Methods for assessing slaughtered poultry and the like

Abstract

The invention relates to a method for assessing the feeding status of poultry (10), (20), (30), (40) and the like, wherein the poultry (10), (20), (30), (40) is arranged headfirst with the breast forward on a fastening device, in particular a hook. According to the invention, it is provided that - a detection device detects the neck of the poultry (10), (20), (30), (40) in the area of ​​the crop (11), (21), (31), (41) without contact, - a detection device determines the shape of the neck, particularly in the area of ​​the crop (11), (21), (31), (41) and in particular a relative position and / or the shape of the crop (11), (21), (31), (41) from the recorded data, - and an evaluation device determines a measure of crop filling, in particular based on the shape. The invention further relates to a device which is designed to carry out the method, as well as to an arrangement comprising this device and poultry (10), (20), (30), (40) which is arranged headfirst with the breast forward on a fastening device, in particular a hook.

Description

[0001] The application relates to a method for assessing the feeding status of slaughtered poultry and the like, in particular broiler chickens, as well as to a device and an arrangement for carrying out such an assessment method. State of the art

[0002] During the slaughter and processing of poultry and the like, it is common practice in slaughterhouses to hang the plucked and beheaded animals vertically on appropriate devices. To do this, the legs are clamped or hooked onto a hook of a conveyor chain or similar means of transport, so that the animal hangs downwards with its neck severed. Attached to the conveyor chain, the poultry undergoes a transport path for processing, including processing steps such as carving, evisceration, etc.

[0003] A special feature of granivorous poultry species is the crop located in front of the thoracic inlet. This is a bulge in the esophagus at the neck that serves as a food storage area. Depending on the time between the last feeding and slaughter, the crop varies in fill level.

[0004] An overfilled crop can lead to various problems during processing. For example, the transport equipment and the corresponding transport route through which the poultry travels can become unhygienically contaminated by the feed in the crop. Furthermore, crop filling leads to inaccuracies in the determination of slaughter weight or to discrepancies depending on the time of determination. Disclosure of the invention

[0005] The object of the present invention is to provide a method and an arrangement for evaluating the feeding status of slaughtered poultry and the like.

[0006] The object is achieved according to the invention by the features of the independent claims. Advantageous embodiments of the invention are specified in the subclaims.

[0007] According to the invention, a method is provided for assessing the feeding condition of slaughtered poultry and the like, wherein the poultry is in particular beheaded and arranged headfirst with the breast forward on a fastening device, in particular a hook, wherein - a detection device detects the poultry's neck in the crop area without contact, - a detection device determines the shape of the neck, particularly in the area of ​​the crop, and in particular a relative position and / or the shape of the crop, from the recorded information or data, - and an evaluation device determines a measure of crop filling, in particular based on the shape.

[0008] A detection device, with the aid of which the neck of the poultry is detected in the crop area without contact in a first method step, is to be understood as a device which is capable of detecting the neck of the poultry in the crop area in such a way that an image of this area can be created that can be processed using information technology. This detection device, for example in the form of a scanner or a digital optical camera, is designed, in particular, to specifically detect the crop area with a comparatively high resolution, which allows differences in the millimeter range to be reliably detected. The detection device can advantageously be designed to detect the crop area with a scanning density of 10 detection values ​​per centimeter, more advantageously more than 100 detection values ​​per centimeter, and even more advantageously 1000 detection values ​​per centimeter.

[0009] If the detection device is designed, for example, as a two-dimensional detection device, for example as a two-dimensional optical camera, the detection device can, for example, be configured to detect the area of ​​the crop with a resolution of 300x300 dpi, more advantageously with a resolution of 600x600 dpi, even more advantageously with 1200x1200 dpi or even higher, for example with 3600x3600 dpi.

[0010] A high sampling density offers the advantage of being able to precisely capture even fine structures and, due to a comparatively perceived oversampling, of providing a sufficiently broad data basis for data signal processing that reduces the sampling in an information technology image of the goiter area to be created.

