ELASTIC TEAT CUP INSERT

Description

[0001] The present invention relates generally to milking technology for obtaining milk from dairy animals and, more particularly, to the "interface" between animal and machine during automated or semi-automated milking in the form of a teat rubber or an elastic teat cup insert which comes into contact with the animal's teat during milking.

[0002] In today's agricultural industry, milk is typically extracted from dairy animals in fully automated or semi-automated systems, which are essentially designed so that a teat cup is typically attached to each individual teat of the dairy animal, temporarily creating a flow channel between the teat and a milk collection container. The actual contact between the animal's teat, which represents a complex and sensitive biological system for suckling a calf, is achieved through a component inserted into the teat cup sleeve, typically referred to as a teat liner and hereinafter as an elastic teat cup insert.

[0003] The elastic teat cup insert, made of rubber or a polymer material such as silicone, initially has the task of contacting the milking animal's teat during the milking process. During the milking process, it adheres to the teat through static friction and the effect of the operating vacuum prevailing beneath the teat, which is transmitted through the elastic teat cup insert. The elastic teat cup insert, which adheres to the teat, creates a flow channel through which the milk flowing from the teat is diverted through the interior of the teat cup insert and ultimately into a piping system and a storage container.For this purpose, the elastic teat cup insert typically has a head section designed to enable mechanical attachment to the teat cup sleeve, while also providing a corresponding opening and contact surfaces to facilitate insertion of the teat into the elastic teat cup insert. Adjoining the head section is a hose section of a certain length, which is determined by the specific application and the machine milking system used.

[0004] When the teat of the dairy animal is sufficiently inserted into the opening in the head area of the elastic teat cup insert and the teat cup insert adheres to the teat, part of the inner wall of the tube area also rests against the teat and thus contributes to a relatively tight contact between the teat and the teat cup insert.

[0005] In automated milking, a technique has become established whereby pressure differences are periodically created in a space within the teat cup formed by the teat cup sleeve and the outer wall of the elastic teat cup insert. At elevated pressure in this space, which is approximately equal to atmospheric pressure, the corresponding section of the tube area is "folded in," thereby more or less interrupting the flow channel in the teat and in the teat cup insert. At the same time, a corresponding massaging effect on the teat is achieved by pressing the elastically deformed section of the tube area against the teat. This phase of the milking process is often referred to as the relief phase.On the other hand, if a negative pressure exists in the space formed by the teat cup sleeve and the outer wall of the elastic teat cup insert, which, for example, roughly corresponds to the negative pressure constantly prevailing under the teat, then the corresponding section of the tube area "unfolds" due to the inherent elasticity of the teat cup insert and releases the flow channel in and under the teat, allowing milk to flow from the teat due to the suction effect. This phase of the milking process is typically referred to as the suction phase.

[0006] The duration of a single suction phase and a subsequent relief phase is in the range of 1 second, whereby typically the proportion of the suction phase is adjustable at the expense of the relief phase and a corresponding variability of the ratio of suction phase to relief phase is often dynamically controlled.

[0007] At the start of a milking process, the teat cups must be placed on each teat of the dairy animal. This is typically done automatically, if a milking robot is used, or manually. When the teat cup is placed on a teat, the teat is inserted into the elastic teat cup insert through the opening in its head area. The teat cup is pushed onto the teat essentially lengthwise, so that the edge of the opening initially comes into contact with the teat and is deformed. Finally, contact is made with the inner wall of the tube area, which ensures more or less tight contact between the inner wall of the corresponding section of the tube area and the teat. This tight sealing of the contact surfaces between the teat and the teat cup insert is achieved by the "milking vacuum" or "milking pressure" prevailing inside the elastic teat cup insert.The corresponding negative pressure, in conjunction with the static friction of the surfaces of the teat cup insert in contact with the teat, causes the teat cup to adhere. The length of the section of the teat with which the teat ultimately penetrates the elastic teat cup insert depends on the diameter of the opening and the anatomical characteristics of the respective teat.

[0008] It should be taken into account that the teat typically changes during the milking process, so that depending on the phase of the milking process, different anatomical conditions exist for the contact between the teat cup and the teat.

[0009] For example, during the milking process, a certain "slackening" of the teat may occur at an advanced stage, so that due to the constant negative pressure under the teat, a larger portion of the teat is "sucked" into the teat cup insert, which is indicated by the teat cup "climbing" up the teat. However, this changed position of the teat cup can lead to pressure buildup in the vessels in the upper area of the teat and near the udder base, which can have a detrimental effect on the animal and thus potentially lead to increased restlessness and the risk of premature termination of the milking process and thus incomplete milking.

[0010] In this regard, the document DE 1 782 263 describes a teat cup insert in which corresponding projections in the form of elevations are provided on the edge of the opening, which, when tensioned, act more intensively on the teat wall, deforming it accordingly and thus creating increased contact with the teat, so that the "sinking" of the teat or the "climbing up" of the teat cup during each suction / relief cycle is prevented.

[0011] US4059070A discloses a teat cup insert in which the inner circumference of the annular region is formed from a series of adjacent wave shapes.

[0012] US Pat. No. 1,260,466 A describes a teat cup insert that, by providing elastic elements on a ring above the opening of the teat cup insert, creates intimate contact with the teat wall upon insertion of the teat through deformation, so that the teat cup is held in the desired position by the elastic downward and outward deformation of the elements. On the other hand, the adhesion of the elastic elements to the teat can be eliminated or at least significantly reduced by rotating the teat cup, so that the teat cup can be easily removed from the teat manually in this rotated state.

