Method and system for managing pasture on basis of information on behavior of entity

Abstract

According to one aspect of the present invention, provided is a method for managing a pasture on the basis of information on a behavior of an entity, the method comprising the steps of: acquiring information on a behavior of an entity and information on the location of the entity; and generating information on pasture management on the basis of the information on the behavior and the information on the location.

Description

Method and system for managing pastures based on information about the behavior of individuals

[0001] The present invention relates to a method and system for managing pastures based on information about the behavior of individuals.

[0002] When raising livestock such as cattle in a grazing environment, grass from the pasture is mainly used as feed for the livestock.

[0003] If livestock continue to graze in areas with limited grass, their feed intake will decrease, leading to nutritional deficiencies and reduced productivity. Furthermore, continued grazing in areas with limited grass will lead to livestock consuming the roots of the grass, preventing further growth. This lack of grass growth will lead to the loss of pasture and the drying out of the soil, ultimately leading to soil health problems. Indiscriminate grazing, such as grazing livestock in one area for extended periods, can harm soil health, making it difficult for plants to grow there, and ultimately contributing to the acceleration of soil desertification.

[0004] Therefore, proper pasture management is necessary to prevent the aforementioned problems. While managers can visually observe and manage pasture conditions when grazing livestock in a specific location for short periods of time, when livestock are allowed to roam freely all day, the livestock consume grass in a wide area, making it difficult for managers to directly assess the condition of the pasture.

[0005] Accordingly, the inventor(s) of the present invention propose a technology that supports efficient management of pastures based on information about the behavior of individuals and information about the location of individuals.

[0006] The purpose of the present invention is to solve all of the problems of the above-mentioned prior art.

[0007] In addition, another purpose of the present invention is to support efficient management of pastures based on information about the behavior of individuals and information about the location of individuals.

[0008] In addition, another purpose of the present invention is to support pasture management without requiring pasture managers to visually observe the pasture situation by using information such as the amount of grass, the length of grass, the type of grass (grass species), etc. estimated through behavior monitoring of the individual, and information regarding the location of the individual.

[0009] A representative configuration of the present invention to achieve the above purpose is as follows.

[0010] According to one aspect of the present invention, a method is provided, comprising the steps of obtaining information about the behavior of an individual and information about the location of the individual, and the step of generating information about pasture management based on the information about the behavior and the information about the location.

[0011] According to another aspect of the present invention, a system is provided, including an information acquisition unit that acquires information on the behavior of an object and information on the location of the object, and a pasture management unit that generates information on pasture management based on the information on the behavior and the information on the location.

[0012] In addition, a non-transitory computer-readable recording medium recording another method for implementing the present invention, another system, and a computer program for executing the method are further provided.

[0013] According to the present invention, it is possible to support efficient management of pastures based on information about the behavior of individuals and information about the location of individuals.

[0014] In addition, according to the present invention, by using information such as the amount of grass, the length of grass, the type of grass, etc. estimated through behavior monitoring of the individual, and information regarding the location of the individual, it is possible to support pasture management without the pasture manager having to visually observe the pasture situation.

[0015] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing the overall configuration of a system for managing pastures based on information about the behavior of an individual according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0016] FIG. 2 is a drawing showing in detail the internal configuration of a pasture management system according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0017] FIGS. 3 and 4 are diagrams exemplifying a process for acquiring information about an individual's behavior according to one embodiment of the present invention. Specifically, FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a behavioral pattern signal when a cow grazes short grass, and FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a behavioral pattern signal when a cow grazes long grass.

[0018] Figure 5 is a diagram illustrating a process for managing pastures according to one embodiment of the present invention. Specifically, Figure 5 illustrates an example screen of an application related to the location / time screen and notifications of individuals grazing short grass.

[0019] Figures 6 and 7 are diagrams exemplifying a process for analyzing information regarding an object's behavior according to one embodiment of the present invention. Here, Figure 7 may be an enlarged view of data from a section associated with the grazing time of Figure 6.

[0020] The following detailed description of the present invention refers to the accompanying drawings, which illustrate specific embodiments in which the present invention may be practiced. These embodiments are described in sufficient detail to enable those skilled in the art to practice the present invention. It should be understood that the various embodiments of the present invention, while different from each other, are not necessarily mutually exclusive. For example, specific shapes, structures, and characteristics described herein may be modified and implemented from one embodiment to another without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. Furthermore, it should be understood that the positions or arrangements of individual components within each embodiment may also be modified without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. Accordingly, the following detailed description is not to be taken in a limiting sense, and the scope of the present invention is to be construed to encompass the scope of the claims and all equivalents thereof. Like reference numerals in the drawings represent the same or similar elements throughout the several aspects.

