FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a harness for an animal.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

An inn a I we (fare and the monitoring of animal health have becoming increasingly important. iπ particular. forfarm iivestock. Stockmeπ have been increaslngϊ^ reliant on electronic monitoring systems especially as the size of farms and the number of livestock become more extensive.

Each individual animal is valuable and the desire to monitor its health during various stages of its life cycle has increased. One high risk stage is parturition. A great deal of research has been invested into monitoring parturition and various techniques have been developed for monitoring parturition in both animals and humans.

One such system for monitoring uterine contractions by radiotelemetric transmission is disclosed by US Patent 5373852. It discloses a uterine monitor for gathering characteristic data such as maternal uterine electro myogram, uterine temperature and intra-uterine pressure so that the onset of parturition (or labor) of a human can be determined. The uterine monitor comprises a remote sensing unit, the remote sensing unit containing sensors which sense uterine temperature, intra-uteriπe pressure and uterine electro myogram. The remote sensing unit is secured to the uterine wall by at least one electramyogram lead surgically inserted into the uterine wall. Information is transmitted to and from the sensor of the remote sensing unit via an external antenna. However, such a device requires skilled fitting which woufd not be cost effective or suitable for monitoring parturition in livestock.

GB 2364130 discloses a belt and electrodes arrangement for monitoring labour in humans or animals. The belt comprises a plurality of electrodes which are required to be placed on the body of the person or animal to provide a warning when labour is imminent. For effective operation, the belt needs to be placed Into a particular position which can be difficult to establish especially for different types of animals and different anatomies. Furthemiore the belt assumes that the subject being monitored is predominantly still so that the belt does not become misplaced or fall off. This can be difficult to ensure for large, bulky animate which often move around a fot before and during some stages of parturition. This makes placement of the belt, and hence the electrodes, difficult as well as maintaining the position of the belt, and hence the e Ie ctrod es, d u ring the pe riocf of monitoring.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Therefore, it would be desirable to provide a harness for an animal which enables easy placement and maintenance of placement Df electrodes for monitoring a condition of an animal.

This is achieved according to a first aspect of the present invention a harness for an animal, the harness comprising: at least one flexible member for fitting to and against a part of an animal; a plurality of electrodes located at a plurality of predetermined locations of the at feast one flexible member; and at least one guide means for positioning the at least one flexible member relative to at least one anatomical part of the animal such that the at least one pair of electrodes are located at predetermined anatomical zones on and against the animal.

In an embodiment, the at least one guide means comprises at least one protrusion of the at least one flexible member, the at least one protrusion resting in at least one natural recess of the animal. The harness may further comprise at least one fixing means for preventing movement of the harness once fitted to the animal. In this way, anatomical parts of the animal are used to allow correct placement of the electrodes for monitoring, The fixing means may locate at least one additional electrode.

The harness may further comprise a transmitter for transmitting electrode data to a node remote of the harness. The node may be part of a collar worn by the animal or it may be a base station. Effective short range, wireless communication can be utilised for timely analysis of the sensory output.

The harness may further comprise a processor for processing output of the plurality of electrodes. The transmitter and/or the processor may be housed within the at feasl one flexible member. The plurality of electrodes may measure uterine contractions. The processor may detect healthy or unhealthy patterns of uterine contractions.

The harness may further comprise fastening means for refeasably attaching the harness to the animal.

The harness may be attached to cows and used for the detection of hypocafcaemia and dystocia.

The at least one flexible member may encapsulate and thus protect the efectroπics and electrode sites.

The way in which the harness creates a shape that protects and locates the electronics enables the harness to be easily fitted to the aπirna! in the correct tocation and also ensures that the harness remains in the correct position. For example, the harness may be in the form of a belt which makes use of the shape of the animal, such as a cow, in several ways. First in that the harness locates between the linea alba and the front contour of the udder which is distended and sometimes rigid with oedema. The top of the harness sits between the hook bones so that the electronics packs which are housed in protrusion of the harness sit in a shallow depression bounded by the cow's taithead. The ffxing means, in this example, may be a strap that extends from the harness under the tail preventing the belt moving fonvard. The strap may be disposable and removed from the harness so that the harness can be reused and fitted to another animal with a new strap piece attached. A portion of the harness may be formed of a deform a bfe material such as elastic. For example the elasticated section of the harness may extend over the belly of the cow to allow movement so that the cow can lie, sit and stand normally.

