Patent ID: 8176873

Claim:
A milking liner for an automated milking machine having a shell; the milking machine periodically subjecting the liner to a vacuum milking condition; the milking liner comprising: a barrel having an upper end and a lower end; the barrel having an inner surface and an outer surface; the barrel being adapted to engage the shell at the upper and lower ends of the barrel while being free of interconnections with the shell between the upper and lower ends of the barrel; the barrel having a longitudinal axis; the barrel defining three ribs that are each parallel to the longitudinal axis of the barrel; each rib defining a channel that is open to the inner surface of the barrel; the barrel defining three sidewall segments that each has a thickness; each pair of sidewall segments being separated from each other by one of the ribs; each sidewall segment having an outer surface; each rib extending radially outwardly beyond the radial position of the outer surfaces of the sidewall segments; each of the ribs having an inner surface and an outer surface that define a rib thickness; the inner surface of each rib having an inner rib apex; each of the channels having a depth in the range of 140 to 160 percent of the thickness of the sidewall segments such that each inner rib apex is disposed radially outwardly of the sidewall segment outer surfaces; the sidewall segments being movable between uncollapsed and collapsed conditions; the sidewall segments being in the collapsed condition during the vacuum milking condition; the sidewall segments being bowed outwardly to generally define a circle when the segments are in the uncollapsed condition; and each of the sidewall segments being bowed inwardly in the collapsed condition.