Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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Title: IDENTIFICATION AND ANIMAL FEEDING APPARATUS
Techn.ical Field
This invention relates to automated, computer-
controlled agricultural equipment and more particularly
relates to a feeding system which permi~s the farmer to
select the feed ration for each individual animal, such
as each cow of a dairy herd and automatically make
available to each ~n;m~l the desired feed ration throughout
each day. The apparatus combines the convenience of self
'0 feeding with the flexibility and accuracy of individual
ration selection.
Background Art
Agricultural animals have been fed for centuries by
2.5 grazing and periodic ~eeding of harvested feeds in eed
troughs and bunks in which the feed is simultaneously
available to all ~niral S. Such methods are still
adequate where feed costs are low
However, where feed costs are high, production
efficiency must be improved bv feeding to m~x;m;ze
production for each ~n;r~l.
Although each animal could be separately isolated
and individually fed, such a feeding technique would
require very high labor expenses and a significant investment
~5 in equipment.
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One advance towards the solution of this problem
is described in ~.S. Patent 3,850,145 to David A. Yoder,
et al. In this system supplemental feedlng is available
to selected animals. Each selec-ted animal wears a tag
suspended from its neck. Supplemental feeders are
stationed in the feed lot and are actuated to supply
feed when an ~nim~l wearing a tag inserts its head into
the feeder. The presence of the tag is sensed and
actuates the feeder.
However, such a ~eeding system is limited because
all the tags are identical and the detecting unit of the
feeder merely detects the pxesence or absence o the tag.
Thus, all selected animals are given the same supplemental
feed. Additionally, there is no feed limitation so that
the selected animals have available all the feed they
choose while non-selected animals have no supplemental
feed available to them.
It is therefore an object of the present invention
to provide an agricultural livestock feeding system
which allows the farmer to predetermine the feed ration
to be made available each day for each individual ~nim~l.
The apparatus individually identifies each animal which
presents itself to the feeder and makes available to that
an-mal the amount of feed chosen by the farmer for that
particular ~n;m~l. The apparatus also stores data
representing the cumulative total of feed provided to an
~n;m-l in a selected time period and makes no ~urther
feed available during the time period after the selected
ration for that animal has been consumed.
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In this manner the production ef~iciency of each
individual animal may be controlled with precision and
optimiæed.
It is another object o the invention to provide an
identiflcation system having durable identiication tays
which are entirely passive and thus are inexpensive and
not subject to failure due to thermal, mechanical and
electrical stress to the extent of tags containing active
devices and batteries. Such tags provide reliable data
over a long lifetime.
Another object of the invention is to provide an
identi~ication system which does not require a close
tolerance mating or registration between the identification
tags and the detecting unit.
Another object of the presènt invention i5 to provide
a sensing system which is both inexpensive and reliable.
Yet another o~ject of the invention is to construct
a magnetic sensing system utilizing reed switches and to
- use them in a manner which eliminates the possibility of
inactive dead spots and which permits adjustment of the
reed switches so that all will close with approximately
the same magnetic field from the tag.
Brief Disclosure Of The Invention
The invention includes a detecting apparatus mounted
near the feeder and having a plurality of magnetically
actuable switches, such as reed switches, spaced along a
support.
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A tag or other coded object may be suspended from
the animal's neck and is provi~ed with a plurality of
positions having substantially the same spacing as the
magnetically actuable switches. Magnets, such as
permanent ferrite magnets, are mounted at selected ones
of the positions and the other positions are maintained
with nonmagnetic material to form a code. ~n electronic
computer`is connected to the magnetically actuable switches
and to a feed conveyor. The computer detects the actuated
o switches and actuates the feeder in response to the
detected code word which is associated with each particular
animal.
Preferably, field mo~ifying magnets are interspaced along
the detector support between the magnetically actuable
switches, The field modifying magnets and the tag magnets
have their axis o~ magnetization transverse to their
interfacing surfaces causing the proper alignment of the
tag and attraction of it to the detector at the proper
position opposite the switches.
Brief Description Of The Drawings
Fig. 1 is a view in perspective of a dàiry cow
feeding at an apparatus embodying the present invention.
Fig. 2 is a view in perspective illustrating the
2~ detector portion of the embodiment illustrated in Fig. 1.
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Fig. 3 is a view in side elevation of the embodiment
illustrated in Fig 1.
Fig. ~ is a rear view in perspective of an
identification tag embodying the present invention.
