Selective Peristaltic Pump Assembly for In Ovo Injection
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing in ovo injection systems lack the flexibility to selectively deliver treatment substances to viable avian eggs, leading to potential waste of vaccines and other substances when injected into dead, infertile, or missing eggs.
Innovation Solution
A selective peristaltic pump assembly with compressible fluid delivery tubes and engagement members that can be actuated to allow or prevent fluid flow through specific tubes, ensuring that treatment substances are only dispensed into identified viable eggs, utilizing a candling device for classification and pneumatic actuators for precise control.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of substance
If peristaltic pumps deliver treatment substance through all injection devices simultaneously, then the injection process is simple and continuous, but treatment substance is wasted by injecting into dead, infertile, or missing eggs
Solution Approach 1:
The pump assembly is divided into multiple independently controllable pump chambers, each associated with a specific injection device. This segmentation allows selective operation of individual pump chambers based on egg viability detection, preventing waste by injecting only into viable eggs while maintaining manageable complexity through modular design
Solution Approach 2:
The pump assembly incorporates dynamic control mechanisms that allow real-time adjustment of which pump chambers are active. Engagement members can selectively engage or disengage specific pump chambers from the fluid delivery path, enabling the system to adapt its operation based on detected egg viability and optimize both waste reduction and operational simplicity
2Loss of substance
If selective injection is implemented to avoid wasting treatment substance, then substance efficiency improves, but the system complexity increases due to additional control mechanisms
Solution Approach 1:
The control mechanisms for selective injection are integrated into the existing pump assembly structure rather than being added as separate external systems. Engagement members and actuation mechanisms are merged with the pump chamber design, reducing overall system complexity while enabling selective operation to minimize treatment substance waste
Solution Approach 2:
The system incorporates automatic control based on egg viability detection signals. The pump assembly can autonomously determine which pump chambers should be active based on input from the egg viability detection system, reducing the need for complex external control systems and manual intervention while achieving selective injection to prevent waste
3Productivity
If peristaltic pumps operate continuously for extended periods, then productivity is maintained, but tube wear and positioning accuracy deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The pump assembly uses multiple discrete pump chambers with individual compressible tubes instead of a single continuous tube system. This segmentation allows each tube to be independently positioned and maintained, reducing cumulative positioning errors and wear effects while maintaining high productivity through parallel operation of multiple chambers
Solution Approach 2:
The system is designed to detect and respond to tube wear or positioning degradation. When a pump chamber's tube shows signs of wear or misalignment, the system can disengage that chamber from active operation, allow for tube replacement or realignment, and then recover full productivity by重新engaging the restored chamber or redistributing workload to other functional chambers
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Enables the precise and efficient delivery of treatment substances to viable eggs, reducing waste and optimizing the use of vaccines and other substances by allowing selective injection, thereby improving the operational efficiency of in ovo injection systems.
Implementation Method 1
peristaltic pump assembly for metering small quantities of fluid through a plurality of tubes
Implementation Method 2
compressible fluid delivery tubes and engagement members that can be actuated to allow or prevent fluid flow through specific tubes
Data Source
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AI summary
An in ovo injection apparatus is provided. Such an in ovo injection apparatus includes an injection assembly having a plurality of injection devices, each injection device being configured to pierce a respective avian egg. A selectable peristaltic pump assembly is in fluid communication with the injection assembly. The selectable peristaltic pump assembly is configured to selectively supply a treatment substance from a fluid reservoir to the injection devices such that the injection devices are capable of selectively dispensing the treatment substance. An associated method is also provided.