JP7366300B1 - Estrus sign detection system - Google Patents

Abstract

[Problem] To improve the detection accuracy of signs of estrus. [Solution] The estrus sign detection system 100 of the present embodiment has two modes with different estrus determination conditions for determining the presence of estrus signs when determining the presence or absence of estrus signs. Judgment is made in the first mode on the condition that this is the case, and judgment is made in the second mode whose estrus judgment conditions are stricter than in the first mode on the condition that it is during an unspecified period. In other words, the conditions for determining estrus are used differently for periods when signs of estrus are likely to occur and periods when signs of estrus are not. The accuracy of symptom detection can be improved. Moreover, the determination in the second mode is made on the condition that no signs of estrus are detected during the high estrus period, reducing the possibility of erroneously detecting signs of estrus even though they are not signs of estrus. It is possible to prevent the symptoms of estrus from being overlooked. [Selection diagram] Figure 8

Description

The present disclosure relates to an estrus sign detection system that detects estrus signs in animals.

As a conventional estrus sign detection system, one is known that detects estrus signs based on physical quantities that change depending on the manifestation of estrus signs (for example, see Patent Document 1).

JP 2022-125851 (Paragraphs [0032] to [0037] and Figure 4)

There is a need for the above-mentioned estrus sign detection system to improve the detection accuracy of estrus signs.

A first aspect of the present disclosure made to solve the above problem is that a high estrous period of a plurality of approximately constant lengths during which there is a high possibility that signs of estrus will occur is replaced by a plurality of approximately constant lengths during which the possibility of developing signs of estrus is low. a physical quantity detection device that is attached to an animal repeatedly separated by a low estrous period and detects a physical quantity that changes depending on the occurrence of the estrous signs; The estrus sign detection system includes: an estrus determining unit that determines the presence or absence of the estrus sign based on whether the detection result of the device satisfies the requirements.

In the estrus sign detection system of the first aspect of the present disclosure, for an animal in which a high estrus period in which there is a high possibility of developing estrus signs is repeated with a low estrus period in which a low estrus sign is unlikely to occur, The presence or absence of signs of estrus is determined based on whether the detection result of the physical quantity detection device satisfies different estrus determination conditions depending on whether it is a high estrus period or not. In this way, the presence or absence of an estrus sign is determined by using different estrus determination conditions depending on whether it is a period in which the estrus sign is likely to occur, and therefore the detection accuracy of the estrus sign can be improved.

A schematic diagram showing the overall configuration of an estrus sign detection system according to an embodiment of the present invention Block diagram showing the electrical configuration of the stomach terminal and monitoring terminal Block diagram showing the control configuration of the intragastric terminal Flowchart showing the operations performed by the monitoring terminal Block diagram showing the control configuration of the monitoring terminal Flowchart of estrus sign detection program Flowchart of the program executed by the period determination process Flowchart of the program executed by the estrus determination process Flowchart of a program executed by a part of the estrus determination process according to another embodiment

An estrous sign detection system 100 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 8. The estrus sign detection system 100 of the present embodiment shown in FIG. , a monitoring terminal 50 that detects information about the cow 10 acquired by the stomach terminal 20, and an external terminal 70 that receives information acquired by the stomach stomach terminal 20 via the monitoring terminal 50. These are connected via a communication network 101 including wireless base stations 400 and 401.

As shown in FIG. 2, the stomach pouch terminal 20 includes a temperature sensor 21A, an acceleration sensor 21B, a device control section 22, a wireless circuit 23, etc., which are used to protect the stomach from rumen fluid, food residue, etc. in the stomach pouch 10S. It is housed in a case (not shown). Note that the stomach pouch terminal 20 is inserted through the mouth of the cow 10 and left in the stomach pouch 10S.

The temperature sensor 21A and the acceleration sensor 21B measure the temperature and acceleration inside the stomach pouch 10S of the cow 10, and transmit the measurement results to the device control unit 22. The device control unit 22 causes the wireless circuit 23 to wirelessly transmit signals based on the measurement results obtained from the temperature sensor 21A and the acceleration sensor 21B. Note that the stomach pouch terminal 20 may also be configured to include, for example, a pressure sensor or the like, and to wirelessly transmit information other than the acceleration and temperature inside the stomach pouch 10S as information about the cow 10. Note that the temperature sensor 21A and the acceleration sensor 21B correspond to a "physical quantity detection device" in the claims.

The device control unit 22 includes a CPU 22A and a memory 22B. The CPU 22A is connected to devices such as the temperature sensor 21A, the acceleration sensor 21B, and the wireless circuit 23, and controls these devices to execute a predetermined signal processing program. The memory 22B stores a signal processing program, an identification number set for each stomach terminal 20, and the like.

Note that the stomach pouch terminal 20 includes a battery (not shown) that supplies power to the temperature sensor 21A, acceleration sensor 21B, device control section 22, wireless circuit 23, and the like. Further, a weight (not shown) is housed in the case, so that the intragastric terminal 20 is stably placed in the stomach 10S of the cow 10.

Specifically, the intra-stomach terminal 20 operates as follows. The signal processing program is executed while power is supplied from the battery to the device control unit 22, and when the signal processing program is executed, the intragastric terminal 20 generates the measurement trigger generation unit 24A and the transmission trigger shown in FIG. It functions as a control block for the generation section 24B, data acquisition section 25, data transmission section 27, and the like.

In the measurement trigger generation unit 24A, measurement triggers TG1 are generated at predetermined intervals (for example, 1 minute), and each time the measurement triggers TG1 are generated, the temperature sensor 21A and the acceleration sensor 21B measure the temperature and temperature inside the stomach pouch 10S. Measure acceleration. Then, from the measurement results of the temperature sensor 21A and the acceleration sensor 21B, the data acquisition section 25 generates temperature data and acceleration data, which are information on the temperature and acceleration inside the stomach pouch 10S, and provides them to the data transmission section 27.

