CN116744841A

CN116744841A - Arrangement, pill, tag and method for monitoring physiological status of animals

Info

Publication number: CN116744841A
Application number: CN202080108200.2A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 圣地亚哥·德贝西厄; 法比安·阿尔弗雷多·莫林恩戈
Original assignee: Kelowen Technology Co ltd
Current assignee: Kelowen Technology Co ltd
Priority date: 2020-12-10
Filing date: 2020-12-10
Publication date: 2023-09-12
Also published as: MX2023006717A; WO2022125092A1; AU2020480981A1

Abstract

An arrangement, an ingestible pill, a communication interface tag and a method for monitoring physiological parameters of an animal to determine its health status and to provide information to optimize livestock management. The ingestable pill is contained in the stomach of a ruminant and typically comprises a plurality of sensors, such as temperature sensors, motion sensors, in particular conductivity sensors that allow for highly accurate measurements of physiological parameters of the animal (such as food intake, water, absence of disease, etc.). The tag communicates with the pill and forwards the signal to a gateway-type communication interface on the wireless communication network, which in turn sends and receives data communications to and from the "cloud". A user communicates with the cloud from one or more remote terminals. The invention comprises the above elements and monitoring software residing on the remote terminal and cloud. The method of the invention comprises a testing and monitoring phase performed by the arrangement system.

Description

Arrangement, pill, tag and method for monitoring physiological status of animals

Technical Field

The present invention relates to an arrangement, a pill, a tag and a method for monitoring the physiological status of an animal to determine the health status and to provide information for optimizing livestock management.

Background

Several documents are known to be relevant to the technical subject matter of the present invention.

Document CA2820857 (A1) relates to a device for controlling dairy animals during their milk production. The apparatus includes a series of milk yield sensors, each measuring at least one indicator of the animal milk yield. A variety of temperature sensors including at least two thermal imaging cameras measure the heat output of different treatment areas of the dairy animal. A processor receives the heat output and the milk yield indicator and uses them in combination to determine the condition of the dairy animal. The condition is displayed on the monitoring device in real time. Another sensor described in this document is a conductivity sensor to measure the milk conductivity in the breast. Figure 3 shows a possible data view of the data obtained for a single animal, including three trend lines of conductivity, breast temperature and performance over time. When these trend lines are compared, it can be seen that the breast temperature increases, with a resultant increase in conductivity, and a decrease in milk yield. However, this reference does not anticipate the technique of the present invention, since in this reference the medium to be tested is milk and not ruminal saliva, the measuring location is breast and not stomach, the change in conductivity is due to salt production caused by cell breakdown in milk and not saliva production in stomach, as a result of which possible breast infection is detected and not ingestion by the animal. Furthermore, the method of this cited document has the disadvantage that only the milk yield of the animal can be monitored, and that other parameters of interest or diseases not related to the cow's udder cannot be detected, since it does not describe the use of conductivity sensors inside the rumen, nor does it disclose that conductivity measurements are performed using alternating current.

Document NL1008840 (C2) describes a dairy management system which uses sensors to identify individual cows and certain characteristics such as milk temperature and conductivity to measure the health of the animal. In addition, the system also uses an olfactory sensor to detect the level of acetone in the animal's breath so that the central computer can record metabolic disorders that may occur in the ruminant's stomach. The acetone sensor may alternatively be located in the feeding or drinking station or in a separate unit. However, this document does not describe sensing electrical conductivity in bovine stomach to determine physiological parameters.

Document US2018310885A1 discloses a method of managing a disease of a cow, comprising receiving biological information of the cow from a biosensor capsule provided in the stomach of the cow, determining the health status of the cow by analyzing the biological information, and transmitting information associated with the health status of the cow to a user managing the cow. The determining method may include determining a heat status or a supply status of the cow based on the angular velocity information, the acceleration information, and the stomach temperature information, and the stomach PH information. The temperature and methane gas formation can also be measured. Furthermore, a biosensor capsule is provided, comprising: a configured weight to allow the biosensor capsule to be disposed at a predetermined location within the cow, a plurality of sensors configured to acquire biological information from the cow, and a configured communication module to transmit the biological information. The communication module may be a remote communication module (LORA). The sensors may include an acceleration sensor configured to detect a cow stomach acceleration value, a gyroscope sensor configured to detect a cow stomach angular velocity value, a temperature sensor configured to detect a cow stomach temperature value, a methane sensor configured to detect an amount of methane gas generated in the cow stomach, and a pH sensor configured to detect a pH level of the cow stomach. The biosensor capsule includes a plurality of sensors, such as an acceleration sensor, a gyro sensor, a temperature sensor, a methane sensor, and a Potential Hydrogen (PH) sensor, a battery, a weight, a communication module, and an antenna. The communication module and antenna may be used for communication between the biosensor capsule and the disease management server. The biosensor capsule may transmit the bio-information to the disease management server by accessing a communication network within a distance of 20 km via the communication module. The sensors may be integrated into a Printed Circuit Board (PCB). Furthermore, the communication module and/or the antenna may also be integrated into the PCB. However, the arrangement of this cited document does not describe sensing electrical conductivity in the bovine stomach to determine physiological parameters.

Document US2017215763A1 describes an ingestable pill comprising a specific detection assembly for monitoring animals. The pill includes a unique identification number, a magnetic field sensor for detecting an estimated magnetic field at any point on the earth at any given time, and at least one data transmission device for transmitting the collected data to a data center. The bolus detects, receives and transmits the unique identification number, the magnetic field parameters at any given point, and physiological parameters (including the animal core temperature, etc.) to a data center or centralized location for further analysis. The pill further includes a radio frequency transponder and a radio frequency antenna for transmitting data including the unique ID, location and physiological parameters to a data center. In addition to the magnetic field sensors, global Positioning System (GPS) and/or differential GPS are used to identify the location of the animal. The ingestible pill includes one or more Global Positioning System (GPS) sensors capable of transmitting GPS coordinates to a GPS receiver. Thus, the ingestable pill of this reference takes advantage of the advantages of the GPS system and the magnetic field positioning system to obtain a more accurate animal position. The data center at the centralized location includes a computing environment having at least one processing unit equipped with a control unit and an Arithmetic Logic Unit (ALU), a memory unit, a storage unit, a plurality of network devices, and a plurality of input-output devices (I/O). The software stored in the memory unit has an algorithm for managing a plurality of information received from a plurality of sensors within the pill and is available to the memory unit during execution of the software. The processing unit is responsible for processing the algorithm instructions by receiving commands from the control unit. In addition, any logical and arithmetic operations involved in executing instructions are calculated with the aid of an ALU. However, this reference does not describe sensing electrical conductivity in the bovine stomach to determine physiological parameters.

