System and method for monitoring a plurality of animals

Abstract

Embodiments of the invention relate to a system and method for monitoring a plurality of animals, such as farm animals. The system comprises a plurality of monitoring devices, a plurality of gateway devices, and remote computing device. The system is configured such that when the plurality of gateway devices are positioned at or in close proximity of the points of interests and the plurality of monitoring devices are attached to respective animals, data is automatically and continuously communicated from the monitoring devices to be received by one or more of the plurality of gateway devices that are within range of the first communication technology, and from the plurality of gateway devices to the remote computing device; and wherein the remote computing device is configured to analyse the received data to identify an animal of interest.

Description

System and method for monitoring a plurality of animalsTechnical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a system and method for monitoring a plurality of animals, such as a farm animals including but not limited to cattle, pigs, and sheep.Background

[0002] According to The Department of Agriculture, Water, and the Environment (DAWE), more than 2.3 million Australian livestock are exported each year by sea and air, with current health and welfare monitoring of the animals and reporting processes being largely manual, repetitive and resource intensive and therefore costly.

[0003] On the farm or during transport - including live export - most measurements are manually collected from individual animals. In addition to being inefficient, some measurements require the animal to be restrained, an action which contributes to elevated stress levels. From a technology perspective, Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) Tags have been used to help understand the location and feeding patterns of animals as they pass through readers on gates and other selected equipment throughout a farm. RFID chips are small and relatively inexpensive but do not transfer live data and have a relatively short range, so can only provide data that can be logged at specific points in time and at a specific location. In addition, RFID scanners are relatively expensive which limits the maximum numbers and distribution of the scanners and thereby the accuracy of an RFID monitoring system.

[0004] It would be advantageous if at least an embodiment of the present invention provided improvements of the known conventional technologies or at least provided a workable alternative.

[0005] Any discussion of documents, acts, materials, devices, articles or the like which have been included in the present specification is not to be taken as an admission that any or all of these matters form part of the prior art base or were common general knowledge in the field relevant to the present invention as it existed before the priority date of each claim of this application.

[0006] Throughout the specification the word "comprise", or variations such as "comprises" or "comprising", will be understood to imply the inclusion of a stated element, integer or step, or groupof elements, integers, or steps, but not the exclusion of any other element, integer or step, or group of elements, integers or steps.Summary

[0007] Embodiments of the present invention relate to a system for monitoring a plurality of animals, the system comprising: a plurality of monitoring devices, each being configured to attach to an animal and comprising a processor and a network interface to transfer data using a first communication technology that is wireless; a plurality of gateway devices, each being configured to be positioned at or in close proximity to a point of interest, and to communicate on one hand with the plurality of monitoring devices using the first communication technology, and on the other hand with a remote computing device using a second communication technology; the remote computing device configured to receive data from the plurality of gateway devices using the second communication technology; wherein the system is configured such that when the plurality of gateway devices are positioned at or in close proximity of the points of interests and the plurality of monitoring devices are attached to respective animals, data is automatically communicated from the monitoring devices to be received by one or more of the plurality of gateway devices that are within range of the first communication technology, and from the plurality of gateway devices to the remote computing device; and wherein the remote computing device is configured to analyse the received data to identify an animal of interest.

[0008] In some embodiments of the present invention, the remote computing device is configured to determine whether the animal of interest requires an intervention, such as a medical intervention.

[0009] The remote computing device may further be configured to determine a real-time position of the monitoring device of the identified animal of interest, and to make available information relating to the identified animal. The information may include but is not limited to the real-time position and identification information of the animal of interest.

[0010] In an embodiment, the system may be configured such that if the remote computing device determines that an intervention of the identified animal is required, the remote computing device automatically generates and transfers a command to control an operation at the monitoring device of the animal and / or a point of interest that is at or in close proximity to the animal.

[0011] Embodiments of the present invention are suitable for all animals. One specific application includes farm animals, such as livestock (cattle, pigs, and sheep). The inventors have found that the monitoring device in accordance with embodiments of the present invention is particularly suitable in large-scale livestock farming that holds 100s to 1000s or even 10,000s or more animals. By using embodiments of the present invention, the real time position and well-being of each individual animal can be monitored relative to a point of interest. Points of interest in this particular application include but are not limited to watering stations, feeding stations, a nursery, an infirmary, a gate, a scale, or a particular area, such as a pen, room or paddock. While the system in accordance with embodiments continuously collects information on each animal, the system may further allow to control an operation at a monitoring device and / or a point of interest, for example, by communicating via the gateway devices. This allows the system to automatically control operations at a selected point of interest and / or the monitoring device of an animal of interest using the real-time position of the animal.

[0012] A person skilled in the art will appreciate that the remote computing device may comprise one or more computers, where some of them may be configured as computer servers. The number of computer and servers generally depend on the required processing capacity of the system. The remote computing device may utilise cloud-based computing resources and / or may comprise one or more multiple server sites that are distributed over different locations. The use of a cloud computing platform, and / or multiple server sites enables physical hardware resources to be allocated dynamically in response to service demand. These and other variations, regarding the server computing resources, will be understood to be within the scope of the present invention.

[0013] In an embodiment, the system is configured such that if the remote computing device determines that an intervention of the identified animal is required, the remote computing device: a) identifies at least one gateway device that is within range of the first communication technology of the monitoring device attached to the animal that requires an intervention, andb) transfers the command to the at least one identified gateway device to prompt the gateway device to control the operation at the monitoring device of the animal and / or the point of interest.

[0014] In some embodiments, the system may be configured such that information relating to the identified animal of interest is communicated to one or more portable computing devices, such as smart phones or a portable tagging cart. This information may comprise identification of the animal, information indicative of the real-time position of the animal (relative or absolute) and / or information relating to the intervention. In this way, a user of the portable computing device can physically identify the animal that requires an intervention.

[0015] In a specific embodiment, each monitoring device is configured to also receive data using the first communication technology. In this way, the plurality of monitoring devices may be able to receive a command from the remote computing device and / or a gateway device and / or a portable computing device, for example, to active an LED light at the monitoring device.

[0016] In an embodiment, the first communication technology is Bluetooth. However, a person skilled in the art will appreciate that other wireless communication technologies are envisaged, including but not limited to RFID, radio frequency, Long Range (LORA), and other personal area networks, such as Zigbee, and IrDA. In the example that uses Bluetooth technology, each monitoring device is configured to broadcast data continuously and / or periodically, for example, at time intervals of one, two or three seconds. However, a person skilled in the art will appreciate that other time intervals are envisaged, in particular depending on the application, and type of animal. One or more gateway devices that are within Bluetooth range of the broadcast data receive the data which is then automatically communicated to the remote computing device.

[0017] In an embodiment, each gateway device is configured to detect or calculate a signal strength from a monitoring device that is within range of the first communication technology, such as the signal strength of a Bluetooth signal. The signal strength is used to determine a position of the monitoring device relative to the gateway device. For example, each gateway device may process the signal strength to calculate a relative position and communicates information indicative of the relative position to the remote computing device. Additionally or alternatively, the gateway device may communicate the detected signal strength to the remote computing device that uses the signal strength to determine a position relative to the gateway device.

[0018] In addition, each gateway device may detect a signal direction from a monitoring device that is within range of the first communication technology, wherein the remote computing device uses the signal strength and the signal direction to determine the real-time location of each monitoring device.

[0019] In an embodiment, the remote computing device may use the signal strength and / or the signal direction detected at the plurality of gateway devices to determine an absolute location of each monitoring device, and thus of each animal. In this way, there is no requirement for incorporating a positioning sensor within the monitoring device which may improve battery life of each monitoring device.

[0020] In an embodiment, the second communication technology may be wireless. Suitable communication technologies include but are not limited to the Internet, mobile communication networks, and local communication networks, such as Wi-Fi. However, a person skilled in the art will appreciate that the second communication technology may alternatively be wired or a combination of wired and wireless. For example, if the remote computing device comprises more than one computer, the second communication technology may comprise a combination of two wireless technologies, such as a local communication network between the gateway devices and a first remote computing device and the Internet between the first remote computing device and a second remote computing device, such as a cloud-based computer resource.

[0021] In an embodiment, the remote computing device is in the form of a network of computing devices, where one or more may be located at or in close proximity of the points of interests, for example, to perform initial processing of the raw data from the plurality of gateway devices. One or more computing devices may be in the form of computer servers operating computing applications for further processing of the data in the cloud.

