JPH0484717A - Animal-weight measuring apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] This bulletin contains application data before electronic filing, so abstract data is not recorded.

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] [Industrial Application Field] The present invention relates to a weighing device for measuring the weight of an animal on which it is placed;
The present invention relates to an animal weight measuring device including an information processing means for processing information by associating weighing information obtained from the weighing device with individual identification information of the animal to be measured.

[Conventional technology]

Measurement of such an animal using a weight measuring device is performed as follows.

First, the individual identification information (eg, individual number) of the animal to be measured is input from the keyboard. Thereafter, a command to start measurement is given, and the animal to be measured is guided to the entrance of the weighing device and placed thereon. When the measurement using the scale is completed, the animal to be measured is removed from the scale.

The weighing information from the weighing device is processed by the information processing means in association with the individual identification information. The information processing referred to here includes, for example, processing such as transmitting data to update the weighing history of the individual stored in a storage device such as an external computer, or printing out the weighing information in correspondence with individual identification information. be.

[Problem to be solved by the invention]

As mentioned above, with conventional weighing devices, the operator checks the tag attached to the animal to be measured each time it is measured and enters its individual identification information from the keyboard. When a worker measures multiple animals in succession,
Work efficiency was poor because the staff had to alternate between guiding the animals and operating the keyboard.

The present invention was made in view of such circumstances, and
The purpose is to improve the efficiency of measurement work when one worker measures multiple animals in succession.

[Means to solve the problem]

The animal weight measuring device according to the present invention includes a weighing device on which an animal is placed and measuring its weight, and an information processing means that performs information processing by associating weighing information obtained from the weighing device with individual identification information of the animal to be measured. The characteristic structure includes a storage means for storing a plurality of individual identification information, and the information processing means performs the information processing based on measurement completion information for each individual. Another feature is that the display means is configured to sequentially display the individual identification information of the next individual to be measured from among the plurality of individual identification information.

[For production]

According to the characteristic configuration described above, each time the measurement of each individual is completed based on the measurement completion information, the information processing means selects the next individual to be measured from among the plurality of individual identification information stored in the storage means. The individual identification information is sequentially displayed on the display means. Incidentally, the individual identification information of a plurality of individuals to be measured is inputted together in advance.

〔Effect of the invention〕

Therefore, the operator only needs to look at the individual identification information displayed on the display means, guide the corresponding individual to the entrance of the weighing machine, and place it there; there is no need to operate the keyboard and input the individual identification information each time. . Therefore, the measurement work becomes more efficient.

〔Example〕

Hereinafter, an embodiment in which the animal weight measuring device according to the present invention is applied to a cow weight measuring device will be described.

As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, a cattle weighing device is provided in the middle of a walking path where cattle are accustomed to walking, such as between a livestock pen and a pasture.

This weighing device includes an inlet chute (1) for guiding cattle, a weighing section (S) having a weighing device (2), and an exit chute (3) for guiding cattle. 2) The static weight of the cow is measured as the cow passes by on foot.

In the weighing section (S), the cows that have been guided are placed on the weighing device (2).
) Measurement as an information processing means that sequentially captures and stores weighing data while walking on the ground, calculates the static weight of the cow from the stored weighing data, and processes the obtained measurement data. A processing section (H) is provided.

Furthermore, guide shelves (4) are provided on the left and right sides of the scale (2) to regulate the walking direction of the cow so that the cow walks along a straight path on the scale. .

The weighing device (2) consists of a rectangular platform (2a) and four load cells (2b) arranged so as to respectively receive and stop the four corners of the platform (2a). The total length of the scale (2) is set to 3 m so that the cow can walk a few steps (for example, 3 to 6) with its entire weight on it.
The intervals of IIJ (4) are set to allow one cow to pass (for example, 70 to 80 cm).

The guide shelves (4) are two arch-shaped frames (5A) erected on the inlet and outlet sides of the weighing device (2).

(5B), a pair of left and right vertical frames (6) erected between the sky, and those frames (5A), (5B),
It is assembled from a horizontal frame (7) that extends over (6).

A box-shaped casing (10) with an open front is installed near the entrance side of the weighing device (2), and an instrument box (11) that houses the measurement processing section (H) is installed inside the casing (10). is supported. Further, a printer mounting stand (12) is provided on the sideways part of the casing (10), and a printer (13) for printing the cow's identification number and determined static weight value is placed on this stand. ing. Although not shown, external information equipment (
A communication cable is installed for serial data communication with the computer.