Document WO2017184096 (A1) describes a telemetry data logger which is able to correlate the change in power production with pH levels in the rumen by electrolysis methods, avoiding the calibration requirements of pH meters, and including electrolysis which converts the system into an automatically chargeable system as a result of the electrolysis process. Such telemetry data recorders include thermometers, electrolytic tips, three-dimensional accelerometers, and RFID in the transmitter, and because the transmitter is long in duration and its own charge allows for the collection of long-term data, ruminants are allowed to swallow the transmitter less frequently for placement of the transmitter on the stomach. The conductivity caused by changes in acidity in the rumen was measured by the electrolysis tip, and the course of change in rumen pH was monitored according to the current change during electrolysis. The circuitry in the device continuously measures the electrolytically generated electricity and records the electricity generation trend. The energy generated will also be used to charge the internal battery of the device to run the method and sensor and output the collected data to the external reader(s) at the required frequency (data transmission every 15 minutes or 30 minutes or 1 hour etc.). By measuring the frequency of rumen cramps, possible rumen displacement and disturbances are detected by means of a three-dimensional accelerometer. However, the apparatus of this cited document is based on an electrolytic method using direct current, utilizing dissolved hydrogen ions as a change factor. The problem arises in that it affects the medium and the measurement itself (as explained in the same document, it is pointed out that they can adjust the PH). Briefly, it can be said that this method uses the rumen as a battery and from its ability to generate energy, the PH can be calculated. From what is described, it seems to be a theoretical development rather than a practical development, since salt is likely to form scale around the electrode, interfering with conductivity. In contrast, the present invention uses alternating current and measures the concentration of salt (as electrolyte), where the impedance or conductance of the medium is measured without affecting the medium. Although PH is an important parameter, conductivity measurements allow for rapid readings of food and water intake without risk to animals, and the use of alternating current ensures that electrons, ions or salts do not migrate directionally, thereby avoiding their deposition on the electrodes.

Document US2009182207 (A1) describes an arrangement in which the pill wireless communication device may comprise a wireless transmitter and/or receiver operating at 900MHZ or some other suitable Radio Frequency (RF). One or more wireless repeaters may be implemented to increase the communication range from the pill to the base station. The pill may include one or more sensors to detect one or more characteristics of the animal. In this embodiment, the bolus may transmit the data of the monitored animal characteristic wirelessly to the base station. Characteristics of the monitored animal may include physiological characteristics such as animal temperature, gastric pH, blood pH, heart rate, respiration, gastric contractions, and the like. The characteristics of the monitored animal may also include non-physiological characteristics such as exercise and/or athletic activity, animal location, and the like. The temperature sensor may comprise a thermistor, thermocouple or platinum resistance thermometer, or the like. The pill may include a wireless communication module. The communication module may include a transceiver. The pill may include one or more accelerometers that may detect movement and/or vital characteristics of movement of the animal, including: distance traveled by the animal; the frequency of animal movement; the speed of animal movement; etc. The accelerometer may be a three-axis accelerometer capable of detecting animal motion and motion vigor on each of the cartesian axes "x", "y" and "z". The GPS receiver may also be used to detect the location of the animal, the movement of the animal, and/or the movement characteristics of the animal. Further, the bolus may include a power source coupled to each sensor, a communication module including a data transmitter and a data receiver, a processor, a memory unit, and any other bolus component that consumes power. The power source may include a battery energy storage device such as a lithium ion battery, a lead acid battery, a nickel cadmium battery, or the like. In another embodiment, the power source may comprise a generator, which may comprise a piezoelectric generator or a mass generator/alternator, to generate energy from movement and/or vibration activity of the pill within the host animal. However, the arrangement of this cited document does not describe sensing electrical conductivity in the bovine stomach to determine physiological parameters.

Document ES2197399 (T3) relates to an ingestible pill for detecting and transmitting information including the internal temperature of ruminants when swallowed by ruminants. Estrus (BRES) can collect bovine data in real-time and can transmit the collected data using low power radio frequency radio to a receiver that acts as a server data port. The ingestable pill includes a sensor for detecting a physiological parameter of the animal. According to one embodiment, a temperature sensor, such as a high-precision monolithic temperature sensor, is used to obtain the internal temperature of the animal. Other physiological parameters may be captured by incorporating sensors such as electronic pH sensors, sensors for controlling other chemical components that are sensitive to oxidation-reduction reactions, pressure sensors, and the like. However, the arrangement of this cited document does not describe sensing electrical conductivity in the bovine stomach to determine physiological parameters.

Document US2003205208 (A1) describes a method for monitoring the physiological status and/or suitability of ruminants by: detecting animal behavior indicative of ruminant vigor; the behavioral time indicative of ruminant activity detected over a predetermined period of time is accumulated to provide an indication of the animal's physiological condition. Mastication and reflux behaviour is detected by sound sensors in the animal's neck. Reflux can also be detected by a pill sensor carried in the throat of the animal near the mouth and a second sensor near the stomach of the animal. The sensor for detecting masticatory behaviour is preferably a sound sensor and the sensor for detecting reflux is preferably a microswitch. Regurgitation may also be detected by acoustic sensors. However, the arrangement of this cited document does not describe sensing electrical conductivity in the bovine stomach to determine physiological parameters.

Document US2017231198 (A1) describes a bovine monitoring system that may include rumination sensors, motion sensors, posture sensors, bovine prediction and rumination data, motion data or posture data prediction systems. The server may have an algorithm that stores the data, analyzes the data, and displays the data in a histogram. The device may include a rumination sensor, a motion sensor, and a gesture sensor. In one embodiment, the rumination sensor may be an accelerometer that can detect mastication by detecting movement of the jaw, wherein the farmed cattle (bovine asset) typically roar for 450 to 500 minutes per day. The motion sensor may be an accelerometer that can detect motion. The attitude sensor may be a gyroscope, an accelerometer, or a combination of a gyroscope and an accelerometer. The attitude sensor can detect the orientation of the farmed cattle by detecting gravitational acceleration, detecting gyroscope rotation, or a combination of gravitational acceleration and gyroscope rotation. Using the recorded rumination, movement, and posture sensors, the farmed cattle monitoring system can identify anomalies or physical or mental health in the estrus cycle of the farmed cattle. The device may also include a data storage module to record data from the various sensors, and may include a wireless communication module to communicate the stored data to a network (e.g., an internal "cloud"). In some embodiments, the wireless connection may be WiFi 802.11, zigbee 802.154, or BTLE4.0. In some embodiments, the bovine monitoring system may include a thermal imaging camera and an RFID patch. However, the arrangement of this cited document does not describe sensing electrical conductivity in the bovine stomach to determine physiological parameters.

