US-12622412-B2 - Overhead animal feed loading, transporting and mixing system

US12622412B2US 12622412 B2US12622412 B2US 12622412B2US-12622412-B2

Abstract

According to embodiments disclosed herein, there is provided a system for loading, mixing and transporting feed. The system includes a scoop assembly and a mixing tub that are movable overhead a series of storage bays. The scoop assembly may retrieve commodities from the storage bays and load measured quantities of the commodities into the mixing tub.

Inventors

Albert Posthumus
Ben Posthumus

Assignees

Albert Posthumus
Ben Posthumus

Dates

Publication Date: 20260512
Application Date: 20240705

Claims (20)

1 . A feed preparation system comprising: a primary carriage movable along a track overhead a plurality of commodity bays; a secondary carriage supported by the primary carriage; a scoop array comprising a plurality of scoops, the scoop array supported by the secondary carriage; and a first load measurement mechanism disposed between the primary carriage and the secondary carriage and configured to measure a weight associated with the secondary carriage; and a tub hanging from the primary carriage and configured to receive a scooped commodity from the plurality of scoops of the scoop array.
2 . The feed preparation system according to claim 1 , wherein the scoops of the scoop array are configured to independently lower and raise and open and close.
3 . The feed preparation system according to claim 1 , wherein the scoop array is supported by the secondary carriage via a lift mechanism.
4 . The feed preparation system according to claim 3 , wherein the scoop array is configured to be lowered and raised by the lift mechanism, the plurality of scoops of the scoop array configured to independently open and close.
5 . The feed preparation system according to claim 1 , wherein the first load measurement mechanism is disposed between the primary carriage and the secondary carriage and measures a weight of the secondary carriage and scoop array.
6 . The feed preparation system according to claim 1 , further comprising a second load mechanism disposed between the tub and the primary carriage, the second load mechanism configured to measure a weight of the tub.
7 . The feed preparation system according to claim 1 , wherein the track comprises a first rail and a second rail parallel to the first rail.
8 . The feed preparation system according to claim 1 , wherein the primary carriage comprises: a first transverse support and a second transverse support, each comprising a weight bearing member extending laterally across the first rail and second rail and each comprising a translation system configured to effectuate the translation of the primary carriage along the first rail and the second rail.
9 . The feed preparation system according to claim 8 , wherein the primary carriage further comprises: a first transverse member parallel to the first transverse support; a second transverse member parallel to the second transverse support; a first longitudinal support comprising a first longitudinal weight bearing member extending longitudinally parallel to the first rail; a second longitudinal support comprising a second longitudinal weight bearing member extending longitudinally parallel to the second rail; and a second load measurement mechanism comprising a plurality of load cells disposed between the first transverse member and the first and second longitudinal support, and between the second transverse member and first and second longitudinal support.
10 . The feed preparation system according to claim 9 , wherein a load cell of the plurality of load cells comprising the second load measurement mechanism is positioned at each intersection of a first and second transverse member and a first and second longitudinal support, whereby weight supported by the first and second longitudinal supports is measured.
11 . The feed preparation system according to claim 10 , wherein the secondary carriage comprises a plurality of upright arms extending upwardly from the first transverse member and the second transverse member of the primary carriage, wherein one upright arm of the plurality of upright arms is positioned at each distal end of each first and second transverse member, and wherein the first load measurement mechanism comprises load cells disposed between each upright arm of the plurality of upright arms and the corresponding first or second transverse member, whereby a weight supported by the secondary carriage is measured.
12 . The system according to claim 1 , wherein the tub comprises a mixer assembly, the mixer assembly further comprising an auger disposed within the tub and configured to mix commodities placed in the tub by the scoop array.
13 . The system according to claim 1 , wherein the plurality of scoops of the scoop array comprises a plurality of capacities.
14 . The system according to claim 3 , wherein the lift mechanism comprises a cable and an actuator responsive to a controller and configured to raise and lower the scoop array.
15 . The system according to claim 1 , wherein the tub comprises a door comprising: a primary door plate configured to close an opening of the tub; a sealing foot comprising a plate extending away from the primary door plate at a lowermost end of the primary door plate and nesting with a floor of the tub; and an inset notch integrally formed with the primary door plate at an opposite end from the sealing foot and comprising a cutaway portion of the door configured to receive an edge bounding the opening in the tub.
16 . A feed preparation system comprising: at least one carriage movable along an overhead track disposed overhead a plurality of commodity bays; a scoop array hanging downwardly from the at least one carriage via a lift mechanism, the scoop array comprising two or more scoops; and a tub hanging from a carriage of the at least one carriage and configured to receive a scooped commodity from the scoop array, wherein the lift mechanism is movable towards and away from the tub, the scoops configured to be independently lowered toward and raised from the commodity bay to scoop a commodity from the commodity bay.
17 . The feed preparation system according to claim 16 , wherein the at least one carriage comprises at least one upper track and the lift mechanism is supported by one of the at least one upper tracks.
18 . The feed preparation system according to claim 16 , further comprising a load measurement mechanism disposed between the carriage and the lift mechanism, the load measurement mechanism configured to measure a weight associated with the scoop array.
