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Brake Application Can Keep Cows Happy. WHO MOO?

Who knew that a rotary gate brake design could help keep dairy cows happy, comfortable, and more productive – while solving a real problem for dairy farmers? BouMatic, a Wisconsin manufacturer of cow-milking equipment, got the answer by turning to Mach III Clutch Inc.

When presented with a rotary gate that crashed down on cows when they exited the milking stalls at dairy farms, Mach III applied the brake to the problem. Before contacting Mach III, BouMatic had initially attempted to use a hydraulic ram, but adjusting the flow controls for the proper speed was difficult. If air entered the hydraulic ram, it threw off the braking of the reel.

Mach III worked with BouMatic’s engineering department for several weeks after they were presented with the problem by a Wisconsin distributor, Techmaster, Inc. BouMatic needed a brake to hold both the closed and open positions of a rotary gate in the cow-milking parlor. The brake prevents the gate from rotating in the event one or more cows would push against it during the milking process. If the gate rotated, it would crash down on the other cows in the stall.

Lesli Riehemann, President , Mach III, says the Company quickly recognized one of the unique challenges it would face in developing the right brake for the job.

“Determining the proper torque requirement involved estimating the amount of force a cow was capable of applying to the gate. BouMatic opted for a 5” and 6” diameter, double-disc standard brake that was not covered or sealed. As the brakes were located inside an enclosure, we believed they would have enough protection from moisture to allow proper function.”

The exit system on the stall milking system is a balanced reel that makes a 180-degree turn to provide exit for the cows from the milking parlor. The reel is turned by using an air cylinder attached to a ratcheting sprocket through the use of a roller chain. This cylinder turns the sprocket that is on the shaft to rotate the reel.

Once the reel is turned approximately 90 degrees, air is applied to the brake to stop the reel in the horizontal position, allowing the cows to walk out. After 5 to 10 seconds, the air brake releases and the reel slowly rotates the last 90 degrees to provide entry for another group of cows.

After supplying these standard brake models for some 12 months, BouMatic began to receive customer complaints concerning brake failure and limited torque capacity. The Company shipped a number of the failed brakes back to Mach III for evaluation.

Quickly realizing that rusting and corrosion were clearly causing problems, Riehemann met with a BouMatic engineer and the distributor to review the problem and discuss possible solutions. An on-site inspection was also conducted at a dairy farm where the brakes were installed. This provided a better feel for the actual environmental conditions in which the brakes were performing.

It was determined that, despite the enclosure on the gate, the equipment was being exposed to wash down with hoses and power sprayers. Water was finding its way into the brake assembly, contaminating the friction linings and, ultimately, causing brake failure.

One possible solution would have been to manufacture the same brake utilizing corrosion-resistant materials such as stainless steel, and to provide improved enclosure. Unfortunately, this answer would have cost three times more than the standard design, an untenable cost increase.

Mach III engineers went back to work to produce an enclosed brake design, utilizing standard materials, in both the 5” and 6” sizes. To address the issue of inadequate torque, the surface area of the piston was increased and a third disc was added.

This design was executed without adding to the overall length. It also doubled torque capacity, while increasing cost by only ten percent. The re-designed, enclosed brake models have now been successfully utilized on BouMatic equipment for the past four years.

Soon after supplying the new covered and sealed brakes to BouMatic, an engineer in Holland contacted the company about brakes for a chain conveyor at a processing facility in Indiana. Mach III provided a prototype within 48 hours. The Company delivered 55 covered and sealed 8¨ diameter brakes within two months.

Although similar to BouMatic’s, these brakes carried the requirement that they be electroless nickel-plated, and that the aluminum components be anodized to meet food safety standards.

Riehemann points out that covered and sealed Mach III clutches can be found in automobile car washes at thousands of gas stations across the United States. There are also enclosed Mach III products integral to machinery utilized in producing and packaging Kraft cheese, Cloverhill Bakery pastries, Jack Link’s beef jerky, and Minute Maid juices.

Requests for Mach III quotes are always met with a single question: “Is this for a new or existing application?” New inquiries are sent to the engineer team, who continue to ask questions. If a catalog product suits the application, the initial work is complete.

“We typically have a new design finalized within a week of the initial inquiry and deliver the product in 3 to 4 weeks,” says Riehemann. “Customers are pleasantly surprised by the prices at which we offer our specialty products. Henry Ford certainly would not have approved of our manufacturing model, but it’s been working for us for nearly 45 years, so we figure we must be doing something right.”

Dairy cows and farmers certainly agree.