Parturition surveillance and alerting system

A system for alerting a farmer when an anomaly is detected during a parturition event before an offspring is separated from an animal, wherein the system comprises:

• a control model trained to detect at least one parturition stage out of a plurality of parturition stages wherein said training is based on images of several parturition stages during a multitude of parturition events;
• and wherein the control model is configured to repeatedly receive images via a controller, detect the parturition stage of the received image and return information concerning the detected parturition stage of the image, to the controller;
• a first camera comprising a thermal camera and a second camera selected from the group consisting of a video camera, stereo cameras, and a three dimensional (3D) camera, wherein the first camera and the second camera are each configured to capture a time-sequential stream of images of the animal and provide the time-sequential streams of images to the control model, via the controller;
• wherein the images of several parturition states on which the control module was trained comprise thermal images and non-thermal images;
• wherein the system is configured to detect an amniotic sac leaving the animal in a thermal image from the thermal camera,
• wherein the system is configured to detect in a non-thermal image from the second camera
• at least one rear hoof leaving the animal, without detection of a front part of the offspring;
• a back part of the offspring leaving the animal, without detection of the front part of the offspring;
• a head of the offspring leaving the animal, without detection of frontal hoofs;
• or
• body parts of more than one offspring leaving the animal;
• an alerting device configured to output an alerting signal when receiving a trigger signal from the controller;
• the controller communicatively connected to the control model, to the camera, and to the alerting device, wherein the controller is configured to
• provide the time-sequential stream of images, captured by the camera, to the control model;
• determine a moment in time when a selected parturition stage of the at least one parturition stages of the parturition event is commenced, based on information returned by the control model;
• determine, repeatedly, by a time measurement functionality, a passed time period since the determined moment in time when the selected parturition stage is commenced;
• compare, repeatedly, the determined passed time period since the determined moment in time when the selected parturition stage is commenced, with a time threshold length associated with the selected parturition stage;
• and
• either
• detect an anomaly of the parturition event when the time threshold length associated with the selected parturition stage is exceeded by the determined time period that has passed since the determined moment in time when the selected parturition stage is commenced;
• and
• output the trigger signal to the alerting device, upon detection of the anomaly;
• or
• determine when the selected parturition stage of the parturition event is completed before the time threshold length associated with the selected parturition stage has passed, based on information returned by the control model.