RU2355163C2 - Hatching unit for delivery and incubation of eggs on board of space station - Google Patents

Abstract

FIELD: agriculture.

SUBSTANCE: unit consists of at least two sections - the upper and lower one, in each of which closed holes - key trays for eggs are made, and bottom of each section has inner shelves designed for supporting and fixating sections to the wall of the previous sections. The unit has a locking device of unit's sections which consists of a stem passed through the central orifices of the section and cover, placed on the upper section, lock fixed in a slot of the lower part of the stem, rotation axis of which is placed perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the stem, ring placed on the upper part of the stem, spring fixed on the stem between two supporting elements. Air ports are made in the inner walls of each section.

EFFECT: delivery of the original animal material in the form convenient for transportation is provided, preservation of the original material, size and weight decrease of the unit.

4 cl, 6 dwg

Description

The present invention relates to devices for the delivery and incubation of poultry eggs in space conditions for scientific and applied purposes.

The task of developing devices for the delivery and incubation of poultry eggs (for example, quail eggs) in space flight conditions becomes especially urgent at the present time, when programs of long manned expeditions to the planets of the solar system, lunar expeditions with the development, creation and arrangement of lunar camps are actively discussed and developed. etc.

In this regard, the question was raised about the creation of an incubation unit for delivery on board a space station and incubation of quail eggs.

Known designs of devices for incubation and hatchery of poultry (RF patents №2253968 from 06.20.2005, IPC 7 А01К 41/00, №2246826 from 02.27.2005, IPC 7 А01К 41/00).

As the closest analogue, the design of trays (sections) for incubation of eggs was chosen, in each of which holes were made-cells for placing eggs, in addition, the side walls of each of the trays have internal ledges designed to support the bottom of subsequent trays inserted on them them as if in a nest (RF patent No. 2126203 dated 02.20.1999, IPC 6 А01К 41/00).

The main drawback of existing incubator designs for the delivery and incubation of poultry eggs in extreme space flight conditions at low gravity and loads is the structural complexity of existing incubator designs, as well as the requirements for additional power consumption of electric motors for ventilation and rotation of egg trays due to existing weight restrictions, power consumption and dimensions of equipment delivered on board the space station.

The technical result of the invention is the delivery of the original animal material (quail eggs) in a convenient form for transportation, ensuring the safety of the source material, reducing the size and weight of the product.

The technical result of the invention is achieved due to the fact that in the incubation unit for the delivery and incubation of poultry eggs on board the space station, consisting of at least two sections - upper and lower, in each of which there are blind holes-cells for placing eggs, and the bottoms of the sections have internal ledges designed to support and fix the sections on the walls of the previous sections, a fixing device for the sections of the block is introduced, consisting of a rod passed through the central through hole of the sections and the cover, flange on the upper section, from a latch installed in the slot of the lower part of the rod, the axis of rotation of which is perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the rod, from a ring located on the upper part of the rod, from a spring mounted on the rod between two thrust elements, in addition, in the outer walls each section has ventilation holes.

In addition, the sections of the incubation block are made in the form of rectangular parallelepipeds, in which blind holes are made to the entire depth of each of the parallelepipeds, and the through hole in the sections is made of different diameters with internal protrusions for stopping the rod.

The invention is illustrated by drawings.

Figure 1 shows a cross section of the incubation block; figure 2 is a top view of the block without a clamping cover; figure 3 is a cross section of the clamping cover; figure 4 is a top view of the clamping cover; figure 5 - a device for fixing sections of the incubation block; Fig.6 is a view of a quail egg in a nylon bag,

where 1 is the pressure cap;

2 - upper section;

3 - through hole;

4 - lower section;

5 - ventilation openings;

6 - cells;

7 - undercut;

8 - oval ring;

9 - axis of the ring;

10 - a core;

11 - the upper pin;

12 - upper thrust washer;

13 - spring;

14 - lower thrust washer;

15 - lower pin;

16 - the longitudinal axis of the latch;

17 - a clamp;

18 - slot;

19 - kapron bag;

20 - quail egg;

21 - protrusions of the through hole;

22 - internal ledges of the lower section;

23 - internal ledges of the clamping cover.

The incubation unit consists of a pressure cap 1, in which there is a recess 7, two sections (upper 2 and lower section 4) with ventilation holes 5, made on the outer walls of sections 2, 4, each of which has four blind holes-cells 6 made in free size in diameter and height of the quail egg 20, and the connecting fastening rod 10.

In the center of the pressure cover 1, a through hole 3 is made, which also passes through the upper 2 and lower 4 sections. The through hole in sections 2 and 4 is made of different diameters with internal protrusions 21.

On the lower side of the pressure cover 1, internal ledges 23 are made for supporting and fixing it (the cover) on the side walls of the upper section 2. The same internal ledges 22 are also available in the upper section 2 for supporting its bottom on the side walls of the lower section 4.