[0022] In an embodiment, each monitoring device may be configured to detect a movement parameter of the animal, such as speed of movement, direction of movement, acceleration of movement, and position relative to the ground. This may be implemented by a suitable sensor incorporated within the monitoring device. Additionally or alternatively, the remote computing device may determine the movement parameter, such as speed of movement, direction of movement, acceleration of movement, and / or position of the animal relative to the ground by analysing the signal strength and / or the signal direction received from the plurality of gateway devices, for example, over a period of time. For example, the signal strength of the Bluetooth signal from a monitoring device of an animal may decrease at a first gateway device and increase at a second gateway device whichindicates that the animal moves from the first gateway device towards the second gateway device. The remote computing device may analyse the movement parameter to automatically determine whether an animal requires an intervention.

[0023] In an embodiment, each monitoring device may be configured to obtain information indicative of at least one health parameter of the animal associated with the monitoring device. The health parameter may include but is not limited to a temperature, a heart rate, and a Galvanic Skin Response (GSR) of the animal associated with the monitoring device. A person skilled in the art will appreciate that other health parameters are envisaged, for example, obtained by a suitable biometric sensor.

[0024] The information indicative of the at least one health parameter may automatically be transferred to one or more gateway devices that are within range of the first communication technology. The system may be configured to use the obtained information indicative of the at least one health parameter to automatically determine whether an animal requires an intervention. The embodiment provides the advantage that by obtaining information indicative of at least one health parameter in substantially real-time, the system can effectively monitor animal health and wellbeing of each individual animal at scale, and perform a timely intervention, if required.

[0025] For example, the remote computing device may use the at least one health parameter, such as a temperature of an animal, in context with the movement characteristic of the animal to determine whether an intervention is required. A person skilled in the art will appreciate that the more information is used for the determination, the more accurate the response will be with less occurrence of false positives.

[0026] In an embodiment, each monitoring device may communicate identification information identifying the animal of interest associated with the monitoring device, to the one or more gateway devices that are within range of the first communication technology.

[0027] The information indicative of the health parameter and / or the identification information may be communicated at pre-set time intervals, such as every second, every two seconds, or longer time intervals. A person skilled in the art will appreciate that the accuracy for real time measurements will improve the shorter the time intervals are set.

[0028] Embodiments of the present invention provide significant advantages. In particular, by obtaining real-time health information of a plurality of animals, an onset of a disease may be detected which allows for early automatic or at least semi-automatic intervention. Furthermore, by obtaining health information from a plurality of animals over a prolonged period of time, the remote computing device may determine statistical norms and / or identify patterns in the data that lead to specific outcomes that may be used for further analysis and possible interventions. For example, the information may be analysed to determine weight gain in context of expected weight gain, optimise feed intake, optimise grouping of animals, selection of animals for breeding programs and euthanasia, and understanding of the effectiveness of an intervention.

[0029] In an embodiment, each monitoring device comprises a battery for providing power to the monitoring device. Each monitoring device may communicate information indicative of a battery level of the battery to one or more gateway devices that are within range of the first communication technology.

[0030] In an embodiment, each monitoring device may comprise a signalling element that can be activated to provide a visual and / or audible signal at the monitoring device. Specifically, if an animal of interest is identified, for example to require an intervention, the remote computing device may prompt a gateway device that is in range within the first communication technology to the animal in question to activate the signal at the monitoring device. Thus, if an animal requires manual intervention by farm personnel, the activated signal aids the personnel to physically identify the animal. This is particularly advantageous if a large number of animals are held within a comparatively small space. In a specific embodiment, each monitoring device comprises a light emitting element, such as an LED that can be activated by the remote computing device via a gateway device and / or by a portable computing device.

[0031] Controlling an operation at a point of interest may be achieved in any suitable manner. For example, the system may be configured to control the operation directly at a point of interest, such as by communicating directly with an automatic watering station or an automatic feeding station. Additionally or alternatively, the remote computing device may transfer a command to at least one gateway device to control an operation at a point of interest. Suitable operations may include closing and opening of a gate, closing and opening of a pen, activating weight measurement on a scale, activating and deactivating a watering or feeding station, and dispensing or applying medication.

[0032] The system may further be configured to obtain information relating to the operation at the point of interest. For example, the at least one gateway device may obtain information of the weight on the scale, or the amount of water or food that has been consumed at the watering or feeding station. The obtained information may automatically be communicated to the remote computing device for further analysis.

[0033] In an example in which information of the weight is obtained, the system may be configured to automatically associate identification information of an animal to the information of the weight. In this way, the system can reliably track the weight of an animal.

[0034] In an embodiment, the system may comprise an image capturing device for capturing an image of a point of interest, such as CCTV. The image may be a still image or a moving image, such as video. The remote computing device may use the captured image to analyse the received data from the plurality of monitoring devices via the gateway devices. For example, by comparing the received data from the plurality of gateway devices with information obtained from the captured image, the remote computing device may determine a characteristic or pattern in the received data that correlates to a specific behaviour of an animal, such as whether an animal is resting or moving, laming, drinking or feeding.

[0035] In an embodiment, the system may comprise a sensor for detecting an operational parameter and / or an external parameter, wherein the sensor is configured to automatically communicate the operational parameter and / or external parameter to the remote computing device. For example, the system may comprise a humidity sensor, or a temperature sensor for sensing ambient humidity / temperature, such as within a nursery. In another example, a watering or feeding station may comprise a motion sensor, such that if the motion sensor senses the presence of an animal, an optimal amount of food or water may automatically be dispensed. In another example, the sensor may be incorporated into any suitable farm hardware, such as a scale to measure the weight of an animal. The remote computing device may use the operational and / or external parameter as an input for data analysis, for example, to identify an animal of interest and / or determine whether an intervention of an animal is required.

[0036] In an embodiment, the remote computing device may compare the received data of an animal with live data of comparable animals to identify an animal of interest, such as, to automatically determine whether an intervention of the animal is required. For example, a temperature measurement of an animal may be higher than temperature measurements of animals that are inclose proximity to the animal, or a determined movement pattern of an animal is different compared to other animals within the same pen.

[0037] Additionally or alternatively, the remote computing device may compare the received data to historical data and / or normalised data of comparable animals to identify an animal of interest, such as to automatically determine whether an intervention of an animal is required. In this regard, comparable animals may be of same gender, similar age, same breed, similar point of development or the like. Specifically, the remote computing device may be configured to determine whether information indicative of the at least one health parameter or movement parameter is above or below a predetermined threshold. The thresholds may be determined depending on type, age, breed or sex of the animal. This provides the significant advantage that the system can be tailored to diverse groups of animals with the aim to reduce the occurrence of false positives.

[0038] In an embodiment, the remote computing device may comprise a data storage for storing the raw received data, the processed data which may include historical data, normalised data, and imported data. The data storage may further include information indicative of possible interventions and operations at the monitoring device and / or the points of interests linked to selected interventions.

[0039] The remote computing device may process the data to automatically generate an alert notification at a portable computing device, a task list, and / or a request for information, such as a request for a photograph of the identified animal, a physical temperature measurement or the like.

[0040] In some embodiments, each gateway device may be configured to detect a presence of a portable computing device, for example, using the first communication technology. The remote computing device may use the information to determine a real-time location of the portable computing device. In a specific embodiment, the remote computing device may be configured to communicate a command to the gateway device to control an operation, once the presence of a portable computing device is detected.

[0041] Embodiments of the present invention relate to a computer implemented method of monitoring a plurality of animals, the method comprising:attaching a plurality of monitoring devices to respective plurality of animals, each monitoring device being configured to continuously transfer data using a first communication technology that is wireless; positioning a plurality of gateway devices at or in close proximity to a point of interest, each gateway device being configured to communicate on one hand with the plurality of monitoring devices using the first communication technology, and on the other hand with a remote computing device using a second communication technology; automatically communicating, via the first communication technology, data from the plurality of monitoring devices to be received by one or more gateway devices that are located within range of the first communication technology; automatically communicating the received data from the plurality of gateway devices to the remote computing device using the second communication technology; and automatically identifying, by the remote computing device, an animal of interest by analysing the received data.

[0042] In an embodiment, the method may comprise a step of automatically determining, by the remote computing device, whether an intervention of the animal of interest is required.

[0043] The method may comprise a step of automatically determining, by the remote computing device, a real-time position of the animal of interest, and making available information relating to the identified animal.