[0013] Furthermore, during certain phases of the milking process, a negative pressure can be created directly under the teat that exceeds the originally applied operating negative pressure, for example when milk that is milked during the sucking phase is quickly removed, so that a negative pressure peak is created between the teat and the moving milk column.

[0014] In this context, it should be noted that, within the scope of this application, an "increase or increase" in the negative pressure value is to be understood as a larger pressure difference between the pressure under the teat and a reference pressure, for example, the ambient atmospheric pressure. A higher negative pressure value, such as a "negative pressure peak," therefore indicates that the pressure is lower in absolute terms and thus the difference to the reference pressure is increasing.

[0015] In this context, US Pat. No. 2,340,295 describes a teat cup insert having a surface structure on the uppermost, almost horizontal surface of its head, such as small radially extending channels or ribs. This structured surface, in conjunction with the surface of the udder floor, is intended to form a relatively tight seal. However, at the end of the suckling phase, the structure is intended to create small air inlet channels, allowing a small amount of air to penetrate along the udder floor to the teats. This is intended to reduce the negative pressure under the teat, thus achieving overall improved milking adapted to the calf's natural sucking action.

[0016] US Pat. No. 3,308,788 describes a system consisting of a teat cup with an insert and a separate plate, the plate having an opening whose diameter is smaller than the diameter of the opening in the teat cup insert. The plate is placed on the teat cup insert or fitted accordingly and contains elastic elements that establish good mechanical contact with the teat while allowing a small amount of outside air to enter along the teat walls. This is intended to increase adhesion when the negative pressure beneath the teat is reduced by the amount of air introduced. This is intended to close the teat after the respective udder cistern has been emptied, thus preventing contaminated air and milk from entering the udder cistern. The ring can be designed in such a way that it can also be used in conjunction with conventional teat cup inserts.

[0017] There are different diameters for the openings of the elastic teat cup inserts in order to accommodate the anatomically different conditions of the milking animal's teat, such as length, diameter, etc. In practice, however, it is almost unavoidable that a special teat cup insert has to be used for many different sized teats of the milking animal. It is therefore of great importance to design the head area in particular around the opening for inserting the teats, in conjunction with the adjacent tube area, in such a way that rapid attachment, whether automated or manual, is possible, with reliable adhesion being achieved from the first attachment attempt. Furthermore, the contact between the teat cup and teat should be maintained as reliably as possible during milking in order to avoid premature falling off of the teat cup and the associated disadvantages.

[0018] Great efforts have been and are being made to ensure efficient milking. Solutions have been proposed, particularly for the aforementioned problem of negative pressure peaks, whereby, for example, atmospheric air is metered into the head area of the teat cup liner and / or directly beneath the teat at certain times or continuously using appropriately designed valve elements or nozzle elements in order to at least reduce such negative pressure peaks. The aforementioned publications also describe solutions in which small amounts of air are admitted at regular intervals. Typically, these measures, when combined with additional valves or plate arrangements, require complex technical modifications. These increase complexity and thus the risk of errors, as well as increase the cost and effort required for cleaning and maintenance.adverse effects if these devices fail.

[0019] In view of the above-mentioned situation, it is an object of the present invention to provide means by which one or more of the above-mentioned problems can be avoided or at least reduced in their effect.

[0020] The aforementioned object is achieved according to the invention according to claim 1 by an elastic teat cup insert which serves to accommodate a teat. The elastic teat cup insert has a tube region, a head region which adjoins the tube region in the longitudinal direction and is designed for attachment to a teat cup sleeve and is provided with a teat insertion opening, and an annular region which delimits the teat insertion opening and acts as a teat contact surface in the operating position. The annular region has a wave-like structure along the circumference of the teat insertion opening with an underside facing the tube region and an upper side facing away from the tube region. The tube region, the head region and the annular region, including the wave-like structure, are formed in the form of a single piece of material.A wave crest of the wave-like structure includes a wave crest portion in the circumferential direction of the teat insertion opening at which the underside of the wave crest portion has a maximum distance from the tube region, and a wave trough of the wave-like structure includes a wave trough portion at which the underside of the wave trough portion has a minimum distance from the tube region that is different from the maximum distance, wherein the wave crest portion and the wave trough portion have different wall thicknesses.

[0021] The teat cup insert according to the invention thus has, in particular, the wave-like structure, which gives the teat insertion opening a greater degree of adaptability to the teat being inserted. This improved adaptability, i.e., deformability, results in a more intensive adhesion of the teat cup insert both immediately upon application of the teat cup to the teat and during the entire milking process, without, however, causing any biologically adverse effects.

[0022] In particular, the teat cup insert according to the invention makes it possible to milk a larger proportion of dairy animals in a herd with a given teat insertion opening diameter, since a selected teat insertion opening diameter of the teat cup insert according to the invention ensures more reliable and gentler milking for a wider range of different teat sizes compared to conventionally designed teat cup inserts. The wave-like structure, which forms the edge of the teat insertion opening and extends radially outward from there, functions as a "bellows" that can change its "length" and thus also the diameter of the teat insertion opening. This means that when the teat insertion opening is pushed onto a teat, the wave-like structure expands more or less in the circumferential direction of the opening depending on the teat diameter.The wave crests, which primarily come into contact with the teat wall when the ring area is deformed downwards and outwards, always ensure sufficient adhesion to the teat. Due to the bellows-like structure described above, the appropriate longitudinal position of the teat cup insert for both smaller and larger diameter teats will be in the central area of the teat, without creating the risk of the teat cup falling off.