The processor of an embodiment of the invention may monitor uterine contractions and consequently identify animals that have difficulties during parturition. The flexible member of the harness allows electrodes to be temporarily attached to an animal. The electrodes are placed so as to measure electrical signals indicating uterine contractions. The harness is placed on the animal at the onset of labour when the animal is isolated in a birthing pen. The location of the electrodes is determined by the harness design so placement of the electrodes requires no specialised knowledge. In an embodiment, the data from the electrodes is analysed to determine the frequency and strength of the contractions and these are used to determine whether parturition is proceeding satisfactorily or whether a disease condition exists. The healthy pattern is for contractions to increase in frequency and strength. The system detects when contractions become weaker and less frequent to detect dystocia and hypocalcaemϊa in cows, for exampfe.

For example, the normal progression of parturition can be characterised as contractures of the uterus (periods of 5-20 s of low intensity electro hyste rag rams) which become contractions (periods of less than 5 s of high intensity electrahysterσgrams}. The frequency and strength of contractions increases as a successful parturition continues. A disruption to this progression is evidence of dystocia or another disease condition such as hypocalcaemϊa.

The harness may further comprise at least one connection means for engaging at least one electrode of the plurality of electrodes to an underside surface of the harness at the predetermined locations. The connection means is flexible with respect to the harness. At feast one electrode may engage and at feast partly insert into the connection means. This at feast one electrode may releasably engage the connection means. The connection means may, for example, comprise a snap fit connector

fπ this way, the electrodes are fitted to the harness via a flexible, low profile connection means. The low profile of the connection means enables the electrodes to sit low against the animal's body to minimise ihe risk of the electrode being caught and detached by the tail during normal sweeping of the aπimai's tail across its body. The flexibility and low profile of the connection means enables some movement of the electrodes with respect to the harness and ensures maintenance of a secure contact of the electrode with the animal's skin even with the extreme concave and convex areas of the surfaces of the animal. These features are particularly pronounced in the rump area of Ho! stein dairy cows due to bone structure and low muscle mass of the animal.

fn an embodiment, the harness further comprises means for measuring the resistance between pairs of the plurality of efectrodes, and wherein the processor monitors the respective resistances. The processor may ouiput an alert if one of the measured resistances is above a predetermined threshold or dissimilar to measured resistances of other of the measured resistances. The alert may be transmitted to a remote node, such as located on a collar worn by the animal or a base station such as a computer system or lhe like.

The processor can therefore monitor the electrical resistance between each electrode as it Ss attached to the animal. If the resistance is high (say above 20kΩ) between an electrode and more than one other then it can be indicated to the operator so that the electrode can be re-attached ensuring that all electrodes have good electric conductivity.

At least one pair of the plurality of electrodes may measure a sustained muscle contraction to indicate that the tail of the animal is extended, for example.

The continuous raising of the tail is a very strong indication of parturition. Other methods have been proposed based on measuring the mechanical extension. However, attaching devices to the tail is not an easy option since it tapers and excessive attachment force may restrict blood flow and cause tissue damage. The harness is ideally placed to measure sustained muscle contractions to indicate raising of the tail which would be independent of the orientation or posture of the cow.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

For a more complete understanding of the present invention, reference is now made to the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:

Figure l is a plan view of a harness according to an embodiment of the invention;

Figure 2 is a representation of a side view of an animal wearing a harness according to an embodiment of the invention;

Figure 3 is a representation of a plan view of an animal wearing a harness according to an embodiment of the invention;

Figure 4 shows a section of part of the harness of Figures 1 to 3 taken afong the fine A- A. Figure 5 shows a section of the detail of the connection of the electrode 105 1 to the harness of Figure 4;

Figure 6 shows detail of protection of the electrode 105_1 of Figures 4 and 5; and

Figure 7 is a simplified schematic of the efectronic circuitry of the harness.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION

In the embodiment, the harness is described with reference to fitting to a cow. However, it can be appreciated thai the harness may also be designed to fit the contours of olher animals such as goats, sheep, deer etc.

