Nest mat and poultry housing installation

Abstract

The invention relates to a nest mat (9) which, during use, is arranged on the floor of a laying nest (8) and which has upwardly projecting damping elements (12). According to the invention, the damping elements (12) are oriented obliquely upwards. The invention also relates to a poultry housing installation (1) comprising: a floor referred to as a housing floor (6); and a nest mat (9), designed according to the invention, which is arranged on the housing floor (6).

Description

[0001] November 24, 2025

[0002] 85995-0013-PWO - Ra / Lha

[0003] Applicant: Franz Josef Kühlmann, Niedern 112a, 48612 Horstmar, Germany

[0004] Nesting mat and poultry housing equipment

[0005] The invention relates to a nesting mat and a poultry housing facility equipped with it.

[0006] Nest mats are used in poultry farming to cushion the impact of eggs on the ground during laying, thus preventing cracks in the eggshell that can otherwise occur, such as hairline fractures. For example, hens typically lay their eggs from a height of 2 to 4 cm, meaning that the eggs can be damaged upon impact with a hard surface. The animals usually seek out a place to lay their eggs that offers some protection, which is why laying nests are provided in poultry farming. These nests give the animals a sense of security and a well-protected place to lay their eggs. Nest mats are therefore used particularly in the area of ​​laying nests.The laying nest can be a separate room, such as a box or the like, but it can also be an area of ​​a poultry farming facility, such as a chicken coop, where this area is separated within the coop, for example by means of solid walls and passageways provided therein, or by means of several curtains, for example in the form of foil strips.

[0007] In practice, it is known to distribute bedding in the laying nests that has the desired damping effect, or to lay mats made of soft, possibly foamed plastic or in the form of felt or bedding mats that are not typical for the species.

[0008] US patent 2014 / 0202390A1 describes a nesting mat designed as a flat, cuboid block with intersecting grooves on its surface, dividing the area between the grooves into individual, vertically oriented blocks of material. These blocks are referred to as tufts, which allow the animals to scratch on the ground, thus helping to calm them.

[0009] US Patent 4,023,530 A discloses a nesting mat that is placed as a cover over the intersecting wires of a mesh floor. The nesting mat consists of longitudinal and transverse slats, each with a U-shaped, downward-facing cross-section. This prevents the animals from coming into contact with the potentially rusty wires of the mesh floor.

[0010] Nesting mats of this type can have upright pins acting as dampers. These pin-like dampers are those with a comparatively large and solid, e.g., circular, cross-section. The dampers designed as pins are made of a soft plastic, as is known, for example, from the "Ei-Phoria" nesting mat.

[0011] A nest mat with upright pegs is also known from NL 8900955 A, wherein the distance between the pegs is less than the height of the pegs.

[0012] Nest mats of this species may also feature upright stems with a less massive and rather flat, stem-like cross-section, similar to grass stems, as is known, for example, from the nest mat “Olba” (https: / / www.olba.com / de / de-tail / index / sArticle / 502 / sCategory / 297).

[0013] Finally, nest mats of this type are known that feature upright, thin fibers acting as dampers. These fibers have a cross-section even smaller than that of straw-like dampers, so that in practice these dampers are also referred to as "hairs." The hairs are arranged in groups in a circle, so that each group forms an approximately upright tube, as is known, for example, from the "Astroturf" nest mat (https: / / shop.schropper.at / startseite / 137-astroturf-nestmate.html). A nest mat with such "hairs" is also known from WO 2019 / 221 616 A1, where the height of the hairs decreases towards at least one of the edges of the nest mat.

[0014] The invention further relates to a poultry housing system. This system can, for example, be designed as a coop with an area configured as a laying nest, or it can be designed, for example, exclusively as a laying nest. A chicken coop is frequently mentioned below as a variant of a poultry housing system, but only as a representative example and without limiting the invention to its use in a chicken coop, namely without restricting the poultry housing system to its design or use as a coop, and also without limiting it to the keeping of chickens.

[0015] The invention is based on the objective of improving a generic nesting mat in such a way that it enables a particularly economical provision of eggs, and furthermore, the invention is based on the objective of specifying a particularly economical poultry farming facility.

[0016] Features of the invention are specified in claims 1 and 13. Embodiments are the subject of the dependent claims.

