JP5756967B2 - Milk cow health condition management method and management system - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a dairy cow health state management method and management system suitable for use in managing the health state of dairy cows tethered to a stall.

  In general, health management of dairy cows tethered to a stall is important in maintaining good health of dairy cows by early detection of diseases and poor physical condition or early improvement of the feeding environment. In particular, in recent years, high-emulsification of dairy cows has progressed, and stress such as negative energy balance and heat after delivery has increased the burden on dairy cows. More important. In addition, dairy farmers try to grasp the physical condition of each dairy cow by individual observation, etc. However, with the recent breeding of a large number of dairy cows, it is a fact that it is not easy to grasp enough even with the tethering method.

  Therefore, the present applicant has already proposed a method and a system for discriminating the health state of dairy cows suitable for use in such health management of dairy cattle. The method for determining the health condition of a dairy cow disclosed in the same document 1 makes it possible to accurately and quickly grasp the health condition of a dairy cow, and does not give unnecessary stress to the dairy cow and is intended to be implemented at a low cost. Specifically, when determining the health state of the cows tethered to the stall, the detection timing of the cow number detection sensor that detects the cow number of the cow by providing it at least in the automatic feeding machine in advance Set the discrimination condition for one and / or combination of the reaction data related to the detection data and the detection data of the cow detection sensor that detects the presence of the cow, and the automatic feeding machine moves to any stall and feeds The reaction data related to the detection timing of the cow number detection sensor and the reaction data related to the detection timing of the cow detection sensor were detected and detected. It is obtained so as to determine process the health of dairy cows based on the response data and determination conditions.

JP 2010-207130 A

  However, the conventional dairy cow health state determination method and determination system described above have the following problems to be solved.

  First, as a method of grasping the feeding reaction (appetite) at the time of feeding, the movement of the cow is detected by the cow detection sensor, but depending on the character (individuality) of the cow, the feeding response and the cow body There is a case where there is no correlation with the movement of. For example, in the case of a highly cautious dairy cow, there are some dairy cows that start feeding after the automatic feeding machine moves to the next stall when they are fed by an automatic feeding machine. Therefore, in this case, the probability of misjudgment increases, and it cannot be said that this is necessarily sufficient from the viewpoint of accurately and reliably judging the health state.

  Second, the cow number detection sensor for reading the IC tag attached to the ear of the cow is also used for the function of detecting the presence of the cow. Therefore, an IC tag to be attached to the dairy cow is required, which causes a stress factor and a cost increase factor for the dairy cow. Moreover, since both the cow detection sensor and the cow number detection sensor are used for the purpose of detecting the presence or absence of the cow, information obtained is limited. After all, by obtaining as much different information as possible, there was room for further improvement from the viewpoint of obtaining information on the health and disease of dairy cows more quickly and accurately.

  An object of the present invention is to provide a health condition management method and management system for dairy cows that solve the problems existing in the background art.

  In order to solve the problems described above, the health condition management method for dairy cows according to the present invention manages the health condition of dairy cows C ... tethered to the stall Ac .... A feed amount detection sensor unit 3 capable of detecting the amount of feed B ... in Xf ... and a cow detection sensor unit 4 for detecting the presence or absence of cow Cm ... at specific positions Px ..., Py ... of the stall Ac ... When the automatic feeder 2 moves to each stall Ac ... at a predetermined feeding time, the feed amount detection sensor unit 3 detects the remaining amount Qr ... of the feed B ... administered at the previous feeding, and then the tank position The feed B ... is administered to the Xf ..., and the presence / absence of the cow Cm ... at the specific positions Px ..., Py ... is detected by the cow detection sensor unit 4, and the detection result of the presence / absence and the remaining amount Qr ... Dairy cows based on detection results ... characterized in that it manages the health state of.

  The dairy cow health state management system 1 according to the present invention is attached to the automatic feeder 2 when configuring a health state management system for managing the health state of the dairy cows C tethered to the stall Ac. By attaching to the feed amount detection sensor unit 3 capable of detecting the remaining amount Qr of the feed B ... at the tank position Xf ... of the stall Ac ... and the automatic feeder 2, the specific position Px ..., Py ... of the stall Ac ... The bovine body detection sensor unit 4 for detecting the presence / absence of the bovine body Cm ..., the detection result of the presence / absence of the bovine body Cm ... detected by the bovine body detection sensor unit 4, and the feed B detected by the feed amount detection sensor unit 3 Is provided with health condition management means 5 for managing the health condition of the dairy cows C based on the detection result of the remaining amount Qr.

  In this case, according to a preferred aspect of the invention, the feed amount detection sensor unit 3 is disposed above the feed B at the tank position Xf, so that the height Hq of the feed B can be detected. A type ultrasonic sensor 3s can be used. Further, the bovine body detection sensor unit 4 is moved by a plurality of bovine body detection sensors 4x and 4y that can respectively detect the presence or absence of the bovine body Cm at a plurality of different specific positions Px. Pyroelectric infrared sensors 4xw and 4yw that can detect the bovine body Cm can be used. On the other hand, the health state management means 5 ranks the detection results of the remaining amount Qr... Into a plurality of ranks, and the discriminated elements Da... Db. , 4y may be provided with a health state determination function Fp for determining the health state of a dairy cow based on whether or not a combination of the elements to be determined Dx..., Dy. Further, the discriminated elements Da ..., Db ..., Dc ... based on the detection results of the remaining amount Qr ..., the discriminating elements Dx ..., Dy ..., Dz ... based on the detection results of the plurality of cow detection sensors 4x, 4y. A health state display function Fd for displaying at least one or more of the determination results Du of the health state determination function Fp in time series by the tables Ta, Tb and / or the graph G can be provided.