[0023] Typically, it is correspondingly complex to meet the diverse needs of a dairy herd in daily operations. For example, if the herd to be milked includes animals with relatively small teats, one or more milking stalls may need to be reserved for these animals in order to provide them with appropriate teat cup insert diameters. This is relatively complex in practice, especially if this type of "selection" is to be carried out on small or medium-sized farms. However, even on large farms, appropriate selection of dairy animals based on teat size and the provision of appropriate milking parlors with teat cup inserts with different diameters of teat insertion openings results in considerable effort.Therefore, especially on small and medium-sized farms, milking is often carried out using a "compromise" liner, with the diameter of the liner openings selected to allow the majority of the dairy animals in the herd to be milked relatively efficiently. However, in dairy animals with larger teats, i.e., teats that are too large for the selected opening diameter, this approach can typically lead to congestion in the teat vessels, which can have correspondingly adverse effects on the teat and thus on yield, both in the short and long term. On the other hand, in animals with teats that are too small, there is only minimal adhesion compared to the "compromise" liner, which creates the risk of the teat cup falling off during milking and thus interrupting the milking process.This results in additional effort due to re-attaching the teat cups and typically prolongs the milking process. Teat cup drop can also result in incomplete milking of one or more udder quarters / halves. As previously explained, however, the teat cup insert according to the invention makes it possible to minimize the effort required to adjust the teat cup liner selection and potential impairments due to a suboptimal match between teat and opening diameter due to the significantly larger range of teats that can be milked in a reliable and animal-friendly manner through a single selected opening size thanks to the wave-like structure. This means that the teat cup insert according to the invention is more tolerant with regard to teat size fluctuations compared to conventionally designed teat cup liners.

[0024] It should be noted that a wave-like structure within the meaning of the present application is to be understood as a structure in which elevations, i.e., material sections with a top and bottom, and depressions, i.e., material sections with a top and bottom, occur alternately along a circumferential direction of the teat insertion opening, which are correspondingly referred to as wave crests and wave troughs. A wave crest is to be understood as an "elevation" in the sense that, in the longitudinal direction of the teat cup insert, approximately in relation to an imaginary central axis of the teat cup insert, the head region is located "above" and the tube region is located longitudinally behind the head region and thus "below" the head region. A wave crest is thus a section in the circumferential direction of the teat insertion opening that contains a wave crest section at which the bottom, i.e., the side of the section facing the tube area, has a maximum distance from the tube area, and a wave trough is a section in the circumferential direction of the teat insertion opening that contains a wave trough section where the underside has a minimum distance from the tube area, wherein the minimum distance is smaller than the maximum distance. In other words, in a side view, the wave crest and wave trough are to be understood as a "serpentine" arrangement, which thus forms a bellows-like structure for elastically extending the circumference of the opening. In a resting state, i.e., without a teat inserted, the "serpentine" of the wave-like structure, i.e., the extension in the circumferential direction of the opening, has its minimum length or extension. The wave crests and wave troughs are thus "deflected" longitudinally relative to one another.Furthermore, a wave-like structure, as used herein, is to be understood as a structure in which the wave crests and / or troughs in the previously described side view, i.e., the "serpentine or bellows shape" in a view perpendicular to the longitudinal direction, can have any shape, such as circular arcs, a combination of circular arcs with different radii, possibly in conjunction with straight sections, and the like. For example, the wave crests and / or troughs in side view are formed as rounded shapes, as squares, rectangles, triangles, or the like. The line shape created thereby is therefore still referred to as serpentine. In preferred embodiments, the side view shapes of the wave crests and troughs are rounded, so that no pronounced edges are present.

[0025] The wave-like structure means, for example, that when the teat cup is placed on the teat of the dairy animal, it requires less effort to deform, particularly in the ring area where the wave-like structure is located adjacent to the teat insertion opening, so that the teat can enter the opening relatively unhindered. At the same time, it can come into contact with the corresponding wave crests, so that once the teat has penetrated a certain depth, stable mechanical contact is created between the teat cup insert and the teat in its upper area. In conjunction with the adjacent wall area of the tube area, this creates an almost airtight seal, allowing the teat cup to reliably adhere to the teat by suction. This means:This increased flexibility in the deformation of the ring area at the edge of the teat insertion opening reduces the mechanical force exerted on the teat and thus generally the force required to insert the teat into the teat insertion opening, while at the same time ensuring more intensive contact between the teat and the teat cup insert. This results in improved conditions for both the operator or the milking robot, as well as for the animal, when attaching the teat cup compared to conventional teat cup inserts, as the strain on the teat is reduced. In particular, when the teat cup insert according to the invention is used in conjunction with a milking robot, the rate of attachment attempts required for ultimately successful attachment, as well as the number of failed attachments, is reduced.This allows the throughput of the milking robot, i.e. the number of milkings per unit of time, to be increased and the reliability of the milking robot can also be increased, since the number of manual interventions can be reduced due to the lower number of unsuccessful attachment actions and thus the reduced number of milkings not carried out.

[0026] Even during the further course of the milking process, in which possible negative pressure peaks can occur, as explained at the beginning, the greater flexibility and more efficient deformability of the ring area of the wave structure near the teat insertion opening has a beneficial effect, since under these conditions the presence of the wave troughs causes a slight, controlled detachment caused by the inherent elasticity of the material of the wave-like structure, so that a brief gas exchange takes place between the interior of the teat cup insert and the surrounding atmosphere and this can contribute to a reduction of possible negative pressure peaks., the result is the effect of a valve which, when negative pressure peaks occur, automatically opens one or more flow channels between the interior and the surrounding atmosphere, thus allowing the negative pressure peaks to dissipate without, however, reducing the negative pressure to a level that would cause the teat cup to fall off. In this way, on the one hand, reliable adhesion of the teat cup is ensured even during critical phases of the milking process, while on the other hand, unfavorable pressure conditions at the teat are avoided or significantly reduced, so that correspondingly adverse effects on the physiology of the teat are avoided or at least reduced. For example, this also significantly reduces the climbing of the teat cup, since if the anatomy of the teat changes during the milking process, as explained above, at least an increase in negative pressure can be largely avoided.