[0017] In other words, the invention proposes that the upward-projecting dampers of the nesting mat be oriented obliquely upwards. This oblique orientation avoids local, point-like pressure peaks when an egg strikes the nesting mat, which cannot be prevented with vertically oriented, pin-like dampers. Even if the material of the pin-like dampers is soft and has excellent resilience, vertically oriented dampers can be compressed in their longitudinal direction if an egg strikes the damper at a precise angle.Even though the pin-like dampers offer only low resistance to deformation perpendicular to their longitudinal direction due to a soft material, they can offer considerable resistance to deformation when compressed axially in the longitudinal direction. Therefore, local pressure peaks acting on the eggshell cannot be ruled out, which could lead to damage to the eggshell. As with such pin-like dampers, the individual dampers in the nest mat designed according to the invention can also be pin-like and have a comparatively large cross-section, e.g., circular or rectangular. This is because, even with such a massive cross-section, the desired damping effect is supported by the inclined position of the dampers, as the impacting eggs do not act axially, but rather obliquely to the respective dampers.The proportion of damaged eggs - and thus the rejection of produced eggs - can be reduced by means of the nest mat according to the invention, which is economically advantageous.

[0018] Narrow, straw-like, or even hair-thin dampers require a comparatively hard material, as their small cross-section allows for easy deformation, but a desired, sufficient damping effect also requires a certain resistance from the damper. The comparatively hard material used therefore has limited resilience and can be permanently deformed, which is disadvantageous in two respects: firstly, the desired damping properties of the nesting mat are impaired due to the permanent deformation, and secondly, the deformation leads to depressions in the surface of the nesting mat, which can be undesirable.If the eggs laid on the nest mat are intended to roll towards an egg collection device, such as an egg collection trough or an egg conveyor belt, the floor of the laying nest is usually sloped downwards towards the egg collection device. This allows the eggs to roll down automatically without requiring a separate drive mechanism. However, the eggs tend to remain in the aforementioned depressions, meaning that either not all eggs reach the egg collection device, or the remaining eggs have to be searched for and collected individually, both of which are economically disadvantageous.

[0019] In one embodiment, the inclined dampers are aligned in the same direction, meaning they have the same inclination. This allows for a preferred direction of travel, enabling the eggs to roll along the nesting mat, for example, when the eggs are to roll towards an egg collection device. The uniform alignment of all dampers is also advantageous for the most economical manufacturing of the nesting mat, as it simplifies, for example, the removal of the nesting mat from a mold, particularly a casting mold such as an injection mold.

[0020] In one embodiment, the dampers are designed as straight, continuous ribs. This straight design also simplifies the production of the nest mat and its removal from a mold.

[0021] In one embodiment, the nesting mat does not have a solid base, but rather a grid-like structure. This structure is created by longitudinal ribs running side by side, on which dampers are arranged, and by connecting ribs that maintain the longitudinal ribs at their predetermined distance from one another. Accordingly, the longitudinal ribs are positioned, on the one hand, so close together that the desired cushioning effect for a gentle impact of the egg is ensured when the egg is laid at virtually any point on the nesting mat, and on the other hand, they are positioned far enough apart to maximize the mesh size of the grid structure.Compared to a nesting mat with a closed base, the manufacturing costs of the nesting mat itself are positively impacted by the material savings. Secondly, the accumulation and deposition of contaminants such as poultry droppings on the nesting mat is avoided or at least significantly reduced. Firstly, contaminants can fall through the mesh of the grid structure without even touching the mat material. Secondly, the open grid structure allows for significantly less material and time to clean the nesting mat compared to one with a nearly closed base. Thirdly, contaminants cannot become as deeply embedded as, for example, on a solid base.in a tube-like arrangement of several dampers arranged in a circle, since the individual, pin-like dampers projecting obliquely upwards from the grid structure do not form enclosed spaces in which dirt could accumulate.

[0022] In one embodiment, the dampers are arranged exclusively on the longitudinal struts of the grid-like structure. This positively impacts the manufacturing costs of the nest mat by eliminating the need for dampers on the connecting struts. Secondly, it facilitates the rolling of the eggs on the nest mat along the longitudinal struts, as the dampers that would otherwise be present on the connecting struts cannot form a barrier perpendicular to the rolling direction.

