Milking Machines | Robotic Milking

Abstract

The first ideas of fully automating the milking process were generated in the mid-seventies of the twentieth century. Since the first appearance of commercial systems in 1992, automatic milking systems (AM-systems), also called robotic milking systems, have been installed at an increasing rate. No other new technology since the introduction of the milking machine has aroused so much interest and expectations among dairy farmers and the periphery. Reduced labor, a better social life for dairy farm families, and increased milk yields due to more frequent milking are generally recognized as important benefits of automatic milking. Automatic milking changes, without doubt, many aspects of farm management since both the nature and organization of labor are altered. Manual labor is partly replaced by management and control, and the presence of the operator at regular milking times is no longer required. Visual control on cow and udder health at milking is, at least partly, taken over by automatic sensor systems. Facilities for teat cleaning and separation of abnormal milk are incorporated into the AM-system and several adaptations are needed to accommodate continuous milking. Cow management including routing within the barn, the opportunity for grazing, and the use of total mixed rations is altered. A high level of management and realistic expectations are essential to successful adoption of automatic milking. Results from commercial farms indicate that milk quality is somewhat negatively affected, although bacterial counts and somatic cell counts remain well below penalty levels. In terms of quality control, AM-systems offer extra means to assure milk quality and food safety. No adverse effects of the transition have been found for body condition, lameness, or teat condition. AM-systems require a higher investment than conventional milking systems. However, increased milk yields and reduced labor requirements lead to a decrease in the fixed costs per kg milk, generally resulting in improved farm incomes. At the end of 2010, in approximately 10 000 farms worldwide, cows were milked automatically by an AM-system. It is generally expected that the number of farms worldwide with an AM-system will grow rapidly. The terms automatic milking system, robotic milking system, voluntary milking system, and milking robots are used interchangeably to refer to a system that automates all the functions of the milking process by a mix of manual and machine systems to milk and manage the cow. In this article, the term AM-system will be used to describe the whole system.