the apparatus illustrated in fig1 and 2 includes a milking parlor 1 surrounded by a railing 2 which allows an animal in parlor 1 a limited freedom of movement . the animal can enter the milking parlor from the lateral side at the rear and leave from the forward side . the front of the milking parlor is provided with a feeding plant , and the cow upon advancing sufficiently far within the parlor to the feeding plant is in a position to be easily milked . at a longitudinal side of the milking parlor , in contrast to wherein the entrance and exit are located , is a fixed frame 3 which forms parts of railing 2 . fixed frame 3 includes a first frame portion 4 and a second frame portion 5 . first frame portion 4 extends parallel to and is located predominantly over second frame portions 5 . in this configuration , first frame portion 4 is rigidly connected to the exterior side of two vertical posts 6 and 7 which form part of railing 2 wherein second frame portion 5 is rigidly fitted between these two posts 6 and 7 . a milking robot designated generally by reference numeral 8 for the automatic milking of animals is movably connected to first frame portion 4 . this milking robot bears against second frame portion 5 , which is provided at a height whereby arms of milking robot 8 can be moved along its underside to under the cow present in the milking parlor . milking robot 8 includes a carrier frame 9 for additional portions of the milking robot . by using upper frame portion 4 as a rail , carrier frame 9 and consequently the entire milking robot 8 is easily moved along this frame portion . carrier frame 9 includes a horizontal beam 10 which extends substantially parallel to first frame portion 4 . a pillar 11 extends perpendicular to carrier frame 9 in a vertical downward direction and is rigidly secured thereto with two struts 12 . pairs of supporting elements 13 are located near the ends of beam 10 . connected to each pair of supporting elements 13 at an angle of approximately 45 °, with the aid of supporting plates rigidly connected thereto , are two rollers 16 forming a roller element pair 15 . roller element pair 15 is arranged so that carrier frame 9 is suspended from upper frame portion 4 wherein it is easily movable therealong . two carriers 17 are provided at either side of the beam 10 of carrier frame 9 . a motor 19 is attached to these carriers wherein it is movable about a pivot shaft 18 . this motor 19 drives a roller 20 which preferably has a rubber surface . roller 20 is urged by a spring member 21 against the upper frame portion 4 . inasmuch as spring member 21 is in tension between motor 19 and carrier frame 9 , the roller which is driven by motor 19 is retained by the force exerted by spring 21 against upper frame portion 4 . therefore , when the motor is driven , it is moved lengthwise along the upper frame portion 4 and consequently carries with it the entire carrier frame 9 . a sensor 22 , which for example comprises a laser , is connected to supporting element 13 which , taken in a direction from the milking parlor , is the rearmost supporting element . with the aid of this sensor 22 it is possible to move the milking robot from a rest position in the longitudinal direction of the milking parlor to a starting position , in which the arms of the milking robot are moved under the animal present in the milking parlor . it is also possible to follow the motions of the animals in the longitudinal direction of the milking parlor . for that purpose , sensor 22 cooperates with a supporting element 23 which is movable against the rear side of the animal . with the aid of a rod system , which in the present embodiment consists of a quadrangular structure , and more particularly a parallelogram structure 24 , supporting element 23 is pivotal relative to the milking parlor floor . a plate 26 is mounted on two rods 25 of supporting element 23 . plate 26 is positioned laterally outside frame portions 4 and 5 and is constructed and arranged so that it can reflect a signal transmitted by sensor 22 . after sensor 22 has detected the reflected signal , it produces a control signal which is a measure of the actual ( i . e . the measured ), distance between plate 26 and sensor 22 . the control signal causes motor 19 to be driven , whereby milking robot 8 is moved in the longitudinal direction of the milking parlor so that the distance between plate 26 and sensor 22 is brought to and maintained at , respectively , a preset value . milking robot 8 , in its rest or inactive position , is disposed as far as possible to the rear relative to frame portions 4 and 5 . in this position , milking robot 8 engages , via a contact element 27 , plate 26 and thus maintains supporting element 23 in its rearmost position . in other words , supporting element 23 is held rearwardly by milking robot 8 when the robot is in the rest position . when the milking robot is moved from its rest position in the longitudinal direction of the milking parlor to its starting position , whereby the arms of the milking robot are moved under the animal in the milking parlor , then supporting element 23 is released and urged by the resilient action of a spring 28 