A detection device for a milking arrangement and a milking arrangement THE BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION AND PRIOR ART The present invention refers to a detection device for a milking arrangement for milking an animal, wherein said milking arrangement includes a milking device having at least one teatcup, which has a longitudinal axis and which is able to have a desired orientation or an undesired orientation. The teatcup has a desired orientation, for example when different parts of the milking arrangement which are arranged to co-operate with the teatcup work together with the teatcup as planed, such as when the teatcup is correctly stored in a store member of the milking arrangement. The teatcup has an undesired orientation, for example when said different parts of the milking arrangement which are arranged to co-operate with the teatcup work together in a faulty way. If the handling member of the milking arrangement which is arranged to move the teatcup from said store member to a position below a teat of the cow to be milked drops the teatcup on the floor, the teatcup has an undesired position.

The present invention also refers to a milking arrangement.

In connection with automatic milking of animals, the milking may be performed without any effort or supervision from a human being, such as a farmer. Therefore, in order to supervise and control the different parts of the milking arrangement arranged to perform said automatic milking, a lot of different sensors are provided to supply signals to a control means, which may include a computer and which is arranged to control said different parts of the milking arrangement. It is to be noted that in order to control the handling member of the milking arrangement which is

arranged to automatically attach the teatcups to the animal to be milked a lot of sensors are used since the handling member is relatively complex, and hence requires a great number of movable parts.

Moreover, a lot of cables are required in order to connect the sensors to the control means. Hereby, the construction of the milking arrangement will be very complex. Consequently, service, maintenance and/or repair will be difficult to perform. It is to be noted that cable connections of the above type are sensitive to humidity. Hereby, a lot of sensors connected to a computer or the like for controlling the milking arrangement increase the risk of sensor errors.

In connection with automatic milking, it is an advantage that disturbances in the milking arrangement, such as that a teatcup has fallen onto the floor and may have become dirty because a holding member or a gripping member of the handling member has lost the hold of the teatcup during the movement of the teatcup to a teat of the animal or because the animal during milking has kicked off the teatcup from the teat, are reported to an operating person, for example the farmer.

EP, 0774203, A1 discloses an implement for milking animals which comprises at least one sensor, which supplies a signal when a teatcup, e. g. because it is kicked off from a teat of the animal being milked, gets out of order. The sensor is connected with a computer and when the computer receives said signal the computer will give an error message which, by means of e. g. a radiophone, is passed on to an operating person.

WO, 00/04764, A describes an apparatus comprising a robot 1 by which it is possible to perform automatic milking of an animal. According to the solution described in WO, 00/04764, A at least three sensor means are needed just in order to establish the location of a teatcup. Firstly, the rack 8, in which a teatcup 4a is stored, is provided with sensor means in the form of a contact sensor 7, secondly, the gripping member 3a, 3b of the robot 1 provided to grip a teatcup 4a is provided with sensor means also in the form of a contact sensor 7 and thirdly, the robot arm 2 of the robot 1 is provided with sensor means in the form of an image capturing device 5. If a teatcup 4a has been dropped on the floor none of the

contact sensors above-mentioned will sense the presence of the teatcup 4a, thereby, the robot arm is moved in response to a control means and the dropped teatcup is searched for with the aid of the image capturing device 5 provided at the robot arm 2.

Through GB, 2 226 941, A, it is known to use a sensing means which does not require cable connections in. order to assess the position of a teat of an animal. GB, 2 226 941, A, discloses an arrangement for applying a milking apparatus to the udder of an animal. The handling device provided to hold and move a teatcup to a teat of the anima to be milked is first moved in response to animal sensing means and in a next step in response to teat sensing means. The handling device comprises a suitable manipulator arm; wherein one end of the manipulator arm is provided with a gripper arranged to hold said teatcup. According to one embodiment said teat sensing means is provided on said gripper.

