System for managing a group of dairy animals

• US 8,001,929 B2
• Filed: 03/30/2009
• Issued: 08/23/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 10/03/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Maasland N.V.
• Original Assignee: Maasland N.V.
• Inventors: Petersen, Gerth
• Primary Examiner(s): Swiatek; Rob
• Assistant Examiner(s): EVANS, EBONY E
• Application Number:
  US12/443,499
• Publication Number:
  US 20100012038A1
• Time in Patent Office: 876 Days
• Field of Search: 119/14.02, 119/14.03, 119/14.08, 119/14.1, 119/14.18, 119/840, 700/245, 700/248, 700/90
• US Class Current: 119/14.02
• CPC Class Codes: A01K 1/12 Milking stations
• CPC Class Codes: A01K 29/00 Other apparatus for animal husbandry

Abstract

A system for managing a group of dairy animals to be milked fully automatically, where the dairy animals go through a lactation cycle comprising phases of calving, inmilking, producing milk, and being dry. The system includes a computer executing program instructions for recording information and processing data indicating a division of the group of dairy animals into subgroups of a plurality of dairy animals, an insemination period determined per subgroup within which the dairy animals of the subgroup concerned are to be inseminated, which insemination period is so short that substantially all dairy animals in the subgroup concerned go simultaneously through the lactation cycle, and a separation of pregnant dairy animals of at least one of the subgroups in a separate area, around the beginning of the being dry phase of the subgroup concerned. The system also includes at least one milking robot for automatically milking the dairy animals, operatively connected to the computer for receiving first instructions from the computer for milking the dairy animals in the non-separated subgroups, and second instructions from the computer for milking the dairy animals in the separated subgroup in the separate area.

Claims

1. A system for managing a group of dairy animals to be milked fully automatically, which dairy animals go through a lactation cycle comprising phases of calving, inmilking, producing milk, and being dry, the system comprising:

a computer executing program instructions for recording information and processing data indicating;

a division of the group of dairy animals into subgroups of a plurality of dairy animals,

an insemination period determined per subgroup within which the dairy animals of the subgroup concerned are to be inseminated, which insemination period is so short that substantially all dairy animals in the subgroup concerned go simultaneously through the lactation cycle, and

a separation of pregnant dairy animals of at least one of the subgroups in a separate area, around the beginning of the being dry phase of the subgroup concerned; and

at least one milking robot for automatically milking the dairy animals, the at least one milking robot operatively connected to the computer for receiving first instructions from the computer for milking the dairy animals in the non-separated subgroups, and second instructions from the computer for milking the dairy animals in the separated subgroup in the separate area.

2. The system according to claim 1, wherein the at least one milking robot comprises:

a first milking robot operatively connected to the computer for receiving first instructions from the computer for milking the dairy animals in the non-separated subgroups; and

a second milking robot for automatically milking the dairy animals in the separate area, the second milking robot operatively connected to the computer for receiving second instructions from the computer for milking the dairy animals in the separated subgroup.

3. The system according to claim 1, wherein the second instructions received by the at least one milking robot are for milking the dairy animals of the separated subgroup at a decreasing frequency in order to dry up the dairy animals of the separated subgroup.

4. The system according to claim 1, wherein the second instructions received by the at least one milking robot are for milking the dairy animals of the separated subgroup at an increased frequency during inmilking.

5. The system according to claim 1, further comprising a selection robot operatively connected to the computer for automatically separating the pregnant dairy animals of the at least one subgroup.

6. The system according to claim 1, wherein the computer records information and sends instructions to the at least one milking robot indicating placement of the separated subgroup out of the separate area after being dry and calving.

7. The system according to claim 1, wherein the computer records information and sends instructions to the at least one milking robot indicating separation of at least one of the subgroups from the group until at least after the inmilking.

8. The system according to claim 7, wherein the computer records information and sends instructions to the at least one milking robot indicating separation of at least one of the subgroups from the group during a first part of the lactation cycle after calving in which the milk production increases, and milking at a higher frequency than dairy animals in the rest of the group.

9. The system according to claim 1, wherein the computer records information and sends instructions to the at least one milking robot relating to classification of dairy animals of a subgroup which have not become pregnant after insemination into an other subgroup in order to be inseminated again together with the dairy animals of this other subgroup.

10. A computer usable medium having computer readable program instructions embodied therein for recording information and processing data, and for issuing instructions, as defined in claim 1.

11. A method of managing a group of dairy animals to be milked fully automatically, which dairy animals go through a lactation cycle comprising phases of calving, inmilking, producing milk, and being dry, the method comprising:

dividing the group of dairy animals into subgroups of a plurality of dairy animals;

determining per subgroup an insemination period within which the dairy animals of the subgroup concerned are inseminated, which insemination period is so short that substantially all dairy animals in the subgroup concerned go simultaneously through the lactation cycle;

separating all pregnant dairy animals of at least one of the subgroups in a separate area, around the beginning of the being dry phase of the subgroup concerned;

fully automatically milking the dairy animals in the non-separated subgroups by means of at least one milking robot;

separately milking the dairy animals in the separated subgroup; and

placing the separated subgroup out of the separate area after being dry and calving.

12. The method according to claim 11, wherein at least one of the subgroups, after calving, remains separated from the group at least during the inmilking.

13. The method according to claim 12, wherein the at least one subgroup, after calving, also remains separated from the group during a first part of the lactation cycle in which the milk production increases, and is milked at a higher frequency than dairy animals in the rest of the group.

14. The method according to claim 11, wherein dairy animals of a subgroup which have not become pregnant after insemination are classified into an other subgroup in order to be inseminated again together with the dairy animals of this other subgroup.

15. The method according to claim 11, wherein the separated subgroup is milked fully automatically by means of a separate milking robot, which milking robot is controlled to milk at a decreasing frequency in order to dry up the dairy animals of the separated subgroup.

16. The method according to claim 11, wherein the subgroups have mutually a substantially equal group size.

17. The method according to claim 11, wherein placing the separated subgroup out of the separate area is followed by placing back the separated subgroup into at least one non-separated subgroup.