[0044] The method may further comprise generating and transferring a command to control an operation at the monitoring device of the animal and / or a point of interest that is at or in close proximity to the animal.

[0045] In an embodiment, the method may comprise: identifying, by the remote computing device, at least one gateway device that is within range of the first communication technology of the monitoring device attached to the animal, andtransferring the command to the at least one identified gateway device to prompt the gateway device to control the operation at the monitoring device of the animal and / or the associated point of interest.

[0046] In accordance with embodiments of the present invention, there is provided a software application for monitoring a plurality of animals, the software application when executed on a computer system performing the steps of the above described method.

[0047] It will be appreciated by persons skilled in the art that numerous variations and / or modifications may be made to the invention as shown in the specific embodiments and / or aspects without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention as broadly described. For example, it will be apparent that certain features of the invention can be combined to form further embodiments. The present embodiments and aspects are, therefore, to be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive. Several embodiments are described above with reference to the drawings. These drawings illustrate certain details of specific embodiments that implement the systems and methods and programs of the present invention. However, describing the invention with drawings should not be construed as imposing on the invention any limitations associated with features shown in the drawings.Brief Description of Drawings

[0048] Certain exemplary embodiments of the present invention will now be described, by example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

[0049] Figure 1 shows a schematic view of a system for monitoring a plurality of animals in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention;

[0050] Figure 2 shows a schematic view of a plurality of gateway devices positioned at or in close proximity to points of interests;

[0051] Figure 3 shows a schematic view of a system for monitoring a plurality of animals in accordance with a further embodiment of the present invention; and

[0052] Figure 4 shows a flow chart illustrating a method of monitoring a plurality of animals in accordance with a further embodiment of the present invention.Description of Embodiments

[0053] Embodiments of the present invention generally relate to a system and method for monitoring a plurality of animals. While the system and method are suitable for all animals, the system and method find particular application in monitoring animals at large-scale farms, where typically 100s to 1000s or even 10,000s or more farm animals are held. Such farm animals may include but are not limited to cattle, pigs (sows), and sheep. Another application relates to live export of animals where monitoring of the wellbeing of the animals is important. A person skilled in the art will appreciate that other applications are envisaged, some of which being described below.

[0054] Referring initially to the system aspect of the present invention, the system comprises a plurality of monitoring devices, where each monitoring device is configured to attach to an animal, for example, to the ear of the animal. Each monitoring device comprises at least a processor and a network interface to transfer and optionally receive data using a first communication technology that is wireless, such as Bluetooth. An exemplary monitoring device is disclosed in the Applicant's international patent application No. PCT / AU2022 / 050666 which is herein incorporated in its entirety by reference. A person skilled in the art will appreciate that other monitoring devices may be suitable for the present invention if the monitoring devices are also configured to transfer data using the first wireless communication technology.

[0055] The system further comprises a plurality of gateway devices, for example, in the form of Bluetooth beacons, that are each positionable at or in close proximity to a point of interest. Each gateway device is configured to communicate on one hand with the plurality of monitoring devices using the first communication technology, and on the other hand with a remote computing device using a second communication technology which may be wired and / or wireless. A person skilled in the art will appreciate that the remote computing device may comprise of one or more networked computers that may not necessarily be at the same location. One example relates to the utilisation of cloud computing resources.

[0056] The selection of points of interests and thus the positioning of the plurality of gateway devices will depend on the application of the present invention. In the case of implementing the system at a farm, suitable points of interest may include but are not limited to a watering station, a feeding station, a scale, a gate, a fence, a perimeter point, or a particular area to be monitored, such as a nursery, an infirmary, a paddock, or a pen. If the point of interest relates to an area, a personskilled in the art will appreciate that typically two or more gateway devices are positioned, for example, at a perimeter or corner of the area to be monitored.

[0057] Another possible application of the system relates to the transport of animals, such as farm animals, including live export of animals. For this application, suitable points of interest may relate to points along the transport of the animal from the farm, via the road / water / air transport vehicle to the abattoir or other destinations. Applying the system of the present invention to the transport of animals has the advantage that insights can be obtained on the wellbeing of the animals during transport, and interventions can be made in a timely manner to ensure that the wellbeing of the animal is maintained at an acceptable level. Furthermore, the system provides end-to-end traceability and provenance of each animal as identification information of each animal is communicated together with health information. This enables information in relation to an animal to be monitored throughout the supply chain, i.e. from farm, via transport, holding year and abattoir to a retail outlet. The information may, for example, include but is not limited to health, wellbeing and development history of the animal. In this way, the information can be provided to the end consumer at the point of purchase, for example, on the packaging at a retail outlet.

[0058] The system further comprises one or more remote computing devices for receiving data from the plurality of gateway devices using the second communication technology. The second communication technology may be wired, wireless or a combination of the aforesaid. The system is configured such that when the plurality of gateway devices is positioned at or in close proximity of respective points of interests and the plurality of monitoring devices are attached to respective animals, data is automatically and continuously communicated from the monitoring devices and received by one or more gateway devices that are within range of the first communication technology, and from the plurality of gateway devices to the remote computing device. A person skilled in the art will appreciate that the remote computing device may in reality comprise more than one computer. For example, the remote computing device may utilise cloud computing resources accessible through the Internet or the like to process some of the received data. In a specific example, the remote computing device comprises one or more computing devices located at the location of the farm, such as edge computing devices, that receive the raw data from the gateway devices and perform initial processing of the raw data to convert the data into a more condensed and meaningful format suitable for further processing. The remote computing device comprises a further networked computing device that stores and further analyses the initially processed data. This may be achieved by using a backend server system, cloud computing resources, or the like.

[0059] In some embodiments, the remote computing device is configured to determine whether an intervention of an animal is required. If the remote computing device determines that an intervention of an animal or a group of animals is required, the remote computing device may determine a realtime position of the animal, and the remote computing device may make available information relating to the identified animal. Such information may, for example, comprise information relating to the intervention such as a health parameter, the real-time position of the animal and identification information of the animal. The information may be made available by generating and transmitting a notification alert to a portable user device. In this way, a user of a portable user device can review the notification alert, and proceed with the intervention, if necessary.

[0060] In a specific embodiment, when the remote computing device determines that an intervention of an animal is required, the remote computing device may automatically generate and transfer a command such that an operation is controlled at the monitoring device of the animal that requires the intervention, for example, by activating an LED light at the monitoring device. Additionally or alternatively, the remote computing device may generate and transfer a command to a point of interest that is at or in close proximity of the animal, for example, to close or open a gate, refill a watering station, or activate a scale. In this regard, the remote computing device may communicate directly with "smart" points of interests that are connected to the remote computing device via the second communication technology. Additionally or alternatively, the remote computing device may identify at least one gateway device that is in close proximity of the identified animal, for example, within range of the first communication technology to the monitoring device attached to the identified animal, and transfers a command to the at least one identified gateway device to prompt the gateway device to control an operation at the monitoring device and / or at the associated point of interest. For example, the remote computing device may prompt the gateway device to open or close a gate, to fill up a watering station, to dispense medication into a feeding station, or to activate a visual signal at the monitoring device so that the animal can be visually identified by farming personnel. In this way, the intervention of the animal can be automated, or at least semi-automated.

[0061] Referring initially to Figure 1 of the accompanying drawings, there is shown a system 100 for monitoring a plurality of farm animals 102. The system 100 comprises a computing device 104 such as an administrator platform that may be in the form of a local computer server or multiple networked computer servers. The system 100 further comprises a plurality of monitoring devices 106, such as the monitoring device described in the Applicant's international patent application No. PCT / AU2022 / 050666. Each monitoring device 106 is configured to attach to an animal, in this particular embodiment, to an ear of a cow with the aid of a conventional ear tag. Each monitoringdevice 106 comprises a processor and a network interface to transfer and in this example also receive data using a first wireless communication technology. In this embodiment, the first communication technology is Bluetooth and the monitoring devices 106 are configured to broadcast data in the form of a Bluetooth signal. However, a person skilled in the art will appreciate that other wireless communication technologies are envisaged, including but not limited to RFID, radio frequency, Long Range (LORA), and other personal area networks, such as Zigbee, and IrDA.

