Cow milking robots

Swedish company DeLaval specializes in "cow comfort" products including the Voluntary Milking System. You see, a cozy independent cow is a happy cow and that makes for an increase in milk yield, dig?  The VMS is powered by embedded Linux 2.4.18 running on an AMD Geode GX1 200MHz processor — a single system can milk a herd of 60 cows three times a day. This gives farmers more time to kick back, relax and presumably drunk-milk their friends and pets. When the cow feels the need, she enters the stall where a laser and photo-sensor guided robotic arm searches for, cleans, and then milks each of the four teats. Milk flow, quantity and time is monitored and compared to historical data as early indicators of illness or injury. Be sure to check out the vids for plenty of hot lactating bovine action.

[Ed @ Dec 19th 2005 2:06AM]

Would you like me to sing it to you, Dave?
Yes HAL, sing it to me.
"Daisy, Daisy, tell me your answer true..."

[dreampc @ Dec 19th 2005 2:06AM]

...and in a related story, local bulls are lining up to be "milked" but state their purpose is merely to UNDERSTAND the labors of milking that their counter-parts must endure.

[Dale @ Dec 19th 2005 2:06AM]

Wish we had these when I was growing up on a dairy farm.
Sure beats dealing with cows on a very cold winter morning.

[skype_fan @ Dec 19th 2005 2:06AM]

Finally FREE MILK for everybody :D

[Ian @ Dec 19th 2005 2:06AM]

I must say, the video was really very good. Cleaned up my reservations about this product.

[Andrew B @ Dec 19th 2005 2:06AM]

People underestimate the hardships involved in dairy farming. I barely make it to my 8am class at college; I'd hate to have to wake up at 4!

[Andrew B @ Dec 19th 2005 2:06AM]

Wow, that video has higher production quality than most of what's comign out of Holywood these days!

[theSAWzall @ Dec 19th 2005 2:06AM]

May I be the first to welcome our lactate-loving overlords.

[the_duke @ Dec 19th 2005 2:06AM]

Cows Milking Robots!?!?! I didn't know robots gave milk???

[YourTechSupport @ Dec 19th 2005 2:06AM]

A cow milking machine, running linux. It's bovine -freindly, self-cleaning, and.... stimulates the cow. It also helps monitor the cows health. The only this could be cooler, even from a non-farming perspective, is if it could be used somehow to play Quake.

[Bruce Allen @ Dec 19th 2005 2:06AM]

Another guy who grew up on a farm here, my dad still runs it, a system like this sure would make things easier for him. Very cool.

[Rayner @ Dec 19th 2005 2:06AM]

They have plenty more cool vids on that site.

My personal favorites are the Cow Comfort vids. Especially the DeLaval swinging cow brush. Man that looks good ... :P

[Wry Cooter @ Dec 19th 2005 2:06AM]

What's it doing Saturday night?

[Yosh @ Dec 19th 2005 2:06AM]

That's amazing. I'm extremely bored, so I've been browsing the various videos they have to offer. Very revolutionary. Increased profits of 33k (euro)? Wow.