AU722367B2 - Animal handling device - Google Patents

Description

P/00/011 Regulation 3.2

AUSTRALIA

Patents Act 1990 0 0 :-00 ORIGINAL COMPLETE SPECIFICATION STANDARD PATENT Invention Title: "ANIMAL HANDLING DEVICE" The following statement is a full description of this invention, including the best method of performing it known to the Applicant:- ANIMAL HANDLING DEVICE.

This invention relates to the wool industry and in particular to the handling of sheep as part of the shearing process. Whilst the device to be described is particularly suited to the wool industry certain elements of the device have wider application, in particular those elements directed to the inversion of the sheep, as will be clear from the detailed description which follows.

For convenience the invention will be described in the context of sheep handling and shearing.

The shearing of sheep in the conventional manner has associated problems.

Included in the problems is the positioning of the sheep in a way which facilitates the shearing process and the restraint of the sheep when it is in the correct shearing position. To a lesser extent there is the problem of handling the wool after it is shorn in a manner which will not decrease its commercial value, as by picking up contaminants from the shearing shed floor.

o 15 The invention can be said in broad terms to provide an animal handling device including an animal inverter and animal support means having associated animal immobilizing means and orienting means, wherein said inverter includes a releasable animal gripping device and gripping device transfer e means to transfer a gripped animal from a standing condition in a loading 20 station to a work station having a plurality of parallel animal support rollers on which the animal is deposited spine down with its spine extending in the same direction as the axes of rotation of said rollers, and wherein the immobilizing means includes a pair of releasable rear leg captivators mounted for rotation in unison by said orienting means about an axis extending in the length direction of an animal held captive and a releasable fore leg captivator mounted so as to be movable towards and away from said pair of captivators and so as to follow movement of a captivated fore leg of a roller supported immobilized animal as its orientation is changed by said orienting means.

A presently preferred embodiment of the invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Fig.1 is a diagrammatic end view of a sheep standing in a loading station of the device of the invention, Fig.2 is a view similar to Fig.1 wherein the sheep is gripped ready for inversion.

Fig.3 is a view similar to Fig.1 showing the sheep partly inverted, Fig.4 is a view similar to Fig.3 with the sheep inversion further advanced, is a view similar to Fig.4 showing the sheep conversion complete and the Ssheep in the work station, 15 Fig.6 is a view similar to Fig.5 where the sheep has been gripped by captivating means, Fig.7 is a schematic end view of rear leg captivating means, Fig.8 is a schematic side view of the captivating means, Fig.9 is a top schematic view of the captivating means, Fig.10 is a schematic plan view of the fore leg captivating means, and Fig.11 is a schematic plan view, to an enlarged scale, of part of the fore leg 0 captivating means gripping a fore leg of a sheep, o In Fig.1 there is shown a device 1 which includes a crush, having a frame 2, in which a sheep indicated 3 is positioned. The sheep preferably mounts a ramp as part of a race aligned with an open doorway of the crush. In a preferred arrangement the sheep on entering the crush triggers a mechanism to close the crush door thereby preventing the sheep from backing out of the crush.

Other devices can be used as required to introduce the sheep to the crush and trap it therein.

The crush includes a cradle 4 in which the sheep will find itself positioned after entering the crush. The cradle 4 includes two gripping panels identified 5 and 6, the panel 5 is a fixed panel and the panel 6 can move in a clamshell manner to hold the body of the sheep tight between the panels 5 and 6. As illustrated the cradle 4 includes a frame 7 to which the panel 5 is firmly fixed and to which the panel 6 is pivotally mounted so as to be movable by means of a pneumatic power unit indicated 46 fixed to the cradle frame 7.