[0062] The system 100 also comprises a plurality of gateway devices 108, in this particular example, in the form of Bluetooth beacons. Each gateway device 108 is configured to automatically receive data from monitoring devices 102 that are within Bluetooth range. In this example, each gateway device 108 also detects a signal strength and a signal direction of the received data which is used to determine a substantially real-time, absolute position of each monitoring device 106. In this way, all animals 102 can be located at the farm at any point in time.

[0063] Each gateway device 108 is positioned at or in close proximity to a point of interest, such as a gate, a watering station, a feeding station, a scale, a fence, a perimeter point, or an area to be monitored, such as a paddock, a pen, a nursery or an infirmary. An exemplary configuration of a plurality of gateway devices 108 is shown in Figure 2. Specifically, seven gateway devices 208A - G are positioned to accommodate two nursery pens, first pen 202 and second pen 204 that are arranged in a mirrored configuration where the common wall 206 between the pens 202, 204 incorporates first feeding stations 210A, 210B, a feeding and a watering station 210C, 210D, 212A, 212B, and further watering stations 212C, 212D. The seven gateway devices 208A - G are positioned in close proximity to the feeding and watering stations and on the opposite corners of each pen 202, 204 to provide additional reference points for the determination of the real time position of each animal. Thus, if a plurality of animals 102 are held in the first and second pens 202, 204 with associated monitoring devices 106, typically one or more gateway devices 208A - G will receive the broadcast data by the monitoring device 106 together with a signal strength. By receiving the signal strength of the broadcast data, at least a relative position of the animals 102 can be determined. However, a person skilled in the art will appreciate that if sufficient data is collected by the plurality of gateway devices 208A - G, absolute positions of the animals 102 can be determined without the need to utilising a specific locating component, such as a GPS sensor.

[0064] As shown in Figure 2, each gateway device 208A - G has a set direction for receiving and transmitting data which improves the accuracy of the determined position of each animal as will be described in further detail below.

[0065] Referring back to Figure 1, each gateway device 108 is configured to communicate on one hand with the plurality of monitoring devices 106 using Bluetooth, and on the other hand to communicate with the computing device 104 via a second communication technology 118. The second communication technology may be wired, or wireless, or a combination of the aforesaid, depending on the application of the system 100 and the number of gateway devices 108. Suitable wireless communication technologies may include but are not limited to the Internet, mobile and local area networks, such as Wi-Fi and Ethernet.

[0066] The computing device 104 which in this example functions as an administrator platform is remote relative to the plurality of gateway devices 108 and the monitoring devices 106. This provides the significant advantage that a user accessing information from the computing device 104 is able to monitor in real time a large group of farm animals 102, irrespective of the location and number of farm animals. For example, the user may continuously monitor and update the list of animals with their unique identification information at each location and perform a real-time inventory of the animals. Thus, all animals can be reliably identified and located at any point in time. Even more so, the plurality of farm animals 102 can be monitored during their entire lifecycle, starting from the nursery at the farm, during transport and movement (if any) and ending at the abattoir where the monitoring devices 106 are typically discarded.

[0067] The computing device 104 includes a processor 120 configured to control and coordinate operations, a memory 122 and a network interface 124 that communicate with each other via a bus 126. The network interface 124 facilitates communications between the computing device 104 and each of the gateway devices 108. The memory 122 stores instructions 128 and data 130 for the processes as described in the present application, and the processor 120 performs the instructions 128 from the memory 122 to implement the processes. It should be noted that although the computing device 104 is shown as an independent network element, the computing device 104 may alternatively be part of another network element, and functions performed by the computing device 104 may be distributed between multiple network elements. For example, a portion of the memory 122 may not form part of the physical computing device 104, and data may be stored in the cloud instead. In other words, the computing device 104 may comprise one or more computers, where one or more may be configured as servers. The number of computers and servers generally depend on the required processing capacity of the system. The remote computing device may utilise cloud-based computing resources and / or may comprise one or more server sites. The use of a cloud computing platform, and / or multiple server sites, enables physical hardware resources to be allocateddynamically in response to service demand. An example of this configuration will be described in further detail with reference to Figure 3.

[0068] In general, the system 100 is configured such that when the plurality of gateway devices 108 are positioned at or in close proximity of respective points of interests, such as the nursery pens 202 and 204, and the plurality of monitoring devices 106 are attached to respective animals 102, data is automatically communicated from the monitoring devices 106 to one or more gateway devices 108 that are within range of the first communication technology and from the plurality of gateway devices 108 to the remote computing device 104. In this particular example, data is communicated from monitoring devices 106A, 106B, 106C to gateway device 108A, data from monitoring device 106D is communicated to gateway devices 108B and 108C, and data from monitoring device 106E is communicated to gateway device 108C. The gateway devices 108A, 108B, and 108C then communicate the received raw data to the remote computing device 104. This may be done continuously, at set time intervals and / or on demand. For example, the remote computing device 104 may request transfer of information from one or more gateway devices 108A, 108B, 108C. This is particular advantageous if a user may wish to assess the wellbeing of animals within a particular area, such as the nursing pen.

[0069] In the embodiment shown, each monitoring device 106 obtains information indicative of at least one health parameter of the animal 102 that the monitoring device 106 is attached to. For simplicity, in the present example, each monitoring device 106 only obtains information indicative of a temperature of the animal 102. However, a person skilled in the art will appreciate that other health parameters and combination of health parameters are envisaged, including but not limited to a heart rate, a Galvanic Skin Response (GSR) and other biometric parameters of the animal associated with the monitoring device 106.

[0070] Each monitoring device 106 detects the temperature at the ear of the animal 102 that the monitoring device 106 is attached to and periodically broadcasts the information indicative of the temperature to be received by one of more gateway devices 108 that are within Bluetooth range, for example, at set time intervals of 1, 2 or 3 seconds. Together with the information indicative of the temperature, each monitoring device 106 also transmits identification information identifying the animal 102. One of the advantages of transmitting identification information for each monitoring device 106 is that each animal can be traced from birth at the farm to the abattoir for meat processing. Thus, the processed meat can be traced back to the individual animal.

[0071] When the information is received at the one or more gateway devices 108, each gateway device 108 also detects or calculates a signal strength that allows the system 100 to determine a substantially real-time position of each animal 102. Specifically and referring to the example shown in Figure 1, monitoring devices 106A, 106B and 106C associated with respective animals 102A, 102B and 102C transmit the information indicative of the temperature to only gateway device 108A as the gateway device 108A is currently the only gateway device that is within Bluetooth range of the monitoring devices 106A, 106B, and 106C. Monitoring device 106D associated with animal 102D transmits the information indicative of the temperature to two gateway devices 108, namely gateway device 108B and gateway device 108C. The information indicative of the temperatures, and the identification information together with the respective signal strength are then automatically communicated to the remote computing device 104 that uses the detected signal strengths to determine at least a relative position relative to the gateway device 108 and possibly an absolute position if sufficient data is provided. Thus, by positioning the gateway devices 108 relative to points of interests, such as feeding stations 210 and watering stations 212, the system 100 is able to monitor the wellbeing of 100s and 1000s and even 10,000 of animals in substantially real-time. An advantage of the described embodiment is that the system can be scaled without any limit on the number of animals, or the size of the area to be monitored.

[0072] When the information is received at the network interface 124 of the computing device 104, the processor 120 may store the information on the memory 122 or in an external memory, such as cloud storage. The processor 120 may further process the obtained information for analysis as will be described in further detail below. A person skilled in the art will appreciate that the obtained information is not limited to the information received from the monitoring devices 106 and determined by the remote computing device 104, but may also include live operational parameters and external parameters such as a measured weight on a scale or ambient temperature, as well as historic data, such as health data of other animals obtained over a period of time.

[0073] In general, the processor 120 of the computing device 104 may process various information in relation to the plurality of animals for analysis. One aspect of the analysis relates to the automatic identification of an animal of interest. This may be an animal that exceeds weight development trajectories and is selected for a breeding program, or an animal that is unwell. Specifically the processor 120 may automatically determine whether an intervention of an animal is required. It should be noted that an intervention may not necessarily relate to a medical intervention, but could simply relate to an animal that is to be moved or removed from a certain location at the farm. In one particular example, the remote computing device 104 analyses the temperature of each animal 102together with a movement parameter of each animal 102, such as speed of movement, direction of movement, acceleration of movement, and position of the animal relative to the ground. Such information can be determined by analysing the real time locations of each animal 102 over a period of time. For example, if a signal strength of a monitoring device 106 at a first gateway device 108 decreases while the signal strength at a second gateway device 108 increases, a change in position of the animal 102 can be determined and thereby the speed of movement and direction of movement. However, a person skilled in the art will appreciate that each monitoring device 106 may additionally comprise a suitable sensor for detecting a movement parameter, such as an accelerometer.