  According to the health condition management method and management system 1 of the dairy cow according to the present invention as described above, the following remarkable effects can be obtained.

  (1) The feed amount detection sensor unit 3 detects the remaining amount Qr ... of the feed B ... administered at the previous feeding, and thereafter the feed B ... is administered to the tank position Xf ... The unit 4 detects the presence or absence of the bovine body Cm at the specific positions Px..., Py..., And manages the health condition of the dairy cows C based on the detection result of the presence and the remaining amount Qr. Therefore, the probability of misjudgment with respect to the health condition can be greatly reduced, and the health condition of the dairy cows C ... can be managed accurately.

  (2) Since an IC tag attached to the dairy cows C becomes unnecessary, one of the unnecessary stress factors in the dairy cows C can be eliminated and the system cost can be reduced. Moreover, since the remaining amount Qr of the feed B ... in the tank position Xf ... is detected by the feed amount detection sensor unit 3 attached to the automatic feeder 2, the appetite of the cow C ... can be detected directly. Therefore, it becomes possible to obtain a plurality of multifaceted information indicating the health state together with information related to the behavior of the dairy cows C, so that the health, disease, etc. of the dairy cows C can be grasped more quickly and accurately.

  (3) According to a preferred embodiment, the feed amount detection sensor unit 3 is disposed above the feed B at the tank position Xf, so that the height Hq of the feed B can be detected. If the sonic sensor 3s is used, the amount of feed B ... (remaining amount Qr) can be easily detected by the height Hq ... of the feed B ... and can be implemented at a low cost by using a relatively general-purpose sensor.

  (4) According to a preferred embodiment, a plurality of bovine detection sensors 4x and 4y that can respectively detect the presence or absence of the bovine Cm at a plurality of different specific positions Px... Py. For example, since diversified information relating to the behavior of the dairy cows C ... can be obtained, the health condition of the dairy cows C ... can be more accurately determined.

  (5) By using a pyroelectric infrared sensor 4xw, 4yw capable of detecting a moving bovine Cm as the bovine detection sensors 4x, 4y according to a preferred embodiment, feeding is usually performed by the automatic feeder 2. It can also be used as a sensor for confirming the presence of the dairy cows C ... used when performing, and it can reliably detect only the dairy cows C ... in motion without being influenced by a fixed obstacle such as a stall Ac.

  (6) According to a preferred embodiment, the health condition management means 5 ranks the detection results of the remaining amount Qr... Into a plurality of ranks, and the discriminated elements Da. In order to discriminate the health state by providing a health state discriminating function Fp that discriminates the health state of the cow according to whether the combination with the discriminating element Dx... Therefore, the accuracy and reliability of the determination result for the health condition can be further increased.

  (7) According to a preferred embodiment, the health condition discriminating means 5 is provided with the discriminated element Da ... based on the detection result of the remaining amount Qr ..., the discriminated elements Dx ..., Dy ... based on the detection results of the plurality of cow detection sensors 4x, 4y. , Dz..., Dz of the health status discrimination function Fp, and the health status display function Fd for displaying at least one of the discrimination results Du in the time series by the tables Ta, Tb and / or the graph G, the cattle herd of the whole ranch It can be used as a judgment material for determining whether or not the feeding management is properly performed or a judgment material for grasping the health condition of each cow C ... and the health condition of the cow C ... and its change state (elapsed condition) by visual inspection. Etc. can be easily and clearly known.

The flowchart for demonstrating the process sequence of the health condition management method of the dairy cow which concerns on suitable embodiment of this invention, Schematic plan view showing an internal layout configuration in a tethered barn that can implement the health management system for dairy cows according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, Explanatory drawing which shows the positional relationship of the feed amount detection sensor part and cow body detection sensor part and dairy cow which are used for the health condition management system, The internal structure diagram of the automatic feeding machine in the feeding system provided in the tethered barn, Side configuration diagram showing a part of the milking system that is part of the tethered cattle barn, Correlation diagram of the measured value of the ultrasonic sensor used in the health condition management system and the actual measured value of the remaining height, Block diagram showing the overall structure of the dairy cattle feeding management system including the health condition management system, Explanatory diagram for ranking the discriminated elements from the detection results obtained by the health condition management method, An explanatory diagram of discrimination conditions and discrimination results for discriminating the health status from the discriminated elements obtained by the health status management method, A discrimination element table for feeding times displayed by a health status display function in the health status management means of the health status management system; The discriminated element table and the milk yield change graph for the number of days after the delivery date of a specific dairy cow displayed by the health status display function,

  Next, preferred embodiments according to the present invention will be given and described in detail with reference to the drawings.