Document US2016227742 (A1) discloses an animal monitor comprising: a microcontroller, at least one tri-axial accelerometer, an energy source, a charger, and a communication system including a wireless transmitter and receiver. The animal monitor further comprises at least one sound sensor. The animal's body motion is typically a state of a three degree of freedom system, without tilting, stepping and rolling, as determined by a three axis accelerometer. An animal monitor implemented in the form of an ear tag has six degrees of freedom, acceleration, rotation, spin and spin labels are mixed together and cannot be resolved using only one tri-axial accelerometer output. In order to obtain acceleration data for six degrees of freedom of translational and rotational motion, multiple acceleration signals need to be resolved, and at least two tri-axial accelerometers are required to distinguish body motion from marker pose. However, the arrangement of this cited document does not describe sensing electrical conductivity in the bovine stomach to determine physiological parameters.

Document WO2015177741 A1 relates to a method and apparatus for monitoring and quantifying ruminant feeding behaviour in order to provide an indicator regarding quantification of feeding activity, animal feeding assessment and/or animal condition. The apparatus is particularly useful for daily monitoring of farm eating activities in order to optimize animal diet and maintain animal health. The method comprises the following steps:

-acquiring a masticatory signal by means of two microphones forming a sensing unit, wherein a first microphone captures masticatory sound emitted by the animal and a second microphone captures ambient sound;

-conditioning the signal recorded in step "a", reducing ambient noise;

-dividing the signal from step "b" into sections of at least 30 seconds;

-calculating an autocorrelation of each signal section, multiplying and summing all samples for each time delay between 0.2 and 1.2 seconds; in case the maximum value of the autocorrelation is not between 0.5 and 0.9 seconds, then the segment is marked as silence/noise; the remaining segments are marked as candidate segments containing ruminants or eating grass;

-each block comprising more than 2 consecutive ruminant or weed feeding sections in the treatment step "c";

all silence/noise blocks less than 300 are marked as ruminant, these blocks being located in the middle of two ruminant blocks.

The device comprises a sensing unit comprising at least two microphones for detecting eating behaviors of the ruminant and eating grass produced by the animal during its eating; wherein the first microphone captures sound chewed by the animal and the second microphone captures sound of the environment. The microphone for picking up chewing sound is positioned at the inner side of the adjustable headband arranged at the top of the animal head; wherein the microphone is directed toward the head of the animal; the second microphone capturing ambient sound is located in the clamping band, facing in a direction opposite to the animal's head. In another aspect of the invention, the sensing unit comprises an inclination sensor selected from the group consisting of inclinometers, accelerometers. However, the arrangement of this cited document does not describe sensing electrical conductivity in the bovine stomach to determine physiological parameters.

Document ES2353076 (T3) relates to a micro-invasive physiological monitoring system. In particular, it relates to an implantable probe for monitoring one or more parameters (such as pH) in the esophagus that are relevant for the detection of gastroesophageal reflux disease. The monitoring device includes a cuff having a surface for bonding to tissue. The bolt is displaceable from a retracted position to allow the tissue engaging surface to contact or be adjacent to tissue at the preselected engagement site, and from an extended position in which the bolt extends through tissue contacting or adjacent to the mating surface. The envelope carries at least one physiological parameter detector. In one embodiment, the physiological parameter detector comprises a pH detector. Preferably, the monitoring device further comprises a radio frequency transmitter for transmitting data generated by the physiological parameter detector. However, the arrangement of this cited document does not describe sensing electrical conductivity in the bovine stomach to determine physiological parameters.

Document WO2006077589 A2 describes a method and apparatus for detecting oestrus in animals by collecting information relating to the movement of the animal and information relating to the feeding period of the animal and combining them to reduce the effect of the feeding habits of the animal on the outcome. The apparatus also includes a sensor to detect movement of the animal and a feeding cycle of the animal. The microprocessor may receive data regarding the detected motion and the detected power cycle. The data may then be combined to counteract the effect of movement associated with eating (during eating) on the detected movement to obtain NUT-ACT. In addition, a typical behavior database may be established and by comparing the newly collected data with the typical behavior database, relevant changes in activity level may be detected. A change in activity level may indicate that the animal is in heat. For example, an animal may be determined to be in estrus if the change in activity level exceeds a specified value, such as a specified percentage of the calculated standard deviation of the average activity level. Such analysis can rely to a large extent on a statistical basis, whereby the requirements on sensor accuracy can be relaxed. Good results may be obtained as long as they are based on a good correlation between the detected activity level identified as being related to the feeding period and the actual feeding period. The database may be updated with new detection data. The feeding cycle can also be detected by monitoring and analyzing sounds and vibrations typically occurring when the animal feeds. When the animal is not carrying a bit (gag), it produces sounds and vibrations that can be monitored by sensors on or in the animal and then analyzed to determine eating activity. The neck of an animal is an example of a suitable area for monitoring such sounds or vibrations. The eating status of an animal can also be assessed by monitoring the distance of its head from the ground. A small distance and intense exercise may indicate that the animal is feeding. Distance measurement can be performed using methods outlined in the prior art such as ultrasound and light. However, the arrangement of this cited document does not describe sensing electrical conductivity in the bovine stomach to determine physiological parameters.

Document US2011301437 relates to a pill which requires only one sensor, typically an acoustic transducer, for measuring physiological parameters such as temperature, pH level of the body fluid of the subject, heart rate, respiration rate, activity level of the subject, etc. The pill includes a cavity into which body fluid is allowed to enter to determine the temperature and pH level of the fluid and thus the temperature and pH level of the animal. In various embodiments, the pill includes its own energy storage and charging circuitry and a data transmission subsystem including a device that uniquely identifies the subject. The data processing subsystem within the pill is capable of on-board diagnosis of the subject and may include the ability to receive commands and data from external sources. The sensors used are hydrophones, which can be used as accelerometers and measure temperature and concentration (i.e. pH) using mathematical equations, with only temperature being determined in terms of vibration mode, pH being determined by absorption. However, the arrangement of this cited document does not describe sensing electrical conductivity in the bovine stomach to determine physiological parameters.

