Apparatus for collecting semen
AssigneeHaico Oy
InventorJukka Lindholm-Ventola
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A collector funnel connected between an artificial vagina and a semen receiving unit, for animal breeding, has inner and outer jackets with an annular substantially gas-tight volume between the jackets. The inner jacket is made of resilient material and a partial vacuum is created in the annular volume to stretch the inner jacket so that it becomes smooth. The temperature within the annular volume may be regulated by intermittently or continuously passing a heating fluid at a temperature of greater than 30.degree. C. through the annular volume, or by selectively operating electric heating elements disposed in the annular volume. The inner jacket may be disposable, i.e. replaced with a new inner jacket after one use. The annular volume between the jackets typically has a width of between about 5-10 mm.
Claims20
A collector funnel for conducting semen from an artificial vagina to a semen-receiving unit, comprising:
- a body having an upper end and a lower end, and curving primarily downwardly from said upper end to said lower end while simultaneously narrowing;
- a first, semen receiving opening at said upper end having a first cross-sectional area;
- a second, discharge opening at said lower end, said discharge opening having a second cross-sectional area smaller than said first cross-sectional area;
- said body comprising an outer jacket and an inner jacket of substantially the same shape as said outer jacket but having a smaller cross-sectional area, both said inner and outer jackets extending substantially between said first and second openings;
- said inner jacket made of a resilient material and disposed within said outer jacket to define an annular substantially gas-tight volume between said inner and outer jackets;
- and
- means for evacuating air from said substantially gas-tight volume to provide a partial vacuum in said volume between said jackets so as to maintain said inner jacket resilient material substantially smooth by stretching it toward said outer jacket.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.