The transmission trigger generation unit 24B generates a transmission trigger TG2 every fixed period (for example, 10 minutes), and each time the transmission trigger TG2 is generated, the data transmission unit 27 generates transmission data from temperature data and acceleration data. D1 is generated and wirelessly transmitted using the wireless circuit 23.

Specifically, the temperature data and acceleration data generated by the data acquisition unit 25 are temporarily stored in a buffer 26, and the data transmission unit 27 transmits a data frame of a predetermined data length. Then, transmission data D1 is generated that stores a plurality of temperature data and acceleration data read from the buffer 26 and the identification number of the stomach terminal 20 read from the memory 22B (in this embodiment, for example, 10 temperature data data and acceleration data are stored). Note that if information about the cow 10 other than temperature data and acceleration data is also acquired, such information may also be stored in the transmission data D1.

The transmission data D1 from the plurality of stomach terminals 20 is received by the monitoring terminal 50. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 1, transmission data D1 from the intragastric terminal 20 is first received by a gateway 500 installed in a cowshed or pasture where a plurality of cows 10 are raised. Gateway 500 has a function as a relay base station and a function of protocol conversion. Then, the gateway 500 transmits the transmission data D1 from the stomach terminal 20 to the monitoring terminal 50 via the general-purpose communication line 300. In this embodiment, one gateway 500 is connected to one monitoring terminal 50, but even if, for example, a gateway 500 is installed in each cowshed or ranch, and a plurality of gateways 500 are connected to one monitoring terminal 50, good.

The monitoring terminal 50 is configured by a computer such as a server computer or a personal computer, and detects the cow 10 for each identification number based on the information about the cow 10 included in the transmission data D1, and detects any changes or abnormalities in physical condition etc. If such information is found, the information is notified to the external terminal 70 (see FIG. 1). Note that the monitoring terminal 50 may be a cloud server consisting of a plurality of servers.

As shown in FIG. 2, the monitoring terminal 50 includes at least a communication circuit 51, a control unit 50A including a CPU 52 and a memory 59, a storage medium 60, and the like.

The communication circuit 51 receives transmission data D1 from the intragastric terminal 20 via the general-purpose communication line 300, and transmits data to the external terminal 70.

The storage medium 60 is composed of a RAM, a hard disk, a flash memory, etc., and has an identification number storage section 61, a program storage section 62, etc., as shown in FIG. The identification number storage unit 61 stores the identification number of each stomach pouch terminal 20, and each stomach pouch terminal 20 can be identified from the identification number. The program storage unit 62 stores an estrus sign detection program PG1, which will be described later. By causing the CPU 52 to execute the estrus sign detection program PG1, the monitoring terminal 50 is made to function as an estrus sign detection device that detects signs of estrus in the cow 10.

Note that the estrus sign detection program PG1 is not limited to the above configuration, and may have a configuration in which it is stored in, for example, a non-temporary storage medium such as a CD-ROM or a USB memory, and is read from and executed, or a general-purpose The configuration may be such that the execution is performed using a service such as an application through the communication line 300.

As shown in FIG. 4, when the CPU 52 receives the transmission data D1 transmitted from the plurality of stomach terminals 20 through the communication circuit 51 (YES in S11), the CPU 52 performs data import processing (S12) and disease detection processing (S13). ), an estrus sign detection process (S14) is executed, and abnormalities and changes related to the physical condition of the cow 10 are detected in order of urgency. The CPU 52 functions as the data acquisition unit 53 shown in the block diagram of FIG. 5 by executing the data acquisition process, and performs the estrus determination process shown in the block diagram of FIG. 5 by executing the estrus sign detection process. It functions as a section 54, a period determining section 55, an information transmitting section 56, and the like. Then, when executing the estrus sign detection process, the above-mentioned estrus sign detection program PG1 is executed. In this embodiment, details of the disease detection process will be omitted. The disease detection process is a process for detecting a disease of the cow 10, such as bloat, which is a disease specific to livestock, for example.

The data acquisition unit 53 adds a reception time to the received transmission data D1, and divides the information of the cow 10, such as the temperature data and acceleration data in the stomach 10S included in each transmission data D1, into a buffer 53A. Store in. Thereby, the estrus sign detection process is executed for each identification number.

The estrus determining unit 54 retrieves the temperature for the latest predetermined period (for example, 1 hour) from the buffer 53A every time the data importing unit 53 receives the transmission data D1 and stores temperature data and acceleration data in the buffer 53A. The data and acceleration data are extracted, and the presence or absence of signs of estrus is determined based on their changes. Here, it is generally known that when the cow 10 is in heat, the time spent lying down or resting is reduced, the amount of activity increases, and the body temperature rises, compared to when the cow is not in heat. . In this embodiment, the presence or absence of signs of estrus is determined using the characteristic that the temperature data and acceleration data in the stomach pouch 10S change due to an increase in the amount of activity or manifestation of signs of estrus such as a rise in body temperature.

The estrus determination unit 54 has a first mode and a second mode, which have different estrus determination conditions for determining that there is a sign of estrus, and a rest mode in which no determination is made. The mode in which the estrus determining section 54 operates is determined based on the determination by the period determining section 55.

Specifically, in the first mode, the first condition is that the change in temperature data increases beyond a preset first threshold value continues for more than a reference number of times, and the acceleration data is set in advance. The requirement is that one of the second conditions is met, that is, the change exceeding the second threshold continues for more than a reference number of times. On the other hand, the second mode requires that both the first condition and the second condition be satisfied. In other words, the conditions for determining that signs of estrus are present are made stricter in the second mode than in the first mode. If it is determined that there is a sign of estrus in either the first mode or the second mode, the timing of the determination is stored in the memory 59. Further, the values of the first threshold value, the second threshold value, and the reference number of times are stored in the memory 59. Note that the fulfillment of either the first condition or the second condition corresponds to “satisfying the first estrus determination condition” in the claims, and the fulfillment of both the first condition and the second condition corresponds to “satisfaction of the first estrus determination condition” in the claims. Establishment corresponds to "meeting the second estrus determination condition" in the claims, and the memory 59 corresponds to the "storage unit" in the claims.