located between parallelogram structure 24 and post 7 against the rear side of the cow then in the milking parlor . as the cow moves forwardly or rearwardly , supporting element 23 continues to be urged against the rear side of the animal by the pressure exerted by compression spring 28 . thus , the position of plate 26 is determined by the position of the animal in the milking parlor in the longitudinal direction . sensor 22 , while maintaining a constant distance in longitudinal direction between plate 26 and sensor 22 , causes the milking robot to conform to the cow &# 39 ; s movements in the longitudinal direction within the milking parlor . in the present embodiment , pillar 11 of carrier frame 9 extends vertically downwardly to slightly below second frame portion 5 . at the bottom side of this pillar 11 there is a horizontal , rearwardly extending strip 29 , on which is freely rotatable roller element 30 . lower frame portion 5 comprises a rail and more specifically a rail in the form of a u - shaped beam . freely rotatable roller element 30 is arranged so it is movable between the two upright edges of the u - shaped beam . thus , milking robot 8 bears against lower frame portion 5 and , in this position , moves smoothly along second frame portion 5 , when milking robot 8 is moved by the motor along first frame portion 4 . in addition to carrier frame 9 , the milking robot includes a robot arm construction 31 which is predominantly movable in the vertical direction relative to carrier frame 9 with the aid of an operating cylinder 32 . robot arm construction 31 is movably connected to carrier frame 9 by means of a quadrangular structure 33 . in the embodiment shown , an upper arm 34 of quadrangular structure 33 is of a fixed length , whereas the lower arm 35 has an adjustable length . this allows the orientation of the robot arm construction 31 to be adjusted to a limited extent . robot arm construction 31 comprises a predominantly vertical robot arm 36 , as well as robot arms 37 which are movable in a predominantly horizontal plane . vertical robot arm 36 is connected to pillar 11 of carrier frame 9 via quadrangular construction 33 . operating cylinder 32 is operative between carrier frame 9 and robot arm 36 . since the orientation of robot arm 36 is slightly - adjustable with the aid of lower arm 35 of the quadrangular construction 33 , the position of the point of contact of operating cylinder 32 with robot arm 36 is not fully defined spatially . for this reason , the housing of operating cylinder 32 is capable of at least a limited degree of pivoting , on a carrier plate 38 connected to beam 10 of carrier frame 9 . mounted on this carrier plate 38 are supports 39 , between which the housing of the operating cylinder 32 can move about a pivot shaft 40 . in the present embodiment , operating cylinder 32 is designed as a servo - pneumatic positioning cylinder . this means that at the lower end of its piston rod 41 a position feedback rod 43 is fitted with a plate 42 connected rigidly thereto . a signal is derived in the portion 57 of the operating cylinder by a potentiometer which indicates the position of piston rod 41 relative to the cylinder housing . with the aid of this signal supplied by the potentiometer , the position of piston rod 41 relative to the cylinder housing can be adjusted to a preset position . operating cylinder 32 is further provided with an overload protection , whereby , as soon as the animal present in the milking parlor exercises pressure on robot arm construction 31 , for example by kicking it with its leg , robot arm construction 31 can be moved to its lowest position . in fig1 and 2 , the milking robot 8 is shown in its rest position , wherein it has been moved as far as possible to the rear relative to frame portions 4 and 5 and wherein robot arm construction 31 has been brought to the lowest possible position near the bottom of parlor 1 . when the cow is present in parlor 1 and the milking process is started , milking robot 8 is moved from its rest position to its start position , i . e . it is adjusted to a position in which the arms of milking robot 8 can be moved under the cow . in the present embodiment , the milking parlor is provided with arms 44 , 45 and 46 . arms 44 and 45 are arranged at a fixed angle of 90 ° relative to each other . arms 44 and 45 are therefore moved simultaneously by an operating cylinder 47 which is provided between a supporting plate 48 secured to robot arm 36 and a connecting member 49 arranged between arms 44 and 45 . arms 44 and 45 move in an arc about a predominantly vertical pivot shaft 50 between plate 48 and a further supporting plate 48a , the latter plate also being rigidly connected to robot arm 36 , more particularly at its bottom side . with respect to arm 45 , arm 46 is movable in an arc about a predominantly vertical pivot shaft 51 by means of an operating cylinder 52 , which is arranged between arm 46 and that end of arm 45 located near connecting member 49 . teat cups 53 and 54 , which are connectable to the teats of the cow , are provided near the end of arm 46 . arranged between the two teat cups 54 is a slide which is movable along arm 46 