However, it is mentioned in GB, 2 226 941, A, that it is important to have as simple, light and robust apparatus as possible mounted on said end of the manipulator arm. For this reason said teat sensing means can be provided on the teatcup itself. Moreover, it is mentioned in GB, 2 226 941, A, that the teat sensing means can be wire-less.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to overcome the disadvantages mentioned above and to provide a detection device for a milking arrangement for milking an animal which is uncomplicated, which is arranged to perform a certain action in response to a detection of the detection device and which does not require cable connections between the detection device and the computer or the like, which is arranged to control the milking arrangement. A further object of the invention is to achieve a detection device, which reduces the need of service, maintenance and/or repair.

These objects are obtained by the detection device initially defined and characterised in that it includes at least one sensor, arranged to sense the value of a parameter related to said orientations of the teatcup, and a first communication unit for wireless transmission of said value to a

second communication unit, which comprises a processor arranged to process said value in order to establish which of said orientations the teatcup has and which is arranged to perform an action if said teatcup has said undesired orientation. The sensor is connected to said first communication unit. The first communication unit may be a very uncomplicated and a small unit which just has the possibility to transmit the value of the sensed parameter to the second communication unit.

The first communication unit and the sensor may be provided very close to each other. The second communication unit may include a more sophisticated unit, which, for example, is able to control the different parts of the milking arrangement. The sensor may be arranged to sense the orientation of the teatcup in three dimensions. It is also possible to have several sensors in order to sense the orientation of the teatcup in three dimensions.

According to a further embodiment of the invention, said second communication unit is arranged to send an interrogation signal to said first communication unit, wherein said first communication unit is arranged to respond to said interrogation signal and thereby transmit said value to the second communication unit. Moreover, according to a preferred embodiment of the invention, said first communication unit is energised by said second communication unit via an aerial member.

Hereby, the lifetime of the first communication unit will be almost infinite since it does not require batteries. According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, the first communication unit is a transponder.

As mentioned above, said second communication unit comprises a processor arranged to process said value in order to establish which of said orientations the teatcup has. For example said processor may be arranged to compare said sensed value with a predetermined value or a predetermined interval of the value and if the sensed value deviates from said predetermined value or interval of the value the teatcup has said undesired orientation.

According to a further embodiment of the invention, said second communication unit is arranged to send a signal to an alarm member if the teatcup has said undesired orientation. Said undesired orientation

may be that the teatcup is lying on the floor. It may be an advantage to point out to e. g. the farmer that the teatcup has the undesired orientation. Maybe the animal being milked is under stress and kicks about in such a way that she has kicked off one teatcup, which thereby has fallen from the teat of the animal onto the floor. Said alarm member may be the cellular telephone carried by the farmer.

According to a further embodiment of the invention, said second communication unit is arranged to send a signal to a control means if the teatcup has said undesired orientation. The second communication unit may be realised by a computer, which includes both said control means and said above-mentioned processor.

According to a further embodiment of the invention, the milking arrangement is arranged to maintain a vacuum in said teat cup when said teatcup is attached to the animal being milked. Hereby, if for example the animal has kicked off said teatcup from one teat and an undesired orientation is established by the second communication unit, said control means is arranged to cut off said vacuum.

According to a further embodiment of the invention, the milking arrangement comprises a store member arranged to store said teatcup.

When the teatcup is correctly orientated in said store member the sensor is in a desired orientation.

According to a further embodiment of the invention, the milking arrangement comprises a pulling member arranged to pull said teatcup to said store member. Hereby, if the teatcup is in said undesired orientation, said control means is arranged to activate said pulling member to pull said teatcup to said store member. Hereby, the processor of the second communication unit may be arranged to compare the sensed value with the value of a parameter related to the orientation of said teatcup when the teatcup is provided in said store member.

According to a further embodiment of the invention, the milking arrangement comprises a handling member arranged to move said teatcup from said store member to a teat of the animal to be milked in

order to attach said teatcup to the animal, wherein the teatcup is moved along a predetermined path by the handling member. If the teatcup during said movement deviates from said path, the processor of the second communication unit establishes an undesired orientation. Hereby, the control means may be arranged to stop the movement of the handling member in order to avoid an accident, for example that the animal to be milked is hit by-the handling member. If the teatcup does not deviate from said predetermined path a desired orientation is established by the second communication unit. Consequently, the second communication unit finds out if the teatcup has a desired or undesired orientation.