Here, the appearance of signs of estrus in the cow 10 generally occurs periodically, with a ``high estrus period'' during which there is a high possibility that estrus signs will appear, followed by a ``low estrus period'' when there is a low possibility that estrus signs will appear. Therefore, in this embodiment, the estrus state of the cow 10 is divided into a "high estrus period", a "low estrus period", and a period during which it is not known whether it is a high estrus period (hereinafter referred to as "low estrus period"). During the high estrus period, the presence or absence of signs of estrus is determined in the first mode, and during the unspecified period, the presence or absence of signs of estrus is determined in the second mode. It looks like this. Furthermore, during the low estrus period, there is a low possibility that signs of estrus will appear, so the rest mode is set and no determination is made. In addition, in this embodiment, the period including the so-called "estrus period" which is generally considered to be the most suitable period for mating, and the "proestrus period" and "postestrus period" before and after the "high estrus period" is defined as the "high estrus period". This period is set as the "low estrus period".

The period determining unit 55 determines whether the current state of the cow 10 is in a high estrus period, a low estrus period, or an unspecified period. The period determination unit 55 converts the low estrus period and the high estrus period based on the history of determination timings at which the estrus determination unit 54 determined that signs of estrus were present.

Specifically, the period determination unit 55 retrieves the history of determination timings stored in the memory 59, and sets the latest determination timing as the latest estrus date. Further, in this embodiment, a user such as a livestock owner registers the date and time when the cow 10 actually shows signs of estrus in advance in the memory 59 via the external terminal 70, and the registered information on the estrus date and time is used for judgment. It may be used instead of the timing history and set as the latest estrus date. If the memory 59 stores a plurality of registration information of determination timing and estrus date and time, the latest one among them is set as the latest estrus date. Furthermore, when there is no history of determination timing in the memory 59, such as when the estrus sign detection program PG1 is started for the first time, or when there is no registration of the estrus date and time by the user, the estrus date is set as unknown.

Then, the period determining unit 55 uses the set latest estrus date as the starting point for the low estrus period, determines a predetermined period T1 from the latest estrus date as being in the low estrus period, and after the specified period T1 has elapsed. A predetermined period T2 is determined to be a high estrus period. Then, after the predetermined period T2 of the high estrus period has passed, it is determined that an unspecified period continues. Even if the date of estrus is unknown, it is determined that the animal is in an unspecified period. In response to this, the estrus determination unit 54 operates in the rest mode when it is determined that the low estrus period is in progress, and operates in the first mode when it is determined that the high estrus period is in progress. If it is determined that it is during the period, it operates in the second mode.

In other words, each period is determined based on the latest estrus date, so if it is determined that there are signs of estrus during the high estrus period, even if it is before the expiration of the fixed period T2, the timing of determining that there are estrus signs It is determined that the high estrus period has ended and a new low estrus period has started from that determination timing.

The information transmitter 56 notifies the external terminal 70 every time the estrus date is updated. Specifically, the stomach-internal terminal 20 corresponding to the identification number that is the data transmission source is identified from the identification number storage unit 61, and the transmission including the stomach-internal terminal 20, information on the date of estrus, and determination time is performed. Data D2 is generated and notified to the external terminal 70 via the communication circuit 51.

Note that the external terminal 70 may be a portable information terminal such as a personal computer, a tablet, or a smartphone owned by a user such as a livestock owner, and may be any general communication means capable of communicating with the monitoring terminal 50. The external terminal 70 receives the notification of the transmission data D2 from the monitoring terminal 50, as described above. Further, the monitoring terminal 50 may be accessed from the external terminal 70 and the monitoring terminal 50 may be configured to freely view changes in temperature data and acceleration data in the stomach 10S regarding signs of estrus in each cow 10, for example.

An example of the estrus sign detection program PG1 executed by the CPU 52 of the monitoring terminal 50 is shown in FIGS. 6 to 8 below. As described above, the estrus sign detection program PG1 is executed every time the CPU 52 receives the transmission data D1 from the stomach terminal 20 and executes the data import process (see S12 in FIG. 4), and is executed as shown in FIG. First, in step S21, temperature data and acceleration data for the latest predetermined period are acquired from the buffer 53A.

Next, a period determination process is executed to determine whether the cow 10 is in estrus during a high estrus period, during a low estrus period, or during an unspecified period (S22). Subsequently, an estrus determination process is executed to determine the presence or absence of signs of estrus based on the estrus state of the cow 10 determined by the period determination process (S23). In the estrus determination process, if it is determined that there are no signs of estrus (NO in S24), the process exits from the estrus sign detection program PG1, while if it is determined that there are signs of estrus (YES in S24), After executing the transmission process for notifying the user (S25), the process exits from the estrus sign detection program PG1. Here, the CPU 52 when executing the period determination process (S22) corresponds to the period determination unit 55, and the CPU 52 when executing the estrus determination process (S23) and step S24 corresponds to the estrus determination unit 54. However, the CPU 52 when executing the transmission process (S25) corresponds to the information transmission section 56.