Document US2008312511A1 discloses a real-time method and a computer-implemented system for monitoring animal health. The invention includes a physical sensor (10) for use by an animal to be monitored to detect at least one physical characteristic of the animal. The physical sensor (10) is operatively connected to a transceiver module (12) that is also used by the animal. The transceiver module (12) is also in communication with an activity signal generator (14), the activity signal generator (14) being disposed in the environment and associated with the activity and in communication with the transceiver module (12). The transceiver module (12) includes a wireless transceiver (38) that transmits data to the network receiver/converter (16). The receiver/transducer (16) receives physical attribute data from the wireless transceiver (38) using a wireless technology including a physical transmitter and receiver, and a wireless protocol. After processing or converting the data, the network receiver/converter (16) transmits the data to one or more users (20) via a computer network (18), if desired. The characteristic sensor (24) is capable of measuring: physiological parameters such as body temperature, blood oxygen level or heart rate; or an environmental parameter such as ambient temperature, barometric pressure, relative humidity, wind speed, or system status; or both physiological and environmental parameters. The physical sensor (10) may include a plurality of characteristic sensors (24) for different physiological and environmental parameters. The sensor used is an accelerometer (34) which detects movement of the animal in at least two, preferably three axes of movement. Any standard accelerometer that can measure a suitable range of accelerations in the other two dimensions can be used. In one exemplary embodiment, the accelerometer (34) detects up to 2g in the X and Y directions and up to 1g in the Z direction. An activity sensor (36) detects and distinguishes between duration and frequency of one or more activities, such as at least eating and drinking. In one embodiment, the activity sensor (36) includes an electromagnetic field (EM) sensor (36 a) and a coil (36 b) to detect eating and drinking activity. The activity signal generator (14) generates electromagnetic fields representative of the supply or drinking water, which are collected by coils (36 b) and transmitted to an electromagnetic field sensor (36 a). An electromagnetic field sensor (36 a) distinguishes between two different fields and reports them separately. However, the arrangement of this cited document does not describe sensing electrical conductivity in the bovine stomach to determine physiological parameters.

WO2005112615 discloses a pill configured and operable to process general acoustic signals emanating from two or more different signal sources within an animal and to output two or more values indicative of corresponding physiological parameters of the animal, such as heart rate, respiration rate, ruminant activity, etc. The pill comprises three modular compartments: a lower compartment 16A comprising a support assembly 18 (e.g., in the form of a counterweight), an intermediate compartment 16B comprising a processing unit 20, and an upper compartment configured as an acoustic chamber comprising one or more acoustic sensors. However, the arrangement of this cited document does not describe sensing electrical conductivity in the bovine stomach to determine physiological parameters.

US20120310054 A1 describes a high sensitivity recording of pressure signals in the stomach of ruminants. The pill comprises a sensor module, a mechanical amplifier element and a guiding means. The sensor module is configured to convert the pressure signal into an electrical signal, the electrical signal forming a basis for parameters representative of body movement, heart rate, respiration depth and/or gastric activity of the animal. The sensor module includes a piezoelectric sensor, a capacitive sensor, an inductive sensor, or a microelectromechanical system (MEMS) accelerometer. Furthermore, the sensor module comprises a pair of optical transmitter-receivers interconnected via an optical transmission path, wherein the transmission characteristics are variable in response to any displacement of the guiding means. However, the arrangement of this cited document does not describe sensing electrical conductivity in the bovine stomach to determine physiological parameters.

From the prior art documents found, it is known to use temperature sensors and pH sensors for pills and to use accelerometers and/or gyroscopes for determining the physiological state of an animal. In addition, some documents such as CA2820857 (see above for details) have also been found to measure conductivity to determine different factors related to milk yield and thus to implant conductivity sensors onto the mammary glands of animals. However, no document has been found describing the determination of physiological status (such as food and water intake, absence of disease, etc.) by conductivity sensing in an animal's stomach by application of alternating electrical signals.

Disclosure of Invention

The present invention includes an arrangement, an ingestible pill, a communication interface tag, and a method for monitoring physiological parameters of an animal to determine its health and to provide information to optimize livestock management. The ingestable pill is contained in the stomach of a ruminant, and generally comprises a plurality of sensors, such as temperature sensors, motion sensors, in particular conductivity sensors that allow for highly accurate measurement of physiological parameters of the animal (such as feeding, drinking water, absence of disease, etc.). The tag communicates with the pill and forwards the signal to a gateway-type communication interface on the wireless communication network, which in turn sends and receives data communications to and from the "cloud". A user communicates with the cloud from one or more remote terminals. The invention comprises the above elements and monitoring software residing on the remote terminal and cloud. The method of the invention comprises a testing and monitoring phase performed by such an arrangement.

Drawings

Fig. 1 shows a communication function diagram of an arrangement system and the relation between its components.

Figure 2 shows a mechanically exploded view of the tag.

Fig. 3 shows the functional components of the electronic board of the tag.

Fig. 4 shows the functional blocks of the tag.

Fig. 5 shows an exploded view of the intra-ruminal pellet.

Fig. 6 shows an exploded view of the conductivity measuring electrode at the top of the intra-ruminal pellet.

Fig. 7 shows the functional components of the electronic board of the intra-ruminal pellet.

Fig. 8 shows functional blocks of the intra-ruminal pellet.

Fig. 9 shows a graph representing the temperature of the pellet as a function of time and a corresponding graph representing the electrical conductivity as a function of time.

FIG. 10 shows pH change, saliva secretion change and rumination time versus food type.

Detailed Description

In fig. 1, it can be seen that the present invention consists of an arrangement comprising a pill 1 and a tag 3 which can be ingested by an animal, the pill 1 and tag 3 being used in a method for monitoring the physiological state of an animal, in particular a ruminant. The pill 1 communicates with the tag 3 by means of an RF-Subghz communication protocol 2, the tag 3 communicates with a communication interface or gateway 5 by means of a wireless data network of the LPWAN 4 type, the gateway 5 in turn communicating via a WAN 6 network with a remote processor 7, commonly referred to as "cloud", the remote processor 7 consisting of shared remote computing resources accessed through the internet. A user communicates with the remote processor 7 via a high-speed link (point-to-point, 3G, 4G, 5G, satellite, etc.) through one or more remote terminals 32 (cell phone, laptop, notebook, PC, etc.).

In the present invention, the animals referred to in the preferred embodiment of the invention are cows/bulls/calves. However, the invention can be applied to any ruminant industrial farmed animal, such as cattle (cows, bulls, cattle, buffalo), wool breeds (sheep), goat breeds (rams, goats) and camels (llamas, camels). The invention can also be applied to raw camels as they are also camelids; however, the raw camel is not a domestic or industrial animal and is therefore not of interest to the present invention.

The digestive tract of ruminants, including the mouth, tongue, teeth, esophagus, forestomach (rumen, reticulum, valve stomach), true stomach (abomasum), small intestine, large intestine, and anus. The glands attached to the upper digestive tract are the liver and pancreas. Through these organs, different digestive processes are formed, eventually nutrient is absorbed by the body and waste products generated during this period are discharged.

Of the 4 gastric compartments, the first 3 (anterior stomach) form the Anterior Stomach (AS). They are cavities without glandular structures (that is, they do not expel secretions). They are prepared for the fermentation function of bacteria and the absorption of nutrients. The rumen and the reticulum form a forestomach region functionally associated and coordinated with the third luminal stomach by means of the reticulum sphincter.

