MXPA97006619A - System and method to carry out and manage operations of the anima feed lot - Google Patents
System and method to carry out and manage operations of the anima feed lotInfo
- Publication number
- MXPA97006619A MXPA97006619A MXPA/A/1997/006619A MX9706619A MXPA97006619A MX PA97006619 A MXPA97006619 A MX PA97006619A MX 9706619 A MX9706619 A MX 9706619A MX PA97006619 A MXPA97006619 A MX PA97006619A
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- MX
- Mexico
- Prior art keywords
- feed
- vehicle
- batch
- lot
- subsystem
- Prior art date
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Abstract
The present invention relates to a feeding lot administration system for animals, wherein each food assortment vehicle used therein uses real-time virtual reality modeling (VR) and technique for acquiring coordinates supported on a Internet-based communications platform (ie, Cyberspace) in order to perform various types of operations of the feed batch. Each feed batch vehicle has an on-board computer system that includes a VR subsystem to access a VR database that maintains information representative of a VR model of the feed batch and the objects present therein (e.g. , marked animals, corrals, passages, feeders, buildings, vehicles, etc.). The database is continually updated using information obtained from a global satellite-based positioning system (GDS), as well as local information acquisition systems integrated into it. Each VR subsystem is linked to a digital wireless communications network made as a portion of the Internet, provided with a Web site server of the feed batch. Each Vr subsystem includes a stereoscopic display subsystem to stereoscopically view any portion of the model of the VR feed batch, including the driver's vehicle as it is being navigated through the feed batch in either manned or unmanned mode. navigation during the operations of the feeding lot. Each computer system of the power lot may also include a stereoscopic vision subsystem having a field of view along the course of remotely controlled vehicle navigation. The navigation courses of these remotely navigated vehicles can be programmed in an orchestrated form to avoid collisions and optimize the time and energy required to perform the operations of the feeding lot, while reducing the operation cost of the feeding lot, as well as the number of employees required to support these operations
Description
SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR CARRYING OUT AND MANAGING ANIMAL FEEDING LOT OPERATIONS
DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates generally to an improved system and method for carrying out and managing operations of the animal feedlot including supplying the rations assigned to the feeders of the animals, using virtual reality modeling techniques. real time (VR) and acquisition of coordinates supported on the digital communications platform of the Internet (ie Cyberspace). In modern times, commercial feed lots are widely used to feed thousands of heads of cattle or other animals at various stages of growth. The main reason for using a batch of feed for animals to feed cattle instead of the "open range" is exclusive to the process of livestock growth and thus is able to bring livestock to market in a shorter period of time . Within a batch of animal feed, livestock are physically contained in livestock pens, each of which has a feeder to receive the feed or feed. Owners of livestock in the feedlot are defined by a single batch of numbers associated with the group or groups of livestock in each pen. The number of livestock in an owner's lot may vary and may occupy a fraction of one or more livestock pens. Within a particular pen, the heads of cattle are fed the same ration of feed, (that is, the same type and amount of feed). To house livestock in various stages of growth, or which requires special feeding because they are sick, malnourished or similar, the feeding lot comprises a large number of pens. Generally, the feeding of cattle in a feeding lot involves verifying, daily, each pen to determine the amount of the ration that will be fed to the cattle in each particular feeding cycle during that day, the state of the cattle and the state of the livestock. corral. In a food mill, the trucks for the feed are then loaded with the appropriate quantities of feed to supply it during a particular feed cycle. Then, the trucks loaded with the feed are driven to the feeders and the amount of the assigned ration for each pen is supplied in their feeder. Then, the above process is repeated for each designated feeding cycle. Due to the degree of number of feed ration amounts allocated to supply each day in the feedlot, feeding the animal in a large feedlot has become an enormously complex and time-consuming process. It is well known in the art to use computers to simplify the handling operations of the feed batch. In their PCT World 1984 article "Computers Ride The Range", Erick Brown and John Faulkner explained that large feeding lots were the first operations in livestock to use computers to simplify the calculation in feeding, movements of livestock, payroll for payment and accounting, and mixing of minimum cost food. From such calculations, the market projections, the "no gain and loss" in any given livestock head, and analyzable historical records can be easily or allow feed batch managers to keep track of virtually all high costs , from the costs of work and equipment, go down to the last bushel (35.23 liters) of corn or gram of micronutrients. Computer systems of the above type are generally described in the articles: "Homestead Management Systems1 Feedlot Planner and Hay Planner" by Wayne Forest, published on pages 40-44 of the September 1985 edition of the journal Agricomp; and "Rations and Feedlot Monitoring" by Cari Alexander, published on pages 107-112 of Computer Applications in Animal Feeding and Management, November 1984. The use of computer systems for similar and thus predict the process of livestock growth in a feeding lot is described in the article "OSU Feedlot (Fortran)" by Donald R. Gilí, on pages 93-106 of Computer Applications in Feeding and Management of Animals, supra. It is also known to use portable computing equipment to facilitate the allocation and supply of feed rations in a feedlot. For example, U.S. Patent No. 5,008,821 to Pratt, et al., Discloses a prior art system in which portable computers are used in food ration allocation and supply operations. As described, this prior art computer system uses laptops during the process of allocating and supplying the food ration. Using such computers, the feeder reader assigns food trucks and individual drivers to supply specific loads of the feed-to specific sequences of pens along a prioritized feeding route during each physical feeding cycle. Then, the specified feed charges are loaded onto pre-assigned food supply vehicles, and then the food supply vehicles supply the feed rations in the feeders associated with the corresponding animal pens along the feed route. prioritized feeding. To carry out the food supply operations, the prior art food delivery vehicles use a propeller that drives the motor to supply the pre-assigned amount of the feed ration from the vehicle within and along the length of the corresponding feeder. However, when conventional feeding technology is used, it often occurs that non-uniform supply of feed rations along the length of the feeder. Since each section of the feeder naturally becomes the territory of a particular animal over time, certain animals, which return to the same section of the feeder during each feeding cycle, are not provided with an equal amount of food as the animals along the same feeder. This condition along the feeder avoids the successful modeling of animal consumption patterns and the prediction of weight gain in response to the assigned feed ration, and in this way significant effects are sought in the feeding lot management process total to carry out in the feed batch. The systems and methods of food handling of the prior art not only fail to solve this problem, but create conditions which perpetuate it. Methods for handling the feed batch of the prior art also fail to provide operators for the feed batch (e.g., feeders, feed supply, veterinarian and feeding batch managers) with an easy way to find out the state of affairs outside the feeding lot of the range of your human senses. Accordingly, the use of prior art systems and methods has been very difficult for operators to collaborate on the forms, which minimize the time and energy required to carry out the operations of the feedlot, while reduces the operating costs of the feed batch and the number of employees required to support its operations. Thus, there is a great need in the art for an improved system and method for carrying out and managing the operations of the animal feeding lot, including supplying food rations assigned to the animals in a feeding lot., while avoiding the failures and disadvantages of the systems and methods of the prior art.
Accordingly, it is a principal object of the present invention to provide an improved method and apparatus for carrying out and managing the operations of the animal feedlot, while overcoming the problem associated with the prior art systems and methodologies. Another object of the present invention is to provide such an apparatus in the form of a management system and operations of the animal feeding lot, where each vehicle of the feeding lot used therein has an on-board computer system, which uses real-time virtual reality modeling (VR) techniques (for example, 3-D geometry) and coordinate acquisition, supported by an Internet-based digital communications platform, to carry out and manage batch operations. feeding for animals. Another object of the present invention is to provide such a system, where each food delivery vehicle employed in it, has an on-board computer system, which uses real-time VR modeling and coordinate acquisition techniques to uniformly supply the food rations to the animal feeders in the feeding lot. Still another object of the present invention is to provide such a system, in which a VR subsystem on board each vehicle in the feedlot has access to a 3-D virtual reality modeling language (VRML) database that contains a VR model of the feed batch, which accurately reflects the position and orientation of the vehicle in the feed batch, as it navigates through the feed batch in either its manned or unmanned navigation mode. Still another object of the present invention is to provide such a system in which the VRML database is continuously updated by a database processor
VRML (that is, VRML machine) using the information, which has been obtained from a global position subsystem
(based on satellite) (GPS) and a plurality of local information acquisition subsystems (LIAS) integrated with it and transmitted to the database processor by means of a network of Internet-based digital communications. Another object of the present invention is to provide such a system, wherein the VR subsystem on board each food delivery vehicle allows the driver to stereoscopically observe a VR model of his or her food delivery vehicle displayed from the high resolution LCD panel inside. of the cab itself, as the driver navigates his vehicle along the feeder during food supply operations.
Yet another object of the present invention is to provide such a system, in which the VR model observable by the driver, shows the position and orientation of the food supply vehicle in relation to the feeder as the vehicle is being driven. along the feeder during the uniform supply of food rations allotted along the length thereof. Another object of the present invention is to provide such a system, in which the information produced from the GPS is used to continuously update the model of the VR-based food lot to: (i) exhibit aisles, feeders and other identifiers fixed in the feeding lot in an on-board display screen of each vehicle of the feeding lot; (ii) determine that each particular food supply vehicle is stopped at the correct feeder for the supply of the assigned food ration; (iii) determine the length of the feeder in which the vehicle is stopped; and (iv) determining the speed of the food supply vehicle from the beginning of the feeder to the end of the same during the operations of uniform feed supply. Another object of the present invention is to provide such an auxiliary computer system, in which each vehicle of the feed batch includes at least two high resolution GPS signal receivers and a GPS processor to produce the coordinated data, which specify the position and orientation of the vehicle of the feed batch within the feed batch. . Another object of the present invention is to provide such a system in which each food supply vehicle includes detectors to produce coordinate data specifying the orientation of the food supply channel in relation to the body of the food supply vehicle during operations of uniform food supply. Another object of the present invention is to provide such a system, in which each vehicle reading the feeder, the veterinarian vehicle and the nutritionist vehicle in the feedlot, has an on-board VR subsystem similar to the supply vehicle of food and can be used to "browse" the model of the VR feed batch that is continuously updated to simulate the physical reality of the feed batch and evaluate various vehicles, operators and marked animals are in the feed batch at a given time point to carry out and manage operations more efficiently from the batch of feed for the animal. Another object of the present invention is to provide such a system, wherein each of such a vehicle of the feeding lot can be remotely navigated in a pre-programmed or driven course of navigation in the feed lot by means of the operator of the vehicle that interacts with a 3-D model VR-world model of the feed batch observed stereoscopically in a VR workstation remotely located in communication with the vehicle through a wireless digital communications network. Another object of the present invention is to provide a computer network for the feed batch, in which the separate computer systems adapted to read the feeder, the feed mill operator, the batch feeding director, the veterinarian of the feeding lot, the feedlot nutritionist and the food supply vehicle operators integrated into a wireless digital telecommunications network which, as part of the Internet, allows them to transfer asynchronously information file to carry out the modeling of the feed lot and handling method of the present invention. Another object of the present invention is to provide such a computer network for the feed batch, in which the information files, which support the model of the feed batch VR (as well as the allocation of the feed ration and supply processes) employees within the feed batch on one or more World Wide Web (WWW) sites on the Internet and are remotely accessible by a. VR browser subsystem provided in each computer system of the feed batch on a real-time basis. Another object of the present invention is to provide such a power batch computer network, in which the position and temperature of the body of the animals marked with RF in the feed batch, are reflected by the position and color of (sub ) VR-based animal models in VR-based feed batch models maintained in the network. Another object of the present invention is to provide an improved method for carrying out and handling operations in an animal feeding lot. These and other objects of the present invention will become apparent in the following, and in the Claims for the Invention. According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a system for carrying out handling operations within an animal feeding lot, in which each food delivery vehicle employed therein uses the VR model of time. real and coordinate acquisition techniques to carry out and manage various types of feed batch operations, including reading of the feeder, supply of food and a healthy animal and nutritional care in the feeding lot. In the first illustrated embodiment, each power lot vehicle has an on-board computer system, which includes a VR system that is in communication with a network of Internet-based digital communications that support the transfer of real-time multimedia information. Each VR subsystem provides access to a geometric 3-D database (eg, represented in VRML) by storing information representative of a VR-based model of the feed batch, as well as animated objects (eg, marked animals) and objects inanimate (for example, corrals, corridors, feeders, buildings, vehicles, etc.) present in it. The VRML database is continually updated by a VRML database processor which uses the information obtained from each computer system of the information batch, a global positioning system based on the satellite (GPS), as well as also local information acquisition subsystems (LIAS) integrated with it. The main function of each LIAS is to acquire information pertaining to the position and temperature of the body of the RF marked animals in the feed lot, to be used in maintaining the model of the VR feed batch.The VR subsystem on board each vehicle in the feed batch includes an image display subsystem, which allows the driver to observe stereoscopically any aspect of the VR power lot model, including the driver's vehicle as it is being operated and navigated through. of the feed batch during the operations of the feed batch. The VR subsystem on board each vehicle in the feedlot can be used by feeder readers, feed suppliers, veterinarians, nutritionists, feed mill operators and feedlot managers in the same way. In an alternative embodiment of the animal feed batch system, each vehicle in the feed batch can be remotely navigated through the feed batch by an operator, who sits in front of a VR work station. The VR workstation allows the operator to remotely navigate the vehicle through the feed batch, using a VR interface equipped with a stereoscopic vision subsystem that has a field of view along the remotely controlled vehicle navigation course. A single operator can remotely navigate one or more vehicles of the supply batch simultaneously. The navigation courses of these remotely navigated vehicles can be pre-programmed in an orchestrated manner to avoid collision and optimize the time and energy required to carry out the batch operations, while reducing the operating costs of the batch of food, as well as the number of employees required to support their operations. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS For a more complete understanding of the Object of the Present Invention, the Detailed Description of the Illustrative Modalities thereof will be taken together with the following drawings, in which: Figure 1 is a schematic representation of a feed batch, within which the computer network of the feed batch of the present invention is installed to practice the system and method of the present invention; Figure 2A1 is a block system diagram of the illustrative embodiment of the computer network of the feed batch of the present invention showing the first food supply computer system, the nth food supply computer system, the system of the food mill computer, the computer system that manages the feeding batch, the computer system that reads the feeder, the veterinary computer system, the nutriologist computer system, the VR work station for the veterinary vehicle , the VR work station for the nutrition vehicle, the VR work station for the feeding trough of the feeder, the VR work station for the feed bureau director at the central office (or feed mill), the VR work station for the food mill operator, the VR work station for the nth food supply vehicle, the subsist ema of local placement (LIAS) for the animal's pen (i = l), the LIAS for the nth animal pen, the satellites of the global positioning system (GPS), the GPS base station, and the digital communications network , Internet-based, for mobile wireless communications between the computer systems of the computer network of the power lot; Figure 2A2 is a block diagram of the system illustrating the subcomponent of the GPS base station in relation to the GPS satellite and a vehicle computer of the exemplary power lot of the present invention; Figure 2A3 is a schematic diagram showing the local information acquisition subsystem (LIAS), installed in the animal's pen in the feed lot, to acquire coordinated information specifying the body temperature and placement of each animal marked with RF and transmitting such information to each VR subsystem in the computer network to continuously update the position and color-coded temperature of such RF-tagged animals with the VR-based feedlot model maintained within the system of the present invention; Figure 2B1 is a block diagram of the on-board computer system of each food supply vehicle of the present invention; Figure 2B2 is a schematic representation of the nth food delivery vehicle of the present invention, shown operating in its "managed navigation" mode of operation with the human operator using its VR subsystem on board, while navigating the vehicle throughout of a feeder that is uniformly filled with an assigned amount of food ration; Figure 2B2 'is a schematic representation of the nth food supply vehicle of the present invention, showing operand in its "unhandled" operating mode of operation with a human operator sitting in front of his remotely located VR workstation and navigating remotely vehicle along a pre-plotted navigation course that passes along the feeder that is evenly filled with an assigned amount of feed ration; Figure 2B3 is a diagram of the schematic system of the on-board computer system of the nth food supply vehicle, showing the components used to make the subsystems thereof; Figure 2B4 is a geometric representation of a VR 3-D model of a portion of an animal feed lot (ie, model of the VR-based feedlot), showing one of its pens, a feeder and a station of Vr work and then maintained and updated within each of the VR subsystems in the computer network of the feed batch; Figure 2B5 is a geometric representation of a model based on 3-D VR of the nth food supply vehicle, maintained within each VR subsystem of the first illustrative embodiment, in which the 'local coordinate reference system (i.e. , coordinate reference frame) is symbolically interspersed therein and the front and rear GPS receiver submodels are shown mounted along the center line lFDV (n) of the vehicle at the endpoints PpDVl ^ n ^ v PFDV2 ^ 'resPect; LVa The food supply channel is shown pivotally mounted around a pivot point PFDV (n) located along the center line of the vehicle lFDV (n), - Figure 2C is a block diagram of the computer system on board the reading vehicle of the feeder of the present invention;
Figure 2C1 is a schematic representation of the food supply vehicle of the present invention showing the operation in its "managed navigation" mode of operation with a human operator using its VR subsystem on board, while navigating the vehicle at length of a feeder that is uniformly filled with an assigned amount of feed ration; Figure 2C1 is a schematic representation of the food supply vehicle of the present invention, showing the operation in its "unhandled" operating mode with a human operator sitting in front of his remote VR system and remotely navigating the vehicle to along a graphing navigation course that passes along a feeder that is uniformly filled with an assigned amount of feed ration; Figure 2D is a block system diagram illustrating the components of the veterinary computer system of the power lot in the computer network of the present invention; Figure 2D1 is a schematic representation of the veterinary vehicle of the feeding lot of the present invention, shown operating in its "managed navigation" mode of operation with the veterinarian using its VR subsystem on board, while navigating the vehicle along the a feeder that contains animals that are visually inspected; Figure 2D2 is a schematic representation of the food delivery vehicle of the present invention shown in its "unhandled" operating mode with the veterinarian sitting in front of his remotely located VR subsystem and remotely navigating the vehicle along a pre-plotted navigation course that passes along a feeder that contains animals that are visually inspected by their on-board stereoscopic vision system; Figure 2E is a block diagram of the system illustrating the subsystem components of the feed computer system of the feed batch in the computer network of the feed batch of the present invention; Figure 2E1 is a schematic representation of the nutrition vehicle of the feed batch of the present invention, shown operating in its "managed navigation" mode of operation with the nutritionist using its VR subsystem on board, while navigating the vehicle throughout of a feeder containing visually inspected animals by its on-board stereoscopic vision system, - Figure 2E2 is a schematic representation of the food supply vehicle of the present invention shown operating in its "unhandled" operating mode with a a nutritionist who sits during his remote VR subsystem and remotely navigates the vehicle along a pre-plotted navigation course that passes along a feeding trough containing animals that are visually inspected by his stereoscopic on-board vision system; Figure 2F is a block diagram of the system illustrating the subsystem components of the food mill computer system in the computer network of the feed batch of the present invention; Figure 2F1 is a schematic representation of the food mill computer system of the present invention, showing a human operator sitting in front of his remote VR subsystem during typical feed batch handling operations within the feed mill; Figure 2G is a schematic block diagram illustrating the subsystem components of the feed batch handling computer system of the present invention; Figure 2G1 is a schematic representation of the computer system of the power supply batch of the present invention showing a human operator seated in front of its remotely located VR subsystem during typical batch handling operations within the head office; and Figure 3 is a block diagram of the system illustrating the components of the subsystem of a computer system of the vehicle of the power lot of the second illustrative embodiment of the computer system of the power lot shown in Figures 1 and 2 of the present invention. The illustrative embodiment of the present invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying Drawings, in which similar structures or elements will be indicated by similar reference numerals. With reference to Figure 1 of the Drawings, an exemplary feeding lot 1 is shown comprising several livestock pens 2, a feed mill 3 and a base bureau (ie, the central office) 4. Typically, each pen livestock 2 comprises fence 5 and an associated feeder 6 capable of maintaining a feed ration, (i.e., a quantity and type of feed ration). The length of each feeder will vary from the batch of feed to batch of feed, and typically has a length in proportion in length with each animal pen. The feed mill 3 typically comprises a closed construction structure 8 for office furniture and a food mill computer system 9 programmed to (i) allocate the feed loads and subsequent feed and (ii) control various operations of the feed mill. food, the nature of which is well known in the art. In the feed mill, the elevated storage tanks 10A, 10B and 10C, and the mixing / measuring equipment of food ingredients 11 operably associated with the computer system 9 of the feed mill, are provided in such a way that the loading of specified food (ie, comprising one or more batches of food) can be ground and mixed (ie, prepared and then discharged into a food delivery vehicle 12 in a manner known in the art.) Base office 4 typically comprises a locked construction structure 13 for housing office furniture, a feed management computer system 14 and a subsystem 15B for financial accounting / billing of the feeding lot associated with it, the nature of which will be described in greater detail In this construction, the director of the feed batch (hereinafter "the feed batch") typically maintains e an office together with personnel involved in financial accounting and billing operations, as well as nutrition and animal health care.
Generalities of the Computer Network of the Feeding Lot of the Illustrative Modality of the Present Invention The operation of the feeding lot and the management system of the present invention includes a computer network 16 which is exemplified within the feeding lot. exemplary of Figure 1. As shown in Figure 2, the computer network of the feed batch 16 comprises: a plurality of computer systems (vehicle) for the supply of the food, each installed on board the plurality of vehicles 12 food supply; 9 computer system for food mill installed in a 3 feed mill; a computer system 18 for reading the feeder, installed on board a vehicle 24 of the feeding lot; a veterinary computer system 19A installed on board a vehicle 21A of the feed batch; a computer system 19B for the nutritionist installed on board a vehicle 21A of the feeding lot; a VR 20 work station in central office 4 for remote 21A vehicle denial for the veterinarian and the management of VR-based operations; the work station VR 22 of the central office 4 for the remote navigation of the vehicle 21B of nutrition and the handling of the operations based on VR; the workstation VR 23 in the central office 4 for the remote navigation of the vehicle 24 of reading of the feeder and the handling of the operations based on VR; the station, working VR 25 in the central office 4 for the director of the feeding lot; the VR 26 work station in the feed mill for the feed mill operator; the work station VR 27 in the feed mill 3 for the nth food supply vehicle 12; a local placement subsystem 28 (LIAS) for the animal's pen (i = l); the LIAS for the animal's last pen; a plurality of GPS satellites 30 for the global positioning system (GPS); a GPS base station 31; and the Internet-based digital communication network 32 for wireless mobile communications between the computer system of the computer network of the power lot. Although the preferred configuration for the computer network of the power lot is illustrated in Figure 2, it is understood, however, that alternative configurations for the computer network may be adopted without departing from the scope and spirit of the present invention. As illustrated in Figure 1, the "feeder reader" collects important data for handling operations for the feeder for driving the feed batch vehicle similar to that of the feeder reading vehicle 24, the veterinarian's vehicle 21a or the nutrition vehicle 21B, to animal pens where a livestock head is confined for the care of the feed and / or veterinarian. In most operations of the larger feed batch, the feeder reader, or similar to the person carrying out their responsibilities, has a primary function: to assign specific types and feed amounts (hereinafter "relationships"). of food ") 'that will be supplied to each pen and supplied within the feeder associated with it, during the designated feeding cycles executed within a given day. The type and total amount of food ration allocated per head of cattle will depend on a number of factors, including the particular stage of livestock growth. Typically, the number of feed cycles programmed by the feed batch manager on a given day will be in the range of one to four or more. The main functions of the feedlot management, on the other hand, are to maintain daily records in the following groups: (i) livestock kept in each pen; (ii) the ingredients / formulation of the food rations; (iii) the history of consumption of the livestock feed ration during a period of time; (iv) the identity of each driver of a food supply vehicle; (v) identification and description of the supply vehicles of the feed relationship within the pens in the feedlot; and (vi) the charges that will be billed to the owners of the livestock for the feed rations provided to their livestock. It is understood, however, that these functions can be assigned differently from one batch of feed to the next. The main function of the food supply is to provide the food rations assigned to a prioritized (sub) sequence of animal pens in the feedlot. The main function of the veterinarian is to diagnose and treat sick animals with prescribed medication and nutrients. In certain feeding lots, a nutritionist may employ for the purpose of ensuring that the nutritional requirements of the animals are being met. Basic Architecture of Each Computer System of the Power Supply in the Computer Network of the Power Supply of the Present Invention As shown in Figures 2B1, 2C, 2D, 2E, 2F and 2G, each computer system 9, 14, 17, 18, 19A and 19B of the feeding lot, within the computer network of Figure 2, has a similar architecture, which comprises an integration of the following subsystems: a subsystem 34 for