Fig. 5 is a frontview in perspective of the tag
embodiment of Fig. ~ illustrating the insertion oE
magnets and nonmagnetic materials into the pockets of
the tag.
Fig. 6 is a view in perspective and in detail
showing a portion of the front panel of the detector
illustrated in Fig. 1 broken away to reveal the
placement of the reed switches and field modifying magnets of
the detector.
Fig. 7 is a plan view o a portion of the detecting
apparatus and cooperating identification tag of the
embodiment of Fig. 1.
In describing the en~odiment of the invention
illustrated in the drawings specific terminology will be
resorted to for the sake of clarity. However, it is
intended that each specific term includes all technical
equivalents which operate in a similar manner to
accomplish a similar purpose.
Description Of The Best Mode For Carrying Out The Invention
Fig. 1 illustrates a feed storage and supply hopper
10 which is internally co'nnected to a pair of electrically
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actuable feeders 12 and 1~. An electrically actuable
feeder has a receptacle to which feed is supplied by
a conveyor, such as an auger, which is electrically
driven. Ordinarily feed is delivered at a continuous
rate when the conveyor drive motor is actuated so that the
total time of actuation is proportional to the total feed
made available to the animal.
In Fig. 1 a dairy cow 16 is positioned with her
head extended into the feeder. She has an identification
`~ tag 18 which is suspended from her neck by a chain 20 and
which lays against the inclined front surface panel 22
of the detector 24.
As illustrated in more detail in Figures 2 and 3,
the inclined surface 22 of the detector 24 is provided
~5 with a plurality of protruding posts 26 through 30.
These posts 26 through 30 support the identification tag
18 agalnst further vertically downward movement if the
chain 20 slackens due to lowering of the cow's ne~k.
They also aid in the alignment of the tag in
~0 horizontal position to maintain the magnets in the tag
in a vertical position parallel with the alignment magnets
described below which are associated with the detector.
A pair of horizontally spaced end stops 32 and 34
are located near opposite ends of the detector 24. The
top edge of each of the end stops 32 and 34 are tapered
to guide the tag 18 down into position between the end
stops 32 and 34. The detection switches of the present
invention are located between the end stops 32 and 34.
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As can be seen from the drawing, the space between
the end stops 32 and 34 is considerably greater than the
horizontal width of the tag 18. The tag 18 may be
positioned anywhere horizontally between the end stops
i 32 and 34 and thus, the hori~ontal positioning is not
cllose tolerance.
It will be apparent from the further description
that the vertical tolerance is also approximately equal
to the height of the tag 18 because of the elongated
lo nature of the magnets which are mounted in the
identification tags 18.
Identification tags embodying the present invention
are coded objects having a plurality of spaced magnet
positions as shown in detail in Figs. 4 and 5. In the
preferred embodiment a pocket is formed at each position,
such as the pockets 36 and 38 formed into the forward
facing surface of the tag 18. Preferably the tags are
injection molded of a synthetic resin material. Between
each pocket is an integ,rally formed web 40 separating
one pocket from the next. Elongated, permanent magnets such
as a barium ferrite bar 42 is frictionally or press fit
into selected ones of the pockets, such as the pocket 38.
A non-magnetic filler strip, such as a synthetic resin
bar 44 of the same ~ n~ions~ is press fit into the other
pockets. Thus, the selected combinations of magnets and
non-magnetic filler strips form a digital code in each
tag in a well known manner.
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In the preferred embodiment of the invention the
magnets, such as the magnet 42 positioned in the tag 18,
are polarized transversely of and preferably perpendicularly
to the orward facing surface which interEaces with the
detector 24. Thus, for example, the orwardly facing
side of each magnet in the tag 18 may be a north seeking
pole with~the inner, rearwardly facing opposite face
being a south seeking pole. As an alternative, which is
, described further below, all poles of all magnets may
be reversed so that all forwardly facing surfaces present
south seeking poles to the surface of the detector 24.
Preferably, we have found it desirable to utilize
13 pockets per tag and to space them on 0.4 inch centexs.
We prefer to construct the magnetic and non-magnetic bars
lS 3 inches long and 0.25 inches wide. The webs of the tags
are therefore preferably 0.15 inches in width.
Desirably the identification tag 18 is provided
with an arabic numeral 46 on its rearwardly facing
surface for visual identification and is formed with a
tapered top 48 to reduce the probability oi the tag belng
caught by facilitating its withdrawal from other feed
lot structures in which it might get caught. Additionally,
the connection loop 50 to which the chain 20 is attached,
is rearwardly offset so that the chain will not be wedged
between the surface 22 of the detector and the tag and
thereby cause the tag magnets to be held away from the
detection surface.
