Method and relevant apparatus for the determination of the body condition score, body weight and state of fertility

A method for determination of a numeric index indicative of energy reserves in the form of fat accumulated by an animal, dead or living of any species and race, including humans, the numeric index comprising a body condition score or a body mass index, the method comprising the following steps:

• A. digitally detecting, by optical detection of reference elements applied or projected on a body of the animal or by a profile detection system, with contact or without contact, at least a profile of an anatomical region of morphological interest, said at least a profile being defined as a shape of a curve that describes at least part of an outer perimeter of a section of said anatomical region, the curve lying on an imaginary plane intersecting said anatomical region;
• B. sending said at least a profile of step A to at least one data processing unit;
• C. calculating a numeric index R indicative of the energy reserves in the form of fat accumulated by the animal in said anatomical region, by at least a data processing unit on the basis of said at least a profile of step A;
• and
• D. correlating, in said at least one data processing unit, using a predefined mathematical transform, said numeric index R with one or more state features of said animal,
• wherein on the body of the animal a first side of said anatomical region with respect to a spine of the animal is present or a first side and a second side of said anatomical region with respect to the spine of the animal are present, and wherein said profile includes a point of relative maximum PM on the spine of the animal and a first development of the profile on said first side or a first and a second development of the profile respectively on said first and second side, wherein said step C includes the following sub-steps:
• C1. individuating coordinates of the relative maximum point PM of said profile;
• C2. determining a first straight line (β) tangent to said profile, said first straight line starting from the relative maximum point PM and touching said profile at a first point of tangency P1 of said first side, or in addition to the first straight line of tangency determining also a second straight line of tangency (α) running from the point of relative maximum PM and touching said profile at a second point of tangency P′1 on said second side;
• C3. in the case in which in step 2 only said first tangent point P1 has been calculated, taking as the second development of said profile a specular projection of said first development with respect to a direction of the spine, and assuming as the second point of tangency P′1 a point specular to said first point of tangency P1 with respect to the direction of the spine;
• C4. calculating a first broken line point P2 and a second broken line point P′2 as an intersection between said profile and a straight line (γ) parallel to a base segment which goes from P1 to P′1;
• C5. calculating said numeric index R as:
• R=f(α1,α2,α′1,α′2)
• wherein α2 is an angle between segments PMP2 and P2P′2, α1 is an angle between segments P2P1 and P1P′1, α′2 is an angle between segments PMP′2 and P′2P2, α′1 is an angle between segments P′2P′1 and P′1P1, and wherein α2=α′2 and α1=α′1 in case of the assumption of step C3 has been made.

An apparatus for determination of a numeric index indicative of energy reserves in the form of fat accumulated by an animal, comprising:

• at least a contact or non-contact detection system for the detection of a profile of the animal,
• at least a control unit and at least one data processing unit, local or remote, connected to said control unit, wherein said data processing unit, local or remote, includes a program so configured that, when executed performs a method comprising:
• calculating a numeric index R indicative of the energy reserves in the form of fat accumulated by the animal in an anatomical region, by the at least a data processing unit on the basis of said profile;
• and
• correlating, in said at least one data processing unit, using a predefined mathematical transform, said numeric index R with one or more state features of said animal;
• and
• a system for detection of an estrus state of the animal, a combination of a body condition score (BCS) with the state of estrus providing a new indicator here defined as fertility index F, determined according to the following formula:
• F
• =
• E
• ·
• BCS
• r
• BCS
• i
• wherein E represents the state of estrus, in which E=0 in the absence of estrus and E=1 in the presence of estrus, BCSr is a real value of the BCS of the animal and BCSi is an ideal value of the BCS of the animal, in which the fertility index F has the following values and meanings:
• F=0, indicates the absence of estrus, regardless of the body condition score;
• F=1 indicates estrus condition and optimal body condition;
• F>1 indicates a state of estrus in overcondition;
• and
• 0<F<1 indicates a state of estrus in undercondition.