Rancang Bangun Alat Pemerah Susu Sapi Otomatis dengan Pulsator Tipe Pegas

Abstract

Milk is an important commodity for improving people nutrition. The main source of milk production is dairy cow. In Indonesia, milk production is dominated by local dairy herdsmen who are still applying milking manually by hand. Actually local dairy herdsmen can use milking machine which is built simple and appropriate with common components. This study aims at design and build automatic milking machine with spring type pulsator. This milking machine can be used by smallscale dairy herdsmen because it is easy to use and maintaince. By using this milking machine, milk is also expexted to be more hygienic. The main components to make up this milking machine are teat cups, spring type pulsator, DC Motor, AC-DC regulator, vacuum pump, milkcan, and frame. The specific distinction of this milking machine with the modern milking machine is no need a claw to connect 4 milk tubes on teat cups with 4 pulse tubes on pulsator. Claw’s function is not replaced by any component, but the milkcan itself is made as direct vacuum reservoir. Power source to run this milking machine is entirely using electricity. Vacuum pump requires 250 watt power to produce vacuum pressure up to 50 kPa at milkcan as vacuum reservoir. And DC motor requires DC voltage at 3-12 V with current 5A to drive the pulsator. Spring type pulsator can produce pulsation rate 60 cycle per minute with pulse ratio 2.5:1, which means the resting phase on teat cups is 2.5 times longer than massage phase. Testing result revealed that the performance of the machine has not produced milk as expexted. Vacuum flow rate which is produced by pump is less efficient if it works at very short time interval. While the resting phase, the pulsation chamber has just begun to connect with vacuum and the interval 5/7 second is too short to produce enough vacuum in order to open the teat cup liners. It is because the vacuum flow rate is nullified at a moment before, while the massage phase running.