BR102015032319B1 - LIVESTOCK MANAGEMENT SYSTEM AND PROCESS - Google Patents

Abstract

LIVESTOCK MANAGEMENT SYSTEM AND PROCESS. The present invention belongs to the technical sector of livestock breeding and relates to a livestock management system, which includes at least one land package (1) which includes a land intercommunication box (8), at least a propagation package (2) that includes a repeater intercom box (9) and at least one farm package (3) that includes a farm intercom box (10). The field intercom box (8), the repeater intercom box (9), and the farm intercom box (10) form a network in which each of said boxes can be connected by radio waves to any other of the said boxes. The present invention also relates to a livestock farming management process.

Description

[001] The present invention relates to techniques for improving the management of livestock farming in areas such as agriculture.

[002] When raising livestock, it is necessary to feed and monitor them from the point of view of weight gain, health, and behavior. Large herds raised on large farms require advanced livestock management systems.

DESCRIPTION OF THE STATE OF THE TECHNIQUE

[003] Document PI 0903245-2 describes an animal identification and tracking system that has the function of identifying, tracking, monitoring and controlling animals and the agricultural production process, through measuring the animal's weight, identifying the measurement location, bovine identification through RFID reader ("radio frequency identification"), barcode and others.

[004] Document PI 0505959-3 describes a weighing system for poultry farming that consists of weighing platforms installed in sheds, communication modules, which collect data from the scales and transmit them to CPUs. The data stored in each CPU are transmitted to a monitoring center via a data collector with serial communication, or a data transmission system via telecommunications.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[005] The purpose of the present invention is to improve known processes and devices.

[006] In fact, the invention is related to a livestock management system that includes:

[007] - at least one terrain package that includes a livestock interaction device and a terrain intercommunication box connected to the livestock interaction device;

[008] - at least one propagation package that includes a repeater intercom box;

[009] - at least one farm package that includes a farm intercom box and a computer connected to the farm intercom box;

[0010] wherein the field intercom box, the repeater intercom box, and the farm intercom box form a network in which each of said boxes can be connected by radio waves to any other of said boxes.

[0011] Said network composed of the field intercom box, the repeater intercom box, and the farm intercom box can be a mesh network that can operate in accordance with the IEEE 802.11s or IEEE 802.15.4 standard.

[0012] Another object of the invention is a livestock farming management process using a system as defined above, and which includes the following steps:

[0013] - periodically storing at least one characteristic of at least one animal in the terrain package;

[0014] - transmitting said at least one characteristic to the farm package.

[0015] The invention allows the implementation of a livestock management solution that is compatible with any terrain, even difficult (vegetation, relief, presence of rivers or lakes, etc.) and extensive, and that is completely flexible, i.e. that can be easily rearranged to change physical configuration or to decrease or increase the number of packages.

[0016] Even if the different packages that make up the system have different functions, they each have the ability to communicate with any other package. Subdividing the system into packets in this way allows for more efficient, safer, and more robust data transmission. For example, a package can be moved on the ground and, without additional configuration, the system continues to work as long as the moved package is within the radio range of any other package, even with a different function.

[0017] The system organizes redundancy in data transmission and storage that makes the system as a whole resilient to the failure of any package and that allows advanced data processing and consequently the provision of advanced indicators.

[0018] With the possibility of each packet communicating with any other packet, the set of packets forms a self-configurable network that serves to traffic the data of all packets whatever their function. In other words, each packet can participate in the data traffic of another packet that does not have the same function.

[0019] Field, repeater, and farm intercom boxes have a similar structure and can be produced in series at a reduced cost.

[0020] Preferred features that can complement the system or process according to the invention are indicated below. The system or process may include one of these characteristics or a set of these characteristics combined.

[0021] The system also includes a cloud network connected to the computer.

[0022] The system further includes at least one mobility package that includes a mobile device connected to the computer or cloud network.

[0023] The terrain package livestock interaction device includes a radio frequency identifier and the system further includes a radio frequency tag for each animal.

[0024] The livestock interaction device of the terrain package includes a weighing platform.

[0025] The livestock interaction device of the land package includes a paint or medicine application diffuser.

[0026] The land package includes a mounting pole and/or a solar panel.

[0027] The propagation package includes a mounting post and/or a solar panel.

[0028] The land interconnect box, the repeater interconnect box and the farm interconnect box include a processing unit and a wireless network unit.

