Instruction Manual Milk & Go 3.0

General:

The Milk & Go 3.0 is a collaboration with Melk-drive Genderen and has been developed in order to stimulate cows to leave the milking robot immediately after milking has finished. This way manuring of the robot can be largely prevented. The Milk & Go 3.0 has been specifically developed to be attached to a milking robot with a pneumatic system for the expulsion of the cows. The Milk & Go 3.0 is not allowed to be used for other purposes.

Use:

Lamp, will illuminate with every current pulse given by Milk & Go 3.0. It is possible that the light lights up weak when transmitting a pulse on a cow.
Test button, push this button to test your Milk & Go 3.0, e.g. when you think the batteries are dead. When pressing the test button the lamp will illuminate with every current pulse. Additionally, the cow present in the robot will react to the pulse.
Air connection (black)
High voltage connection (black)
Earth/ground connection (green)
On/off switch, to switch the Milk & Go 3.0 on or off. Only after switching the Milk & Go 3.0 on you can use the test button.
Batteries, unscrew the two screws on the side to replace batteries if necessary. Replace the batteries and place the cover back on and fasten with the screws to ensure a dust and splash proof device.

Installation:

Check if the air pulse of the milking robot gets activated when the exit gate of the robot has been open for more than 10 seconds. The cow must get the opportunity to leave the robot before it receives a pulse. Adjust this on the robot’s installation program as shown below or ensure to have this installed on the robot before you put de Milk & Go 3.0 into service.

- Open the basic screen of your VMS client program on your pc.

- Click on ‘units’ in the menu list on the left and then double click on ‘VMS milking station’.

- Now you have the choice from different tabs, click on ‘cow traffic’.

- Tick the box for ‘applying mechanical expulsion system ’, adjust the number of seconds until the expulsion system starts at ‘15 sec’.

After approximately 2 months, when the cows have got used to the Milk & go 3.0, this can be decreased to 10 seconds for a faster passing through.

2. You can easily attach the Milk & Go 3.0 on the upper side of the milking robot with the hook supplied. (The Milk & Go 3.0 is dust proof and resistant to splashing water as long as the housing is closed.)

3. Screw the mounting bracket (with attached swivel) together with the two supplied M6 bolts to the robot frame in the already existing holes of the robot frame, above the buttocks of the cow. To ensure the bracket does not detach, you can secure the bolts with the two extra M6 washers and nuts that are supplied.

4. Pull the black high-voltage wire from the red knob of the Milk & Go 3.0 to the mounting bracket. Loosen the terminal block with the electric fence wire and thread the high-voltage cable through the gland in the mounting bracket. Attach the terminal block with an electric fence wire in the same way. This piece of electric fence wire should be long enough to touch the back of your smallest cow. The electric fence wire must not touch the robot, if necessary you may shorten the electric fence wire.

5. Attach the eye at the end of the green ground wire to the mounting bracket with one of the M6 bolts to the robot frame.

6. Pull the black air hose to the point above the milking robot where the blower hose originally hung. Detach the end of the air hose from the milking robot by pushing the ring inwards and pull out the air hose. Connect this to the coupling (already attached to the air hose) of the black air hose of the Milk & Go 3.0.

NOTE: When bundling, make sure that the air hose is not squeezed and do not shorten the air hose!

Testing:

Turn the Milk & Go 3.0 on by putting the black switch (no.6) on position I (on).
Press and hold the test button (no.2) and check if the test lamp (no.1) is blinking. If the lamp is blinking, move on to step 4.
Replace the batteries (see explanation on changing batteries p.6) and restart at step 1. If your Milk & Go 3.0 is still not working after replacing the batteries, contact your dealer.
Grab hold of the electric wire with isolated pliers and keep this at 1mm distance from a part of the frame of the milking robot, which has not been lacquered. Keep and hold the test button (no.2) of the Milk & Go 3.0, if you see a spark move on to step 7.
Check if the ground wire is well connected/attached correctly.
Check if the high voltage wire is well connected/attached correctly, go back to step 4.
Test the installation now by preventing a cow from walking out of the milking robot after milking. The air pulse of the robot should be converted into a current pulse. Your Milk & Go 3 is working if your cow gives a reactionto the pulse. Move on to step 11.
Detach the air hose. Test the installation again as described above (step 7) and verify that there is an air blast coming out. If that is the case, connect the air hose again and go back to step 7.
Check if the air hose is squeezed closed/ disconnected.
Check the settings on the milking robot (see p.2). Go back to step 8. If your Milk & Go 3.0 is still not functioning after checking the settings, contact your dealer.
Your Milk & Go functions well.

Saving tip:

At Melk-drive Genderen it has been proven, that there is less dung remaining in the milking robot after the installation of a Milk & Go apparatus. Consequently you can adjust the floor cleaning, so that it takes place after 9 milkings instead of after every 3 milkings.

Open the basic screen of your VMSclient program on your pc
Click on ‘units’ in the menu list on the left and then double click op VMS milking station
Now you have the choice from different headings, click on ‘cleaning’.
Put a tick for ‘Floor cleaning after every’
For ‘milking’ , set after how many milkings the floor has to be cleaned, e.g. 9 (enter as desired).

This resulted in saving Melk-drive Genderen a considerable amount on expenses for water- and manure removal.

Assuming that:

* Robot capacity of 150 milkings per day

* Floor cleaning on 7 sec, 1 litre water per second = 7 liters per floor cleaning

* € 10 removal costs per m³

* € 0,85 per m³ water

Without Milk & Go

150 milkings per dag / 3 floor cleanings = 50 floor cleanings per day

50 floor cleanings per day * 7 liters * 365 days per year = 127,75 m³ water

127,75 m³ water * € 10 removal costs per m³ = € 1.277,50 removal costs

127,75 m³ water * € 0,85 per m³ water = € 108,60 water costs +

Total = € 1.386,10

With Milk & Go

150 milkings per dag / 9 floor cleanings = 16,7 floor cleanings per day

16,7 floor cleanings per day * 7 liters * 365 days per year = 42,67 m³ water

42,67 m³ water * € 10 removal costs per m³ = € 426,70 removal costs

42,67 m³ water * € 0,85 per m³ water = € 36,25 water costs +

Total = € 462,95

Thus:

Without Milk & Go after every 3 cows floor cleaning = € 1.386,10

With Milk & Go after every 9 cows floor cleaning = € 462,95 -

Economization after 1 year = € 923,15

Changing the batteries:

Your Milk & Go 2.0 has been supplied with two 1,5V D-cell batteries on delivery. We advise you to change the batteries every two years in order to ensure proper functioning.
1.   Switch the Milk & Go off.
2.   Unfasten the high voltage connection (no.5) and the earth connection (no.6). See to it that you do not lose the rings placed underneath them. Press the ring of the air connection inward and pull out the air hose.
3.   Take the Milk & Go 2.0 off the machine, including the hook.
4.   Loosen the screw at the bottom side of the Milk & Go 2.0.
5.   Take the Milk & Go 2.0 in your hand as is shown in the adjacent picture and push the flap forward with two thumbs.
6.   Remove the batteries and insert two new 1,5V D-cell batteries in the same way. In case you have forgotten how the batteries were positioned you can find this again on the back side of the Milk & Go 2.0.
7.   Click the flap back and fasten the screw.
8.   Hang the Milk & Go 2.0 back in its former position.
9.   Reconnect the high voltage cable, earth cable and the air hose again.
10.   Switch the Milk & Go on.
11.   If you press and hold the test switch now, the test lamp will illuminate with every pulse.

Warranty:

Milk & Go 3.0 is a product of Technico Mechanical Engineering b.v. Technico vouches for a period of 6 months of a good operation of the Milk & Go 3.0. The Metalunion requirements, as enclosed, are applicable.