[0027] The "one-piece" design, in which the head area, the tube area, and the ring area with the wave-like structure are formed as a single piece of material, offers the advantage of cost-effective production, in which the structural features, especially the wave-like structure, are defined with high precision through design measures, such as the shape of the mold. Furthermore, the one-piece design offers advantages in handling the teat cup insert, for example, when attaching it to the teat cup sleeve, as well as in practical use, such as during regular cleaning of the teat cup, since there are no unnecessary connection points where deposits can accumulate.

[0028] In a further advantageous embodiment, a radial extension of the wave-like structure in the ring region, starting from the edge of the teat insertion opening, is numerically greater than a radius of the teat insertion opening. This means that, starting from the edge of the teat insertion opening, the wave-like structure extends in the radial direction, i.e., in the direction perpendicular to the circumferential direction and thus perpendicular to the "propagation direction" of the wave, to a distance that is numerically greater than the radius of the teat insertion opening. This ensures to an even greater extent that the increased flexibility provided by the wave-like structure is also present when inserting teats with different teat diameters. This is because, with a corresponding lowering of the ring region during teat insertion, the effect of the wave-like structure is effective over a large distance radially outward, toward the edge of the head region.With a corresponding scaling of the radius of the teat insertion opening, for example when milking cup inserts with very different teat diameters and / or for different animal species are specified, a high degree of flexibility in the area of the opening is always guaranteed and the effect is further improved, whereby a larger range of teat diameters can be covered, as explained above.

[0029] According to the invention, the wave crest section and the wave trough section have different wall thicknesses. This measure makes it possible to adjust the flexibility and thus deformability, which is already more pronounced due to the wave-like structure, in a controlled manner through design measures, i.e., by appropriately configuring an injection mold. This means that the wall thickness of the wave crest section or the wave trough section is determined during the manufacturing process of the teat cup insert in such a way that the desired controlled deformability is achieved. This controlled deformability can be produced to a high degree across many products with consistent quality because the wall thickness is determined during the manufacturing process, for example during injection molding, and only very small or even minimal and well-known tolerances occur.

[0030] In a further advantageous embodiment, the wave crest section has a greater wall thickness than the wave trough section. This design measure ensures that the deformability and thus flexibility of the wave structure along the longitudinal axis of the elastic teat cup insert is adjusted in such a way that the teat cup can be pushed onto the teat with less resistance, while in the opposite direction, the modified flexibility increases resistance, significantly improving adhesion after attachment.

[0031] In a further advantageous embodiment, the length of the wave troughs at the edge of the teat insertion opening is greater than the length of the wave crests. This means that directly at the edge of the teat insertion opening, i.e., in a side view of the teat insertion opening, viewed approximately from the teat insertion opening, the wave-like structure is constructed such that the wave crests are shorter and therefore more curved, i.e., have a smaller radius of curvature. This means that the length of the wave crests along the circumferential direction of the teat insertion opening is smaller than the corresponding length of the wave troughs, which have a larger radius of curvature and thus a smaller curvature.It should be noted that the radius of curvature can vary along a wave crest or trough, for example, if relatively straight sections are provided. In this context, the radius of curvature should be understood as an average radius of curvature for a wave crest or trough. The transition between a wave crest and a wave trough can be understood as the inflection point of an imaginary line in the middle of the material of the wave-like structure.

[0032] Due to this structure, the wave crests directly at the teat insertion opening are relatively compact in their circumferential extension and thus leave room for much more pronounced wave troughs, which therefore ensure improved deformability directly at the teat insertion opening.

[0033] In a further advantageous embodiment, the extent of the wave troughs in the circumferential direction remains essentially constant with increasing distance from the teat insertion opening. This means that with increasing radial distance from the teat insertion opening, the extent of the wave troughs in the circumferential direction does not change significantly, i.e., remains essentially constant, so that the extent of the wave crests in the circumferential direction increases accordingly. This ensures that, on the one hand, the required deformability of the annular region is maintained even at a greater radial distance from the teat insertion opening, while, on the other hand, the extent of the wave crests in the circumferential direction increases, so that the size of the effective contact area with the teat also increases with the radially increasing distance from the teat insertion opening.This ensures that even with teats with a smaller diameter, where the teat has to be inserted further into the teat insertion opening, an increasingly better adhesion is achieved in the upper area of the teat and it is therefore guaranteed that adhesion already occurs before the head area lies on the teat base, ie directly on the udder floor.

[0034] In a further advantageous embodiment, at least three wave troughs are provided in the wave-like structure. This minimum number of wave troughs, and thus also wave crests, results in sufficient deformability, which leads to the advantageous effects already described. In other embodiments, six or more wave troughs are provided. In this way, the effectiveness of the wave-like structure can be further improved, as a more "fine-grained" structuring is achieved, which can thus be more efficiently adapted to different teat sizes, i.e., different teat lengths and diameters.

[0035] In advantageous embodiments, the ring region is inclined from the edge of the head region toward the teat insertion opening in the direction of the tube region. This means that the teat insertion opening is set back "downward" relative to an uppermost surface of the head region, i.e., set back toward the tube region, resulting in an already structurally improved deformability of the ring region during attachment, which further enhances the corresponding effect of the wave-like structure.