[0074] If the computing device 104 determines that an animal 102 requires an intervention, as will be described further below, the system 100 is configured to make available information in relation to the identified animal, for example, in the form of a notification alert. In some embodiments, the remote computing device 104 may automatically control an operation at a monitoring device 106 and / or a point of interest, such as a gate, watering station 212A or feeding station 210C.

[0075] With regard to controlling an operation at a monitoring device 106, in this particular example, each monitoring device 106 comprises a signalling element in the form of an LED (not shown). The LED can be remotely activated at the monitoring device 106. Specifically, if the system 100 determines that animal 102A requires an intervention, the remote computing device 104 identifies a gateway device 108 that is within Bluetooth range of the animal 102, in the example shown in Figure 1 gateway device 108A. The remote computing device 104 then creates and transfers a command to the gateway device 108A to activate the LED at the monitoring device 106A attached to the animal 102A that requires an intervention. In this particular example, the intervention required relates to a manual intervention by farm personnel and by activating the LED at the monitoring device 106, the LED aids the personnel to physically identify the animal 102A.

[0076] The farm personnel may be notified about the required intervention through an alert notification sent to a dedicated software application installed on a portable computing device as will be described further below.

[0077] Alternatively, the system 100 may determine that the required intervention can be performed automatically, or at least partly. In this regard, the remote computing device 104 may automatically control an operation at a point of interest, such as the watering station 212A. The remote computing device 104 may communicate with the automatic watering station 212A directly, or via a gateway device, such as gateway device 208D, to control the watering station 212A. Forexample, the remote computing device 104 may determine that the food intake for animal 102A over the last 3 days is below average (compared to other similar animals or the animal's own monitored history) which may indicate the onset of a disease or simply not sufficient food in the presence of other animals. As a first intervention, the remote computing device 104 may monitor the real-time position of the animal 102A and when the animal 102A approaches the feeding station 210C, the remote computing device 104 may transfer a command to the gateway device 208D to activate the feeding station 210C to encourage animal 102A to feed. Following the first intervention, the system 100 automatically continues monitoring animal 102A - as well as all other animals. If the remote computing device 104 determines that the food intake of animal 102A is still below average after another time period, such as 24 hours, the remote computing device 104 may determine that the animal 102A requires a second intervention, such as a manual intervention by farm personnel as described above, or dispensing of medication to treat a disease that has been identified for other animals within the same pen. A person skilled in the art will appreciate that the above is merely an illustrative example for controlling an operation at a monitoring device or a point of interest and other operations and interventions are envisaged.

[0078] In addition to the information indicative of the health parameter and the signal strength and direction, each monitoring device 106 in this example communicates information indicative of a battery level of the monitoring device 106. As will be appreciated by a person skilled in the art, each monitoring device 106 comprises a power source, in this example, a printed battery (not shown). In some examples, the monitoring devices 106 are provided in an always-on configuration as the battery life is typically longer than the expected life time of the animal. In other examples, the monitoring device 106 may be activated once applied to the animal 102. This may be achieved by activating the battery to provide power to the components of the monitoring device 106. In one embodiment, the battery of the monitoring device 106 may be activated and / or deactivated remotely, for example, by a command from the remote computing device 104 that is transferred to the monitoring device 106 via a gateway device 108. However, a person skilled in the art will appreciate that the monitoring device 106 may be activated manually when the device 106 is attached to the ear of the animal 102.Data processing

[0079] As indicated above, the remote computing device 104 processes the data received from the plurality of monitoring devices 106 to identify an animal of interest, for example, to determine whether an intervention is required and / or obtain other insights in relation to the health, development and performance of the animals. Advantages of the data analysis are manyfold, andinclude improvements in productivity and commercial yields, early treatment of diseases, transparency on transport conditions, transparency on genealogy of breeding lines, real-time inventory of the animals, and traceability and provenance on animal identities from the farm to the abattoir for further meat processing.

[0080] A person skilled in the art will appreciate that an intervention does not necessarily relate to a medical intervention or a negative characteristic of the animal. For example, based on the received data, an animal may be identified as an animal of interest that exceeds expected weight trajectory and is selected for breeding. This may be because the system has detected that the animal's weight gain is above average compared to other animals. In this instance, the intervention may relate to separating the animal from other animals for breeding purposes. Other possible interventions may be to retire an animal from breeding, and to group animals based on behaviour, such as physical activities.

[0081] In the present embodiment, the remote computing device 104 analyses the information indicative of a health parameter in the context of the determined movement parameter and external and / or operational parameters. Specifically, the information may be compared with information of health parameters of comparable animals or historic health parameters of the individual animal. Based on the information, the remote computing device 104 may automatically identify an animal of interest and in some embodiments determine whether the animal of interest requires an intervention. Comparable animals may, for example, be in the same pen, be of similar age, of the same breed or at the same stage of development. For example, the remote computing device 104 may determine that the temperature of animal 102A is higher than the temperature of animal 102B and 102C that are positioned in close proximity to animal 102A. The remote computing device 104 may determine that an intervention is required and activate the LED at the monitoring device 106A attached to animal 102A. In another example, the remote computing device 104 may determine a movement pattern using the detected movement parameter. In this regard, the remote computing device 104 may determine that the movement pattern of an animal is different compared to other comparable animals within the same pen. The identified movement pattern may indicate that the animal is laming which may require an intervention.

[0082] While the remote computing device 104 may compare data of an animal 102 with other live data of animals 102 at the farm, the data may further be compared to historical data and / or normalised data of similar animals or the animal in question. For example, by obtaining data from the plurality of monitoring devices 106 over time, a baseline may be determined for an individual animal, and / or statistical norms may be identified for specific groups of animals, such as animals of the samesex, similar age, or the like. Specifically, the remote computing device may be configured to determine whether information indicative of the at least one health parameter or movement characteristic is above or below a predetermined threshold. The thresholds may be determined depending on type, age, or sex of the animal. This provides the significant advantage that the system can be tailored to diverse groups of animals with the aim to reduce the occurrence of false positives. Furthermore, by comparing the data within a group of similar animals, underperforming animals may be identified which may be addressed by a suitable intervention.

[0083] Furthermore, by comparing data of an animal to historical data and / or normalised data, the remote computing device 104 may determine a baseline for each animal 102 thereby determining whether an animal 102 is on an expected trajectory in development, such as weight gain, and can determine whether an intervention is required. In this way, future predictions can be made, and interventions can be actioned early.

[0084] In some examples, determining whether an animal requires an intervention may allow to reliably identify diseases that may affect a group of animals. For example, highly infectious diseases such as the African Swine Fever may be identified before the disease spreads to a large group of an animal. The intervention may relate to separating an animal from a group of animals and / or quarantining areas of the farm.

[0085] In some embodiments, the remote computing device 104 may apply a learning algorithm to identify patterns in the data that, for example, lead to specific diseases or ailments. By determining patterns in the data, the remote computing device 104 may determine recommendations in relation to the intervention, such as treatments or interventions. Also, by feeding back information, for example, from portable computing devices, the remote computing device 104 can assess the efficacy of treatments and interventions and use this data to further improve the response operations.

[0086] The data storage 122 of the remote computing device 104 stores the data received from the plurality of monitoring devices 106. The data storage 122 further stores the processed data, including but not limited to historical data, normalised data, a database of possible interventions to be selected, operational information for each point of interest, and information on external parameters and conditions. A person skilled in the art will appreciate that part of the storage 122 may be outsourced and can be stored in a cloud storage.

[0087] In a specific embodiment (not shown), the system 100 further comprises an image capturing device for capturing an image of a point of interest, such as pen 202. In some embodiments, the image capturing device may be implemented as a stationary camera directed at the pen 202. The image capturing device is configured to capture an image of a point of interest and the animals currently located at the point of interest. For example, a camera may be directed to pen 202 and takes a video of the animals within the pen 202. The video may automatically be communicated to the remote computing device 104 that analyses it to obtain information in relation to the point of interest and / or the one or more animals shown in the video. For example, the captured image may show an animal laming. The remote computing device 104 may compare the information obtained from the captured image with the data received from the monitoring device of the laming animal and identify a pattern in the received data that can be identified as a laming animal. The remote computing device may apply a learning algorithm that links a pattern in the received data to the movement characteristic of "laming". Thus, if the remote computing device receives data showing the same or similar data pattern from an animal that is located within an area that is not monitored by an image capturing device, the remote computing device may automatically determine that the animal is laming which requires an intervention. Thus, the information obtained by the image capturing device is an additional input in the data processing of the remote computing device 104.