handling and processing the information file; a subsystem 35 of data communications - digital, wireless; and a 36 VR subsystem. In addition, each computer system 9, 14, 17, 18 19A and 19B of the feedlot is provided with a workstation VR 26, 25, 27, 23, 20 and 21, located remotely, in respective form. If the computer system of the power lot is installed on board a vehicle of the power lot, then the computer system of the power lot will include a number of additional subsystems corresponding to the functions that are to be provided in the vehicle. Similarly, if the computer system of the feed batch is installed within a construction of the feed batch (for example, the central office or food mill), then the computer system will include many additional subsystems corresponding to the functions that are going to be provided inside or around these constructions. As shown in Figure 2B1, additional subsystems on board the food delivery vehicle thereof include: a vehicle propulsion subsystem 37; a subsystem 38 for navigating the vehicle; a subsystem 39 for coordinated information acquisition, based on GPS; a subsystem 40 that records the food supply and a subsystem 41 that supplies uniform feed. As shown, these additional subsystems are integrated with other subsystems on board the food supply vehicle to provide what can be observed as the individual resulting system having many different modes of operation of the system. As shown in Figure 2C, additional subsystems on board the feeder reading vehicle include: a vehicle propulsion subsystem 37; a navigation subsystem 38 of the vehicle; a subsystem 39 for coordinated information acquisition based on GPS; and a subsystem 42 that registers the feeder. As shown, these additional subsystems are integrated with the other subsystems on board the feeder reading vehicle to provide what can be observed as the individual resulting system having many modes of operation of the system. As shown in Figure 2D, additional subsystems on board the veterinary vehicle thereof, include: a vehicle propulsion subsystem 37; a navigation subsystem 38 of the vehicle; a subsystem 39 for coordinated information acquisition based on GPS; a subsystem 43 of veterinary records (ie the animal's salute); and a subsystem 44 of feed lot management records (when the vehicle is used by the feed batch manager). As shown, these additional subsystems are integrated with other systems on board the veterinary vehicle to provide what may be observed as the individual resulting system that has many modes of system operation. As shown in Figure 2E, additional subsystems on board the nutrition vehicle include: a vehicle propulsion subsystem 37; a navigation subsystem 38 of the vehicle; a subsystem 39 for acquiring coordinated GPS information; a subsystem 45 of nutrition records and a subsystem 44 of records for the handling of the feeding lot (when the vehicle is used by the director of the feeding lot). As shown, these additional subsystems are integrated with the other on-board subsystems of the nutrition vehicle to provide what can be observed as an individual resulting system having many modes of system operation. Optionally, a separate vehicle, such as vehicle 19A or 19B of the feed batch, can be provided for exclusive use by the feed bodyship director, in which case it could be referred to as the "batch director's vehicle". For purposes of illustration, the substructure of the additional subsystems identified in the foregoing will be described in the following with reference to the schematic diagram of the computer system of the food supply vehicle, shown in Figure 2B2. As shown in Figure 2F, additional subsystems within the feed mill include the food mixing / flow control subsystem 46 and a subsystem 47 of food loading records. As shown, these additional subsystems are integrated with the other subsystems of the food mill computer system. As shown in Figure 2G, the additional subsystems within the central office include the subsystem 15 of financial accounting / billing of the supply batch. As shown, this additional subsystem is integrated with the other subsystems of the computer system of the batch handling. Processing of the Information File and Address Subsystem of Each Computer System of the Batch of Food The main function of the subsystem 34 of address and information file processing is to provide general information of the processing of the file and management capabilities for the operator of each computer system of the power supply batch in the network of the feed batch address. As shown in Figure 2B3, this subsystem is realized by providing each feed batch computer system with the
following subcomponents: the program storage memory 50 (eg, ROM) interfacing with common connections of the system 51 for storage of the computer programs according to the present invention; the storage database memory 52
(file) of information (for example, RAM) for the storage of various data files; a central processing unit (e.g., a microprocessor) 53 for processing the data elements contained in these information files (e.g., formatted in the Hypertext Mark-up Language (HTML) for representation in a hypermedia system performed on the World Wide Web (WWW) of the Internet, a data entry device 54 (e.g., a dashboard or a numeric keypad) and associated interface circuitry 54A, and an ultra-compact fixed-color printer 55 and the associated interface circuitry 55A for printing fixed copy images of the selected display frames, including reports, tables, graphs and color images of the VR model power batch .. Digital Wireless Communications Subsystem of each Power Batch Computer System The main function of the wireless digital data communications subsystem 35, associated with each computer system of the batch of Feed is to provide a World Wide Web (WWW) site on the Internet for each computer system of the feed batch and LIAS 28i in the feed batch management system. The purpose of such a subsystem is to facilitate the transmission and reception (ie loading and unloading) of the information files between the computer systems of the power lot, the VR workstations and the LIAS throughout the computer network of the batch of food. In the illustrated embodiment, such information files include: (1) HTML formatted feed batch information files associated with the various types of feed batch information files used to carry out the supply and allocation process of the feed of food described in Application Serial No. 07 / 973,450; and (2) files formatted in the Virtual Reality Modeling Language (VRML) associated with the VR-based feed batch model. Collectively, these subsystems 35 of digital communications, in cooperation with upper links / lower links, centers, senders and communication channels, provide the digital communications network 32, within the space / time extension of the power lot. In the illustrated embodiment, the digital communications network 32 provides wireless communications links to each and every computer in the on-board power lot system of the batch-to-power vehicles for the high-speed mobile communications required to perform the system and method of the present invention. Preferably, the digital communications network 32 comprises one or more sub-networks of the Internet, and is therefore capable of supporting the TCP / IP protocol in a communications environment of switched data packets well known in the art of communication. digital communications network. In the first illustrative embodiment of the present invention, the digital communications network 32 includes an Internet server 32 (ie, "feed batch Web server") which provides the feed batch with a sites on the Internet (i.e. , "the feed batch website"). In the Web site service, each feed batch computer system and LIAS are provided with an assigned set of information storage fields for storage of the current coordinate information (ie, in the buffer memory) in the vehicle or the position of the marked animal, as well as the information of the state of the objects (for example, the vehicle, pens, marked animals, etc.) in the feeding lot at any moment in time. Periodically, for example, every second or fraction thereof) such information is remotely accessed from the feed batch of the Web server site 32A by the VR subsystem (for example, using the Web VR pager) 36, which is provided in each computer system of the feed batch and the VR workstation in the feed batch. Such transfer of the information file is achieved using conventional file transfer protocols (FTP) well known in the Internet communications technique. In turn, each Vr subsystem uses the information accessed from the 32A Web server of the feed batch to update the VR model maintained locally on board the VR subsystem. This approach provides a way in which the feed batch model, based on VR represented in each VR subsystem, is updated throughout the computer network of the feed batch. Provided with such capabilities, the digital communications network 32 can be observed comprising a plurality of information / communication nodes made by the different computer systems, shown in Figure 2 and that these nodes (many of which are mobile) are linked together by wireless links (electromagnetic-wave transmission) in a form that allows the handling of the feed batch data file and the VR model and navigation in the feed batch handling system of the present invention.
As shown in the exemplary schematic diagram of Figure 2B1, the wireless digital communications subsystem 35 associated with each computer system of the power lot is realized by: a 67A modem interfaced with the common connection 51 of the system by the gate 67A of data communications; 69 transceiver 68 interfaced with modem 67; an antenna connected to the transceiver that allows the computer system of the power lot to transmit and receive information files on the network 32 of the batch of digital communications; and the software 70 of the network to support a 3-D network protocol, allowing the coordination of multiple 3-D objects efficiently in the digital communications network (while supporting the standard Internet communication protocol TCP / IP). In the case of the vehicles of the power lot, the antenna 69 can be mounted outside the vehicle and electrically connected to the RF transceiver 68 using conventional RF transmission cable. Preferably, the 3-D network software provided in each wireless digital communications subsystem (i.e., the node in the network 32) is capable of supporting the 3-D network training protocol such as the Distributed Interactive Simulation protocol Standard (DIS), to provide support to form the VR model and navigation functions of the feed management system. Notably, the DIS protocol is capable of handling many different types of 3-D data file formats, which can be transmitted in the computer network of the feed batch. Such 3-D data formats include VRML and Open Flight, which allow for multiple 3-D objects (eg, VR models of feed batch vehicles, animals, pens, constructions, feed lot equipment, feed resources, etc.). batch of food, such as medicines, micro-ingredients, components of the feed ration, water troughs, airplanes of the feeding lot and helicopters, etc.) are efficiently coordinated in the digital communication network. In Real and VR Power Lots Models Consistent with the well-known coordinate reference principles well known in the Vr modeling technique, the global and local coordinate reference systems, (ie coordinate reference frames) are interleaved symbolically within the structure of the "real" animal feed lot that is modeled within each VR subsystem (and the VR work station) in the feed management system of the same. As illustrated in Figures 1, 2A3, 2B4 and 2B5, the following combined reference frames are symbolically interspersed by the specific portion of the feedlot: (1) a global coordinate reference system is interspersed symbolically with the animal feedlot "real" presented as RR of feed '(2) a reference system of local coordinate is interspersed symbolically within each nth vehicle supplying the batch of "real" feed, represented by R-Rn_fv; (3) the local coordinated reference system is interspersed symbolically within the reading vehicle of the actual feeder, represented as RR frv; (4) a local coordinate reference is the system interspersed symbolically within the real veterinary vehicle, represented as RRVV; (5) the local coordinate reference system is symbolically interspersed within the real nutrition vehicle, represented as RRnv; and (6) a local coordinate reference system is interspersed symbolically within each of the real animal pen in the feed lot, represented as RR-i-ap. In practice, the coordinate information obtained using commercially available satellite-based GPS is expressed in terms of latitude and longitude measurement, mentioned with respect to a coordinate system based on Earth (ie, RR-Earth) historically centered in Greenwich, London, England.However, for the purposes of simplicity, a spatially coincident feedlot can be located with ^ Earth 'v - "- a reference for all points in the feed batch with respect to R earth- Alternatively, the coordinates of reference in R Earth a
RRlot of feeding using homogeneous transformations
(that is, mathematical mapping techniques) well known in the techniques of computer graphics and virtual reality model formation. The function of the global coordinate reference system RRlote of power is to provide a reference structure within which the placement of all real objects in the supply batch can be specified. The function of each reference system of "local" RRn-fdv RRfrv RRW is to provide a reference structure within the position and orientation of the supply vehicle of the actual feed batch and its food supply channel to be specific in relation to for objects in the feedlot (eg feeders during food supply operations and the feed mill that fills the channels during loading truck operations). As described in more detail in the following, the main function of each VR subsystem is to maintain (ie, update) a 3-D VR model for the feed batch and objects contained therein. Preferably, this model of the VR feed batch can be observed as a collection of (sub) models, based on VR, such of which are expressed using VRML well known in the VR model technique. In the illustrative mode, the VRML is used to design and create the following VR model on the central VR 71 workstation. Namely: a Vr model of the feed batch and the objects contained in it, namely: (1) a VR model of the "real" animal feed batch, represented as feedlot ''. { 2) a VR model of each nth "real" food supply vehicle represented as Mn_ £ v; (3) a model Vr of the reading vehicle of the actual feeder, represented as Mfrv; (4) a Vr model of the actual veterinary vehicle, represented as y-y .; (5) a VR model of the actual nutrition vehicle, represented as nv; (6) a VR model of each real ith of the animal in the feeding lot represented as M - ^ _ ap; and (7) a VR model of each jth animal "marked" in the very last pen of the real animal in the feeding lot represented as M? -anima] _; etc. Finally, they are maintained and updated in each VR subsystem within the address system of the feed batch thereof. To maintain correspondence between the "real" feed batch and the objects in it and the "VR models" thereof, it is also necessary to symbolically intersperse the following coordinated reference frames with the specific portions of the feed batch, namely: ( 1) a global coordinated reference system, symbolically interspersed within the "VR model" of the animal feed batch, represented as a feedlot '(2) a local coordinate reference system interspersed symbolically within the "VR model" of each nth vehicle of food supply, represented as R ^ n-fdv '(3) a local coordinate reference system, symbolically interspersed within the VR model of the feeder reading vehicle, represented as R ^ £ rv; (4) a local coordinated reference system, interspersed symbolically with the VR model of the veterinary vehicle, represented as RM; (5) a local coordinated reference system, symbolically interspersed within the VR model of the nutrition vehicle, represented as R ^ nv; and (6) a coordinated local reference system interspersed symbolically within the VR model of every iimal animal pen in the feeding lot, represented as RMi - a - Although it is understood that these VR models encompass information of the natural non - graphic aspects , the geometrical aspects of certain such VR models are shown in Figures 2A3, 2A4 and 2B2 for illustrative purposes.
