Animal husbandry – Feeding device – Hopper and trough
Patent
1997-05-28
1998-11-03
Carone, Michael J.
Animal husbandry
Feeding device
Hopper and trough
119 5791, A01K 500
Patent
active
058293850
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
The present invention relates to an automatic feeding device, in particular for pigs and of the kind which comprises a vertical tubular feed container, preferably connected to a tubular conveyor, by which the feed is brought to the device, and where the pigs may act on the lower part of the tube with their snouts in order to obtain feed.
Such automatic feeding devices are known from e.g. WO93/13652, FR patent 2 660 155, and DE patent 26 52 788. It is common to these feeding devices that a hung tube as such or the lower part of such a tube may be bent sideways in order to deliver feed. It is obvious that the tube is strongly prone to fatigue fracture due to the repeated sideways bending which is further aggravated by the fact that the treatment by the pigs is particularly rough.
By the invention there is prescribed a construction where the lower part of the tube is provided in the form of a separate deflectably suspended section, and where there is provided between this section and the lower part of the fixed part of the tube a doseage device activated by the deflectable section in order to deliver feed through an outlet upon activation of the deflectable section. In this construction, fatigue fracture of the tube is avoided, because it is held against bending. Furthermore, the automatic feeding device is easier to use by the pigs, as they only need to act on a deflectable section and are not required to bend the tube as such.
An embodiment of the invention is particular in that the section, preferably in the shape of a funnel-shaped unit with a suspension rod, is deflectably suspended in the outlet, in that the rod has a spherical element, in particular a ball resting in a corresponding depression in the suspension, and on which suspension rod there rests a bell-shaped distribution body, and below said distribution body there is disposed a circumferential ring which carries the feed and such that the feed is pushed over the edge of the carrying ring due to the movements of the distribution body.
Another embodiment is particular in that the suspension rod for the deflectable section has its free end suspended in a spherical bearing where the lower side of the upper part is concave, in particular like a spherical surface, and rests on a protrusion with a corresponding convex surface on a plate which carries the feed and such that the feed is pushed over the edges of the carrying plate due to the movements of the upper part in the spherical bearing.
It is noted that the bearing surfaces do not necessarily need to be spherical, they may also be cylindrical. When the deflectable section is tubular, preferably funnel-shaped, the portion of feed will predominantly pass therethrough, but there is nothing to prevent that the deflectable section could be a fixed element where the feed slides down the outside.
By fitting a vertically displaceable cylindrical ring in the outlet of the tube, one may in a simple manner adjust the discharge of the portion of feed.
In an embodiment where the automatic feeding device comprises at least one drinking valve, the trough is shaped such that the water from the valve runs towards and below the outlet of the automatic feeding device. The water which is spilt when the pigs drink hence runs below the outlet of feed, whereby the pigs take up water simultaneously with their feeding. As the pigs lick the trough clean after feeding, there is no risk of harmful growth of bacteria in feed leftovers.
Control of the amount of feed on a supervisory level, where the feed is brought forward in a tubular conveyor may be obtained in that the discharge tube from the from the tubular conveyor is constituted as a telescoping tube which may be brought to dip more or less into the feed container, whereby the amount of feed therein may be controlled.
The discharge flow may be further controlled in that the automatic feeding device comprises means for adjusting the distance between the discharge of the automatic feeding device and the bottom of the trough; the shorter the distance, the less flow of fee
REFERENCES:
patent: 1346027 (1920-07-01), Hiner et al.
patent: 1553502 (1925-09-01), Boyes
patent: 3780701 (1973-12-01), Wentworth, Sr.
patent: 4270489 (1981-06-01), Joronen
patent: 4719875 (1988-01-01), Van Gilst
patent: 4799455 (1989-01-01), O'Kelley
patent: 4945859 (1990-08-01), Churchwell
Agro Products ApS
Carone Michael J.
Safran David S.
Shaw Elizabeth
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