[0011] The detection device can, for example, be positioned at a location along a transport chain in a slaughterhouse where the poultry is guided past the fastening device. The detection device can be specifically aligned with and possibly limited to a detection area in relation to the transport chain, within which, due to the average size of the poultry, the neck of the poultry and the crop area are expected to be. In particular, when capturing high-resolution images, it may be useful to limit the amount of data to be processed by restricting the detection area to the smallest possible area of ​​the neck and crop area.

[0012] As an alternative to the example of an optical camera, the detection device can in principle be implemented by any type of device that allows the area of ​​the neck and / or crop to be scanned and an information technology image of an aspect of this area, be it optical reflection properties, a relief, the temperature, or other properties of the area, to be captured. The scanning can be carried out, for example, by electromagnetic waves, in particular in the optical, X-ray, and / or thermal ranges; by sound, in particular in the ultrasound range; or in principle also magnetically, in particular by magnetic resonance methods. Hybrid detection devices with combinations of different detection methods or ranges are also conceivable.

[0013] In an advantageous embodiment, the detection device is designed as an optical 3D camera, which performs a 3D capture of the neck and / or the crop area and / or, specifically, the crop. In other words, the detection device can advantageously be designed as a 3D camera to generate a three-dimensional image of the crop area. The detection device can, for example, be a camera system that captures the poultry, in particular a broiler chicken, at the slaughter line using a 3D stereo camera.

[0014] Alternatively, the detection device can perform a 2D detection of the neck and / or the crop area and / or the crop and the detection device can derive a 3D shape of the crop based on predetermined one- or two-dimensional patterns.

[0015] Furthermore, alternatively or in addition to the method step described above, the detection device can carry out a 2D detection of the neck and / or the crop area and / or the crop and the detection device can derive a 3D shape of the crop using a Kl-supported or Kl-based method.

[0016] The captured image can advantageously be stored for subsequent process steps and / or further processing of the poultry in the slaughterhouse and / or for documentation purposes in such a way that it can be uniquely assigned to the captured poultry in a series of poultry, in particular at a position in a transport chain, so that the poultry can be identified again at a later time by a higher-level control system of a slaughterhouse facility.

[0017] The detection device, with the aid of which the shape of the neck, in particular in the area of ​​the crop, and in particular a relative position and / or the shape of the crop, are determined from the recorded information or data in a second method step, is to be understood as a device which determines the shape of the neck, in particular in the area of ​​the crop, and in particular a relative position and / or the shape of the crop, from the information or data recorded by the detection device, in particular from two, three or, when taking further parameters such as temperature into account, generally multi-dimensional data points, for example by means of data signal processing methods, in particular for example by means of digital image processing.

[0018] For this purpose, the detection device can, for example, be configured to delimit the neck, and / or specifically the area of ​​the crop, within the captured image, also referred to as the capture image, from the surrounding image, ie a background or an area surrounding the crop.

[0019] Advantageously, the detection device can be configured to detect the relative position of the goiter relative to the center of the neck. Goiters are usually located on the right side of the neck, so such position information can be used to check the plausibility of the detection result.

[0020] In addition, the detection device can be configured to detect an orientation of the crop, in particular a direction of a bulge, for example, relative to the vertical of the crop. This orientation information can also be important for establishing the plausibility of the detection result.

[0021] Furthermore, the detection device can be configured to convert depth data from a 3D scan into a relative representation that visualizes indentations and protrusions. This can be done, for example, in the form of a representation of the distance of a deviation from a mean neck plane.

[0022] Alternatively or additionally, the detection device can be configured to create a normal image of the neck, particularly in the area of ​​the crop. A normal image of the neck is particularly advantageous for visualizing bulges or indentations, which can also be described as bulges or protrusions. When the normal is projected onto a viewing plane, the projection values ​​of the bulges or indentations stand out clearly relative to their surroundings.

[0023] An evaluation device is understood to be a device configured to carry out a third method step, namely to evaluate a goiter, in particular one detected by the detection device and detected by the detection device, and to determine a degree of goiter fullness. In a simple embodiment, the determined degree can be, for example, a simple scalar value, or, in more complex embodiments, a structured data set comprising multiple parameters. In a simple embodiment of the method, the evaluation device can determine a score value for the degree of goiter fullness.