With reference to Figures 1 to 6, embodiments of the present invention wilt now be described. The harness 100 comprises a flexible member 101 which forms a closed foop or belt arrangement around an animal by means of a re! ea sable, adjustable fastener 103, such as a light weight buckle 104, Velcro® fastener or the like. A portion 106 of the flexible member 101 is elasticated to provide a good fit of the harness to the animal as well as increased comfort. In this way the harness 100 can be refitted to another animal of varying size. Although the harness of the embodiment illustrated in Figures is in the form of a belt, Ei can be appreciated thai the harness may be extended to comprise a plurality of lateral flexible members extending towards the froπl of the animal either side of lhe animal's trunk to a further belt arrangement at the front of ihe animal to improve stability of the harness,

The harness 100 comprises a plurality of electrodes 105 1 , 105 2, 105 3, 105_4, 105_5, 105J6, 105_7, 105_8, for example standard medical/veterinary grade Ag/AgCI types of electrodes, and a ground plane 107. Although four pairs of electrodes are illustrated here, it can be appreciated that any number of electrodes may be used depending on the condition being monitored. Six of the eight electrodes 105_1 , 105 2, 105 3, 105 5, 105 6, 1Q5_7 and the ground plane 107 are fitted within webbing of the flexible member 101 as described below with reference to Figures 5 and 6. The electrodes are positioned at predetermined locations along the length of the flexible member 101 in two groups of three electrodes symmetrically either side of the animal. The harness 100 also comprises 2 substantially kite-shaped sections 109 which are permanently fixed across a central portion of the flexible member 101 between the groups of electrodes 105_1. 105_2, 105_3 and 105_5, 105_6, 105_7. At an apex of each substantially kite-shaped section 109, distal of the flexible member 101 _T a fourth electrode 105_4, 105_8 is located.

Ideally, in the case of use on a cow such as a Ho f stein/Frisian cow, the electrodes all sit within the area which has a concave profile bounded by the hook bones, pin bones and spine. This area is preferred because the bones do not move in relation to each other and this improves the maintenance of the positioning of the harness and hence the electrodes against the skin of the animal and thus reduces surface interference during monitoring

The ground plane 107 can be located at any location on the harness, In the embodiment, as shown, the ground plane 107 is located centrally with four electrodes either side so that it is situated closest to the instrumentation pack to keep the wiring to a minimum. The electrodes are paired such that the first and second electrodes 105_1, 105_2 are paired across the line of the uterus. This is mirrored on the other side of the animal by the fifth and sixth electrodes 105 5, 105 6. The third and fourth electrodes 105_3, 105 4 are paired along the line of the uterus. This is mirrored on the other side of the animal by the seventh and eighth electrodes 105 7, 105 8.

The harness further comprises a strap 110 which is a closed loop attached to each apex of each substantially kite-shaped section 109, distal of the flexible member 101. The strap may be disposable and refeasably attached to the flexible member 101 such that the harness 100 may be reused and fitted to another animal with a new strap. Alternatively, the strap may be permanently fixed to the apex of sections 109 or at least one end may be releasably attached for ease of fitting.

Detail of the harness will now be described with reference to Figure 4 . Figure 4 illustrates part of a section of the flexible member 101 taken along the line A-A. The flexible member 101 of the harness comprises 50 mm wide first and second web members 111, 113. This Is made of a mid-strength webbing such as polypropylene. A high strength material may be harmful to the animal. The first and second web members 111 , 1 13 are substantially flat having f rst and second outer surfaces 115, 117, and first and second inner surfaces 119, 121, respectively. The first and second web members 111 , 113 are joined together such that the inner surfaces 119, 121 face innermost. The first and second web members 111 , 113 are joined at their outer edges only such that a cavity 123 is formed along lhe length of the flexible member 101 in the centre of the first and second web members 111 , 113. The outer edges of the inner surfaces 119, 121 of the first and second web members 1 11, 115 may be permanently fixed together by adhesive or stitching or the like. Alternatively, only one outer edge of the inner surfaces 119, 121 of the first and second web members 111 , 115 may be permanently fixed together and the other outer edge of the inner surfaces 119, 121 of the first and second web members 111 , 115 may be releasably fixed by means of VeI era® or the like. The central cavity 123 formed by the first and second web members 111, 113 houses wiring 125 and electronic circuitry 127. The Velcro® fastening allows access to the central cavity 123 to repair, replace wiring and/or circuitry and replace batteries etc.