  First, in order to make an understanding of this invention easy, the whole structure of a tethering barn is demonstrated with reference to FIGS.

  FIG. 2 shows an outline inside the tethered barn M. In this tethered barn M, a stall group A in which a number of stalls Ac ... are arranged is installed, and a cow C ... is moored to each stall Ac .... A milking system Sm along the stall group A is installed above the stall group A, and a feeding system Sh along the stall group A is installed in front of the stall group A.

  The feeding system Sh includes a guide rail portion 21 disposed on the front upper side of the stall group A, and an automatic feeder 2 that moves along the guide rail portion 21. As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the automatic feeder 2 includes a self-propelled moving part 22 loaded on the guide rail part 21 and a feeder main body 23 suspended from the moving part 22. The feeder main body 23 includes a feed case portion 25 having a feed discharge portion 24 at the bottom. The feed case unit 25 includes a roughage storage unit 26 that stores the roughage Ba and a mixed feed storage unit 27 that stores the mixed feed Bb. A roughage feed conveyor mechanism 28 and a beater mechanism 29 that stabilizes the feed amount are disposed inside the roughage storage portion 26, and a screw-type feed auger mechanism 30 is provided inside the mixed feed storage portion 27. Arrange.

  A controller unit 31 is disposed on the outer side surface of the feed case unit 25, and a battery box 32 containing a battery is disposed on the lower surface of the feed case unit 25. The moving unit 22 described above is equipped with a drive unit 33 using a drive motor, and the drive unit 33 is driven and controlled by the controller unit 31. The stop of the moving unit 22 and the control of the moving direction are performed by the detection unit (detection sensor) 35 provided in the moving unit 22 detecting the detected portions 34 provided at predetermined positions of the guide rail unit 21. Is called. With such a configuration of the feeding system Sh, the automatic feeder 2 is automatically moved with respect to each stall Ac ..., and feed B in which the rough feed Ba and the blended feed Bb are blended is fed to each tank position Hf ... (feeding) )can do.

  On the other hand, the milking system Sm includes a guide rail portion 41 disposed above the stall group A. The guide rail portion 41 includes a main rail 41m disposed along the stall group A, and a plurality of branch rails 41s branched in a right angle direction from a midway position of the main rail 41m and disposed between the stalls Ac. In this case, one branch rail 41s is arranged with respect to the stalls Ac arranged, that is, two stalls Ac are arranged between the adjacent branch rails 41s and 41s. Moreover, the milk line 42 and the vacuum line 43 shown in FIG. The milk line 42 and the vacuum line 43 are arranged along the stall group A, and milk taps 42t for connecting a distributor 48 to be described later are attached at positions facing the branch rails 41s.

  Furthermore, the milking system Sm includes one or two or more milking machines 44 that move along the guide rail portion 41. The milking machine 44 includes a self-propelled moving unit 45 loaded on the guide rail unit 41, a controller unit 46 mounted on the moving unit 45, and a pair of left and right milking units 47p and 47q suspended on both sides of the moving unit 45. And a distributor 48 provided at the tip of the moving unit 45. In this case, a driving unit 49 using a driving motor is mounted on the moving unit 45, and the driving unit 49 is driven and controlled by a controller unit 46 incorporating a battery. The stop of the moving unit 45 and the control of the moving direction are performed when a detection unit (detection sensor) provided in the moving unit 45 detects a detected unit disposed at a predetermined position of the guide rail unit 41. The milking unit 47p (same for 47q) includes a unit main body 50 including a pulsator, an automatic detachment device, etc., four teat cups 51 attached to each breast Cb of the cow C, and a milk claw 52. The teat cups 51, the milk claw 52, the unit main body 50, and the distributor 48 are connected, and the teat cups 51, the unit main body 50, and the distributor 48 are connected by a vacuum tube. Further, the milk claw 52 and the unit main body 50 are connected by a detaching wire 53. With such a milking system Sm, milking can be performed by automatically moving the milking machine 44 to each stall Ac.

  Next, the configuration of the entire control system (electric system) including the dairy cow health condition management system 1 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS.

  As shown in FIG. 7, a feeder controller 71 is mounted on the automatic feeder 2 in the feeding system Sh. The feeder controller 71 includes a feeder controller main body 73 and a wireless communication unit 74 connected to the feeder controller main body 73. The feeder controller main body 73 has a computer function, and includes a series of control processing (sequence control processing) based on a processing program stored in a memory, and various data processing such as arithmetic processing, storage processing, communication processing, and input / output processing. (Computing processing) is executed. In this case, the feeder controller main body 73 and the wireless communication unit 74 are built in the controller unit 31 shown in FIG.

