Note on a portable simulator for analysis of milking machine performance

A portable flow simulator was developed for recording vacuum variations in commercial milking machine clusters. The cluster in the milking unit under evaluation was mounted on the frame of the simulator and the flow of water through each liner was regulated by separate flow meters. By placing an artificial teat into the liners the flow characteristics during actual milking were simulated. Measurement vacuum sensors were mounted in the claw, in one artificial teat, in the pulsation chamber and in the milk pipeline. Analog and digital outputs were recorded. The system was validated by comparing the outputs with those obtained with a laboratory flow simulator and with recordings taken during cow milking. The recordings with the portable simulator and the laboratory simulator were identical; the profiles of the analogue signals obtained with the portable simulator and from cow milking were similar. The portable flow simulator will allow recording of vacuum variations in commercial milking machines during simulated or actual milking.