Lambs’ live weight estimation using 3D images

[EN] The sheep sector has not suffered the technification that other livestock sectors have. The lack of technological knowledge of the farmers and the economic limitations of the sector have made this technification difficult. One of the most widely used technologies is Precision Livestock Farming...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores: Samperio, Enrique, Lidón, Iván, Rebollar Rubio, Rubén, Castejón Limas, Manuel, Álvarez Aparicio, Claudia
Tipo de recurso: artículo
Estado:Versión publicada
Fecha de publicación:2021
País:España
Institución:Universidad Rey Juan Carlos
Repositorio:BULERIA. Repositorio Institucional de la Universidad de León
OAI Identifier:oai:buleria.unileon.es:10612/18153
Acceso en línea:https://hdl.handle.net/10612/18153
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palabra clave:Economía
Ingeniería de sistemas
3D sensor
Animal production
Animal welfare
Machine learning
Sheep livestock
3104.90 Sistemas de Producción Ganadera
3304 Tecnología de Los Ordenadores
3104.07 Ovinos
Descripción
Sumario:[EN] The sheep sector has not suffered the technification that other livestock sectors have. The lack of technological knowledge of the farmers and the economic limitations of the sector have made this technification difficult. One of the most widely used technologies is Precision Livestock Farming (PLF). PLF has already been used in other livestock sectors to improve farming efficiency. In the light of the problem that sheep farmers have in weighing lambs and their low precision, this paper proposes a system for estimating weight by means of 3D image capture. Thus, zenithal images of 272 lambs have been recorded. They have been processed using the capture of the upper area and the average depth of the pixels of the lamb. This estimates the weight of the animal with an error of less than 6%. This technology has a low economic cost and is easy to operate, helping farmers to be more willing to use it. This method manages to reduce the duration of the process, the stress of the animal and to improve the overall accuracy in weight estimation. Thus, it will help to have a greater control of the weight of the animal and to improve the economic profitability that the farmer obtains for the lambs