  Moreover, as shown in FIG.3 and FIG.4, the automatic feeding machine 2 is equipped with the bait amount detection sensor part 3 and the cow body detection sensor part 4, and each is connected to the sensor system controller 72, and this sensor system controller 72 is connected to the feeder controller main body 73. In this case, the feed amount detection sensor unit 3 is disposed so as to be able to detect the height Hq of the feed B (remaining amount Qr) at the tank position Xf of the stall Ac. The exemplified bait amount detection sensor unit 3 uses a reflection type ultrasonic sensor 3s that is a distance measuring sensor that can detect the height Hq of the feed B by being disposed above the feed B at the tank position Xf. . The ultrasonic sensor 3s is disposed on the outer surface of the automatic feeder 2 and on the surface facing the stall Ac. For this reason, the stay 75 is attached to the outer surface of the automatic feeder 2, and the ultrasonic sensor 3 s is attached to the tip of the stay 75. By using such a stay 75, the optimum position of the ultrasonic sensor 3s can be set by changing the length, shape, etc. of the stay 75. Thereby, the ultrasonic wave from the ultrasonic sensor 3s is projected near the approximate center of the feed B administered to the lower tank position Xf.

  Thus, if the reflective ultrasonic sensor 3s which can detect the height Hq of the said feed B by arrange | positioning upwards with respect to the feed B in the tank position Xf is used as the feed amount detection sensor part 3, feed The amount of B (remaining amount Qr) can be easily detected by the height Hq of the feed B, and there is an advantage that it can be implemented at a low cost by using a relatively general-purpose sensor. FIG. 6 shows a correlation diagram between the actually measured value [mm] of the ultrasonic sensor 3s and the actually measured value [mm] of the height Hq of the remaining amount Qr. As is apparent from FIG. 6, even when the ultrasonic sensor 3s is used, the value is substantially close to the actually measured value. As will be described later, the detection result of the remaining amount Qr is actually measured in order to rank into three ranks: a small amount level (30 mm or less), an intermediate amount level (31 to 74 mm), and a large amount level (75 mm or more). Accuracy as an absolute value is not so important. Therefore, even the result shown in FIG. 6 is sufficiently practical.

  On the other hand, the cow detection sensor unit 4 is disposed so as to be capable of detecting the presence or absence of the cow Cm at the specific positions Px and Py of the stall Ac. The cow detection sensor unit 4 includes two cow detection sensors 4x and 4y that can detect the presence or absence of the cow Cm at two different specific positions Px and Py, respectively. As the cow detection sensors 4x and 4y, pyroelectric infrared sensors 4xw and 4yw capable of detecting the moving cow Cm, that is, the first infrared sensor 4xw and the second infrared sensor 4yw are used. As shown in FIG. 3, the infrared sensors 4xw and 4yw are arranged side by side on the outer surface of the feed case 25 and on the upper position of the surface facing the stall Ac. In this case, as shown in FIG. 3, the detection area Ax of the first infrared sensor 4xw includes a specific position Px, and the specific position Px is a tank position Xf. Further, the detection area Ay of the second infrared sensor 4yw includes a specific position Py, and this specific position Py is an internal position of the stall Ac. The pyroelectric infrared sensors 4xw and 4yw have a function of detecting a change in the distribution of the amount of infrared energy generated when the cow body Cm moves within the sensor visual field. For this reason, it is not affected by fixed obstacles such as the poles and neck rails of the stall Ac, which is a non-moving object, and the non-moving cow Cm (dairy cow C) is not detected. The detectable range of the illustrated infrared sensors 4xw and 4yw is approximately 2 [m].

  If the first infrared sensor 4xw and the second infrared sensor 4yw have such an arrangement configuration, the cow body that feeds the feed B with its head raised to the tank position Xf (specific position Px) by the first infrared sensor 4xw. The presence / absence of Cm can be detected, and the presence / absence of cow Cm in the stall Ac can be detected by the second infrared sensor 4yw. As described above, a plurality of cow detection sensors 4x and 4y that respectively detect the presence or absence of the cow Cm at two different (generally) different specific positions Px and Py are used for the cow detection sensor unit 4. For example, since diversified information related to the behavior of the dairy cow C can be obtained, there is an advantage that the health condition of the dairy cow C. In particular, since the pyroelectric infrared sensors 4xw and 4yw for detecting the moving bovine Cm are used as the bovine detection sensors 4x and 4y, the cow C is normally used when feeding by the automatic feeder 2 There is an advantage that only a moving cow C can be reliably detected without being affected by a fixed obstacle such as a stall Ac ....

  On the other hand, a milking machine controller 81 is mounted on the milking machine 44 of the milking system Sm. The milking machine controller 81 includes a milking machine controller main body 82 and a wireless communication unit 83, a milk amount sensor 84, and a milk sensor 85 connected to the milking machine controller main body 82. The milking machine controller main body 82 has a computer function, and includes a series of control processing (sequence control processing) based on a processing program stored in a memory, various data processing such as arithmetic processing, storage processing, communication processing, and input / output processing. (Computing processing) is executed. In this case, the milking machine controller main body 82 and the wireless communication unit 83 are built in the milking machine controller 81 shown in FIG. 5, and the milk amount sensor 84... And the milk sensor 85. Are incorporated in the unit main body 50. The milk amount sensor 84 has a function of detecting the milk amount at the time of milking, and the milk sensor 85 has a function of inspecting the quality of milked milk. Various sensors for detecting whether the quality (characteristic) of the milk is normal can be applied to the milk sensor 85. Reference numeral 88 denotes a display unit.

