Precision drives performance in automatic feeding. From forage loading to mineral delivery, every ingredient in a ration matters, and that is why frequent calibration of the Lely Vector automatic feeding system is important.
Mineral calibration is one of the most important, and sometimes overlooked, components of maintaining the Lely Vector automatic feeding system.
Why Mineral Accuracy Matters
Minerals, vitamins, and additives are often among the most expensive ingredients in dairy rations. Even small inaccuracies over time can impact both herd performance and operating costs.
Improperly calibrated mineral bins can lead to under- or over-delivery of ingredients, creating ripple effects throughout the herd.
Think of it from a human perspective. If we go without the proper amount of vitamins and minerals, our bodies start to do strange things. It’s the same concept with cows.
You can also compare it to high-performing athletes.
If athletes aren’t maintaining the proper balance of vitamins and minerals, performance suffers. Dairy cows are high-performance athletes, and we need to treat them as such.
Signs Something May Be Off
In many cases, mineral inconsistencies are difficult to spot immediately. One visible warning sign farmers may notice is excessive licking behavior in the herd, which can indicate a salt deficiency.
Beyond visible signs, inaccurate mineral delivery may quietly contribute to reduced milk production, inconsistent feed intake, metabolic challenges, or long-term herd health concerns.
How Often Should Mineral Bins Be Calibrated?
Calibration should be done when you start with any new type of additive, after any major humidity change, if you notice a change in consistency in a new bag, or at least once per month.
The calibration process is pretty simple. You need to take the system out of operation and back the MFR out of the way. Grab a bucket and a scale, tare the scale with the empty bucket. Then activate the calibration of the desired mineral bin, and let it dispense until it stops itself. Weigh the bucket with the dispensed mineral, and input the number of grams it weighed. The software will take this number and break it down into the number of grams per auger rotation, which is tracked via a pulse sensor.
There are a few things to keep in mind when calibrating a mineral bin.
- The first one is right from a fresh installation to make sure the layout of the auger is correct. If an auger system is too steep, this can cause run back of the product being dispensed and will cause inconsistencies on the number of grams delivered per pulse.
- The next thing is to ensure that the auger is properly prefilled prior to entering the calibration weight. If you do the calibration and the auger is not fully prefilled, it will cause an over delivery of product when the auger pipe does eventually fill up.
- The last thing is ensuring that the auger pipes do not acquire buildup. This should be inspected during scheduled maintenance, but it is a good idea to know what to look for. If a product being delivered is a stickier substance, this can build up on the inside of the auger pipe and can cause rotational inconsistencies with the auger. If that inconsistency gets too large, the system will recognize it and fail calibration. It is tracking the time between pulses to make sure there is consistency in the auger rotation.
Calibrate the Additives Dispenser (frequency pulse)
Tools needed:
- Bucket for 3 to 6 kg (6.6 to 13 lb).
- Scale with accuracy in grams.
Preparation
- Take the Feed Kitchen out of Operation (see ‘Put the feed kitchen in the filling mode with the console’ on page 5-4 in the Operator's Manual.)
- To make sure the Mixing and Feeding Robot does not return during calibration, switch off the Mixing and Feeding Robot with the key (see ‘Switch off the Mixing and Feeding Robot with the Key’ (MFR 2) on Page 5-11 in the Operator's Manual).
Calibrate
- Make sure the transport pipe with the spring auger is completely filled with the additive. If necessary, fill the transport pipe (see ‘Fill the Additives Dispenser (freq. pulse)’ on page 5-30 in the Operator's Manual).
- Hold a clean bucket under the drop pipe.
- Connect the smartphone to the Feed Controller.
- Go to the page Service > FreqCon Pulse > Test FreqCon Pulse.
- Select Calibrate bin.
- Select Bin, and set the number of the bin you want to calibrate.
- Select RPM(Hz) and, if necessary, change the RPM frequency (Hz) (default value = 50 Hz). This set frequency is used during calibration and dispensing.
- Push the START/STOP button to start calibration.
- Wait until the spring auger has made 60 turns and stops.
- Tare the bucket, and weigh the additive in the bucket.
- A text box is displayed. Enter calibration weight.
- Enter the weight of the additive.
- An info screen shows the calibrated gram per pulse and time per pulse. If gr/pulse is zero and a message "calibration failed" is displayed, do the calibration again. This often happens when the smartphone screen locks because it takes too much time before the weight is entered. Try to enter the weight in time. If that does not work, ask your Lely technician to do the following:
- Push the Esc button to exit the info screen.
- For conventional dispensers default value = 50 Hz
- For dispensers with a stir motor default value = 20 Hz
- Examine and, if necessary, correct the connections and the address IDs.
- Examine if the pulse sensor detected that the motor rotated.
- Unblock the motor.
Small Details, Big Impact
Calibration is important, but ingredient placement matters too. Properly positioning ingredients within the feed kitchen gridlines helps the grabber work more accurately and efficiently.
Two of the most common Lely Vector alarms are:
- Feed kitchen empty
- No initial feed flow
These issues can often be prevented by keeping the feed kitchen stocked and by ensuring auger-fed ingredients flow consistently, helping reduce downtime and keep feeding on track.
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