Identification button tags for identifying vaccinated cattle, and related kits and methods - Patent Application 20070122997

Abstract

To tag cattle with ear tags to indicate that the cattle have been inoculated against brucellosis.SOLUTION: An EID button tag for tagging and identifying cattle inoculated against brucellosis is provided which includes: a shell having a central opening; a transponder located in the shell; a male punch having a disc-shaped punch body and a stem extending distally from the punch body; and a vaccination identification button having a disc-shaped visual identification body and a mounting stem extending distally from the visual identification body, where the mounting stem is configured for irreversible insertion into the mounting channel. The punch body and the visual identification body are primarily tinted with different colors to provide visual identification of a head of cattle inoculated against brucellosis.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS This application claims the benefit of and priority to U.S. Provisional Application No. 62 / 950,607, filed December 19, 2019. The entire specification and figures of the above-referenced application are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety. [Background technology]

[0002] Electronic identification (EID) button tags for placement on the ears of cattle are known in the art. EID button tags are configured to electronically record details about the cattle (e.g., an identification number or an identifying alphanumeric string). The recorded details may be wirelessly retrieved by an associated reader using wireless technology such as radio frequency identification (RFID). Examples of EID button tags can be found in U.S. Patent Nos. 7,726,055 and 7,854,079, which are incorporated herein by reference.

[0003] Cattle are also tagged with orange metal ear tags to indicate that the cattle have been vaccinated against brucellosis. These metal tags are plate-shaped and are separate from the EID button tags. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] U.S. Patent No. 7,726,055 [Patent Document 2] U.S. Patent No. 7,854,079 Summary of the Invention [Means for solving the problem]

[0005] In one aspect, provided herein is an EID button tag for tagging and identifying cattle vaccinated against brucellosis, the EID button tag including: a shell having a central opening; a transponder disposed within the shell; a male punch having a disc-shaped punch body and a stem extending distally from the punch body, the stem having a head at its distal end configured to be irreversibly inserted into the central opening; an attachment opening formed through the punch body; and an attachment channel extending coaxially along the stem from the attachment opening distally; and a vaccination identification button having a disc-shaped visual identifier and an attachment stem extending distally from the visual identifier, the attachment stem configured to be irreversibly inserted into the attachment channel. The punch body is predominantly colored a first color and the visual identifier is predominantly colored a second color, the first color and the second color being different, such that the visual identifier provides visual identification of cattle heads vaccinated against brucellosis. Advantageously, the EID button tag is fully validated as an EID device and provides a visual indication of vaccination against brucellosis, thereby eliminating the need to tag cattle with multiple tags.

[0006] In a further aspect, provided herein is a kit including an EID button tag as described above in the preceding paragraph, along with a tubular applicator having a first open end and a reduced diameter portion adjacent the first open end, the first open end having an inner diameter configured to closely receive a visual identifier, an attachment stem extending outward from the visual identifier, and the reduced diameter portion limiting insertion of the visual identifier into the tubular applicator.

[0007] In another aspect, provided herein is a kit for updating an electronic identification (EID) button tag that is attached to a bovine head and identifies the bovine head as having been vaccinated against brucellosis, the EID button tag including an attachment opening and an attachment channel extending from the attachment opening, the vaccination identification button having a disc-shaped visual identifier and an attachment stem extending distally from the visual identifier, the attachment stem configured to be irreversibly inserted into the attachment channel, and a tubular applicator having a first open end and a reduced diameter portion adjacent the first open end, the first open end having an inner diameter formed to closely receive the visual identifier, the attachment stem extending outward from the visual identifier, and the reduced diameter portion limiting insertion of the visual identifier into the tubular applicator.

[0008] In yet a further aspect, provided herein is a method for tagging each of the cattle tagged with an electronic identification (EID) button tag to identify the cattle as having been vaccinated against brucellosis, the method comprising: providing a vaccination identification button having a disc-shaped visual identifier; identifying the cattle head as having been vaccinated against brucellosis; and fixing the vaccination identifier to the EID button tag of the identified cattle head so that it is visually recognizable from a position along the identified cattle head, wherein the EID button tag is predominantly colored a first color and the visual identifier is predominantly colored a second color, the first color and the second color being different.

