ES1253569U - Cattle feeder and drinker (Machine-translation by Google Translate, not legally binding) - Google Patents

Abstract

Trough and trough for livestock, which is made up of a hopper-shaped container (1), which includes a lower mouth (2) for the outlet of food and water, and where the set comprises a tray (3) (Machine-translation by Google Translate, not legally binding)

Description

DESCRIPTION

Cattle feeder and drinker

Object of the invention

The invention consists of a hopper-shaped container that serves both as a trough and a trough for livestock, preferably pigs, and that allows a user to control the amount of water and food that is introduced into the set, and that also comprises a means of automatic food distribution that is operated by the animals themselves when they are eating and drinking.

The present invention falls within the field related to livestock, specifically within the different types of devices for feeding livestock, and more specifically devices suitable for pigs; and it is an invention that aims to improve the working conditions of the farmer when providing water and food to the animals, and also improves the feeding conditions of the animals themselves.

Background of the invention

The existence of feeders and drinkers for feeding all types of livestock is known. In general, said devices are known separately, however they can also be arranged in a single unit or set.

Currently, the known feeders are basically constituted by a container configured as a hopper, generally prismatic or frustoconical, provided with a lower mouth for the exit of the feed or grain used to feed the animals, and a feeder plate arranged in its lower part that collects the food that falls by gravity from the inside of the hopper.

Additionally, in general, this type of known hoppers can also comprise a button that can be actuated by the animal itself to cause a dose of food stored on the lower tray or plate to fall. This is especially common for feeding pigs.

These known feeders generally have a series of problems, for example being able to improve the animal's access to the plate. In order to solve this problem, document ES1211840U defines a trough for pigs with lateral discharges that allow better access of the animals to the food.

What is disclosed in document ES1203886U is also known, where a solution to the problem of being able to feed animals of different dimensions is described, that is, large adult specimens and young or small animals. This document describes a feeder with two different feeding parts, one with a conventional tray and another area located below the tray intended for young and smaller animals.

Finally, the problem of being able to manage the amount of food that finally reaches the animal is also known. Document ES1213090U describes a trough hopper, especially intended for pigs, which comprises a button that can be actuated by the animal itself to cause a dose of food stored on a tray that defines a side discharge outlet, to fall. and where in addition the hopper a device for blocking the lateral discharge outlet, provided with a lid that can be slidable in a substantially vertical direction configured to ensure the opening and closing of the lateral discharge outlet, so that in its closed position said lid totally prevents the fall of food even if the button is activated.

On the other hand, different types of drinking troughs for livestock are known, generally constituted by a basin or container that also comprises a source of water supply. There are many examples of this type of drinkers, for example, the one disclosed in document ES1023022U where an adjustable drinker is described, or drinkers that have automatic water supply means, such as the one disclosed in document ES019778U.

Taking into account the solutions, both of drinkers and feeders, known in the state of the art, no device is known that combines both a drinker and a feeder in a single team, and that also comprises means for adjusting food to the animal by the user, and also comprising means of actuation by the animal itself. Therefore, the present invention introduces in this technical sector a solution that combines food and drink supply means in a single device, allows the user to adjust the amount of food and drink in a comfortable and simple way, and also allows that the animals themselves, preferably pigs, can actuate the means of supplying and distributing food, which makes it an advantageous and automatic solution for feeding animals.

Description of the invention

The present invention consists of a trough and drinker for livestock, with which a user can regulate the food and drink that is supplied to the animals, and where the animals themselves also have food actuators in the form of a grinder, which make the provision and regulation of food is automatic. For this, a set is defined consisting of a container configured as a hopper, which comprises a lower mouth for the outlet of food, generally I think, and which has a water dispenser at this mouth, and where the set comprises a tray arranged in the lower part that collects the food that falls by gravity from the inside of the hopper.

In the upper part of the hopper-shaped container there is a crossbar that supports:

- at least one water supply conduit, a conduit that is connected to a water supply source, and that may comprise valves and / or taps that regulate the flow of water that the invention receives and that is provided to the animals.

- An inverted V-shaped canopy, a canopy that is located inside the hopper, which is a canopy that can have a vertical movement that allows it to regulate the amount of food that falls through the lower mouth of the hopper.

For this, in the aforementioned crossbar there is a manual control that allows to release the vertical movement of the vertical support of the canopy, a control that is operated by the user, so that when the control is not activated, the control presses the vertical support and the roof remains fixed; while when the control is activated, the vertical support is released and the canopy can go up (increasing the amount of food that can fall through the mouth) or it can go down (reducing the amount of food that can fall through the mouth). This knob, in an embodiment of the invention, is composed of a clamping wedge and a spring, such that when the knob is not actuated, the spring presses the wedge and this fixes the position of the vertical support; while when the control is activated By the user, this exerts a force that overcomes the resistance of the spring and the clamping wedge is released, being able at that moment to raise or lower the canopy that is located inside the hopper.

