CATTLE PERFORMANCE INDEX METHOD AND APPARATUS
The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for management of livestock though data monitoring and analysis. In particular, livestock performance indicators are collected and compiled through automated computer controlled means into a single index that can be used to evaluate a segment of livestock relative to a general population of livestock, and in further particularity the invention is applied to cattle.
1 . A method of determining a performance index (PI) for monitoring a key performance indicator (KPI) associated with an animal, comprising:
a. providing a plurality of sensors to identify a plurality of animals;
b. providing a plurality of data collection devices associated with devices that the animals interact with;
c. providing a data transmission system for transmitting the data for storing and processing;
d. providing a data collection and analysis system using computer controlled operations to collect and analyze the data;
e. grouping the data into one or more sets for analysis; and
f. calculating one or more PIs for the KPIs where the PIs represent an average performance normalized to a percentage to show the performance of one or more of the data sets against the other data sets.
2 . The method of claim 1 where the KPI is a factor related to the health of the animals.
3 . The method of claim 1 where the KPI is a factor related to the environment of the animals.
4 . The method of claim 1 where the sensors are attached to the animals.
5 . The method of claim 1 where the PI is a composite PI comprised of multiple KPIs.
6 . The method of claim 5 where the individual PIs in the composite PI are weighted to create the composite PI.
7 . The method of claim 1 where the animals are cattle.
8 . The method of claim 1 where the KPIs are factors associated with the cattle operations.