[0029] The land interconnection box and the farm interconnection box include an interface unit.

[0030] The transmission of said at least one characteristic to the farm packet is carried out through the propagation packet.

[0031] The transmission of said at least one characteristic to the farm package is carried out via any of the packages.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF FIGURES

[0032] The invention is detailed below by describing a preferred embodiment, exemplified by the figures, in which:

[0033] - Figure 1 is a simplified diagram showing the different elements constituting the system according to the invention;

[0034] - figure 2 is an internal schematic of a land interconnection box;

[0035] - Figure 3 is an internal schematic of a repeater interconnection box;

[0036] - Figure 4 is an internal schematic of a farm interconnection box;

[0037] - figure 5 is an overview of an implementation of the system according to the invention;

[0038] - figure 6 represents the different packages of the system according to the invention;

[0039] - figure 7 represents details of the system according to the invention implemented on a farm.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF FIGURES

[0040] Figure 1 represents the basic elements constituting a system according to the invention.

[0041] The livestock management system is planned to be implemented on an agricultural farm and organizes livestock management at two levels:

[0042] - at ground level: collecting data about animals, such as weight, size, behavioral data, etc. and taking actions in favor of animals, such as marking, applying medicine, etc.;

[0043] - at the decision-making level: making available to the farmer the data collected in an appropriate way to monitor the herd and to assist decision-making, such as animal movement, slaughter, etc.

[0044] Figure 1 represents a minimum livestock management system that includes: a land package 1, which serves to collect data and act on the animals; a propagation packet 2, which serves for data transmission; and a farm package 3, which is for data exploration. Each of these packages 1, 2, 3 includes a data intercom box 8, 9, 10 whose function is to form a mesh network for data transit in the system as explained below.

[0045] The land package 1 includes a livestock interaction device 4 which, in the present example, is a livestock treatment station that includes a scale, or weighing platform 5, for collecting the weight of an animal 6 , a diffuser 7 for applying medicine or marking paint to the animal 6, and a radio frequency identifier 15 of the animal 6. The identifier 15 is a usual RFID (Radio Frequency IDentification) type equipment that detects the presence of an animal 6 and which identifies that animal through a unique RFID tag placed on each animal.

[0046] The livestock interaction device 4 can be constituted by any livestock treatment station in addition to the examples presented here. Weighing platform 5, given as an example, is common in the agricultural sector as weight is a valuable indicator for controlling the animal's nutrition and health, even allowing the effectiveness of changes in food, animal supplementation, application of medicines, etc. Weighing can be carried out, for example, using load cells or an optical system. Weight management through the system is advantageous both for the user farm and for the livestock industry as a whole (including producers of medicines, supplements, consultancies, etc.).

[0047] Alternatively, the device 4 for interacting with livestock can be just a weighing platform 5, just a diffuser 7, just a radio frequency identifier 15, positioned for example next to the animals' watering hole, or any other type of monitoring device. interaction with livestock.

[0048] The terrain package 1 includes a terrain intercom box 8 connected to the livestock interaction device 4.

[0049] Figure 2 schematically illustrates the contents of the field intercommunication box 8 which includes a processing unit 11, an interface unit 12 with the livestock interaction device 4, and a wireless network communication unit 13 .

[0050] The processing unit 11 is, for example, a computer with a microprocessor, or a programmable logic controller capable of processing data according to a program. The interface unit 12 includes one or more connections 14, wired or wireless, by which the interface unit 12 is connected to the livestock interaction device 4 so as to be able to collect digital or analog information from that device 4, or from in order to provide the device with 4 instructions to comply with.

[0051] In the example of figure 1, where the cattle interaction device 4 consists of a weighing platform 5, a diffuser 7, and a radio frequency identifier 15, the terrain intercommunication box 8 is consequently connected, via the connections 14 of interface unit 12:

[0052] - to identifier 15 to collect information from the latter in order to identify which animal is on the weighing platform;

[0053] - to the weighing platform 5 in order to collect the weight information that the identified animal generates due to its presence on the weighing platform 5;

[0054] - to the diffuser 7 in order to command the latter to apply paint or medicine appropriately to the identified animal.

[0055] The field intercom box 8 further includes a wireless network unit 13 (see figure 2) capable of operating in accordance with a mesh network protocol. The wireless network unit 13 may be, for example, an access point according to the IEEE 802.11s or IEEE 802.15.4 standard. Such a mesh network works alternatively to usual wireless networks, where each network element is connected to only one other network element. In the mesh network, each network element, such as the wireless network unit 13, is a network node and can simultaneously connect to all other network nodes that are within its radio range so that data can travel along any path between nodes.

