Projecttitel: Development of robot technology to remove manure from animal friendly pig housing systems with outside yard
Projectnummer: SMP-HT-1608
Kernthema: Slimme Technologie
Looptijd: 2016
Budget: € 48.000
Kennisinstelling: Wageningen UR
Projectpartners: Livar, TU/E, Livestock Robotics

Samenvatting

Open pig housing systems, like welfare friendly systems with an outside yard, have a problem to reduce emissions of ammonia and odour to levels that can be achieved by air cleaning systems in more closed systems. Use of high level technology opens opportunities to reduce emissions from these housing systems to low levels, as well. Livar and Wageningen UR Livestock Research developed a new outside yard in which the urine is drained by a porous sandy bed and the faeces are regularly removed from the top. The regular removal, however, cannot be manually done at larger scales. Therefore automation is required. Automation requires fast detection and removal of the fresh produced faeces. In this way the sandy bed can be kept clean and the urine will keep draining to the drainage system at the bottom of the sandy bed. Removal of faeces and urine is also beneficial for hygienic reasons and to prevent spread of diseases and organic dust. Such an automated system can be used in outside yards of welfare friendly housing systems for pigs, but also inside animal houses, e.g. in straw systems for pregnant sows and organic pigs, and in cattle free range systems.