Animal husbandry – Entomological culture device – Egg treatment – production – or storage
Patent
1991-10-01
1993-06-01
Swiatek, Robert P.
Animal husbandry
Entomological culture device
Egg treatment, production, or storage
A01K 6100
Patent
active
052150356
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The invention relates to an apparatus for separate handling of live fish and fish fry.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
In industrial fish production in basins, pools or marine fish farms with basins formed by nets, the need arises on certain occasions to handle the fish separately, e.g. in connection with vaccination of fish or by sorting according to size or sex.
The apparatus according to the invention will be explained in connection with the vaccination of fish, but it may also be used in the sorting of fish or fish fry, also simultaneously with a vaccination of the fish.
Today fish or fish fry are vaccinated in two ways. The fish may be vaccinated separately by an automatic manual vaccination apparatus, but this is a physically taxing job as the fish at the same time must be held manually and vaccinated in a certain spot. During this operation the gills or scales of the fish may easily be damaged if the fish is held too tightly, or the vaccination may be effected imprecisely. Fish or fish fry may also be vaccinated in a basin by dosing the vaccine directly into the water, but this method results in a great inaccuracy concerning how large a dose the individual fish receives. Furthermore, the drainage water will be polluted by surplus vaccine.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The object of the invention is to describe an apparatus for separate and mechanical handling of live fish and fish fry in such a way that the fish are always held in a definite position in the apparatus and also not held for longer than necessary for vaccination or for measurements of the fish.
In accordance with the present invention, an apparatus for separate handling of live fish and fish fry is provided with the apparatus including a plurality of holders mounted on a common transport adapted to move the holders sequentially between the plurality of positions. Means are provided for enabling a separate introduction of the fish or fish fry into the respective holders with a further means being provided for detecting a presence of fish in the holder. Each of the holders comprises at least two mutually movable parts arranged so as to grip the fish placed in a vertical position with a tail of the fish pointing in an upward direction. Each of the holders includes means for releasing the fish, and the common transport includes a turntable on which the holders are supported on radial arms including positioning means for the movable parts of the holders. The positioning means are constructed in such a manner that the positioning takes placed in dependence upon an angular position of the turntable. One of the movable parts of the holder includes a bottom portion which is hinged to a bottom edge of the movable part.
By virtue of the above noted features of the present invention, the fish are guided separately to a holder and, as soon as the system automatically detects that a fish is correctly placed in the holder, the holder is moved to one or more positions in the apparatus. Furthermore, the fish is released and glides through an outlet tube down into a basin filled with water. The apparatus makes mechanical handling of live fish possible in such a manner that fish passing the apparatus are each positioned in the same manner in a respective holder.
In accordance with further features of the present invention, the apparatus further includes at least one outlet tube disposed at least at one of a plurality of positions into which the holders are moved, with the outlet tubes being placed under bottoms of the holders, and with each outlet tube comprising a cover adapted to be positioned by a work cylinder. The bottom and the cover are provided with means adapted to interact with each other so that the bottom is operated in a downward direction.
In accordance with still further features of the present invention, a vaccination apparatus, preferably, an automatic vaccination apparatus, is disposed opposite at least one of the plurality of positions into which the holders are moved. A control circuit controls the vaccination app
REFERENCES:
patent: 3774578 (1973-11-01), Randolph et al.
patent: 3820545 (1974-06-01), Jefferts
patent: 4672967 (1987-06-01), Smith
patent: 5103767 (1992-04-01), Haugland et al.
Hansen Leivur
Rod Torben
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