[0021] Hereinafter, various preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the attached drawings so that a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the present invention pertains can easily practice the present invention.

[0022] Although the present disclosure primarily focuses on embodiments of a pasture management system for monitoring the behavior of cattle, it should be understood that the pasture management system of the present invention can also be applied to monitoring the behavior of other organisms, such as horses and pigs.

[0023] Composition of the entire system

[0024] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing the overall configuration of a system for managing pastures based on information about the behavior of an individual according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0025] As illustrated in FIG. 1, the entire system according to one embodiment of the present invention may include a communication network (100), a pasture management system (200), a sensor (300), and a device (400).

[0026] First, the communication network (100) according to one embodiment of the present invention can be configured regardless of the communication mode such as wired communication or wireless communication, and can be configured with various communication networks such as a local area network (LAN), a metropolitan area network (MAN), and a wide area network (WAN). Preferably, the communication network (100) referred to herein may be the well-known Internet or the World Wide Web (WWW). However, the communication network (100) is not necessarily limited thereto, and may include at least a portion of a well-known wired or wireless data communication network, a well-known telephone network, or a well-known wired or wireless television communication network.

[0027] For example, the communication network (100) may be a wireless data communication network that implements conventional communication methods such as WiFi communication, WiFi-Direct communication, Long Term Evolution (LTE) communication, 5G communication, Bluetooth communication (including Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) communication), infrared communication, ultrasonic communication, etc., at least in part. As another example, the communication network (100) may be an optical communication network that implements conventional communication methods such as LiFi (Light Fidelity), etc., at least in part.

[0028] Meanwhile, the communication network (100) according to one embodiment of the present invention may be composed of two or more types of communication networks. For example, the communication network between the pasture management system (200) and the device (400) may be a high-speed wireless communication network such as LTE communication or 5G communication, or a wired communication network, and the communication network between the pasture management system (200) and the sensor (300) may be an LPWAN (Low Power Wide Area Network) such as LoRaWAN, SIGFOX, LTE-MTC, or Narrowband Internet of Things (NB-IoT).

[0029] However, the configuration of the communication network (100) according to one embodiment of the present invention is not limited to that described above, and may be variously changed within the scope that can achieve the purpose of the present invention.

[0030] Next, the pasture management system (200) according to one embodiment of the present invention can perform a function of obtaining information about the behavior of an object and information about the location of the object, and generating information about pasture management based on the obtained information.

[0031] The configuration and function of the pasture management system (200) according to the present invention will be described in detail below.

[0032] Next, a sensor (300) according to an embodiment of the present invention is a digital device that includes a function for communicating after being connected to a pasture management system (200), and may include a known 6-axis angular velocity / acceleration sensor. Accordingly, the acceleration and angular velocity (i.e., the rate of inclination in a certain direction) of the X-axis, Y-axis, and Z-axis can be measured by the sensor (300). Furthermore, the angular acceleration may be measured together with or instead of the angular velocity. Such a sensor (300) may be worn or inserted into a part of the body of an individual (e.g., a mother cow or calf) (e.g., the neck of the mother cow or calf). However, there is no particular limitation on the type of the sensor (300) according to an embodiment of the present invention and the position at which the sensor (300) is worn or inserted, and may be variously changed within a range that can achieve the purpose of the present invention. For example, a sensor (300) according to one embodiment of the present invention may include a type of sensor other than an angular velocity and acceleration sensor, and may be inserted into the body of an object (e.g., a mother cow or calf).

[0033] In particular, the sensor (300) according to one embodiment of the present invention may include an application (not shown) that supports a user to receive services such as pasture management from the pasture management system (200). Such an application may be downloaded from the pasture management system (200) or an external application distribution server (not shown). Meanwhile, the nature of such an application may be generally similar to the information acquisition unit (210), pasture management unit (220), communication unit (230), and control unit (240) of the pasture management system (200) as described below. Here, at least a part of the application may be replaced with a hardware device or firmware device that can perform functions substantially identical to or equivalent thereto, as necessary.

[0034] Next, a device (400) according to one embodiment of the present invention is a digital device that includes a function for communicating after connecting to a pasture management system (200), and any digital device that has a memory means, a microprocessor, and a computing capability, such as a smart phone, a tablet, a smart watch, a smart band, smart glasses, a desktop computer, a notebook computer, a workstation, a PDA, a web pad, a mobile phone, etc., can be adopted as the device (400) according to the present invention.

