Gerben Hofstra

Mr. Gerben Hofstra

HAS University of Applied Sciences, 's-Hertogenbosch, The Netherlands
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Research Focus & Metrics

Academic Career Length

5Years (2022-Present)

(Calculated once Scilit publication data is synced: current year − year of first publication + 1)

Representative Publications

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29 October 2022 in Dairy
Verified
Journal Article
Open access
PDF file
GHGerben Hofstra
Gerben Hofstra
JRJudith Roelofs
Judith Roelofs
MRMark Rutter
Mark Rutter
LKLenny van Erp-van der Kooij
Lenny van Erp-van der Kooij
JVJakob de Vlieg
Jakob de Vlieg
Several studies have suggested that precision livestock farming (PLF) is a useful tool for animal welfare management and assessment. Location, posture and movement of an individual are key elements in identifying the animal and recording its behaviour. Currently, multiple technologies are available for automated monitoring of the location of individual animals, ranging from Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) to ultra-wideband (UWB), RFID, wireless sensor networks (WSN) and even computer vision. These techniques and developments all yield potential to manage and assess animal welfare, but also have their constraints, such as range and accuracy. Combining sensors such as accelerometers with any location determining technique into a sensor fusion system can give more detailed information on the individual cow, achieving an even more reliable and accurate indication of animal welfare. We conclude that location systems are a promising approach to determining animal welfare, especially when applied in conjunction with additional sensors, but additional research focused on the use of technology in animal welfare monitoring is needed.