[0023] The longitudinal ribs can run in serpentine, zigzag, or similar patterns, their orientation being generally irrelevant to the desired cushioning function of the nesting mat. This is particularly true if the nesting mat is to be placed in a laying nest designed as a box for one or a few animals. However, the economic efficiency of egg production is especially important when the laying nest is intended for a larger poultry operation and a large number of animals. In practice, wire mesh floors have proven effective in this case. Accordingly, in a configuration considered advantageous, the longitudinal ribs of a mesh-like nesting mat run straight and parallel to each other, and the connecting ribs run perpendicular to them.The arrangement of the nest mat's ribs thus corresponds to the right-angled arrangement of the mesh bars of a stable or laying nest floor, both of which will subsequently be referred to simply as the stable floor. In one embodiment, the longitudinal ribs of the nest mat lie congruently on the mesh bars of the stable floor, so that they do not cross these bars, but rather run lengthwise along them. This simplifies the attachment of the nest mat to the underlying wire mesh stable floor and improves the animals' walking comfort on the stable floor, because the animals do not walk directly on the wire, but on the comparatively softer material of the laying nest, and because its ribs are expected to have a larger cross-section than the mesh bars of the stable floor.

[0024] In one variation of this design, the ribs of the nest mat run congruently over the grid bars of the stable floor, so that not only the longitudinal ribs but also the connecting ribs of the nest mat rest on grid bars of the stable floor. While the longitudinal ribs of the nest mat with the dampers extend further upwards than the connecting ribs, meaning that the weight of the animals on the nest mat is essentially borne by the longitudinal ribs, the portion of the weight force acting on the connecting ribs can also be advantageously transferred from the nest mat to a grid bar of the stable floor by having each connecting rib also run over a grid bar of the stable floor.

[0025] The geometric design of the dampers is determined by ensuring they are neither too long nor too soft. This prevents them from collapsing and flattening upon impact with an egg. While relatively long dampers can achieve sufficient damping by using a comparatively hard material, this would carry the risk of permanent deformation from the poultry. Conversely, dampers that are too short become rigid and offer insufficient deformation to guarantee the desired damping effect upon impact. Based on these considerations, initial, non-public trials in a chicken coop have yielded excellent results for the nesting mat's function using 5 mm high dampers.Depending on the material used, for example, the hardness of the plastic from which the dampers and, if applicable, the entire nesting mat are made, the height of the dampers can range from 4 to 6 mm, or even from 3 to 8 mm. However, when keeping different types of poultry, and consequently different egg sizes, weights, and shell types, a different damper height may be advantageous. In one embodiment, locking hooks are arranged on the underside of the nesting mat, each designed to engage a wire mesh bar of a grid-like coop floor. Such grid-like floors are common in chicken coops, for example. The locking hooks allow the nesting mat to be mounted quickly and easily on the coop floor, requiring no tools or additional fasteners such as clips, screws, or the like.If the mesh spacing of the coop floor doesn't match the mesh spacing of the nesting mat, some of the locking hooks can still be used to attach the nesting mat to at least one mesh bar of the floor, thus preventing it from slipping. If the nesting mat isn't to be used on a mesh floor, the locking hooks can serve as vertical spacers, keeping the nesting mat a distance above the closed floor of, for example, a laying nest box. This allows eggs falling onto the nesting mat to land more gently, and if the nesting mat has a mesh structure, debris can easily fall through the mesh, as the locking hooks keep the mesh bars of the nesting mat spaced above the floor.

[0026] In one embodiment, a particularly reliable fastening of the nest mat to a grid strut of an underlying grid-like stable floor is achieved by aligning two locking hooks towards each other in such a way that, in use, they grip the grid strut from both sides. The two locking hooks can be arranged opposite each other, or alternatively, they can be offset from each other so that, in use, they grip the grid strut at two points located one behind the other along its length.

[0027] The mesh slats of a poultry house floor are typically placed on and secured to the supporting struts of the house structure. In one design of the nesting mat, locking hooks are arranged on its underside, each designed to grip such a supporting strut of the house floor. Because the nesting mat can be clipped onto the supporting strut, a floor mesh panel of the house floor can simultaneously be fixed to the supporting strut, thus eliminating a step that would otherwise be required during the construction of the house. The assembly of the house is further simplified and accelerated because neither separate fasteners nor tools are needed to secure the floor mesh panels to the supporting struts.