  Furthermore, a management room Rc is provided inside or outside the tethered barn M, and a management controller 91 is installed inside the management room Rc. The management controller 91 can be configured by a general-purpose computer system 92 as shown in FIG. The general-purpose computer system 92 includes a computer main body 93, a display 94 connected to the computer main body 93, an input / output unit 95, and a wireless communication unit 96. The computer main body 93 has computer functions including a CPU (processing unit) 93s, a data memory 93d, a program memory 93p, and the like, and includes various management processes based on a processing program stored in the program memory 93p, arithmetic processing, storage processing, Various data processing (computing processing) such as communication processing and input / output processing is executed. The display 94 can use a color liquid crystal display or the like, and the input / output unit 95 includes an external media drive, an input unit such as a keyboard and a mouse, and an output unit such as a printer. The management controller 91 can mutually communicate with the feeding machine controller main body 73 through the wireless communication unit 96 and the wireless communication unit 74, and can communicate with the milking machine controller main body 82 through the wireless communication unit 96 and the wireless communication unit 83. it can. Further, the management controller 91 can communicate with a mobile terminal device Sc including a mobile computing device such as a PDA and a mobile phone. Therefore, the management controller 91 includes a data communication function Ft, a data management function Fc, and a data calculation function Fcm.

  The management controller 91 includes a health condition management unit 5 that manages the health condition of the cow C, and the health condition management unit 5 further includes a health condition determination function Fp and a health condition display function Fd. Therefore, the health state determination function Fp is executed by the computer main body 93, and the health state display function Fd is executed by the computer main body 93 and the display 94.

  The health state determination function Fp includes the detection result of the remaining amount Qr of the feed B detected by the feed amount detection sensor unit 3, that is, the ultrasonic sensor 3s, and the cow detection sensor unit 4, that is, the first infrared sensor 4xw and the first A function of discriminating the health condition of the cow C based on the detection result of the presence or absence of the cow body Cm detected by the two infrared sensors 4yw is provided. Specifically, the detection result of the remaining amount Qr of the feed B is ranked into three (generally a plurality of) ranks, and the discriminated elements Da, Db, Dc and the two bovine bodies detected by this ranking. The health of dairy cattle depending on whether or not the combination of the discriminating elements Dx, Dy, Dz based on the detection results of the sensors 4x, 4y, that is, the first infrared sensor 4xw and the second infrared sensor 4yw satisfies a preset discrimination condition. A function for determining the state is provided.

  In this case, as shown in FIG. 8A, the rank classification for the detection result of the remaining amount Qr is the discriminated element Da that is determined to have appetite when the remaining amount Qr is a small level of 30 mm or less, and the remaining amount Qr. Is a discriminating element Db for determining that there is little appetite when the medium level is 31 to 74 mm, and is a discriminating element Dc for determining that there is almost no appetite when the remaining amount Qr is a high level of 75 mm or more. In addition, the mark in the case of displaying these discrimination | determination elements Da, Db, Dc is shown to Fig.8 (a). On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 8B, the first infrared sensor 4xw and the second infrared sensor are ranked according to the detection result of the presence or absence of the bovine body Cm detected by the first infrared sensor 4xw and the second infrared sensor 4yw. When both of 4yw or only the first infrared sensor 4xw detects the bovine body Cm, the bovine body Cm is set as the discriminated element Dx that protrudes from the tank position Xf and determines that it is in the feeding state. When only the infrared sensor 4yw detects the bovine body Cm, the bovine body Cm moves in the cow bed, but the head is positioned at the tank position Xf and is determined to be not in the foraging state. When there is no detection by both the one infrared sensor 4xw and the second infrared sensor 4yw, it is set as the discriminated element Dz that determines that there is no movement of the cow body Cm. In addition, the mark in the case of displaying these to-be-determined elements Dx, Dy, Dz is shown in FIG.8 (b).

  And in the case of illustration, the discrimination condition is, for example, that the remaining rank ranked according to FIG. 8 (a) in feeding six times a day is the discriminated element Db or Dc, and according to FIG. 8 (b). The foraging response rank that has been ranked is set as a condition that it is the discriminated element Dy or Dz (however, in the case of initial feeding, it is the discriminated element Db or Dc) three or more times, When this discrimination condition is satisfied, the cattle is discriminated as a bad cow having a problem in health. Therefore, if this determination condition is not satisfied, it is determined that the cow is in good health. FIG. 9 shows an example of five cows C ... discriminated by applying the above discriminating conditions, Kn is a cow number (numbers 1 to 5), Kt is a feeding time (1st to 6th), Du is a discrimination Results are shown. If the health condition management means 5 is provided with such a health condition determination function Fp, the number of information for determining the health condition and the number of combinations thereof can be increased, so the accuracy and reliability of the determination result for the health condition Can be further enhanced.

  On the other hand, the health status display function Fd is a discriminated element Dx based on detection results of the first infrared sensor 4xw and the second infrared sensor 4yw based on the rank classification of the detection result of the remaining amount Qr. .., Dy..., Dz..., At least one of the discrimination results Du of the health status discrimination function Fp, and other monitoring data are added to these, and the tables Ta, Tb (FIGS. 10, 11) and A function of displaying in time series by the graph G (FIG. 11) is provided. If such a health condition display function Fd is provided, it can be used as a judgment material for judging whether the cattle herd of the whole ranch is properly managed or for judging the health condition of each cow C ... By visual inspection, it is possible to easily and clearly know the health state of the cow C ... and its change state (elapsed state). Therefore, the program memory 93p of the management controller 91 stores a processing program for executing such discrimination processing based on the health status discrimination function Fp and display processing based on the health status display function Fd.

