Automated Animal Population Tracking Across Physical and Virtual Stations

Solution Overview

Problem

Existing systems lack an efficient method to trace animal populations across multiple physically separate and virtual locations, ensuring compliance with regulatory requirements and identifying physical encounters between animals, which is crucial for disease control and compliance monitoring.

Innovation Solution

A system comprising identification devices, readers, and a data repository that tracks animal movements and virtual station visits, enabling real-time or near-real-time tracing and compliance checking through unique animal identifiers and location change records.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Measurement precision

If manual tracking methods are used to monitor animal locations, then system complexity is reduced, but tracing accuracy and real-time monitoring capability deteriorate

Engineering Contradiction:

Core Design Contradiction:

Measurement precisionVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The identification device readers are designed to serve multiple functions: they not only track animal locations but also monitor virtual station visits, record timestamps, and generate compliance data. This multi-functionality improves tracing accuracy without proportionally increasing system complexity.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

Solution Approach 2:

The system automatically records animal movements and station visits without requiring manual intervention. The readers autonomously capture identification data and the processing circuitry automatically generates location change records, eliminating the need for manual tracking while maintaining high accuracy.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #25Self-service

2Reliability

If comprehensive location tracking is implemented across all physically separate locations, then disease outbreak tracing capability is improved, but loss of time and resources for data collection increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The system pre-establishes identification devices on animals and readers at all locations before disease outbreaks occur. This preliminary setup ensures that when outbreaks happen, tracking data is already available immediately, eliminating the need for rushed data collection and reducing time loss.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The tracking system operates continuously and automatically, maintaining constant monitoring of animal locations and station visits. This continuous operation ensures that disease tracing data is always available without requiring additional time investment during outbreaks.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #20Continuity of useful action

3Adaptability or versatility

If virtual stations are integrated into the tracking system, then compliance monitoring capability is improved, but device complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Core Design Contradiction:

Adaptability or versatilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

Inventive Principle:

Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

Solution Approach 2:

The system merges physical location tracking with virtual station monitoring into a unified tracking framework. Both physical locations and virtual stations use the same identification device readers and data repository, consolidating infrastructure and reducing overall system complexity despite enhanced functionality.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #5Merging (Combining)

4Productivity

If real-time location change records are generated for all animals, then productivity of disease tracing is improved, but use of energy and computational resources increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Core Design Contradiction:

ProductivityVSUse of energy by moving object

Solution Approach 1:

The system extracts only the essential data elements needed for disease tracing: animal identification, location changes, timestamps, and virtual station visits. By focusing on these critical data points and excluding unnecessary information, the system maintains high tracing productivity while reducing computational energy consumption.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

Data Source

PatentUS20250272520A1System and method for tracing members of an animal population

Publication Date: 2025.08.28

AI summary

A system for tracing members of an animal population throughout a process including moving at least some of the members, between (a) a plurality of physically separate locations and (b) one or more virtual stations, in a given order, the system comprising: a data repository comprising one or more location change records; and a processing circuitry configured to perform at least one of the following: analyze the data repository to check compliance of a subset of the animal population with a population compliance goal, wherein the subset comprising a plurality of the members; or (i) obtain a population indication request, requesting indications of the members that meet a criterion, (ii) analyze the data repository to identify the members that meet the criterion, and (iii) provide an indication of the members that meet the criterion.