[0056] Land package 1 also includes all the material necessary for its assembly on the ground and for powering it. For example, the terrain package 1 includes a pole 16 that allows it to be mounted at height and a solar panel 17 that allows the terrain package 1 to be autonomous in terms of energy, which is advantageous for installing the terrain package 1 in remote farm land.

[0057] In addition to terrain package 1, the system includes a propagation package 2 provided for spreading the mesh network wherever necessary over the farm territory. The propagation package 2 includes a repeater intercom box 9 and its mounting and power supply material, i.e., in the present example, a pole 18 and a solar panel 19.

[0058] The repeater intercom box 9 includes (see Figure 3) a processing unit 20 and a wireless network unit 21 that are similar to the wireless network units 13 of the field intercom box 8. The repeater intercom box 9 is intended to operate as a node of the mesh network, via the wireless network unit 21. The repeater intercom box 9 has a relay function in the mesh network.

[0059] The system also includes (see figure 1) a farm package 3 which is intended to be installed in the farm office, where livestock administration is centralized. The farm package 3 includes a farm intercom box 10 and a computer 22. In the present example, the farm package does not include material necessary for its assembly and power, such as a pole and a solar panel, because, being installed In the farm office, the farm intercom box 10 and computer 22 can simply be installed and connected to the mains. Alternatively, for installation in farm offices not connected to the electrical grid, or for any other reason, farm package 3 may include material for its assembly and power supply in the same way as land package 1 and propagation package 2, in addition to any suitable material for protecting the package.

[0060] The farm intercom box 10 includes (see Figure 4) a processing unit, a wireless network unit 24 and an interface unit 25 for connecting the farm intercom box 10 to the computer 22.

[0061] The processing unit 11 of the field intercom box 8, the processing unit 20 of the repeater transmission box 9, and the processing unit 23 of the farm intercom box 10 are carried out in the usual way, for example, by a motherboard that includes a processor "CPU" cooperating with a live memory "RAM".

[0062] The interface unit 12 of the field intercom box 8 and the interface unit 25 of the farm transmission box 10 are usual communication interfaces between the outside and a processor, for example, serial communication interfaces such as USB or RS232, or usual analog interfaces.

[0063] The wireless network unit 13 of the field intercom box 8, the wireless network unit 21 of the repeater transmission box 9, and the wireless network unit 24 of the farm intercom box 10 are realized by a wireless communication card capable of functioning as a mesh network, for example, in accordance with the IEEE 802.11s or IEEE 802.15.4 standard, emitting for example at frequencies of 2.4 GHz or 900 MHz. Any other network card without wire can be used in addition to the examples cited here, as long as that card is capable of operating according to a mesh network protocol.

[0064] The computer 22 of the farm package 3, in addition to being connected to the interface unit 25 of the farm intercom box 10, for example via a USB port, is also connected to an external network. For example, computer 22 is connected to the Internet through an Ethernet connection. This connection allows the computer 22 to be connected to a cloud network 26, which is a set of servers dedicated to the collection, conservation, and processing of data provided by the computer 22.

[0065] The livestock management system further includes a mobility package 27 that contains at least one mobile electronic device such as a laptop 28, a tablet 29, a smartphone 30, or any other mobile terminal. The devices 28, 29, 30 of the mobility package 27 are connected to the cloud network 26, for example via cellular wireless network, and/or directly to the computer 22 via any wireless connection, for example Bluetooth or Wi-Fi. .

[0066] The data path in the simplified example of the livestock management system in Figure 1 can be summarized as follows. Data collected by the weight sensors of the weighing platform 15 and the presence and animal identification sensors of the radio frequency tag 15 are transmitted to the field intercom box 8. This data is transmitted from the field intercom box 8 to the 9 repeater intercom box by wireless mesh network. The repeater intercom box 9 acts as a relay, retransmitting said data over the wireless mesh network to the farm intercom box 10. From the farm intercom box 10, the data is forwarded to the computer 22 through the farm intercom box 10. interface 25. On computer 22, said data can optionally already be processed. From computer 26, data is forwarded over the network to cloud network 26 to be processed and stored. The farm administrator, or any other decision maker, can consult and interact, through the computer 22 or the mobility package devices 27, with said data that has been collected and processed. If the decision maker requests, through the computer 22 or a device from the mobility package 27, an action to be carried out on the ground, for example the application of paint or medicine to a specific animal, this request is transmitted to the box farm intercom box 10 which transmits it to the repeater intercom box 9, which retransmits it to the field intercom box 8, the latter driving the diffuser 7 via the interface unit 14.