[0035] In particular, the device (400) may include an application (not shown) that supports the user to receive services such as pasture management from the pasture management system (200). Such an application may be downloaded from the pasture management system (200) or an external application distribution server (not shown). Meanwhile, the nature of such an application may be generally similar to the information acquisition unit (210), pasture management unit (220), communication unit (230), and control unit (240) of the pasture management system (200), which will be described later. Here, at least a portion of the application may be replaced with a hardware device or firmware device that can perform functions substantially identical to or equivalent thereto, as necessary.

[0036] Composition of pasture management system (200)

[0037] Below, the internal configuration and functions of each component of the pasture management system (200) that performs important functions for implementing the present invention will be examined.

[0038] FIG. 2 is a drawing showing in detail the internal configuration of a pasture management system (200) according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0039] As illustrated in FIG. 2, a pasture management system (200) according to one embodiment of the present invention may be configured to include an information acquisition unit (210), a pasture management unit (220), a communication unit (230), and a control unit (240). According to one embodiment of the present invention, at least some of the information acquisition unit (210), the pasture management unit (220), the communication unit (230), and the control unit (240) may be program modules that communicate with an external system (not shown). These program modules may be included in the pasture management system (200) in the form of an operating system, an application program module, or other program modules, and may be physically stored in various known memory devices. In addition, these program modules may be stored in a remote memory device that can communicate with the pasture management system (200). Meanwhile, these program modules include, but are not limited to, routines, subroutines, programs, objects, components, data structures, etc. that perform specific tasks or execute specific abstract data types, which will be described later, according to the present invention.

[0040] Meanwhile, although the pasture management system (200) has been described as above, this description is exemplary, and it is obvious to those skilled in the art that at least some of the components or functions of the pasture management system (200) may be realized within a device (300) or a server (not shown) or included within an external system (not shown) as needed.

[0041] First, the information acquisition unit (210) according to one embodiment of the present invention can perform a function of acquiring information about the behavior of an object and information about the location of the object.

[0042] Specifically, the information acquisition unit (210) according to one embodiment of the present invention can acquire information about the behavior of an object by estimating the behavior of the object using sensor data measured by a sensor (300) for the object.

[0043] For example, FIGS. 3 and 4 according to one embodiment of the present invention are diagrams exemplifying a process for acquiring information regarding the behavior of an individual. Specifically, FIG. 3 is a diagram relating to a behavioral pattern signal when a cow grazes short grass, and FIG. 4 is a diagram relating to a behavioral pattern signal when a cow grazes long grass. Here, the behavioral pattern signal of the individual is not limited to the examples illustrated above, and may be varied in various ways within a scope that can achieve the purpose of the present invention.

[0044] Meanwhile, information about the behavior of an individual according to one embodiment of the present invention may include information about the individual's grazing behavior (behavioral pattern), walking behavior (behavioral pattern), drinking behavior (behavioral pattern), activity level, etc. In particular, according to one embodiment of the present invention, information about the grazing behavior (behavioral pattern) may include information about the grazing time, grazing intensity, number of chewings, head lowering or raising behavior, number of steps taken during the grazing behavior, etc.

[0045] For example, FIGS. 6 and 7 according to one embodiment of the present invention are diagrams exemplifying a process of analyzing information regarding an object's behavior. Here, FIG. 7 may be an enlarged diagram of data in a section associated with the grazing time of FIG. 6.

[0046] Specifically, FIG. 6 is a diagram showing the time (211) that an individual grazes in a pasture during 24 hours, and FIG. 7 is a diagram showing information about the section (212) that an individual grazes, the intensity of grazing (213), the direction of the individual's head (214), the time (215) that the individual walks without grazing, and the time (216) that the individual walks during the grazing behavior by enlarging a specific section of the section shown in FIG. 6. Here, it is to be noted that each piece of information (211 to 216) included in the data regarding the individual's behavior is not limited to the examples described above, and may be changed in any way within a scope that can achieve the purpose of the present invention.

[0047] Meanwhile, the information acquisition unit (210) according to one embodiment of the present invention can acquire information regarding the location of the object based on a GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System) receiver that can be coupled to a sensor (300) for the object. Here, the receiver that can be coupled to the sensor for the object is not limited to the above-described content and can be varied in any way within the scope that can achieve the purpose of the present invention.