An oval ring 8 is fixed on the axis 9 in the upper part of the connecting fastening rod 10. In a predetermined size, the upper pin 11 is attached to the height of the connecting fastening rod 10, under which the upper thrust washer 12 is put on the diameter of the rod 10, the spring 13, the lower one is installed on the diameter of the rod 10 the end of which is closed by the lower thrust washer 14 and the lower pin 15.

In the lower part of the connecting mounting rod 10 there is a slot 18, at the end of which a latch 17 is attached to the longitudinal axis 16, the axis of rotation of which is perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the rod.

The process of preparing the incubation block for incubation of quail eggs for work is as follows.

First, quail eggs 20, previously placed in nylon bags 19, are placed in the cells of the lower section 4 of the incubation block. Then, the upper section 2 of the incubation block is placed on top of the lower section 4, and quail eggs 20 in the bags 19 are also placed in the cells, and then on the upper section 2, the pressure cover 1 is installed.

Then, a connecting fastening rod 10 is inserted from above into the central through hole 3 in the pressing cover 1 and in the upper section 2, the latch 17 located in the slot 18 of the lower part of the connecting fastening rod 10 is previously deployed in a vertical state, and the connecting fastening rod 10 is held through section to the stop of the oval ring 8. In this case, the lower thrust washer 14, abutting the protrusions of the through hole 21, brings the spring 13 into a predetermined compressed state, and the latch 17 extends outward below the base Ia bottom of the lower section 4. The retainer 17 is then unfolded along the axis 16 by an angle of 90 ° and remove the force with oval ring 8. Thus, due to the elasticity of the spring 13, there is retention of the whole structure of the incubation block in working condition.

Next, the entire incubation unit assembly by holding the oval ring 8 of the connecting fastening rod 10 is inserted into the thermostat, then the oval ring 8 is turned to the side along the axis 9 of the oval ring 8 at a 90 ° angle and fits into the undercut 7 of the pressure cover 1.

After this, the thermostat lid closes tightly, the operating mode with a temperature of 38 ° C is established and the process of incubation of quail eggs begins.

During the incubation of quail eggs in order to ventilate them, the operator (in this case the astronaut) periodically (several times a day) opens the thermostat cover and removes the incubation unit from the thermostat for 1-2 minutes. In addition, during incubation of quail eggs, the operator (astronaut) turns the quail eggs once every two days. To carry out this operation, the astronaut takes out the incubation block from the thermostat, disassembles it and, in turn, takes out quail eggs from the cells of each section for the free end of the nylon bag; then the quail eggs are carefully removed from the nylon bag, turned over and again placed in nylon bags and section cells. Then the incubation unit is again collected and installed in a thermostat.

The proposed unit for thermostating of quail eggs in space is structurally made of lightweight heat-conducting aluminum alloy AMg-6, the surface of the unit is additionally protected from corrosion by a layer obtained by deep anodizing of surfaces to prevent oxidation in contact with moisture, which increases the reliability of the device and the duration of its operation . The connecting fixing rod together with the spring are made of stainless steel.

Thus, the proposed unit is small in size, easy to manufacture and made of affordable and inexpensive materials, convenient for transportation and ensures the safety of animal material delivered on board the space station. The total weight of the two refueling sections is 450 g.

In RSC Energia, two incubation blocks for eight quail eggs were developed, designed and manufactured for incubation and removal of embryos from quail eggs in a thermostat.

The first experimental incubation unit was delivered on board the space station, and the second incubation complex (control) was transferred for the experiment to the IBMP (Institute of Biomedical Problems).

As a result of the experiment, the following results were obtained: for the first time in the spacecraft’s weightlessness it was possible to obtain fully formed embryos of quail chicks, and the incubation period in the thermostat at 38 ° C was three weeks (in terrestrial conditions - two weeks).

Claims (4)

1. An incubation unit for the delivery and incubation of poultry eggs on board the space station, characterized by the fact that it consists of at least two sections - the upper and lower sections, in each of which blind holes are made for the placement of eggs and the bottom of each of the sections have internal ledges designed to support and fix the sections on the walls of the previous sections, characterized in that a block section fixing device is introduced into it, consisting of a rod passed through the central through hole of the sections and the cover, flange on the upper section, from a latch installed in the slot of the lower part of the rod, the axis of rotation of which is perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the rod, from a ring located on the upper part of the rod, from a spring mounted on the rod between two thrust elements, in addition, in the outer walls each section has ventilation holes. 2. The incubation block according to claim 1, characterized in that the sections are made in the form of rectangular parallelepipeds. 3. The incubation unit according to claim 1, characterized in that the blind holes in the sections are made to the entire depth of each of the parallelepipeds. 4. The incubation unit according to claim 1, characterized in that the through hole in the sections is made of different diameters with internal protrusions for stopping the rod.

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