[0028] The invention further relates to a poultry housing device, which may be designed, for example, in the form of a poultry house or a laying nest, and which in any case has a house floor and a nesting mat arranged on the floor, wherein the nesting mat is designed according to the invention. For example, the nesting mat may be placed on a closed floor of a box serving as a laying nest, or it may be arranged in an area of ​​a poultry house that forms a laying nest. Furthermore, the nesting mat may also extend beyond the area of ​​the laying nest onto the floor, for example, to provide additional space for the hens.In comparison to the grid bars of a barn floor with a grid, a larger cross-section and a softer design of the bars are provided, thus improving the walking comfort for the animals and also the lying comfort when the animals sleep on the barn floor, which regularly occurs in practice, even if in the case of a chicken coop the majority of the animals spend the night on elevated perches.

[0029] In one design of the poultry housing system, the nesting mat, like the grid-like floor of the housing system, also features a grid-like structure, as described above for the nesting mat. If the poultry are kept exclusively indoors, the number of animals per housing unit is limited depending on its size, for example, by official regulations for animal welfare reasons. Such limitations may not apply to free-range poultry, as the animals have sufficient space. However, this means that a considerably larger number of animals may sleep in the housing unit. This, in turn, affects the construction of the housing floor, which is designed to be correspondingly rigid to ensure sufficient load-bearing capacity.For egg laying, this can mean that the less elastic and yielding floor of the stable is also less elastic and yielding in the area of ​​the laying nest and is therefore designed to be harder, so that with the same falling height of an egg, there is a greater probability of damaging the egg during egg laying and, for example, creating a hairline crack in the eggshell.

[0030] In a particularly preferred version of the nesting mat with a grid-like structure, the mat's structure, with its longitudinal ribs and, if applicable, connecting ribs, lies perfectly aligned with the griddled floor of the poultry housing system. This facilitates easy attachment of the nesting mat to the floor grid using the aforementioned locking hooks. Furthermore, this design ensures the largest possible open mesh size, provided the mesh size of the nesting mat exactly matches that of the housing floor. This makes the entire floor structure, including the nesting mat, as resistant as possible to contamination, since much of the debris can fall through the optimally sized mesh.The nesting mat can, however, have additional connecting strips that do not rest on the mesh struts of the barn floor. The high number of connecting strips ensures that the longitudinal strips are kept at the desired distance from each other with particular reliability. As a result of these additional connecting strips, the nesting mat has a mesh size that is smaller than that of the barn floor. In one embodiment, the connecting strips are positioned lower than the longitudinal strips. Therefore, soiling on the connecting strips does not necessarily lead to soiling of the eggs, which lie or roll on the dampers of the nesting mat at a vertical distance above the connecting strips.If, due to the additional connecting strips mentioned above, the nest mat has a mesh size that is smaller than the mesh size of the stable floor, this reduction in mesh size due to the lower-lying connecting strips does not necessarily lead to an increased risk of the eggs becoming soiled.

[0031] In one embodiment, the connecting ribs, which are lower than the longitudinal ribs, have breaks or upward-facing recesses where they intersect the longitudinal ribs. If the longitudinal ribs of the nest mat rest on the grid struts of a stable floor, the breaks or recesses ensure that the connecting ribs are located laterally next to such a grid strut and may even rest against it, so that the longitudinal ribs of the nest mat are secured against lateral deflection and are not only held at a predetermined distance from each other by means of the connecting ribs, but are also guided on the grid struts of the stable floor.

[0032] Apart from the economic advantages already described, which result from the use of a nesting mat according to the invention for egg production, a particularly economical design of the poultry housing system is also supported. For example, it is known in practice to mount the floor of the area serving as a laying nest in chicken houses in a pivotable manner, so that it can be pivoted from a horizontal position used for egg laying during the day to an upright position for nighttime or resting. This serves to prevent the hens from sleeping in the laying nest, as otherwise considerable soiling of the laying nest would be to be expected if the hens defecate after waking up and before laying eggs.The grid structure of the nest mat significantly reduces the likelihood of soiling, allowing the base of the laying nest to remain permanently in its operating position and eliminating the need for a pivoting mechanism. The elimination of the otherwise required bearing and drive elements positively impacts both the manufacturing and maintenance costs of the poultry housing system, resulting in particularly economical production and minimal operating costs over its service life. In one embodiment, the poultry housing system includes an egg collection device located adjacent to the laying nest. This could be, for example, a manually emptied collection trough or an egg conveyor belt that automatically transports the eggs to a downstream unit.If, in such a poultry housing facility, the nesting mat has dampers, all of which are inclined in the desired rolling direction of the eggs, and if the nesting mat is arranged on a floor of the poultry housing facility that slopes downwards towards the egg collection device, the eggs are conveyed to the egg collection device fully automatically by gravity after being laid.