[0088] Similarly, the system 100 may comprise a sensor for detecting an operational parameter or an external parameter. Exemplary sensors may be a temperature sensor for sending ambient temperature, a humidity sensor for sensing ambient humidity, and a motion sensor for sensing motion at a feeding or watering station. Other operational parameter may include a weight sensor at a scale that automatically communicates a measured weight together with the identification information of the animal that is located on the scale. Information indicative of the operational and / or external parameter are automatically communicated to the remote computing device 104 that uses the information to process the data received by the plurality of monitoring devices 106. Analysing the received data from the plurality of monitoring devices 106 in the context of the information indicative of the external / operational parameter may improve the process of determining whether an intervention is required and reduce the likelihood of false positives.User interface

[0089] The remote computing device 104 may further be configured to make some information available to a portable computing device (not shown) or other suitable computing devices, for example, using the second communication technology 118 or another suitable communicationtechnology. Exemplary portable devices may include smartphones, tablets, laptop computers, a portable computer of a tagging cart or the like. In this regard, information received by the processor 120 may be processed and transmitted to the portable computing device or other suitable computing devices using the network interface 124. This may be realised by software implemented by the processor, and through an application programming interface (API) that communicates with the portable computing device using a dedicated application installed on the portable computing device (mobile application) or other computing device (web application). Providing information on a portable computing device or other computing device provides personnel working on a farm with the ability to rapidly identify, respond to, and actively manage animals of interests as part of standard operations. Animals of interest may, for example, be animals that exhibit health, wellbeing, performance, or development characteristics of interests, including but not limited to medical issues. However, as mentioned above, an intervention may not necessarily relate to a medical intervention.

[0090] In this example, the portable computing device also includes a display and locationpresentation resources to enable mapping or similar presentations using location information relating to a monitoring device 106 and the associated farm animal 102. For example, if an intervention of an animal is required, the remote computing device 104 may generate and send a notification alert to a portable device, such as a portable device of a farm personnel. The notification alert may include information, such as an identification number of the animal that requires intervention, a real-time location of the animal, and a recommendation or task in relation to the intervention. For example, the notification alert may notify the user of the portable device that animal 102C requires an intervention and that the LED at the monitoring device 106C has been activated. The real-time position of the animal 102C may be displayed on a map relative to the position of the portable computing device. The notification alert further specifies that the animal 102C has been experiencing a high temperature over the last 24 hours and that the movement characteristic is less active than last week's average. The notification alert further requests the user of the portable device to take a photo or video of the animal 102C and to move the animal 102C into the infirmary for further observation. Similar to the information provided to the system 100 by the image capturing device, information obtained from the photo or video taken by the personnel at the time that it was determined that an animal required an intervention, will assist the computing device 104 to further improve the accuracy of alerts as the information from the photo or video provides another input of data. In this way, the system 100 may modify or further specify the selected response in relation to the intervention based on the feedback within the information obtained from the photo or video (learning algorithm / Al based capabilities).

[0091] The system 100 may further be configured to automatically generate a digital report including preselected information derived from the information obtained from the plurality of monitoring devices. Automatically generating digital reports provides significant advantages, in particular during the transport of the farm animals as it significantly reduces the paperwork.

[0092] The system 100 may further be configured to organise animals based on their real-time location enabling users of the portable device to determine the current number of animals within an area of interest. Further, the system 100 may be configured to automatically generate alert lists that list animals that have been identified as animals of interest, such as animals that require an intervention. The list of animals may be organised by the current location of each animal to allow farming personnel to efficiently process the lists. In a specific example, a sick list may be generated to allow for ongoing management of animals.Example scenario 1

[0093] An operational parameter obtained from a watering station at a first paddock may indicate that there is insufficient water available at the first paddock. Thus, the remote computing device determines that an intervention is required for a group of animals that is to return to the first paddock from the milking station. The remote computing device determines the real time positions of the group of animals and transfers a first command to a smart gate of the first paddock to prompt the gate to close, and a second command to a smart gate of a second paddock to prompt the gate to open, thereby redirecting the group of animals to move to the second paddock where sufficient water is available.Example scenario 2

[0094] The remote computing device determines that an animal's weight is lower than comparable animals that are at a similar stage in development, and therefore determines that an intervention of the animal is required. The remote computing device monitors the real time position of the animal to detect when the animal is in proximity of a gateway device that is positioned at a feeding station. When the remote computing device detects that the animal is near the feeding station, the remote computing device transfers a command to the feeding station to dispense food at the feeding station to encourage the animal to increase its food intake. The feeding station may comprise a sensor for detecting an amount of food in the feeding station. By transferring information indicative of the amount of food in the feeding station after the identified animal has been in close proximity of thefeeding station, the remote computing device can determine an approximate intake of food for the individual animal. The remote computing device may continue monitoring the weight of the identified animal, for example, by adding the animal to a "watch list". If after a predetermined time period, the weight of the animal is still below the average, the remote computing device may determine that a manual intervention of the animal is required and may make available a notification alert to a portable computing device.Example scenario 3

[0095] The remote computing device determines that the temperature of an animal has been elevated for 24 hours compared to animals that are in close proximity to the animal and exposed to the same ambient temperature that is being measured by an external temperature sensor. The remote computing device monitors the real time position of the animal to detect when the animal is in proximity of a gateway device that is positioned at a feeding station. When the remote computing device detects that the animal is near the feeding station, the remote computing device transfers a command to the feeding station to dispense medication together with food at the feeding station to apply medication to the animal, for example, for the treatment of an infection.Example scenario 4

[0096] The remote computing device determines that the temperature of an animal has been elevated for 24 hours compared to animals that are in close proximity to the animal and exposed to the same ambient temperature that is being measured by an external temperature sensor. The remote computing device transfers a command to activate an LED light at the monitoring device of the animal. In addition, the remote computing device generates and transmits an alert notification to a portable computing device to alert the user of the portable computing device. The alert notification may include information on the real time position of the animal and the type of intervention that is required. As the LED light has been activated at the monitoring device, the user of the portable computing device is able to identify the animal within a group of animals to implement the intervention response. The mobile application on the portable computing device may be configured to prompt the user of the portable computing device to input information in relation to the intervention response. This information will automatically be transferred to the remote computing device that analyses the received information to assess the effectiveness of an intervention response. In this way, the system is able to improve the intervention response process.Example scenario 5

[0097] During the farrowing phase where sows give birth to new grower pigs and nurse the newborn piglets for approximately 4 weeks, the remote computing device determines that a sow is agitated, for example, with likely mastitis conditions. This may be determined by detecting unusual movement patterns of the sow, or an increased temperature. The remote computing device determines that an intervention is required, and the sow may pose a risk to the newborn piglets. The remote computing device generates and transmits an alert notification to a portable computing device to alert the user of the portable computing device about the intervention. When the user of the portable computing device moves into the nursery where the identified sow is located, the one or more gateway devices positioned at the nursery may automatically detect the presence of the portable computing device. This information is communicated to the remote computing device that may send a command to the monitoring device of the identified sow to activate an LED light at the monitoring device. In this way, the user of the portable device can identify the sow and proceed with the intervention, for example, by removing the piglets and foster with a different sow. It will be appreciated that the intervention may comprise multiple interventions, such as removing the piglets, and moving the sow to the infirmary.Example scenario 6

[0098] The remote computing device may automatically generate a sick list of animals that require interventions due to health and wellbeing issues of the animal. Information indicative of the sick list is made available to a portable computing device, such as a smart phone with a dedicated software application. The system may be configured such that when the portable computing device is in close proximity of a gateway device, the gateway device is configured to detect the presence of the portable computing device, for example, by detecting a signal from the portable computing device using the first communication technology, such as Bluetooth. The gateway device may be configured to communicate information in relation to the portable computing device to the remote computing device 104. The information, may, for example, be indicative of the location of the portable device relative to a point of interest. The remote computing device 104 may automatically transfer a command to one or more gateway devices that are located in close proximity to the point of interest to active the LED light on the monitoring devices that are in range within the first communication technology. In this way, the user of the portable device can instantly see which animals require intervention at the point of interest where the user is located. Alternatively, the system may beconfigured such that the portable computing device can directly communicate with the monitoring devices in the same way as the gateway devices transfer prompts to the monitoring devices.