[0067] Figure 5 illustrates the implementation of the livestock management system on a farm that, for example, comprises six pastures 31 delimited by a fence, for livestock raising. The six pastures 31 are schematically represented side by side, although they are actually spread across the entire farm.

[0068] Each pasture 31 comprises a package of land 1 discreetly mounted in a customary and natural passage location for the animal, such as on the way to the food and/or water stalls. The animal can be directed to such a path by a simple fence structure restricting access to the lame so that passage through the livestock interaction device 4 of the land package 1 is as natural as possible (without the animal needing to be touched). or induced to walk through such a passage forcibly, without the need for any physical handling).

[0069] The land intercommunication boxes 8 of the land package 1 of each pasture 31 are represented enlarged in figure 5. Furthermore, the livestock management system includes, in the example of this figure, three propagation packages 2, each a schematically represented by its repeater intercom box 9.

[0070] The wireless connections between the ground intercom boxes 8 and the repeater intercom boxes 9 are represented in dashed lines. It appears that all 8 ground intercom boxes that are in radio range of each other are connected to each other. This is the case, in figure 5, of the three terrain intercommunication boxes 8 on the left part of the figure (referenced "8A"), on the one hand, and the three terrain intercommunication boxes 8 on the right part of the figure (referenced 8B), on the other hand. Even though the pastures 31 are spread across the farm, in the example of figure 5, the three pastures 31 in the left part of the figure are close enough to each other for the mesh network connection to be made. The same applies to the three pastures 31 on the right of the figure. Through the wireless network units 13 of the terrain intercom boxes 8, two terrain packets 1 within radio range of each other automatically connect as two nodes of a mesh network.

[0071] The three ground packets 1 on the left of the figure are also connected via the mesh network to a propagation packet 2A that is within reach of them. The same applies to the three terrain packets 1 in the right part of the figure, connected to a propagation packet 2B.

[0072] Propagation packets 2 allow to increase the diffusion range of the mesh network, so that the network reaches other nodes to connect to them. Thus, in the example in Figure 5, the mesh network directly reaches farm packet 3, which is hosted in farm office 32, from propagation packet 2B. On the left side, the mesh network, which is furthest from farm office 32, requires an additional 2C propagation packet to serve as an intermediary for spreading the network to farm packet 3.

[0073] The mesh network consisting of terrain 1, propagation 2, and farm 3 packets thus adapts to the farm terrain, guaranteeing data and instruction traffic.

[0074] Figure 6 illustrates an example of the content of packages 1, 2, 3.

[0075] Land package 1 includes:

[0076] - a field intercom box 8;

[0077] - one or more livestock interaction devices 4 which are, in the present example, a diffuser 7 (device that operates on livestock), a scale 5 consisting of a platform 33 and a pair of weighing bars 34, or a radio frequency identifier 15 (devices that collect data about livestock). Any other livestock interaction device can be part of land package 1.

[0078] Optionally, land package 1 also includes:

[0079] - assembly material, such as a post 16;

[0080] - material for electrical supply, such as a solar panel 17.

[0081] Propagation package 2 includes a repeater intercom box 9 and, optionally, material for mounting and power such as a pole 18 and a solar panel 19.

[0082] Farm package 3 includes a farm intercom box 10 and a computer 22.

[0083] The livestock management system also optionally includes a mobility package 27 that includes one or more mobile devices 28, 29, 30 and one or more programs, applications, or algorithms 35 for processing data from the mesh network. and manage this data according to an interface that is easy to use by the rural producer or farm administrator. The 35 programs allow intuitive and simple access to, for example, the delivery of reports crossing herd indicators, livestock market data and farm expense structure, performance curves for each animal or batch of animals, with the preparation of graphs representing the weight gain curve of each animal (based on historical weight data).

[0084] The system also includes, in addition, a radiofrequency identification tag for each animal. For example, an identification earring 36 that is unique to each animal and which reacts with the radiofrequency identifier 15 so that the latter detects the presence and identifies the animal carrying the earring 36.

