Australian scientists will combine a herd of cows in a wireless sensor network

A group of scientists from the Australian State Association of Scientific and Applied Research ( CSIRO ) has developed a device that is placed in the stomach of a cow and transmits information to a server wirelessly ad hoc network consisting of the same transmitter in the stomachs of the other cows in the herd. The device is equipped with sensors that measure the level of methane. He is able to work for several weeks on a single battery charge. A special membrane protects it from aggressive chemical environment. Why is all this necessary?



The fact is that a fairly significant contribution to the greenhouse effect is methane, which is produced in the process of digestion in livestock. Its greenhouse activity is 21 times higher than that of carbon dioxide, in addition, reducing methane emissions is very effective in the short term - methane decomposes in the atmosphere in just 12 years, so its concentration decreases with a decrease in emissions very quickly.



The intensity of methane production depends on the physiological characteristics of each cow and its diet. This data will allow to get a network of wireless sensors. Further work will be carried out in two directions - the selection of more "environmentally friendly" breeds of cows and the selection of the optimal composition of the feed. Scientists hope to reduce methane emissions by half.



If the technique is effective, it is possible that such equipment will soon be used in the daily work of farmers who will receive data from cow stomachs in real time, then correcting their diet.

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Source - New Scientist