FIG. 7 shows an example of a program for the period determination process (S22 in FIG. 6). In the period determination process, first, an estrus date setting process is executed in step S31. As described above, in the estrus date setting process, the history of the determination timing at which it was determined that signs of estrus were present or the registration information of the estrus date and time is extracted, and the latest one of them is set as the latest estrus date. Then, after the latest estrus date is set (NO in S32), if a certain period of time T1 has not been exceeded from the latest estrus date (NO in S33), it is determined that the low estrus period is in progress (NO in S33). S35). At this point, if a certain period T1 has passed since the latest estrous date but the certain period T2 has not been exceeded (YES in S33 and NO in S34), it is determined that the high estrus period is in progress (S36). Furthermore, if at this point in time a certain period of time T1 has elapsed and a certain period of time T2 has elapsed since the latest estrus date (YES in S33 and YES in S34), it is determined that the unspecified period is in progress (S37). Also, if the history of determination timing and registration information of the date and time of estrus are not stored and the date of estrus is set as unknown (YES in S32), it is determined that the period is in an unspecified period (S37).

FIG. 8 shows an example of a program for the estrus determination process (S23 in FIG. 6). In the estrus determination process, as described above, determination is made by changing the content of the estrus determination conditions for determining that a sign of estrus is present depending on whether the cow 10 is in a high estrus period, a low estrus period, or an unspecified period. First, if the animal is in a low estrus period (YES in S41), there is a low possibility that signs of estrus will appear, so the system enters a rest mode and does not perform any determination.

On the other hand, if the high estrus period is in progress (YES in S42), the first condition is that the temperature data rises above the first threshold for a number of consecutive times, and the acceleration data rises above the first threshold. If either one of the second conditions is satisfied (YES in S43 or YES in S44) among the second conditions that the change exceeding the two thresholds continues for more than the reference number of times, it is determined that there is a sign of estrus (S48), and both Only when the conditions are not satisfied (NO in S43 and NO in S44), determination is made in the first mode in which it is determined that there is no sign of estrus (S47).

In addition, if it is during an unspecified period (NO in S41 and NO in S42), only if both the first and second conditions described above are satisfied (YES in S45 and YES in S46). The determination is made in a second mode in which it is determined that there is a sign of estrus (S48), and if either one is not satisfied (NO in S45 or NO in S46), it is determined that there is no sign of estrus (S49). In other words, the estrus determination conditions for determining that signs of estrus are present are stricter during an unspecified period than during a high estrus period when there is a high possibility that signs of estrus will occur.

This concludes the description of the configuration of the estrous sign detection system 100 of this embodiment. In the estrus sign detection system 100 of the present embodiment, the stomach pouch terminals 20 are placed in the stomach pouches 10S of a plurality of cows 10, and information such as the temperature and acceleration inside the stomach pouches 10S of the cows 10 acquired by the stomach pouch terminals 20 is monitored. It is wirelessly transmitted to the terminal 50. In the present embodiment, when the cow 10 is in heat, the amount of activity increases compared to a state in which the cow is not in heat, and signs of heat in heat, such as a rise in body temperature, occur. Signs of estrus are detected based on changes in data and acceleration data. The monitoring terminal 50 collects information in the stomach pouch 10S from a plurality of stomach pouch terminals 20, detects signs of estrus for each identification number, and notifies the external terminal 70 when a sign of estrus is detected. There is. This makes it possible to collectively monitor a plurality of cows 10 raised in a plurality of cowsheds or pastures, efficiently identify cows 10 exhibiting signs of heat, and accurately inseminate the cows. Therefore, it is possible to reduce livestock production costs by reducing the detection effort of the livestock owner, and to improve productivity by suppressing the inability to inseminate livestock due to missed estrous season.

Here, when detecting signs of estrus based on changes in temperature data and acceleration data in the stomach 10S, it is possible to detect signs of estrus such as an increase in body temperature due to the influence of a disease, an increase in activity due to a fight between cows 10, etc. Temperature data and acceleration data may change due to other factors, and even in such cases, there is a risk of erroneously detecting signs of estrus. Furthermore, in the present embodiment, the cow 10 is in heat because a "high heat cycle" in which there is a high possibility that heat symptoms will occur is repeated with a "low heat cycle" in which there is a low probability that heat symptoms will develop. The presence or absence of signs of estrus is determined during the period of high estrus, and the presence or absence of signs of estrus is not determined during the period of low estrus. In this way, by not determining the presence or absence of signs of estrus during a period when there is a low possibility that signs of estrus will occur, it is possible to reduce the risk of erroneously detecting signs of estrus when it is not a sign of estrus. The detection accuracy can be improved.

Furthermore, in this embodiment, if it is determined that there are no signs of estrus during the high estrus period, the subsequent period is not a low estrus period, but an unspecified period in which it is unclear whether or not there is a high possibility that estrus signs will occur. It is now set to a period. Here, in this embodiment, when determining the presence or absence of estrus signs, two modes are provided with different estrus determination conditions for determining that estrus signs are present, and the first mode is set under the condition that the high estrus period is in progress. The presence or absence of signs of estrus is determined in the second mode, which has stricter estrus determination conditions than the first mode, provided that it is during an unspecified period. In other words, the conditions for determining estrus are used differently for periods when there is a high possibility that signs of estrus will appear, and periods when there is not. The accuracy of symptom detection can be improved. Moreover, the determination in the second mode is made on the condition that there is no estrus sign during the high estrus period, and it is not performed during the low estrus period after it is determined that there are estrus signs during the high estrus period. Therefore, it is possible to reduce the possibility of erroneously detecting the occurrence of an estrus sign when it is not an estrus sign, and to prevent overlooking of an estrus sign that appears irregularly after a high estrus period.

In addition, the unspecified period is configured to continue until it is determined that there are signs of estrus, so even if the interval between the occurrence of signs of estrus deviates greatly, such as when a cow is 10 after calving, it is not a sign of estrus. It is possible to detect signs of estrus while reducing the possibility of erroneously detecting signs of estrus.

In addition, in this embodiment, each time it is determined that there is a sign of estrus during the high estrus period or an unspecified period, the latest determination timing is updated as the starting point for the low estrus period, and the low estrus period and the high estrus period are The configuration is such that it can be adjusted at any time. Thereby, even if the intervals between the occurrence of signs of heat are shifted, signs of heat can be continuously detected in accordance with the current state of heat of the cow 10.