The details of the elements used in the arrangement system of the present invention are as follows:

a. rumen pill: fig. 7 and 8 show that the pill 1 is composed of an antenna 15A, a transceiver 16A, a microcontroller 19A, an inertial measurement unit IMU 20A, a battery 23, a temperature sensor 24A and a conductivity electrode 26. A bolus is a combination device with the ability to measure motion (via an accelerometer), conductivity, and intra-ruminal temperature. The device may calculate food and water intake based on the difference in conductivity and temperature and is intended to be placed in the rumen. Intake of drinking water changes the dissolution of salts while lowering the temperature in the rumen. As does food. Movement also senses ruminal motility of the rumen. In order to maintain ruminal activity, a great deal of activity is required of the stomach wall in order to create a mixture of contents, to facilitate the discharge of fermentation products such as volatile fatty acids and gases, and to allow the contents to be delivered to the oral cavity to other parts of the ruminant or stomach for continued digestion. In this way, the rumen acts in a sequential movement, which is divided into two types: basic or mixed, and secondary or hiccup.

Fig. 5 shows an exploded view of a block mechanically composed of an electronic circuit board 22, a battery 23, a temperature sensor 24A, a housing 25 and a conductivity electrode 26.

In a preferred embodiment, the pill includes an antenna 15A formed of a "sputtered" element that transmits signals at a frequency preferably subsg iga (sub-giga) using the LPWAN protocol. Transceiver 16A is implemented by an RN2903A integrated circuit. The microcontroller 19A is selected as the PIC16LF1825 integrated circuit. The IMU inertial measurement unit 20A is selected to be a BMI160 integrated circuit. The battery 23 is selected to be LiPo type, and the temperature sensor 24A is preferably an integrated circuit DS18B20.

Fig. 6 shows an exploded view of the conductivity electrode 26, which consists of a screw 27, a washer 28, a contact ring 29, a spacer 30 and a contact center 31.

Intra-ruminal bolus sensor:

the function of the pill sensor is: a) Measuring gastric activity; b) Measuring movement of the animal; and c) measuring the temperature of the stomach.

Gastric activity sensor 26: it is implemented by an intra-ruminal conductivity sensor 26.

Temperature sensor 24A: the temperature of the animal's stomach was measured.

IMU motion sensor 20A: it is a three-axis accelerometer comprising a gyroscope and/or an inertial unit.

Intra-ruminal conductivity sensor 26: a sensor allowing to evaluate the concentration of the salt solution. The basic parameter at the time of rumination is pH. The rumen environment (the first stomach of ruminants) is well suited for microbial growth and fermentation to occur. During this process, the pH varies considerably (from 5.5 to 7.0). Most of the regulation of this process is by saliva. Cows have a number of salivary glands. The yield during feeding was about 120 ml/min and during ruminant production was about 150 ml/min. Saliva continues to be produced at 60 ml/min when the cow stops chewing. This means that in foods with a high forage content, cows can chew for more than 10 hours per day and saliva secretion can exceed 140 liters. The amount of saliva secreted per day depends to a large extent on the physical form of the food consumed. Without salivation, rumen acidity increases (acidosis) and microbial activity decreases. During acidosis, the cows are inappetence and in severe cases (pH 4.5 lower) all microbial activity is destroyed, which may lead to death of the cows.

In a preferred embodiment, the measured relative conductivity value ranges from 1 to 2048. These relative values correspond to absolute (physical) values between conductivities of 1S/m to 10 mus/m (conductivities of 1S to 10 mus, i.e. impedances of 1 Ω to 100kΩ).

The inventors decided to measure the rumination process indirectly by measuring the conductivity, that is, the parameter to be measured is related to the presence of salt in the solution, and if the liquid is affected by a potential difference, the decomposition of the salt will produce positive and negative ions capable of transmitting electrical energy. It has been pointed out that animals produce a large amount of sodium bicarbonate (NaHCO ₃ ) And phosphate (H) ₂ PO ₄ ) That is why it is indirectly considered that there will be a good reference value for the process. In order to obtain this parameter, a decision is made that, in addition to the ceramic cylinder, a metal tip needs to be developed to seal this component and act as a conductivity sensor in the form of an electrode without affecting the antenna performance. After preliminary analysis, the stainless steel tip was designed and arranged to be machined with AISI 316 material (Fe/Crl 8/Ni10/Mo 3). These alloys are ion compatible and are used and recommended in temporary implants (plates, screws and nails) for animals and humans. In a preferred embodiment, the conductivity sensor has a length in the range of 1mm to 5mm and a diameter in the range of 3mm to 40 mm.

As a measurement method, the conductivity seems to be more complex than it is. The use of direct current to move ions always in the same direction may lead to corrosion on at least one electrode, which is completely excluded for this reason; on the other hand, operation with alternating current requires a suitable choice of frequency, since the result is highly dependent on the dynamic impedance of the medium in which the electrodes are immersed. The frequency is first selected to be between 80 and 450Hz and in a preferred embodiment, 250Hz is selected by applying a test voltage in the range of 1.8 to 5VAC (preferably 2.5 VAC). In order to obtain an alternating voltage in the pill, an inverter type DC-AC converter (not shown) is included in the pill. This was chosen because of the good results obtained from previous studies of rectal catheters for cattle and horses. Once its efficiency is evaluated in the field, a cyclic chronoamperometric electroanalytical test is performed, a technique that applies rectangular and repetitive potential disturbances to the working electrode. The response curve to disturbances, i.e. the current or current density as a function of time, called a chronogram, is one of its purposes to evaluate the current line density between the two electrodes so as to cover the largest space possible and thus the sample volume involved in each measurement. In the tests performed, it was concluded that the rumen activity value was dependent on several physiological parameters, as well as the activity being performed by the animal. Thus, each cow exhibits a relative base value of electrical conductivity that is self-calibrating to food type, age and breed, at rest, standing or lying on the ground, awake, but not eating. For this development, it is important to have a relative change and rate of change with respect to the value, as well as its comparison with other values such as temperature.

The resulting plot of pellet temperature and conductivity values is shown in figure 9.

b. And (3) tag: the interaction between head movements relative to animal stomach movements is recorded so that it can be detected whether the animal is in a resting state, eating or walking. This information is important to describe the habits of the individual animals and their behaviour relative to the herd. One example of using this information is achieving higher accuracy in detecting oestrus and parity. Other information obtained from the interaction of the two devices relates to security and the detachment of the tag is detected by separation: when the tag (giving the animal's position) stops communicating with the pill, it will generate a separate alarm condition. In turn, the pill increases its transmission power so that it can be easily located.