[0033] In one configuration, the poultry housing system is designed as a chicken coop. Initial, non-public trials have demonstrated the good functionality of the nesting mat for the typical requirements and dimensions of such a system, for example, the height of the dampers and the dimensions of the grid-like structure of the nesting mat in adaptation to the structure of the chicken coop's grid floor.

[0034] The invention therefore relates to a nest mat which is arranged on the floor of a laying nest during use, with upward-projecting dampers, wherein the dampers are oriented obliquely upwards.

[0035] Furthermore, the invention can be designed in such a way that all dampers are aligned in the same direction.

[0036] Furthermore, the invention can be designed in such a way that the dampers are designed as straight-running struts.

[0037] Furthermore, the invention can be characterized by a grid-like structure of the nest mat, with longitudinal ribs running side by side and with connecting ribs that connect the longitudinal ribs to each other, wherein dampers are arranged on the longitudinal ribs.

[0038] Furthermore, the invention can be designed in such a way that the dampers are arranged exclusively on the longitudinal webs.

[0039] Furthermore, the invention can be configured such that the longitudinal webs run straight and parallel to each other, and the connecting webs run perpendicular to them. Furthermore, the invention can be configured such that the connecting webs are arranged lower than the longitudinal webs.

[0040] Furthermore, the invention can be designed in such a way that the connecting webs have interruptions or upward-running recesses where they cross the longitudinal webs.

[0041] Furthermore, the invention can be designed in such a way that the dampers have a height of between 3 and 8 mm, preferably between 4 and 6 mm, and particularly preferably 5 mm.

[0042] Furthermore, the invention can be designed in such a way that first locking hooks are arranged on the underside of the nest mat and are each configured to grip a grid strut of a stable floor.

[0043] Furthermore, the invention can be designed in such a way that second locking hooks are arranged on the underside of the nest mat and each is configured to grip a support strut of a stable floor.

[0044] Furthermore, the invention can be designed in such a way that two locking hooks are aligned facing each other in such a way that, in use, they grip a grid strut or support strut to be gripped on both sides.

[0045] Furthermore, the invention relates to a poultry housing device, comprising a floor designated as a stable floor, and a nesting mat arranged on the stable floor, which is designed as described above.

[0046] Furthermore, the invention can be designed in such a way that the stable floor has a grid formed from grid struts, and that the nesting mat also has a grid-like structure, with longitudinal bars running parallel to each other and with connecting bars that connect the longitudinal bars to each other, wherein dampers are arranged on the longitudinal bars.

[0047] Furthermore, the invention can be designed such that the longitudinal ribs of the nesting mat rest congruently on the grid struts of the stable floor. Furthermore, the invention can be designed such that the poultry housing system includes a laying nest and the nesting mat forms the surface of the stable floor in the area of ​​the laying nest.

[0048] Furthermore, the invention can be designed in such a way that an egg collection device is arranged adjacent to the laying nest, and that the dampers of the nest mat run inclined in the direction towards the egg collection device.

[0049] Furthermore, the invention can be designed in such a way that the nest mat also forms the surface of the stable floor outside the laying nest.

[0050] Furthermore, the invention can be designed in such a way that the poultry keeping facility is designed as a chicken coop.

[0051] Further features, details and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the wording of the claims and from the following description of exemplary embodiments with reference to the purely schematic drawings. These show:

[0052] Fig. 1 shows a side view of a poultry housing facility,

[0053] Fig. 2 a perspective view from above of a nest mat,

[0054] Fig. 3 is a perspective view from below of the nest mat from Fig. 2, and the

[0055] Fig. 4 shows a perspective view from below of a stall floor of the poultry housing facility of Fig. 1 and of a nesting mat located on the stall floor.

[0056] Fig. 1 shows a side view of a poultry housing facility 1, which is designed as a laying facility with several levels, wherein the illustrated embodiment can either be used separately, or can also form only one segment of a larger overall poultry housing facility, which has several levels on top of each other and can have several such segments arranged side by side in a row.