According to the construction of VR-world (ie, model formation) principles and techniques, many of the relationships are established and maintained by the VR subsystem within the feed batch management system, namely: (1) the coordinated reference frame RR-L0te of power interspersed symbolically with the real power batch is considered isomorphic with the corresponding coordinate reference frame RM symbolic power supply interleaved within the Vr mode of the same power supply Mlote '"(2) the table coordinated reference RRn-fdv symbolically interspersed with each nth real vehicle supply vehicle is considered isomorphic with the corresponding coordinated reference frame Rn-fdv symbolically interspersed with each VR model of the same Mn_f v; (3) the coordinated reference frame RRn_fdv interleaved symbolically within each nth reading vehicle of the actual feeder is considered or isomorphic with the corresponding coordinated reference frame RM rv symbolically interspersed within each model Vr of the same £ rv; (4) the coordinated reference frame RRW symbolically interspersed within the actual veterinary vehicle is considered to be isomorphic with the corresponding coordinate reference frame RM £ VV symbolically within the VR model thereof and y, * (5) the coordinated reference frame RRnv interspersed symbolically within the real nutrition vehicle it is considered isomorphic with the corresponding coordinated reference frame R ^ nv interspersed symbolically within the VR model of the same Mnv; and (6) the coordinated reference frame RRi-ap interspersed symbolically within the liter pen of the real animal is considered isomorphic with the corresponding coordinated reference frame Rl ^ i-ap interspersed symbolically within the VR model thereof
M 1 V- -ap • Using mathematical mapping techniques, such as homogeneous transformation, specified position coordinates within the global coordinate reference system RMlote power can be easily related to coordinates specified within any local coordinate reference system , for example, R ^ n_ £ dv. Accordingly, the coordinated information pertaining to the position of a food supply vehicle in the aforementioned feed batch with respect to RR of feed (derived on board a food supply vehicle) can be translated into coordinated reference information to any other local reference frame, for example, the coordinate table RMi_aD during the food supply operations involving the animal's last pen and feeding trough. With such capabilities provided on board each power supply vehicle, the operation thereof can be displayed on the line-mounted LCD panel (navigation), an updated VR model of the food supply vehicle (including its supply channel). food) shown in spatial relationship to the objects (eg, feeders) model in the feed lot during vehicle operation. Other advantages of this subsystem will become apparent in the following. For additional information on VR systems and techniques, reference may be made to the textbook entitled "Virtual Reality Systems" (1995 by John Vince, ACM SIGRAPH Series, published by Addison-Wesley, incorporated herein by reference.) The VR Subsystem in Each VR Power Station and Workstation Computer System As shown in Figures 2B1, 2C, 2D, 2E, 2F and 2G, the 36 VR subsystem associated with each power lot computer system, within the network of the feed batch computer is realized as integration of the following subsystems: the formation of the VR model of the subsystem 73, the stereoscopic image display subsystem 74, and the stereoscopic vision subsystem 75., each work station 20, 21, 23 and 27 VR associated with each batch of vehicle feed of work stations 25 and 26 VR installed in the feed mill and the base office also includes a subsystem 36 VR that allows a human operator establish a VR interface with it. The structure of the subsystem components identified in the above will be described in more detail in the following. Subsystem of the VR Model Formation of the VR Subsystem In general, the primary function of the subsystem 73 of the formation of the VR model is to support the formation of the real-time VR model within the animal feeding lot, in such a way that a human operator sitting on board a vehicle in the feed lot, or in front of a VR navigation workstation (20, 21, 23, 25, 26 or 27) can see models of the VR-based feedlot during the operations of the batch of food. As shown in Figure 2B3, the subsystem 73 for the formation of the VR model of the first illustrative embodiment, is performed by providing each computer system of the feed batch (and the VR workstation) with an assembly of the components of the subsystem , namely: a geometric VRML 3-D), the database 77 for storing information representative of the 3-D VR models of the feedlot, its pens, feeders and aisles, so that each vehicle of the feeding lot and the animal marked with RF, in it; and a database processor 78 (geometric VRML 3-D). The main function of the 3-D VRML database processor 78 is to process the 3-D geometric models (ie, VR) represented by VRML or similar information files, stored within the database 77 3-D for : (i) update the position (and orientation) of 'the objects in the feed batch during the operations of the feed batch, as well as during normal movement throughout the feed batch e; (ii) generate and make pairs of stereoscopic images from the 3-D geometric models along an observation of the direction specified by a set of observation parameters that can be generated in any number of ways. Another function of the process 78 the 3-D VRML database is to receive updated information about the updated VR models, typically transmitted from the VR subsystems in the network 32 during the operations of the feed batch. For more detailed information on VRML and its information file structure, reference should be made to "VRML-Browsing and Building Cyberspace" 1995, by Mark Pesce, published by New Riders Publishing, Indianapolis, Indiana, incorporated herein by reference.
The Centralized VR Workstation of the Power Batch Computer Network The main function of the central 71 VR workstation is to design and build the 3-D model VR world model of: - (i) the feed batch ( for example, constructions, corrals of animals and feeders, water towers and drinking fountains, etc.); (ii) supply of food and other vehicles within the feeding lot; as well as (iii) all or some animals (ie, marked) within the feeding lot, whose placement and condition
(e.g., ear temperature) are to be followed and represented as part of the model of the central VR-based feed batch of the present invention. Preferably, the 71 VR workstation and all other workstations in the feed batch are each made using a 3-D Computer Graphics workstation, Silicon Graphics Reality-Engine ™ or Indigo ™ or other workstation. of computer graphics 3-D based on suitable PCs, located inside the feed mill, or anywhere else inside or outside the proper feed batch. The software for the formation of the model of the world of suitable virtual reality (VR) for the construction of such models 3-D VR of the batch of feeding
(and the objects in it) in such a workstation, is commercially available from many software vendors including, for example: Superscape VTM ™ Authoring Software from Superscape Limited of -Palo Alto, California; of Sense 8 ™ VR Modeling Software Sense 8 Corp. of Sausilito, California; and DVISE ™ VR World Authoring Division Software Incorporated of Redwood City, California. In the illustrative mode, each VR workstation is provided with a board, a 3-D point device similar to a mouse and a Grand Prix! ™ wheel (input device) from Thrustmaster, Inc., which holds the computer portable remote operator and offers directed and rapid acceleration, braking and control of the lift on the driving wheel to navigate a vehicle from the feed batch remotely from it. Using the VRML information files for each vehicle that remotely navigates the feed batch, it may also represent in the VR model virtually any quantifiable attributable vehicle type, such as: (1) the amount of food remaining on board the vehicle of food supply; (2) the sub-sequence of animal pens in which the feed ration has previously been supplied along the prioritized feeding route; (3) the state of the propulsion subsystem (eg, inactive, forward movement, backward movement, feed supply in the feeder, etc.); (4) emergency situation in progress; and the like, and (5) the temperature of an animal labeled with RF in a particular animal pen. Such attributes, continuously updated in the VRML information files transmitted to each computer system of the power lot and workstation 20, 21, 23, 25, 26 and 27 VR, provides each human operator on board a vehicle in the batch of power in a directed navigation mode, or behind a VR workstation in its unmanaged navigation mode, with a full scale, (i) formation of the real-time VR model and interaction capabilities; and (ii) the current information on the status of each feeder and the animal marked in the feeding lot. Once created, the 3-D VR models of the feed batch are transferred to each VR model forming subsystem 73 via the linked digital wireless communications network 32 together with the VR workstations and batch computer systems. of feeding in the feeding lot. Mobile Coordinated Information Acquisition Subsystem on Board of Each Vehicle of the Power Lot The function of the mobile coordinated information acquisition subsystem 36 on board each vehicle of the power lot is to support the real-time acquisition of both of the information coordinated, mentioned globally and locally. Coordinated global reference information specifies the position and orientation of the vehicle of the feed batch within the batch of animal feed, in relation to the global coordinated reference frame RR batch of feed- The coordinated local reference information specifies the position and orientation of any substructure on board the vehicle of the feed batch (eg, feed supply channel, etc.) during the operations of the feed batch with respect to the local coordinate box interspersed symbolically on the vehicle (ie, RR feed-vehicle lot) ) • Such coordinated information finally acquired is used to derive the coordinates that specify the position, orientation and configuration of the vehicle of the feed lot in relation to all other objects in the feed lot (for example, feeders, pens, corridors, etc.) .). Once acquired, this coordinated information is transferred from the vehicle of the power lot (via the digital communications network 36 thereof) to each subsystem 36 VR within the computer network of the power lot, including the work station 20, 21, 23, 25, 26, 27 and 71 VR in the feedlot. According to the present invention, each vehicle of the feeding lot can include one or more subsystems to measure the coordinated position (and / or orientation) of the particular structures on board the vehicle (eg, food supply channels, floor, etc.), in relation to the frame - of coordinated reference established "locally" interspersed therein. Coordinated information requested locally through such peripheral metering devices allowed sub-models VR of such a substructure to be continuously updated for transmission over the wireless digital communications vehicle throughout the power lot. An example of such a coordinated on-board acquisition subsystem is the channel placement subsystem installed on board each food supply vehicle of the present invention. In the illustrated embodiment, the subsystem is performed on board the vehicle of the feed batch by providing the food supply computer system with the following components of the additional subsystem: a data input gate 80 for receiving coded digital signals from (i) the detector 81 of the channel angle associated with the pivot joint of the food supply channel located at the pivot point PFDCI ^ en ^ a Fi-Jura 2B5 P to provide a measurement of the channel angle (defined in Figure 2B5, and (ii) an ultrasonic height or distance detector (or the like) for detecting the height of the end of the feed supply channel in relation to the floor surface (which is assumed to be substantially flat in the feed lot) for derive the z-coordinate of the pivot point PFDCI (n) in the RRlot of food The coordinated information referenced globally acquired by each vehicle of the feed batch and transmitted to all other VR subsystems in the feed batch management system is used to automatically update the position and orientation of the vehicle within the VR model thereof. This allows anyone in the feedlot, with access to a VR subsystem (via their image generator / display subsystem) to probe (through the image screen display) exactly where any vehicle in the feedlot is located. at a particular time, despite the navigation mode that is in operation. Such information may be useful in the event that a vehicle operator wants help, information or other assistance. In order to perform such coordinated "global" procurement functionalities within the feed batch management system, the mobile coordinated acquisition subsystem 39 on board each computer system of the power supply batch, further comprises an arrangement of subsystem components, that is: at least one (preferably two) signal receivers 82A and 82B of GPs of high-resolution dual band communicated with the systems channel • through the interface circuit 83A and 83B, to receive electromagnetic GPS signals from the GPs satellites 30 and the GPs base station 31 and produce coordinate digital signals from the coordinated position of the GPS from which they are transmitted; a GPS signal processor 84 operably connected to the GPS signal receivers to process the digital coordinated signals produced therefrom in order to obtain information of the coordinate position of the GPS receiver relative to a reference system power supply of food lot. In the illustrative embodiment, the high-resolution signal GPS signal receivers 82A and 82B are mounted maximally apart from one another on the vehicle body of the feed batch (i.e., at the ends of the longitudinal axis of the vehicle). body of the vehicle). In the illustrative embodiment, the GPS signal processor 84 is also programmed to process coordinated information about the location of the GPS receiver in order to calculate: (1) the speed of the feed lot vehicle relative to the feeder and other stationary objects in the feeding lot; and (2) the coordinate values associated with the location of the GPS receivers referred to the RRn-pdv ^^ local coordinate reference system. The GPS receivers 82A and 82B on board each power lot vehicle can be operated in one or two modes: The Autonomous mode; or the Differential Mode. In any mode, each GPS receiver receives two Ll and L2 signals from the vehicle transmitted from each GPS satellite. In the illustrative mode, the frequency of vehicle Ll is 1,575.42 MHz and the frequency of vehicle L2 is 1,227.6 MHz. The signals Ll and L2 of the vehicle are modulated with two types of code and a navigation message. In the illustrative embodiment, the two codes used to modulate the vehicles Ll and L2 are the P code (ie, the precision code) and the C / A code (ie, the course / acquisition code). In order to obtain the highest degree of positional accuracy within the subsystem, the P code (or more precise code) is used to modulate the vehicle signals transmitted by the GPS satellites during the transmission of the GPS signal and also by GPS receivers, during the reception of the GPS satellite signal. The function of each GPS receiver is then to receive these modulated vehicle signals transmitted from the GPS satellites, and subsequently retrieve the codes and any navigation messages transmitted in this way, to calculate the latitude and longitude of each GPS receiver and therefore, finally the x, y, z coordinates of it in the coordinate box
