System and method for determining whether to operate a robot in conjunction with a rotary parlor

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10111401-B2
Application number	US-201213449002-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Apr 17, 2012
Priority date	Aug 31, 2010
Publication date	Oct 30, 2018
Grant date	Oct 30, 2018

Abstract

In certain embodiments, a system includes a three-dimensional camera and a processor communicatively coupled to the three-dimensional camera. The processor is operable to determine a first hind location of a first hind leg of a dairy livestock based at least in part on visual data captured by the three-dimensional camera and determine a second hind location of a second hind leg of the dairy livestock based at least in part on the visual data. The processor is further operable to determine a measurement, wherein the measurement is the distance between the first hind location and the second hind location. Additionally, the processor is operable to determine whether the measurement exceeds a minimum threshold.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A system comprising: a three-dimensional camera; a processor communicatively coupled to the three-dimensional camera, the processor configured to: determine a first hind location of a first hind leg of a dairy livestock based at least in part on visual data captured by the three-dimensional camera, wherein the dairy livestock is positioned in a stall of a rotary milking platform; determine a second hind location of a second hind leg of the dairy livestock based at least in part on the visual data; determine a measurement, wherein the measurement is the distance between the first hind location and the second hind location; and determine whether the measurement exceeds a minimum threshold; and a robotic arm coupled to the three-dimensional camera and positioned on a linear track separate from and adjacent to a curved portion of the rotary milking platform, wherein the robotic arm and the three-dimensional camera move laterally along the track as the rotary milking platform rotates such that the robotic arm moves along the linear track at a rate corresponding to the rotational speed of the rotary milking platform and the processor determines whether the measurement between the first and second hind locations of the dairy livestock exceeds a minimum threshold while the rotary milking platform is in motion.

2. The system of claim 1 , wherein the processor is further configured to communicate an instruction to position the robotic arm.

3. The system of claim 2 , wherein the processor is further configured to communicate an instruction to position the robotic arm between the hind legs in response to determining that the measurement exceeds the minimum threshold.

4. The system of claim 3 , wherein positioning the robotic arm between the hind legs comprises the robotic arm approaching an udder of the dairy livestock from the rear of the dairy livestock.

5. The system of claim 2 , wherein the processor is further configured to determine whether a portion of the robotic arm is in contact with the dairy livestock.

6. The system of claim 2 , wherein the processor is further configured to prevent the robotic arm from extending between the hind legs of the dairy livestock in response to determining that the measurement is less than the minimum threshold.

7. The system of claim 2 , further comprising a first rail coupled to the robotic arm, the first rail operable to facilitate movement of the robotic arm in a direction relative to a movement of the dairy livestock.

8. The system of claim 7 , further comprising an encoder operable to determine a displacement measurement of the movement of the dairy livestock.

9. The system of claim 8 , wherein movement of the robotic arm is based at least in part on the displacement measurement.

10. The system of claim 1 , wherein the first hind location is an inner hind location of the first hind leg and the second hind location is an inner hind location of the second hind leg.

11. The system of claim 1 , wherein determining the first hind location comprises: determining a first location based at least in part upon the visual data, wherein the first location is associated with a first hip of the dairy livestock; determining a second location based at least in part upon the visual data, wherein the second location is associated with an outer hind location of the first hind leg of the dairy livestock; and determining a third location based at least in part upon the visual data, wherein the third location is associated with an inner hind location of the first hind leg.

12. The system of claim 11 , wherein determining the second hind location comprises: determining a fourth location based at least in part upon the visual data, wherein the fourth location is associated with a second hip of the dairy livestock; determining a fifth location based at least in part upon the visual data, wherein the fifth location is associated with an outer hind location of the second hind leg of the dairy livestock; and determining a sixth location based at least in part upon the visual data, wherein the sixth location is associated with an inner hind location of the second hind leg.

13. The system of claim 1 , wherein the distance between the first hind location and the second hind location is in a first dimension oriented in a left-to-right direction relative to the hind legs of the dairy livestock.

14. A method comprising: using a three-dimensional camera to capture visual data of a dairy livestock positioned in a stall of a rotary milking platform as the platform rotates, wherein the three-dimensional camera is coupled to a robotic arm positioned on a linear track separate from and adjacent to a curved portion of the rotary milking platform; moving the robotic arm and three-dimensional camera laterally along the track as the rotary milking platform rotates; determining, using a processor, a first hind location of a first hind leg of a dairy livestock based at least in part on the visual data; determining, using the processor, a second hind location of a second hind leg of the dairy livestock based at least in part on the visual data; determining, using the processor, a measurement, wherein the measurement is the distance between the first hind location and the second hind location; and determining, using the processor, whether the measurement exceeds a minimum threshold while the rotary milking platform is in motion.

15. The method of claim 14 further comprising communicating an instruction to position a robotic arm, wherein the three-dimensional camera is coupled to the robotic arm.

16. The method of claim 15 further comprising communicating an instruction to position the robotic arm between the hind legs in response to determining that the measurement exceeds the minimum threshold.

17. The method of claim 16 , wherein positioning the robotic arm between the hind legs comprises the robotic arm approaching an udder of the dairy livestock from the rear of the dairy livestock.

18. The method of claim 15 further comprising determining whether a portion of the robotic arm is in contact with the dairy livestock.

19. The method of claim 15 further comprising preventing the robotic arm from extending between the hind legs of the dairy livestock in response to determining that the measurement is less than the minimum threshold.

20. The method of claim 15 , wherein the robotic arm is coupled to a first rail, the first rail operable to facilitate movement of the robotic arm in a direction relative to a movement of the dairy livestock.

21. The method of claim 20 further comprising determining, using an encoder, a displacement measurement of the movement of the dairy livestock.

22. The method of claim 21 , wherein movement of the robotic arm is based at least in part on the displacement measurement.

23. The method of claim 15 , wherein the first hind location is an inner hind location of the first hind leg and the second hind location is an inner hind location of the second hind leg.

24. The method of claim 15 , wherein determining the first hind location comprises: determining a first location based at least in part upon the visual data, wherein the first location is associated with a first hip of the dairy livestock; determining a second location based at least in part upon the visual data, wherein the second location is associated with an outer hind location of the first hind leg of the dairy livestock; and determining a third location based at

Assignees

• Hofman Henk
• De Ruijter Cor
• Koekoek Menno
• Van Der Sluis Peter Willem
• Technologies Holdings Corp

Inventors

• Hofman Henk
• De Ruijter Cor
• Koekoek Menno
• Van Der Sluis Peter Willem

Classifications

• A01J5/0175

  Attaching of clusters · CPC title

• A01J7/04 Primary

  for treatment of udders or teats, e.g. for cleaning · CPC title

• A01K1/126

  Carousels · CPC title