  Next, the operation (function) of the health condition management system 1 including the health condition management method according to the present embodiment will be described according to the flowchart shown in FIG. 1 with reference to FIGS.

  Now, in the feeding system Sh, it is assumed that the automatic feeder 2 stops at the home position and is on standby. If the feeding start time comes during standby, the feeder controller main body 73 receives management data from the management controller 91 and performs a feeding process based on the management data. This management data includes the cow number of all cows C ..., the cow bed number corresponding to each cow number, and the feed amount data. If the management data is received, it is registered in the feeder controller main body 73. Update the management data used during the previous feeding.

  When the management data is updated, the feeding process is started. The automatic feeder 2 automatically moves along the guide rail portion 21 by the start of the feeding process (step S1). If the detection unit 35 of the automatic feeder 2 reaches the tank position Xf where the detected part 34 is detected during the movement, the automatic feeding machine 2 stops at the tank position Xf (step S2). If stopped, first, the remaining amount Qr of the feed B is detected by the ultrasonic sensor 3s (the feed amount detection sensor unit 3), that is, the amount of uneaten (remaining feed) of the feed B is detected by the height Hq of the feed B. To do. Since this detection result is given to the feeder controller main body 73 via the sensor system controller 72, the feeder controller main body 73 adds to the management data as collected data collected during feeding. When the detection by the ultrasonic sensor 3s is completed, a predetermined feeding process based on the management data is performed (steps S3 and S4). That is, based on the feed amount data, the roughage feed conveyor mechanism 28 and the feed auger mechanism 30 are controlled, and a metering mechanism (not shown) is controlled. This metering mechanism is attached to the feed discharge unit 24. Thereby, while obtaining the feed B prepared to the mixing ratio and the mixing amount of the rough feed Ba and the mixed feed Bb set in the feed amount data, the feed B is administered from the feed discharge unit 24 to the external tank position Xf.

  On the other hand, if the automatic feeder 2 stops at the tank position Xf, a sensing process is performed on the cow Cm by the first infrared sensor 4xw and the second infrared sensor 4yw (step S5). This sensing process continues for a preset limit time Ts until the first infrared sensor 4xw detects the cow body Cm (steps S6 and S7). The limit time Ts can be set to a predetermined time after the feeding process for administering the feed B is completed. Since the detection results by the first infrared sensor 4xw and the second infrared sensor 4yw are given to the feeder controller main body 73 via the sensor system controller 72, the feeder controller main body 73 collects data collected during feeding. To the management data. Thereby, since managed data in which data contents are added to the management data is obtained, the managed data is stored in the feeder controller main body 73 for each head.

  And if the above feeding process is complete | finished, the automatic feeder 2 will automatically move to the tank position Xf of the next stall Ac, and will similarly perform the detection process and feeding process mentioned above also in the next tank position Xf. (Steps S8, S1,...). Moreover, if the feeding process with respect to all the cows C ... is complete | finished, the automatic feeder 2 will return automatically to a home position, and the to-be-managed data preserve | saved at the feeder controller main-body part 73 will be transmitted to the management controller 93. FIG. Thereafter, the feeding system Sh waits until the next feeding time (feeding time) (step S8).

  On the other hand, if the management controller 91 receives managed data from the feeder controller main body 73, it creates new management data using this managed data. At this time, in the case where the managed data is feeding when there is no last leftover (feeding first time) like feeding performed after cleaning, the detection result of the remaining amount Qr by the ultrasonic sensor 3s is canceled ( Steps S9 and S10). On the other hand, in the case of data when there is a previous uneaten, the detection result of the remaining amount Qr by the ultrasonic sensor 3s is incorporated as the previous management data into the previous management data (steps S9 and S11). Therefore, since the detection result of the remaining amount Qr cannot be collected in the feeding before the first feeding is performed, in this case, each time the automatic feeding machine 2 is detected only by the ultrasonic sensor 3s after a certain period of time. Stall Ac ... may be moved, and the detection result of this time may be excluded.

  Then, if new management data is obtained, it is updated, and a ranking process for the obtained detection result is performed by the health state determination function Fp (step S12). In this case, the detection result of the remaining amount Qr at the tank position Xf by the ultrasonic sensor 3s is ranked in three stages according to the ranking criteria of FIG. That is, when the remaining amount Qr is a low level of 30 mm or less, the discriminated element Da, when the remaining amount Qr is 31 to 74 mm, the discriminated element Db, and when the remaining amount Qr is 75 mm or more, the discriminated element Rank each Dc. Further, the detection results of the first infrared sensor 4xw and the second infrared sensor 4yw are ranked in three stages according to the rank classification criteria of FIG. That is, when both the first infrared sensor 4xw and the second infrared sensor 4yw, or only the first infrared sensor 4xw detects the cow body Cm, the discriminated element Dx and only the second infrared sensor 4yw detected the cow body Cm. When there is no detection by both the discriminated element Dy, the first infrared sensor 4xw and the second infrared sensor 4yw, the rank is classified into the discriminated element Dz.