The cradle frame 7 is connected to the frame 2 by two link systems, one at each end of the cradled 4. Each link system includes a link 8 pivotally connected at one end at 9 to the frame 2 and at its other end as indicated 10 to approximately a mid-height position of the cradle 4 to provide a point about which the cradle 4 can be rotated. Another link 11 of each system is in the 15 form of a lever with a pivot point 12, a work end connection 13 to an upper position on the cradle 4 and there is a power end connection 14 to a rod connected to a pneumatic power unit 16 fixed to the frame 2. The cradle 4 is similarly supported at each of its ends.

Because of the considerable weight of the cradle when loaded with an animal 20 there is a need for a means to initiate the cradle rotation. This means involves a pusher arm 17 in each lever system, best seen in Fig.5, which is pivoted to the frame 2 at 9 and is movement controlled by a pneumatic power unit 18.

There is a pusher pad 49 on each arm 17 which bears against the cradle 4 when in the Fig.1 condition. By the application of force to the arms 17 by the power units 18 a cradle rotating force is applied causing rotation of the cradle 4 about the pivot 10 until a point of reduced load is achieved at which the rotation can be taken over by and completed through the movement of the arms 11 by the power units 16.

As will be seen from the drawings the geometry of the linkages will rotate the cradle as it is moved laterally relative to the frame 2 and will position the sheep in an inverted condition with its back on a roller assembly 19 including a plurality of parallel freely rotatable rollers 20. The rollers 20 have their axes of rotation disposed on an arc so as to present the rollers as a trough to support the animal when placed spine down on the rollers.

At each end of the roller assembly there is sheep leg captivating means. The captivating means 21 for the rear legs of the sheep in a device including a shaft 22 mounted in bearings 23 on a base, not shown. The shaft 22 is retained in an axial position relative to the bearings 23 by movable collars 24 to allow the device to accommodate sheep of different sizes. The shaft 22 has a ratchet 25 fixed to it and a rotation braking device. There is a ratchet pawl assembly 26 connected through a rod 27 to a pneumatic power unit 28. It follows that the above arrangement allows the shaft 22 to be indexed as required by operation of the power unit 28.

e The shaft 22 has an angularly positionable radius arm 29 fixed to it and there is an animal rear leg captivator assembly 30 fixed to the arm 29. The captivator assembly 30 includes two fixed spaced apart arms 31 and two slidably mounted arms 32 drawn together by a tension spring 33 and able to be forced apart by a pair of air cylinders At the other end of the roller assembly there is a fore leg captivator identified generally 35. It includes a hoof clamp 36 including a fixed support 37 and a 9**e movable clamp member 38 mounted on a plate 39 having bearings supported on a shaft 41. The shaft 41is pivotally connected at 42 to one end of an arm 43 and the arm 43 is pivotally connected at its other end to a shaft 44. The shaft 44 is vertical and is mounted so as to be rotatable about the vertical axis by means of a pneumatic power unit In an operational sequence, a sheep would be placed in the cradle 4 and inverted (as described) to position the sheep spine down on the roller assembly 19, the process being as illustrated in the Figs.1-5. The rear legs of the sheep would then by made captive and one fore leg would be made captive in the rear and fore leg captivators respectively as described above.

Once the fore leg is captive the power unit 45 is activated to rotate the shaft 44 to extend the foreleg relative to the captive rear legs thereby immobilising the sheep.

The sheep is then released from the cradle 4 which is then returned to its original position, as shown in Fig.6. The arm 17 will be engaged by the cradle 4 on its return travel and cause the arm to move against buffering air in the power unit 18. The cradle 4 is thus returned to its rest position in a movement controlled manner thereby avoiding potentially damaging shock loads to the device.

The restrained sheep is now in a supported position ready for the shearing step. The shearer makes passes over the sheep with the shearing equipment and is able, through the foot controlled valve means attached to the ratchet pawl assembly 25, to roll the sheep over in preset angular increments to *-**access the wool which has to be shorn. The rotation of the shaft 22 is transferred through the rear leg captivators to the sheep to produce the sheep rolling over movement. The foreleg of the sheep follows the movement of the sheep body as it is rolled over, the foreleg movement involves movement of the arm 43 in an arc about its pivotal connection to the shaft 44.