[0036] In other embodiments, a corresponding inclination of the ring area and thus lowering of the teat insertion opening is not provided, since the wave-like structure itself already ensures the necessary adaptability of the teat insertion opening in the manner described above.

[0037] In advantageous embodiments, the teat insertion opening is suitably dimensioned such that a teat of a large dairy animal, in particular a cow or a buffalo, can be inserted therein.

[0038] In other embodiments, the teat insertion opening is suitably dimensioned such that a teat of a small dairy animal, in particular a sheep or a goat, can be inserted therein.

[0039] In this way, the elastic teat cup insert can be applied to a large number of teats with different anatomies.

[0040] The above-described aspects and embodiments of the invention, as well as further embodiments, will now be described in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1A schematically shows a perspective view of a part of a teat cup insert having a head region with a wave-like structure, Figure 1Bshows a top view of the head area, Figure 1C a sectional view through the part of the teat cup insert corresponding to the Figure 1B shown section AA, Figure 1D a sectional view of the head area according to section BB of the Figure 1B shows, Figure 1E a top view of the head area with a marked cutting line encompassing approximately 3 / 4 of the circumference of the teat insertion opening, Figure 1F a sectional view of the teat cup insert according to the Figure 1E shown section line AA, Figure 2A schematically shows a perspective view of another teat cup insert, Figure 2B a top view of the teat cup insert of the Figure 2A shows and Figure 2C a sectional view of the teat cup insert of the Figures 2A and 2B shows.

[0041] Figure 1Ashows a schematic perspective view of a portion of a teat rubber or an elastic teat cup insert 100, which is manufactured uniformly and as a single piece of material from an elastic material, such as rubber, a polymer material, in particular a silicone material, and the like. The elastic teat cup insert 100 has a tube portion 110, which is only schematically indicated, and a head portion 120. The tube portion 110 and the head portion 120 are arranged one after the other in a longitudinal direction L, wherein in the present application, the head portion 120 is located "on top" with respect to the tube portion 110.

[0042] The head portion 120 is generally designed to allow a mechanical connection to a teat cup sleeve (not shown) as will be described in more detail in connection with the Figure 1CFurthermore, the head region 120 has an edge 121 which, depending on specific circumstances, is more or less bulged compared to a lower part of the head region 120 or compared to the tube region 110. Furthermore, an annular region 130, hereinafter simply referred to as the annular region, is provided, in the center of which a teat insertion opening 150 is formed. Furthermore, a wave-shaped structure 140 is formed in the annular region 130 such that the teat insertion opening 150 is thus delimited by a circumferential wave-like contour, i.e., the wave-like structure 140. This means that the wave-like structure has a "wave propagation direction" in the form of a serpentine line that runs in the circumferential direction of the opening 150. Wave crests 141 and wave troughs 142 are therefore arranged alternately in the circumferential direction.

[0043] The size of the teat insertion opening 150 in the resting state, i.e., without a teat inserted, for example its diameter, is adapted to the anatomical conditions of a teat of a dairy animal to be milked. For example, the elastic teat cup insert 100 can be suitably dimensioned to milk relatively small dairy animals, such as sheep, goats, and the like. In this regard, the dimensions, such as the length and in particular the diameter of the elastic teat cup insert 100 and thus also of the teat insertion opening 150 formed therein, must be determined accordingly. When designed for milking larger dairy animals, such as cows, buffalo, and the like, which generally have somewhat larger teats, the dimensions of the elastic teat cup insert 100 must be adapted accordingly.Corresponding basic dimensions for different dairy animals, as well as different anatomical conditions of dairy animals of the same breed, are sufficiently known and can be applied accordingly to the present elastic teat cup insert 100.

[0044] Figure 1B shows schematically a plan view of the head region 120 of the Figure 1Ashown elastic teat cup insert 100, wherein the teat insertion opening 150 is shown as a centrally located circular opening, the radius 151R of which is to be adapted to the respective circumstances, as previously explained. A central circular opening is usually used so that the corresponding teat cup inserts can be used without taking their subsequent position in the milking cluster into account. Within the scope of the present invention, it is also possible to select the general shape of the teat insertion opening 150 such that it deviates from the circular shape. For example, the circumference of the teat insertion opening 150 in plan view can have the shape of a polygon, an oval, and the like. If an oval shape is selected, the corresponding suitable angular position may need to be taken into account when installing the teat cup insert 100 in a corresponding teat cup sleeve.

[0045] Furthermore, in the illustrated embodiment, the radial extent of the wave-like structure 140, ie the combination of the wave crests 141 and the wave troughs 142, is set such that the numerical value of the radial extent, which is shown here as 140S by way of example, is greater than the numerical value of the radius 151R of the teat insertion opening 150. As already explained above, a corresponding dimensioning of the radial extent 140S of the wave-like structure 140 is advantageous since the deformability of the annular region 130 when a teat is inserted into the opening 150 is very pronounced and thus a reliable contact of the wave crests 141 with the respective teat section is possible. In other embodiments (not shown), the radial extent 140S is numerically smaller than the radius 151R of the opening 150 if a "harder" or "more rigid" behavior of the teat cup insert 100 in the region of the opening 150 is desired.

