A more effective method of automatically milking animals in an automatic milking facility is disclosed. The method includes (i) assigning a respective threshold value (t.v.) to each of the udder quarters (1.sup.st u.q.; 2.sup.nd u.q.; 3.sup.rd u.q.; 4.sup.th u.q.) of an animal to be milked indicating when the milking of the corresponding udder quarter is to be ended; (ii) measuring the milk flow from each udder quarter of animal during milking; and (iv) ending the milking of an udder quarter of ...

The suction sleeve of a milking inflation includes three axially extending side walls connected together to form a generally triangular cross section. The side walls have a convex section which bulges slightly outwardly such that, where the inflation is installed on a teat cup shell and the side walls are in a full open position, a built-in spring effect is induced into each side wall to bias them toward the full open position and such that the biasing force of this built-in spring must be overc...

The present invention refers to an arrangement and a method for milking of animals. The arrangement includes a number of milking stations (1), a central milk-receiving unit (30 32), and a transport conduit (15). Each milking station (1) includes a set of teatcups to be attached to the animal to be milked, a local milk-collecting unit, a milk discharge conduit (12) and a feeding member. The transport conduit (15) connects each milk discharge conduit to the central milk-receiving unit for the tran...

Milking platforms for respective cows are each provided with a teat cup cluster of milk receiving vessel hermetically connected to the cluster, the platforms being movable in unison along a closed path or circuit while the cows are being milked to supply the respective receiving vessels. The platforms move successively past an emptying station comprising a pipeline swingable about the center of an arcuate portion of the closed path. As each platform arrives at the emptying station, the outlet of...

A milking apparatus in which the teat cups have washing and raining holes that can be uncovered by unfolding a portion of their flexible inflations. The claw and teat cup assembly can be disconnected from its milking circuits and connected to a washing manifold in a vacuum line, inverted and immersed in wash solution. Valves in the vacuum lines are manipulated so that the solution is drawn through the entire apparatus of a dual vacuum pipe and milking claw system. Washing and complete draining o...

The milk claw has a frusto-conical cover fitting on and oriented to the bowl. The four inlets to the cover are downwardly and tangentially arranged on the cover so incoming milk hugs the inside wall of the cover as it swirls around the cover for discharge into the bowl. The bowl has a downwardly spiraled path leading to the outlet arranged on a radius of the bowl. A dam separates the start of the spiral path in the bowl from the outlet and serves to prevent the flow at the outlet from interferin...

A herringbone feeding and milking stall is disclosed wherein a vertical feedbowl framework for each cow is rotatable between ingress, milking and egress positions and in so doing the ingress aisle is made wider in the ingress position, is made narrower in the milking position and urges the cow into the milking position and is made on intermediate width in the egress position.

An improvement in milking inflations having a teat-receiving collar wherein the inner periphery of the collar is of generally uniform thickness and when projected onto a plane passed through the center of the inner periphery and perpendicularly to the major axis of the body portion of the inflation has a generally circular configuration with a perimeter of finite length. The inner periphery of the collar is formed of a series of contiguous wave forms representing periodic oscillations above and ...

A milking system for cows having a pair of parallel rows of milking stalls on an upper floor and an operator's cart adapted to move along the rows of stalls on a lower floor. An elongated opening is formed in the upper floor along the stalls through which one or more operators on the operator's cart may have access to the udder and teats of the cows to be milked. The stalls are provided with entry and exit gates; doors are provided for the elongated opening; spray bars are provided for cleaning ...

A conveying path for milk containers with their respective teat cup clusters extends in a closed circuit and along a row of cow stalls. Switches for the respective stalls are located in said path, each switch being operable in a first position to convey from the path to the corresponding stall a milk container with its cluster and to return the container and cluster to the path after completion of milking, each switch being operable in a second position to prevent a container and cluster from en...