Tracking of Livestock Using Connective Technology

Abstract

The main goal this project is to develop a self-sustaining integrated mineral feeder acts as a relay to a central hub for collecting data on the cattle information. In the developed feeder, an RFID is mounted to read the tag located on the left ear of each cow, and will identify if that cow is due for an insecticide spray. The data will be logged into a developed cattle-management system, which has an integrated section of the feeder to automatically detect and spray the cattle with pesticides. A mesh network was created throughout the ranch, and connecting a Raspberry Pi 3 to the central hub to relay vital information such as how often the cattle are visiting feeder, their age, or when they are predicted to give birth. The computer will then tell the sprayer pump to turn on if a cow is due for an insecticide spray. An online data network provides necessary information for each individual cow to allow for quick responses to abnormal behavior signaling potential for highly infectious and contagious diseases that require containment. The system can also provide alerts via email for potential theft of cattle to protect ranch assets. All of this information will be saved in an online database which can be accessed from anywhere in the world by anyone with the password to login. In the future, with the use of solar-powered GPS ear-tags, we could know the exact locations of any cow at any given time.