and on which there is provided a sensor 55 which by a sector - sequential scanning motion can accurately determine the position of the teats . operating cylinders 32 , 47 and 52 are computer - controlled whereby the teat cups can be properly connected to the cows &# 39 ; teats . when robot arms 44 , 45 and 46 have been moved to under the cow in parlor 1 , the arms are in a relatively low position , in which the sensor 55 has not yet detected the animal &# 39 ; s teats . using the operating cylinder 32 , robot arms 44 , 45 and 46 are lifted together step - by - step until sensor 55 detects one or more teats of the animal . should robot arms 44 , 45 and 46 be lifted to such an extent that upper edge of the sensor 55 contacts the cow &# 39 ; s abdomen , then a switch 56 on the upper side of sensor 55 , causes the robot arms to be lowered . thereafter , the positional determination of the teats with the aid of the sensor 55 can is repeated by a gradual lifting of the robot arms . the implement , as described above includes a cleaning device 57 for teat cups 53 and 54 . this cleaning device 57 is rigidly connected to downwardly directed pillar 11 . cleaning device 57 incorporates four downwardly directed spray nozzles 58 . each spray nozzle 58 has two separate rinsing liquid ducts 59 and 60 . duct 59 extends centrally through the spray nozzle from top to bottom , and laterally directed first flow - out apertures 61 are provided near the lower end of duct 59 . when a teat cup is connected to a corresponding spray nozzle , first flow - out apertures 61 have their discharge ends disposed relatively closely under the upper side of the teat cup . the second duct 60 extends approximately concentrically with respect to first duct 59 in the spray nozzle . at the bottom of second duct 60 is an annular second flow - out aperture 62 which is disposed in a plane perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the spray nozzle and the test cup connected thereto . first duct 59 of each spray nozzle 58 is connected to a rinsing liquid supply line 63 . the second duct 60 of each spray nozzles 59 is connected to a pipe section 64 . the pipe sections 64 of individual spray nozzles 59 conjoin a distributor element 65 which is connected to a rinsing liquid supply line 66 . rinsing liquid supply lines 63 are connected via pump to a rinsing liquid reservoir ( not shown in the drawings ). when the milking robot is not operative for milking , as illustrated in fig1 teat cups 53 and 54 are directly under spray nozzles 58 , so that , simply and solely by an upward motion of the robot arm carrying the teat cups , the teat cups engage their corresponding spray nozzles 58 . fig2 illustrates the situation in which the robot arms have not yet been moved inboard sufficiently so that the teat cups are positioned directly under the spray nozzles of the cleaning device . when , between milking different animals or after milking of the animals , the teat cups and the milking lines connected thereto must be cleaned , then robot arm 46 together with the teat cups are moved under the spray nozzles and then moved upwardly until the spray nozzles engage the openings of the teat cups . in this position , the first flow - out apertures 61 are disposed almost directly below the upper edge of a teat cup and the second flow - out aperture 62 is almost directly above the upper edge of a teat cup . by thereafter supplying rinsing liquids via lines 63 and 64 , one rinsing liquid is discharged over the upper surfaces of the teat cup , while the other rinsing liquid is introduced into the teat cups . during rinsing , by using a three - way valve which while milking connects the milking lines from the teat cups to a centrally located milk tank , the liquid flow path between the teat cups and the milk tank is interrupted and a fluid passageway for the rinsing liquid is provided to , for example , a rinsing liquid reservoir . thus , the rinsing liquid can be circulated by means of a pump via supply lines 63 , liquid ducts 59 and first flow - out apertures 61 into the teat cups and thereafter conveyed to the reservoir through the milking lines connected to the teat cups . the rinsing liquid that is received by the upper sides of the teat cups via lines 64 , duct 60 , and second flow - out aperture 62 falls on the floor of parlor 1 and is drained therefrom through a gutter . it is considered important that rinsing liquid supply line 64 not be connected to the rinsing liquid reservoir through which liquid is circulated to the teat cups and relevant milking lines . for cleaning , line 64 can be alternatively connected directly to a water tap or indirectly thereto with an intervening element which adds a special cleaning agent or disinfectant . after rinsing , the rinsing liquid must be flushed from all relevant milk lines . when the teat cups are connected to the spray nozzles , a vacuum is produced in the teat cups . this causes the teat cups to be drawn slightly upwardly over the lower end of the relevant spray nozzles and the second flow - out apertures 62 in spray nozzles 58 are closed . the spacing between the first flow - out apertures 61 and the second flow - out aperture 