HEALTH MONITORING AND TRACKING SYSTEM FOR ANIMALS
Technical Field
The present invention relates to a health monitoring and tracking system for animals and especially for livestock. The said system provides for the measurement, registration and real- time (on-line) and/or off-line tracking of multiple animal health parameters and transmission of the data, and if a value other than the predetermined limit values is determined, the system can send a warning signal to the user and the sensor parameter values can be measured instantaneously when desired. Background of the Invention
Knowing and/or constantly monitoring the animal's health status in animals and especially in edible livestock animals increases the economic efficiency of commercial enterprises and significantly reduces their losses. In addition, knowing and following the health status has a vital value in the prevention and follow-up of infectious diseases that threaten a member of the flock or the whole flock, or even the livestock of the whole country on a larger scale, at a possible situation.
In this respect, there is a need for a system that enables efficient simultaneous tracking of a number of important parameters that allow monitoring health status of livestock animals.
Increases in the body heat in livestock animals are the first and most important indication of the outbreaks of particularly infectious diseases or epidemics that can affect the individual or the whole flock. In almost all infectious diseases, there is an increase in body temperature (fever) first before any other clinical indication of the disease. For this reason, body temperature is a very important parameter that shows the health status of flock animals.
Fever is actually a defense system of the living organism and it is an indication of a pathological condition that indicates that the natural defense system of the organism, when a certain degree of body temperature, which is at certain intervals for each species of animal, exceeds its power to eliminate the disease agent or agents in the body.
The body temperature maintains a high level above normal, until the animal is treated and/or the animal’s own immune system wins the fight, and such a condition is called fever. It is directly related to the early learning of the diseases, the prevention or treatment time, and the economic value of the treatment. So the later the treatment is started, the higher the cost. For these reasons, monitoring the body heat of any animal belonging to the flock provides early treatment of the disease, as well as making it easier to intervene on time, preventing the spread of the disease to the other members of the flock. Thus, in case of a lethal and highly contagious disease -many of the infectious diseases in this species have this characteristic-, wasting the entire flock and serious economic losses will be avoided.
In the state of the art, there is no system or mechanism to measure multiple health parameters such as body temperature, heart rate, respiratory rate, and Sp02- environmental oxygen saturation and physical activity of animals, especially in livestock animals. Furthermore, by evaluating the parameter values obtained in the result of the measurements made, there is no non-invasive wearable method that allows identification of the animal's health status, pre-detection of many diseases, continuous follow-up of the health conditions, physiological and pathological parameters by detecting bovine respiratory disease such as BRD, some symptoms such as cough etc. at earlier stages, even at the first stage.
While there are some products in the area that allow you to monitor some health parameters, the current products do not allow to monitor the number of breaths, body temperature, heart rate, Sp02-oxygen saturation and physical activity in farm animals, including multiple parameters. For example it is measured in animals by a device which is called pedometer or activity meter in animals and which counts the daily steps of the animals, especially the livestock, or which contains daily calorie accelerometers and usually is hung on the animal's feet or neck. The parameters obtained by this method are generally used to determine the heat of female animals.
In the known state of the art, similar systems have been proposed which measure and follow the body heat of the animals. One of these is an animal management system disclosed in the utility model CN203552280 (U). The system comprises an electronic tag, a step counter fixed to the body of the animal, a receiver antenna, a reader, a reader-writer, a driver and a mobile terminal; wherein an electronic tag contains an active electronic tag and a passive electronic tag. The receiving antenna receives the signals of the active electronic tag and the step counter sends the sensor signals to the reader for reading. The read signals are sent to the server for display. Signals from the server are sent to the mobile terminal via a wireless network. The reader-writer reads the information from the passive electronic tag and stores it in the reader- writer's memory and transmits the signal of the memory card passive electronic tag to the server. By this way, animals that are fed in a stable are counted; and with RFID radio frequency technology, it will be possible to manage the number of animals, regions and the amount of animals' activity and to improve management efficiency by reducing the workload of the manager.
