An autonomous vehicle includes a frame with a motor, a bumper connected to the frame via a connecting device, and a sensor detecting displacement of the bumper upon a collision. The sensor is connected with a propulsion system that interrupts displacing the vehicle upon detecting a displacement. The connecting device includes a ring, a first ball part, a second ball part, a shaft, and a spring. The ring is fixedly connected to the frame, and the first and second ball part rotatably tilt in the ring. The shaft extends through the ring and the first ball part, and through and beyond the second ball part to a second end, at which the shaft is connected to the bumper by a joint. At least one ball part is displaceable along the shaft. The spring extends around the shaft between the second ball part and a spring connector, and pretensionedly presses the first and second ball parts against the ring. Upon a collision with an obstacle, the bumpers shifts, and the shaft tilts with respect to the frame. This tilting pushes the two ball parts away from each other. The spring also tilts, as a whole, preventing plastic deformation. The spring now exerts a larger spring force on the ball parts, and, after taking away the obstacle, will move back and realign. This will also realign the sensor, ensuring a longer effective lifetime of the sensor and thus of the safety of the vehicle.

A method and arrangement for controlling the operation of a manure scraper that operates responsive to information obtained from one or more cameras mounted so as to capture images of the area of operation of the scraper.

An automatic cat litter box cleansing structure includes a base on where the cat litter box is disposed; a horizontal movement module movably disposed on the base and transversely moving along the area in which the cat litter box is disposed; a vertical movement module movably disposed on the horizontal movement module and longitudinally move with respect to the horizontal movement module. With the control module controlling the horizontal movement module and the vertical movement module to move, the shoveling member automatically shovels the cat feces away from the cat litter box, achieving an automatic cleansing function.

A stall plow removably attaches to a prior art skid steer using available quick connect couplers. The stall plow has a moldboard that is configured to completely remove waste bedding from a livestock free stall from the area adjacent to the curb and deliver it to the alley, where a prior art machine can then complete removal of the waste bedding from the alley. The moldboard includes a primary scraper section and side cutter that scrapes and lifts waste bedding up and over the curb. A curb section and curb flange then shift the bedding over to the alley and drop waste bedding into the alley, where a discharge spreader levels and distributes the waste. An extensible arm and hydraulic extension cylinder adjusts the moldboard transversely relative to direction of travel. An angle and pitch adjuster sets the moldboard for a particular free stall geometry and bedding material composition.

A chain wheel includes a body and protrusions extending outward along the periphery of the body for receiving links of a chain. The protrusions are connected releasably to the body and are spring-mounted independently of each other in a peripheral direction relative to the body.

An automatic tensioning apparatus is provided that includes a tensioning drive unit having: a longitudinally extending stationary base frame with a plurality of guides extending between a lower portion and an upper portion, and a plurality of rotatable feed wheels axially secured at the lower portion, as well as a translatable drive frame slidably coupled to the plurality of guides with a drive assembly coupled to the drive frame, the drive assembly including a drive motor and a tensile member interface for engaging and rotationally translating a tensile member. The tensioning drive unit further including a plurality of drive frame actuators actuatable to move the drive frame between a bottom frame position and a top frame position, as well as a sensor for at least indirectly sensing the position of the drive frame along a longitudinal base frame axis.

A self-propelled manure removal vehicle, including: at least two wheels, at least one motor device and a control device, for displacing the vehicle by driving at least one of the wheels; a floor-scraping device configured to clean a floor surface while being in contact with the floor surface, wherein at least a lower rim of the floor-scraping device is flexible to adapt its shape to the floor surface; and at least one skid element including a lower rim with a slide surface to slide over a floor surface to support the vehicle, and the lower rim of the floor scraping device projects further downwardly than the slide surface of the at least one skid element.

A driving sprocket for a marine-type chain whose links have a section of diameter between 8 and 20 millimeters, intended to be used in the agricultural field. The sprocket includes a main cylindrical recess between two lateral flanges and a plurality of regularly spaced forks projecting radially from the recess, delineating housings intended for receiving every other link of the substantially flat chain. The flanges extend beyond the recess over a height substantially equal to the width of a link of the chain.

An autonomous vehicle includes a frame with a motor, a bumper connected to the frame via a connecting device, and a sensor detecting displacement of the bumper upon a collision. The sensor is connected with a propulsion system that interrupts displacing the vehicle upon detecting a displacement. The connecting device includes a ring, a first ball part, a second ball part, a shaft, and a spring. The ring is fixedly connected to the frame, and the first and second ball part rotatably tilt in the ring. The shaft extends through the ring and the first ball part, and through and beyond the second ball part to a second end, at which the shaft is connected to the bumper by a joint. At least one ball part is displaceable along the shaft. The spring extends around the shaft between the second ball part and a spring connector, and pretensionedly presses the first and second ball parts against the ring. Upon a collision with an obstacle, the bumpers shifts, and the shaft tilts with respect to the frame. This tilting pushes the two ball parts away from each other. The spring also tilts, as a whole, preventing plastic deformation. The spring now exerts a larger spring force on the ball parts, and, after taking away the obstacle, will move back and realign. This will also realign the sensor, ensuring a longer effective lifetime of the sensor and thus of the safety of the vehicle.

A guide frame extends along an aligned row of multilevel cages and mounting scrapers fit within a floor space between cage supports in a debris removal system in a poultry barn to be guided during advancing and retracting of the guide frames by pulling cables attached to each ends of the guide frames. Spaced pivoted scrapers are mounted extending between the sides of the guide frame which scrapers are positioned vertically when the guide frame is advanced to push debris forwardly along the floor areas between the cage supports but swing up when the guide frame is pulled back to move over collected debris. The debris is moved step by step along the guide frame by reciprocation of the scrapers mounted on the guide frame past the end of the row of cages and into a debris receiving discharge. The system may also include a guide frame with pivoted scraper blades fit to the width of a walkway between rows of cages which is also pulled in an advancing and retracting direction along the walkway floor synchronously with the cage guide frame but in a reverse direction to push debris forwardly step by step along the surface of both the floor under the row of cages and the walkway.