Modular poultry automatic vaccine injection and spray apparatus

An automatic injection apparatus for injecting vaccine and the like into chicks including a housing defining a hypodermic needle aperture and including at least one syringe in fluid communication with a vaccine supply and a hypodermic needle in fluid communication with said syringe, drive means for reciprocating said needle from within said housing through the aperture to penetrate chicks outside said housing, for injecting vaccine from said syringe through said needle into the chick and for aspirating vaccine from said vaccine supply into said syringe, said drive means comprising:

• a fluid driven cylinder/piston assembly with a cylinder movably mounted in said housing and a piston movably mounted in said cylinder, said needle responsive to the movement of said piston to extend through the aperture of said housing, and said syringe responsive to the movement of said cylinder to dispense vaccine to said needle, so that when a chick is positioned adjacent the aperture and the cylinder/piston assembly is expanded, the needle is extended through the aperture and penetrates the chick and vaccine is dispensed through the needle to the chick wherein said housing includes a sloped work surface on which the chick to be vaccinated is placed, said aperture located in the work surface, a switch means mounted on said housing for actuating said drive means, said switch means comprising:
• a switch housing including first and second abutment surfaces facing said aperture;
• and
• first and second moveable switch actuator means mounted in said switch housing and protruding from said abutment surfaces, said switch means adapted to actuate said drive means when both said first and second actuator means are simultaneously moved by a chick which has been placed by an operator into engagement with both abutment surfaces, whereby when both said movable switch actuator means are simultaneously moved by the chick, said drive means is activated, and the chick is inoculated.

An automatic injection apparatus for injecting vaccine and the like into chicks comprising:

• a housing defining a hypodermic needle aperture, said housing containing at least one syringe and a hypodermic needle in fluid communication with said syringe, and drive means for reciprocating said needle to move said needle from within said housing through the aperture to penetrate chicks outside said housing and for injecting vaccine from the syringe through said needle into the chicks;
• switch means mounted on said housing for actuating said drive means;
• and
• purging means for passing compressed air through said switch means before and after each injection which prevents said switch means from becoming clogged by feathers, dirt and the like during operation of the apparatus.

An automatic injection apparatus for injecting vaccine and the like into chicks comprising:

• a housing defining a hypodermic needle aperture, said housing containing at least one syringe and a hypodermic needle in fluid communication with said syringe, and drive means for reciprocating said needle to move said needle from within said housing through the aperture to penetrate chicks outside said housing and for injecting vaccine from the syringe through said needle into the chicks;
• switch means mounted on said housing for actuating said drive means;
• a compressed air source;
• a counter in fluid communication with said compressed air source and adapted to count each inoculation and provide a compressed air signal upon completion of a predetermined number of counts,
• said switch means including a housing, and alarm means mounted within said switch housing and responsive to said compressed air signal for generating an alarm detectable by the operator for notifying the operator of the completion of a predetermined number of inoculations;
• and
• exhaust means for directing the compressed air from said alarm means into said switch housing so that the housing is flushed by the air of feathers, dirt and the like.

An automatic injection apparatus for injecting vaccine and the like into chicks including a housing defining a hypodermic needle aperture and including first and second syringes in communication with first and second vaccine supplies, a hypodermic needle in fluid communication with said first syringe, a spray apparatus mounted on said housing and in fluid communication with said second syringe, and drive means for reciprocating said needle to move said needle from within said housing through the aperture to penetrate chicks outside said housing, for injecting vaccine from said first syringe through the needle into the chicks, for spraying vaccine from said second syringe through the spray apparatus onto the chicks and for aspirating vaccine from said first and second vaccine supplies into said first and second syringes, said drive means comprising:

• a fluid driven cylinder/piston assembly with a cylinder movably mounted in said housing and a piston movably mounted in said cylinder, said needle responsive to the movement of said piston to extend through the aperture of said housing, and both of said first and second syringes actuated by the movement of said cylinder to dispense vaccine to said needle and to said spray apparatus, so that when a chick is positioned adjacent the aperture and the cylinder/piston assembly is expanded, the needle is extended through the aperture and penetrates the chick and vaccine is dispensed to the chick through both the needle and the spray apparatus.