Automatic milking - state of the art and future trends
2009
Harms, J., Bayerische Landesanstalt fuer Landwirtschaft (LfL), Freising (Germany). Institut fuer Landtechnik und Tierhaltung
Over 9,000 farms worldwide with approximately 13,000 milking stalls now have automatic milking systems. The firms supplying automatic milking systems are BouMatic, DeLaval, Fullwood, GEA Farm Technologies, Insentec, Lely, SAC. The introduction and refinement of automatic milking is a milestone in the field of milking technology and has been linked to a great number of ready-for-market innovations. Thus sensors other than those for the known parameters of milk flow measurement and conductivity have become established in the market. Examples are colour change determination and the on-line method of cell count measurement. Some of these sensors operate at quarter level, as a rule producing significantly better information. In addition to these sensors for recording the parameters of milking and milk, animal-related data such as weight, activity and rumination can frequently be recorded when automatic milking systems are used. This can give a comprehensive picture of individual animals within the meaning of Precision Livestock Farming. The future development of automatic milking systems will centre largely around the recording of further parameters for monitoring product quality and also production. The focus will be on feedstuffs and metabolic disorders, fertility and udder health. In addi-tion to the fat and protein content of milk it will be possible to detect lactose and urea in the milk as well as progesterone and other indicators such as ketone bodies and enzymes. Individual quarter-milking generally offers good potential for optimising the milking process further. In the software field there will be further advances in linking “fuzzy" parameters to the reliable detection of critical conditions at high specificity, and also in intuitive operabil-ity and support, e.g. with time management. System planning will also feature widely in future. The animal rotation system is of central importance here in order to ensure high utilisation with the least possible la-bour at the same time as minimum stress for the animals, but consideration should also be given to supplementary systems, e.g. for feed pushing or grazing support.
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