The Design and Installation of an Antenna Station in the Return Alley of the Milking Parlor

Two antenna stations were designed, installed in the return alleys of the milking parlor of the University of Illinois dairy farm, and tested over a three-month period to automatically identify cows passing through the alleys after each milking. This article describes the design procedure and lab tests conducted to obtain a sensor antenna installation which would detect each working transponder automatically on cows passing through the station in the return alleys. The system was specifically designed for integrating with electronic scales for automatic acquisition of body weights as cows exited the milking parlor.