Abstract: A piston and cylinder arrangement for opening and closing entrance or exit doors or both in a milking compartment of a fully automated milking system. The piston and cylinder arrangement comprises an elongated cylinder having two pistons connected in tandem to an elongated piston rod. The cylinder is hermetically divided into two cylindrical portions each containing one of the pistons. The piston acts against a liquid in one portion and in the other portion the piston is actuated by pneumatic pressure. The piston rod is extended through the end of the cylinder and is connected to open and close an entrance door. The cylindrical portion containing the liquid has the liquid on both sides of the piston connected by a check-valve and a by-pass valve. To block movement of the pistons, the by-pass valve is retained in a closed position by pneumatic pressure from a supply of pressurized gas for actuating the piston in the pneumatic side of the cylinder.

Abstract: An apparatus for automatically milking animals, is provided with a milking robot which includes a robot arm that carries teat cups, each teat cup being carried in its own housing in a supporting element in the robot arm. When the teat cups are in an inoperative position, the openings on their upper sides are shielded by the supporting element. Each robot arm portion comprises a plurality of housings, one for each teat cup. Piston and cylinder members are disposed in each housing to move the teat cups from their shielded inoperative position to an open operative position under the teats of the animal to be milked and then upwardly to connect the teat cups to the teats of the animal to be milked. Thereafter the supporting element is lowered and the teat cups which remain on the teats are connected thereto only by flexible members.