A plurality of connection means 151, shown in Figure 5, are provided at predetermined locations on the outer surface 117 of the second web member 113 of the harness 100 to releasably engage each of the plurality of electrodes 105_1 to 1O5J3. In this way, when the harness is fitted onto the animal, each electrode is placed at their predetermined locations on and against the skin of the animal

Each of the connection means 151 is substantially the same, ft comprises a snap fit connector 153, or the S ike for receiving at least a portion 155 of the electrode 105_1 at a proximal end of the connector 153. The portion 155 of the electrode 105_1 releasably engages the connector 153 so that the electrode can be easily replaced. The proximal end of the connector 153 protrudes partly from the outer surface 117 of the second web member 113 via a hole within the second web member 113 defined by a reinforcing of stitching or annular insert 163.

The distal end of the connector 153 is connected with a solder joint, for example, to a conductor 157 which extends between the first and second web members 111, 113 so that it is completely encased within the flexible member 101 of the harness 100 within the central cavity 123. The first and second web members 111 , 113 are formed of braid 161 within an insulative material 160. The braid protects the conductors from interference and the outer layer prevents (he braid unravelling. The connection of the connector 153 to the conductor 157 is secured by a resin 159 formed around the connection to minimise breaking of the connection yet maintain flexibility between the electrode and the web member 111, 113. The flexibility of the electrode connections allows some movement of the electrode 105_1 to 105 8 relative to the flexibfe member 101 of the harness 100. This enables the electrodes to fitted against the skin of the animal so that the area αf contact of the electrodes is maximised, improving the sensitivity of the electrodes, given the extremes in the concave and convex surface of the animal which is particularly pronounced fn cows in this area due to their bone structure.

As a portion 155 of the electrode 105_1 is partly inserted into the connector 153, a low profile of the efectrode 105_1 is established. This helps to prevent the electrode from being caught and consequently moved or lifted from the surface of the animal which may be caused by the tail movement across this area of the animal's body during normal tail switching.

The electrodes 105_1 to 105_B releasably engage their respective connectors so that the electrodes 105 1 to 105 S can be easiiy replaced as required.

As shown in Figure 6, the electrode 105_1 may be protected from the harsh environment of the animal by a horseshoe-shaped foam member 601 formed to cover at least a part of the circumference of the electrode 105_1, TTi e underside of the horseshoe-shaped foam member 601 may be coated with a thin waterproof flfm 603, The upper surface of the horseshoe-shaped foam member 601 is attached via an adhesive to the outer surface 117 of the second web member 113.

The circuitry may be housed in a sealed housing 127 such as encapsulated in a resin to protect the circuit elements from the ingress of water and dirt etc. The harness further comprises a generally triangular padding 129 permanently attached to the inner surface 121 of the second web member 113 or alternatively permanently attached to the outer surface 117 of the second web member 113 in which case the padding 129 is formed of a water proof material. The generally triangular shape of the padding 129 created a protrusion 131 on one side of the flexible member 101. Optionally, the harness may comprise a second padding 133 within the inner surface 119 of the first web member 111 to protect the circuitry from impact damage. The wiring enters and exits the circuitry housing 127 to connect between circuits and electrodes. The harness further comprises a second protrusion which mirrors the first shown in Figure 3 on the other side of animal. The housing in Ih e first protrusion may include a processor and a transmitter. The housing in the second protrusion may incfude a baltery pack for supplying power as required or in another implementation ϊt may hold a wiring distribution e fern en t to reduce congestion of the wire.

As shown in Figure 7, the circuitry 750 comprises an input terminal 751 connected to the output of each of the plurality of electrodes 105_1 to 105_8. The input terminal 751 is connected to an input interface 701. The output of the input interface 701 is connected to a measuring means 703. The output of the measuring means 703 Is connected to a comparator 705 of a processor 700, The output of the input interface is also connected to a signal processor 707 of the processor 700. The output of the signal processor 707 is connected to processing means 709. The output of the processing means 709 and the comparator 705 are connected to a transmitter 71 1. The transmitter 711 is connected to an output terminal 753 of the circuitry 750.

