Computerized Feeder Works On Pasture

Computerized Feeder Works On Pasture DAIRY EQUIPMENT & IDEAS Dairy Equipment & Ideas 19-1-17 An experimental, high-tech, mobile concentrate feeder for cows on pasture delivers the same precision as in-barn concentrate feeders, say researchers at Penn State University who developed it. The solar-powered system consists of a Farmtronix computer-controlled feeding system, a feed station, and individual animal transponders. It's fitted with a 2 1/2-ton grain bin that only needs refilling every 10 or 12 days and 6-ft. long stall gates of 16-ga. steel that can be folded back during transport. Photovoltaic cells and solar panels generate DC power. The feeder is 11.7 ft. high by 7.8 ft. wide. Wheelbase is 9 ft. It's pulled with a tractor. The unit measures out up to 12 feedings a day to each cow. A transponder around each cow's neck tells the system's computer how much feed she's allowed. The feeder puts out only about 3/4 lb. per minute. If it's ever manufactured, the system should be priced competitively with similar stationary systems, in the $8,000 to $10,000 range, they project. Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Dennis Buckmaster, 230 Agricultural Engineering Building, Penn State University, University Park, Pa. 16802 (ph 814 865-3392).

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