A bolus shaped heat sensor is placed in the rumen of the farm animals to monitor the body temperature of the animal. In the relevant technical field, it is also within the state of the art to monitor body temperatures by placing a temperature measurement probe, particularly in the ears of livestock. However, no such mechanism has been developed to measure multiple parameters and to alert the user when necessary and to show health status.
For this reason, the object of the present invention is to develop a non-invasive wearable device and method that allows the measurement of multiple parameters such as respiratory rate, body temperature, heart rate, Sp02-oxygen saturation and physical activity.
Brief Description of Drawings Figure 1 is a schematic view of an animal health tracking and monitoring system according to the present invention
Figure 2 is a side view of a nose unit in an animal health tracking and monitoring system according to the present invention.
Figure 3 is a rear top view of a wireless nose unit according to the present invention. Figure 4 is a side view of a wireless nose unit according to the present invention at a different angle.
Figure 5 is a side view of a wireless ear unit according to the present invention.
Figure 6 is a top side view of a wireless ear unit according to the present invention.
Figure 7 is a rear side view of a wireless ear unit according to the present invention. Figure 8 is an exploded view of the outer shield of a wireless earpiece according to the present invention on the right and on the left.
Figure 9 is a top closed view and bottom open side view of a wireless ear unit according to the present invention. Figure 10 is the view of an ear and nose unit on an animal in an animal health tracking and monitoring system according to the present invention.
Figure 11 is the view of an ear unit attached on an animal in an animal health tracking and monitoring system according to the present invention. References
1 : temperature - heat sensor 2: ear probe 3 : flexible cable section 4: RFID antenna 5: pulse oximeter sensor
6: wireless ear unit
7 : RHT (relative humidity/temperature sensor)
8: microphone and vibration 9: triaxial accelerometer 10: fisheye IP (internet protocol) camera
11 : wireless nose unit 12: RFID signal transmitter 13: RFID reader 14: computer 15: ultrasonic fly repeller
16: GPS sensor 17: LCD screen
Description of the Invention The present invention relates to a health tracking and monitoring system for animals and the said tracking and monitoring system comprises:
• a wireless ear unit (6) which comprises an RFID antenna (4) comprising a temperature- heat sensor (1), an ear probe (2) and a flexible cable section (3); and a pulse oximeter sensor (5),
• a wireless nose unit (11) comprising a relative humidity/temperature (RHT) sensor (7), a microphone and vibration sensor (8), a triaxial accelerometer (9) and a fisheye IP (internet protocol) camera (10), to determine the number of breaths,
• at least one RFID signal transmitter (12) receiving RFID signals from sensors located in said units,
• an RFID reader (13) receiving and reading RFID signals from sensors located in said units or from at least one RFID signal transmitter (12)
• at least one microprocessor to which the sensors in the respective units are connected and which reads the values sensed by the sensors,
• a computer (14) to which the data received from the RFID reader (13) is transferred and which enables to notify the user with e-mail and/or SMS by determining this data by means of the software it includes.
A health tracking and monitoring system for the animals of the present invention is shown representatively in Figure 1.
In one embodiment of the invention, the wireless nose unit (11) in the health tracking and monitoring system of the present invention may additionally comprise an ultrasonic fly repeller (15).
In another embodiment of the invention, the wireless nose unit (11) of the inventive health tracking and monitoring system may additionally include a GPS sensor (16).
In another embodiment of the invention, the wireless nose unit (11) in the inventive health tracking and monitoring system may additionally include an LCD screen (17).
In another aspect, the invention relates to a wireless nose unit (11) for use in a health tracking and monitoring system for animals and said wireless nose unit (11) comprises: a. a humidity - heat sensor (RHT (relative humidity/temperature) sensor) (7) to determine the number of breaths, b. a microphone and vibration sensor (8), c. a triaxial accelerometer (9), d. a fisheye IP (internet protocol) camera (10) and e. a microprocessor which records the data from the sensors and transmits them to an RFID signal transmitter (12) or an RFID reader (13).