[0085] The livestock management system is modular and employs as many of these packages as necessary depending on the size and configuration of the farm.

[0086] Figure 7 illustrates an example of implementing the livestock management system on a farm. In this example, the system includes one farm package 3 and two land packages 1.

[0087] The terrain packages 3 are similar, including a terrain intercommunication box 8, and differ by the livestock interaction device which, in one case includes a diffuser 7 and, in the other case, includes a weighing platform 5.

[0088] The system further comprises three propagation packets 2 to form the mesh network illustrated by the dashed lines.

[0089] It appears that, between farm package 3 and each of the land packages 1, data can travel along multiple paths, providing fault tolerance redundancy. Furthermore, in the event of a change in the organization of the farm, that is, the addition, elimination, relocation of some pastures, or the relocation of the farm office 32, the network is automatically reformed as long as the intercommunication boxes 8, 9, 10 stay within reach of each other. If the modifications imply that nodes are out of reach of each other so that the mesh network is weakened or cut, simply add new propagation packets 2.

[0090] The data that travels on the mesh network is stored, at the farm packet level 3, on the computer 22. The computer 22 is connected to a cloud network 26, in this example by a modem 37, where said data is also stored. This double storage provides security redundancy for the data, in case, for example, of computer 22 failure.

[0091] The data can be processed both on the computer 22 and in the cloud 22 by programs, algorithms, databases, etc., usual for farm work.

[0092] The farmer or administrator can consult the data and processing results directly on the computer 22 or through the mobility package 27 described in relation to figures 1 and 6. He can also pass action instructions to the land packages 1 by these same means.

[0093] Having described a preferred embodiment example, it must be understood that the scope of the present invention covers other possible variations, being limited only by the content of the attached claims, including possible equivalents.

Claims (16)

1. Livestock management system, characterized by including: - at least one terrain package (1) that includes a livestock interaction device (4) and a terrain intercommunication box (8) connected to the device ( 4) interaction with livestock; - at least one propagation package (2) including a repeater intercom box (9); - at least one farm package (3) that includes a farm intercom box (10) and a computer (22) connected to the farm intercom box (22); wherein the field intercom box (8), the repeater intercom box (9), and the farm intercom box (10) form a network in which each of said boxes can be connected by radio waves to any another of said boxes, wherein said network comprising the field intercom box (8), the repeater intercom box (9), and the farm intercom box (10) is a mesh network. 2. System according to claim 1 characterized by the fact that said mesh network operates according to the IEEE 802.11s or IEEE 802.15.4 standard. 3. System according to any one of claims 1 to 2, characterized by the fact that it further includes a cloud network (26) connected to the computer (22). 4. System according to claim 3, characterized by the fact that it further includes at least one mobility package (27) that includes a mobile device connected to the computer (22) or to the cloud network (26). 5. System according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized by the fact that the device (4) for interacting with the livestock of the land package (1) includes a radio frequency identifier (15) and that the system includes also a radiofrequency tag (36) for each animal. 6. System according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that the device (4) for interacting with the livestock of the land package (1) includes a weighing platform (5). 7. System according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that the device (4) for interacting with the livestock of the land package (1) includes a diffuser (7) for applying paint or medicine. 8. System according to any one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that the land package (1) includes a mounting post (16). 9. System according to any one of claims 1 to 8, characterized by the fact that the land package (1) includes a solar panel (17). 10. System according to any one of claims 1 to 9, characterized in that the propagation package (2) includes a mounting post (18). 11. System according to any one of claims 1 to 10, characterized in that the propagation package (2) includes a solar panel (19). 12. System according to any one of claims 1 to 11, characterized by the fact that the land interconnection box (8), the repeater interconnection box (9) and the farm interconnection box (10) include a unit processing unit (11, 20, 23) and a wireless network unit (13, 21, 24). 13. System according to claim 12, characterized by the fact that the land interconnection box (8) and the farm interconnection box (10) include an interface unit (12, 25). 14. Livestock management process using a system as defined in any one of claims 1 to 13, characterized in that it includes the following steps: - periodically storing in the land package (1) at least one characteristic of at least one animal; - transmitting said at least one characteristic to the farm package (3). 15. Process according to claim 14, characterized by the fact that the transmission of said at least one characteristic to the farm package (3) is carried out through the propagation package (2). 16. Process according to claim 15, characterized by the fact that the transmission of said at least one characteristic to the farm package (3) is carried out via any of the packages (1, 2, 3).