Function and characteristics of the tag:

the tag is placed on the animal's ear and its basic task is to transmit and generate information to locate the animal. The tag is also responsible for managing communications between the pill and the wireless communication gateway that sends the information to the remote terminal. In addition, in the absence of communication, the tag may issue a notification to track by other means. The same temperature and motion sensors described in the pill were used in the tag circuit.

Figures 2 and 4 show a tag having a solar cell 8, preferably of the single-crystal type and having an area of 3.5cm x 2.2cm, with an efficiency of up to 22% to maintain recharging of the cell 10. The front cover 9 holds the solar cell and protects the electronic circuit board 14, the battery 10 and the RFID device (radio frequency identifier) 11. Preferably, the battery 10 is 3.6VDC and 250mAh, and the device includes an antenna 15B, the antenna 15B preferably being of the sputter type. Both of these devices are held from behind by the inner lid 12, and the inner lid 12 is closed by the rear lid 13. The tag also includes a temperature sensor 24B that measures the temperature of the outside ambient air.

Fig. 3 and 4 show that the electronic circuit board 14 has mounted thereon an antenna 15B, a transceiver IC (integrated circuit) 16B, a voltage regulator IC 17, an IC that drives a battery charger 18, a microcontroller IC 19B, and an IMU IC 20B. The antenna has been selected to capture and transmit variable rate radio frequency signals, with dimensions 38mm x 84mm.

The transceiver is preferablyBrand, model RN2903A; the voltage regulator is preferably TexasBrand, model TPS78330DDCR; the battery charger is preferably +.>Brand, model MCP73831T-2ACI/OT; the microcontroller is preferably +.>Brand, model PIC16LF1825; the IMU is preferably Brand, model number BMI160.

Characteristics of communication mode between pill and label:

communication between the pill and the tag is important. Because it is developed with ultra low power consumption, communication is performed at synchronized time. In other words, the two devices agree to communicate again within a certain time and use their internal clocks to effect the communication. In the event of a loss of synchronization, the tag will listen until it receives a bolus packet and synchronizes again. As a communication technology, a sub-giga type radio frequency transceiver having a proprietary protocol is employed, and the communication between 9600 bits/sec and 19200 bits/sec is performed using the proprietary protocol.

c. Gateway: the gateway 5 preferably consists of standard LPWAN equipment (LORAWAN, NBIoT, sixfox, etc.) that associates tags with web servers to manage the device network and send information to the cloud.

Communication technology between tag and gateway: the gateway 5 is responsible for managing the power and transmission rate of the tags to ensure that hundreds of thousands of tags can communicate without losing information; on the other hand, they are responsible for uploading the collected information to a central server.

Communication technology between gateway and cloud: the gateway 5 transmits the collected data using high-speed links (point-to-point, 3G, 4G, 5G, satellite, etc.), and receives information necessary for management from a network server.

Remote terminal

One of the most notable aspects of the present invention is based on one or more remote terminals 32, the remote terminals 32 having application software (APP) that provides functionality heretofore unknown in the art. The remote terminal 32 may be a desktop PC, a portable PC (notebook or laptop), a tablet computer, or a cell phone, which will communicate with the cloud software. Such communication may even be performed using an LPWAN through a device that serves as an interface. The functions that can be implemented using APP will be described in more detail below.

Tablet or cell phone APP serves as an interface to control and configure the tag, display the connection status with the tag and associated pill, and if they are connected, allow the user to select a mode of use (continuous or periodic).

APP application software also serves as a means of collecting usage data for further processing by monitoring companies to improve services and programs. APP allows configuration of livestock profiles that can be loaded and/or saved for use at another time and facilitates identification of these profiles.

The APP application is downloaded to the cell phone or tablet computer and controls 100% of the tags once turned on. The different measurement formats can be controlled and programmed by the APP: the use is continuous or periodic.

Another function of APP is that each animal can have its own profile, so that it can repeat the measurements already made and record information of possible health problems with it.

Another function of the APP is to send to different people in the team using LPWAN networks, cellular networks, or WiFi.

In an alternative embodiment, the APP record deviates from a percentage of certain biological parameters.

In another preferred embodiment, APP software includes cross-statistics functionality between animals, enabling sharing of statistics and profiles.

The method of the invention

The invention also includes a method for monitoring the physiological state of an animal. The process comprises the following stages:

measuring the intra-ruminal temperature;

measuring gastric activity;

measuring individual behavior;

measuring behavior compared to herd;

measuring food and water intake;

temperature measurement of the animal ear.

Intra-rumen temperature measurement:

intra-ruminal temperature measurements are performed using temperature sensor 24A mounted on the intra-ruminal pellet. The temperature will be considered normal based on the stabilization time, the ambient temperature, the conductivity value and time, the internal and external activity of the cow. That is, first, water and food intake is not considered, nor is it during fermentation, nor is it in a particular activity (e.g., being in heat). More specific steps and parameters are explained in the following paragraphs.

Measurement of gastric activity:

measuring gastric activity is performed by measuring the conductivity of gastric fluid using a sensor mounted on the intra-ruminal bolus. A range is considered normal if it replicates the established pattern for each diet. During digestion in ruminants, there is a constant exchange of water between the rumen and the reticulum. Some of this water is absorbed in the rumen wall, but there is also evidence that the rumen wall secretes a degree of water, plus drinking water and 60-100 liters of saliva produced daily, resulting in a volume of about 200 liters of water in adult cows. In this process, there are a number of actions that can be described, for example, when water is ingested, the salt is reduced, and thus the conductivity is lowered and the temperature of the rumen body is also lowered rapidly. Ingestion of dry food requires secretion of more saliva, which gradually increases conductivity, but does not produce a significant temperature change as in the case of soft food with sufficient moisture. On the other hand, if the eating pattern is changed, this information is sent to the central server to search for a new eating pattern or detect a disease. More specific steps and parameters are explained in the following paragraphs.

Measurement of individual behavior:

measuring individual behavior is performed by sensing animal motion with a motion sensor mounted on an animal's ear and another motion sensor mounted on an animal's stomach. Based on the differences in the individual behavioral patterns, if there are more vertical twitches (e.g., steps) in the ear than in the stomach, this indicates that the animal is eating. When these twitches become similar in number, the animal is walking and if sudden movements are detected in the stomach, it is accepting a mating.

An alarm is issued if no movement of the animal is detected within 5 minutes, and a free fall alarm is issued if acceleration near gravity is detected on any of the three axes.

Behavioral measurements compared to herds:

at this stage, patterns are compared to detect oestrus (greater activity of the animal relative to herd), disease (less activity relative to herd), or labor (fluctuating activity). These measurements result in a enrichment of the information from the remaining parameters.