Furthermore, in the present embodiment, even when the high estrus period cannot be specified, such as when the stomach terminal 20 is introduced into the cow 10 for the first time or when the user has not registered the estrus date and time, the unspecified period is set. Judgment is made in 2 modes. Thereby, it is possible to detect the estrus sign and specify the high estrus period while reducing the possibility of erroneously detecting the occurrence of the estrus sign when it is not the estrus sign.

[Other embodiments]
(1) In the embodiment described above, the estrus determining unit 54 is set to the rest mode and does not determine the presence or absence of estrus signs during the low estrus period, since there is a low possibility that estrus signs will occur. However, the presence or absence of signs of estrus may be determined in a third mode different from the high estrus period or the unspecified period. In this case, in the third mode, if the judgment is made under stricter estrus judgment conditions than in the first and second modes, it will reduce the possibility of erroneously detecting estrous signs when they are not estrus signs. It is possible to detect irregular signs of estrus.

(2) In the embodiment described above, in determining the presence or absence of signs of estrus, the estrus determining unit 54 determines that temperature data has a change that exceeds the first threshold value and continues to increase for more than a reference number of times. Regarding the first condition, acceleration data, it was required that the second condition, which is that the change exceeding the second threshold value continues for more than a reference number of times, be satisfied, but the contents of the first condition and the second condition are Not limited. For example, for statistical values (average, percentile, etc.) of temperature data and acceleration data calculated for each predetermined period, the condition may be a judgment result based on an abnormality detection method based on the normal distribution in statistics, or the above-mentioned statistical value may be used as a condition. Also, a determination result by a machine learning model such as SVM, XGBoost, Deep Neutral Network, etc. using meta information such as age in months and time elapsed since the last heat date as input feature values may be used as the condition.

(3) In the embodiment, the estrus determining unit 54 determines that the values of the first threshold, the second threshold, and the reference number of times included in the first condition and the second condition used in determining the presence or absence of signs of estrus are the first Although the values are common in the mode and the second mode, different values may be used. For example, any or all of the values of the first threshold, the second threshold, and the reference number of times may be set smaller in the first mode than in the second mode.

(4) In the embodiment, the estrus determining unit 54 sets both the period after it is determined that there is no estrus sign during the high estrus period and the period when the date of estrus is unknown as an unspecified period, and sets both of them to the second mode. Although the presence or absence of signs of estrus was determined in the above, the determination may be made in a different mode having different estrus determination conditions.

(5) In the embodiment, the estrus determining unit 54 determines that there is a sign of estrus when either the first condition in the temperature data or the second condition in the acceleration data is satisfied during the high estrus period. However, as shown in FIG. 9, if both conditions are met (YES in S51 and YES in S52), it is determined that there is a sign of estrus, and if only one of the conditions is met (YES in S51 or YES in S52), it is determined that there is a sign of estrus. (YES in S53), it may be determined that "a sign of estrus is suspected".

In addition, if it is determined that there are signs of estrus, instead of setting an unspecified period immediately after the end of the high estrus period, the low estrus period and high estrus period will occur in the same cycle several times thereafter. It may also be configured to set the settings as follows and see what happens. Further, if it is determined that there is a "suspected sign of estrus", it may be considered that there is "no sign of estrus". In this case, as in the other embodiment (3), the values of the threshold value and the reference number of times used in the first mode and the second mode may be different.

(6) In the above embodiment, if it is determined that there is a sign of estrus regardless of the high estrus period or unspecified period, the high estrus period or unspecified period ends at that determination timing, and the latest determination timing is Although the configuration is such that the starting point for the estrus period is updated and the low estrus period and high estrus period are adjusted at any time, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, when it is determined that there are signs of estrus in an unspecified period, the unspecified period is terminated at that determination timing, as in the above embodiment, while when it is determined that there are signs of estrus during a high estrus period, the period is determined to be high at that determination timing. Instead of ending the estrus period, the low estrus period may start after the expiration of a certain period T2 of the high estrus period. In other words, as long as it is determined that there are signs of estrus during the high estrus period, the low estrus period of a certain period T1 and the high estrus period of a certain period T2 are fixed to occur alternately, and the presence or absence of estrus signs at a certain period is fixed. The configuration may be such that a determination is made.

Further, even if it is determined that there are no signs of estrus during the high estrus period, the subsequent period does not need to be set to an unspecified period. In this case, until the registration information of the estrus date and time is registered by the user, the presence or absence of estrus signs is set to continue for an unspecified period regardless of the determination result of the presence or absence of estrus signs, and the presence or absence of estrus signs is determined. After the registration information of the estrus date and time is registered by the user, the starting point of the low estrus period is set based on it, and the low estrus period is fixed for a fixed period of time T1 regardless of the determination result of the presence or absence of signs of estrus. The high estrous periods of period T2 may be set to occur alternately.

(7) In the embodiment described above, the fixed period T1 of the low estrous period and the fixed period T2 of the high estrous period are determined in advance, but they may be changed for each identification number. For example, from the history of the timing of determining whether there are signs of estrus stored in the memory 59, the actual interval of occurrence of signs of estrus is statistically specified, the period of signs of estrus is estimated for each identification number, and the period of estrus signs is estimated based on the estrus period. A data updating unit may be provided that updates the lengths of the fixed period T1 of the low estrus period and the fixed period T2 of the high estrus period stored in the memory 59 for each identification number. Thereby, the length of the fixed period T1 of the low estrus period and the fixed period T2 of the high estrus period can be corrected for each cow 10.

Further, the data updating unit may also change the values of the first threshold value, the second threshold value, and the reference number of times for each identification number. For example, the temperature data and acceleration data when it is determined that there is a sign of estrus are also stored in the memory 59, and the values of the first threshold value, the second threshold value, and the reference number of times are statistically estimated from the history of the data for identification. It may be updated for each number.