On the front of the instrument box (11), a first display section (1
4) and the second display section (15), a numeric keypad (16) for data input, an ON key (17) for commanding the start of weighing,
Print key (18) that commands printing from the printer (13)
Various keys are provided. A buzzer (19) is also provided to notify the end of weighing. The first display section (14) displays an identification number, which is the individual identification information of the cow, and the second display section (15) displays the measured static weight value of the cow. It has become.

Here, the operation of the weighing section (S) and its operating procedure will be briefly explained.

When the cow is guided through the entrance chute (1) and comes in front of the weighing machine (2), the operator reads the identification number from the tag attached to the cow, enters it using the numeric keypad (16), and then Press the ON key (17) to give a start command.

However, when measuring a plurality of cows in succession, it is also possible to input the identification numbers of the cows to be measured in advance and store them in the measurement processing section (H), as will be described later.

Next, the cow is guided to the entrance of the weighing device (2), placed on it, and moved forward. When the static weight value is determined by the measurement processing section (H), the buzzer (19) is activated to notify the end of weighing. After that, remove the cow from the scale (2) and press the print key (18) if necessary to display the second display (
The static weight value displayed in step 15) is printed out on the printer (13) together with the cow's identification number.

Next, the measurement processing section (H) will be explained in detail.

As shown in FIG.
an input section (20) that receives a weighed value signal (analog electrical signal) obtained by adding the detection signals of the load cells (2b);
The receiver sequentially captures and stores the received weighing value signals as time-series weighing value data, and then sends them to the central control unit (2) which calculates the static weight value.
Serial interface (22) that performs data communication between 1) and an external information device (DB) such as a computer
Equipped with.

The input section (20) includes an amplifier (2OA) that amplifies the weighed value signal, a low-pass filter (20B) that smoothes the output of this amplifier, and an A that quantizes the smoothed signal at a predetermined sampling time. /D converter (20C)
It consists of

The central control unit (21) includes a memory (21) that stores time-series weight value data of sampled weight values for a certain period of time.
21A), a gait periodicity evaluation unit (21B) that calculates gait periodicity from the time-series weighed value data, and a valid data section (21B) that calculates the gait periodicity from the time-series weighed value data based on the gait periodicity.
a valid data interval setting unit (2IC) for setting the valid data interval (T); and a calculation unit (21D) for calculating the static weight value of a walking animal from the time-series weighing value data in the valid data interval (T).
), etc., and consists of a microcomputer as the main part.

Next, the procedure for determining the static weight of a cow walking on the scale (1) will be explained.

As the cow walks on the scale (2), the analog signals indicating the weight value sent from the load cell (2b) are summed and passed through the amplifier (2OA) for amplification. The amplifier output shown in is obtained. In this graph, the area indicated by a is the state in which only the front legs of the cow are on the scale (2), and the area indicated by b is the state in which the entire weight of the cow is on the scale (2), The region indicated by C is a state in which only the cow's hind legs are placed on the scale (2).

The output of this amplifier is passed through a low-pass filter (20B) and becomes a smoothed signal as shown in FIG. Furthermore,
The signal is quantized by an A/D converter (20G) at a predetermined sampling time.

FIG. 4 is an enlarged view of the area already shown above, and from this view it is possible to understand how the analog weighing value signal is sampled and quantized.

After weighing has started, if the quantized weighing value data (hereinafter simply referred to as weighing value data) exceeds a set value (K) that is slightly larger than the weight of weighing - m (2), the cow will be weighed. As soon as the weighing device (2) is loaded, the weighed value data is sequentially stored in the memory (21A) as a sampling series. The storage by the memory (21A) ends when the weighed value data falls below the set value (K), assuming that the cow has started to descend from the scale (2).

Next, the gait periodicity evaluation unit (21B) uses the memory (2
From the weighing value data stored in 1A), its maximum value: W
max is calculated, and the data group having a value of 90% or more of this maximum value is regarded as the weighing value data group of the cow's full weight load or the state of riding on the scale (2), and the weighing value data group Identified as

Furthermore, the gait periodicity evaluation unit (21B) evaluates the gait periodicity from this weighed value data group by examining its maximum value. In the case shown in FIG. 4, the maximum values are Wl, W8. Wl5゜W23. W29. W33
There are six of them.

