Teat Cup Gripper Level Adjustment for Udder Attachment
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing automatic milking systems face inefficiencies in teat cup attachment due to anatomical variations in udder and teat anatomy, which obstruct the view of positioning means and restrict robotic arm movement, making multi-teat cup grippers difficult to employ and single-teat cup grippers sub-optimal in terms of efficiency.
Innovation Solution
A control system that adjusts the horizontal level of teat cups in a gripper to match the spatial characteristics of the udder, allowing for efficient attachment by minimizing transit time and avoiding obstruction, and optionally storing position estimates for future milking sessions.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If multi-teat cup grippers are employed to reduce the number of robotic arm movements, then productivity is improved, but the positioning means' view of the teats becomes obstructed and the robotic arm movement is restricted due to udder anatomy
Solution Approach 1:
The system dynamically adjusts the horizontal levels of individual teat cups in the gripper based on real-time positioning data of the teats. This dynamic adaptation allows the gripper to accommodate various udder anatomies while maintaining clear viewing angles for the positioning means, thus resolving the contradiction between carrying multiple teat cups and avoiding view obstruction.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention utilizes horizontal level adjustment as an additional degree of freedom to solve the spatial conflict. By adjusting teat cups to different horizontal levels, the system creates optimal attachment paths that avoid obstruction of the positioning means' view while still enabling multi-teat cup attachment, effectively adding a dimensional solution to a spatial problem.
2Productivity
If multi-teat cup grippers are used to shorten attachment time, then productivity is improved, but the complex structure of individually controllable teat cup levels increases device complexity
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary positioning measurements of the teats before attachment, and pre-calculates the optimal horizontal levels for each teat cup in the gripper. This preliminary action allows the complex level adjustment mechanism to be configured in advance, reducing the complexity of real-time control during the actual attachment process while maintaining high productivity.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention changes the horizontal level parameter of each teat cup individually based on the measured teat positions. By controlling only the horizontal level parameter rather than all possible gripper configurations, the system simplifies the control complexity while still achieving adaptive multi-teat cup attachment, thus resolving the contradiction between productivity and device complexity.
3Measurement precision
If single-teat cup grippers are employed to avoid view obstruction, then positioning accuracy is improved, but the number of robotic arm movements increases reducing productivity
Solution Approach 1:
The system dynamically adjusts the horizontal levels of teat cups in the gripper based on real-time positioning data, enabling clear viewing angles for the positioning means while still carrying multiple teat cups. This dynamic adaptation maintains measurement precision equivalent to single-teat cup approaches while achieving the productivity benefits of multi-teat cup attachment.
Data Source
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AI summary
Teat cups (C1, C2) are fetched from a teat cup magazine by means of a gripper means (140), which is carried on a robotic arm (150). The gripper means (140) grips and removes teat cups (C1, C2) from the teat cup magazine. The gripper means (140) also holds at least one teat cup (C1, C2) during transport thereof towards an udder (U) where an animal's teats (T1, T2, T3, T4) are located. A positioning means (130) determines position estimates representing at least one spatial characteristic of the udder (U). Based on the position estimates, the robotic arm (150) and the gripper means (140) are controlled to attach the teat cups (C1, C2) to the teats (T1; T3). The position estimates also constitutes a basis for controlling the robotic arm (150) and the gripper means (140) to remove teat cups (C1, C2) from the teat cup magazine in such a manner that a teat-receiving end of each of the at least one teat cup (C1, C2) attains a horizontal level (zc1, zC2) in the gripper means (140) which horizontal level (zc1, zc2) is adapted to the at least one spatial characteristic of the udder (U).