M²erlin Milking Robot vs T-Moov Poultry Robot
Two robotic barn machines, one verified table. Every figure below is sourced and dated; vendor claims are labelled and kept apart from independent results.
The independent alternative to the big-three milking robots — Fullwood (milking robots since 1996, rebranded from Fullwood JOZ) has built the M²erlin since 2014 around an open box, natural walk-through entrance/exit and a quiet electric robot arm. Ten years of incremental upgrades include TDS2 laser udder recognition (2020), FullCount real-time somatic cell counting (2021) and the FULLSENSE software platform (2023). Hundreds of farms run it worldwide; the Meridian variant does robotic batch milking in groups.
Best for: Dairy farms wanting a low-stress open-box robot with per-quarter monitoring from a long-established independent maker, or batch-milking herds (Meridian) that keep parlour-style routines with robot labour.Small autonomous barn robot for cage-free layer, breeder and turkey houses — patrols the litter on 4-wheel drive, stimulating birds with lights, sounds and lasers to keep flocks moving, cut floor eggs and aerate litter. Developed by Breton startup Tibot (200+ Spoutnic/T-Moov units in 22 countries); Tibot's assets were acquired by fellow French poultry-robotics firm Octopus Biosafety in November 2022, which now manufactures and sells the T-Moov.
Best for: Cage-free layer and breeder houses fighting floor eggs, and turkey barns needing flock activity and litter aeration without a person walking the house several times a day.| M²erlin Milking Robot Verified 2026-07-16 | T-Moov Poultry Robot Verified 2026-07-16 | |
|---|---|---|
| Overview | ||
| Task | Robotic barn | Robotic barn |
| Autonomy | Fully autonomous | Fully autonomous |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom | France |
| Availability | Available now | Available now |
| EU market | CE-marked | CE-marked |
| Lead time | Not disclosed | Not disclosed |
| Last verified | 2026-07-16 | 2026-07-16 |
| Specifications | ||
| Power source | Mains electric; energy-efficient electric (non-pneumatic) robot arm | Rechargeable lithium battery · ~10 h operation, ≤3 h charge on a standard outlet |
| Required tractor power | Not applicable | Not applicable |
| Dimensions | Open-box design with natural straight-through cow entrance and exit | 65 × 54 cm, height 18.5–22.5 cm (fits under feed lines) |
| Weight | Fixed installation | 15 kg |
| Min farm size | Not disclosed | Not disclosed |
| Productivity | Higher milkings per cow per day claimed vs conventional parlour routines | One robot covers ~1,200 m² of barn floor |
| Max speed | Not applicable | 0.1–0.7 m/s, six adjustable speeds |
| Sensors | TDS2 laser teat/udder recognition · FullQuestFC per-quarter conductivity · FullCount real-time somatic cell count sensor · AfiCollar ID integration | Obstacle detection with bypass manoeuvres; ammonia-, dust- and water-resistant housing designed for disinfectants |
| Price & model | ||
| Price (EUR) | Not disclosed | Not disclosed |
| Native price | Not disclosed | Not disclosed |
| Business model | Buy via Fullwood dealer network worldwide | Buy via Octopus Biosafety and its international distributor network |
| Ongoing cost | Service contract; liners and consumables; software/herd-management subscription terms not disclosed | Battery replacement; cleaning/disinfection consumables |
| Key outcome | ||
| Best verified result | Milking frequency Higher number of milkings per cow per day (voluntary traffic) · vendor | Floor egg rate Stabilised at ~0.5% claimed with T-Moov patrols · vendor |
| EU context | ||
| CE marking | CE marked | CE marked; designed and made in France |
| Machinery Regulation | Placed on the EU/UK markets by Fullwood under the applicable machinery regimes | Small mobile barn machine placed on the EU market by Octopus Biosafety |
| CAP subsidy | Eligible under rural-development livestock schemes in several member states | May qualify under animal-welfare / livestock-modernisation rural development measures (member-state specific) |
"—" means the manufacturer has not disclosed the figure; we never estimate silently. Model either machine's payback with your own numbers on its ROI calculator page.