  Next, a health state determination process for the cow C is performed from each of the determined elements Da, Db, Dc, Dx, Dy, Dz (step S13). That is, as described above, in the case of illustration, in the six times a day feeding, the discriminated element Db or Dc and the discriminating element Dy or Dz are obtained. In order to set that the determination element Db or Dc is generated three times or more as a determination condition, the cow C satisfying this determination condition is determined as a bad cow having a health condition, and the determination condition The cow C that does not satisfy the condition is identified as a good cow that does not have a problem in health. The result of the discrimination process is recorded as a discrimination result (discrimination data) Du.

  Further, display processing for each obtained data is performed by the health state display function Fd (step S14). In this case, the obtained data includes the discriminated elements Da ..., Db ..., Dc ... by rank classification for the detection result of the remaining amount Qr, the discriminating elements based on the detection results of the first infrared sensor 4xw and the second infrared sensor 4yw. Dx ..., Dy ..., Dz ..., discrimination result Du by the health status discrimination function Fp, and other monitoring data, such as milk quantity data, feeding quantity data, silage quantity data, concentrated feed quantity data, disease Treatment data and the like are added and displayed on the display unit 94 in the format shown in FIGS.

  FIG. 10 shows discriminated elements Da ..., Db ..., Dc ..., Dx ..., Dy ..., Dz ..., especially discriminated elements Da ..., Db ..., Dc for different feeding times in all cows C ... .., Dy..., Dz. In Table Ta, Kdt represents the feeding date, Kt represents the number of times of feeding on the feeding date, and Kn represents the cow number. By using such a table Ta, it is possible to comprehensively manage the health status of all dairy cows C ... as a whole ranch, so it is possible to easily find dairy cows C ... with poor health status and to keep the herd throughout the ranch. This can be used as a basis for determining whether management is being carried out properly. For example, if the health of dairy cows C… in a specific area is poor, the occurrence of some infectious disease, the blowing of wind, the deterioration of the breeding environment due to extreme heat, etc. are considered. Necessary measures can be taken promptly.

  FIG. 11 is a table Tb showing discriminated elements Da ..., Db ..., Dc ..., Dx ..., Dy ..., Dz ... with respect to the number of days after the delivery date of a specific cow C, and the milk yield [kg / day]. The change is shown in graph G. In Table Tb, Kds is the number of days elapsed when 0 is the delivery date, Kf is the disease treatment column, Es is the date of abnormality detection, Ed is the first treatment date, and Edr is the second treatment date. In graph G, Le represents a change in milk yield, and Ls represents a change in average milk yield of healthy cows as a reference example. In FIG. 11, the milk yield becomes 0 on and after the 55th day, but mastitis was diagnosed by the first treatment, and it was a separate milking in the bucket. If such a table Tb and graph G are used, it can be utilized as a judgment material for grasping the health condition of each cow C ... For example, it is possible to easily and clearly grasp the health condition and change state (elapsed condition), etc. for a specific cow C that had delivered, and to manage it comprehensively. By monitoring the determined dairy cow C from various angles, diseases such as mastitis can be detected at an early stage, and necessary measures can be taken quickly. The table Tb and the graph G are also displayed on the screen of the display unit 94.

  Therefore, according to the dairy cow health state management method and management system 1 according to this embodiment, the feed amount detection sensor unit 3 detects the remaining amount Qr of the feed B ... administered at the previous feeding, Thereafter, the feed B ... is administered to the tank position Xf ..., and the presence / absence of the cow Cm ... at the specific positions Px ..., Py ... is detected by the cow detection sensor unit 4, and the presence / absence detection result is detected. Since the health condition of the cow C ... is managed based on the detection result of the remaining amount Qr ..., the probability of misjudgment with respect to the health condition is greatly reduced, and the health condition of the cow C ... is accurately managed. Can do. Moreover, since an IC tag attached to the cows C ... is unnecessary compared to the conventional case, one of the unnecessary stress factors in the cows C ... can be eliminated and the system cost can be reduced. Moreover, since the remaining amount Qr of the feed B ... in the tank position Xf ... is detected by the feed amount detection sensor unit 3 attached to the automatic feeder 2, the appetite of the cow C ... can be detected directly. Therefore, it becomes possible to obtain a plurality of multifaceted information indicating the health state together with information related to the behavior of the dairy cows C, so that the health, disease, etc. of the dairy cows C can be grasped more quickly and accurately.

  The preferred embodiment has been described in detail above. However, the present invention is not limited to such an embodiment, and the gist of the present invention is described in detail configuration, shape, material, quantity, numerical value, method, and the like. Any change, addition, or deletion can be made without departing from the scope.