Food and water intake measurements:

food and water intake measurements were performed by intra-ruminal sensors measuring conductivity and temperature patterns of the pellets. The ambient air temperature measured by the sensor located on the ear is also used as a reference.

Measurement of ambient temperature around animal ear 24B:

the ambient temperature around the animal's ear is measured, and the ambient air temperature at the animal's ear level is obtained, which is used as a reference for pattern detection, pressure detection, etc.

Monitoring body temperature is a common practice in herd health management, as described in Adams et al, J.Dairy Sci.96:1549-1555: temperature is an indicator of common bovine conditions, including diseases such as metritis, mastitis, lameness, and pneumonia.

See table 1.

However, these temperature changes may be affected by food and water intake when measured in the rumen. Thus, when a conductivity sensor is added, these data are complementary to the information obtained from the temperature sensor, thereby obtaining:

drinking water intake

The intake of water significantly alters the rumen temperature. The absolute value of this change and the rate of temperature decrease may be related to two factors:

1. the water temperature (typically the ambient temperature),

2. water consumption.

Water also causes a change in the dissolution of the salt, which interaction, in general, first reduces the conductivity, but later increases the conductivity as it interacts with the ruminant and saliva.

A simplified algorithm developed by the inventors is a decrease in temperature below 36 degrees celsius in less than 4 minutes, plus a 15% decrease in conductivity over the same period of time, which is indicative of liquid intake. Depending on the time to return to "normal" temperature and ambient temperature, the user can obtain information proportional to the amount of water consumed (this process may take 20 minutes to 1 hour).

Food intake

During ruminant, large amounts of saliva are secreted and reach the rumen when the pellet or ruminant is swallowed. Saliva contains bicarbonate (HCO) ₃ (-) and phosphate (HPO) ₄ (-), which give saliva an alkaline pH (8.2 to 8.4) and act as a buffer in the rumen inhibiting the production of acids. When the ruminant eats the acidic concentrated feed, the ruminant is reduced, and thus the salivary secretion is also reduced. This reduces rumen pH (see fig. 10).

Such addition of salt compensates for the rise in PH after food intake, the duration of which is proportional to the type of food consumed.

This behavior can be analyzed by simple methods, such as: if the intra-ruminal temperature rises slowly, consistent with an increase in conductivity, it indicates that digestive activity is present.

Detection of reproductive diseases and events: once the changes due to the intake of beverages and foods were excluded, the following pathology was analyzed:

1. mastitis and pneumonia: average temperature rise during at least 4 days

2. Delivery: elevated temperature but with events associated with intermittent activity of the animal

3. Estrus: the temperature increases (about 1 degree) and the animal's activity increases by more than 45% relative to the herd.

Appendix

Project Meaning of reference

1. Pill

2 RF-Subghz communication

3. Label (Label)

4 LPWAN

5. Gateway (GW)

6 WAN

7. Cloud

8. Solar cell of label

9. Label front cover

10. Label battery

11 RFID tag

12. Label inner cover

13. Label back cover

14. Label electronic circuit

15A pill antenna

15B tag antenna

16A pill transceiver

16B tag transceiver

17. Tag voltage regulator

18. Label battery charger

19A pill microcontroller

19B tag microcontroller

20A pill IMU

20B tag IMU

21. Pill cap

22. Pill electronic circuit

23. Pill battery

24A pill temperature sensor

24B label temperature sensor

25. Pill shell

26. Pill conductivity sensor electrode

27. Pill screw

28. Pill washer

29. Pill contact ring

30. Pill separator

31. Pill contact center

32. Remote terminal

Claims

1. A pill (1) to be accommodated in the rumen of an industrially fed ruminant animal for measuring a physiological parameter of the animal and exchanging data with a communication interface tag (3), wherein the pill (1) comprises: an antenna, a transceiver (16A), a microcontroller (19A), an IMU inertial measurement unit (20A), a battery (23) and a temperature sensor (24A),

Wherein the pill comprises a rumen vitality meter (26) comprising a conductivity sensor (26) measured with alternating current.

2. Pill (1) according to claim 1, wherein the Alternating Current (AC) of the conductivity sensor (26) operates at a frequency ranging between 80Hz and 450 Hz.

3. A pill (1) according to claim 2, wherein the frequency of the Alternating Current (AC) is 250Hz.

4. A pill (1) according to claim 1, wherein the alternating current is operated at a test voltage ranging from 1.8VAC to 5 VAC.

5. A pill (1) according to claim 4, wherein the alternating current is operated at a test voltage of 2.5 VAC.

6. A pill (1) according to claim 4, wherein an alternating voltage is generated within the pill by means of an inverter type DC-AC converter.

7. Pill (1) according to claim 1, wherein the conductivity sensor (26) comprises a ceramic cylinder and a stainless steel tip made of AISI 316 material (Fe/Cr 18/Ni10/Mo 3).

8. A pill (1) according to claim 1, wherein the conductivity sensor (26) has a length in the range of 1mm to 5mm and a diameter in the range of 3mm to 40 mm.

9. A pill (1) according to claim 1, wherein the measured relative conductivity value ranges from 1 to 2048, which corresponds to the measured absolute conductivity value ranging from 1S/m to 10 μs/m.

10. A pill (1) according to claim 1, wherein the antenna (15A) is formed by a "sputtered" element transmitting signals at the frequency of the supgiga using the LPWAN protocol.

11. The pill (1) of claim 1, wherein the transceiver (16A) comprises an RN2903A integrated circuit.

12. The pill (1) of claim 1, wherein the transceiver (16A) receives and transmits data at 9600 bits/sec to 19200 bits/sec.

13. A pill (1) according to claim 1, wherein the microcontroller (19A) comprises a PIC16LF1825 integrated circuit.

14. Pill (1) according to claim 1, wherein the battery (23) is of the LiPo type.

15. The pill (1) according to claim 1, wherein the temperature sensor (24A) comprises a DS18B20 integrated circuit.

16. Pill (1) according to claim 1, wherein the IMU inertial measurement unit (20A) is a tri-axial accelerometer formed by a gyroscope and/or an inertial unit.

17. The pill (1) according to claim 16, wherein the IMU inertial measurement unit (20A) comprises a BMI160 integrated circuit.

18. A tag (3) for use as a communication interface for monitoring ruminants to communicate with a pill (1) and to be able to communicate with a gateway-type interface (5), the tag (3) comprising: a battery (10), a solar cell (8) to keep the battery rechargeable, an electronic circuit board (14), a Radio Frequency Identification Device (RFID) (11), an antenna (15B), a temperature sensor (24B), and an IMU inertial measurement unit (20B).

19. A tag (3) as claimed in claim 18, which is mounted on the ear of an animal to be monitored, such that the temperature sensor (24B) measures the ambient air temperature in the vicinity of the animal's ear, and the IMU inertial measurement unit (20B) detects movement of the animal.