[0046] Furthermore, in the illustrated embodiment, the extension of the wave troughs 142 along the circumferential direction, designated here as 160, is designed such that it remains virtually constant even with a greater radial distance from the teat insertion opening 150. This means that the dimensions of the wave troughs remain the same with increasing radial distance from the opening 150, so that the wave crests 141 accordingly have a nearly triangular shape in plan view, whereby a corresponding contact surface provided by the upper side of the wave crests 141 becomes larger with increasing radial distance. In this way, with increasing penetration of a teat into the opening 150 and the associated deformation and downward folding of the annular region 130, an increasingly larger contact surface is created while at the same time the annular region 130 remains highly deformable.

[0047] Figure 1Cshows a schematic cross-sectional view along the Figure 1B shown section line AA.

[0048] As can be seen in this view, the deflections of the wave crests 141 and wave troughs 142 run along the longitudinal direction L (see Figure 1), or also in the direction of a central axis MA. The wave crests 141 and the wave troughs 142 thus form a "serpentine line" with a bottom side 140U facing the hose region 110 and a top side 140O facing away from the hose region 110. Thus, each wave crest 141 has a wave crest section 141A at which the bottom side 140U of the wave crest section 141A has a maximum axial distance from the hose region 110. Similarly, each wave trough 142 has a wave trough section 142A at which the bottom side 140U of the wave trough section 142A has a minimum axial distance from the hose region 110. The minimum distance is smaller than the maximum distance, i.e., both the bottom side 140U and the top side 140O run as serpentine lines in the circumferential direction.As previously explained, the geometric shape of the wave crests 141 and the wave troughs 142 in the side view is not particularly limited, as long as raised areas result as wave crests 141 and depressed areas as wave troughs 142, and the bottom surface 140U and the top surface 140A appear as serpentine lines. In embodiments not shown, the wave crests 141 and / or the wave troughs 142 may have more or less pronounced edges, provided this is feasible during manufacture and deemed suitable for the application.

[0049] In the embodiment shown, an extension 142L in the circumferential direction of the wave troughs 142 is furthermore greater than a corresponding extension 141L in the circumferential direction of the wave crests 141, this being true for the edge region which delimits the teat insertion opening 150, as in Figure 2 and Figure 1As the radial distance from the opening 150 increases (see Figure 1 or Figure 2 ), the extension 142L in the circumferential direction of the wave troughs 142 remains substantially the same, while the radial extension 141L in the circumferential direction of the wave crests 141 increases continuously.

[0050] For the illustrated embodiment, therefore, for the edge of the teat insertion opening 150, the radius of curvature of the wave crests 141 is relatively small, corresponding to the small extension length 141L in the circumferential direction, while the radius of curvature for the wave troughs 142 is relatively large, so that the larger extension in the circumferential direction 142L is obtained. This means that at the edge of the teat insertion opening 150, the radius of curvature of the wave crests 141 is smaller than the radius of curvature of the wave troughs 142. It should be noted that a corresponding radius of curvature is to be understood as an average value for a section of the corresponding wave crest or wave trough. This means that for the corresponding extension 142L of the wave troughs 142, an average radius of curvature is greater than an average radius of curvature resulting for the extension length 141L of the wave crests 141.

[0051] As previously mentioned in connection with the top view of the Figure 1BAs explained, a corresponding radius of curvature for the wave troughs 142 remains substantially the same with increasing radial distance from the opening 150, while the corresponding radius of curvature for the wave crests increases with increasing radial distance from the opening 150 and may become larger than the radius of curvature of the wave troughs at the considered radial distance from the opening 150.

[0052] In other embodiments not shown, an increase or decrease in the circumferential extension of the wave troughs 142L may be provided, whereby, in particular, the deformation behavior can be adjusted through design measures. Accordingly, the corresponding extension length 141L of the wave crests changes in a complementary manner.

[0053] In the Figure 1CIn the embodiment shown, a wall thickness 141T is furthermore greater, at least in the region of the maximum of the respective wave crests 141, ie in the wave crest section 141A, than a wall thickness 142T of the wave troughs 142, at least in their minimum, ie in the wave trough section 142A.

[0054] As previously explained, adjusting the wall thicknesses 141T, 142T allows for controlling the deformation behavior of the wave-like structure 140. For example, further increasing the wall thickness 141T makes the wave-like structure 140 "harder" upon contact with the teat surface. The stiffness of the wave-like structure 140 can also be adjusted by adjusting the wall thickness 141T. On the other hand, reducing the wall thickness 142T of the wave troughs 142 increases the overall deformability of the wave-like structure 140, thereby increasing the diameter of the teat insertion opening 150 more efficiently upon teat insertion.

[0055] Figure 1D shows schematically a sectional view of the head region 120 according to the section line BB of the Figure 1B . That is, contrary to the view of the Figure 1C , in which a wave crest 141 is centrally located in relation to the central axis MA, is in the view of the Figure 1D a trough 142 centrally with respect to the central axis MA.

[0056] As further stated in Figure 1D (and also in Figure 1C , as well as Figure 1A ), in the embodiments shown, the ring area 130 is provided with an inclination 135 such that the opening 150 (see Figure 1B) and thus the corresponding edge region of the wave-like structure 140, are lowered compared to the edge 121 of the head region 120. This recessed arrangement of the opening 150 results in more favorable behavior during deformation when a teat is inserted into the opening 150, so that in addition to the increased flexibility and deformability created by the wave-like structure 140, a further contribution is made, whereby the process of inserting the teat, i.e. attaching the teat cup, becomes more efficient, while moving the teat out is made more difficult, so that overall the adhesion of the teat cup to the teat during the milking process is increased.

[0057] Figure 1E shows a further plan view of the head region 120, wherein a section line AA is shown which sweeps over approximately three-quarters of the circumference 160 of the teat insertion opening 150.