[0009] These and other features of the present invention will be better understood by consideration of the following detailed description and accompanying drawings. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0010] [Figure 1] 1 illustrates an EID button tag formed in accordance with the present invention. [Figure 2]1 illustrates an EID button tag formed in accordance with the present invention. [Figure 3] 1 shows a vaccination identification button formed in accordance with the present invention. [Figure 4] 1 shows an applicator that can be used with the present invention. [Figure 5] 1 shows an applicator that can be used with the present invention. [Figure 6] 1 shows an applicator that can be used with the present invention. [Figure 7] 1 shows an applicator that can be used with the present invention. [Figure 8] 1 shows an applicator that can be used with the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0011] The present invention relates to a vaccination identification button that can be used with an EID button tag to identify cattle that have been vaccinated against brucellosis. Embodiments of EID button tags that can be used with the present invention are described herein. As will be recognized by those skilled in the art, the present invention may be used with any EID button tag consistent with the disclosure herein. Thus, the present invention may be provided with a new, ready-to-tag EID button tag as a kit with an applicator for installing the new EID button tag or updating an already mounted EID button tag, or as a standalone item for installing the new EID button tag or updating an already mounted EID button tag.

[0012] 1 and 2, there is shown an EID button tag generally designated by reference numeral 10. The EID button tag 10 generally includes a shell 12, a transponder 14 disposed within the shell 12, and a male punch 16. A vaccination identification button 18 is provided for attachment to the EID button tag 10. As will be described below, the vaccination identification button 18 is attachable to the male punch 16 to visually indicate that a bovine head has been vaccinated against brucellosis.

[0013] Shell 12 is a disc-shaped body having a central opening 20 therethrough. Shell 12 contains at least one internal cavity 22. Preferably, shell 12 includes at least one removable part or portion that allows access to cavity 22.

[0014] The transponder 14 may be of any known type for recording wirelessly retrievable information. The transponder 14 may have a receiver and / or transmitter to facilitate the reception or transmission of radio signals. The transponder 14 may also include associated non-transitory memory (e.g., EEPROM) that may be readable / writable for electronically recording details of the associated cattle head. Any wireless technology, such as RFID, Bluetooth, cellular, etc., may be used to access the recorded information on the transponder 14.

[0015] The transponder 14, preferably along with a power source such as a battery, is disposed inside the shell 12, for example, inside the hollow chamber 22. The shell 12 is preferably liquid-tight to minimize the ingress of moisture into the shell 12. Optional seal structures may be provided at any interfaces between parts or portions of the shell 12 to prevent the ingress of moisture.

[0016] The male punch 16 includes a disk-shaped punch body 24 and a stem 26 extending distally from the punch body 24. The stem 26 includes a head 28 at its distal end 30, which is configured for irreversible insertion into the central opening 20 of the shell 12. The shell 12 may include a rib or other inwardly protruding element around the central opening 20, which allows the head 28 to pass through upon insertion but limits reverse movement by interference. Additionally or alternatively, the central opening 20 may be bounded by a frustoconical wall 31, converging distally to a reduced diameter end 33. The head 28 may be inserted through the central opening 20, with the reduced diameter end 33 at the distal end of the central opening 20 acting to limit reverse movement. The head 28 may have a tapered shape terminating proximally at an annular shoulder 32, as shown in FIG. 1 . The interengagement of the shoulder 32 with a rib or protruding element around the central opening 20 and / or with a reduced diameter end 33 at the distal end of the central opening 20 may act to limit reverse movement of the stem 26 relative to the shell 12.

[0017] As shown in FIG. 2, a gap is preferably defined between the punch body 24 and the shell 12, with the stem 26 irreversibly inserted into the central opening 20. This gap is intended to accommodate the ear of the bovine head. To attach the EID button tag 10 to the bovine head, a hole is drilled in the bovine ear. The stem 26, with the head 28 leading the way, is inserted through the punch hole and into the central opening 20 in the shell 12. The interengagement of the stem 26 with the shell 12 holds the EID button tag 10 in the bovine ear, with the punch body 24 and shell 12 on either side of the bovine ear.

[0018] A mounting opening 34 is formed through punch body 24, and a mounting channel 36 extends coaxially along stem 26 distally from mounting opening 34. Mounting channel 36 may be configured to receive an applicator pin of a manual tagger, such as that sold under the name "Universal Total Tagger" by Allflex USA, Inc. of Dallas, Texas.

[0019] The vaccination identification button 18 includes a disc-shaped visual identifier 38 and an attachment stem 40 extending distally from the visual identifier 38. The attachment stem 40 is configured to be inserted into the attachment channel 36, preferably configured to be irreversibly inserted into the attachment channel 36. Figure 2 shows the vaccination identification button 18 attached to the punch body 24 with the attachment stem 40 received within the attachment channel 36. The irreversible insertion limits removal of the vaccination identification button 18 from the punch body 24.