[0048] Next, the pasture management unit (220) according to one embodiment of the present invention can perform a function of generating information regarding pasture management based on information regarding the behavior of an individual and information regarding the location of the individual.

[0049] Specifically, the pasture management unit (220) according to one embodiment of the present invention can estimate the length of grass existing at the current location of an individual based on information regarding the degree (angle) of the head bowed and the grazing time, and can also estimate the toughness of the grass based on the intensity with which the individual grazes, and based on this, can estimate the type or condition of the grass. Furthermore, the information estimated in this way can be used to generate information regarding pasture management.

[0050] Furthermore, the pasture management unit (220) according to one embodiment of the present invention can estimate the amount of grass existing in the location where the individual is currently located based on information about the grazing time (211) and the number of chewings, and can also estimate the density and condition of the grass by referring to information about the individual's grazing behavior (e.g., grazing time, grazing intensity, number of chewings, information about the behavior of lowering or raising the head, and the number of steps taken during the grazing behavior). However, the information about the individual's grazing behavior according to one embodiment of the present invention is not limited to the above-exemplified contents and may be variously changed within the scope that can achieve the purpose of the present invention.

[0051] Meanwhile, FIG. 5 according to one embodiment of the present invention is a diagram exemplarily showing a process of managing a pasture. Specifically, FIG. 5 illustrates an example screen of an application regarding the location / time screen and notification of individuals grazing short grass. Here, in response to an individual grazing short grass according to one embodiment of the present invention, a user can receive a screen and notification regarding the location / time of individuals grazing short grass through the device (400) as illustrated in FIG. 5. However, the screen and notification function transmitted to the device (400) according to one embodiment of the present invention are not limited to the above-described contents and may be varied in any way within the scope that can achieve the purpose of the present invention.

[0052] Additionally, the pasture management unit (220) according to one embodiment of the present invention can determine whether individuals are grazing in areas and / or regions where grazing is prohibited due to land degradation based on information regarding the locations of individuals by time and / or date and information regarding the grazing behavior of individuals. In addition, in response to determining that individuals are grazing in areas and / or regions where grazing is prohibited, a notification is provided to a device (400) used by a user, thereby preventing further damage to the pasture.

[0053] Meanwhile, users of the device (400) according to one embodiment of the present invention are not limited to individuals engaged in simple grazing, and may be varied as necessary to achieve the purpose of the present invention. For example, users according to one embodiment of the present invention may be farmers who wish to maximize the breeding environment through fertile pasture management, nomads who sustain their livestock by moving their livestock, or governments or national organizations that seek to manage pastures and prevent desertification on a national level.

[0054] Furthermore, according to one embodiment of the present invention, a user can utilize the pasture management system (200) to track changes in regional grazing environments due to climate change on an international level, monitor regional climate data and grazing environments, and track and manage the pasture environment based on this. For example, in areas where desertification is occurring or has occurred, information regarding individual water intake patterns and locations can be utilized to estimate whether water continues to exist in areas where water previously existed, and whether water has been created in areas where water previously did not exist.

[0055] Next, the communication unit (230) according to one embodiment of the present invention can perform a function that enables data transmission and reception from / to the information acquisition unit (210) and the pasture management unit (220).

[0056] Finally, the control unit (240) according to one embodiment of the present invention can perform a function of controlling the flow of data between the information acquisition unit (210), the pasture management unit (220), and the communication unit (230). That is, the control unit (240) according to one embodiment of the present invention can control the flow of data from / to the outside of the pasture management system (200) or the flow of data between each component of the pasture management system (200), thereby controlling the information acquisition unit (210), the pasture management unit (220), and the communication unit (230) to perform their respective unique functions.

[0057] The embodiments of the present invention described above may be implemented in the form of program commands that can be executed through various computer components and recorded on a computer-readable recording medium. The computer-readable recording medium may include program commands, data files, data structures, etc., either singly or in combination. The program commands recorded on the computer-readable recording medium may be specially designed and configured for the present invention or may be known and available to those skilled in the art of computer software. Examples of computer-readable recording media include magnetic media such as hard disks, floppy disks, and magnetic tapes, optical recording media such as CD-ROMs and DVDs, magneto-optical media such as floptical disks, and hardware devices specifically configured to store and execute program commands, such as ROMs, RAMs, and flash memories. Examples of program commands include not only machine language codes generated by a compiler, but also high-level language codes that can be executed by a computer using an interpreter, etc. Hardware devices may be changed into one or more software modules to perform processing according to the present invention, and vice versa.