power lot * In Autonomous Mode, each GPS receiver operates exactly as described above, ie it receives signals from the GPS satellites and uses those signals to calculate its position with respect to R? 0te power in ^ -a following form. GPS satellites modulate the Ll and L2 vehicles with the P code, the C / A code and the navigation information. The navigation information includes the orbital position of the satellite with respect to the R? 0te of the coordinate system, expressed in terms of coordinates of three positions designated by (Us, Vs, Ws). Therefore, when you demodulate the received vehicles in the GPS receiver, the GPS receiver can obtain the coordinate position of the satellite referenced to RREarth * The GPS receiver can also measure the time required for each acquired satellite signal to travel from the satellite to the GPS receiver. The GPS receiver performs this timing function by generating a code identical to the satellite code (P code) for military receivers and C / A code for commercial receivers. The GPS receiver blocks this replica with the code received by code, changing the replication departure time until the maximum correlation is obtained. Because the receiver knows the nominal starting time, "Ts", for the received code (which is repeated at regular predetermined intervals) and the time change is known, "Tr", required to obtain blockage by code, knows the time for the signal to travel from the satellite to the receiver, which is just the difference between the nominal start time for the satellite signal and the initial time for the replica of the receiver. Multiplying this type of transit "Tr - Ts" by the speed of light "c" gives the nominal distance (or pseudo regime) "P" between the GPS satellite and the GPS receiver: P = (Tr - Ts) c This distance P can also be expressed as the vector distance between the GPS satellite and the GPS receiver using coordinates based on the ground (preferred for R? Oee feeding *: P = [(Us-Ur) 2+ (Vs-Vr) 2+ (Ws-Wr) 2] 1/2 The three variables known in the previous mathematical expression are the coordinates of the position of the satellite designated by (Us, Vs, Us), while the three unknown variables of the same are three coordinates position of the GPS receiver designated by (Ur, Vr,
Wr). If the signals of the three GPS satellites are acquired in each GPS receiver, then these unknowns can be determined using the following mathematical relationships: Pl = [(Usl-Ur) 2+ (Vsl-Vr) 2+ (Wsl + Wr ) 2] 1/2 P2 = [(Us2-Ur) 2+ (Vs2-Vr) 2+ (Ws2-Wr) 2] 1/2 P3 = [(Us3-Ur) 2+ (Vs3-Vr) 2+ (Ws3-Wr) 2]? / 2 where the coordinates of position (Usl, Vsl, Usl), (Us2, Vs2, Us2) and (Us3, Vs3, Us3) in the previous mathematical expression are coded in the signals of GPS received and specify the position of the transmitting GPS satellite with respect to RR power supply - As shown on pages 205-206 in GPS SATELLITE SURVEYING (1990) by A. Leick, published by John Wiley and Sons (ISBN 0-471 -81990-5), incorporated herein by reference, it is possible to correct the errors of the GPS receiver clock provided that the signals of the four GPS satellites are acquired in each GPS receiver. In such a case, a term "r" can be added to provide the following equations: Pl = [(Usl-Ur) 2+ (Vsl-Vr) 2+ (Wsl-Wr) 2 + dTr * c] i 2 P2 = [(Us2-Ur) 2+ (Vs2-Vr) 2+ (Ws2-Wr) 2 + dTr * c] i 2 P3 = [(Us3-Ur) 2+ (Vs3 + Vr) 2+ (Ws3-Wr) 2 + dTr * c] 2 P4 = [(Us4-Ur) 2+ (Vs4-Vr) 2+ (Ws4-Wr) 2 + dtr * c]! 2 where the position coordinates (Usl, Vsl,
Usl), (Us2, Vs2, Us2), (Us3, Vs3, Us3) and (Us4, Vs4, Us4) in the above mathematical expressions are encoded in the received GPS signals and specify the position of the transmitting GPS satellite with respect to a Feed Riote * This scheme provides a way to achieve an improved position resolution. There is a number of errors associated with the autonomous mode of operation described in the above. These include errors in satellite atomic clocks, geometric resolution errors and errors associated with the propagation of vehicle signals through the atmosphere. All these errors can be eliminated by operating the system in the difference mode. In the Differential Mode, each GPS receiver, in addition to monitoring the GPS satellite signals, will receive error information transmitted from the GPS base station 31 located at some known position. As shown in Figure 2A2, the GPS base station 31 includes a receiver 86 for monitoring the GPS satellite signals transmitted from the GPS satellites. In addition, the base station of GPs includes a computer system 87 which has programmed into its memory the precise position in which it is located with respect to the power supply R eethe reference system of the global power batch. The function of the GPS base station 87 computer is to compare its known position
(stored in its memory) with its coordinate position computed using GPS satellite signals. The difference (i.e., error) between (i) the location of the known GPS base station and (ii) the location of the calculated GPS base station is used by the modem 88 to modulate a vehicle signal produced from the transmitter 89. This transmitted error signal is received by the GPS receivers mounted on each vehicle of the feed batch. Using the measure of the received error, each one of such GPS receivers adjusts (that is, corrects) in real time their calculated position, thus overcoming the limitations of the GPS receivers operated in the stand-alone mode. The Local Information Acquisition Subsystems (LIAS) in the Food Lot In many cases, the veterinarian or feeder reader may wish to quickly determine the information pertaining to a particular animal in the feeding lot, (for example, the location of a particular animal within a given pen, its temperature at a particular time of the day, etc.). As shown in Figure 2A3, the feed batch management system thereof performs this function by installing a local information acquisition subsystem (LIAS) 28i in the feed batch, preferably in each animal pen of the feed batch. . The function of every i-th LIAS of an illustrative modality is (i) to locally acquire coordinated information regarding the position of each animal "marked with RF" with respect to the one-hundredth of the reference system of the local animal's pen, RR _aD 'as well as the body temperature of the animal marked with RF, and (ii) transmitting such information to each VR subsystem associated with the digital information communication network by means of the web server 32A of the feed batch, described in the foregoing. Notably, when the coordinate information regarding the position of the animal marked with RF is received in each VR subsystem, such coordinate information is automatically translated into the coordinate reference frame of the VR subsystem, which receives the local coordinate information. in such a way that the model of the complete VR-based feeding lot (including the marked animal) can be updated. Preferably, the temperature information of each marked animal is used to code by "color" its corresponding VR animal model maintained in the VR subsystems. As shown in Figure 2A3, each LIAS of the illustrative embodiment comprises: a plurality of transmitters 90, miniature local position detectors (LPS) (in the form of labels), each attachable to the ear or around the neck of each j-th animal 91 in the pen of the lst animal, and capable of transmitting an encoded electromagnetic signal (e.g., in the RF range) with a transmission scale that spatially comprises the lth pen; three LPA signal receivers 92A, 92B and 92C mounted spaced apart from each other along the animal's first feeder to receive (at different points in space) the signal transmitted from the LPS transmitter on each animal marked on the pen, and processing the same in LPS in the signal processor 93 in order to determine the coordinate position (in terms of x, y, z) of each head of cattle with respect to RRi_ar. '* a ° hp 20 ° d RF temperature detector, implanted in the ear of each animal, which detects the temperature of the marked animal's body and transmits a digitally encoded RF vehicle signal that carries the detected body temperature; an RF temperature signal receiver 201 mounted along the feeder to receive and process the digitally encoded RF vehicle signals transmitted from the RF chips 200 to temperature sensors; and a wireless digital communication subsystem 94, such as subsystem 35, for transmitting such animal position coordinate and body temperature information to each VR subsystem in the computer network of the feed batch via server 32A of Web of batch of feeding. In the illustrative mode, each RF tag 90 periodically produces an encoded RF signal of a particular frequency f_:. The RF tag includes a battery power supply, an RF transmitting circuit for producing an RF signal, and programmable circuits for digitally encoding the transmitted RF signal in a manner well known in the RF marking technique. In each animal pen, a RiPen of local coordinate system is interspersed symbolically, as shown in Figure 2A3, each LPS receiver receives the RF signal transmitted from each jth marked animal, and using the principles of coordinate geometry, calculates the distance between the transmitting RF tag and the LPS receiver Using these three distance measurements and the known coordinates of the three LPS receivers, the LPS signal processor 93 calculates the coordinates (x, y , z) of the j-th RF tag relative to the RRipen of the local coordinate box, calculated in real time, this coordinate information of the locally referenced animal is transmitted through subsystem 94 to each subsystem of VR within the management system of the batch of power through the wireless communication network 32. In each VR subsystem, the coordinate information is used to update the mode VR of the feed batch in a manner described in the foregoing. Through the coordinate translation, any feed batch vehicle advances an animal pen, can determine exactly where any animal marked with RF is located inside the animal's pen, with respect to its local coordinate reference box, simplifying the location and treatment of the animal. In the preferred embodiment, the operator of the vehicle (eg, the veterinarian of the feeding lot) can automatically investigate the body temperature of individual animals in the pen by observing the corresponding VR model of the animal maintained on board the VR subsystem. The RF detector chip 200 implanted in the ear of each marked animal produces a digitally modulated RF vehicle signal by the detected body temperature of the animal. Different frequencies or codes may be used with each RF chip 200 to establish free cross talk channels for each animal tagged in a manner known in the prior art. The RF temperature signal receiver 201 in each animal pen (or otherwise in the feedlot) receives the RF signal from each RF chip 200 used in the animal's pen (or feed batch), demodulates the same for detecting the temperature of the transmitted body of the marked animal, and then provides this information of the digital communication subsystem 94 for transmission to a preassigned sub-location, (i.e., information field) maintained on the Web server 32A of batch of food. By functioning as a Web or VR browser, each VR subsystem 36 in the feed batch accesses the updated temperature information from the feed batch Web server 32A and uses it to update the VR animal models maintained in each VR system in the feed batch management system. As shown in Figure 2A3, the LIAS in each animal pen can also include one or more real-time stereoscopic viewing subsystems 300 mounted in the feed batch to provide a perspective field (i) along the length of each feeder
(for remote feeder reading operations performed at a VR work station), as well as (ii) in the animal pen where the animals are allowed to roam
(for remote corral and animal inspection carried out in a VR work station). Such stereoscopic camera subsystems are commercially available from VRex, Inc. of Hawthorne, New York. The result of digital video of such stereoscopic cameras can be provided to the digital communication subsystem 94 in the animal's pen where it is properly packaged and then transmitted to the feed batch Web server 32A, for access by any VR subsystem (i.e. , VR browser) 36 as the Internet-based digital communication system of the power lot computer network.
As shown in Figure 2A3, an information input / display terminal 210 is also provided in each animal pen for the purpose of entering information to, and viewing information from, the computer network of the feed batch. This terminal 210 is realized as a separate computer subsystem connected to the network 32 by means of its subsystem 35 of digital communication *. The On-Board Stereoscopic Image Display Subsystem of Each Feedlot Vehicle and on each VR Workstation In general, the main function of the stereoscopic image display subsystem 74 associated with each VR subsystem is to visually display (at eyes of an operator) stereoscopic (or monoscopic) high resolution color images of the feed batch information files as well as any aspect of the fed batch model, based on continuously updated R. In the illustrative mode, it is provided to each vehicle operator of the feed batch, with two modes of "VR feed batch model navigation", which are to be distinguished from the two modes of "actual feed batch navigation". "provided for the navigation of the actual supply batch vehicle through the actual feed batch, ie the manned navigation mode and the unmanned navigation mode. In the first navigation mode of the VR power lot model, the global coordinates of the "real" power lot vehicle (at each time point) determines the portion of the power lot model, based on VR in which The VR model of the vehicle of the supply batch is automatically displayed on the liquid crystal display LCD panel inside the vehicle during the manned navigation mode of operation, or on the liquid crystal display LCD panel of the workstation CR during the unmanned navigation navigation mode. In the second navigation mode of the VR power lot model, the global coordinates selected by the input device of an operator of the feed batch (at each time point) determines the model portion of the VR-based feed batch. which is displayed automatically on the liquid crystal display panel inside the vehicle, or on the liquid crystal display panel of the VR workstation, whichever is the case. Typically, each vehicle operator of the feedlot will need to see different aspects of the feedlot model, based on VR within its VR subsystem.
For example, the operator of the food distribution vehicle may wish to see, in real time, a flat view or a rear end view of the VR-based model of his vehicle as it proceeds to navigate it along a feeder during an operation of uniform food assortment according to the present invention. When starting a practice of particular color coding sections of the VR-based model for each feeder in the feed batch, it is possible to build a VR feeder model that visually indicates (by specific colors or textures) those sections of the corresponding feeder along which it appears to be abnormal or irregular feeding patterns. When comparing the current VR feeder models with the corresponding "real" feed trough (in the feeder reader's field of view), it is possible for the feeder reader to deduce feeding patterns and directions that may suggest or require measurements. corrective by the veterinarian and / or nutritionist. An advantage of the VR-based feeder model is that the feeder reader, veterinarian and nutritionist can be easily and quickly informed of particular conditions in the feeding lot by 3-D visualization of information gathered on the status and condition of the feedlot. batch of food.