\n operation, the stockman is aferted that a particular animal is due to give birth in the next few hours by means of monitoring the animal's behaviour using a system similar to that disclosed by WO 2007/119070. The animal may be moved to a birthing pen close to the main farm buϋdings for closer monitoring. The farm base station computer is instructed that a harness is to be put on the animal, for example a cow as shown in the Figures. The animal selected for a harness may be based upon the risk of hypocalcaemia (older cows} or dystocia (heifers). The farm computer instructs the cow's collar of the system of WO 2007/119070 to put itself into a registration mode.

As shown in the Figures, the flexible member 101 of the harness 100 is wrapped around the cow between the liπea alba and the front contour of the udder which is distended and sometimes rigid with oedema such that the flexible member 101 extends towards the rear top part of the animal just behind the hook bones with the outer surface 117 of the second web member 113 and hence the electrodes innermost against the skin of the animal. To enable correct positioning of the flexible member 101, the protrusions 131 sit in a shallow depression formed by the bony structures of spine, hook bone and pin bone. This ensures that the electrodes are placed in the correct position for monitoring uterine contractions. To avoid slippage or movement of the harness the strap 109 is fitted underneath the tail of the animal. The harness circuitry is then manually activated by a push button on the harness or activated by remote control device etc by the stockman.

Firstly the electrical resistance between each electrode is measured by the measuring means 703. The measured resistances are fed into the processor 700 and analysed by the comparator 705. If any of the measured resistances is greater than a predetermined threshold, for example 20 kΩ and/or greater than the measured resistances of one other etectrode then an afert is generated and transmitted to the operator via the transmitter 711. The operator can then re-attach the electrode indicated by lhe a!ert ensuring lhat a1l e!ectrodes have good efectric conductivity.

The output of the electrodes is fed to the electronic circuitry 750. The processor 700 of the circuitry 750 receives the output of each of the plurality of electrodes 105__l to 105__8 via the input terminal 751 and input interface 701. The output of the electrodes is processed by the signal processor 707 to reduce noise and improve signal quality of the outputs of the electrodes. This data is then processed by the processing means 709 to establish uterine contractions of the animal. The uterine contraction data is then transmitted via the transmitter 711 for transmitting data to a node remote of the harness, such as a collar monitor as disclosed for example by WO 2007/119070 or an external antenna or a farm computer etc.

The uterine contraction data may be transmitted to its remote node at preset intervals. The default interval may be 10 minutes. At every interval the data transmitted is a iist of the times of start of each contraction, its duration, its strength (scale 1:10), confidence measure etc. If the animal is wearing a col far monitor, this data is either processed on the collar or retransmitted from the collar to the base station computer for analysis.

The analysis is based on measuring the intervals between contractions. In a normal heallhy parturition the f requ e π cy a π d stre nglh of con tra ctio πs wi 11 te nd to g ro w. Sf the intervals begin to extend then an alarm condition will be set. The set points for these data will be determined through the program.

The data from the electrodes is analysed to determine the frequency and strength of the contractions and these are used to determine whether parturition is proceeding satisfactorily or whether a disease condition exists. The healthy pattern is for contractions to increase in frequency and strength the system detects when contractions become weaker and less frequent to delect dystocia and hypocalcaemia in cows, for example.

The electrodes are paired as outlined above to create a plurality of monitoring channels. The channels permit the muscles that contract the uterus to be monitored on either side of the spine which runs to the taiShead. Thus the signals from the pairs of electrodes are compared with reference to ground plane 107. This provides data for deriving uterine contractions of the animal. Further the paired electrodes of the seventh and eighth electrodes 105_7, 105 8 and the third and fourth electrodes 105_3, 105 4 are compared. The signals are analyzed for a continuous signal rather lhan the characteristic short duration high amplitude bursts of sigπais up to 5Hz that characterize contractions. This measurement of a sustained muscle contraction afong the tine of these electrodes indicates that the tail is extended and continuously raised which is a strong indication of parturition. This date is also transmitted via the transmitter 711 for transmitting data to a node remote of the harness, such as a collar monitor as disclosed for example by WO 2007/119070 or an external antenna or a farm computer etc.

The harness is then removed from the cow when parturition occurs. The base station computer will be instructed to deregister the harness and return the collar to normal mode of operation.

Although embodiments of the present invention have been illustrated in the accompanying drawings and described in the foregoing detailed description, it will be understood that the invention is not limited to the embodiments disclosed, but is capable of numerous modifications without departing from the scope of the invention as set out in the following claims.