Next, the effective data interval setting unit (2IC) sets an effective data interval (T) starting from the time when the first maximum value W1 appears and ending at the time when the third maximum value W23 appears. will be set.

However, in setting this effective data section (T), how many walking cycle peaks to include can be set in advance based on the type of walking animal, the natural frequency of the weighing device (2), etc.

The sampling data within the valid data interval (T) thus set is averaged by the calculation unit (21D), and the static weight value of the cow walking on the scale (2) is calculated.

The static weight value obtained as described above is displayed on the second display section (1
5) will be displayed. In addition, an external information device (DB) is sent via the serial interface (22) along with the identification number of the cow.
). The external information device (DB) updates measurement history data and aggregated data for each individual cow.

Next, when measuring a plurality of cows in succession, a method of inputting the identification numbers of the cows to be measured in advance and storing them in the measurement processing section (H>) will be explained.

In other words, the measurement processing unit (H) sends the identification numbers of a plurality of cows to be measured in advance from the external information device (DB) in a predetermined order.
Transmit to. The measurement processing section (H) temporarily stores the sent identification numbers of the plurality of cows in the identification number storage section (21E), which is a storage means within the central control section (21).

Then, when the measurement starts, the identification number storage section (21E)
The identification numbers of the cows to be measured stored in are sequentially displayed on the first display section (14) serving as display means. That is, −
When the measurement of the head of the cow is completed, the measurement processing unit (H) transmits the measurement data together with the identification number to the external information equipment (DE) based on the measurement completion information, and at the same time transmits the identification number of the next cow to be measured. is displayed on the first display section (14). The operator just needs to look at this display and guide the corresponding cow to the entrance of the weighing machine (2) and place it there.

As for the measurement completion information, as mentioned above, when the weighing value data falls below the set value (K), it is assumed that the cow has started to dismount from the weighing device (2), and sampling ends, and the calculation section (
21D), the measurement is completed when the static weight value is calculated.

In addition, only the ON key (17) mentioned above is used to start the measurement of the first horse.
All you have to do is press the button to give a start command, and the measurement will automatically start from the second head onwards. That is, when a cow is placed on the scale (2) and the weighed value data exceeds the set value (K), sampling of the weighed value data is started, and thereafter measurement data is obtained as described above.

Therefore, after first pressing the ON key (17), the operator must press the measurement processing section (H) until measurement of all cows is completed.
There is no need to perform these operations, and measurements can be performed efficiently.

Note that when the identification number of the cow is transmitted from the external information device (DE) and stored in the identification number storage section (21), input from the numeric keypad (16) is ignored. However, the numeric keypad (1
The configuration may be such that the identification number input from 6) is given interrupt priority.

[Another example]

Even if an external information device (computer) is not connected, the identification numbers of multiple cows to be weighed can be entered in advance from the numeric keypad (16) and stored in the identification number storage section (2).
1E). In this case as well, the operation during measurement is the same as in the embodiment.

In addition, the display means for displaying individual identification information (recognition number) is composed of several lines of displays, and it displays not only the identification number of the next cow to be measured, but also the identification numbers of several cows to be measured in succession. By displaying it, you can further improve your work efficiency. In this case, it is best to scroll the identification number of the next cow to be measured so that it is displayed at the top, or to indicate it with a cursor.

Incidentally, although reference numerals are written in the claims section for convenient comparison with the drawings, the present invention is not limited to the structure shown in the accompanying drawings.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

The drawings show an embodiment of the animal weight measuring device according to the present invention, in which Fig. 1 is a functional block diagram, Fig. 2 is a diagram showing an analog signal waveform amplified by an amplifier, and Fig. 3 is a diagram showing an analog signal waveform amplified by an amplifier, and Fig. 3 is a diagram showing an analog signal waveform smoothed by a low-pass filter. FIG. 4 is a partially enlarged view of FIG. 3, and FIG. 5 is an overall side view and a plan view of the rod body. (2)... Weighing device, (14)... Display means,... Storage means, (H)... Information processing means.

Claims (1)

[Claims] A weighing device (2) on which an animal is placed and measuring its weight, and an information processing means (H
), the apparatus includes a storage means (21E) for storing a plurality of pieces of individual identification information, and the information processing means (H) stores the information based on measurement completion information for each individual. An animal weight measuring device configured to perform processing and sequentially display individual identification information of an individual to be measured next from among the plurality of individual identification information on a display means (14).