Click here to learn
about this Sponsor:
Home  |  News  |  Articles  |  Polls  |  Forum

Keywords: Match:
Device Profile: DeLaval Voluntary Milking System
(Oct. 21, 2005)

A 122-year-old dairy equipment company has used embedded Linux in a robotic cow-milking system (the system is robotic, not the cows). The Voluntary Milking System (VMS) allows cows to decide when to be milked, and gives dairy farmers a more independent lifestyle, free from regular milkings, the company says.

DeLaval was started in 1883 by Swedish inventor Gustaf de Laval. It sells a variety of dairy supply and "cow comfort" products aimed at increasing dairy yields. It claims to lead the automatic milking machine market, with a 53 percent share, and says it has sold more than 1,000 VMSs, in all European countries, Canada, Japan, and Mexico.

According to DeLaval, a single VMS can milk a herd of 60 cows three times per day.

When a cow decides to be milked, she enters an entry lock where she is identified. If a sufficient amount of time has elapsed since her last milking, the cow is allowed to enter and given a dietary concentrate. A multipurpose robotic arm then extends underneath the cow and, guided by laser and photo sensors, cleans and dries each teat before attaching vacuum milking cups.

Milk flow, quantity, and milking time are monitored individually for each of the cow's four teats, and compared with historical values. Discrepancies are reported, and can be early indicators of illness or injury, the company says.

After milking, the vacuum cup lines are retracted, and the robotic arm sprays the cow's underside with a disinfectant solution. The gate then opens, releasing the cow to the feeding area, and the VMS system cleans itself before allowing the next cow to enter.

Delaval offers videos of the process, in various resolutions.

What's under the hood


Advantech's PCM-5820
(Click to enlarge)
The VMS is powered by an Advantech PCM-5820, a 3.5-inch single-board computer (SBC) with an AMD Geode GX1 processor clocked at 200MHz. The board features 10/100 Ethernet, VGA and LVDS LCD ports, a CompactFlash socket, and PC/104 expansion.

The VMS uses 64MB of RAM, and boots from a 40GB hard drive -- only 1 percent of which is actually used, according to Hans Hansson, DeLaval's technical manager of process management. The embedded computer interfaces with the robotic arm and other VMS subsystems using serial ports, while Ethernet connectivity allows remote monitoring.

Software side

The VMS is based on a 2.4.18 kernel with ext3 and some real-time extensions added, Hansson says. The filesystem is derived from Red Hat 7.3, and the graphical user interface is based on xfree86.

According to Hansson, early versions of VMS were based on an M68K CPU board, running OS9. "Later on we changed to an industrial standard PC-board," he says. "Along with that we also changed operating system. We went for Linux since some of us had worked with it and we believed that moving from OS9 to Linux would be rather easy."

DeLaval did most of the work porting Linux to the VMS itself, Hansson says. However, it did hire external personnel to write some device drivers, he adds.

Hansson says the move to Linux worked out very well, and that no serious challenges arose during the process of migrating from OS9 to Linux. The company would gladly use Linux again in future products.



Related Stories:

(Click here for further information)


FUEL Database on MontaVista Linux
Whether building a mobile handset, a car navigation system, a package tracking device, or a home entertainment console, developers need capable software systems, including an operating system, development tools, and supporting libraries, to gain maximum benefit from their hardware platform and to meet aggressive time-to-market goals.

Breaking New Ground: The Evolution of Linux Clustering
With a platform comprising a complete Linux distribution, enhanced for clustering, and tailored for HPC, Penguin Computing¿s Scyld Software provides the building blocks for organizations from enterprises to workgroups to deploy, manage, and maintain Linux clusters, regardless of their size.

Data Monitoring with NightStar LX
Unlike ordinary debuggers, NightStar LX doesn¿t leave you stranded in the dark. It¿s more than just a debugger, it¿s a whole suite of integrated diagnostic tools designed for time-critical Linux applications to reduce test time, increase productivity and lower costs. You can debug, monitor, analyze and tune with minimal intrusion, so you see real execution behavior. And that¿s positively illuminating.

Virtualizing Service Provider Networks with Vyatta
This paper highlights Vyatta's unique ability to virtualize networking functions using Vyatta's secure routing software in service provider environments.

High Availability Messaging Solution Using AXIGEN, Heartbeat and DRBD
This white paper discusses a high-availability messaging solution relying on the AXIGEN Mail Server, Heartbeat and DRBD. Solution architecture and implementation, as well as benefits of using AXIGEN for this setup are all presented in detail.

