Upgrade of an existing Mark 2 Cattle Restraining Box for Ritual Slaughter

Summary

The objective of the project was to upgrade the design of the prototype Mark 2 cattle restraining box. This prototype box utilised 4 torsion springs to return the restraining box to the upright position ready for reloading. It was observed that torsion springs became less effective over time. A mechanical engineer has designed a counter weight to replace the springs and also improved the positioning of the bearings on the axel., As the counter weight is basically concrete there will be an opportunity to increase or decrease the weight for final tuning. CAD drawings of the revised design have also been produced. Key features of this project also include: 
- An effort has been made to minimise the amount of mild steel in the design to reduce the cost of fabrication. 
- The project included the design of a device to simplify the catching of the cattle's feet inside the box. This device could be developed to replace the hand held lasso in the existing Mark 1 boxes as some stockmen are reluctant to put ropes on by hand. This device will be constructed of hard plastic and stainless steel and will have a detachable handle. 
- A hydraulic cattle restraining box recently installed in Egypt had a CIF cost of EU120,000, while a Mark 2 cattle box could be fabricated for A$22,000. There would be additional costs to install both boxes. 
- The mark 2 box is designed to restrain cattle from a varied weight range and size on a table to facilitate ritual slaughter. The box can also assist with the collection of blood, an issue that is becoming increasingly important in developing countries whom are aware of the high biological oxygen demand (BOD) of blood.