According to a further embodiment of the invention said first communication unit and said sensor are mounted on said teatcup. Since the first communication unit and the sensor have a small size, it is possible to provide them at many different positions on the teatcup.

According to a further embodiment of the invention, said first communication unit and said sensor are housed in a casing. It is to be noted that it is an advantage if the casing encloses the first communication unit and the sensor in such a way that humidity may not penetrate the casing. The casing may be moulded in such a way that the first communication unit and the sensor are embedded in plastic.

According to a further embodiment of the invention, said casing is mounted on the shell of the teatcup. It is an advantage that the casing is mounted in a protected position in order to avoid that the casing is damaged, for example if the teatcup falls onto the floor.

According to a further embodiment of the invention, said sensor is arranged to sense the angle at which the longitudinal axis of the teatcup is positioned in relation to a vertical direction.

According to a further embodiment of the invention, said detection device comprises a further sensor, wherein said first sensor is arranged to sense if the longitudinal axis of the teatcup coincides substantially with a horizontal plane and said second sensor is arranged to sense if the

longitudinal axis of the teatcup coincides substantially with a vertical direction.

The objects of the invention are also obtained by a milking arrangement for milking an animal, which comprises a direction device having the features claimed in claims 1 to 16.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The invention is now to be described by means of preferred embodiments and with references to the accompanying drawings, in which Fig 1 shows in a view from above a milking stall provided with a milking arrangement according to one embodiment of the invention, Fig 2 shows a handling member of the milking arrangement, Fig 3 shows a store member of the milking arrangement, Fig 4 shows a detection device according to one embodiment of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION In the following the animals referred to are diary cows. However, the invention is not limited to cows, but is applicable to any animals having the ability to produce large quantities of milk, such as sheep, goats, buffaloes, horses etc.

Fig 1 discloses a milking stall 1 provided with a milking arrangement according to one embodiment of the invention. The milking stall 1 may be provided in a barn or in an area provided outdoors in which the cows are allowed to walk about freely and find their way individually to the milking stall 1 in order to be milked. The cow being present in the milking stall 1 is automatically identified in the milking stall 1, for example with the aid

of a transponder 2 carried by the cow. The milking stall 1 extends in a longitudinal direction a and comprises gates, an inlet gate 3 and an outlet gate 4, which are automatically closed to retain the cow during milking and opened to let the cow leave the milking stall after a complete milking operation. Control means 5 is arranged to control the position of the gates 3,4.

The milking arrangement comprises a milking device of a conventional type. In Fig 1 the milking device is represented by a conduit 6 comprising a milk conduit and a vacuum conduit and a teatcup 7 to be attached to the cow being present in the milking stall 1. The milking device 6,7 also includes equipment such as a vacuum pump, pulsators etc. (not disclosed). The milk conduit is connected to a milk-receiving device (not disclosed) of the milking device 6,7.

For the attachment of the teatcups 7 to the cow being present in the milking stall 1, the milking arrangement comprises an automatic handling member 8. Furthermore, the milking arrangement comprises a store member 9 arranged to store the teatcups 7 of the milking device 6,7.

The automatic handling member 8 is provided to grip successively a teatcup 7 from the store member 9 and move the respective teatcup 7 to a position below a teat of the udder of the cow being present in the milking stall 1 and attach the teatcup 7 to the teat of the cow.

The automatic handling member 8 is shown in Fig 2 and is controlled by the control means 5 in Fig 1. The automatic handling member 8 comprises a robot arm 10 having a first arm 11 movably connected to a support structure 12, a second arm 13 and a holding member 14 provided with gripping members 15 arranged to grip the teatcup 7 from the store member 9 where the opening 16 of the teatcup 7 is turned downwards, cf. Fig 3. After being gripped the teatcup 7 in question is rotated by the robot arm 10 so that the opening 16 is turned upwards and thereafter the teatcup 7 is attached to the teat of the cow. The teatcup 7 is rotated by the robot arm 10 during the movement of the robot arm 10 from the store member 9 to the position below the teat of the udder of the cow to which the teatcup 7 is to be attached. Each teatcup 7 is

moved along a predetermined path when moved from the store member 9 to a teat of the cow.