62 is therefore relatively small , being , for example , in the range of from five to ten millimeters . in a specific embodiment a spacing of seven millimeters has been selected . when the rinsing liquid is supplied at an increased pressure via pipe section 64 through duct 60 , liquid from second flow - out aperture 62 is forced out between the lower edge of second flow - out aperture 62 and the slightly resilient upper side of the relevant teat cup to be sprayed in lateral directions . in that situation , it is advantageous to provide around the cleaning device , or around the individual spray nozzles , a screen 67 which drapes over the upper end of the teat cup when received therein . fig5 illustrates a second embodiment of a cleaning device . this alternative cleaning device 68 includes a carrier plane 69 ( see also fig1 , 13 and 15 ). having thereon four downwardly directed spray nozzles 58 . as indicated in fig4 and 7 , each spray nozzle 58 includes two separate rinsing liquid ducts 59 and 60 . as described in the preceding embodiment , the rinsing liquid ducts 59 and 60 end in , respectively , lower discharge outlets , referred to herein as the first - flow apertures 61 and an upper discharge outlet referred to herein as the second flow - out aperture 62 . in carrier plane 69 , spray nozzles 58 are clamped between an upper part comprising a first portion 70 and a lower part comprising a second portion 71 . as indicated in fig6 in the surface of first portion 70 there is arranged a first duct system 72 . preferably , first portion 70 is an aluminum plate , in which the pattern of the first duct system has been arranged . the four ducts or channels 73 , 74 , 75 and 76 of the first duct system 72 connect at their outer ends to the four rinsing liquid ducts 59 of spray nozzles 58 . in the second portion 71 , a second duct system comprising channel or bores 79 is arranged ( fig8 ). further , in the second portion 71 of carrier plane 69 there are arranged four downwardly extending openings comprising apertures 78 , through which the spray nozzles 58 are received . in second portion 71 , the four bores 79 are arranged on the interior side . bores 79 are arranged so that each of them extends through the center of an aperture 78 ( fig8 ), and together , opposite apertures 78 , they join a first vertical bore 80 which connects to a first nipple 81 . bores 79 are closed along edge of second portion 71 by means of sealing caps 82 . extending through second portion 71 is a second vertical bore 80a which connects to a second nipple 82a . bore 80a joins duct system 72 via channel 77 . first portion 70 and second portion 71 of carrier plane 69 are clamped firmly together by means of bolts 83 , whereby the first portion 70 constitutes a sealing plate closing the upper ends of first and second vertical bores 80 and 80a . second bore 80a thus provides a fluid passage to first duct system 72 arranged in the first portion 70 and the second portion 71 of the carrier plane 69 constitutes with its surface in the clamped condition a sealing plate for the first duct system 72 , including channel 77 , arranged in the surface of the first portion 70 . fig9 is a plan view of the carrier plane 69 and illustrates how the patterns of the duct system 72 and the second duct system comprising channels 79 are arranged in the two portions 70 and 71 . to obtain a proper sealing of the clamped together portions 70 and 71 , it is preferred that the second portion 71 be composed of a relatively soft plastic material and the first portion 70 of aluminum . in a further embodiment according to fig1 , cleaning device 57 includes a cleaning member 84 for cleaning the teats of a milked animal . the cleaning member 84 includes two adjacent cleaning elements in the form of profiled rollers 85 , which by their axles are supported rotatably by a gear box 86 which , in turn , is mounted on carrier plane 69 . profiled rollers 85 are driven by an electric motor 87 attached to gear box 86 . cleaning member 84 is bolted together with gear box 86 onto the carrier plane 69 by means of the two bolts 83 which are received through adjacent bores 80 and 80a . spacer rings 88 are placed between gear box 86 and carrier plane 69 which surround the aforesaid two bolts 83 . if it is desirable to clean the teats of the animal to be milked or an animal that has been milked , carrier plane 69 is carried via spray nozzles 58 received in teat cups 53 and 54 by arm 46 of milking robot 8 to the vicinity of the animal &# 39 ; s teats ( fig1 ). here , using sensor 55 , the position of the teats of the milking animal is determined so that rollers 85 are moved to contact both sides of one or more of the animal &# 39 ; s teats . after such positioning of rollers 85 , the teats are engaged between the oppositely rotating profiled rollers , so that they are in contact with the teats , while between rollers 85 , sufficiently to ensure that dirt is removed from them . after so cleaning the teats and possibly rinsing the teat cups , carrier plane 69 is disengaged from robot arm 46 by being removed from the teat cups . then , the carrier plane 69 is removed and stored in a further carrier ( not