air pump at the beginning of the delivery pipeline is turned on by the control module. The liquid milk flows into the liquid milk circulation pipeline through the air pump. At the same time, under the control of the control module, the drain valve is closed to prevent the milk in the liquid milk circulation pipeline from flowing out of the drain. (4) The liquid milk circulates normally in the pipe. Repeat steps (2) and (3). The piglets eat the liquid milk flowing in the pipe by squeezing the feeding nipple in the milk cup with their mouths. When the light sensor detects that the amount of milk in the liquid milk circulation pipe has increased significantly, it feeds the information back to the control module and closes the water control valve, milk powder control valve, acid disinfectant control valve, alkaline disinfectant control valve, stirrer and air pressure pump. The milk supply is suspended. (5) Add liquid milk to the liquid milk circulation pipe. When the light sensor detects that the amount of milk in the liquid milk circulation pipe has dropped significantly, it feeds the information back to the control module and opens the water control valve, milk powder control valve, stirrer and air pump to pump milk into the liquid milk circulation pipe. (6) Automatic secondary heating function: When the pipe temperature sensor detects that the temperature of the liquid milk in the liquid milk circulation pipe is lower than the set threshold, the information is fed back to the control module, and the electric heating wire in the pipe is turned on to start heating the liquid milk in the liquid milk circulation pipe. When the pipe temperature sensor detects that the temperature exceeds the set threshold, the information is fed back to the control module, and the heating function of the electric heating wire is stopped. (7) Automatic replenishment of liquid milk: The piglet type is identified by scanning the ear tag of the piglet through the radio frequency identification module, the weight of the piglet is measured by the pressure sensor, and the ambient temperature of the pig house is measured by the ambient temperature sensor. The three data of piglet type, piglet weight and pig house ambient temperature are transmitted to the control module. The control module cleans the four data of piglet feeding time, piglet type, piglet weight and ambient temperature. The data is exploratoryly analyzed by several values ​​such as mean, median, mode, variance, standard deviation and correlation coefficient. Then, the optimal model data is fitted by the linear regression algorithm. The mean square error and R-squared value are used for evaluation. The fitted model is used to predict the future feed intake of piglets. The amount of water and milk powder added is controlled according to the prediction results. After being stirred by the stirrer, liquid milk is formed. Liquid milk is automatically replenished by pumping into the liquid milk circulation pipeline by the air pressure pump. (8) Cleaning and disinfection: Disinfect twice a week. When disinfecting, turn on the disinfection module through the control module and turn on the air pressure pump to pump disinfectant into the liquid milk circulation pipeline. After disinfection, the disinfectant is discharged through the drain.

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