[0099] Referring now to Figure 3 of the accompanying drawings, there is shown a system 300 for monitoring a plurality of animals in accordance with a further embodiment of the invention. In this example, the plurality of animals are farm animals that are located at a farm 301. The system 300 comprises a plurality of monitoring devices 302, each of which is attached to an animal, for example, to an ear of a pig. The system 300 further comprises a plurality of gateway devices 304. Similar to the example described with reference to Figures 1 and 2, each monitoring device 302 is configured to continuously transfer data that is received by one or more of the gateway devices 304 that are in range of the first communication technology, such as Bluetooth. Exemplary data that is transferred may comprise but is not limited to one or more health and movement parameters, and identification information.

[0100] In this example, each monitoring device 302 is also configured to receive data, for example, in the form of a command to active an LED light that is part of the monitoring device 302, or a command to communicate data on demand, such as identification information.

[0101] The system 300 also comprises a remote computing device, which in this example consists of multiple computers and platforms that are configured to communicate data to one another. Providing multiple computers and computer resources, for example, by utilising cloud-based data processing platforms, the system is able to dynamically allocate system resources based on the current need. Specifically, the remote computing device of system 300 comprises an edge computer 306 that is located at the farm 301. However, a person skilled in the art will appreciate that any suitable computer is envisaged. The edge computer 306 is configured to process raw data that is communicated to the edge computer 306 from the monitoring devices 302 via the gateway devices 304, and from other devices that are located at the farm as will be described further below.

[0102] The remote computing device further comprises computer resources in the form of one or more could-based data processing platforms 308, 310. These computer resources are typically provided by third parties and are in the form of computer servers that are distributed over multiple locations and accessed via the Internet. A person skilled in the art will be aware of cloud-based data processing platforms and the description of this will be limited to the specific application of the embodiment of the invention.

[0103] Referring back to Figure 3, the remote computing device of the system 300 comprises two cloud-based data processing platforms, a first platform 308 that is configured to communicate with the edge computer 306 and other hardware components that are part of and / or in communication with the edge computer, for example, via an application program interface (API).

[0104] The remote computing device further comprises a second platform 310 that is in communication with the first platform 308 and is configured to process data, for example, to generate health alerts or apply learning algorithms to the data to determine meaningful insights on the health and wellbeing of the plurality of animals. A person skilled in the art will appreciate that utilising two cloud-based data processing platforms is one example only, and it will be appreciated that other configurations are envisaged. For example, the remote computing device may only comprise an edge computer and a cloud-based data processing platform.

[0105] In the embodiment shown in Figure 3, the system 300 is configured with other computing devices via an application program interface (API), in particular to portable computing devices 312 and an administration computing device 314 using a dedicated software application be installed on the portable computing devices (mobile application) and the administration computing device (web application). In this regard, the first cloud-based data processing platform 308 may process data received from the edge computer 306 and the second platform 310 to make it available at the mobile computing device 312 or the administration computer 314 through the application programming interface (API).

[0106] As shown in Figure 3, the system 300 is further configured such that the mobile computing device 312 is configured to communicate directly with the edge computer 306 and the plurality of monitoring devices 302. For example, the portable computing device 312, such as a smart phone, may be configured to scan a monitoring device 302 to obtain identification information of the animal. In another example, the portable computing device 312 may communicate directly with a monitoring device 302 to active an LED light at the monitoring device 302. Further, the portable computing device 312 may be configured to directly communicate with the edge computer 306. For example, the portable computing device 312 may request data in relation to a specific monitoring device, or transfer data that has been manually input to the portable computing device 312 or obtained through scanning a monitoring device 302 or taking an image of an animal as described above.

[0107] In a specific example, the system 300 is configured to communicate with a mobile tagging cart 316. The tagging cart 316 may be part of the system 300. In this example, the tagging cart 316 isin the form of a trolley with a container space for holding a plurality of piglets so that various tasks (e.g. vaccination, castration, tail and teeth clipping) can be performed, including attaching a new monitoring device 302 to each piglet. The tagging cart 316 comprises a portable computing device (not shown) that is configured to communicate with the edge computer 308 as well as with the monitoring devices 302. The tagging cart 316 typically holds a plurality of monitoring devices 302 for onboarding new animals to the database of the system 300. Onboarding new animals is typically performed shortly after the new animals are born, by attaching a monitoring device 302 to the animal. In the example of pigs, onboarding new animals may be performed during the farrowing phase where sows give birth to piglets and nurse them for approximately 4 weeks of their life. By attaching monitoring devices 302 to newborn piglets during the farrowing phase, the identification information of the newborn piglet can be linked to its mother before they are separated at the weaning phase. In this way, the system 300 is able to track breeding lines.

[0108] The portable computer device of the tagging cart 316 may further comprise a scanning element, such as a handheld scanner, for obtaining identification information from the monitoring device of the mother animal so that the obtained information can automatically be linked to the monitoring device attached to the newborn animal. By linking newborn animals to their mothers, it is possible to obtain insights into breeding lines. In this way, the remote computing device of the system 300, in this case the second cloud-based data processing platform 310, may automatically identify an animal of interest to add to or remove from a breeding program.

[0109] The edge computer 306 of the system 300 is further configured to receive external parameters and / or operational parameters from other hardware 318 that is located on the farm 301. Other hardware 318 may include weighing scales, automatic feeders, such as RFID based feeders, electronic gates, temperature sensors, humidity sensors and the like.

[0110] Data that is collected locally at the farm 301 by the edge computer 306 is communicated to the first cloud-based data processing platform 308. Exemplary data may include but is not limited to new identification information from an onboarding process with the tagging cart 316, real-time location data of each monitoring device 302, health parameters, movement parameters, and external and operational parameters. The first cloud-based data processing platform 308 processes the data received from the edge computer 306 to make information available via the API to the mobile and web application installed at the portable computing device 312 and administrator computer 314. Exemplary information may include but is not limited to current inventory data of the animals, health alerts, for example, of animals that require an intervention. Specifically, this information may be inthe form of a sick list listing animals that have been identified as requiring an intervention, or a watch list listing animals that have received an intervention response to evaluate the effectiveness of the intervention. The performed intervention may be input to the portable computing device 312 by the user which is then transmitted to the the first cloud-based data processing platform 308.

[0111] Data from the first cloud-based processing platform 308 is transmitted to be further processed at the second cloud-based processing platform 310. The second cloud-based processing platform 310 processes the data to automatically identify an animal of interest based on the received data from the edge computer 306. Some non-exhaustive examples of the data processing by the second cloud-based processing platform 310 are provided above with reference to Figures 1 and 2.

[0112] In a specific example, the system 300 enables a macroscopic analysis of a plurality of animals of one or even multiple farms in relation to performance and expected trajectory of the animals. This may allow for a comparative analysis between farms. For this purpose, the data may be anonymised if desired.

[0113] Referring now to Figure 4 of the accompanying drawings, there is shown a flow chart illustrating a method 400 of monitoring a plurality of animals, for example using the system 100 described above, in accordance with a further embodiment of the present invention. The method 400 comprises the steps of communicating 402, via a first communication technology that is wireless, data from a plurality of monitoring devices that are attached to respective animals to one or more gateway devices that are within range of the first communication technology. The first communication technology may, for example, be Bluetooth and the plurality of monitoring devices 402 broadcast data at set time intervals to one or more of the gateway devices that are within Bluetooth range.

[0114] In a further step 404, the plurality of gateway devices communicates the received data to a remote computing device or a network of computing devices via a second communication technology. The received data may further include a signal strength and / or signal direction of the data broadcast by the monitoring devices.

[0115] Based on at least the received data, the remote computing device automatically identifies an animal of interest, and in this particular embodiment, determines 406 whether an intervention of the animal of interest is required. For example, the data that is broadcast by the plurality of monitoring devices may include information on a detected health parameter of the animal, such as the temperature, Galvanic Skin Response, heart rate or the like. The data may be compared to other datato determines whether a measured health parameter is above or below a predetermined threshold, or whether the measured health parameters are on a trajectory that indicates that the health parameter will soon increase above or fall below the predetermined threshold.