19 . The feed preparation system according to claim 16 , further comprising a load measurement mechanism disposed between the carriage and the tub, the load measurement mechanism configured to measure a weight associated with the tub.
20 . A method of preparing a pre-mixed feed, the method comprising: moving a scoop array comprising a plurality of scoops to a first commodity bay; lowering the scoop array to the first commodity bay; closing a first scoop of the plurality of scoops to scoop a first commodity stored in the first commodity bay; measuring the weight of the scooped first commodity held by the first scoop; raising the scoop array from the first commodity bay; moving the scoop array to a second commodity bay; lowering the scoop array to the second commodity bay; closing a second scoop of the plurality of scoops to scoop a second commodity stored in the second commodity bay; measuring the weight of the scooped second commodity held by the second scoop; raising the scoop array from the second commodity bay; moving the scoop array to a third commodity bay; lowering the scoop array to the third commodity bay; closing a third scoop of the plurality of scoops to scoop a third commodity stored in the third commodity bay; measuring the weight of the scooped third commodity held by the third scoop; raising the scoop array from the third commodity bay; moving the scoop array to a mixer and opening the first scoop, the second scoop, and the third scoop to deposit the scooped first commodity, the scooped second commodity, and the scooped third commodity in the mixer; mixing the first commodity, the second commodity, and the third commodity deposited in the mixer to create a pre-mixed feed.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/922,125, entitled “OVERHEAD ANIMAL FEED LOADING, TRANSPORTING AND MIXING SYSTEM,” filed Jul. 7, 2020, which is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/650,211, entitled “OVERHEAD ANIMAL FEED LOADING, TRANSPORTING AND MIXING SYSTEM,” filed Jul. 14, 2017, now U.S. Pat. No. 10,750,718, which claims priority to, and the benefit of, U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/363,105 entitled “OVERHEAD ANIMAL FEED LOADING, TRANSPORTING AND MIXING SYSTEM,” filed on Jul. 15, 2016, the contents of all of which are hereby incorporated herein by reference in their entirety for any purpose. TECHNICAL FIELD This disclosure relates to transporting and mixing feed for animals, and in particular, to a system and method for efficiently loading, transporting and mixing feed. BACKGROUND OF THE DISCLOSURE Feed for livestock typically includes a mixture of several different commodities, such as hay, straw and other types of grain, that when mixed together produce a feed product that is customized to the diet of a group of livestock. The various commodities for a specific feed product are retrieved from bulk commodity locations and then mixed in large, stationary mixers. In practice, commodity transportation vehicles retrieve the required commodities from one or more bulk commodity locations and transport the commodities to the location of the stationary feed mixers. The commodity transportation vehicles, or other commodity loading vehicles such as fork lifts or shovel loaders, then load the commodities into the stationary mixers. When the stationary mixers have fully mixed the commodities, the commodities are loaded, for example, into the feed transportation vehicles, such as feed trailers. The feed production and transportation process described above requires several manually-operated vehicles, fuel to power the vehicles, and trained workers to operate the vehicles. As such, the process is time consuming and expensive for feed producers. In addition, commodities and/or feed are often lost during loading, transportation and unloading of the commodities and/or feed. The loss of a portion of the commodities and/or feed causes significant losses in profitability for feed producers and is often referred to as “shrinkage.” In addition, because livestock producers rely on a steady supply of feed from the feed production process, maintenance of the components of the above-described process, such as the stationary mixers, must be performed quickly to minimize downtime. Oftentimes, maintenance of the stationary mixers must be performed at the location of the stationary mixer, regardless of the weather conditions or time of day. On-site maintenance and repair of the mixers or other feed production equipment can be dangerous for technicians, especially when other feed production processes are in operation while the technicians perform maintenance. SUMMARY In a first aspect, there is provided a system for loading, mixing and transporting feed. The system includes a feed preparation system. The system may include a primary carriage movable along a track overhead a plurality of commodity bays, and a secondary carriage supported by the primary carriage. The system may further include a first load measurement mechanism disposed interstitially between the primary carriage and secondary carriage and configured to measure a weight associated with the secondary carriage, a scoop array hanging downwardly form the secondary carriage and configured to be controllably raised and lowered to scoop a commodity from a commodity bay, and a mixer assembly hanging from the primary carriage and configured to receive a scooped commodity from the scoop array. A mixing tub output device is provided. The device may include a rod rotatably attachable to a hinge bracket extending from a side of a mixing tub and a door lever attached to a distal end of the rod and attached to a door. The door lever may be configured to constrain a movement of the door to an actuation pathway comprising an arc with a radius defined by the rod and a center defined by the hinge bracket. A method of feed preparation is also disclosed. The method may include secondary carriage steps configured to be completed at least partially in parallel with a primary carriage step, wherein the secondary carriage steps include lowering a scoop array into a first commodity bay, closing at least one scoop of the scoop array to pick up commodity material, and raising the scoop array. The secondary carriage steps may also include weighing the scoop array whereby a quantity of commodity material collected is determined, translating the scoop array by at least one scoop carriage to be overhead a mixing tub, and dumping by the scoop array the commodity material into the mixing tub. The secondary carriage steps may also include further translating the scoop array by the first sc