Bird injection system

• US 4,758,227 A
• Filed: 10/03/1986
• Issued: 07/19/1988
• Est. Priority Date: 09/24/1983
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Morf, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Morf, Inc.
• Inventors: Stump, Joey T., Marshall, William M. Sr., Lancaster, Gordon J. Jr.
• Primary Examiner(s): Pellegrino, Stephen C.
• Application Number:
  US06/914,809
• Time in Patent Office: 655 Days
• Field of Search: 604/156, 604/144, 604/143, 604/145, 604/147, 604/131, 604/136-139, 604/152
• US Class Current: 604/144
• CPC Class Codes: A61D 1/025 Vaccination appliances hypodermic syringes A61M

Abstract

A bird is positively positioned in a fixed cradle and a motor drives injection needles at convergent angles into the bird'"'"'s breast muscle tissue on opposite sides of the keel bone, actuates injection, and retracts the needles. Starting is initiated by the operator'"'"'s hand which grasps the bird'"'"'s legs.

Claims

1. Apparatus for injecting breast muscle tissue of a bird, comprising breast supporting structure adapted to support a bird with its breast keel bone pointing downwardly and extending lengthwise of the structure, said structure including means to engage the sides and opposite end portions of the bird'"'"'s body for determining its sidewise and lengthwise position in the structure, and said structure being adapted to permit the legs of a bird so positioned in the structure to extend downwardly and close enough together to be gripped by one hand of a person operating the apparatus, means holding said supporting structure stationary during operation of the apparatus, a pair of injection needles, separate means mounting the respective needles to move upwardly from their respective starting positions and convergently toward and into injection positions in breast muscle tissue on opposite sides of the keel bone of a bird so positioned in said supporting structure, separate means connected to move said needles from said starting positions into said injection positions and back to said starting positions, and means to cause emissions of liquid from the needles while substantially at said injection positions.

2. Apparatus according to claim 1, comprising hand operable means to start operation of the means move to the needles from their starting positions, said hand operable means being positioned beneath said supporting structure where a person'"'"'s hand holding the downwardly extending legs of a bird in the supporting structure can at the same time operate said hand operable starting means.

3. Apparatus according to claim 1, including means to inactivate the means to move one of the needles while permitting the other needle moving means to function.

4. Apparatus according to claim 1, including means for laterally and angularly adjusting the positions of each of said needle mounting means, whereby the paths of movement of the needles may be adjusted accordingly when substantially different sizes of birds are to be injected.

5. Apparatus according to claim 1, including an electric circuit connected to operate both of said needle moving means, means in said circuit to produce a visible light on the mounting means for each needle, and means to cause each of said light means to light when said circuit is connected to a power source but not while the circuit is connected to operate the moving means for the needle or the mounting means associated with the light, whereby each light means when on indicates readiness for operation of the associated needle, and when off indicates movement of the needle is in progress or lack of a power source connected to the circuit.

6. Apparatus according to claim 5, including means in said circuit to produce a visible warning light while movement of either or both of the needles is in progress.

7. Apparatus according to claim 1, in which said mounting means for each needle includes a syringe body attached to the needle, a syringe piston and piston rod for the syringe body, a motor for actuating the syringe piston rod and piston, and drive means connecting the motor and piston rod, said drive means comprising a slide block, means rotatable by the motor to impart eccentric motion to the slide block having a pair of parallel oppositely facing surfaces, and means attached to the piston rod and having a pair of opposed parallel surfaces slideable against said parallel surfaces of the slide block, whereby longitudinal reciprocating motion with a minimum of side thrust is emparted to the piston rod.

8. Apparatus according to claim 1, in which said mounting means for each needle includes a syringe body attached to the a piston reciprocable within the piston body, an outlet passage through the body from the piston chamber to the inlet of the attached needle, a spring-loaded valve in said passage adapted to yield resiliently when the piston moves forward to force liquid from the piston chamber to the needle, and to back-seat positively to prevent return flow of liquid from the needle, and an elongated member mounted on and extending from the piston into said passage toward said valve, said elongated member being long and rigid enough to engage and force open the valve near the end of forward movement of the piston, whereby any air caught in the piston chamber may be discharged therefrom.

9. Apparatus for injecting the breast muscles of a bird simultaneously at different angles of thrust of the injection needles, comprising a pair of injection needles, means to hold a bird'"'"'s breast stationary in a predetermined position relative to the needles, means mounting the needles to reciprocate in paths converging towards opposite sides of the keel bone of a bird'"'"'s breast held in said position, means to adjust said holding means to cause the needles to penetrate to the muscle tissue on the opposite sides of the keel bone, drive means to move the needles at the same time into the breast muscle tissue, to retract them, and to eject fluid from both needles at substantially the ends of their movements into the breast muscle tissue, and means to start the drive means, said starting means being positioned to be activated by a hand grasping the legs of a bird whose breast is held in said predetermined position.

10. A method of injecting a bird comprising the steps of holding the bird in a fixed position by placing the bird on a fixed cradle with its legs extending downwardly, using one hand to grasp said downwardly extending legs while initiating the step of simultaneously moving a pair of injection needles at converging angles into the breast muscles tissue on opposite sides of the keel bone of the bird, and injecting a liquid dosage into said tissue through said needles.