[0058] Figure 1Fshows the corresponding sectional view along the section line AA of the Figure 1E, wherein four fully formed wave troughs 142 of the six wave troughs 142 provided in this embodiment are visible. Similarly, four complete wave crests 141 of the six wave crests 141 are visible. The number of wave crests and thus wave troughs 141, 142 can also be determined during manufacture of the teat cup insert 100 to adjust the deformation behavior. In illustrative embodiments, at least three wave crests and wave troughs are provided, while in other embodiments, such as the one shown, at least six wave crests and wave troughs are provided.A corresponding limitation on the number of wave crests and troughs arises, for example, from manufacturing conditions. For example, with a high number of wave crests and troughs, the radius of curvature of the wave crests or troughs at a given radial position becomes so small that correct shaping during the corresponding injection molding process is no longer guaranteed. For example, if the radius of curvature is too small, the desired wall thickness may no longer be achieved with the desired precision. However, with typical dimensions for elastic teat cup inserts for goats, sheep, cattle, and the like, the number of wave crests and troughs can be easily increased to 8-10.

[0059] Furthermore, Figure 1Fa corresponding incision 122 is shown, which serves to receive the wall of a teat cup sleeve 170, so that a mechanical fixation to the teat cup sleeve 170 and a tight closure to it is achieved.

[0060] During use of the elastic teat cup insert 100, which is attached to the teat cup sleeve 170 for this purpose and thus forms a teat cup, which in turn is part of a corresponding set of teat cups, the teat cup and thus the teat cup insert 100 is brought towards a teat 180 so that the teat 180 ultimately enters the opening 150. As a result, the annular region 130 including the wave-like structure 140 is deformed accordingly, i.e., pressed "downward" in the longitudinal direction so that the wave crests 141 come into contact with the outer surface of the teat 180. That is,Due to the elastic deformation of the wave-like structure 140 during insertion of the teat 180, the efficient deformability of the wave-like structure 140 allows for insertion with only minimal effort, until finally, the elastic restoring force of the wave-like structure 140 results in adhesive contact with the teat 180, ensuring reliable adhesion of the teat cup insert 100 and thus of the speaking teat cup. This means that in this position, also referred to as the operating position, in which the wave-like structure 140 is deformed "downward" (not shown), a relatively high adhesive force is effective, which, in conjunction with a contact area (not shown) of the tube area 110, results in an undesirable premature detachment of the teat cup from the teat 180 being essentially prevented without constricting the teat.This simplifies the attachment process and increases the overall adhesion of the teat cup during the milking process, while, as already mentioned, virtually eliminating any negative influence, such as constriction, as is otherwise the case with conventional teat cup liners with a matching or relatively narrow diameter.

[0061] If certain negative pressure peaks occur under the teat during milking, as already explained above, the wave-like structure 140 enables a slight detachment from the teat 180 in certain areas, but without reducing adhesion to the teat 180 to such an extent that cup drop occurs. This partial detachment temporarily creates one or more flow channels between the interior of the teat cup insert 100 and the surrounding atmosphere. This valve effect can therefore significantly reduce negative pressure peaks, allowing for a reliable and animal-friendly milking process. A high head vacuum can lead to swelling of the teat, causing the teat to act almost like a plug and thus making further milking of the affected udder area more difficult, which can subsequently lead to udder health problems.For example, this can lead to an increased proportion of residual milk in the affected udder area, which in turn can cause impairment of udder health and / or a loss of yield.

[0062] Figure 2A shows a perspective view of a teat cup insert 200 according to further embodiments of the present invention. The teat cup insert 200 has, similarly to the previously described teat cup insert 100, a tube portion 210 and a head portion 220 adjacent thereto in the longitudinal direction of the tube portion 210. The head portion 220 has an edge 221 and is further configured to be attached to a teat cup sleeve (not shown), as has already been described previously in connection with the Figure 1A-1FFurthermore, an annular region 230 is provided in the head region 220, which in turn includes a wave-like structure 240 with wave crests 241 and wave troughs 242. With regard to the terms "wave-like structure," "wave crests," and "wave troughs," reference is made to the previous explanations. The annular region 230, in conjunction with the wave-like structure 240, defines a teat insertion opening 250, which serves to receive a teat.

[0063] In the illustrated embodiment, the wave-like structure 240 is designed such that the wave troughs 242 have a smaller extent in the circumferential direction with increasing radial distance from the opening 250. This means that, in contrast to the wave-like structure 140 of the previous embodiments, the wave troughs 242 become smaller in their circumferential extent toward the outside, thus leading to the wave crests 241 increasing more in the circumferential direction with increasing radial distance than is the case for the design of the wave-like structures 140 of the previously described embodiments. The degree of "tapering" of the wave troughs 242 with increasing radial distance from the opening 250 can be determined as needed during manufacture, for example, to increase the rigidity of the wave-like structure 240 and thus of the annular region 230 with increasing radial distance.This allows for a higher degree of adhesion to be achieved with smaller teats or when using a softer polymer blend for the teat cup insert, for example, if the teat diameter in question would be too small for the diameter of the opening 250 of a conventional teat cup insert. However, due to the wave-like structure 240, the opening 250 is still suitable for the teat in question in this case, since a corresponding sliding of the teat cup insert provides a reliable hold even for the relatively small teat.