(8) In the embodiment described above, the first condition for the temperature data and the second condition for the acceleration data used by the estrus determination unit 54 are determined in advance, but they may be changed for each identification number. For example, by changing the contents of the first condition and the second condition within a predetermined range, the variation in the interval of occurrence of actual signs of estrus identified from the judgment of the estrus determining unit 54 under the changed contents, and the change The information processing apparatus may include a data updating unit that updates the contents of the first condition and the second condition for each identification number by machine learning based on the contents so that variations are reduced. Thereby, the first condition and the second condition can be corrected for each cow 10.

(9) The monitoring terminal 50 identifies cows and bulls in advance, and detects signs of estrus for the cows whose signs of estrus are to be detected based on the transmission data D1 sent from the plurality of stomach terminals 20. The detection process may be executed, but only the disease detection process may be executed for bulls without the estrous sign detection process.

(10) In the embodiment described above, the intragastric terminal 20 is placed in the stomach pouch 10S of the cow 10, but it may be placed in the stomach pouch 10S of another animal.

(11) In the above embodiment, temperature data and acceleration data were acquired every 1 [minute] as a predetermined interval, and were wirelessly transmitted every 10 [minutes] as a fixed period. The length is not limited to these. Alternatively, the stomach pouch terminal 20 may be configured to be operable from the outside so that the timing of acquiring temperature data and acceleration data and the timing of wireless transmission can be changed.

In the embodiment described above, the stomach terminal 20 is configured to wirelessly transmit a plurality of temperature data and acceleration data acquired during a certain period of time, but the average value and maximum value of these plurality of temperature data and acceleration data are Values, median values, etc. may be transmitted wirelessly. Alternatively, a configuration may be adopted in which both the average value and the maximum value are transmitted wirelessly. Alternatively, a configuration may be adopted in which temperature data and acceleration data are transmitted wirelessly every time they are acquired.

(12) In the above embodiment, the high estrus period includes the estrus period, the proestrus period and the postestrus period before and after the estrus period, but the high estrus period may be only the estrus period and the proestrus period, or the estrus period and the estrus period. It may be done only in the latter half of the year, or only in the estrous season.

<Additional notes>
Hereinafter, the feature group extracted from the above embodiment will be explained, showing effects etc. as necessary. Note that, in the following, for ease of understanding, configurations corresponding to the above embodiments will be indicated in parentheses, etc., as appropriate; however, these feature groups are not limited to the specific configurations shown in parentheses, etc.

The present application includes several features described below. Note that in the description of these features, the numbers in parentheses are the corresponding symbols in the above embodiments.

[Feature 1]
A high estrus period of approximately constant length (T2) in which there is a high possibility that signs of estrus will occur is repeated with a low estrus period of approximately constant length (T1) in which the possibility is low, and the a physical quantity detection device (21A, 21B) that detects a physical quantity that changes depending on the appearance of signs of estrus;
an estrus determination unit (54) that determines the presence or absence of the estrus sign based on whether or not the detection results of the physical quantity detection devices (21A, 21B) satisfy estrus determination conditions that differ depending on whether or not it is the high estrus period; This is an estrous sign detection system (100) comprising the following.

In feature 1, for animals (10) in which a period of high estrus, in which there is a high possibility that signs of estrus are likely to occur, is repeated after a period of low estrus, in which there is a low possibility that signs of estrus will be expressed, it is determined whether the period is high or not. The presence or absence of signs of estrus is determined based on whether the detection results of the physical quantity detection devices (21A, 21B) satisfy different estrus determination conditions. In this way, the presence or absence of an estrus sign is determined by using different estrus determination conditions depending on whether it is a period in which the estrus sign is likely to occur, and therefore the detection accuracy of the estrus sign can be improved.

[Feature 2]
A storage unit (59) for storing data of the low estrus period, the high estrus period, and their starting points is provided to determine whether the high estrus period has come, or the low estrus period is determined. and a storage unit (59) for storing each data of the high estrus period, the low estrus period being calculated based on the timing of determination of the presence of signs of estrus by the estrus determining unit (54), whether the low estrus period has elapsed. The estrus sign detection system (100) according to feature 1 includes a period determination unit (55) that determines whether the high estrus period has started.

As in feature 2, it may be determined whether or not the high estrus period has entered, by having a storage unit (59) that stores each data of the low estrus period, the high estrus period, and their starting points. , has a storage unit (59) for storing each data of the low estrus period and the high estrus period, and determines whether the low estrus period has elapsed, which is calculated based on the timing of determination of presence of estrus signs by the estrus determining unit (54). Depending on whether or not the high estrus period has started, it may be determined.

[Feature 3]
The estrus determination unit (54) includes:
A first step of determining the presence or absence of the estrus sign based on whether the detection result of the physical quantity detection device (21A, 21B) satisfies a predetermined first estrus determination condition on the condition that the high estrus period is in progress. 1 mode and
On the condition that it is determined that there is no sign of estrus and the high estrus period has ended, the detection result of the physical quantity detection device (21A, 21B) is set to a second estrus determination condition that is predetermined to be stricter than the first estrus determination condition. The estrus sign detection system (100) according to feature 1 or 2, further includes a second mode in which the presence or absence of the estrus sign is determined based on whether an estrus determination condition is satisfied.

In feature 3, the estrus determination unit (54) of the estrus sign detection system (100) operates in a first mode in which the presence or absence of estrus signs is determined using the first estrus determination condition, and in a second mode that is stricter than the first estrus determination condition. 2. The second mode determines the presence or absence of signs of estrus using two estrus determination conditions. The presence or absence of signs of estrus is determined in the second mode under certain conditions. In this way, the conditions for determining estrus are used differently for periods when there is a high possibility that signs of estrus will appear, and periods when there is not. , it is possible to improve the detection accuracy of signs of estrus. Moreover, the determination in the second mode is made on the condition that there are no signs of estrus during the high estrus period, and is not performed if it is determined that there are signs of estrus during the high estrus period. It is possible to reduce the possibility of erroneously detecting the onset of an estrus sign when it is not an estrus sign, and to prevent overlooking of an estrus sign that appears irregularly after a period of high estrus.

