A free dome range (FDR) where dairy animals have a free access to their stall to concurrently eat and to be milked. The FDR comprises a plurality of stalls; at least one of these stalls is characterized by a front side and rear opposite side into which a dairy animal is at least temporarily accommodated, head fronting the front side; a plurality of main living areas (MLAs); at least one of the MLAs is in connection with at least one of the stalls by a plurality of gates. The FDR further comprising a substantially horizontally positioned elevated rail system comprising a plurality of elevated rails, and a plurality of mobile milking units (MMUs), each of the MMUs is configured to transport on the elevated rail to a dairy animal at its stall, and milk the animal while it is eating.

A hinge permitting a gate to rotate approximately 180 degrees in either direction. The hinge includes first, second, third, and fourth hinge members and first, second, third, and fourth crossbars. The first, second, third, and fourth crossbars form an interpivoting connection with the first, second, third, and fourth hinge members.

A method for weaning calves from their mothers without direct human intervention. The method consists of a specialized weaning gate that allows calves to creep graze into an adjacent paddock but does not allow the mother to follow. The gate allows the calves to return to the mothers, to acclimate the calves to moving through the gate and grazing independently and to acclimate the mothers to being temporarily separated from the calves. Once the calves have reached the appropriate age to be weaned, the gate is adjusted to become a one-way gate so that the calves will creep graze into the adjacent field but will not be able to return to the original field with the mothers, which allows the calves to be fully weaned without direct human intervention.

A gate assembly has a gate panel with a hinge, a latch assembly, and a base member connected to a wall. The latch assembly has a catch member for engaging the base member when the gate panel is in a closed position, and a channel member for locking the catch member against rotation. The catch member is rotatable about a vertical axis and has an open channel facing the base member. The channel member has an open channel facing downwardly that can be lowered onto the catch member to prevent rotation. The channel member has released positions in which one side of the channel member is above the catch member to allow the gate panel to open, and another side of the channel member remains below an upper end of the catch member to prevent the catch member from pivoting past the latched position when the gate panel is closed.

A partition for an animal includes a wire panel having an edge rod, a dual axes swivel connector and a wire member is disclosed. The dual axes swivel connector is pivotally connected to the edge rod of the wire panel. The wire member is mountable to a first structure. The second groove of the dual axes swivel connected is receive the wire member for forming a hinge so that the wire panel may partition a first area from a second area.

A milking arrangement includes plural milking places, each milking place having a primary end and an opposite secondary end, an entrance at the primary end, a front side and a rear side, which both extend in parallel with the longitudinal axis, a plurality of sequence gates arranged between the front side and the rear side, each of the sequence gates being pivotable between a closed position and an open position, each sequence gate being only pivotable from its closed position to its open position in a pivotation direction in which the front end is pivoted into a milking place towards the front side of the milking arrangement, main extension planes of the sequence gates being aligned when the sequence gates are in their closed position, with a lower edge of each sequence gate defining a bulge that extends downwards.

An automatic milking installation controlled by a system including: a graphical user interface enabling user interaction with the automatic milking installation via at least one display view, an imaging unit recording image data representing at least one portion of a dairy animal, the imaging unit having a transparent cover surface configured to protect an optics section of the imaging unit and through which transparent cover surface the image data are recorded, and a control unit receiving the recorded image data, and based thereon, producing a control signal for controlling functions of the automatic milking installation. The control unit further processes the recorded image data to determine a parameter indicating an amount of dirt on the transparent cover surface, and generates graphics data for presentation to the user via the graphical user interface, which includes at least one graphical element reflecting the amount of dirt on the transparent cover surface.

A milking parlor for milking dairy animals, having a pillar, a gate pillar provided with a pivoting entrance gate and a pivoting exit gate, and a bridge located on the pillar and the gate pillar; the milking parlor further includes a driving assembly that is located within the bridge and is coupled to the entrance gate and the exit gate.

A control device which, when it is installed as part of a fence, allows a small animal to pass from a first side of the fence to the other side of the fence, but prevents an animal which has passed through the device from returning to the first side of the fence. The control device can comprise (1) a mouth which (i) is exposed on the first side of the fence and (ii) has an open cross-section, and (2) an extending passage which extends away from the mouth to an exit. The extending passage can narrow as it extends from the mouth to the exit.

A holding area and method executed in the holding area arranged at a milking parlor of a farm are provided. A Location System is arranged at the holding area, and is configured to monitor animal movements in at least two directions. The Location System includes a controller, a tag, and transceivers configured to detect signals emitted by the tag, and communicate information with the controller. The method includes determining an arrival time of the animal and/or animal movement, identifying the animal, monitoring a waiting time of the animal in the holding area and/or animal movements of the animal, comparing the waiting time and/or animal movements with a respective reference threshold; and triggering an action, when the reference threshold is exceeded.