In a further aspect, the invention relates to a wireless ear unit (6) for use in a health tracking and monitoring system for animals, and the said wireless ear unit comprises a. a temperature - heat sensor (1)
b. a RFID antenna (4) consisting of an ear probe (2) and a flexible cable section (3), c. a pulse oximeter sensor (5) and
d. a microprocessor which records the data from the sensors and transmits them to an RFID signal transmitter (12) or an RFID reader (13).
The animal health tracking and monitoring system of the invention and the wireless ear unit (6) used therein are shown in Figures 5-9. Figure 7 is a representative view showing the units contained in the wireless ear unit (6). The body temperature of the animal is measured by means of a temperature-heat sensor (1) contained in the wireless ear unit (6).
In one embodiment of the invention, the ear probe (2) used in the inventive system and the wireless ear unit (6) is specially designed for not moving with the movements of the animal and has a flexible cable section (3) resembling the telephone handset cable. The cable portion (3) is preferably made of a special soft silicone material.
In another embodiment of the invention, the ear probe (2) can have a temperature-heat sensor (1) at one end and a flexible cable section (3) at the other end. The temperature-heat sensor (1), the ear probe (2) and a flexible cable section (3) form an RFID (4) antenna.
In the wireless ear unit according to the invention, the RFID antenna (4) may comprise a pulse oximetry sensor (5) at another end. By means of this pulse oximetry sensor (5) located in the inner ear skin facing portion of the wireless ear unit (6) of the present invention, it is possible to measure pulse and peripheral oxygen saturation from the peripheral blood circulation of the animal. The wireless ear unit (6) is fixed to the ear with a special design that allows it to be removed and reinstalled if necessary. In Figure 8-9, the external protection required for the attachment of the wireless ear unit (6) to the ear of the animal is seen as open and closed states.
The animal health tracking and monitoring system of the present invention and the wireless nose unit 11 used therein are shown in Figures 2-4. The wireless nose unit (11) measures with RHT (relative humidity/temperature) sensor (7) to determine the number of breaths of the animal. The humidity-temperature sensor (7) gives more accurate results than the units that try to determine the number of respiration by sound in the known state of the art.
The wireless nose unit (11) according to the invention further comprises a microphone and a vibration sensor (8). Said microphone and vibration sensor makes it possible to record the voices of the animal in pathological situations and/or connect live to the wireless nose unit (11) via the internet; and allows to hear the animal’s pathological sounds such as groaning, wheezing, and breathing.
The wireless nose unit (11) of the present invention can detect the coughing of an animal with lung disease by measuring the number of breaths of the animal through sensors such as the moisture-temperature sensor (7) and the microphone and vibration sensor (8) contained therein.
The wireless nose unit (11) prepared in accordance with the present invention may further comprise a triaxial accelerometer (9). In the known state of the art, monitoring of the daily movements of the animals are made with a device attached to their feet or hung on their necks. With this method, the heat period of female animals can be followed. However, in the wireless nose unit (11) according to the present invention, the daily movement of the animal, the feeding time of the animal and other bodily movements are detected by means of the triaxial accelerometer available.
The wireless nose unit (11) of the present invention also includes a fisheye IP (internet protocol) camera (10). It is possible to monitor the general condition, appearance and posture position of the animal by getting connected live to this fish-eye IP camera (10), which is located in the wireless nose unit (11).
The wireless nose unit (11) of the present invention may further include an ultrasonic fly repeller (15), in addition to the above-mentioned sensors. In this way, it is ensured that the flies that disturb the animal are moved away from the animal. The wireless nose unit (11) of the present invention may preferably include a GPS sensor (16) in addition to the above-mentioned sensors. The position of the animal can also be monitored geographically via the GPS sensor (16).
The wireless nose unit (11) of the present invention may include an LCD screen (17) in addition to the above-mentioned sensors. By means of this LCD screen (17), the last recorded health parameters of the animal can be seen when requested.
By means of the wireless nose unit (11), which is part of the system of the invention, head movements of the animal are particularly detected, up and down movements of the head, movements of the jaw are monitored, so that chewing and ruminating movements can be measured with an extremely high accuracy.