[0020] Attaching the vaccination identification button 18 to the punch body 24 visually indicates that the bovine head has been vaccinated against brucellosis. Thus, bovine heads tagged with EID button tags 10 may be updated with the vaccination identification button 18 to indicate vaccination against brucellosis, avoiding the need for separate tagging.

[0021] To enhance visual recognition of the vaccination identification button 18, the punch body 24 may be primarily colored a first color, and the visual identification body 38 may be primarily colored a second color different from the first color. The first color and / or the second color may be any of the base colors of the color spectrum, including, but not limited to, black, white, red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet. The first color and / or the second color may also be any color that is a combination of the base colors of the color spectrum, such as brown, tan, gray, silver, etc. Furthermore, the first color and the second color may be the same base color or a combination of base colors, but may be different shades, particularly visually distinguishable shades such as navy blue and light blue.

[0022] The second color may be orange, based on prior art orange tags indicating brucellosis vaccination, to provide a recognizable color for visual identifier 38. The first color may be white or yellow to provide contrast with the second color, which is orange.

[0023] As used herein, the term "predominantly colored" means that the color occupies at least a majority of the associated surface. Other colorations may be present. For example, visual identifier 38 may be predominately colored a second color that is orange, with black text or other indicia also provided on visual identifier 38 that provide additional information. Similarly, punch body 24 may be provided with indicia that are different in color from the first color that is the predominate color.

[0024] Attaching the visual identifier 38 to the punch body 24 allows visual recognition of an observer positioned along the head of the cow to determine whether the cow has been vaccinated against brucellosis. The outward facing surfaces of the punch body 24 and the visual identifier 38 are visible, allowing for both forward and rearward placement on the cow's ear.

[0025] Referring to FIG. 3 , the mounting stem 40 of the vaccination identification button 18 may be provided with at least one protruding rib 42. The at least one protruding rib 42 may extend circumferentially around the mounting stem 40. Additionally, the at least one protruding rib 42 may be Belleville washer-shaped, extending proximally from an inner edge 44 bounding the mounting stem 40 to an outer free edge 46. A tapered end 48 may be provided at a distal end 50 of the mounting stem 40. A plurality of ribs 42 may be disposed along the mounting stem 40 proximal to the tapered end 48. The at least one protruding rib 42 and / or the tapered end 48 may be formed with a diameter sufficient to interfere with and engage the walls of the mounting channel 36, thus providing resistance to removal of the vaccination identification button 18 when attached to the male punch 16. The tapered shape of both the at least one protruding rib 42 and the tapered end 48 provides additional resistance to reverse movement.

[0026] The shell 12, male punch 16, and vaccination identification button 18 are each preferably formed from a polymeric material that is durable enough to withstand use on cattle in harsh environmental conditions.

[0027] To facilitate attachment of the vaccination identification button 18 to the male punch 16, a tubular applicator 52 may be used, as shown in Figures 4-8. The tubular applicator 52 includes a first open end 54 having an inner diameter configured to closely receive the visual identifier 38, with the attachment stem 40 extending outwardly from the visual identifier 38, as shown in Figure 5. A reduced diameter portion 56 is located adjacent the first open end 54 configured to limit insertion of the visual identifier 38 into the tubular applicator 52. With the visual identifier 38 received in the first open end 54, the tubular applicator 52 may act as a handle for manipulating the vaccination identification button 18, particularly for attaching the vaccination identification button 18 to the male punch 16, as shown in Figure 5.

[0028] In use, the present invention may be used to tag cattle to identify those that have been vaccinated against brucellosis. Each of the cattle may be tagged with an EID button tag that may be formed according to the EID button tag 10 described above, or may have a different design. On cattle heads identified as having been vaccinated against brucellosis, a vaccination identification button 18 may be affixed to the EID button tag of the identified cattle head so that it is visually recognizable from its location along the identified cattle head. As described above, the EID button tag may be primarily colored a first color, and the visual identifier 38 of the vaccination identification button 18 may be primarily colored a second color that is different from the first color.