[0024] In one embodiment of the evaluation device, it can be used to determine a measure of crop fullness, for example, by integrating the distances from a mid-neck plane in the crop area. This allows the crop to be measured.

[0025] The evaluation device can, for example, be configured to determine at least one score value for a full crop, i.e., a score value V, and optionally a score value for an empty crop, i.e., a score value L. In this exemplary embodiment, the degree of crop filling can thus have two parameters. The score values ​​L and V can, for example, each assume a value between 0% and 100%.

[0026] For determining such relative values, average values ​​for an average full and an average empty crop can be stored, for example, which can be specified or determined, for example, in a learning mode of the evaluation device.

[0027] In another embodiment, or one that supplements the evaluation device described above, the evaluation device can be configured so that the score values ​​L and V are determined by the evaluation device with the aid of a neural network that examines the neck area for thickenings.

[0028] Further parameters of the crop fill level determined by the evaluation device can be, for example, a parameter for a percentage positional deviation of the crop from a central axis of the neck, or, for example, a direction specification describing a direction of extension of the crop determined by the detection device. In addition, a volume of the crop, for example in mm 3 , can be determined.

[0029] In a further method step, the method for assessing the feeding status may comprise a method step in which, in particular for use of the method in a slaughterhouse, a decision is made on processing and / or further transport of the pre-assessed poultry.

[0030] To carry out this method step, a decision device can be provided that is configured to make the decision based on the crop filling level determined in the previous method steps. Specifically, the decision device can make the decision based on the crop filling level and / or the position of the crop and / or the crop orientation.

[0031] In one embodiment of the decision-making device, the decision-making device can carry out a threshold value comparison in which, for the processing and / or further transport of the poultry, the measure of the crop filling must be below a predeterminable comparison value Crop-Max for the maximum crop filling.

[0032] Alternatively or additionally, the decision device can relate the score values ​​V and L to each other when making the decision, for example by making a decision based on the amount of the difference between the score values ​​of score value V and score value L.

[0033] By calculating the difference, a measure of the certainty of the previously determined score values ​​V and L can be determined. If the absolute value of this difference is small, i.e. the indicators for a full and an empty goiter were determined to be approximately the same, a similar number of factors indicate both an empty and a full goiter. As the absolute value of the difference increases, the certainty of the previously determined score values ​​increases, so that they can be regarded as increasingly clear in relation to one another. If the absolute value difference between the score values ​​is large, depending on the sign, the goiter is clearly full or clearly empty.

[0034] In an advantageous embodiment of the decision-making device, a threshold value comparison is carried out, in which, for the processing / further transport of the poultry, the amount of the difference between the score values ​​Score-Value-L and Score-Value-V must be above a predeterminable comparison value Kropf-Determ as a measure of the certainty of the determined score values ​​L and V.

[0035] In a particularly advantageous embodiment of the decision-making device, both of the previously described threshold comparisons are performed in combination. Advantageously, the decision-making device can be configured to only decide on the processing / further transport of the poultry if the comparison value Crop-Max is below the score value V and the comparison value Crop-Determ is exceeded by the difference between the score values ​​LV. In this case, the crop is almost certainly empty.

[0036] Furthermore, the decision device can be configured to decide to reject the poultry if the comparison value Crop-Max is exceeded by the score value V and the comparison value Crop-Determ is exceeded by the difference between the score values ​​VL. In this case, a full crop is present with a high degree of certainty.

[0037] If approximately equal values ​​were determined in the previous steps, both when determining the score value L for an empty crop and when determining the score value V for a filled crop, the result of the evaluation step is not clear. Accordingly, the difference between the values ​​V and L as a measure of certainty is small in this case.

[0038] In an advantageous embodiment of the method for assessing the feeding status of slaughtered poultry and the like, the method can comprise a further method step in which the decision device decides for a re-examination of the poultry if the comparison value Kropf-Determ is undershot.

[0039] The process steps following detection of the poultry's neck in the crop area can be carried out individually or in combination in the form of a computer-implemented code on a common or multiple hardware platforms.