When the shearing step is complete the fore and rear leg captivators are 25 released and sheep, once released, will by itself dismount from the roller assembly 19.

The process can then be repeated.

6 The foregoing description has been limited to pneumatic power means but it is to be understood that other hydraulic power means can be used. In the case of hydraulic power means, with the associated greater efficiency thereof, the arm 17 and its power unit 18 would not normally be required. The hydraulic power unit used would also serve as a buffer against shock return loads of the cradle 4.

In the inverting cradle described, the cradle side 5 is a fixed part of the frame 7 but it is to be understood that in other embodiments of the cradle side 5 could be otherwise connected to a bottom of the cradle on which the animal stands when the cradle is in the Fig.1 orientation.

The illustrated device is provided with a wool handling means comprising a sheet metal tray 47 (see Figs.1 6) provided with a vane or blade moved by suitable means in the direction indicated by the arrows in Fig.1. Shorn wool is transferred to a discharge location 48 from whence it can be taken for further attention.

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Claims (8)

1. An animal handling device including an animal inverter and animal support means having associated animal immobilizing means and orienting means, wherein said inverter includes a releasable animal gripping device and gripping device transfer means to transfer a gripped animal from a standing condition in a loading station to a work station having a plurality of parallel animal support rollers on which an animal is deposited spine down with its spine extending in the same direction as the axes of rotation of said rollers, and wherein the immobilizing means includes a part of releasable rear leg captivators mounted for rotation in unison by said orienting means about an axis extending in the length direction of the animal held captive and a releasable fore leg captivator mounted so as to be movable towards and away from said pair of captivators and so as to follow movement of a captivated fore leg of a roller supported immobilized animal as it orientation is changed by Ssaid orienting means.

2. An animal handling device as claimed in claim 1 wherein said inverter comprises a cradle with a fixed side and a movable side whereby the animal standing an a 0floor of said cradle can be gripped and secured against movement relative to the cradle, a link arrangement connecting the cradle to a stationary support frame, said link arrangement including cradle supporting link means having spaced apart connection points at which the link means is respectively pivotally connected to the cradle fixed side intermediate the floor of the cradle and a tope edge of said fixed side and to said stationary support frame said link arrangement further including cradle turning lever link means which is pivotally connected to said support frame intermediate lever ends which are respectively pivotally connected to the cradle fixed side at a location spaced further from a cradle base than the connection thereto of the supporting link means and to a power unit the actuation of which will rotate said cradle about the pivotal connection of the cradle to said supporting link means to effect the said transfer of the animal. 29 May 2000 (11:02) 7 1 CE00370325.9 8

3. An animal handling device as claimed in claim 1 wherein the orienting means includes a rotatable shaft to which said rear leg captivators are fixed, the axis of said shaft lying in the same direction as the axes of said animal support rollers, and indexing means whereby said shaft can be rotated in predetermined arcuate increments to cause the animal gripped by said rear leg captivators and supported by said rollers to rotate in corresponding increments.

4. An animal handling device as claimed in claim 3 wherein said rear leg captivators include a pair of spaced apart fixed brackets, a pair of movable brackets movable towards and away from the respective fixed brackets by movement control means.

An animal handling device as claimed in claim 4 wherein said movable brackets are resiliently biassed away from the fixed brackets.

6. An animal handling device as claimed in claim 4 or claim 5 including separate movement control means for the movable brackets.

7. An animal handling device as claimed in any one of the claims 1 to 6 Q wherein the fore leg captivator includes a leg clamp pivotally mounted on an arm which is movable towards and away from the rear leg captivators and which is movable in an arc in a plan at right angles to a plan including an axis about which the animal gripped by said rear leg captivators can be rotated. 9

8. An animal handling device substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings, Dated this 17th day of July, STUART WILLIAM BYRNE By his Patent Attorneys CARTER SMITH BEADLE 0.0*0 000 0060 0