[0029] Alternatively, an electronic identification (EID) button tag tagged onto the head of a cow can be used to identify the cow as having been vaccinated against a wide variety of diseases. Non-limiting examples include Akabane disease, anthrax (Bacillus anthracis, African swine fever, bovine tuberculosis (Mycobacterium bovis), bluetongue (serotype 8), brucellosis (Brucella abortus), brucellosis (Brucella melitensis), brucellosis (Brucella suis), bovine spongiform encephalopathy, Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever, chronic wasting disease, classical hog fever, coronavirus, epizootic hemorrhagic disease, bluetongue (non-serotype 8), echinococcosis / hydatid disease (Echinococcus granulosus, Echinococcus multilocularis), paratuberculosis (Johne's disease) (Mycobacterium paratuberculosis), Q fever (Coxiella burnetii), tularemia (Freud's disease), foot-and-mouth disease, and glanders (Bacillus mallei). These include heartwater disease (Caudria ruminantium), Japanese encephalitis, melioidosis (Bacillus pseudomallei), New World screwworm (New World screwworm), Old World screwworm (Old World screwworm), pseudorabies (Aujeszky's disease), rabies, Rift Valley fever, rinderpest, scrapie, surviving sura disease (Trypathoma evansi), trichomoniasis (Trichomonas fetus), trichinellosis (Trichina spiralis), and vesicular stomatitis. Additionally, the EID button can be used as a visual identification for any future emerging viruses / diseases identified by the USDA or other government agencies.

Claims

1. An identification button tag for tagging and identifying vaccinated cattle, a shell having a disk-like shape and a central opening therethrough; a transponder having a receiver and a transmitter and disposed within the shell; a male punch having a disc-shaped punch body and a stem extending distally from a center of the punch body, the stem having a head at a distal end thereof configured to be irreversibly inserted into the central opening, a mounting opening formed through the punch body, and a mounting channel extending coaxially within the stem distally from the mounting opening; a vaccination identification button having a disc-shaped visual identifier and an attachment stem extending distally from a center of the visual identifier, the attachment stem configured to be inserted into the attachment channel; Equipped with the punch body being predominantly colored a first color and the visual identifier being predominantly colored a second color, the first color and the second color being different such that the visual identifier provides visual identification of a vaccinated bovine head; Identification button tag.

2. The identification button tag of claim 1 , wherein the first color and the second color are different base colors or combinations of base colors.

3. The identification button tag of claim 1 , wherein the first color and the second color are different shades of the same base color or combination of base colors.

4. The identification button tag of claim 1 , wherein the second color is orange.

5. The identification button tag of claim 1 , wherein the mounting stem includes at least one protruding rib.

6. The identification button tag of claim 5 , wherein the at least one protruding rib extends circumferentially around the mounting stem.

7. 6. The identification button tag of claim 5, wherein the at least one protruding rib is a Belleville washer shape extending proximally from an inner edge bounding the mounting stem to an outer free edge.

8. The identification button tag of claim 7 , wherein the mounting stem terminates distally in a tapered end, and a plurality of projecting ribs are disposed along the mounting stem proximal to the tapered end.

9. an identification button tag for tagging and identifying vaccinated cattle; a tubular applicator; Equipped with The button tag is a shell having a central opening; a transponder disposed within the shell; a male punch having a disc-shaped punch body and a stem extending distally from the punch body, the stem having a head at its distal end configured to be irreversibly inserted into the central opening, a mounting opening formed through the punch body, and a mounting channel extending coaxially along the stem from the mounting opening distally; a vaccination identification button having a disc-shaped visual identifier and an attachment stem extending distally from said visual identifier, said attachment stem configured to be inserted into said attachment channel; Including, the punch body being predominantly colored a first color and the visual identifier being predominantly colored a second color, the first color and the second color being different such that the visual identifier provides visual identification of a vaccinated bovine head; the tubular applicator having a first open end and a reduced diameter portion adjacent the first open end, the first open end having an inner diameter configured to closely receive the visual identifier, the mounting stem extending outwardly from the visual identifier, and the reduced diameter portion limiting insertion of the visual identifier into the tubular applicator. kit.

10. 10. A method of tagging each of said cattle, each tagged with an identification button tag according to claim 1, to identify said cattle as vaccinated, comprising: providing a vaccination identification button having a disc-shaped visual identifier; Identifying the bovine head as having been vaccinated; Fixing the vaccination identification button to the button tag of the identified bovine head so that the vaccination identification button is visually recognizable from a position along the identified bovine head, wherein the button tag is predominantly colored a first color and the visual identifier is predominantly colored a second color, the first color and the second color being different; Including, method.

11. The method of claim 10 , wherein the first and second colors are different base colors or combinations of base colors.

12. The method of claim 10 , wherein the first and second colors are different shades of the same base color or combinations of base colors.

13. The method of claim 10, wherein the second color is orange.

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