[0040] Advantageously, they can preferably be implemented on a common hardware platform to minimize the effort required to transfer information between different units. The separations into different devices for detection, evaluation, and decision-making, chosen here for clarity, can be eliminated or shifted, or the different devices can be understood as logical subdivisions of a common physical device.

[0041] In advantageous embodiments of the method or individual method steps, these can be implemented in such a way that they access data pools on the Internet or a server in the slaughterhouse. For example, comparison data located on the Internet or on a server in the slaughterhouse can be used by the method for the detection device or threshold values ​​for the decision device, for example, to adapt these method parameters to the crop area of ​​a poultry species currently being evaluated.

[0042] In alternative and / or supplementary embodiments of the method or individual method steps, these can be designed in such a way that they access a Kl application, for example on the Internet, wherein, for example, the information for the at least one method step to be carried out by the Kl application is transmitted to the Kl application, and the result of the at least one method step carried out by the Kl application is transmitted back by the Kl application.

[0043] The method steps of the detection device as a whole or parts thereof, and / or the method steps of the evaluation device as a whole or parts thereof, and / or also the method steps of the decision device can be carried out by a Kl application.

[0044] The invention further provides a device for evaluating the feeding status of slaughtered poultry and the like, which is designed to carry out the method described above.

[0045] According to the invention, there is also provided an arrangement comprising poultry which is arranged headfirst with the breast forward on a fastening device, in particular a hook, and a device for assessing the feeding status of slaughtered poultry, which device is designed to carry out the method described above. Drawings

[0046] The invention is explained in more detail below with reference to the attached schematic drawings using a preferred embodiment.

[0047] It shows Fig. 1 a schematic representation of four broiler chickens arranged on a hook; Fig. 2 a representation of a depth image of broiler chickens arranged on a hook; Fig. 3 a representation of a normal image of broiler chickens arranged on a hook.

[0048] Fig. 1 shows a schematic representation of four broiler chickens 10, 20, 30, 40 arranged on a fastening device not shown here.

[0049] The legs of broiler chickens 10, 20, 30, and 40 are clamped or hooked onto a hook of a transport chain (also not shown), so that the broiler chickens 10, 20, 30, and 40 hang down with their necks severed. Attached to the transport chain, the animals 10, 20, 30, and 40 pass through a transport path for the purpose of carving, gutting, etc.

[0050] Out of Fig. As can be seen in Figure 1, the broiler chickens 10, 20, 30, 40 each have differently filled crops 11, 21, 31, and 41.

[0051] According to the method, a detection device detects the neck of an animal 10, 20, 30, 40 in the area of ​​the crop 11, 21, 31, 41 without contact, and a detection device determines the shape of the neck from the detected data, particularly in the area of ​​the crop 11, 21, 31, 41 and in particular a relative position and / or the shape of the crop 11, 21, 31, 41.

[0052] Furthermore, an evaluation device determines a measure of a respective crop filling based on the shape of a respective crop 11, 21, 31, 41.

[0053] Schematically indicated, the broiler chicken 10 has a region of the neck with an indentation at a location of a crop 11. The crop 11 of the broiler chicken 10 is empty, and the evaluation device determines a comparatively low degree of crop filling for the crop 11.

[0054] Schematically indicated, broiler chickens 20, 30, and 40 each have a neck region with a bulge at a location of a respective crop 21, 31, and 41. Crops 21, 31, and 41 of broiler chickens 20, 30, and 40 vary in fullness; for crops 21, 31, and 41, the evaluation device determines different, comparatively high levels of crop fullness.

[0055] Furthermore, a decision device can decide on the processing and / or further transport of a respective broiler chicken 10, 20, 30, 40 based on the degree of crop filling of a crop 11, 21, 31, 41, in particular by means of a threshold value comparison.

[0056] Fig. Figure 2 shows a black and white image of a depth image of broiler chickens arranged on a hook, in which different distances between the detection device and the surface of the broiler chickens are represented by different gray values.