shown ). the apparatus described above may also be provided with cleaning system 89 for cleaning the cleaning member 84 . the cleaning system 89 comprises a box - like housing 90 attached to the beam 11 of carrier frame 9 by means of an l - shaped box - profile bar or strip 93 ( fig1 , 13 , 14 and 15 ). box - like housing 90 has a slot 91 which is covered by a row of brush hairs 92 . the width of slot 91 is greater than the diameter of profiled rollers 85 . thus , it is possible to place profiled rollers 85 in box - like housing 90 by movement of robot arm construction 31 . to place rollers 85 in box - like housing 90 , they must be moved by means of robot arm 46 to a position that is at the level of and in front of slot 91 . by moving robot arm 46 in a horizontal plane towards slot 91 , the rollers are inserted into box - like housing 90 . gear box 86 and carrier plane 69 , however , are retained outside box - like housing 90 . fig1 , 13 , 14 and 15 , illustrate how rollers 85 are moved into the box - like housing 90 . robot arm 46 raises the teat cups along with carrier plane 69 , gear box 86 , and rollers , 85 , to where the ends of rollers 85 are opposite slot 91 , and moves then horizontally whereby rollers 85 are received in housing 90 and carrier plane 69 is below it . after rollers 85 have been so positioned in the box - like housing 90 , the vacuum in teat cups 53 and 54 is removed , robot arm 46 is disconnected from spray nozzles 58 of carrier plane 69 and is moved therefrom . carrier plane 69 is received by a retention and positioning device 94 by means of which carrier plane 69 is secured relative to box - like housing 90 . retention and positioning device 94 includes two rods 95 which are generally u - shaped in cross - section and have generally the same profile as a hockey stick so that they are similar in form to the edges of carrier plane 69 . rods 95 are disposed on either side of carrier plane 69 . the first ( on the right as seen in fig1 ) rod 95 is located under the edge and projecting outwardly and forward of box - like housing 90 , and is fixedly connected by means of a support 96a to the l - shaped tube 93 which has a rectangular cross - section and is arranged along the side of box - like housing 90 . the second bar 95 , ( on the left as seen in fig1 ) is below and projecting forwardly of box - like housing 90 . this bar 95 is pivotable about a vertical shaft 96 connected to the under side of housing 90 . a lever 97 is pivotally connected on its inboard end to vertical shaft 96 and on its outboard end to cylinder 98 . cylinder 98 is pivotally connected at its other end to a vertical shaft 99 which is retained between two horizontal , interspaced bars 100 . bars 100 are affixed to a tube 101 which has a rectangular cross - section and is attached to tube 93 . fig1 , 14 and 15 indicate how the carrier plane 69 is held in the box - like housing 90 by means of a retention and positioning device designated generally by reference numeral 94 . the carrier plane 69 is held by its edges between rods 95 , after energizing cylinder 98 . as such , carrier plane 69 is always situated in the same position relative to the box - like housing 90 . carrier plane 69 can be released from rods 95 by energizing the cylinder 98 , which causes second rod 95 , to which is rigidly connected to lever 97 , to pivot in the direction of beam 11 ( fig1 ). after second rod 95 is so pivoted , carrier plane 69 is freely movable in a horizontal plane to permit the removal of rollers 25 from slot 91 , by means of robot arm 46 to clean the animals &# 39 ; teats . preferably , the cylinder 98 is pneumatic . after the animal &# 39 ; s teats have been cleaned by means of profiled rollers 85 , the rollers are returned to and stored in box - like housing 90 by the robot arm 46 . fig1 shows in cross - section how profiled rollers 85 are located in box - like housing 90 . for cleaning profiled rollers 85 there are arranged at the upper sides of box - like housing 90 two spray elements 102 . spray elements 102 include a perforated tube , one end of which is closed and the other is connected to a liquid supply line . a cleaning liquid is supplied to the spray elements 102 through the liquid supply line during the cleaning of profiled rollers 85 . the perforations in spray elements 102 are arranged so that the cleaning liquid sprays tangentially against profiled rollers 85 . at the upper side of box - like housing 90 , above each of profiled rollers 85 , a row of depending brush hairs 103 are provided which extend to contact profiled rollers 85 . during the cleaning of profiled rollers 85 , a cleaning liquid is discharged through spray elements 102 to impinge against rollers 85 that are thus caused to rotate against brush hairs 103 . in the lower side of box - like housing 90 is a drain opening 104 , to which a discharge line is connected . during cleaning , the cleaning liquid originating from spray elements 102 is drained from housing 90 via this discharge line . preferably , the bottom of the box - like housing 90 is inclined at an angle so the cleaning 12quid flows in the direction of discharge opening 104 . in a further embodiment , according