Using the subsystem 74 of displaying > stereoscopic image of the present invention, the color images of any aspect of the VR power lot model can be projected from any desired perspective direction selected by the vehicle operator during the manned vehicle navigation modes as well as unmanned . In general, the perspective direction is specified by a set of perspective parameters that, in the illustrative mode, can be produced using any of a number of commercially available 3-D signaling devices, which can be easily adapted for on-board assemblies of instruments adjacent to the liquid crystal display panel and be handled easily (and safely) by the vehicle operator during vehicle operation. Using such a signaling device, the vehicle operator can easily select the desired aspect of the VR feed batch model to be observed during navigation, and the operations of the feed batch (e.g., feed distribution operations) . In the illustrative embodiment, the stereoscopic image screen subsystem 74 is realized by providing each feed batch computer system thereof with subsystem components comprising: a stereoscopic liquid crystal display panel 95; an associated screen processor 96; and VRAM 97 so that the stereoscopic shock absorbers are displayed on the LCD panel 95. The function of the liquid crystal display honeycomb is to display (i) feed lot information files or portions thereof, and (ii) high resolution 2-D color images of the VR-based model of the feed batch 3- D to support the stereoscopic 3-D perspective of them from any desired perspective direction in 3-D space. A variety of stereoscopic 3-D screen techniques and equipment to achieve this function is known in the virtual reality systems technique. The preferred stereoscopic screen technique is based on the encoding / decoding of spatially multiplexed images (SMI) produced by combining the right and left perspective images of a real or synthetic 3-D object in an individual mixed image (SMI). During the image display process, the image elements of the left image in each displayed SMI are encoded with a first polarization state Pl, while the image elements of the right image in each displayed SMI are encoded with a second state Polarization P2, orthogonal to Pl. Such micropolarized SMIs can be produced from an LCD panel with a screen surface having a micropolarization panel well known in the stereoscopic 3-D screen technique. Such LCD panels and the multiplexed imaging apparatus required are commercially available from VRex, Inc. of Hawthorne, New York. When the driver navigates his vehicle along the feeder (during a uniform power supply operation) as shown in Figure 2A1, the driver of spatially multiplexed polarized images displayed on the LCD panel while using a pair of 98 polarizing glasses electrically passive in a conventional manner. The function of such polarizing glasses is to allow the left eye of the driver to see only the left perspective image component of the spatially multiplexed image displayed, while allowing the driver's right eye to see only the image component of the right perspective of the image. SMI Through this visualization process, the driver is able to perceive the images of the feeding lot shown on the micropolarizer liquid crystal display panel with the full 3-D depth sensation. At the same time, the solar reflection transmitted to the interior of the vehicle cabin is inherently reduced by the passive polarizer glasses 97 used by the driver.
As will be apparent from the following, the image screen subsystem 74 is capable of generating and displaying stereoscopic images of the 3-D VR models of the food distribution and feeder vehicle, near which the "real" food supply vehicle. With such a driver's screen interface, the driver is allowed the true 3-D depth perception of the 3D VR models of each and all the objects in the Vr power lot models (eg, feeder , food distribution conduit, etc.) during real-time food distribution operations-. The Onboard Vehicle Propulsion Subsystem of each Food Lot Vehicle. The main function of the vehicle propulsion subsystem 37 on board each vehicle of the feed batch, within the feed batch is to drive the vehicle of the feed batch along a given navigation course through the navigation subsystem when it is operated in your selected navigation mode. In the illustrative mode, this subsystem is realized by means of an internal combustion engine, coupled to an electronically controlled energy transmission. Examples of suitable electronic energy transmissions are described in U.S. Patent No. 5,450,054, and references are cited therein, which are incorporated herein by reference. The On-Board Navigation Subsystem of Each Feedlot Vehicle The function of the navigation subsystem 38 is to allow the vehicle of the associated feedlot to be navigated within the feedlot during the operations of the feedlot. In general, the navigation subsystem is capable of providing such support in both the manned navigation mode and the manned non-crew navigational mode of vehicle operation. As such, the navigation subsystem includes a manually operated steering system and a hand or foot operated braking system that allows the fat operator to manually steer the vehicle along a desired navigation course through the vehicle. batch of food. The navigation subsystem also includes an electronically controlled steering system and an electronically controlled braking system that allows an operator located remotely, sitting in front of the associated VR workstation (for example, 20, 21, 23, 27), to steer remotely the corresponding vehicle along a desired navigation course along the feed batch that has been preprogrammed at the VR workstation or improvised in real time by the remote operator. The On-board Stereoscopic Vision Subsystem of Each Food Batch Vehicle and in each Feed Batch Construction The function of the stereoscopic vision subsystem 75, mounted on board each vehicle of the feed batch, or located in each batch construction. feeding, is to capture in real time both the images of the right and left perspective of the 3-D objects (or stage) in the field of vision (FOV) of the same. Notably, each left and right perspective image detected by this subsystem is commonly referred to as a stereoscopic image pair. Preferably, the field of vision of this subsystem is directed along the longitudinal axis of the vehicle in order to allow a remote operator thereof to see the 3-D scenario along the navigation course in which the vehicle it's found. As shown in Figures 2B2, 2C1, 2D1 and 2E1, the stereoscopic vision subsystem 75 aboard each feed batch vehicle can be realized using a commercially available three-dimensional stereoscopic camera system 99 from VRex, Inc. of Hawthorme, New York As shown in these figure drawings, this camera system is mounted on a rotatable support platform 100 which, in turn, is mounted on the cap of the power supply vehicle. The camera support platform is remotely controllable from the associated VR workstation to allow the remote operator of the vehicle to control the minis parameters of the stereoscopic camera (e.g. the direction of the camera's optical axes, the convergence point of the camera). the same, the focal length of the camera, etc.) during unmanned operation modes. Using a head and eye tracking subsystem 101 on the VR workstation, the remote operator can easily select such camera parameters (eg respective) stereoscopic during the unmanned navigation mode by simply moving his head and eyes with respect to the liquid crystal display screen image of the VR work station. Such movements of the natural head and eye of the remote operator will change the viewpoint of the images displayed on the liquid crystal display panel 95 of the workstation, and thus allow the remote operator to interact with the VR model of the vehicle of remotely controlled feed batch under your control. The Uniform Food Assortment Subsystem of the Food Distribution Vehicle It is understood that each vehicle of the feed batch according to the present invention can support one or more auxiliary subsystems for use in performing a function of the particular feed batch. In particular, each food supply vehicle in the feed batch is also provided with the uniform food dispenser 41 subsystem which includes a conduit 105 food spout and associated controllers. The function of this auxiliary subsystem is to uniformly supply an assigned food ration along the length of a particular feeder in an automatic way as the vehicle is navigated along the feeder in either manned navigation mode or the unmanned navigation mode of the vehicle. In the illustrative embodiment, the uniform food delivery subsystem is made by providing the computer system on board the food delivery vehicle with the following additional subcomponents: a data communication port 106 for receiving digital information from an on-board tracking scale 107 regarding the weight of the food contained within the food storage compartment 108 of the vehicle; the hydraulic valve 109, electronically controlled by the control signal Sjjy, to control the flow rate of the feed ration from the reservoir 108 by means of a screw 110 rotatably mounted along the feed spout 105; a programmed feed pump controller 111 (i.e. microprocessor) for producing the control signal SHV to control the operation of the hydraulic valve 109 during the filling operations of the feeder; and a data communication port 112 for transmitting such SHV control signals to the hydraulic valve. The function of this scale 107 is to measure the actual amount of feed loaded on a food supply vehicle in a feed mill and subsequently supplied to feeders associated with an assigned feed sequence. In response to the weight measurement, the scale produces an S- ^ of electrical signal indicative of the total weight of the food contained within the food storage storage compartment 108. The S ^ signal is digitized and provided as input to the computer system aboard the food supply vehicle. By measuring the weight of the food inside the storage compartment 108 and recording these measurements in the memory of the computer system on board the computer system calculates the actual amount of the food ration either (i) supplied to the load storage compartment of the storage system. food during the process of loading food into the food mill, or (ii) »supplied from the same in the feeder of any farmyard in the supply lot. Such calculations can be implemented in a direct manner using programming techniques well known in the art.
The primary objective of the uniform food assortment sub-system 41 is to ensure that the food is delivered to each feeder in a substantially uniform manner (ie, an equal amount of food supplied per linear meter traveled by the food supplier vehicle). In the preferred embodiment, the S-rry control signals are generated in real time by the food assortment vehicle on board the computer system using (i) the digitized S- ^ signal indicative of the total weight of the food contained within the compartment. 108 of food loading storage, -and (ii) digital signal S2 indicative of the speed of the vehicle, relative to the ground. The signal S2 can be generated in one of different ways. One way is to use the GPS processor 84 to produce digital S2 signals based on the position coordinates of the food supply vehicle over time. Alternatively, a ground speed radar instrument 114, mounted on the edge of the food assortment vehicle, can be used to produce an electrical Sg signal that is indicative of the true ground speed of the vehicle. Regardless of the method used to derive the vehicle speed signal S2, the signals S- ^ and S2 are sampled by the feed pump controller 111 at a sufficient rate and are used by a uniform food assortment control routine (executed within the food supply vehicle computer system) to produce the control signal Sjjy that is provided to the hydraulic valve of the subsystem 41 of uniform food supply control. In this way, the on-board computer system of each food assortment vehicle automatically controls the assortment of food increase in such a way that, for each linear meter traversed by the food assortment vehicle, a substantially constant amount of the ration of feed is dispersed along the total length of the feeder regardless of the speed of the vehicle. The Subsystem of Control of Mixing / Flow of Food in the Supply Mill. As shown in Figure 1, the food control / mixing flow subsystem 46 in the supply mill comprises: the food ration storage tanks 10A, 10B and 10C, for storing the food ration ingredients for supplying and mix together; an outstanding scale for measuring the weight of the food rations dispensed therefrom, the food ingredient measuring and mixing equipment 11: a storage tank 116, and a system 117 dispensing micro-ingredients to produce a suspension of micro-ingredients for application to a prepared batch of food ration. The function of the storage tank 116 is to contain the ration of foods that have been prepared to be loaded onto the food assortment vehicles and to supply them in the particular sequences of the animal feeders in the feeding lot. The function of the scale 115 is to provide an electrical signal indicative of the total weight of the prepared food ration contained within the storage tank. The electrical signal produced from the scale is digitized and provided as an input to the food mill computer system. When measuring the weight of the food within the food ration storage tank and recording these measurements in the food mill computer system, the actual amount of the feed ration prepared and loaded onto a particular food assortment vehicle can be calculated in a direct way. The micro-ingredient delivery system can be constructed in a manner described in U.S. Patent No. 5,487,603, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. In a manner known in the art, the measurement and mixing equipment 11 in the feed mill is controlled by the electrical (and hydraulic) control signals generated by a delivery mill control program embodiment within a computer system 18 of supply mill. As will be described in more detail below, the feed mill computer system of the present invention is provided with computer programs (i.e. software) to: (i) assign the feed and poultry subsequence assignments, as will be described in detail below; (ii) controlling the measuring and mixing equipment 11 in the supply mill. Appropriate supply mill control software is commercially available from Lextron, Inc. under the trademark FLOWCON. The supply load recording subsystem 47, equipped with computer software, is used to maintain records in the assigned food ration loaded in each food supply vehicle and the subse- quence of pens to which the food is to be supplied. The Accounting / Financial and Accounts Subsystem of the Power Lot Management Computer System At the central office, the power lot controller can monitor all aspects of operation within the power lot administration system including the operations of accounting and accounts. Such operations are. they perform using the accounting computer / financial accounts subsystem 15 interfaced with the power lot administration computer system 14, as shown in Figure 2G. The accounting / financial accounts subsystem 15 is equipped with conventional financial accounting software suitable for the accounting operations and accounts of the supply batch. Adequate financial software is commercially available from Turnkey Systems, Inc. under the registered name TURNKEY. In an alternative embodiment, computer software for accounting / financial accounts operations can be operated in the individual power batch management computer system. The Vet Registers Subsystem of the Veterinarian's Vehicle In the veterinarian's vehicle, the veterinarian is able to access, create, modify or otherwise maintain the animal's (veterinary) health records on the health of the particular animals in the veterinarian. batch of food. During the manned navigation mode of the veterinarian's vehicle, the veterinarian navigates his vehicle while seated inside the cabin thereof in a conventional manner. In this way the veterinarian can use the subsystem of veterinary records on board to create, store and access the data files of the feeding lot on particular animals for the review and entry of data. In addition, the veterinarian can use the VR subsystem to determine the body temperature and the location of the animals "marked" in particular pens at any given time by simply reviewing the updated VR-based feeding batch model on the screen panel of Liquid crystal mounted aboard the vet's vehicle, or the liquid crystal display panel