Livestock Position Tracking via Relay Network and Sensor Data
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Solution Overview
Problem
Livestock breeders face challenges in efficiently identifying and providing individualized care to specific animals within a group, as existing methods lack precision and efficiency in locating animals based on health conditions or behaviors.
Innovation Solution
A management apparatus and system that utilizes sensor devices worn by livestock to detect biological information and communicate with relay apparatuses, which transmit data to a control unit to generate search information for guiding a mobile object to the location of animals meeting predetermined conditions, such as health or behavioral criteria.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If sensor devices with GPS systems are worn by livestock to track position, then position tracking precision is improved, but device complexity and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces relay apparatus as an intermediary component that receives position information from sensor devices and forwards it to the management apparatus. This mediator architecture allows the sensor devices to function with simpler components while maintaining overall system tracking precision through the relay network's coordination
Solution Approach 2:
The system divides the tracking function into separate modular components: sensor devices for data collection, relay apparatus for data transmission, and management apparatus for data processing. This segmentation allows each component to be optimized independently, reducing the complexity burden on individual devices while maintaining system-wide precision
2Measurement precision
If sensor devices with GPS systems are worn by livestock to track position, then position tracking precision is improved, but manufacturing cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
The relay apparatus serves as a cost-distribution intermediary, allowing the system to achieve precise tracking through coordinated simple devices rather than expensive GPS-equipped devices on each animal. The relay infrastructure shares the computational and communication burden, reducing per-unit manufacturing costs
Solution Approach 2:
The sensor devices are designed as inexpensive, simple units that can be easily manufactured and replaced if needed. By offloading complex processing to the relay and management apparatus, the wearable sensor devices become low-cost components suitable for large-scale deployment on livestock
3Ease of operation
If manual search methods are used to locate specific livestock, then ease of operation is maintained, but productivity and time efficiency deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The system enables self-service operation where the management apparatus automatically identifies and locates livestock meeting predetermined conditions without requiring manual search efforts. The automated notification system sends position information directly to breeders, eliminating the need for time-consuming manual searching while maintaining operational simplicity
Solution Approach 2:
The system implements continuous feedback loops where sensor devices monitor livestock conditions, the management apparatus processes data to identify animals meeting specific conditions, and position information is fed back to breeders for immediate action. This feedback mechanism dramatically improves productivity by providing real-time, actionable information without manual intervention
4Productivity
If automated individual identification system is implemented, then productivity is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The automated identification system is segmented into three simple functional units: sensor devices for condition monitoring, relay apparatus for communication, and management apparatus for analysis. This segmentation distributes complexity across the system architecture rather than concentrating it in individual wearable devices, maintaining productivity while managing device complexity
Solution Approach 2:
The relay apparatus acts as an intermediary that handles complex communication and data transmission tasks, allowing the wearable sensor devices to remain simple. The mediator absorbs the complexity of system coordination while enabling automated individual identification and location tracking across the livestock population
Data Source
AI summary
To provide a management apparatus capable of capturing a position of a specific individual satisfying a predetermined condition. A management apparatus according to an embodiment of the present technology includes a control unit. The control unit extracts, on the basis of first information that is generated by a sensor device worn by an individual and is related to a living body of the individual, a specific individual satisfying a predetermined condition, and generates, on the basis of position information related to a position of the specific individual, search information for causing a mobile object to move to the position of the specific individual.