Core-temperature-based herd management system and methods

• US 10,098,327 B2
• Filed: 11/26/2012
• Issued: 10/16/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 12/24/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: HerdX, Inc.
• Original Assignee: HerdX, Inc.
• Inventors: Laurence, Laird W, King, James Derwin, Lyman, James C, Laurence, Jack C, Williams, Michael R, Nance, Allen, Hicks, Ronald B
• Primary Examiner(s): DOUGHERTY, SEAN PATRICK
• Application Number:
  US13/685,273
• Publication Number:
  US 20130239907A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,150 Days
• CPC Class Codes: A01K 11/00 Marking of animals marking poultry or other birds A01K35/00
• CPC Class Codes: A01K 29/00 Other apparatus for animal husbandry
• CPC Class Codes: A01K 29/005 Monitoring or measuring activity, e.g. detecting heat or mating
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2503/40 Animals
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/01 Measuring temperature of body parts ; Diagnostic temperature sensing, e.g. for malignant or inflamed tissue clinical contact thermometers G01K13/20
• CPC Class Codes: A61D 7/00 Devices or methods for introducing solid, liquid, or gaseous remedies or other materials into or onto the bodies of animals for reproduction or fertilisation A61D19/00 ; devices for implanting pellets, radon seeds or the like A61M37/0069
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2230/50 Temperature
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2250/00 Specially adapted for animals
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 5/1723 using feedback of body parameters, e.g. blood-sugar, pressure measurement of body parameters A61B5/00
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/67 for remote operation

Abstract

A system and method for managing a herd of animals possibly requiring medical treatment, such as cows in a feedlot. The animals are herded individually into a chute, where identification data is collected from a tag, and core temperature data is collected using a special non-contacting core temperature sensor. The animal is tagged with a color coded tag representing a range of temperatures into which that animal'"'"'s temperature falls. The animal is then delivered to a pen corresponding to that range of temperatures, where appropriate medicinal treatment is automatically dosed and applied to the animal.

Claims

1. A method of managing a herd of animals for purposes of health evaluation and treatment, the method comprising:

placing a number of animals serially in a manufactured livestock chute, the chute for restraining the animals;

determining for each animal if the animal has a machine-readable identification tag thereon;

if the animal does not have a machine-readable identification tag thereon, placing a machine-readable identification tag on the animal while in the chute;

electronically receiving identification data from the animal'"'"'s identification tag at an electronic data processor;

measuring the core temperature of the animal while in the chute;

electronically receiving an indication of the core temperature at the data processor, wherein the data processor is programmed to determine a health category for the animal based at least in part on the core temperature indication and to determine a dosing amount for medicinally treating the animal based at least in part on the core temperature indication;

treating the animal in accordance with the dosing amount while in the chute;

tagging the animal with one of a number of color codes, the color code corresponding to the health category of the animal;

routing the animal from the chute to one of at least two holding pens based on the health category of the animal, each pen comprising a gate;

electronically sending the dosing amount to medicine-delivering equipment associated with the holding pens; and

reporting, by the data processor, of identification data and core temperature data of animals passing through the chute within specified time periods.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the identification tag is an electronically readable identification tag.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein measuring the core temperature comprises using a non-invasive thermal detector for sensing the core temperature of the animal while in the chute.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein using a non-invasive thermal detector comprises positioning the thermal detector in front of an eye of the animal such that thermal radiation from within the eye is able to pass from the eye, wherein the detector comprises a hand-held housing, a power supply, circuitry, and a data transmitter;

said housing having a window to allow passage of thermal radiation into an interior space of said housing;

the window of said housing being positionable, through said window, and into said interior space of said housing;

a thermal radiation transducer within said interior space, the thermal radiation transducer being adapted to generate transducer output corresponding to the thermal radiation passing into said interior space through said window;

said circuitry being adapted to produce a core temperature signal based at least in part on the thermal radiation emitted from the eye of the animal.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising treating the animal in accordance with the dosing amount while it is located in one of the pens.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the chute comprises a gate.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the chute is hydraulically-powered.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the chute is adapted to weigh each animal.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the data processor is programmed to determine the dosing amount for an animal based at least in part on the animal'"'"'s weight.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the identification tag is manufactured.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the identification tag is machine encoded.

12. A method of managing a herd of animals for purposes of health evaluation and treatment, the method comprising:

placing animals serially in a manufactured livestock chute, the chute for restraining the animals;

determining for each animal if the animal has a machine-readable identification tag thereon;

if the animal does not have a machine-readable identification tag thereon, placing a machine-readable identification tag on the animal while in the chute;

electronically receiving identification data from the animal'"'"'s identification tag at a data processor;

measuring the core temperature of the animal while in the chute;

electronically receiving an indication of the core temperature at the data processor, wherein the data processor is programmed to determine a health category for the animal based at least in part on the core temperature indication and to determine a dosing amount for medicinally treating the animal based at least in part on the core temperature indication;

treating the animal in accordance with the dosing amount while in the chute;

tagging the animal with one of a number of color codes, the color code corresponding to the health category of the animal;

routing the animal from the chute to one of at least three holding pens based on the health category of the animal, each pen comprising a gate; and

reporting, by the data processor, of identification data and core temperature data of animals passing through the chute within specified time periods.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein measuring the core temperature of the animal comprises using a non-invasive thermal detector for sensing the core temperature of the animal while in the chute.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein using a non-invasive thermal detector comprises positioning the thermal detector in front of an eye of the animal such that thermal radiation from within the eye is able to pass from the eye, wherein the thermal detector comprises a hand-held housing, a power supply, circuitry, and a data transmitter;

said housing having a window to allow passage of thermal radiation into an interior space of said housing;

the window of said housing being positionable in front of an eye of the animal such that thermal radiation from within the eye is able to pass from the eye, through said window, and into said interior space of said housing;

a thermal radiation transducer within said interior space, the thermal radiation transducer being adapted to generate transducer output corresponding to the thermal radiation passing into said interior space through said window;

said circuitry being adapted to produce a core temperature signal based at least in part on the thermal radiation emitted from the eye of the animal.