of your VR workstation. When the veterinarian's vehicle advances to a particular animal pen, the VR-based model of the corresponding animal pen (and the animal marked therein) is automatically displayed on the liquid crystal display panel mounted on the vehicle. From the color code of each marked animal represented in the VR feeding lot model, the veterinarian can easily indicate the body temperature and the precise location of the particular livestock in the feeding lot, for visual inspection and treatment if it is necessary. In the illustrative embodiment, such operations are carried out with the assistance of subsystem 43 of veterinary records. Preferably, the subsystem 43 is made by a computer program having a number of different routines to perform various data processing and transfer operations relating to the veterinary health care of the livestock in the feed lot. Exemplary veterinary software is described in co-pending United States Application Serial No. 07 / 776,876 entitled "Livestock Treatment and Information System", which is incorporated herein by reference. Sub-system of Nutrition Records on the Nutrition Vehicle "In the illustrative mode, the nutrition record subsystem 45 on board the nutrition vehicle performs a computer program that has a number of different routines that perform various data processes and transfer operations with respect to the diet and nutrition of the livestock in the feedlot. The nutritionist can use the VR subsystem to investigate the information useful for the diagnosis and treatment of animals with nutritional deficiencies in the feeding lot. Power Lot Vehicle Operation Modes In Figure 2B2, the nth food assortment vehicle of the present invention is shown to be operated in its manned navigational mode, in which the operator thereof navigates the vehicle while it is operating. sitting inside the cab of the vehicle. While operating your vehicle, you are able to see the color liquid crystal display panel 95 mounted on board, after which a three-dimensional VR model of your vehicle (within the power lot) is automatically displayed and displayed stereographically by the driver that uses 98 polarizing lenses. The VR subsystem function of this vehicle mode is to provide visual assistance to a human operator on board the vehicle while navigating (manually or semi-manually) the food supply vehicle through the feed batch during food assortment operations , food loading operations and the like. Using the VR subsystem of this mode, the human operator is able to see on the liquid crystal display panel, a dynamically updated VR model of the food assortment vehicle (he is navigating) in spatial relation to (i) the feeder that is being uniformly filled during the uniform food assortment operations, (ii) in spatial relation to the filling duct of the food mill during food loading operations, and (iii) in spatial relation to any structure of the feed lot during an operation that involves the assortment vehicle of the feed batch. In Figure 2B2 'the nth food assortment vehicle is shown operated in its unmanned navigation mode, in which the operator thereof navigates the vehicle while seated in front of the VR navigation workstation 27 located remotely (associated with the vehicle). The VR workstation 27 associated with each food assortment vehicle allows a human operator to remotely navigate a food assortment vehicle through the feed batch during food assortment operations and loaded with food, while seated before the VR work station, instead of being inside the food assortment vehicle. The advantage provided by this modality of the VR subsystem is that a remote human operator, sitting in front of the VR workstation in the feed mill, can remotely navigate the food assortment vehicle through the assortment batch (either in an automatic or semiautomatic way) during the operations of food assortment, food loading operations as well as any other operation in the feeding lot. During the remote operation of the assortment and food loading operations, the human operator can see from the liquid crystal display panel 95 of the workstation 27, stereoscopic images of a dynamically updated three-dimensional VR model of the assortment vehicle. food shown in spatial relation to the feeder that is being uniformly filled during food assortment operations. Optionally, using separation screen image visualization techniques, the stereoscopic three-dimensional images of the feed batch scenario captured within the field of view of stereoscopic vision subsystem 75 (aboard the vehicle) can be viewed on the liquid crystal display panel of the VR 'work station in the food mill. . In this mode, the captured images of the real objects near the food assortment vehicle are displayed on the liquid crystal display panel of the work station and can be used by the remote operator to avoid vehicular collision with the same as the The feed jet is driven by the propulsion subsystem 37 along the pre-swooped navigation course programmed with the navigation subsystem 38. Alternatively, stereoscopic mink subsystem 75 and navigation subsystem 38 may cooperate to automatically avoid collision with objects along the pre-sighted navigation course using collision avoidance techniques well known in robotic control techniques. In any mode of operation, the advantage provided by this novel arrangement is that the remote operator can use the VR subsystem for points (i) to remotely place the end of the food assortment duct with the end point (i.e. beginning) of the feeder that will be filled during the start of each feeding operation of the feeder; as well as (ii) remotely maintain the end of the feed spout on the centerline of the trough during the assortment operations.
In Figure 2C1 the feeder reader vehicle of the present is shown being operated in its manned navigation mode, in which the pallet reader navigates the vehicle while seated inside the vehicle cabin. In Figure 2C2, the food assortment vehicle is shown being operated in its unmanned navigation mode, in which the pallet reader navigates the vehicle (and remotely informs the supply pallets) while sitting in front of it. the remotely located VR navigation workstation 23 (associated with the vehicle). In Figure 2D1, the veterinary vehicle of the present invention is shown to be operated in its manned navigation mode, in which the veterinarian navigates the vehicle while seated inside the vehicle cabin: In Figure 2D2, the veterinarian's vehicle it is being operated in its unmanned navigation mode, in which the veterinarian navigates the vehicle (and remotely examines the animals in the corrals for signs of illness) while sitting in front of the VR navigation workstation 20 located remotely (associated with the vehicle). In Figure 2E1, the nutrition vehicle of the present invention is shown to be operated in its manned navigation mode, in which the nutritionist navigates the vehicle while seated inside the vehicle cabin. In Figure 2E2, the nutrition vehicle is shown being operated in its unmanned navigation mode, in which the nutritionist navigates the vehicle (and remotely examines the animals in the pens to look for malnutrition) while sitting in front of the station VR navigation workstation remotely located (associated with the vehicle). Although not shown, the power lot management vehicle of the present invention can be operated in its manned navigation mode, in which the power lot controller navigates the vehicle while seated inside the vehicle cabin. Figure 2G1 shows the driver's vehicle of the power lot being operated in its unmanned navigation mode, in which the driver of the power supply batch navigates the vehicle (and remotely inspects the power lot) while it is sitting in front of workstation 25 remotely located (associated with the vehicle). In Figure 2F1, the feed mill operator is shown to the VR work station 26 while performing its function in the feed mill. In the manned navigational mode shown in Figure 2B1, the vehicle operator (ie, the feeder reader) is seated inside the cab of the vehicle. During the feeding operations of the feeder, the feeder reader can use the VR subsystem on board his vehicle in a number of ways. For example, the pallet reader can easily determine the position, orientation and condition of each food assortment vehicle in the feed batch by observing the VR model of the feed batch on the liquid crystal display panel mounted on board within of the cockpit of the feeder reading vehicle, shown in Figure 2B2. The continuously updated three-dimensional VR model of such food assortment vehicles can be viewed from any viewing direction selected by the feed reader. The position and status information can be displayed in various formats depending on the needs and desires of the feeder reader. From time to time, the nutritionist of the feeding lot may decide to change or modify any of the types of food ration (and / or the ingredients contained therein) that are fed to the livestock in the feedlot. When such a decision is being made, a Feed Ration Change File is created within the nutrition batch nutrition computer system by the nutritionist., and is then transmitted to the power lot management computer system over the wireless telecommunication link established by the digital communications network 32. When such transmission arrives at the feed batch management computer system, a "received file" indication will preferably be displayed on the feed display screen to assist the feed batch controller in updating the Food Feed Master File using data contained in the File of Change of Food Ration. Preferably, the update process occurs at the beginning of each new day, but it can also occur at any time of the day as required. When all the files have been updated, the feed batch management computer system then transmits a copy of the Corral Master File, the Ration Master File, the Food Ration Consumption History File and the History File of Livestock Movement to the feeding computer's reading computer system, as indicated by block B in Figure 14A. Shortly thereafter, the feed batch management computer system transmits a copy of the Corral Master File, the Ration Master File, and the Feed Ration History File to the veterinary computer system of the feed batch, as indicated by Block C in Figure 14. Having described the illustrative embodiment of the present invention, various modifications may occur. The feed batch administration system of the present invention described above can be greatly simplified by storing in the feedlot Wb server 32A, an individual VR-based model of the feed batch for animals and the objects contained therein. in the same. This modification will reduce the VR modeling subsystem in each VR subsystem (and each VR workstation) to a "VRML browser" that has three-dimensional input and three-dimensional stereoscopic image display capabilities, as described in detail in the present in the above. In this alternative embodiment shown in Figures 1, 2 and 3, the VRML feed batch model maintained in the VRML server 32A 'has links (i.e., pointers) to each VRML browser (i.e., the computer system). of the feed batch) and LIAS-in the feed batch management system, each of which are assigned to a unique WWW address. The type of information maintained in the VRML browser of each VR and LIAS subsystem includes: (i) position information and vehicle status; and (ii) information on the position and temperature of the animal's body. The information currently stored on the WWW sites of the VRML and LIASs browsers of the network automatically updates the VRML feed batch model maintained on the VRML server 32A ', by virtualizing the links created by the batch based feed model in VRML. The primary advantage of this alternative embodiment of the present invention is that it reduces the hardware and software requirements on board each power lot vehicle, and decreases the data required to update the VR power lot model on a time basis. real. In order to quickly review any aspect of the VRML feed batch model, a feed batch operator (e.g., reader or pallet driver) uses the VR browser subsystem 36 'and the three-dimensional stereoscopic display subsystem in the form described above. The control system of the feeding batch of the present invention has been described as having human beings actively involved in the navigation of the batch feeding vehicles both in their manned and unmanned navigation modes. It is understood, however, that when properly trained, expert systems and artificial intelligent systems can be used
(AI) to perform the vehicle navigation processes required during the various types of operations of the feed batch made within the feed batch. Although the preferred embodiments of the system and method of the present invention have been described in detail, it will be appreciated that those skilled in the art will be able to devise numerous variations and modifications of the present invention. All variations and modifications will constitute the present invention as defined by the scope and spirit of the claims appended to the invention.
Claims (46)
- CLAIMS 1. A feeding lot administration system for animals for installation in an animal feed lot, characterized in that it comprises: a plurality of feed lot vehicles; a virtual reality database (VR) to maintain information representative of a VR model of such a batch of food and objects contained therein; and a plurality of computer systems installed aboard such plurality of power lot vehicles, each computer system including a VR subsystem to observe one aspect of such a VR model maintained in such a VR database, acquisition means of vehicle information for acquiring vehicle information regarding (i) the position of the vehicle of the feed batch with respect to a first pre-specified coordinate reference frame, and / or (ii) the operating status of such a vehicle of the feed lot, and information transmission means for transmitting such vehicle information to such a VR database to specify the position and / or operating status of such a batch vehicle of feed represented within the VR model of such feed batch.
- 2. The feed management system for animals, according to claim 1, characterized in that said vehicle information acquisition means comprises a satellite-based global positioning system, and such a VR database is periodically updated using such information of the vehicle obtained from the satellite-based global positioning system.
- 3. The feeding lot administration system for animals, according to claim 2, further characterized in that it comprises means for acquiring animal information to acquire animal information regarding the position of the animals in such feeding lot with respect to the animal. second prespecified coordinate reference frame, and / or the body temperature of such animals such that - the VR feeding lot model reflects the position and / or body temperature of such animals.
- The animal feed batch management system, according to claim 1, characterized in that such a VR subsystem on board each feed batch vehicle comprises a stereoscopic screen subsystem which allows the driver to see stereoscopically any aspect of such a VR model, including the driver's vehicle as it is being navigated through the feed batch during the operations of the feed batch.
- The animal feed batch management system, according to claim 4, characterized in that each feed batch vehicle is controlled remotely through the feed batch by an operator using a remotely located VR work station.
- 6. The feed batch administration system for animals, according to claim 5, characterized in that said feed batch vehicle is equipped with a stereoscopic addition subsystem having a field of view along the course of navigation of such feed batch vehicle.
- 7. The feed management system for animals, according to claim 6, characterized in that the VR database is kept on board an Internet server operably associated with an Internet-based digital communications network, with which each VR subsystem is in communication.
- The animal feed batch administration system, according to claim 6, characterized in that a replica of such a VR database is kept on board each feed batch vehicle.
- 9. The feeding lot administration system for animals, in accordance with claim 3, characterized in that such a VR subsystem can be used to inquire both the vehicle and the animal information reflected in such VR model of the feedlot.
- 10. The animal feed batch administration system according to claim 1, further characterized in that it comprises at least one VR workstation to view such a VR model of such a feed batch during batch operations. feeding.