20. A tag (3) according to claim 18, wherein the solar cell (8) is of the single crystal type, with an area of 3.5cm x 2.2cm, with an efficiency of up to 22%.

21. The tag (3) of claim 18, wherein the battery (10) is 3.6VDC and 250mAh.

22. A tag (3) as claimed in claim 18, wherein the antenna (15B) is of the sputtering type.

23. The tag (3) of claim 18, wherein the electronic circuit board (14) comprises: a transceiver IC (16B), a voltage regulator IC (17), a battery charger IC (18), a microcontroller IC (19B), and an IMU IC (20B).

24. A tag (3) as claimed in claim 18, wherein the dimensions of the antenna (15B) are 38mm x 84mm.

25. As claimed inThe tag (3) of claim 18, wherein the transceiver (16B) isBrand, model RN2903A; the voltage regulator (17) is Texas +.>Brand, model TPS78330DDCR; the battery charger (18) is->Brand, model MCP73831T-2ACI/OT; the microcontroller (19B) is- >Brand, model PIC16LF1825; IMU IC (20B) is +.>Brand, model number BMI160.

26. The tag (3) of claim 18, wherein a transceiver (16B) exchanges data with the pill (1) at 9600 bits/sec to 19200 bits/sec.

27. An arrangement for monitoring the physiological state of an animal to determine its health status and providing information for optimizing management of animals: industrial applicability bovine, wool breeder, goat breeder, camel or the like, the arrangement comprising: one or more gastric pills (1), one or more communication interface tags (3), one or more gateway-type interfaces (5), one or more databases on one or more remote computer servers (7) ("cloud"), and one or more remote communication terminals (32).

28. An arrangement according to claim 27, wherein the communication of the one or more pills (1) with their respective tags (3) is by means of an RF-Subghz communication protocol (2); wherein the communication between the one or more tags (3) and the one or more gateways (5) is by means of a wireless data network of the LPWAN type (4); wherein the communication between the gateway or gateways and the remote computer server (7) is by means of a high-speed link (point-to-point, 3G, 4G, 5G, satellite) through a WAN network (6); and wherein the communication of the remote computer server (7) with one or more remote terminals (32) is also performed using high speed links (point-to-point, 3G, 4G, 5G, satellite).

29. A remote terminal (32) for communicating with a pill and a communication tag (3), the remote terminal (32) comprising application software (APP) capable of communicating with an in-cloud remote computer server (7) using an LPWAN, wherein the APP allows configuration of the tag (3) showing a connection status with the tag (3) and an associated pill (1).

30. The remote terminal (32) of claim 29, wherein the remote terminal (32) comprises a desktop PC, a portable PC (notebook or laptop), a tablet computer, or a cell phone.

31. The remote terminal (32) of claim 29 wherein APP application software is used as a means to collect usage data for monitoring corporate subsequent processing to enable improved services and programming.

32. The remote terminal (32) of claim 29, wherein the APP application software allows configuration of livestock profiles that can be loaded and/or saved for use at another time and facilitates identification of the profiles.

33. The remote terminal (32) of claim 29, wherein, once turned on, the APP application software controls 100% of the tags (1), controls or programs different measurement formats: either (i) continuously or (ii) periodically.

34. The remote terminal (32) of claim 29 wherein the APP application software allows each animal to have its own profile so that it can repeat measurements that have been made and record information of health problems they may have, recording percentages of deviations from certain biological parameters.

35. The remote terminal (32) of claim 29, wherein the APP application software allows different people in the team to communicate using an LPWAN network, cellular network, or WiFi.

36. The remote terminal (32) of claim 29 wherein the APP application software allows for cross-statistics functionality between animals to be included, enabling sharing of statistics and profiles.

37. A method for monitoring the physiological state of an animal to determine its health status and providing information for optimizing management of animals: industrial use bovine, wool breeder, goat breeder, camel or the like, said method performing the steps of:

a. measuring the intra-ruminal temperature;

b. measuring gastric activity;

c. measuring individual behavior;

d. measuring behavior compared to herd;

e. measuring food and water intake; and

f. measuring the temperature of the outside ambient air at the height of the animal ear;

wherein the gastric activity is obtained by measuring gastric fluid conductivity using alternating current.

38. The method of claim 36, wherein the measurement of gastric fluid conductivity is performed using a sensor (26) mounted on the intra-ruminal pellet (1).

39. The method of claim 37, wherein the measurement of the intra-ruminal temperature is performed by means of a temperature sensor (24A) mounted on the intra-ruminal pellet (1).

40. The method of claim 38 wherein if a decrease in temperature below 36 ℃ is measured in less than 4 minutes and a 15% decrease in conductivity is also measured over the same period of time, then an indication is made that the animal is drinking the liquid.

41. The method of claim 39, wherein the user obtains information proportional to the amount of water consumed based on the time to return to normal temperature and ambient temperature.

42. The method of claim 38, wherein if the intra-ruminal temperature rises slowly, consistent with an increase in conductivity, a digestive activity is indicated.

43. The method of claim 38, wherein an average increase in temperature over a period of at least 4 days is indicative of mastitis and/or pneumonia once the temperature and conductivity changes due to ingestion of beverages and foods are excluded.

44. The method of claim 38 wherein an increase in temperature of about 1 degree celsius and an increase in individual activity of the animal relative to the individual behavioral pattern of the herd of more than 45% indicates that the animal is in heat.

45. The method of claim 41, wherein if the digestive activity changes a normal eating pattern, the information is sent to a remote server (7) to search for a new eating pattern or detect a disease.

46. The method of claim 43, wherein the individual activity and behavioral patterns are measured by sensing movement of the animal with a motion sensor (20B) mounted on the animal's ear and another motion sensor (20A) in the animal's stomach.

47. The method of claim 45 wherein, based on differences in individual behavioral patterns, if there is more vertical twitching in the ear than in the stomach, indicating that the animal is eating; when these twitches become similar in number, the animal is walking and if sudden movements in the stomach are detected, the animal is receiving mating.

48. A method as claimed in claim 45, wherein an alarm is raised if no movement of the animal is detected within 5 minutes, and a free fall alarm is raised if acceleration approaching gravity is detected on one of the three axes.

49. The method of claim 45 wherein the measurement of individual behavior compared to herd is made by means of comparison of patterns, detecting oestrus when the animal has a large amount of activity relative to herd, detecting disease when the animal has a small amount of activity relative to herd, or detecting parturition when fluctuating amounts of activity are detected.

50. A method as claimed in claim 36, wherein the temperature measurement of the ambient air is carried out near the animal's ear by means of a temperature sensor (24B) of the tag (3) and used as a reference for pattern detection and pressure detection.