[0057] The illustrated embodiment of the poultry housing system 1 is designed as a frame consisting of metal profile elements and erected on a base 3 by means of vertical supports 2. The illustrated embodiment has an approximately square floor plan, with the supports 2 arranged in two rows of three supports each, and these two rows running perpendicular to the plane of the drawing. The poultry housing system 1 has feed troughs 4 and drinking troughs 5, as well as coop floors 6, which are arranged sloping to the left in the drawing. Perches 7 are located at intervals above each coop floor 6. In the drawing on the left, a laying nest 8 is attached to each coop floor 6 on two levels.In each of the floors, an egg collecting device 19 is arranged at the left end of the floor as shown in the drawing. The egg collecting device 19 can be designed as a collecting trough or as an egg conveyor belt, and each egg collecting device 19 has a cover 20 to protect the eggs. In the two lower floors, the egg collecting device 19 connects to the respective laying nest 8, and in the third, upper floor, it connects directly to the floor 6 of the coop.

[0058] Fig. 2 shows a plastic nesting mat 9, manufactured as an injection-molded part and designed for use on the floor 6 of the poultry housing system 1, particularly on the area of ​​the floor 6 that forms the base of a laying nest 8. The nesting mat 9 is not a solid mat but has a grid-like structure with straight, parallel longitudinal ribs 10 and connecting ribs 11 that run transversely to the longitudinal ribs 10 and maintain them at a predetermined distance from one another. The illustrated embodiment of the nesting mat 9 has dimensions of approximately 20 cm x 10 cm. Due to these relatively small dimensions, laying nests 8 of varying sizes can easily be lined almost completely with the nesting mats 9.In contrast to the illustrated embodiment, the nest mat 9 can also be manufactured with larger length and width dimensions, so that when a laying nest 8 is equipped with nest mats 9, handling as few elements as possible saves time and is therefore particularly economical.

[0059] Pin-like dampers 12 are arranged on the longitudinal ribs 10. Each damper has a rectangular cross-section and extends obliquely upwards from its respective longitudinal rib 10. In the illustrated embodiment, they have a height of 5 mm. The dampers 12 all extend obliquely upwards in the same direction. The connecting ribs 11 project beyond the two outer longitudinal ribs 10 and, together with these projecting ends, form spacers 13. This ensures that, in the case of two adjacent identical nest mats 9, the two longitudinal ribs 10 adjacent to each other at their respective edges are essentially the same distance apart as longitudinal ribs 10 arranged within the same nest mat 9. At the end of the nest mat 9 shown on the left in Fig. 2, the longitudinal ribs 10 taper downwards, with their upper surface extending obliquely downwards in a wedge shape.This facilitates an overlapping arrangement of two identical nest mats 9, which connect to each other in the longitudinal direction of the longitudinal ribs 10.

[0060] In the illustrated embodiment, the connecting webs 11 are arranged lower than the longitudinal webs 10, with not only the upper edges of the connecting webs 11 extending lower than the dampers 12 and also lower than the upper edges of the longitudinal webs 10, but also extending lower than the longitudinal webs 10, so that the lower edges of the connecting webs 11 extend lower than the lower edges of the longitudinal webs 10.

[0061] The two outer connecting webs 11 form first locking hooks 14 downwards, and the connecting web 11 shown as the second from the left in Fig. 2 forms second locking hooks 15 downwards, which are larger than the first locking hooks 14.

[0062] Fig. 3 shows the nest mat 9 from below, where the different sizes of the first locking hooks 14 and the second locking hooks 15 are particularly evident. Furthermore, Fig. 3 shows that two locking hooks 14 and 15 are positioned opposite each other, so that they each form an opening in which a grid bar of a stable floor can be received, as will be explained in more detail later.

[0063] The connecting webs 11, which are arranged lower than the longitudinal webs 10, have interruptions 16 where they cross the longitudinal webs 10, so that the connecting webs 11 form lateral guides for the longitudinal webs 10 when the longitudinal webs 10 lie on a grid strut of a stable floor.

