Front positioning rail for milking parlor
First Claim
1. A front positioning rail for a milking parlor in which cows stand alongside one another, said front positioning rail being movable between a milking position and a release position, wherein in the milking position the rail restrains said cows with their heads projecting over the rail and with the rail contacting briskets of said cows above their front legs and below their heads, said front positioning rail comprising:
- an elongated rail member extending laterally, having a proximal generally vertical side and a horizontal upper edge;
a plurality of vertical positioning loops rising above said upper edge and defining head positions for said cows between successive ones of said loops, said positioning loops having left and right edges, and being spaced from one another at a predetermined interval, each said interval defining the respective head position andmeans for moving said rail member between said milking position and said release position so that said cows can exit said parlor.
1 Assignment
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A front positioning rail for a diagonal milking parlor, in which cows stand alongside one another at an angle to the curb, is movable between a milking position and a release position. In the milking position the rail restrains the cows with their heads projecting over the rail with the briskets of said cows contacting the rail. In this rail assembly an elongated rail member extends laterally, and has a proximal generally vertical side and a horizontal upper edge. A plurality of vertical positioning loops rise above the upper edge and define head positions for the cows. The loops preferably have one vertical side and one sloping side, so that cows are discouraged from turning around in the parlor, but can slide down if they enter a position ahead of an unoccupied position. The positioning loops are spaced from one another at a predetermined interval. An air cylinder or other mechanism moves the rail member between the milking position and the release position so that said cows can exit said parlor. In one embodiment, the rail member proximal side has an upper tapered portion that slopes distally upwards so as to conform generally with the shape of the cow'"'"'s brisket. The rail member can be indexed to bring the hind end of the cows against a back rail or splash shield.
-
Citations
11 Claims
-
1. A front positioning rail for a milking parlor in which cows stand alongside one another, said front positioning rail being movable between a milking position and a release position, wherein in the milking position the rail restrains said cows with their heads projecting over the rail and with the rail contacting briskets of said cows above their front legs and below their heads, said front positioning rail comprising:
-
an elongated rail member extending laterally, having a proximal generally vertical side and a horizontal upper edge; a plurality of vertical positioning loops rising above said upper edge and defining head positions for said cows between successive ones of said loops, said positioning loops having left and right edges, and being spaced from one another at a predetermined interval, each said interval defining the respective head position and means for moving said rail member between said milking position and said release position so that said cows can exit said parlor. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9)
-
-
10. A milking parlor for milking dairy animals including a cow platform on which said animals are positioned for milking between a splash shield and a front positioning rail, said rail being movable between a milking position and a release position, wherein in the milking position the rail restrains said animals with their heads projecting over the rail and with the rail contacting briskets of said animals above their front legs and below their heads, said rail comprising an elongated rail member extending laterally, having a proximal generally vertical side and a horizontal upper edge;
- a plurality of vertical positioning loops rising above said upper edge and defining head positions for said cows between successive ones of said loops, said positioning loops having left and right edges, and being spaced from one another at a predetermined interval, each said interval defining the respective head position and means for moving said rail member between said milking position and said release position so that said animals can exit said cow stand.
- View Dependent Claims (11)
Specification