[0064] Figure 2Bshows a top view of the teat cup insert 200, wherein it can be seen more clearly here that the wave-like structure 240 with the wave crests 241 and the wave troughs 242 is designed such that the corresponding extension or length of the wave crests 241 and the wave troughs 242 along a circumferential direction 260 of the opening 250 changes with increasing radial distance 240A from the opening 250. In the embodiment shown, this means that the extension in the circumferential direction of the wave troughs 242 becomes smaller with increasing distance 240A.Thus, starting from the opening 250 and pointing outward, the corresponding extension in the circumferential direction decreases, while on the other hand, the circumferential extension of the wave crests 241 becomes larger and increases "faster" than is the case for the previously described embodiments, in which, for example, the circumferential extension of the wave troughs remains approximately the same with increasing radial distance. By adjusting the degree of tapering of the wave troughs 242 while otherwise keeping parameters constant, such as material thickness, material type, and the like, the size of the support surface and, on the other hand, the flexibility of the wave-like structure 240 can be determined structurally as a function of the radial distance 240A.

[0065] Figure 2Cshows a schematic sectional view of the teat cup insert 200. As shown, the head region 220 is provided with a receptacle 222, which is designed to encompass an upper part of a teat cup sleeve (not shown), thus ensuring a reliable mechanical connection between the teat cup sleeve and the teat cup insert 200. As further shown, the annular region 230 with the wave-like structure 240 is designed such that the maxima of the wave crests 241 are almost flat to an unstructured surface 236 of the annular region 230. This means that in this variant, there is no "depression" of the wave-like structure 240, which would be caused by an inward inclination, such as is the case, for example, with the inclination 135 of the annular region 130 in some previously described embodiments (see Figure 1D ) is the case.

[0066] As further shown, at the edge region of the opening 250 (see Figure 2B) an extension 242L of the wave troughs 242 in the circumferential direction 260 (see Figure 2B ) is greater than a corresponding extension 241L of the wave crests 241, whereby this relationship changes rapidly and reverses with increasing radial distance from the opening 250, as previously explained. Furthermore, according to the invention, the wall thicknesses of the wave crests 241, for example in a wave crest section 241A, and the wave troughs 242, for example in a wave trough section 242A, are different.

[0067] As previously in connection with the Figure 1A-1F In some embodiments, it is advantageous to choose a wall thickness of the wave crests that is greater than the wall thickness of the wave troughs in order to create a reliable contact surface on the one hand and to ensure a high degree of deformability on the other.

[0068] Furthermore, in these exemplary embodiments, an upper side 240O and a lower side 240U of the wave-shaped structure 240 are also designed such that the lower side 240U has a maximum distance from the tube region 210 at the section 241A of the wave crest 241, and the lower side 240U has a minimum distance from the tube region 210 at the section 242A of the wave trough 242. The lower side 240U and also the upper side 240O thus have a serpentine shape in side view, as also previously described in connection with the milking cup insert 100.

[0069] In general, it should be noted that all design measures associated with the design of the Figure 1A to 1F can also be applied in the same way to the embodiments described in the context of Figures 2A to 2C are described.

[0070] The present invention is therefore based on the concept that the deformability of a teat cup insert in the area of the teat insertion opening can be improved by providing a wave-like structure as an integral component of the teat cup insert. This provides a large contact surface for engagement with the teat area in question, and improved adaptability to teats of different sizes is achievable due to the bellows-like or serpentine shape of the wave-like structure along the circumferential direction of the opening, without increasing the risk of the teat cup falling off and simultaneously causing adverse effects on the teat tissue. Furthermore, it is possible to manufacture the entire teat cup insert from a softer material blend, such as a softer polymer blend, without incurring the conventionally associated disadvantages of reduced adhesive force.

Claims

1. Elastic teat cup liner (100) for holding a teat, comprising a hose region (110), a top region (120) adjoining in the longitudinal direction of the hose region, which is configured for attachment to a teat cup sleeve and is provided with a teat insertion opening (150), and an annular region (130) delimiting the teat insertion opening and acting as a teat contact surface in the operating position and having an undulating structure (140) along the circumference of the teat insertion opening with an underside (140U) facing the hose region and an upper side (140O) facing away from the hose region, wherein the hose region, the top region and the annular region including the undulating structure are formed in the form of a single piece of material, and a wave crest (141) of the undulating structure includes a wave crest section (141A) in the circumferential direction of the teat insertion opening, at which the underside of the wave crest section has a maximum distance from the hose region, and a wave trough (142) of the undulating structure includes a wave trough section (142A), at which the underside of the wave trough section has a minimum distance from the hose region which is different from the maximum distance, characterized in that the wave crest section (141A) and the wave trough section (142A) have different wall thicknesses.

2. Elastic teat cup liner according to claim 1, wherein a radial extension of the undulating structure in the annular region starting from the edge of the teat insertion opening is numerically greater than a radius of the teat insertion opening.

3. Elastic teat cup liner according to claim 1, wherein the wave crest section has a greater wall thickness than the wave trough section.

4. Elastic teat cup liner according to claims 1 to 3, wherein at the edge of the teat insertion opening an extension length of the wave troughs is greater than an extension length of the wave crests.

5. Elastic teat cup liner according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the extension of the wave troughs in the circumferential direction remains substantially the same with increasing distance from the teat insertion opening.

6. Elastic teat cup liner according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein at least three wave troughs are provided in the undulating structure.

7. Elastic teat cup liner according to claim 6, wherein six or more wave troughs are provided.

8. Elastic teat cup liner according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the annular region is inclined from an edge of the top region towards the teat insertion opening in the direction of the hose region.

9. Elastic teat cup liner according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the teat insertion opening is suitably dimensioned so as to enable insertion of a teat of a large dairy animal, in particular a cow or a buffalo.

10. Elastic teat cup liner according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the teat insertion opening is suitably dimensioned so as to enable insertion of a teat of a small dairy animal, in particular a sheep or a goat.