A Feasibility Study on the Use of a Structured Light Depth-Camera for Three-Dimensional Body Measurements of Dairy Cows in Free-Stall Barns

Frequent checks on livestock\u2019s body growth can help reducing problems related to cow infertility or other welfare implications, and recognizing health\u2019s anomalies. In the last ten years, optical methods have been proposed to extract information on various parameters while avoiding direct contact with animals\u2019 body, generally causes stress. This research aims to evaluate a new monitoring system, which is suitable to frequently check calves and cow\u2019s growth through a three-dimensional analysis of their bodies\u2019 portions. The innovative system is based on multiple acquisitions from a low cost Structured Light Depth-Camera (Microsoft Kinect\u2122 v1). The metrological performance of the instrument is proved through an uncertainty analysis and a proper calibration procedure. The paper reports application of the depth camera for extraction of different body parameters. Expanded uncertainty ranging between 3 and 15 mm is reported in the case of ten repeated measurements. Coef\ufb01cients of determination R2> 0.84 and deviations lower than 6% from manual measurements where in general detected in the case of head size, hips distance, withers to tail length, chest girth, hips, and withers height. Conversely, lower performances where recognized in the case of animal depth (R2 = 0.74) and back slope (R2 = 0.12)

Дигитално управление на технологични процеси в говедовъдни ферми. Oбзор

The article evaluates the development of the Internet of Things (I₀T), digital technologies, various types of biological and biometric sensors and blockchain technologies in dairy and beef cattle breeding. The peculiarities, tendencies and perspectives for digital transformation and digitalization of the cattle farms and complexes have been studied. Precise technologies (PFL) make it possible to collect a sufficient cloud of data in accordance with the physiological and technological requirements of the various categories of animals of the species Bos taurus and the welfare of cattle. Biological and biometric sensors help farmers to increase the quantity and improve the quality of their products. Blockchain technologies present cattle breeding in detail, as transparent, stable and predictable in the eyes of the consumer. Cattle breeding is a sub-sector of animal husbandry in which there is no integration, but flexible digital management is applied.В статията е направена оценка на развитието на Интернет на нещата(I₀T), цифрови технологии, различни видове биологични и биометрични сензори и блокчеин технологии в млечното и месодайно говедовъдство. Проучени да особеностите, тенденциите и перспективите за цифрова трансформация и дигитализация на говедовъдните ферми и комплекси. Прецизните технологии (PFL) позволяват да се събере достатъчен облак от данни, съобразен с физиологичните и технологичните изисквания на различните категории животни на вида Bos taurus и хуманно отношение към говедата. Биологичните и биометрични сензори съдействат на фермерите да увеличат количеството и да усъвършенстват качеството на произведената продукция. Блокчейн технологиите представят детайлно говедовъдството, като прозрачно, стабилно и предвидимо в очите на потребителя. Говедовъдството е подотрасъл на животновъдството, в който липсва интеграция, но се прилага гъвкаво дигитално управление

Smart Dairy Cattle Farming and In-Heat Detection through the Internet of Things (IoT)

The Internet of Things (IoT) technology has been being revolutionized in various aspects of agriculture around the world ever since. Its application has already found its success in some countries. On the contrary, this technology has yet to find its substantial breakthrough in the Philippines. This study shows the application of IoT in improving the detection efficiency of standing-heat behaviors of cows through automated detection using Pan-tilt-zoom cameras and a Python-driven Web Application. The dimensions of the barn were measured, and the Cameras' Field of Views (FOVs) were pre-calculated for the strategic positions of the cameras atop of the cowshed. The program detects the cows and any estrus events through the surveillance cameras. The results will be sent to the cloud server to display on the web application for analysis. The web app can allow updates on cow information, inseminations, pregnancy, and calving records, estimate travel time from the user's geolocation to the farm, provide live monitoring and remote camera accessibility and control through the cameras and deliver reliable cross-platform push-notification and call alerts on the user's device(s) whenever an estrus event is detected. Based on the results, the program performed satisfactorily at 50% detection efficiency

Recording the Heart Beat of Cattle using a Gradiometer System of Optically Pumped Magnetometers

Monitoring of heart rate has the potential to provide excellent data for the remote monitoring of animals, and heart rate has been associated with stress, pyrexia, pain and illness in animals. However monitoring of heart rate in domesticated animals is difficult as it entails the restraint of the animal (which may in turn affect heart rate), and the application of complex monitoring equipment that is either invasive or not practical to implement under commercial farm conditions. Therefore accurate non-invasive automated remote monitoring of heart rate has not been possible in domesticated animals. Biomagnetism associated with muscle and nerve action provides a promising emerging field in medical sensing, but it is currently confined to magnetically-shielded clinical environments. In this study, we use biomagnetic sensing on commercial dairy cattle under farm conditions as a model system to show proof-of-principle for non-contact magnetocardiography (MCG) outside a controlled laboratory environment. By arranging magnetometers in a differential set-up and using purpose-built low-noise electronics, we are able to suppress common mode noise and successfully record the heart rate, the heart beat intervals and the heart beat amplitude. Comparing the MCG signal with simultaneous data recorded using a conventional electrocardiogram (ECG) allowed alignment of the two signals, and was able to match features of the ECG including the P-wave, the QRS complex and the T-wave. This study has shown the potential for MCG to be developed as a non-contact method for the assessment of heart rate and other cardiac attributes in adult dairy cattle. Whilst this study using an animal model showed the capabilities of un-shielded MCG, these techniques also suggest potentially exciting opportunities in human cardiac medicine outside hospital environments