[0058] Although the present invention has been described above with specific details such as specific components and limited examples and drawings, these are provided only to help a more general understanding of the present invention, and the present invention is not limited to the above examples, and those with ordinary knowledge in the technical field to which the present invention pertains can make various modifications and changes based on this description.

[0059] Therefore, the idea of ​​the present invention should not be limited to the embodiments described above, and not only the scope of the patent claims described below but also all scopes equivalent to or equivalently modified from the scope of the patent claims are considered to fall within the scope of the idea of ​​the present invention.

Claims

1. A method for managing pastures based on information about the behavior of individuals, A step of obtaining information about the behavior of an object and information about the location of the object, and A step of generating information on pasture management based on information on the above-mentioned behavior and information on the above-mentioned location. method.

2. In paragraph 1, In the above acquisition step, information about the behavior of the object is acquired by estimating the behavior of the object using sensor data measured by a sensor for the object. method.

3. In paragraph 2, Information about the behavior of the above object may include at least one of information about the grazing behavior of the above object, information about the walking behavior, information about the drinking behavior, and information about the amount of activity, and information about the grazing behavior may include at least one of information about the grazing time, information about the grazing intensity, information about the number of chewings, information about the head-lowering behavior, information about the head-raising behavior, and information about the number of steps during the grazing behavior. method.

4. In paragraph 1, In the above acquisition step, information about the location of the object is acquired based on a receiver that can be coupled to a sensor for the object. method.

5. In paragraph 1, In the above generation step, the length of grass existing at the location where the individual is currently located is estimated based on at least one of the degree to which the individual bows its head and the information about the individual's grazing time, and the strength of the individual's grazing is estimated based on at least one of the information about the individual's grazing intensity and the information about the number of times the individual chews, and based on this, at least one of the type of grass and the state of the grass is estimated. method.

6. In paragraph 1, In the above generation step, the amount of grass existing in the location where the individual is currently located is estimated by referring to at least one of information about the individual's grazing behavior and information about the number of times the individual has chewed, and at least one of the density of grass existing in the specific area and the state of grass is estimated by referring to information about the individual's grazing behavior in the specific area. method.

7. In paragraph 1, In the above generation step, based on at least one of information about the behavior of the object and information about the location of the object over time, it is determined whether the object is grazing in an area where grazing is not allowed, and in response to determining that the object is grazing in an area where grazing is not allowed, a notification is sent to the user. method.

8. A non-transitory computer-readable recording medium recording a computer program for executing the method according to paragraph 1.

9. A system for managing pastures based on information about the behavior of individuals, An information acquisition unit that acquires information about the behavior of an object and information about the location of the object, and Including a pasture management unit that generates information on pasture management based on information on the above-mentioned behavior and information on the above-mentioned location. System.

10. In paragraph 9, The above information acquisition unit acquires information about the behavior of the object by estimating the behavior of the object using sensor data measured by a sensor for the object. System.

11. In paragraph 10, Information about the behavior of the above object may include at least one of information about the grazing behavior of the above object, information about the walking behavior, information about the drinking behavior, and information about the amount of activity, and information about the grazing behavior may include at least one of information about the grazing time, information about the grazing intensity, information about the number of chewings, information about the head-lowering behavior, information about the head-raising behavior, and information about the number of steps during the grazing behavior. System.

12. In paragraph 9, The above information acquisition unit acquires information about the location of the object based on a receiver that can be coupled to a sensor for the object. System.

13. In paragraph 9, The above-mentioned pasture management unit estimates the length of grass existing at the location where the individual is currently located based on at least one of the degree to which the individual bows its head and the information on the individual's grazing time, estimates the strength of the grass based on at least one of the information on the individual's grazing intensity and the information on the individual's chewing frequency, and estimates at least one of the type of grass and the condition of the grass based on this. System.

14. In paragraph 9, The above-mentioned pasture management unit estimates the amount of grass existing at the location where the individual is currently located by referring to at least one of information on the individual's grazing behavior and information on the number of times the individual has chewed, and estimates at least one of the density of grass existing in the specific area and the condition of grass by referring to information on the individual's grazing behavior in the specific area. System.

15. In paragraph 9, The above-mentioned pasture management unit determines whether the individual is grazing in an area where grazing is prohibited based on at least one of information about the individual's behavior and information about the individual's location over time, and in response to determining that the individual is grazing in an area where grazing is prohibited, transmits a notification to the user. System.

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