In the internal part of the container configured as a hopper, and located on the lower mouth for the exit of food, the invention comprises a support profile arranged transversely and being fixed on the side faces of the container, where this support profile supports:

- a plurality of grinders, grinders distributed along the entire support profile, and grinders that are rotating elements whose axis is protected in the support profile, which are also elements whose lower part protrudes from the lower mouth of the hopper, and that They are elements that preferably in the upper part comprise projections like blades that rotate on the axis of the grinder fixed to the support profile, and that allow the movement of the food that is arranged to fall by gravity through the mouthpiece; and that in its lower part, it comprises of some projections in the form of hooks that are activated by the animal's snout, so that these hooks when moved by the animal make the grinder rotate and the blades improve the fall of food on the tray , allowing the fall to be on both sides of the axis and increasing the food falling surface on both sides of the tray;

- a water dosing device, which receives the water supply conduit in its upper part, and which in its lower part, being able to protrude from the lower mouth and / or being directly focused on the lower tray, has a water dispenser that provides water to animals.

The present invention solves the existing problems in feed hoppers, feeders and / or drinkers for livestock, insofar as with a single set both food and drink can be provided, this provision of food and drink being regulated by the user or farmer , the animals themselves being able to operate grinders that automatically regulate the fall of the food itself, and in addition, a solution is available that provides food to a large number of animals regardless of their size.

To solve these technical problems, as previously advanced, a vertical movement mechanism of a canopy is available inside the hopper, an canopy that allows the user or farmer to increase or reduce the volume of food that can fall by gravity through of the lower mouth, which allows, for example, in case it is necessary for the supply of food to close the lower mouth, something that is not possible to do with any of the known feeders.

The present invention additionally has a substantial difference with respect to known feeders, and it is that these known feeders have actuators or front pushers for automatic feeding of food, which makes the animal with the snout push said actuator and the food falls steadily. frontal. This has drawbacks that cause the food to cake in the part of the hopper and this in turn generates that the farmer has to constantly move the food in the area of the mouth so that it falls into the tray, which entails expense of time and effort. Additionally, there is a problem of falling only on one side of the tray, since the fall is frontal and the larger and stronger animals have preferential access to food compared to smaller or less strong animals. To solve these problems, the present invention comprises the aforementioned rotary grinders, with which the animal itself removes the food in the drop zone of the mouthpiece, which saves the user or farmer that time and that effort, and that it is the animal itself that makes that effort, which on the other hand is good for exercise and for reasons of health of the animal itself; and also, the grinders allow the fall to be on both sides of the mouth and therefore, the feeding space for the animals is greater, which also allows smaller animals to eat at the same time as the larger ones. .

Finally, another aspect of the invention is that it has a means of supplying and regulating water, the tray being able to comprise a drainage element, which allows water to be supplied to the animals, it allows water to be supplied to the animals' food for the improvement of the food, and allows cleaning of the tray when the canopy closes the hopper, since both the flow rate and the water outlet pressure can be regulated, which is not possible to obtain with any known drinker in the state The technique.

In the same way, it is highlighted that the materials with which the present invention is developed are suitable and resistant to withstand inclement weather and their exposure in aggressive and corrosive environments very common in livestock farms, and also resistant to withstand the forces and blows that may received by animals, therefore, the invention preferably consists of metal elements treated to withstand these aggressive agents.

Throughout the description and the claims the word "comprises" and its variants are not intended to exclude other technical characteristics.

Brief description of the figures of the invention

In order to complete the description and to help a better understanding of the characteristics of the invention, a set of figures and drawings is presented in which the following is represented by way of illustration and not limitation.

Figure 1 is an external perspective view of the trough and drinker for livestock object of the present invention, where it can be seen that the invention is a set consisting of a container configured as a hopper, which includes a lower mouth for the outlet of food, also comprises a tray arranged in the lower part that collects the food that falls by gravity from the inside of the hopper; where the assembly comprises a crossbar that supports the water supply and also the mechanism for raising and lowering an internal canopy (not visible in this figure) regulating the amount of food stored in the hopper; and where, at the bottom, it comprises a support profile (not visible in this figure) arranged transversely over the mouth, and which supports a plurality of grinders that allow the automatic regulation of food when actuated by the animals, and also of the water outlet.

Figure 2 is a schematic representation of a cross section of the invention, where you can see the internal structure and the components included in said trough and drinker for livestock, and where you can see the mechanism for raising and lowering the roof, and the location of the roof inside the hopper; in the same way that the location of the support profile that supports the grinders can be observed.

Figure 3 is a schematic representation of a longitudinal section of the invention, where the internal structure and the components included in said trough and drinker for livestock can also be observed, and specifically it is highlighted the distribution of several grinders along the profile support, and also the location of the water outlet means on the tray.

Detailed description of an embodiment of the invention

One embodiment of the invention consists of a trough and drinker for livestock, preferably pigs, which has the advantages that a user can regulate the food and drink that is provided to the animals, and where the animals themselves also have food actuators. in the form of a grinder, which makes the supply and regulation of food automatic.