Investigation of an embedded-optical-base system's functionality in detecting signal events for gait measurements

2018 Fall.Includes bibliographical references.Optical sensors have the potential to provide automated gait analysis and lameness detection in livestock. Measuring animals in motion while under field conditions is difficult for current gait analysis tools, such as plate and mat methods. This has caused a lack in commercially available systems. Additionally, a deficit of these systems and others is too much noise in their signal. Current sensor systems for static or in-motion measurements rely significantly on managing this noise as a source of error. From these problems, the primary objective of this body of work was to assess the use of an embedded-optical-base system (EOBS) and its ability to obtain real-time gait measurements from livestock. The research was composed of 3 field studies and 1 controlled study. Gait data was obtained using a commercial platform (2.4 m x 0.9 m; length x width) containing 1 EOBS. A signal-base-unit (SBU) and computer were setup near the EOBS platform by integrated cabling to collect real-time signal data. Signal fluctuation measurements (i.e., signal amplitude from hoof contact; 0 to 1 arbitrary units (au)) and kinematics (e.g., estimated speed, velocity and time duration) were recorded. The sensor detected hoof contact as signal amplitudes that could be examined in real time. Visual observations and video analyses were used for validating and classifying signal readings. The initial pilot study (field test) included 8 fistulated, crossbred steers (n = 8) tested over 1 d with 2 passes per animal over the EOBS platform. Pilot study data were used to evaluate initial signal fluctuations from animal contact. A second field study included 50 crossbred and purebred (n = 20, Angus; n = 10, Hereford; n = 20, Angus x Hereford) steers and heifers (n = 50; average BW = 292.5 kg) tested on 2 d over a 1-wk period with a total of 6 passes over the EOBS platform per animal. Steer and heifer normal walks, runs, and abnormal passes over the EOBS platform were analyzed. A third controlled study consisted of 3 mixed breed horses (n = 3) that had bilateral forelimb injections. Horses had both deep digital flexor muscles injected (1 with Botox and 1 with saline) with right and left forelimbs randomized. Horses were observed on 3 d over a 124-d period consisting of pre-treatment (baseline), post-treatment, and recovery test days with 10 passes over the EOBS platform per horse per day. Primary fluctuations, true (anomaly free) signal readings, from animal contact with the EOBS platform were analyzed. True signal readings were determined based on no influence observed from other limbs. A fourth field study consisted of 8 commercial bulls (n = 8) tested on 1 d with 3 passes over the EOBS platform per bull. Bulls were classified as either normal or abnormal in musculoskeletal structure and compared to one another to observe differences in signal fluctuation patterns. During the cattle studies, animals were not controlled and allowed to walk over the EOBS platform at their own pace. These studies formed the groundwork to determine the EOBS's functionality when animals passed over the platform. Signalment (i.e., breed, sex and age) and physiological characterizations were recorded. Temperature was also recorded for cattle field tests (e.g., min -6°C to max 4°C, respectively). For all 4 studies individual animal signal measurements were analyzed for each pass over the EOBS platform, compared to video data and classified for analysis. Results from all 4 studies showed intra- and inter-animal repeatability (qualitative observation) of observed signal readings. Though a variety of hoof contact signatures were obtained, repeating patterns were evident for both groups and individual animals. The embedded-optical-base system's (EOBS) functionality proved to be robust and operable under field trial conditions. Additionally, the signal showed extremely minimal noise. Lastly, the EOBS showed a stable baseline with clear deviations from it that could be correlated to hoof contact through video validation. Though the EOBS detected animal contact per pass, future work will investigate the system's operating readiness in accurately assessing variable gait measurements for lameness detection. Overall, data provides evidence that the embedded-optical-base system (EOBS) can detect hoof contact and differentiation between types of gait based on signal events

Utilization of Infrared Thermography in Cattle Production and Its Application Potency in Indonesia

Infrared thermography (IRT) is a non-invasive remote sensing method to detect temperature. Many studies have shown that temperature in several regions of the body could be representative of core body temperature. Body temperature of cattle can be used to evaluate health status, stress, thermal balance, and feed efficiency. The aim of this article is to review utilization of IRT in cattle production system and its potency to be applied in Indonesia. The ability of IRT to detect even the small change of body surface temperature has made this device is very useful in cattle production industry. Infrared thermography has been used as a tool to detect an early detection of inflammation as sign of some diseases such as mastitis, foot and mouth disease. Infrared thermography can also evaluate feed efficiency through detection of heat production produced by metabolism process. Some important constraints of cattle production in Indonesia such as diseases and low feed efficiency may have strong correlation with body temperature change. Therefore, IRT is very potential to be applied in cattle farms in Indonesia

