Feed speed based on milk speed is a key feature in Lely's system, ensuring that cows are fed at an optimal rate according to their milking time and milk yield.

How It Works

During a milking visit, feed is dispensed in small portions throughout the entire visit. One portion in the A3 is generally 60 grams and for A4 and A5 this is set on 30 grams.
Please note that feed portions need to be regularly calibrated to feed accurately.

If a cow's milking time is 5 minutes and she is allowed to eat 1.5 kg of concentrates, her feed speed will be 300 grams per minute (1.5 kg / 5 minutes). In the feed type settings of Lely Horizon, the maximum feed speed can be specified. Feed speed and the maximum visit amount are always the primary factors.

This means that if, according to the milking time and the amount of concentrate, a cow should receive 600 grams per minute, this will not occur if the maximum feed speed is set at 400 grams per minute.

In this way, Horizon always makes sure the cow is protected by limitations and boundaries, to prevent a high amount of concentrates given to the cow at once.

Settings in Horizon

The feed speed can be adjusted via the feed type settings in Lely Horizon. To optimize the robot visit for cows with a high box time and low milk speed, the option “feed speed based on milk speed” can be put on “Yes”. In that case, the Astronaut will dose the feed slower and according to the cows’ milk speed.

Cows with a very high milk speed will be fed at max feed speed, but they will not benefit from this setting, as the maximum feed speed will never be exceeded.

For these cows, priority feeding could be an option, as this is making sure that the cow is able to eat her full portion, even when her milking time is finished.
Remember that this impacts robot capacity and should be taken into consideration before putting cows on priority feeding.

Feed speed based on milk speed can be activated per feed type and for the whole herd, or specifically per group by using the dropdown. For example, heifers have a smaller mouth and therefore they may eat slower, you could consider lowering the feed speed for heifers.

Or what about the type of feed? If you’re feeding a granulate, this is a bit more difficult to eat, therefore a lower feed speed could benefit the cow.

Important Notes

The feed speed is only applicable to the Astronaut, and not the Cosmix or Titania.

In the calculation, only the milking time is considered, not the total box time (e.g. pre- and post-treatment time).

The feed speed will not fluctuate during the milking process. Therefore, if the milk speed increases during milking, the feed speed will remain constant.

Formula Reference

Milk speed (kg/min) = milk yield / (box time in seconds (end time-start time) * 60)

Feed speed (gr/min) = Total programmed concentrates Astronaut / (Daily milk yield last 7 days / Average milk speed last 7 days) * 1000

Feed Speed with Multiple Feed Types

When feeding multiple types of feed at different speeds, the feed speed is calculated individually for each type. These settings are then sent to the Astronaut, which doses each feed type according to its specific settings.

This means each feed type can have a unique feed speed, and they are always dosed alternately (e.g., A – B – A – B, etc).

If one feed type is in a higher quantity than the other, it will be dosed twice as often.
For example:
If Feed A = 2 kg and Feed B = 1 kg, the dosing pattern will be:
A – A – B – A – A – B – A – A - B, and so on.