For this, as can be seen in the figures, a set consisting of a container configured as a hopper (1) is defined, which comprises a lower mouth (2) for the outlet of food, generally I think, and where the set It comprises a tray (3) accessible to the animals and arranged in the lower part that collects the food that falls by gravity from the inside of the hopper; and where it has the particularity that it also includes:

a crossbar (4) arranged in the upper part of the hopper-shaped container (1) that supports:

- At least one water supply conduit (5), a conduit that is connected to a water supply source, and that may comprise valves and / or taps that regulate the flow of water that the invention receives and that is provided to the animals

- a canopy (6) in the shape of an inverted V, a canopy that is located on the inside of the hopper (1) and has a vertical support (7) that allows it to be supported on the crossbar (4); where the canopy can have a vertical movement that allows it to regulate the amount of food stored inside the hopper and that later falls through the lower mouth of the hopper. For said vertical movement of ascent and descent, in the aforementioned crossbar (4) there is a manual control (8) that allows the vertical movement of the vertical support (7) of the roof to be released, a control that is operated by the user. This control (8), in an embodiment of the invention as shown in the figures, is composed of a clamping wedge (81) and a spring (82), in such a way that when the control is not actuated, the spring (82) tightens the wedge (81) and this fixes the position of the vertical support (8) on the crossbar (4); while when the control is operated by the user, this exerts a force that overcomes the resistance of the spring (82) and the clamping wedge (81) is released, also releasing the vertical support (8) and therefore being able to that moment raise or lower the canopy (6) that is located inside the hopper (1);

a support profile (9) arranged transversely on the lower mouth (2), therefore, located in the internal part of the container configured as a hopper (1), profile fixed on the side faces of the container, where this support profile (9) sustains:

- a plurality of grinders (10), grinders distributed along the entire support profile, and grinders that are rotating elements whose axis is protected in the support profile (9), and are elements whose lower part protrudes from the lower mouth (two) ; and that they are elements that in the upper part comprise rotating projections like blades (11), and that allow the movement of the food that is arranged to fall by gravity through the mouthpiece; and that in its lower part, it comprises some projections in the form of hooks (12) that are actuated by the animal's snout; so that these hooks, when moved by the animal, make the grinder rotate and the blades (11) prevent the caking of the food and improve the fall of food on both sides of the support profile (9) on the tray (3), and the food falling surface on both sides of the tray (3) is also increased;

- a water dosing device (13), which receives the water supply conduit (5) in its upper part, and which in its lower part, being able to protrude from the lower mouth and / or being directly focused on the lower tray, It has a water dispenser that provides water to the animals.

Additionally, as can be seen mainly in the first figure, this embodiment of the invention makes it possible to have a trough and trough for livestock that is transportable and installable in any type of livestock operation, where the food is introduced through the upper open part of the hopper, and where animals can access food and drink from both sides of the container; and as has been commented throughout this specification, the invention is preferably oriented to pigs.

Claims (9)

1 Trough and drinker for livestock, consisting of a hopper-shaped container (1), comprising a lower mouth (2) for the exit of food and water, and where 5 the set comprises a tray (3) accessible to the animals and arranged in the lower part that collects the water and the food that falls by gravity from the inside of the hopper (1); and that is characterized by also comprising: - a crossbar (4) arranged in the upper part of the hopper-shaped container (1) that supports: at least one conduit (5) water supply, conduit that is connected to a water supply source; Y a roof (6) which is located inside the hopper (1), and which has a vertical support (7) that allows you to hold onto the crossbar (4); and where in the aforementioned crossbar (4) there is a control (8) manual with which the vertical movement of the vertical support (7) of the canopy (6) is fixed or released; - a support profile (9) located in the internal part of the hopper container (1) and arranged transversely on the lower mouth (2), and which is fixed on the side faces of the container, where this support profile (9) supports : a plurality of grinders (10), grinders distributed along the entire support profile (9) and which are rotating elements whose axis is protected in the support profile (9), and where these grinders are elements that protrude from the lower mouth (2) and are activated by the animal's snout, making the grinder rotate and making the food fall from inside the hopper (1) onto the tray (3) ; Y a water metering device (13), which receives in its upper part the water supply conduit (5); and that in its lower part comprises a water dispenser that provides water to the tray (3). 2. - Trough and trough for livestock, according to claim 1, where the canopy (6) is in the shape of an inverted V. 3. - Feeder and drinking trough for livestock, according to claim 1, where the control (8) is made up of a clamping wedge (81) and a spring (82), where the wedge (81) fixes or releases the support position vertical (8) on the crossbar (4). 4 - Trough and drinker for livestock, according to claim 1, where the mills (10) are rotating elements that in the upper part and in contact with the food of the hopper (1) comprise rotating projections as blades (11) ; and that in its lower part, it comprises projections in the form of hooks (12) that protrude from the lower mouthpiece and are actuated by the animal's snout. 5. Trough and drinking trough for livestock, according to claim 1, wherein the water dosing device (13) protrudes from the lower mouth (2).