The animal health tracking and monitoring system of the invention, beyond the systems or methods of the prior art, which helped to detect only the activity parameter and the heat state in female animals, also measures changes in body temperature in heated animals at the same time and allows the heat state to be detected with a much higher accuracy than similar methods.
The wireless ear unit (6) and wireless nose unit (11), arranged in accordance with the invention further comprises a microprocessor which records the data coming from the wireless ear unit (6) and wireless nose unit (11) and transmits them to an RFID signal transmitter (12) or an RFID reader (13). Thus, the animal health tracking and monitoring system of the invention, by means of the wireless ear unit (6) and the wireless nose unit (11) contained therein, allows periodic monitoring of respiratory rate, body temperature, body movements and, if necessary, general state of the animal, appearance and posture position by getting connected to the camera with a fisheye IP camera (10), by means of biosensors integrated into the nose and ears of especially livestock, such as cattle, cows, sheep and pigs. This system provides continuous and wireless monitoring of the animal's health status.
A health tracking and monitoring system for the animals of the invention provides for the periodic measurement of animal health and especially multiple health parameters such as the livestock body temperature, heart rate, respiratory rate and Sp02-oxygen saturation, physical activity, through non-invasive wearable biosensors. Each wireless ear unit (6) and wireless nose unit (11) can wirelessly transmit health parameters of the animal in which it is attached to with a defined ID number to an RFID signal transmitter (12) or an RFID reader (13). These measured physiological and pathological parameters are transferred to RFID signal receivers, signal transmitters, computers and servers via wireless communication methods and in particular RFID radio frequency data transmission method. The transmitted data is read, processed and interpreted via special software on the computer; and when necessary, it sends data to the person or persons who follow the health status of the animals via the internet and/or GPRS, in other words the user, by email and/or SMS.
If the obtained data exceeds the pre-determined thresholds, the inventive system warns the user. In one embodiment of the present invention, such an alarm system uses computer software generated using the Java programming language and the MySQL database application. In the inventive system, the radio signal arriving every 5-10 -15 minutes from the wireless ear (6) and the nose units (11) transmitting the active RFID signal running at the frequency of 433 MHz, receives an active RFID signal transmitter (12) and sends the signal to the active RFID reader (13). This RFID reader (13) connected to the computer (14) via the USP port also transfers the data to the computer (14). he incoming data is received by the computer 14 via the software means and the software stores the data and categorizes it according to the threshold values of a selected parameter, for example the temperature parameter. If the data is above or below the threshold, the system will send an e-mail to the e- mail address or an SMS to the mobile phone to be entered to the program and it sends a visual (as a pop-up screenshot displaying the ID and heat value) and an audio (as a repeating warning signal) to the computer (14) on which the program is installed. All data is stored by means of the program, and monthly, weekly, daily etc. heat graphic can be obtained by selecting the date range and ear tag numbers.
It is possible to access the software on the computer (14) by the on-line web interface program and offline, namely by the computer (14) in the farm, on which the software is installed. The user can view the real-time data with the user name and password defined for them through a special web site and get the graphics if they want. In addition, if no data is received from any wireless ear unit (6) or nose unit (11) for 6 hours, the system sends the information to the defined person i.e. the user via e-mail and/or SMS.
In a health tracking and monitoring system for the animals of the invention, it is also possible to program the microprocessors to which the sensors are connected, to take measurements at periodic intervals and to record the received values and transmit them to the system. In this application, which is called as one-way communication, only threshold values are determined for the determined sensor and measurement value, and when only these values are exceeded, the system allows monitoring via e-mail and/or SMS. In other words, the data flows in one direction. In order to measure the desired data, the system and the sensors on the animal can be accessed via the internet so that the desired sensor can make measurement instantaneously and in real time.
Hence, in an aspect, the present invention relates to an animal health tracking and monitoring method, said method comprises the steps of
• taking measurements at periodic intervals of the microprocessor to which any of the sensors in the animal tracking and monitoring system prepared in accordance with the invention are connected,
• Recording of received values and storing them in the software memory,
• User connecting to the software by the user name and password owned by them,
• Warning the user by e-mail and/or SMS in the case that the measurement value received from the related sensor by means of the two-way communication module.