Various driving members such as for example pneumatic cylinders generate the movements of the different parts of the handling member 8.

In Fig 2 three such cylinders 17,18,19 are shown, the first cylinder 17 is arranged to rotate the first arm 11 and thereby the handling member 8 with respect to the support structure 12 around an axis b which is substantially parallel with the longitudinal direction a of the milking stall 1. Consequently, the handling device 8 may be moved in a direction transversely to the longitudinal direction a of the milking stall 1 by the first cylinder 17. The second cylinder 18 is arranged to rotate the second arm 13 with respect to the first arm 11 around an axis c. Consequently, the second arm 13 may be moved up or down with respect to the first arm 11 by the second cylinder 18. The third cylinder 19 is arranged to rotate the second arm 13 with respect to the first arm 12 around the axis d. Consequently, the second arm 13 may be moved along the longitudinal direction a of the milking stall 1 by the third cylinder 19.

Moreover, a fourth drive member (not disclosed) is arranged to rotate the holding member 14 with respect to the second arm 13 around the axis e.

Consequently, the handling member 8 may be moved in such a way that it is possible to grip a teatcup 7 with the gripping members 15 from the store member 9 where the opening 16 of the teatcup 7 is turned downwards to the milking position where the opening 16 of the teatcup 7 is turned upwards.

According to prior art technique, a respective sensor senses the movement generated by each of the driving members. Consequently, there is a need of four sensors in order to sense the above-described movements of the handling member 8.

Such as is mentioned above and as shown in Fig 3, the teatcups 7 are held in the store member 9 with the opening 16 turned downwards. The store member 9 comprises a box-like member 20 provided with openings 21. The conduit 6 of each teatcup 7 is guided by means of a roller 22, which is movably suspended by means of a cord 23. The movement of the roller 22 is obtained by means of a driving member (not disclosed) in

the form of a pneumatically or hydraulically driven cylinder device or an electrical engine. The roller 22, the cord 23 and the driving member form a pulling member. When a teatcup 7 is to be returned to the store member 9 the conduit 6 is pulled by means of said cord 23.

One of the objects of the present invention is to achieve a detection device by which it is possible to establish if a teatcup 7 of the milking device 6,7 has one desired orientation or has one undesired orientation.

A desired orientation may be when the teatcup 7 is correctly positioned in the store member 9, i. e. when the teatcup 7 extends in a substantially vertical direction with the opening 16 turned downwards. It is to be noted that the teatcup 7 has a longitudinal centre axis f and it is the longitudinal centre axis f which extends in a substantially vertical direction when the teatcup 7 is correctly positioned in the store member 9. An other desired orientation may be when the teatcup 7 is hanging under the cow, i. e. when the teatcup is attached to a teat of the cow.

Hereby, the teatcup 7 extends in a substantially vertical direction. An undesired orientation may be when the teatcup is lying on the floor, i. e. the longitudinal axis f of the teatcup 7 is in a substantially horizontal position. However, it is to be noted that the teatcup may have many different orientations and the operator of the milking arrangement may be the person who decides which orientations are undesired orientations and which orientations are desired orientations.

In Fig 4 one preferred embodiment of a detection device according to the invention is shown. The detection device comprises a transponder 24, a first sensor 25, a second sensor 26 and a second communication unit 27.

The second communication unit 27 may be realised by a computer and comprises a processor 28 and an aerial member 29. Moreover, the second communication unit 27 comprises the equipment that is necessary in order to achieve the functions, which are to be described in the following. It is to be noted that the second communication unit 27 in Fig 1 may be a part of the control means 5.

The transponder 24 and the sensors 25,26 are housed in a casing 30.

The teatcup 7 has a shell 31 and the casing 30 is mounted to the shell 31. The casing 30 may for example be mounted to the shell 31 by screws

or by adhesive. The teatcup 7 in Fig 4 has a handle 32, wherein the casing 30 may be mounted to the shell 31 just below the handle 32.

