Remote Animal Identification and Location

InfoRay has developed innovative signal processing technology that allows the retrieving of the tag's ID along with its 3D position. Implementing the I-Ray technology into the livestock field opens a way for managing cattle farms much more effectively, based on the known position (and movement) of each animal in the group. An experiment with 25 Holstein-Friesian calves had been conducted during eight weeks in a commercial farm in Israel. The position of each calf was monitored day and night, using i-Ray technology. From the experiment, we have concluded that animal health status, estrus event, early lameness can be evaluated automatically, in real time, by analysing the data gathered by i-Ray system. Also monitoring and controlling individual feed intake, as well as animal inventory and location control throughout the chain, from birth to death, on farm and on pasture are available from same data. Therefore, based on the new RFID technology, integrating animal behaviour and welfare into management software seems to be commercially feasible. However, in order to explore the commercial potential of the newly developed remote identification and positioning system, further research should be performed in co-operation with in-the-field academic organizations as well as companies, integrators, and management software producers.