Animal husbandry – Feeding device – Hopper and trough
Patent
1990-07-02
1992-03-10
Swiatek, Robert P.
Animal husbandry
Feeding device
Hopper and trough
119 505, A01K 3116
Patent
active
050941860
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a laying nest for poultry and, more particularly, a laying nest for hens.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Recently, poultry keeping in accordance with an aviary system has spread at the expense of the more traditional battery hen system. With the aviary system, the poultry move freely in a large shed or enclosure where the poultry has a litter base for scraping and perches so that they may freely move around the shed. By these perches there are feed troughs and drinking means within reach of the perches and, nests are provided for the laying. All of the equipment in the shed or enclosure must, of course, be available in a number corresponding to the number of poultry being accommodated.
Generally, the laying nests are arranged in rows next to each other and, possibly in tiers, and a conveyor means, in the form of a conveyor belt, extends at each tier along a length of all of the laying nests for enabling a systematic collecting of the eggs.
In, for example, Danish Patent Application 4831/86 a laying nest system is proposed wherein each nest has an inclining nest bottom so that the laid eggs will automatically roll toward a rear wall of nest, pass through an opening therein and roll down onto a conveyor belt for immediate conveyance. While this proposed system functions excellently in practice, a disadvantage thereof resides in the fact that, since the nest area itself in each nest box only makes up about two thirds of the area occupied by the nest box, considerable wasted space is created since the hens will of course not be permitted access to the conveyor belt and the eggs thereon.
Generally, in proposed constructions, the nest bottom is divided into at least two parts with at least one of the parts being inclined and arranged higher with respect to the remainder to the bottom of the nest thereby creating a slit or opening in a center area of the nest bottom to permit a passage of the eggs therethrough.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The aim underlying the present invention essentially resides in providing a laying nest which optimally utilizes the nest space, that is, minimizes wasted space.
In accordance with advantageous features of the present invention, a laying nest for poultry is provided which includes a housing having an entrance and an nest bottom as well as a conveyor arranged below the nest bottom for conveying laid eggs, with the nest bottom being divided into two parts, one of the two parts is inclined and arranged at a position higher than the remainder of the nest bottom so as to create a slit or opening to permit a passage of eggs through the opening. The conveyor is arranged immediately below the nest bottom and a net or grate is arranged below the slit or opening over which the eggs roll before reaching the conveyor.
By virtue of the above noted features of the present invention, it is possible to utilize the entire area of the nest box as a nest bottom. Thus, in the shed or enclosure more space will be provided around the nest box and, consequently, the shed may hold more poultry without densifying the population of the poultry thus optimizing the aviary system.
Furthermore, with the present invention, it is easier to increase the size of the laying nests so that a number of hens such as, for example, five to fifteen, may sit at the same time in the same nest thereby promoting the well being and inclination of the hens to lay eggs since this behavior is natural to hens.
Advantageously, in accordance with further features of the present invention, the net or grate is arranged end to end at a lowest portion of the nest bottom.
By virtue of the last mentioned features of the present invention, a disappearance nest is ensured whereby the eggs are quickly removed from the nest even if a large number of hens are sitting on the nest. Furthermore, a nest bottom is provided which is reminiscent of the nest recess as compared with conventional nests thereby inducing the hens to move toward the center of the nest providing a better utilization
REFERENCES:
patent: 1688779 (1928-10-01), Bolinger
patent: 2608178 (1952-08-01), Kolber
patent: 2623499 (1952-12-01), King
patent: 2764128 (1956-09-01), Howley et al.
patent: 2992628 (1961-07-01), McDaniel
patent: 3045645 (1962-07-01), Fisher
patent: 3242904 (1966-03-01), Rannou
patent: 3339528 (1967-09-01), Summerour
patent: 3465723 (1969-09-01), Matunaga
Landemeco A/S
Manahan Todd #E.
Swiatek Robert P.
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