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Figs. 6 and 7 illustrate the construction of a
detector 24 embodying the present invention. In the
detector, a plurality of magnetically actuable switches,
such as reed switches 52, are spaced along the rear side
, of the front panel 22 o the detector 2~. They are
spaced along rearwardly of the front surface which is
contacted by the tags and are positioned on spaced
centers which are substantially the same as the spacing
of the magnets in the tags.
Each reed switch is available to detect the
presence of a magnet in the identification tag on the
opposite side of the front panel 22. Preerably there
are 24 reed switches.
The preferred reed switches are the off center gap
type and typically have their reeds aligned with their
glass envelope. They are mounted on a printed circuit
board 54 with the gap as close as possible to the front
panel 22~ They are also aligned parallel to the axis
ofmagnetization of the identification tag 18 when it is
positioned against the front panel 22 and therefore are
aligned substantially perpendicular to the front panel 22.
In order for a reed switch to be actuated, one reed
must be in a more north portion of the magnetic field
than the other reed. Therefore, they are preferably
aligned approximatel-y along the magnetic flux lines. If
the reeds were aligned parallel to the front panel 22 of
the detector they would not reliably sense the presence
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of a magnet in the tag because the possibility would
e~ist that they would be aligned perpendicularly to the
lines of force and therefore both reeds might lie in an
identical ma~netic field. An~ place where this could
:j happen would be a dead space where the reeds would not
close when the tag magnets were close. This is eliminated
by mounting them perpendicularly to the front panel 22.
The forwardly extending electrical lead 56 from each
reed switch is bent downwardly at approximately right
angles to the reeds of the reed switches 52 in order to
get the reed gap as close to the front panel 22 as
possible and also in order to function as a flux concentrator.
Magnetic flux from the tag magnets positioned on the
opposite side of the detector front surface 22 will tend
to be concentrated in the ferromagnetic electrical leads
because of their relatively low reluctance.
As an identification tag 18 approaches the front
surface 22 of the detector 24 the flux at each reed
switch which has an interfacing tag magnet will increase
until it is sufficient to close the reed. It is desirable
that all of the reed switches close at approximately the
same spacing of the identification tag 18 from the front
panel 22. Since manufacturing tolerances cannot be
sufficiently precise to control the magnetic field
intensity which will cause the reed switches to close,
the sensitivity of the reed switches- can be adjusted by
bending the lead 56 of each reed switch progressively
away from or toward the interior surface of the ront
panel 22. This allows adjustment of the concentrating
effectiveness of each lead. The farther the lead is
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moved away ~rom the panel 22 and thus away from any
opposite tag magnet, the closer the magnet must be to
actuate the reed switch.
In addition the sensitivity of the reed switches can
also be adjusted by trimming away part of the lead. The
more the ferromagnetic lead is trimmed, the more the
sensitivity of its associated reed switch is decreased.
In order to enhance the sensitivity of the reed
switches and to simultaneously aid in the correct alignment
0 of the identification tags with respect to the reed switches
52, a plurality of ield modifying magnets 58 are interposed
between each o the reed switches 52. The field modifying
- magnets are also polarized transversely and preferably
perpendicularly to the ront panel 22 so that their
axis of magnetization is substantially parallel to the
axis of magnetization of the magnets located in the
tag 18. The field modifying magnets are constructed
in the preferrèd embodiment with a width of 0.15 inches.
Additionally, they have a polarity such that all
like poles of the field modifying magnets are interfacing
identical like poles of the tag magnets. Thus, for
example, if the forwardly facing surface of the tags
are all north seeking poles, then the outwardly facing
surface of all the field modifying magnets 58 which face
toward the tag are also north seeking poles. Repelling
poles are interfacing.
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The field modifying ma~nets distort the resul-ting
magnetic field by concentratin~ the magnetic field from
the identification tags 18 in the intermediate region
between the ield modifying ma~nets where the reed
switches and their adjustable leads are physically
located. Additionally, the field modifying magnets prevent
significant cross talk from one magnet to an adjacent
opposite reed switch.
