Hogthrob: towards a sensor network infrastructure for sow monitoring (wireless sensor network special day)

We aim at developing a next-generation system for sow monitoring. Today, farmers use RFID based solutions with an ear tag on the sows and a reader located inside the feeding station. This does not allow the farmers to locate a sow in a large pen, or to monitor the life cycle of the sow (detect heat period, detect injury...). Our goal is to explore the design of a sensor network that supports such functionalities and meets the constraints of this industry in terms of price, energy consumption and availability.