to the invention , the robot arm 46 includes an after - treatment device 105 ( fig1 ) for disinfecting the udder and / or the teats after the animal has been milked . the after - treatment device 105 includes a pressure vessel 106 having stored therein the cleaning and / or disinfecting liquid , and a line 107 leads therefrom which supplies the liquid to a spray nozzle 108 ( fig1 ). a further line 109 is connected to a pressure source through 109 whereby an overpressure is established in pressure vessel 106 of preferably three atmospheres . in supply line 107 to spray nozzle 108 a valve 110 is incorporated by means of which the liquid flow to spray nozzle 108 is selectively closed and opened . valve 110 may be electromagnetically activated . in a preferred embodiment according to the invention , the valve is arranged near spray nozzle 108 , so that the length of the line between the valve 110 and the spray nozzle 108 is relatively short . therefore , after the valve 110 has been opened , the pressurized liquid in line 107 need only travel a relatively short distance to spray nozzle 108 . the advantage of this relatively short travel distance is that , after the valve has been opened , the liquid is sprayed by spray nozzle 108 forms a fan - shape almost immediately . as a result , on opening and closing of valve 110 , the occurrences of initial and final discharge phenomena in the production of the fan - shaped spray pattern by the spray nozzle 108 are prevented . fig1 shows spray nozzle 108 located at the end of robot arm 45 between two front teat cups 53 . fig1 indicates how spray nozzle 108 may be advantageously arranged at the end of robot arm 46 of milking robot 8 . spray nozzle 108 is located below the carrier plane 111 , on which teat cups 53 rest , and is positioned in a holder 112 connected to a plate 113 , which is perpendicular to carrier plane 111 . spray nozzle 108 is positioned in holder 112 so that the fan - shaped spray pattern is directed forwardly and upwardly relative to the end of robot arm 46 . in this connection , the fan - shaped spray pattern encompasses , relative to plate 113 , an angle of approximately 20 °. in carrier plate 111 an aperture is arranged through which the spray liquid of the spray nozzle is sprayed . after the milking procedure has been terminated , the teat cups 53 are removed from the teats of the animal in parlor 1 , and are withdrawn to robot arm 46 , where they are supported against carrier plate 111 . subsequently , robot arm 46 is positioned so that the fan - shaped spray pattern from the spray nozzle 108 is received precisely at the rear side at the udder of the milked animal . the positioning of robot arm 46 can be effected by means of the sensor 56 and / or by animal - depending co - ordinates previously supplied to a control computer of robot arm 46 . after robot arm 46 has been positioned , valve 110 is opened , while simultaneously the robot arm is moved forwardly in a horizontal plane in the direction of the front side of the animal . thus , the entire udder is sprayed by the fan - shaped pattern . because the fan - shaped spray pattern is directed forwardly and upwardly relative to the end of robot arm 46 , and because the spraying of the udder is effected from the rear in the direction of the front of the udder , spray liquid originating from the udder and / or the fan shaped spray pattern is prevented from falling into the teat cups . the path to be covered by robot arm 46 in the horizontal plane , and the height of spray nozzle 108 relative to the animal &# 39 ; s udder are controlled based on a previous encounter with the animal by a computer controlling the robot arm 46 . it is also possible for the appropriate height and the distance to the udder to be determined by sensor 56 . it will be understood that the above - described embodiments of the cleaning device and the after - treating device can be used in an apparatus for automatically milking animals not only in combination , but also separately . although we have described the preferred embodiments of our invention , it is to be understood they are capable of other adaptions and modifications within the scope of the following claims .
an apparatus and method for automatically cleaning the teat cups of a milking apparatus . the teat cups are automatically removed by a robot arm from the animal &# 39 ; s teats . nozzles are provided which are automatically inserted into the openings for the teats located on top of the teat cups . in the cleaning operation , the nozzles are , in effect , connected to the teat cups and spray a cleansing and / or rinsing liquid through an upper set of outlets from the nozzle to clean the upper surfaces of the teat cups and through a lower set of nozzle outlets to clean and rinse the interior of the teat cups as well as the lines connected therewith . associated with the nozzles are rotatable cleaning members for cleaning the animals &# 39 ; teats and udders in the vicinity thereof . brushes and spray nozzles are provided for automatically cleaning these cleaning members after use . all operations are programmed to occur automatically without human assistance or intervention .