Milking machines and use thereof

A milking machine having a milk line to a milk receiver through which a vacuum is drawn, said machine being operable in (i) a milking mode and in (ii) a cleaning mode, said milking machine comprising:

• a cleaning line for cleaning fluid to be introduced into said milk line through an expansion region,
• and, when the machine is in said cleaning mode, cleaning fluid in said cleaning line is caused to move under the action of a gas impulse into the cleaning fluid from said cleaning line into said milk line through said expansion region, and said gas impulse into the cleaning fluid is caused solely by an induction of ambient air at ambient pressure under the action of said vacuum in the milk line.

A milking machine having a milk line to a milk receiver through which a vacuum is drawn, said machine being operable in (i) a milking mode and in (ii) a cleaning mode, said milking machine comprising:

• a cleaning line for cleaning fluid to be introduced into said milk line through an expansion region,
• and, when the machine is in said cleaning mode, cleaning fluid in said cleaning line is caused to move under the action of a gas impulse into the cleaning fluid and from said cleaning line into said milk line through an expansion region, and
• said cleaning line having at least a rising region spaced from a gas impulse injection region, so as to achieve at least one of pooling and flooding to ensure a sufficient quantity of the cleaning liquid being positioned between the incoming gas and the milk line.

A milking machine having a milk line to a milk receiver through which a vacuum is drawn, said machine being operable in (i) a milking mode and in (ii) a cleaning mode, said milking machine comprising:

• a cleaning line for cleaning fluid to be introduced into said milk line through an expansion region,
• and, when the machine is in said cleaning mode, cleaning fluid in said cleaning line is caused to move under the action of a gas impulse into the cleaning fluid and from said cleaning line into said milk line through said expansion region, and
• a flow restrictor being positioned between a region where the impulse gas is injected and a source of the cleaning liquid for the cleaning line such that even in the absence of any gas injection there is in the cleaning mode a flow of said cleaning liquid into at least the cleaning line.