Understanding the Financial Benefits of Open Source
Will open source pay off? Open source is becoming standard within enterprises, often because of cost savings. Find out how much of a financial impact it can have on your organization. Get this methodology and calculator now, compliments of JBoss.

Embedded Hardware and OS Technology Empower PC-Based Platforms
The modern embedded computer is the jack of all trades appearing in many forms.

Data Management for Real-Time Distributed Systems
This paper provides an overview of the network-centric computing model, data distribution services, and distributed data management. It then describes how the SkyBoard integration and synchronization service, coupled with an implementation of the OMG¿s Data Distribution Service (DDS) standard, can be used to create an efficient data distribution, storage, and retrieval system.

7 Advantages of D2D Backup
For decades, tape has been the backup medium of choice. But, now, disk-to-disk (D2D) backup is gaining in favor. Learn why you should make the move in this whitepaper.

 


Got a HOT tip?   please tell us!
Free weekly newsletter
Enter your email...
Click here for a profile of each sponsor:
PLATINUM SPONSORS
(Become a sponsor)
GOLD SPONSORS
(Become a sponsor)
(Become a sponsor)

ADVERTISEMENT
(Advertise here)

Check out the latest Linux powered...

Mobile phones!

MIDs, UMPCs
& tablets

Mobile devices

Other cool
gadgets



Resource Library

• Unix, Linux Uptime and Reliability Increase: Patch Management Woes Plague Windows Yankee Group survey finds IBM AIX Unix is highest in ...
• Scalable, Fault-Tolerant NAS for Oracle - The Next Generation For several years NAS has been evolving as a storage ...
• Managing Software Intellectual Property in an Open Source World This whitepaper draws on the experiences of the Black Duck ...
• Open Source Security Myths Dispelled Is it risky to trust mission-critical infrastructure to open source ...
• Bringing IT Operations Management to Open Source & Beyond Download this IDC analyst report to learn how open source ...


BREAKING NEWS

• Superscalar ARM SoC runs Linux
• "Zubuntu" keeps Zaurus spirit alive
• i.MX515 targets Linux netbooks
• Palm "Nova" Linux set for CES debut?
• German Linux integrator launches workshops
• In memorium: Thiemo Seufer
• Browser for Linux devices hits second alpha
• OpenSUSE changes licenses
• "...and I'm Linux" contest nears
• COM Express module sports Atom
• Half-U net appliance runs Linux
• Targeting virtual hardware
• Samsung to ship Android phone in Q2?
• ARM, x86 duel in MID warfare
• Development bounties offered for open source STB


Most popular stories -- past 90 days:
• Linux boots in 2.97 seconds
• Tiniest Linux system, yet?
• Linux powers "cloud" gaming console
• Report: T-Mobile sells out first 1.5 million G1s
• Open set-top box ships
• E17 adapted to Linux devices, demo'd on Treo650
• Android debuts
• First ALP Linux smartphone?
• Cortex-A8 gaming handheld runs Linux
• Ubuntu announces ARM port


DesktopLinux headlines:

Also visit our sister site:


Sign up for LinuxDevices.com's...

news feed

Home  |  News  |  Articles  |  Polls  |  Forum  |  About  |  Contact
 

Ziff Davis Enterprise Home | Contact Us | Advertise | Link to Us | Reprints | Magazine Subscriptions | Newsletters
Tech RSS Feeds | White Papers | ROI Calculators | Tech Podcasts | Tech Video | VARs | Channel News

Baseline | Careers | Channel Insider | CIO Insight | DesktopLinux | DeviceForge | DevSource | eSeminars |
eWEEK | Enterprise Network Security | LinuxDevices | Linux Watch | Microsoft Watch | Mid-market | Networking | PDF Zone |
Publish | Security IT Hub | Strategic Partner | Web Buyer's Guide | Windows for Devices

Developer Shed | Dev Shed | ASP Free | Dev Articles | Dev Hardware | SEO Chat | Tutorialized | Scripts |
Code Walkers | Web Hosters | Dev Mechanic | Dev Archives | igrep

Use of this site is governed by our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. Except where otherwise specified, the contents of this site are copyright © 1999-2008 Ziff Davis Enterprise Holdings Inc. All Rights Reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission of Ziff Davis Enterprise is prohibited. Linux is a registered trademark of Linus Torvalds. All other marks are the property of their respective owners.