What was the challenge/problem addressed?
The RumiWatch System (RWS), built in a cow halter, uses data gathered by a pressure sensor in combination with data collected by a triaxial accelerometer in order to detect different behavioral characteristics in dairy cows. Behavioral characteristics recorded by the RWS are bolus counts, chews per bolus, number of eating and mastication chews, prehension bites, number of rumination chews, and derived durations such as rumination time, prehension time, and eating time. Therefore, RWS is used extensively in experiments with barn-fed and grazing dairy cows. By aid of the RWS it is possible to estimate herbage dry matter intake of grazing dairy cows or to detect weak points in the feeding management.
What are the success factors in solving the problem?
– The acceptance by the participating farmers;
– The functioning of the technical devices
What were the main challenges during the innovation process?
– The technical know how;
– The motivation of the consultans to participate in the project
What role does the advisor or advisory service play with the practical case?
Knowledge awareness and exchange, Capacity building, aimed at increasing innovation actors’ capacities in order to play their roles in the innovation process
For sharing experience of the practical case, please contact
Markus Rombach, Dr. AGRIDEA & Marc Boessinger, AGRIDEA
markus.rombach@agridea.ch; phone +41 (0)52 354 97 52; marc.boessinger@agridea.ch