[0064] Fig. 4 shows a coop floor 6 from below. The coop floor has a grid-like structure with transverse grid struts 17 and support struts 18 on which the wire mesh formed by the grid struts 17 rests. In the illustrated, unloaded state, the longitudinal ribs 10 of the nesting mat 9 do not rest entirely on an underlying grid strut 17. Under load, however, when chickens are on the nesting mat 9 in the coop, the longitudinal ribs 10 are pressed against the grid struts 17, and the connecting struts 11, with their gaps 16, create guides that prevent the longitudinal ribs 10 from being displaced laterally by the grid struts 17. The first locking hooks 14 of the nest mat 9 engage grid struts 17 of the stable floor 6, and the second locking hooks 15 engage a support strut 18 of the stable floor 6, so that the nest mat 9 is thereby secured against displacement in the longitudinal direction of the longitudinal webs 10.

[0065] All features and advantages arising from the claims, the description, and the drawings, including design details, spatial arrangements, and process steps, can be essential to the invention, both individually and in various combinations. Reference numerals list

[0066] Poultry farming facility support

[0067] Floor space

[0068] Feed trough

[0069] T ranke

[0070] Stable floor

[0071] perch

[0072] Laying nest

[0073] Nest mat

[0074] longitudinal web

[0075] Connecting bridge

[0076] mute

[0077] spacers

[0078] First locking hook

[0079] Second locking hook

[0080] Interruption Lattice strut T Support strut

[0081] Egg collection device

[0082] cover

Claims

Patent claims 1. Nest mat (9) which is arranged on the floor of a laying nest (8) in use, with upwardly projecting dampers (12), characterized in that the dampers (12) are inclined upwards.

2. Nest mat according to claim 1, characterized in that all dampers (12) are aligned in the same direction.

3. Nest mat according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the dampers (12) are designed as straight-running struts.

4. Nest mat according to one of the preceding claims, characterized by a grid-like structure of the nest mat (9), with longitudinal ribs (10) running side by side and with connecting ribs (11) which connect the longitudinal ribs (10) together, wherein dampers (12) are arranged on the longitudinal ribs (10).

5. Nest mat according to claim 4, characterized in that the dampers (12) are arranged exclusively on the longitudinal ribs (10).

6. Nest mat according to claim 4 or 5, characterized in that the longitudinal ribs (10) run straight and parallel to each other, and the connecting ribs (11) run perpendicular to them.

7. Nest mat according to one of claims 4 to 6, characterized in that, that the connecting webs (11) are arranged lower than the longitudinal webs (10).

8. Nest mat according to claim 7, characterized in that the connecting webs (11) have interruptions (16) or upwardly extending recesses where they cross the longitudinal webs (10).

9. Nest mat according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the dampers (12) have a height of between 3 and 8 mm, preferably between 4 and 6 mm, and particularly preferably 5 mm.

10. Nest mat according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that first locking hooks (14) are arranged on the underside of the nest mat (9) and are each configured to engage a grid strut (17) of a stable floor (6).

11. Nest mat according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that second locking hooks (15) are arranged on the underside of the nest mat (9) and are each configured to grip a support strut (18) of a stable floor (6).

12. Nest mat according to claim 10 or 11, characterized in that two locking hooks (14, 15) are oriented towards each other in such a way that they grip a grid strut (17) or support strut (18) to be gripped on both sides during use.

13. Poultry housing facility (1), comprising a floor designated as the stable floor (6), and a nesting mat (9) arranged on the stable floor (6), which is designed according to one of the preceding claims.

14. Poultry housing device according to claim 13, characterized in that the stable floor (6) has a grid formed from grid struts (17), and that the nesting mat (9) also has a grid-like structure, with longitudinal bars (10) running parallel to each other and with connecting bars (11) which connect the longitudinal bars (10) to each other, wherein dampers (12) are arranged on the longitudinal bars (10).

15. Poultry housing device according to claim 14, characterized in that the longitudinal ribs (10) of the nest mat (9) lie congruently on grid struts (17) of the stable floor (6).

16. Poultry housing facility according to one of claims 13 to 15 characterized in that the poultry housing facility (1) has a laying nest (8) and the nest mat (9) in the area of ​​the laying nest (8) forms the surface of the stable floor (6).

17. Poultry housing device according to claim 16, characterized in that an egg collection device (19) is arranged adjacent to the laying nest (8), and that the dampers (12) of the nest mat (9) are inclined in the direction towards the egg collection device (19).

18. Poultry housing device according to claim 16 or 17, characterized in that the nest mat (9) also forms the surface of the stable floor (6) outside the laying nest (8).

19. Poultry keeping facility according to one of claims 13 to 18, characterized in that the poultry keeping facility (1) is designed as a chicken coop.

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