Milking System Rinsing Volume Control via Test Circulation
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Solution Overview
Problem
In large milking systems, determining the ideal quantity of rinsing liquid for the rinsing process is challenging, leading to excessive water and chemical consumption, as well as unsatisfactory hygiene due to insufficient liquid, and increased energy use from excessive temperature.
Innovation Solution
A method to automatically determine the required rinsing liquid volume by simulating the circulation process using a fill-level sensor and flow sensor, allowing for optimal parameter setting of the rinsing process without structural changes to the equipment.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If too much rinsing liquid is provided in the storage tank, then the rinsing process can be carried out without air being sucked into the system, but this leads to enormous excess consumption of water and rinsing agent
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by performing a test circulation before the actual rinsing process to determine the exact volume of rinsing liquid required. The control device circulates liquid through the system, measures the volume consumed, and uses this information to set the storage tank fill level beforehand, avoiding both excess consumption and air suction during the actual rinsing process.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements feedback by using a flow sensor to measure the actual volume of rinsing liquid consumed during circulation and feeding this information back to the control device. The control device then uses this feedback data to automatically adjust and optimize the storage tank fill level for subsequent rinsing operations, ensuring the precise amount of liquid is provided without excess or deficiency.
2Loss of substance
If too little rinsing liquid is provided in the storage tank, then water and rinsing agent consumption is reduced, but this leads to a rinsing result which is unsatisfactory and unacceptable for reasons of hygiene
Solution Approach 1:
The patent performs a preliminary test circulation to determine the exact volume required for effective rinsing before the actual cleaning process. This preliminary measurement ensures that the storage tank is filled with the precise minimum amount needed to achieve satisfactory rinsing results without excess, thereby maintaining hygiene standards while optimizing resource consumption.
Solution Approach 2:
The flow sensor provides feedback on the actual liquid volume consumed during circulation, enabling the control device to learn and adapt the optimal fill level. This feedback mechanism ensures that sufficient liquid is always provided to achieve acceptable rinsing results while minimizing waste, creating a self-optimizing system that maintains hygiene requirements.
3Quantity of substance
If the storage tank is made larger to accommodate the required volume of rinsing liquid, then the liquid volume required for circulation can be fully provided, but this increases the device complexity and space requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies dynamics by transitioning from a static, fixed-size storage tank approach to a dynamic system where the effective liquid volume is controlled through circulation and measurement. The control device dynamically determines the required volume through test circulations and adjusts the operational parameters accordingly, eliminating the need for an oversized static tank while ensuring sufficient liquid is always available for circulation.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the mechanical solution of using a larger storage tank with a control-based system using flow sensors and automated circulation control. Instead of increasing physical tank size to ensure sufficient liquid volume, the system uses electronic measurement and control to precisely manage the liquid quantity, reducing device complexity and space requirements while maintaining the required liquid volume for effective rinsing.
4Measurement precision
If a multiplicity of sensors is used to accurately measure liquid volume and flow rate, then the parameters can be precisely determined, but this increases the device complexity and cost
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies universality by designing the flow sensor to serve multiple functions: it measures both the volume of rinsing liquid consumed during circulation and the flow rate during operation. This single multi-functional sensor provides all necessary measurement data for determining optimal rinsing parameters, eliminating the need for separate volume and flow rate sensors while maintaining high measurement precision.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses parameter changes by having the control device calculate and derive multiple parameters (liquid volume, flow rate, circulation time) from a single flow sensor measurement. By changing the measurement approach from using multiple dedicated sensors to using one sensor with multi-parameter calculation, the system achieves precise determination of all necessary parameters while minimizing device complexity and sensor quantity.
Data Source
AI summary
A method and a device for determining parameters of a rinsing process for a milking system, wherein a rinsing fluid circulates in a circuit to be rinsed in the rinsing process by filling a storage container with a fluid up to a predefined filling level; circulating the fluid from the storage container, via the circuit to be rinsed and back into the storage container; refilling the storage container during the circulation of the fluid up to the predefined filling level, determining a necessary fluid volume; and determining parameters of a subsequent rinsing process based on the determined fluid volume.