Stainless Steel Articulated Arm for Corrosion-Resistant Feed Grabber
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Solution Overview
Problem
The existing feed grabber systems for animals, particularly cows, face high maintenance costs due to the frequent replacement of cables that come into contact with acidic silage or bales, leading to a limited service life and inefficient maintenance activities.
Innovation Solution
A feeding system with a feed grabber featuring a specially designed articulated arm composed of elongate, hingeably connected arm sections made from stainless steel or corrosion-resistant plastic, which replaces the traditional cable, providing a durable and reliable mechanism for closing the grab buckets, thus reducing maintenance needs.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a cable is used to close the grab buckets, then the mechanism is simple and effective, but the cable comes into contact with acidic silage or bales which limits its service life and increases maintenance costs
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the material parameter of the arm from conventional steel to stainless steel, which fundamentally alters its chemical properties to resist corrosion from acidic silage. This material substitution directly addresses the harmful effect of acid on the cable while maintaining the mechanical function of closing the grab buckets.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs stainless steel as a composite material that combines corrosion resistance with sufficient mechanical strength. This material choice creates a protective barrier against the acidic environment, allowing the arm to withstand prolonged exposure to silage acid without degradation.
2Reliability
If the arm sections are made from stainless steel to resist corrosion, then durability is improved, but the strength of stainless steel is相对较低 compared to other steel types
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the arm into multiple segments connected by hinges, allowing each segment to be optimized independently. The segmentation enables the use of stainless steel for corrosion resistance while the overall structure compensates for the lower strength of individual segments through proper design and distribution of mechanical loads.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies different material properties to different parts of the arm structure. Critical load-bearing areas are designed with appropriate cross-sections and hinge configurations to compensate for material strength limitations, while non-critical areas prioritize corrosion resistance. This localized optimization allows stainless steel to be used throughout while maintaining overall structural integrity.
3Volume of moving object
If the winding circumference is kept small to fit within grab bucket space, then space utilization is improved, but the polygon effect increases which affects the chain drive efficiency
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs a dynamic arm mechanism that winds around the winding circumference during operation. The arm sections are hingeably connected to allow flexible movement and wrapping around the drum, adapting to the limited space constraints while maintaining effective power transmission through the hinge joints that accommodate the polygon effect.
Data Source
AI summary
A feeding system for feeding animals, in particular cows, includes a feed storage system for keeping feed for the animals in store, and a feed loading device for loading a batch of feed from the feed storage system into a receptacle of an autonomous feeding device in order to teed the animals. The feed loading device is provided with a feed grabber including two grab buckets which are hingeable between an open position and a closed position. The feed grabber includes an actuation device for actuating the grab buckets from the open position to the closed position. The actuation device includes a rotatably drivable winding-up body which is connected to one of the grab buckets and includes a winding circumference, and an arm which is connected between the winding-up body and the other grab bucket. The arm includes a plurality of mutually, hingeably connected arm sections which are made from stainless steel or a material having substantially the same strength and corrosion-resistant properties as stainless steel. The arm sections, in the open position of the grab buckets, extend substantially in line with one another. The arm sections, from the open position of the grab buckets, when the winding-up body is rotatably driven, are wound about the winding circumference of the winding-up body in order to pull the grab buckets towards the closed position. The arm sections are configured in such a way that the winding circumference of the winding-up body can be covered substantially in its entirety by at most 8 arm sections, preferably at most 6 arm sections, in particular 2 or 3 or 4 or 5 arm sections.