I wouldn't have believed it if I hadn't seen it today down near Kitchener, Ontario. A lot of big dairy farmers are putting in robotic milking stations!!! Each cow wears an identity tag around its neck. When the cow feels that it needs to be milked, it walks into a one way "chute" and stops at a chest bar. The robot senses the cows identity tag, matches it to a data base, and the robot swings the suction cups into place under the cows udder and attaches them to the cows teats. The cow stands there placidly untill the milker is finished, then the suction cups detach themselves from the cow and go over to an automated wash stand where they are washed and sterilized. The chest bar retracts and "Bossy' walks on through the chute and out the other side. The robot data logs the milk output, and the time, and if that cow ends up in the chute again before its proper time, the chest bar stays retracted and the robot ignores it. I had never heard of this before today. Damn, the Jetsons had it all figured back in 1959!!!---Brian