Precision technologies to address dairy cattle welfare: focus on lameness, mastitis and body condition

Specific animal-based indicators that can be used to predict animal welfare have been the core of protocols for assessing the welfare of farm animals, such as those produced by the Welfare Quality project. At the same time, the contribution of technological tools for the accurate and realtime assessment of farm animal welfare is also evident. The solutions based on technological tools fit into the precision livestock farming (PLF) concept, which has improved productivity, economic sustainability, and animal welfare in dairy farms. PLF has been adopted recently; nevertheless, the need for technological support on farms is getting more and more attention and has translated into significant scientific contributions in various fields of the dairy industry, but with an emphasis on the health and welfare of the cows. This review aims to present the recent advances of PLF in dairy cow welfare, particularly in the assessment of lameness, mastitis, and body condition, which are among the most relevant animal-based indications for the welfare of cows. Finally, a discussion is presented on the possibility of integrating the information obtained by PLF into a welfare assessment framework.FE1B-06B2-126F | Jos? Pedro Pinto de Ara?joN/

Real-time vital signs monitoring system for livestock

The focus on the application of information and communication technologies & electronics (ICTE) in agriculture has proved to be very efficient and revolutionary in several ways. With the adoption of increasingly efficient and modern technologies, agriculture, in general, improves its competitiveness and production is carried out in a more sustainable way. The intensive use of ICTE in this sector has been aimed at creating integrated solutions that generate efficiency gains in productivity, sustainability and economic, social and environmental quality. This type of technologies, when aimed at monitoring livestock, have some characteristics in common. Precise positioning and geolocation from GPS, geographic mapping, sensors and communication systems are some of the tools that will allow the development of a complete and extremely accurate system for monitoring vital signs. This proposal for a cattle or equine ICTE-based monitoring system is developed as a belt. It contains a microcontroller that is used to evaluate the animal's heart rate and detect abnormal mobility. The correct evaluation of these two parameters proves very useful for the detection of many of the pathologies and anomalies that constitute economic losses for the producers. With accurate monitoring, it is possible to circumvent these events that are detrimental to animal production.O foco na aplicação de tecnologias de informação e comunicação e eletrónica (TICE) na agricultura provou ser muito eficiente e revolucionário de várias maneiras. Com a adoção de tecnologias cada vez mais eficientes e modernas, a agricultura em geral melhora sua competitividade e a produção é realizada de forma mais sustentável. O uso intensivo de TICE neste setor tem por objetivo criar soluções integradas que gerem ganhos efetivos em produtividade, sustentabilidade e qualidade económica, social e ambiental. Este tipo de tecnologias, quando destinadas à monitoração de gado, têm algumas características em comum. Posicionamento preciso e geolocalização de GPS, mapeamento geográfico, sensores e sistemas de comunicação são algumas das ferramentas que permitirão o desenvolvimento de um sistema completo e preciso para monitorar sinais vitais de animais. Esta proposta para um sistema de monitorização de gado ou equinos, baseado em TICE, é desenvolvido como um cinto. Este contém um dispositivo microcontrolador que é usado para avaliar a frequência cardíaca do animal e detetar mobilidade anormal. A avaliação correta desses dois parâmetros mostra-se muito útil para a deteção de muitas das patologias e anomalias que constituem perdas económicas para os produtores. Com uma monitorização precisa, é possível contornar estes eventos prejudiciais a uma produção animal

Technological Tools for the Early Detection of Bovine Respiratory Disease in Farms

Classically, the diagnosis of respiratory disease in cattle has been based on observation of clinical signs and the behavior of the animals, but this technique can be subjective, time-consuming and labor intensive. It also requires proper training of staff and lacks sensitivity (Se) and specificity (Sp). Furthermore, respiratory disease is diagnosed too late, when the animal already has severe lesions. A total of 104 papers were included in this review. The use of new advanced technologies that allow early diagnosis of diseases using real-time data analysis may be the future of cattle farms. These technologies allow continuous, remote, and objective assessment of animal behavior and diagnosis of bovine respiratory disease with improved Se and Sp. The most commonly used behavioral variables are eating behavior and physical activity. Diagnosis of bovine respiratory disease may experience a significant change with the help of big data combined with machine learning, and may even integrate metabolomics as disease markers. Advanced technologies should not be a substitute for practitioners, farmers or technicians, but could help achieve a much more accurate and earlier diagnosis of respiratory disease and, therefore, reduce the use of antibiotics, increase animal welfare and sustainability of livestock farms. This review aims to familiarize practitioners and farmers with the advantages and disadvantages of the advanced technological diagnostic tools for bovine respiratory disease and introduce recent clinical applications