Hereby, the casing 30 is provided in a protected position. The sensors 25,26 are arranged to sense a value of a parameter related to the orientation of the teatcup 7. In the embodiment shown in Fig 4 the first sensor 25 is arranged to sense if the longitudinal centre axis f of the teatcup 7 coincides substantially with a horizontal plane and the second sensor 26 is arranged to sense if the longitudinal centre axis f of the teatcup 7 coincides substantially with a vertical direction. The second communication unit 27 is arranged to send an interrogation signal to the transponder 24, wherein the transponder 24 is arranged to respond to said interrogation signal and thereby transmit a value of the parameter related to the orientation of the teatcup 7 to the second communication unit 27. The value of the parameter is achieved by the sensors 25,26.

When the second communication unit 27 receives the value, the processor 28 is arranged to process the value in order to establish if the teatcup 7 has a desired orientation or an undesired orientation.

According to the embodiment shown in Fig 4, an undesired orientation is established if the teatcup is lying on the floor of the milking stall 1.

Hereby, the second communication unit 27 may be arranged to send a signal to the control means 5, which control means 5 thereby is arranged to activate the pulling member 22,23 in Fig 3, wherein the teatcup 7 is pulled from the floor to the store member 9. If the teatcup 7 is lying on the floor of the milking stall 1, it may depend on that the cow being milked has kicked off the teatcup 7 from the teat. Since a vacuum prevails in the teatcup 7 during a milking operation, the control means 5 may be arranged to cut off said vacuum when the control means 5 receives the signal from the second communication unit 27. It is to be noted that the second communication unit 27 also may be arranged to send a signal to an alarm member, which may be a cellular telephone 33, carried by the farmer. Moreover, it is to be noted that the transponder 24 is energised by the second communication unit 27 via the aerial member 29.

The invention is not limited to the embodiment described herein but may be varied and modified within the scope of the following claims. The functions described above are only examples. It is to be noted that the

movements of the handling member 8 may be sensed by the detection device according to the invention, since the teatcups are moved along a predetermined path from the store member to the milking position by the handling member 8, i. e. at every moment a teatcup has a determined orientation when it is moved by the handling member 8 from the store member to the milking position. However, this requires sophisticated sensors. With the sensor 26 described above it is possible to sense the end positions of the handling member 8 when rotating the teatcup as described with reference to Fig. 2 since the teatcup is supposed to be orientated in a substantially vertical direction in said end positions. The sensor 26 may be an uncomplicated sensor, which comprises a metal ball, which abuts a metal plate when the teatcup is orientated in a substantially vertical direction. The sensor 26 is designed so that the metal ball is abutting a metal plate both when the opening of the teatcup is turned downwards and upwards. The metal plates of the sensor 26 may be designed so that the metal ball abuts the metal plate even if the teatcup in question is orientated at a predetermined angle in relation to a vertical plane. The sensor 25 may also be an uncomplicated sensor, for example a mercury switch or a sensor, which also comprises a metal ball, which abuts a metal plate when the teatcup is oriented in a substantially horizontal direction. Also the metal plate of the sensor 25 may be designed so that the metal ball abuts the metal plate even if the teatcup in question is orientated at a predetermined angle in relation to a horizontal plane. Consequently, the end positions of the handling member 8, i. e. the position when the teatcup in question is gripped by the handling member and the position when the teatcup in question is positioned below the teat of the udder of the cow may be sensed by the detection device according to the described embodiment and it may be established by the processor 28 of the second communication unit 27 if the teatcup 7 in question has a desired orientation or an undesired position. An advantage with this arrangement is that some of the sensors which are needed in order to sense the movements of the handling member 8 according to prior art technique may be excluded. Moreover, it is to be noted that instead of the sensors 25,26 described above, only one sensor may be connected to the transponder. In this case only the sensor 25 may be used to establish if the teatcup is lying on the floor, i. e. the longitudinal axis f of the teatcup is horizontal, alternatively, a

sensor may be arranged to sense the angle at which the longitudinal axis of the teatcup is positioned in relation to a vertical direction. The communication part of the transponder may be of the type as is commonly used in connection with cow identification systems using identification transponders.