Air Chamber Position Detection in Avian Eggshell
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current methods for determining the sex of chicken embryos in eggs are often invasive, damaging the eggshell and reducing hatching success, and are not robust against varying shell colors or light conditions, posing challenges in industrial poultry production.
Innovation Solution
A method and device using a thermal imaging camera or other sensor technologies to determine the position of the air chamber in the eggshell, allowing for precise processing without damaging the inner membrane, and enabling reliable sex determination regardless of shell color or light conditions.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If a hole is formed in the calcareous shell outside the air chamber area to determine sex, then sex determination can be performed, but the inner membrane is damaged and hatching success is significantly reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The invention extracts only the necessary information (air chamber position) through non-contact optical detection, eliminating the need to physically penetrate the eggshell. The air chamber position is detected by analyzing light transmission patterns through the shell, allowing subsequent processing to be precisely targeted without damaging the inner membrane.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention introduces optical detection as an intermediary method to determine air chamber position without direct contact with the egg contents. Light serves as the mediator that transmits information about the air chamber location through the shell, enabling indirect measurement that preserves the integrity of the inner membrane.
2Object-affected harmful factors
If light transmission methods are used to detect air chamber position, then non-contact detection is possible, but the method becomes sensitive to shell color variations and pigment spots
Solution Approach 1:
The invention compensates for shell color variations by using a camera to capture the actual color of each eggshell and adjusting the evaluation algorithm accordingly. The system detects pigment spots and color gradients, then adapts the light transmission analysis to account for these variations, ensuring reliable air chamber position determination regardless of shell appearance.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention implements feedback by using the captured image information about shell color and pigment distribution to adjust the evaluation process. The system continuously monitors the optical properties of the shell and modifies its detection algorithm based on the specific characteristics of each egg, improving robustness against color variations.
3Measurement precision
If manual or visual sex determination is performed after hatching, then sex identification can be done, but ethical concerns arise from killing male day-old chicks
Solution Approach 1:
The invention performs sex determination before hatching by detecting the air chamber position and enabling targeted opening of the eggshell at the blunt pole. This preliminary action allows for non-invasive or minimally invasive sex identification methods to be applied to the developing embryo, avoiding the need to kill male chicks after hatching and addressing ethical concerns while maintaining breeding efficiency.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Enables precise and non-invasive determination of the air chamber position, allowing for targeted processing of the eggshell, reducing embryo damage and improving hatching success, while being robust to different shell colors and light conditions.
Implementation Method 1
capturing an image of the bird's egg using a thermal imaging camera
Data Source
Figure 1~2
Figure 3~4
Figure 5~6
AI summary
To process a calcareous shell (3) of a bird's egg containing an embryo, the position of an air chamber (7), located between an inner membrane (6) and an outer membrane (5) of the bird's egg in the region of the blunt pole (4), is determined. For this purpose, an image of the bird's egg is captured using a sensor device (11), whose output signal or output data is essentially independent of the color of the calcareous shell (3), and the image is evaluated to determine the position of the air chamber (7). A processing device (14) is then controlled to process the calcareous shell (3) in the region of the blunt pole (4) depending on the position of the air chamber (7) determined by evaluating the image.