Factors influencing claw lesion scoring in sows.

Claw lesions have a multifactorial origin and may affect sow welfare and farm profitability. However, estimating the precise impact is hampered by several factors that interfere with the accuracy of claw lesion assessment. The objective of this study was to determine the impact of observer, scoring condition and claw cleanliness on claw lesion scoring in sows.

Evaluation of a Cost-Effective Ammonia Monitoring System for Continuous Real-Time Concentration Measurements in a Fattening Pig Barn.

Ammonia (NH) emission is one of the major environmental issues in livestock farming. Gas measurements are required to study the emission process, to establish emission factors, and to assess the efficiency of emission reduction techniques. However, the current methods for acquiring reference measurements of NH are either high in cost or labor intensive.

On-Farm Claw Scoring in Sows Using a Novel Mobile Device.

Claw lesions and lameness in sows are important problems in the industry as they impair sow welfare and result in economic losses. Available scoring techniques to detect claw lesions are all limited in terms of collecting data during all reproductive phases and recording all claws. The Mobile Claw Scoring Device (MCSD) was designed to address these limitations.

Farm-specific economic value of automatic lameness detection systems in dairy cattle: From concepts to operational simulations.

Although prototypes of automatic lameness detection systems for dairy cattle exist, information about their economic value is lacking. In this paper, a conceptual and operational framework for simulating the farm-specific economic value of automatic lameness detection systems was developed and tested on 4 system types: walkover pressure plates, walkover pressure mats, camera systems, and accelerometers. The conceptual framework maps essential factors that determine economic value (e.

Supporting the Development and Adoption of Automatic Lameness Detection Systems in Dairy Cattle: Effect of System Cost and Performance on Potential Market Shares.

Most automatic lameness detection system prototypes have not yet been commercialized, and are hence not yet adopted in practice. Therefore, the objective of this study was to simulate the effect of detection performance (percentage missed lame cows and percentage false alarms) and system cost on the potential market share of three automatic lameness detection systems relative to visual detection: a system attached to the cow, a walkover system, and a camera system. Simulations were done using a utility model derived from survey responses obtained from dairy farmers in Flanders, Belgium.

Development of a Stereovision-Based Technique to Measure the Spread Patterns of Granular Fertilizer Spreaders.

Centrifugal fertilizer spreaders are by far the most commonly used granular fertilizer spreader type in Europe. Their spread pattern however is error-prone, potentially leading to an undesired distribution of particles in the field and losses out of the field, which is often caused by poor calibration of the spreader for the specific fertilizer used. Due to the large environmental impact of fertilizer use, it is important to optimize the spreading process and minimize these errors.

Temporal Dynamics of Bacterial and Fungal Colonization on Plastic Debris in the North Sea.

Despite growing evidence that biofilm formation on plastic debris in the marine environment may be essential for its biodegradation, the underlying processes have yet to be fully understood. Thus, far, bacterial biofilm formation had only been studied after short-term exposure or on floating plastic, yet a prominent share of plastic litter accumulates on the seafloor. In this study, we explored the taxonomic composition of bacterial and fungal communities on polyethylene plastic sheets and dolly ropes during long-term exposure on the seafloor, both at a harbor and an offshore location in the Belgian part of the North Sea.

Daily lying time, motion index and step frequency in dairy cows change throughout lactation.

Lying behaviour in dairy cows has the potential to be used for welfare assessment or problem detection, but knowledge about variation in normal lying behaviour is scarce. Accelerometer data were collected at four Danish farms from 366 Holstein dairy cows in loose-housing systems in 2008 and 2009. Daily lying time decreased steeply during early lactation to a minimum around four weeks after calving, followed by a steady increase towards the end of lactation.

Spray Droplet Characterization from a Single Nozzle by High Speed Image Analysis Using an In-Focus Droplet Criterion.

Accurate spray characterization helps to better understand the pesticide spray application process. The goal of this research was to present the proof of principle of a droplet size and velocity measuring technique for different types of hydraulic spray nozzles using a high speed backlight image acquisition and analysis system. As only part of the drops of an agricultural spray can be in focus at any given moment, an in-focus criterion based on the gray level gradient was proposed to decide whether a given droplet is in focus or not.

Development of a High Irradiance LED Configuration for Small Field of View Motion Estimation of Fertilizer Particles.

Better characterization of the fertilizer spreading process, especially the fertilizer pattern distribution on the ground, requires an accurate measurement of individual particle properties and dynamics. Both 2D and 3D high speed imaging techniques have been developed for this purpose. To maximize the accuracy of the predictions, a specific illumination level is required.

High speed stereovision setup for position and motion estimation of fertilizer particles leaving a centrifugal spreader.

A 3D imaging technique using a high speed binocular stereovision system was developed in combination with corresponding image processing algorithms for accurate determination of the parameters of particles leaving the spinning disks of centrifugal fertilizer spreaders. Validation of the stereo-matching algorithm using a virtual 3D stereovision simulator indicated an error of less than 2 pixels for 90% of the particles. The setup was validated using the cylindrical spread pattern of an experimental spreader.