[Feature 4]
The estrus determining unit (54) has a pause mode in which it does not determine the presence or absence of the estrus sign, on the condition that the estrus sign is determined to be present and the high estrus period is in the low estrus period. The estrus sign detection system (100) according to any one of features 1 to 3 includes a mode.

According to feature 4, the presence or absence of estrus signs is not determined during the low estrus period, when the possibility of estrus signs occurring is low, so it is possible to falsely detect estrus signs even though they are not estrus signs. It is possible to improve the accuracy of detecting signs of estrus by reducing the risk of this happening.

[Feature 5]
The estrus determination unit (54) detects the physical quantity detection device (21A, 21B) on the condition that the estrus sign is determined to be present and the state is in the low estrus period after the high estrus period has ended. Estrus according to feature 3, further comprising a third mode in which the presence or absence of the signs of estrus is determined based on whether or not the result satisfies a third estrus determination condition that is predetermined to be stricter than the second estrus determination condition. A symptom detection system (100).

According to feature 5, during the low estrus period when the possibility of estrus signs occurring is low, the presence or absence of estrus signs is determined using estrus criteria that are stricter than the first and second estrus determination conditions. It is possible to detect irregular signs of estrus that occur immediately after estrus while reducing the possibility of erroneously detecting signs of estrus when there is no estrus.

[Feature 6]
The estrus determining unit (54) continuously determines the presence or absence of the estrus sign in the second mode from when the high estrus period is determined to be absent until it is determined that the estrus sign is present. This is the estrus sign detection system (100) according to feature 3 or 5.

According to feature 6, after the high estrous period in which it is determined that there are no signs of estrus, the second mode is configured to continue determining the presence or absence of signs of estrus until it is determined that there are signs of estrus. Even in cases where the intervals between the occurrences of signs are greatly different, signs of estrus can be detected while reducing the possibility of erroneously detecting signs of estrus even though they are not signs of estrus.

[Feature 7]
After starting the estrus sign detection system (100) in which the starting point of the low estrus period is unknown, the estrus determining unit (54) continues to detect the estrus signs in the second mode until it is determined that the estrus signs are present. The estrus sign detection system (100) according to feature 3, 5, or 6, which determines the presence or absence of.

According to feature 7, when the estrus sign detection system (100) is started for the first time and a high estrus period cannot be identified, the second mode is used to determine the presence or absence of an estrus sign, so even though it is not an estrus sign, it is detected as an estrus sign. It is possible to detect signs of estrus and identify a period of high estrus while reducing the risk of false detection.

[Feature 8]
Estimating the expression cycle of the estrus signs specific to each animal (10) based on the actual interval of occurrence of the estrus signs statistically identified from the judgment of the estrus determining unit (54), and based on the expression cycle. The estrus sign detection system according to any one of features 1 to 7, further comprising a data update unit that updates data of one or both of the low estrus period and the high estrus period in the storage unit (59). .

According to feature 8, one or both of the low estrus period and the high estrus period can be corrected for each animal (10).

[Feature 9]
The estrus determination conditions used by the estrus determination unit (54) are changed within a predetermined range, and the actual estrus determination conditions identified from the determination of the estrus determination unit (54) under each changed estrus determination condition are The feature according to any one of features 1 to 8, comprising a data update unit that updates the estrus determination condition so that the variation is reduced by machine learning based on the variation in the interval of occurrence of the estrus signs and the content of the change. This is the estrus sign detection system described above.

According to feature 9, the contents of the estrus determination conditions used by the estrus determination section (54) can be corrected for each animal (10).

[Feature 10]
Based on the physical quantity detected by the physical quantity detection device (21A, 21B) during the high estrus period and the actual presence or absence of the estrus sign, the presence or absence of the estrus sign is estimated from the physical quantity by machine learning. The generated first machine learning model,
Based on the physical quantity detected by the physical quantity detection device (21A, 21B) during the low estrus period and the actual presence or absence of the estrus sign, machine learning is used to estimate the presence or absence of the estrus sign from the physical quantity. a second machine learning model generated;
Satisfying the first estrus determination condition means that the first machine learning model estimates that the estrus sign is present from the physical quantity,
Estrus according to any one of features 3 and 5 to 7, wherein satisfying the second estrus determination condition means that the second machine learning model estimates that the sign of estrus is present from the physical quantity. It is a symptom detection system.

As shown in feature 10, the first and second machine learning models are equipped with a first and second machine learning model that have learned the correspondence between the physical quantities detected separately in the high estrus period and the low estrus period and the presence or absence of actual manifestation signs at that time. Satisfying the first estrus determination condition means that the first machine learning model estimates that there are signs of estrus, and satisfying the second estrus determination condition means that the second machine learning model estimates that there are signs of estrus. It may also mean estimating that.

[Feature 11]
The physical quantity detection device (21A, 21B) has an acceleration sensor (21B) and a temperature sensor (21A), and is inserted into the interior (10S) of the animal (10) to detect acceleration and temperature as the physical quantities. This is the estrus sign detection system (100) according to any one of the detection characteristics 1 to 10.

When an animal (10) is in heat, its activity level increases compared to a state in which it is not in heat, and signs of heat appear such as a rise in body temperature. As shown, an acceleration sensor (21B) and a temperature sensor (21A) may be placed inside the animal (10) (10S) to detect acceleration and temperature as physical quantities.