  For example, since the feed amount sensor unit 3 only needs to be able to detect the amount of feed B (remaining amount Qr), in addition to the distance measuring sensor such as the exemplified ultrasonic sensor 3s, weight detection by a weigh scale, image sensor such as a CCD, etc. It is also possible by volume detection obtained by image processing using (imaging means). Further, it is possible to detect by arranging reflection type ultrasonic sensors 3s... At a plurality of heights and projecting ultrasonic waves in the horizontal direction. Furthermore, when detecting by the ultrasonic sensor 3s, a plurality of positions may be detected by slightly moving the position of the ultrasonic sensor 3s, and the detection result may be obtained as an average value. On the other hand, although an example using pyroelectric infrared sensors 4x and 4y has been given as the bovine body detection sensor unit 4, other various sensing means such as an ultrasonic sensor and an optical sensor are taken into consideration in consideration of discrimination conditions and the like. An image sensor such as a CCD can also be used. In particular, when an image sensor such as a CCD is used, there is an advantage that both the cow detection sensor unit 4 and the feed amount sensor unit 3 can be used together. In addition, image data acquired by an image sensor such as a CCD can be stored for a cow determined to have a bad health condition so that the image data of the cow can be viewed on the display 94 of the management controller 91. Then, the image data can be used as more effective information.

  A dairy cow health condition management method and management system 1 according to the present invention is used as a health condition management method and management system 1 for various animals tethered to stalls such as pigs and horses, including dairy cows tethered to stalls. be able to. Therefore, the dairy cow in the present invention is a concept including various animals as well as a general concept of cattle.

  1: health condition management system, 2: automatic feeding machine, 3: feed amount detection sensor unit, 3s: ultrasonic sensor, 4: cow detection sensor unit, 4x: cow detection sensor, 4y: cow detection sensor, 4xw : Infrared sensor, 4yw: Infrared sensor, 5: Health condition management means, Ac ...: Stall, B ...: Feed, C ...: Dairy cow, Cm: Cow body, Da ..., Db ..., Dc ...: Discriminated element, Dx ..., Dy ..., Dz ...: Discriminated element, Du: Discrimination result, Fp: Health condition discrimination function, Fd: Health condition display function, Px ...: Specific position, Py ...: Specific position, Xf ...: Tank position, Qr ...: Remaining amount, Hq ...: Feed height, Ta: Table, Tb: Table, G: Graph

Claims (9)

  A health condition management method for a dairy cow for managing the health condition of a dairy cow tethered to a stall, wherein the automatic feed machine has a feed amount detection sensor unit capable of detecting the amount of feed in the stall tank position and the stall A bovine body detection sensor unit for detecting the presence or absence of a bovine body at a specific position is provided, and when the automatic feeding machine moves to each stall at the time of predetermined feeding, it is administered at the previous feeding by the bait amount detection sensor unit. The remaining amount of the feed is detected, and then the feed is administered to the tank position, and the presence / absence of the cow at the specific position is detected by the cow detection sensor unit, and the presence / absence detection result is detected. And a health condition management method for dairy cows, wherein the health condition of dairy cows is managed based on the remaining amount detection result.   The said cow detection sensor part is provided with the several cow detection sensor which each detects the presence or absence of the cow in the several different specific position, The health condition management method of the cow of Claim 1 characterized by the above-mentioned.   The detection results of the remaining amount are ranked into a plurality of ranks, and the combination of the elements to be discriminated by this ranking and the elements to be discriminated by the detection results of the plurality of cow detection sensors is based on a predetermined discrimination condition. The health condition management method for a dairy cow according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the health condition of the dairy cow is determined depending on whether or not the condition is satisfied.   A dairy cow health state management system for managing the health state of dairy cattle tethered to a stall, wherein the feed amount detection sensor is capable of detecting the remaining amount of feed at the stall tank position by being attached to an automatic feeder. Detection result of the presence or absence of the bovine body detected by the bovine body detection sensor unit that detects the presence or absence of the bovine body at the specific position of the stall by attaching to the automatic feeding machine And a health condition management means for managing the health condition of the dairy cow based on the detection result of the remaining amount of the feed detected by the feed amount detection sensor unit.   The dairy cow according to claim 4, wherein the feed amount detection sensor unit uses a reflection type ultrasonic sensor capable of detecting the height of the feed by being arranged upward with respect to the feed in the feeding tank position. Health management system.   6. The cow health state management system according to claim 4, wherein the cow detection sensor unit includes a plurality of cow detection sensors capable of detecting the presence or absence of cows at a plurality of different specific positions. .   The dairy cow health condition management system according to any one of claims 4 to 6, wherein the cow detection sensor unit uses a pyroelectric infrared sensor capable of detecting a moving cow.   The health condition management means ranks the detection results of the remaining amount into a plurality of ranks, and a combination of a discriminated element based on the ranking and a discriminating element based on the detection results of the plurality of bovine detection sensors. The dairy cow health state management system according to any one of claims 4 to 7, further comprising a health state discrimination function for discriminating a health state of a dairy cow according to whether or not a predetermined discrimination condition is satisfied.   The health condition management means displays at least one of a discrimination element based on the detection result of the remaining amount, a discrimination element based on detection results of the plurality of cow detection sensors, and a discrimination result of the health condition discrimination function, and 9. The health condition management system for dairy cows according to claim 8, further comprising a health condition display function for displaying in time series with a graph.

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