Swine management: Ant antics to help piggery communications
Published: January 8, 2008
Source : Farmex
David, who gained a First Class honours degree in computer science at the University of the West of England, will be looking into wireless communication methods in a two-year, £100,00, project which has attracted almost 70 per cent government funding.
The biggest problem with this form of communication in a harsh farm environment is the ability to form reliable links. To accomplish this he hopes to form a “self-healing mesh system” which will function regardless of atmospheric conditions.
Such a system would have many advantages. Cost would be dramatically reduced because there would be no need to lay wires and cables, particularly over problem areas such as roads. The network would also be less susceptible to lightning strikes or other physical disruptions.
David’s university project — which involved a computer simulation of the biological behaviour of an ant colony — provided him with an excellent insight into the complex communications needed for the development of a self-healing mesh network. The system could have valuable applications in other areas of agriculture such as the monitoring of potato and grain stores or lagoons.
“In addition to reducing installation costs for normal heating and ventilation controls, wireless connection will make the monitoring of crucial performance indicators, such as feed and water consumption, cheaper and easier,” commented Farmex managing director, Hugh Crabtree. “With ever-tightening margins in pig production this will become increasingly important.”
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