- The animal feed batch administration system, according to claim 1, further characterized in that it comprises at least one VR workstation to view such a VR model of a feed batch vehicle in such batch of feeding and remotely navigating such a feeder batch vehicle along a course in such feeding batch.
- 12. A feed batch management system for animals, characterized in that it comprises: a food distribution vehicle that employs an on-board food distribution computer system that includes means to uniformly distribute a pre-assigned amount of food ration as length of the length of a feeder in the feeding lot; and a virtual reality (VR) subsystem around such a food distribution vehicle to display a selected aspect of a VR model of such a feedlot, including such a food distribution vehicle, while supplying such a pre-assigned amount of feed portion. of food along the length of such feeder.
- 13. A feed batch management system for animals, characterized in that it comprises: a plurality of feed batch vehicles, each employing an on-board computer system that includes a feed batch modeling subsystem to maintain a database geometry containing a geometrical model of the feed batch and objects contained therein, a coordinate acquisition subsystem for acquiring coordinate information specifying the position of the feed batch vehicle with respect to a coordinate reference system symbolically comprised within the batch of power, and geometric database processor to process information in such a geometric database using such coordinate information in order to update such geometric model.
- 14. A method of feeding batch administration system for animals for the installation of an animal feed batch that comprises: (a) providing a food distribution vehicle with an on-board computer system that uses VR modeling of real time and coordinate acquisition techniques; and (b) uniformly supply food rations along the length of the feeder in the feedlot.
- 15. A feed batch administration system method for animals for installation in a batch of feed for animals, characterized in that it comprises: (a) providing a feed batch vehicle with an on-board computer system that uses modeling of Real-time VR and coordinate acquisition techniques in order to maintain a three-dimensional geometric model of such a batch of feed and objects therein including such a batch feed vehicle; and (b) navigating such a feed lot vehicle while an aspect of such a feed lot model is seen from within the vehicle of the feed batch.
- 16. A feed management system for animals for installation in an animal feed lot having a plurality of feed lot vehicles and animals therein, characterized in that it comprises: a virtual reality modeling subsystem (VR) ) to maintain representative information of a VR model of such an animal feedlot, wherein such a VR model accurately reflects the position of such feedlot vehicles as they are navigated through the feedlot, and the position and the body temperature of each of the animals in the feedlot.
- 17. A feed batch administration system for animals for installation in a batch of feed for animals, characterized in that it comprises: a feed batch vehicle; a virtual reality (VR) database for maintaining representative information of a VR model of such a batch of feed and objects contained therein including the batch feed vehicle and the animals contained within the batch of feed; and a computer system installed on board the feed lot vehicle, and including a VR subsystem to observe an aspect of such a VR model maintained in such a VR database,
- 18. The feed batch management system for animals, according to claim 17, characterized in that the computer system further comprises: means of acquiring vehicle information for acquiring vehicle information to acquire vehicle information regarding the position of such a power lot vehicle with respect to a vehicle. Pre-specified coordinate reference frame and / or the operation state of the feed batch vehicle; and means for transmitting information to transmit such vehicle information to such a VR database to specify the position and / or condition of such a power lot vehicle represented within the VR model of such a power lot.
- 19. The feed management system for animals, according to claim 19, characterized in that the feed batch vehicle is navigated along a feeding trough in the feed batch, such VR subsystem allows the driver of such a feed lot vehicle view from a display panel within the vehicle of the feed batch, a selected portion of such a VR model showing the feed batch vehicle and such feeder along which such a batch vehicle Feed is navigated during a feed batch operation.
- 20. The feed batch administration system for animals, according to claim 17, characterized in that the feed batch vehicle further includes a uniform food dispenser subsystem to uniformly feed portions of food assigned along the length of a feeder; and wherein such a VR subsystem allows the driver of such a power lot vehicle to see from the display panel, a portion of such a VR model showing the feed lot vehicle and such feeder along which the vehicle Feed batch is sailed during uniform food assortment operations.
- 21. A feed management system for animals for use in an animal feed lot, characterized in that it comprises: a plurality of virtual reality (VR) workstations to maintain a VR-based model of the feed batch. and objects contained therein; and an Internet-based digital communications network, to which each VR workstation is operably connected to download and upload information files used to update and modify such a VR-based model of the feed batch during the course of the operations of administration carried out in such feeding lot.
- 22. A method for effecting and administering the operations of the animal feed lot, characterized in that it comprises: (a) allocating food rations for animal feeders; and (b) provide rations of food assigned to feeders for animals using real-time virtual reality (VR) modeling and techniques for acquiring coordinates supported on the digital communications platform of the Internet.
- 23. A system for effecting and managing the operations of the animal feed lot, characterized in that it comprises: a feed batch vehicle having an on-board computer system that uses real-time geometric modeling and coordinate acquisition techniques, supported on an Internet-based digital communications platform, in order to carry out and manage the operations of the animal feed batch.
- The system, according to claim 23, characterized in that such a food assortment vehicle has an on-board computer system that uses real-time geometric modeling and coordinate acquisition techniques to uniformly supply food rations to the feeding troughs. animals in the feeding lot.
- 25. A feed batch administration system for animals, characterized in that it comprises: a feed batch vehicle having a manned or unmanned mode of operation; and a VR subsystem on board each feed lot vehicle that has access to a virtual reality modeling language (VRML) database that contains a feed lot VR model that accurately reflects the position and orientation of such a supply batch vehicle as it is navigated through the feed batch in either the manned or unmanned navigation mode.
- 26. The feed batch administration system for animals, according to claim 25, characterized in that the VRML database is continuously updated by a VRML database processor using information obtained from a positioning subsystem (based on satellite) global (GPS) integrated in it and transmitted to such a VRML database processor by means of an Internet-based digital communications network.
- 27. The feed management system for animals, according to claim 26, characterized in that the VRML database is continuously updated by such a VRML database processor using information obtained from such GPS and a plurality of local information acquisition subsystems (LIAS) transmitted to such a VRML database processor.
- 28. The feed batch administration system for animals, according to claim 25, characterized in that such a VR subsystem on board each feed lot vehicle allows the driver thereof to stereoscopically view a VR model of such a vehicle. batch of feed shown from a display panel mounted within a cockpit thereof, as the crewman navigates such a feed batch vehicle along the feeder during food assortment operations.
- 29. The feed batch administration system for animals, according to claim 28, characterized in that such VR model observable by the driver shows the position and orientation of such feed batch vehicle with respect to the feeder as the vehicle is being driven along the feeder during the uniform assortment of food rations allotted along its length.
- 30. The system for administering the feed batch for animals of the system, according to claim 26, characterized in that the information produced from the GPS is used to continuously update the VR-based feed batch model in order to: (i) display passages, pens and other identifiers fixed in the feed lot on a display screen on board each feed lot vehicle; (ii) determine that each particular food supply vehicle is stopped at the correct feeder for assortment of assigned food rations; (iii) determining the length of the feeding platform in which the vehicle stops; and / or (iv) determine the speed of the food supply vehicle from the beginning of the feeder to the end of the same during uniform food supply operations.
- 31. An animal feed batch administration system installed in a feed batch, characterized in that it comprises: a feed batch vehicle; and at least two high resolution GPS signal receivers and a GPS processor mounted on the feed batch vehicle, to produce coordinate data specifying the position and orientation of the feed batch vehicle within the feed batch.
- 32. The feed management system for animals, according to claim 31, characterized in that the feed batch vehicle includes detectors to produce coordinate data specifying the orientation of the food assortment duct relative to the body of such a vehicle. of batch of food during the operations of assortment of foods.
- 33. The feed management system for animals, according to claim 31, characterized in that it comprises a plurality of feed batch vehicles, wherein each feed batch vehicle has a VR subsystem on board to quickly review a VR-based feed batch model that is continually updated to stimulate the physical reality of the feed batch and where the feed batch vehicles, operators and marked animals are in the feeding lot at any given time point.
- 34. The feed management system for animals, according to claim 33, characterized in that each feed batch vehicle is remotely navigable on a preprogrammed course in the feed batch, or improvised navigation course in the batch of feeding by means of the vehicle operator interacting with a VR base model of the feed batch stereoscopically viewed at a VR workstation remotely located in communication with such feed batch vehicle through a digital wireless communications network.
- 35. A feed batch computer network installed within an animal feed batch, characterized in that it comprises: a plurality of computer systems adapted for use by a feeder reader, a feed mill operator, a batch veterinarian of food, and a plurality of operators of the food assortment vehicle; and a wireless digital telecommunications network for integrating such computer systems into the Internet, and allowing computer systems to transfer asynchronously information files therein in order to perform the modeling of the feed batch and administration operations within the batch of feed for animals.
- 36. The feed batch computer network, according to claim 35, characterized in that the information files that support a geometric model of such feeding batch are maintained in one more World Wide Web (WWW) sites of the Internet , and are remotely accessible through a quick review subsystem provided in each computer system on a real-time basis.
- 37. The feed batch computer network, according to claim 35, characterized in that the position and body temperature of the animals marked with RF in the feeding lot are represented by the position and color of the (sub ) corresponding VR-based animal models in the VR-based feedlot models maintained in such a computer network.
- 38. A system for carrying out and administering operations within an animal feed batch, in which each food assortment vehicle used therein uses real-time VR modeling and coordinate acquisition technique to effect and administer various types of feeding batch operations, including feeder reading, food assortment, and the provision of animal health information and nutritional care in the feeding lot.
- 39. The system, according to claim 38, characterized in that each power lot vehicle has an on-board computer system that includes a VR subsystem that is in communication with an Internet-based digital communications network that supports data transfer. Real-time multimedia information.
- 40. The system, according to claim 39, characterized in that each VR subsystem provides access to a three-dimensional geometric database that stores information representative of a VR-based model of the feed batch, as well as animated objects (e.g. marked animals) and inanimate objects (for example, corrals, passages, feeders, buildings, vehicles, etc.) present in it.
- 41. The system, according to claim 40, characterized in that the VRML database is continually updated by a VRML database processor that uses information obtained from each computer of the feed batch, a global positioning system based on satellite (GPS), and subsystems of local information acquisition (LIAS) integrated in it.
- 42. The system, according to claim 41, characterized in that each LIAS acquires information pertaining to the position and temperature of the body of the animals marked with RF in the feeding lot, for use to maintain such model of VR feeding lot. .
- 43. The system, according to claim 40, characterized in that each VR subsystem on board each feed batch vehicle includes an image display subsystem which allows the driver to see stereoscopically any aspect of such a feed batch model. VR, including the driver's vehicle as it is being operated and navigated through the feed batch during the operations of the feed batch.
- 44. The system, according to claim 41, further characterized in that it comprises: a VR workstation to enable the operator to remotely navigate such a feed batch vehicle through the feed batch using a VR interface equipped with a subsystem of stereoscopic vision having a field of view along the vehicle navigation course of the remotely controlled feed batch.
- 45. The system, according to claim 44, characterized in that a single operator remotely navigates one or more vehicle of the supply batch simultaneously.
- 46. The system, in accordance with claim 44, characterized by the navigation courses of these power-navigated batch vehicles remotely are programmed in an orchestrated manner to avoid collisions and optimize the time and / or energy required to carry out the operations of batch of food. SUMMARY A feeding lot administration system for animals is described, wherein each food assortment vehicle used therein uses real-time virtual reality modeling (VR) and technique for acquiring coordinates supported on a communications platform based on Internet (ie, cyberspace) in order to perform various types of operations of the feed batch. Each feed batch vehicle has an on-board computer system that includes a VR subsystem to access a VR database that maintains information representative of a VR model of the feed batch and the objects present therein (e.g. , marked animals, corrals, passages, feeders, buildings, vehicles, etc.). The database is continually updated using information obtained from a global satellite-based positioning system (GDS), as well as from local information acquisition systems integrated in it. Each VR subsystem is linked to a digital wireless communications network made as a portion of the Internet, provided with a Web site server of the feed batch. Each VR subsystem includes a stereoscopic visualization subsystem to stereoscopically view any portion of the model of the VR feed batch, including the driver's vehicle as it is being navigated through the feed batch in either the manned or unmanned mode of navigation during the operations of the feeding lot. Each computer system of the power lot may also include a stereoscopic vision subsystem having a field of view along the course of remotely controlled vehicle navigation. The navigation courses of these remotely navigated vehicles can be programmed in an orchestrated manner to avoid collisions and optimize the time and energy required to perform the operations of the feeding lot, while reducing the operating cost of the feeding lot, as well as the number of employees required to support these operations.
Applications Claiming Priority (1)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| US08705620 | 1996-08-30 |
Publications (1)
| Publication Number | Publication Date |
|---|---|
| MXPA97006619A true MXPA97006619A (en) | 1999-02-24 |
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