[0116] If the remote computing device determines that an intervention of an animal is required, a real time position of the animal in question is determined 408. The real-time position may, for example, be an absolute position or a position relative to a point of interest, such as a watering or feeding station. Information in relation to the identified and real-time position may be made available. In a further step 410 in accordance with this embodiment, the remote computing device identifies at least one gateway device that is within Bluetooth range of the animal in question.

[0117] Once a gateway device is identified, the remote computing device generates and transfers 412 a command to the identified gateway device to prompt the gateway device to control an operation at the monitoring device of the animal in question and / or a point of interest that the animal is at or in close proximity to. For example, the command may relate to activating a signalling element at the monitoring device, or closing a gate.

[0118] It will be appreciated by persons skilled in the art that numerous variations and / or modifications may be made to the invention as shown in the specific embodiments and / or aspects without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention as broadly described. For example, it will be apparent that certain features of the invention can be combined to form further embodiments. The present embodiments and aspects are, therefore, to be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive. Several embodiments are described above with reference to the drawings. These drawings illustrate certain details of specific embodiments that implement the systems and methods and programs of the present invention. However, describing the invention with drawings should not be construed as imposing on the invention any limitations associated with features shown in the drawings.

Claims

Claims1. A system for monitoring a plurality of animals, the system comprising: a plurality of monitoring devices, each being configured to attach to an animal and comprising a processor and a network interface to continuously transfer data using a first communication technology that is wireless; a plurality of gateway devices, each being configured to be positioned at or in close proximity to a point of interest, and to communicate on one hand with the plurality of monitoring devices using the first communication technology, and on the other hand with a remote computing device using a second communication technology; the remote computing device configured to receive data from the plurality of gateway devices using the second communication technology; wherein the system is configured such that when the plurality of gateway devices are positioned at or in close proximity of the points of interests and the plurality of monitoring devices are attached to respective animals, data is automatically and continuously communicated from the monitoring devices to be received by one or more of the plurality of gateway devices that are within range of the first communication technology, and from the plurality of gateway devices to the remote computing device; and wherein the remote computing device is configured to analyse the received data to identify an animal of interest.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the remote computing device is configured to determine whether the animal of interest requires an intervention.

3. The system of claim 1 or 2, wherein the remote computing device is configured to determine a real-time position of the monitoring device of the identified animal of interest, and to make available information relating to the identified animal.

4. The system of claim 2, being configured such that if the computing device determines that an intervention of the animal is required, the remote computing device automatically generates and transfers a command to control an operation at the monitoring device of the identified animal and / or a point of interest that is at or near the animal.

5. The system of claim 4, being configured such that if the remote computing device determines that an intervention of the identified animal is required, the remote computing device: identifies at least one gateway device that is within range of the first communication technology of the monitoring device attached to the identified animal, and transfers the command to the at least one identified gateway device to prompt the gateway device to control the operation at the monitoring device of the animal and / or the associated point of interest.

6. The system of claim 3, wherein the remote computing device is configured to communicate the information to one or more portable computing devices.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein each monitoring device is configured to also receive data using the first communication technology.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the first communication technology is Bluetooth, and each monitoring device is configured to broadcast data periodically such that one or more gateway devices that are within range of the broadcast data receive the data.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein each monitoring device is configured to obtain information indicative of at least one health parameter of the animal associated with the monitoring device that is automatically communicated to one or more gateway devices within range of the first communication technology, and wherein the remote computing device is configured to use at least the obtained information indicative of the at least one health parameter to automatically identify the animal of interest and / or to determine whether the animal requires an intervention.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein each monitoring device is configured to measure at least one of: a temperature, a heart rate, and a Galvanic Skin Response of the animal associate with the monitoring device.

11. The system of claim 1, wherein each gateway device is configured to detect and / or calculate a signal strength from the received data from a monitoring device that is within range of the first communication technology and communicate information relating to the signal strength to theremote computing device which uses the information to determine a real-time position of the monitoring device.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein each gateway device is configured to detect a signal direction from the received data from a monitoring device that is within range of the first communication technology, wherein the remote computing device uses information relating to the signal strength and the signal direction to determine the real-time location of each monitoring device.

13. The system of claim 1, wherein the remote computing device uses the data received from the plurality of gateway devices to determine information indicative of at least one of a speed of movement of an animal, a direction of movement of an animal, an acceleration of movement of an animal, and a position of an animal relative to the ground.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein the remote computing device uses at least the determined information to identify the animal of interest and / or to automatically determine whether an intervention of the animal is required.

15. The system of claim 1, wherein each monitoring device comprises a signalling element that can be activated to provide a visual or audible signal at the monitoring device, and wherein the remote computing device is configured to prompt a gateway device that is in proximity to the identified animal in question to activate the signalling element at the monitoring device attached to the animal.

16. The system of claim 15, wherein each monitoring device comprises a light emitting element that can be activated by the remote computing device via a gateway device.

17. The system of claim 2, wherein the system is configured such that if the remote computing device determines that an intervention is required, the remote computing device determines at least one of a plurality of pre-set response operations, wherein the remote computing device makes available information relating to the pre-set response operation and / or generates and transfers a command relating to the pre-set response operation to control the monitoring device and / or the point of interest.

18. The system of claim 1, wherein the remote computing device compares the received data of an animal with data of comparable animals to identify the animal of interest and / or automatically determine whether an intervention of the animal is required.

19. The system of claim 1, wherein the remote computing device is configured to compare the received data to historical data and / or normalised data of the animal and / or comparable animals to identify the animal of interest and / or automatically determine whether an intervention of the animal is required.

20. The system of claim 18 or 19, wherein the remote computing device is configured to analyse the received data over a period of time to identify a pattern within the data which is compared with historical data patterns that have previously led to an intervention.

21. The system of claim 1, being configured to obtain information relating to an operational parameter of a point of interest, wherein the remote computing device uses the information relating to the operational parameter to identify the animal of interest and / or to determine whether an intervention is required and / or to generate the command to control an operation at the point of interest.

22. The system of claim 1, comprising a sensor for detecting an external parameter, wherein the sensor is configured to automatically communicate information indicative of the external parameter to the remote computing device, wherein the remote computing device uses the information to identify the animal of interest and / or to determine whether an intervention of an animal is required.

23. The system of claim 22, wherein the sensor detects a weight of an animal, and wherein the system is configured to associate the detected weight to an animal using identification information of the animal.

24. The system of claim 1, wherein each monitoring device comprises a battery for providing power to the monitoring device, and information indicative of a battery level is communicated to one or more gateway devices that are within range of the first communication technology.

25. The system of claim 1, comprising an image capturing device for capturing an image of a point of interest, wherein the system is configured such that the captured image is automatically communicated to the remote computing device, and wherein the remote computing device analyses the captured image to extract information that is compared with the obtained data from the plurality of gateway devices to determine a characteristic or pattern in the received data that correlates to a specific behaviour of an animal.

26. The system of claim 1, wherein each gateway device is configured to detect presence of a portable computing device such that the remote computing device can determine information indicative of a location of the portable computing device relative to a point of interest.

27. A computer implemented method of monitoring a plurality of animals, the method comprising: attaching a plurality of monitoring devices to respective plurality of animals, each monitoring device being configured to continuously transfer data using a first communication technology that is wireless; positioning a plurality of gateway devices at or in close proximity to a point of interest, each gateway device being configured to communicate on one hand with the plurality of monitoring devices using the first communication technology, and on the other hand with a remote computing device using a second communication technology; automatically and continuously communicating, via the first communication technology, data from the plurality of monitoring devices to be received by the plurality of gateway devices that are located within range of the first communication technology; automatically communicating the received data from the plurality of gateway devices to the remote computing device using the second communication technology; and identifying an animal of interest.

28. The method of claim 27, comprising automatically determining, by the remote computing device, whether an intervention of the animal of interest is required by analysing the received data at the remote computing device.

29. The method of claim 27 or 28, comprising automatically determining a real-time position of the animal, and making available information relating to the identified animal.

30. The method of claim 29, comprising a step of generating and transferring a command to control an operation at the monitoring device of the animal and / or a point of interest that is at or in close proximity to the animal.

31. The method of claim 30, comprising: identifying, by the remote computing device, at least one gateway device that is within range of the first communication technology of the monitoring device attached to the animal, and transferring the command to the at least one identified gateway device to prompt the gateway device to control the operation at the monitoring device of the animal and / or the point of interest.

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