The Eield modifying magnets also cause a force to
be applied to the magnets of identification tag 18
repelling them from directly overlaying the field
modifying magnets but attracting them to be aligned in
the space between the field modifying magnets. Consequently,
the tag has ~orces applied to it which rotates it so that
lS all the magnets of the preferred embodiment are parallel
and the magnets of the identification tag 18 are attracted
into the positions between the field modifying magnets
and directly opposite the reed switches 52.
If opposite poles interfaced they would attract and
cause alignment either with the tag magnets opposite the
field modifying magnets or obliquely across several
permitting a tag magnet to cross over multiple reed
switches.
Preferably, the distally spaced end pockets of each
of the tags has a magnet 60 and 52 with its outwardly
facing surface recessed from the surface of the tag to
form sync magnets. The positions between the sync magnets
then determine the code and any parity bits which are
desired.
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Recessing the end sync magnets assures that they
will be the last magnets to actuate reed switches.
Similar results can also be obtained by making the sync
magnets physically smaller or with less magnetiz~tion.
S Therefore, the computer, which repeatedly scans the reed
switches, can determine after each scan i reed switches
in the preferred embodiment which are 13 spaces apart
have been actuated. When reed switches 13 positions
apart are actuated, it can be safely assumed that all
intermediate reed switches which are supposed to be
actuated by magnets are actuated. In this manner the
computer can detect when the identification tag 18 is
sufficiently close to the front panel 22 o the detector
that valid code data is being detected.
An electronic digital computer, which may be a
special or general purpose computer, is connected to
scan each o the reed switches. The computer is provided
with various memory storage elements in which the codes
for each tag are stored. In association with each code
the farmer stores in the memory in digital format the
data representing the feed to be delivered to each an;~l.
Additionally, the computer stores in association with
each code number the cumulative time that feed has been
delivered to an ~n;m~l within a selected time period to
represent the amount of feed each animal has received
in the time period.
In operation an animal which presents itself to
the feeder by inserting its head into the feeder will
cause its identification tag to be seated in juxtaposi-tion
to the reed switches 52. The computer detects the code
for the particular animal and compares its total delivered
eed for the time period to the total which has been
programmed by the armer for that animal. If the
delivered feed i5 less than the allotted feed the computer
actuates the electrically actuated feeder to deliver
0 feed to the anim~l. Feed continues to be delivered
until the animal withdraws from the feeder or uses its
entire allotment.
Since such computer operation is extremely simple,
fundamental and well known to those skilled in modern
~5 computer technology, a further detailed description of
that aspect of the embodiment of the invention is not given.
The magnets of the tag which are mounted at the
plurality of positions to form a code may be mounted
by means other than the physical positioning of discrete
~0 physically separate magnets.
For example, the tag may include a unitary piece
of magnetizable material. The magnets may be mounted
at those positions by simply magnetizing a selected
domain of the magnetizable material at the selected
2~ positions. The material would provide a unitary body
not having physically separate magnets. It, nonetheless,
would have separate positions which are magnetized and
others which are not.
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In still another alternative embodiment of the
invention the magnet of the tag may be formed by
providing strips of magnetic material such as iron bars
in the tag and inducing magnetism in these bars from
the circuitry located withln the detector 2~. In such
an embodiment the magnetic material in the tag bècomes
an electromagnet which is time changing or alternating
in polarity. For example, a plurality o small induction
coils may be spaced along the detector in the manner of
spacing of the reed switches described above. Each has
applied to it an alternating current at a suitable
frequency for inducing magnetic fluctuations in the
metallic strips located in the identification tag.
Associated with each induction coil is a circuit
including a pickup coil or other suitable device which
functions as the switch described in the invention to
detect the time changing magnetic fields induced in the
metallic strips.
Thus, those switches which detect the time changing
magnetic field indicate the presence of the metallic
strip while those electronic switches which detect
considerably less time changing magnetic field detect
the absence of a metallic strip.
Although this alternative is more expensive and
less reliable than the preferred embodiment described
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above, it will operate in accordance with principles
of the present invention.
It should also be understood that, although the
ma~nets and magnetically actuable switches are generally
vertically aligned, they could be generally horizon-tally
aligned or obliquely aligned. Additionally, use of
two different alignments at right angles will allow the
use of both systems with two feeders each responding
to one set of animals and insensitive to the other set.
0 It is to be understood that while the detailed
drawings and specific examples given describe preferred
embodiments of the invention, they are for the purposes
of illustration only, that the apparatus of the invention
is not limited to the precise details and conditions
~5 disclosed and that various changes may be made therein
without departing from the spiri~ of the invention which
is defined by the following claims.
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