15. The method of claim 12, wherein the identification tag is electronically readable.

16. The method of claim 12, further comprising sending the dosing amount to medicine-delivering equipment associated with the holding pens.

17. The method of claim 16, further comprising treating the animal in accordance with the dosing amount while it is located in one of the pens.

18. A method of managing a herd of animals for purposes of health evaluation and treatment, the method comprising:

placing animals serially in a manufactured livestock chute, the chute for restraining the animals;

measuring the core temperature of each animal while the animal is in the chute;

electronically receiving an indication of the core temperature at a data processor, wherein the data processor is programmed to determine a health category for the animal based at least in part on the core temperature indication and to determine a dosing amount for medicinally treating the animal based at least in part on the core temperature indication;

treating the animal in accordance with the dosing amount while in the chute;

tagging the animal with one of a number of color codes, the color code corresponding to the health category for the animal;

routing the animal from the chute to one of at least three holding pens based on the health category of the animal, each pen comprising a gate;

sending the dosing amount to medicine-delivering equipment associated with the holding pens; and

reporting, by the data processor, of core temperature data of animals passing through the chute within specified time periods.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein measuring the core temperature of an animal comprises using a non-invasive thermal detector for sensing the core temperature of the animal while in the chute.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein using a non-invasive thermal detector comprises positioning the thermal detector in front of an eye of the animal such that thermal radiation from within the eye is able to pass from the eye, wherein the thermal detector comprises a hand-held housing, a power supply, circuitry, and a data transmitter;

said housing having a window to allow passage of thermal radiation into an interior space of said housing;

the window of said housing being positionable in front of an eye of the animal such that thermal radiation from within the eye is able to pass from the eye, through said window, and into said interior space of said housing;

a thermal radiation transducer within said interior space, the thermal radiation transducer being adapted to generate transducer output corresponding to the thermal radiation passing into said interior space through said window;

said circuitry being adapted to produce a core temperature signal based at least in part on the thermal radiation emitted from the eye of the animal.

21. The method of claim 18, further comprising:

determining if the animal has an identification tag;

if the animal does not have an identification tag, placing an identification tag on the animal while in the chute; and

after determining that the animal has an identification tag or placing an identification tag if the animal does not have an identification tag, sending identification data to the data processor.

22. The method of claim 21, wherein the identification tag is an electronically readable identification tag.

23. The method of claim 18, further comprising treating the animal in accordance with the dosing amount while it is located in one of the pens.

24. A method of managing a herd of animals for purposes of health evaluation and treatment, the method comprising:

placing animals serially in a manufactured livestock chute, the chute for restraining the animals;

measuring the core temperature of each animal while the animal is in the chute;

electronically receiving an indication of the core temperature at a data processor, wherein the data processor is programmed to determine a health category for the animal based at least in part on the core temperature indication and to determine a dosing amount for medicinally treating the animal based at least in part on the core temperature indication;

treating the animal in accordance with the dosing amount while in the chute;

tagging the animal with one of a number of color codes, the color code corresponding to the health category for the animal;

routing the animal from the chute to one of at least three holding pens based on the health category of the animal, each pen comprising a gate; and

reporting, by the data processor, of core temperature data of animals passing through the chute within specified time periods.

25. The method of claim 24, wherein measuring the core temperature of an animal comprises using a non-invasive thermal detector for sensing the core temperature of the animal while in the chute.

26. The method of claim 25, wherein using a non-invasive thermal detector comprises positioning the thermal detector in front of an eye of the animal such that thermal radiation from within the eye is able to pass from the eye, wherein the thermal detector comprises a hand-held housing, a power supply, circuitry, and a data transmitter;

said housing having a window to allow passage of thermal radiation into an interior space of said housing;

the window of said housing being positionable in front of an eye of the animal such that thermal radiation from within the eye is able to pass from the eye, through said window, and into said interior space of said housing;

a thermal radiation transducer within said interior space, the thermal radiation transducer being adapted to generate transducer output corresponding to the thermal radiation passing into said interior space through said window;

said circuitry being adapted to produce a core temperature signal based at least in part on the thermal radiation emitted from the eye of the animal.

27. The method of claim 24, further comprising:

determining if the animal has an identification tag;

if the animal does not have an identification tag, placing an identification tag on the animal while in the chute; and

after determining that the animal has an identification tag or placing an identification tag if the animal does not have an identification tag, sending identification data to a data processor.

28. The method of claim 27, wherein the identification tag is an electronically readable identification tag.

29. The method of claim 24, further comprising sending the dosing amount to medicine-delivering equipment associated with the holding pens.

30. The method of claim 29, further comprising treating the animal in accordance with the dosing amount while it is located in one of the pens.