[Feature 12]
The physical quantity detection device has an acceleration sensor and a temperature sensor and is inserted into the animal to detect acceleration and temperature as the physical quantities,
The first estrus determination condition includes that at least one of a condition related to the detection result of the acceleration sensor (21B) and a condition related to the detection result of the temperature sensor (21A) is satisfied,
The second estrus determination condition is the estrus according to any one of features 3 and 5 to 7, including that a condition regarding the detection results of both the acceleration sensor (21B) and the temperature sensor (21A) is satisfied. A symptom detection system (100).

As in feature 12, the first estrus determination condition includes that at least one of the conditions regarding the detection result of the acceleration sensor (21B) and the condition regarding the detection result of the temperature sensor (21A) are satisfied, and the second estrus determination condition includes: The second estrus determination condition may be made stricter than the first estrus determination condition by including a condition regarding the detection results of both the acceleration sensor (21B) and the temperature sensor (21A) being satisfied.

Note that although specific examples of technologies included in the scope of the claims are disclosed in this specification and drawings, the technologies described in the claims are not limited to these specific examples. This includes various modifications and changes to the example, as well as cases in which a part of the specific example is taken out alone.

10 Cow (animal)
10S Stomach (inside of animal)
21A Temperature sensor (physical quantity detection device)
21B Acceleration sensor (physical quantity detection device)
54 Estrus determination unit 55 Period determination unit 59 Memory (storage unit)
100 Estrus sign detection system

Claims (12)

A high estrus period of a plurality of days of approximately constant length, in which there is a high possibility that signs of estrus will occur, is repeated with a period of low estrus of a plurality of days, of a generally constant length, in which the possibility is low, and a physical quantity detection device that detects a physical quantity that changes depending on the expression;
An estrus sign detection system comprising: an estrus determination unit that determines the presence or absence of the estrus sign based on whether or not the detection result of the physical quantity detection device satisfies the estrus determination conditions that differ depending on whether or not the high estrus period is present. . A storage unit may be provided to store each data of the low estrus period, the high estrus period, and their starting points, and it is determined whether or not the high estrus period has come, or the low estrus period and the high estrus period may be The device has a storage unit that stores each data of the estrus period, and the high estrus period is determined depending on whether or not the low estrus period has elapsed, which is calculated based on the judgment timing of the presence of signs of estrus by the estrus determining unit. The estrus sign detection system according to claim 1, further comprising a period determination unit that determines whether or not the estrous symptoms have occurred. The estrus determination unit includes:
A first mode in which the presence or absence of the estrus sign is determined based on whether the detection result of the physical quantity detection device satisfies a predetermined first estrus determination condition on the condition that the high estrus period is in progress;
The detection result of the physical quantity detection device satisfies a second estrus determination condition that is predetermined to be stricter than the first estrus determination condition, on the condition that the high estrus period has ended with no signs of estrus being determined. 2. The estrus sign detection system according to claim 1, further comprising a second mode in which the presence or absence of the estrus sign is determined based on whether or not the estrus sign is present. The estrus determining unit includes a rest mode in which the presence or absence of the estrus sign is not determined on the condition that the estrus sign is determined to be present and the high estrus period is in the low estrus period. The estrous sign detection system according to claim 1. The estrus determining unit includes the detection result of the physical quantity detecting device to determine the second estrus, on the condition that the estrus sign is determined to be present and the high estrus period is during the low estrus period. 4. The estrus sign detection system according to claim 3, further comprising a third mode in which the presence or absence of the estrus sign is determined based on whether or not a third estrus determination condition predetermined to be stricter than the conditions is met. The estrus determining unit continues to determine the presence or absence of the estrus sign in the second mode after the high estrus period ends when it is determined that there is no estrus sign until it determines that the estrus sign is present. 3. The estrus sign detection system according to 3. After activation of the estrus sign detection system in which the starting point of the low estrus period is unknown, the estrus determining unit continues to determine the presence or absence of the estrus sign in the second mode until it is determined that the estrus sign is present. The estrus sign detection system according to claim 3. The expression period of the estrus sign unique to each animal is estimated based on the actual interval of occurrence of the estrus sign that is statistically specified from the judgment of the estrus determining section, and the The estrus sign detection system according to claim 1, further comprising a data update unit that updates data on one or both of the low estrus period and the high estrus period. The estrus determination conditions used by the estrus determination unit are changed within a predetermined range, and the actual interval of occurrence of the estrus signs is specified from the determination of the estrus determination unit under each changed estrus determination condition. The estrus sign detection system according to claim 1, further comprising a data updating unit that updates the estrus determination condition using machine learning based on the variation in the variation and the content of the change so that the variation becomes smaller. A first method generated by machine learning to estimate the presence or absence of the estrus sign from the physical quantity, based on the physical quantity detected by the physical quantity detection device during the high estrus period and the actual presence or absence of the estrus sign. machine learning model,
A second component generated by machine learning to estimate the presence or absence of the estrus sign from the physical quantity based on the physical quantity detected by the physical quantity detection device during the low estrus period and the actual presence or absence of the estrus sign. machine learning model, and
Satisfying the first estrus determination condition means that the first machine learning model estimates that the estrus sign is present from the physical quantity,
4. The estrus sign detection system according to claim 3, wherein satisfying the second estrus determination condition means that the second machine learning model estimates that the estrus sign is present from the physical quantity. The physical quantity detection device has an acceleration sensor and a temperature sensor, and is inserted into the animal to detect acceleration and temperature as the physical quantities. Estrus sign detection system. The physical quantity detection device has an acceleration sensor and a temperature sensor and is inserted into the animal to detect acceleration and temperature as the physical quantities,
The first estrus determination condition includes that at least one of a condition related to the detection result of the acceleration sensor and a condition related to the detection result of the thermometer is satisfied,
4. The estrus sign detection system according to claim 3, wherein the second estrus determination condition includes a condition regarding detection results of both the acceleration sensor and the temperature sensor being satisfied.

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