[0057] Fig. Figure 3 shows a black and white image of a normal image of broiler chickens arranged on a hook, in which the normals of the surface of the broiler chickens are projected onto a viewing plane. Depending on their vectorial orientation, the normals generate projections of different magnitudes on the viewing surface, which are represented by different gray values. Normals oriented perpendicular to the viewing surface do not form a projection and have a minimum brightness value (black); normals oriented parallel to the viewing surface have a maximum brightness value (white).

Claims

[1] Method for assessing the feeding status of slaughtered poultry (10), (20), (30), (40) and the like, wherein the poultry (10), (20), (30), (40) is arranged headfirst with the breast forward on a fastening device, in particular a hook, characterized by , that - a detection device detects the neck of the poultry (10), (20), (30), (40) in the area of ​​the crop (11), (21), (31), (41) without contact, - a detection device determines the shape of the neck, particularly in the area of ​​the crop (11), (21), (31), (41) and in particular a relative position and / or the shape of the crop (11), (21), (31), (41) from the recorded data, - and an evaluation device determines a measure of crop filling, in particular based on the shape. [2] Method according to claim 1, characterized by , that - a decision-making device decides on the processing and / or further transport of the poultry (10), (20), (30), (40) on the basis of the measurement. [3] Method according to one of the preceding claims, characterized by that the detection device carries out a 3D detection of the neck and / or a region of the crop (11), (21), (31), (41) and / or the crop (11), (21), (31), (41). [4] Method according to one of the preceding claims, characterized by that the detection device carries out a 2D detection of the neck and / or the crop area and / or the crop (11), (21), (31), (41) and the detection device determines a 3D shape of the crop (11), (21), (31), (41) on the basis of predetermined one- or two-dimensional patterns. [5] Method according to one of the preceding claims, characterized by that the detection device detects a relative position of the crop (11), (21), (31), (41) in relation to the center of the neck. [6] Method according to one of the preceding claims, characterized by that the detection device detects an orientation of the crop (11), (21), (31), (41), in particular a direction of a bulge of the crop (11), (21), (31), (41). [7] Method according to one of the preceding claims, characterized by that the evaluation device determines a score value V for a full goiter and a score value L for an empty goiter (11), (21), (31), (41). [8] Method according to one of claims 4 to 7, characterized by that the decision device makes a decision based on the degree of crop filling and / or the position of the crop (11), (21), (31), (41) and / or the orientation of the crop (11), (21), (31), (41). [9] Method according to one of claims 7 to 8, characterized bythat the decision device carries out a threshold value comparison in which, for the processing / further transport of the poultry (10), (20), (30), (40), the measure of the crop filling, in particular the score value V, must be below a predeterminable comparison value Crop-Max for the maximum crop filling. [10] Method according to one of claims 7 to 9, characterized by that the decision device carries out a threshold value comparison in which, for the processing / further transport of the poultry (10), (20), (30), (40), the amount of the difference between the score values ​​Score-Value-L and Score-Value-V must be above a predeterminable comparison value Kropf-Determ as a measure of the certainty of the determined score values ​​L and V. [11] Method according to claim 9 and 10, characterized bythat the decision device only decides for the processing / further transport of the poultry (10), (20), (30), (40) if the comparison value Crop-Max is undershot and the comparison value Crop-Determ is exceeded. [12] Method according to claim 9 and 10, characterized by that the decision device decides to sort the poultry (10), (20), (30), (40) if the comparison value Crop-Max and the comparison value Crop-Determ are exceeded. [13] Method according to claim 10, characterized by that the decision device decides for a re-examination of the poultry (10), (20), (30), (40) if the comparison value Kropf-Determ is undercut. [14] Device for assessing the feeding status of slaughtered poultry (10), (20), (30), (40) and the like, characterized by that it is designed to carry out a method according to one of the preceding claims. [15] Arrangement of poultry (10), (20), (30), (40), which is arranged headfirst with the breast forward on a fastening device, in particular a hook, and a device for assessing the feeding condition of slaughtered poultry (10), (20), (30), (40), characterized by that the device is designed to carry out a method according to one of claims 1 to 13.

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