Egg Alert

In the sprawling landscape of modern agriculture, small-scale farmers face numerous challenges in optimizing their operations. Among them, monitoring the laying patterns of hens in chicken coops can be a time-consuming and labor-intensive task. This is where Egg Alert steps in—a groundbreaking machine learning solution that leverages the power of computer vision to identify laid eggs in real-time and deliver instant alerts to farmers through a user-friendly mobile app.

Imagine a world where farmers can effortlessly manage their chicken coops, optimize their resources, and maximize egg production. With Egg Alert, this vision becomes a reality.

First and foremost, Egg Alert saves valuable time and effort. Traditionally, farmers had to manually check each nest to collect laid eggs, which often required navigating through crowded coops, disturbing the hens, and potentially leading to broken eggs. This cumbersome process consumed hours of manual labor that could be better allocated to other critical farm tasks. However, with Egg Alert's cutting-edge computer vision algorithms, farmers can remotely monitor their coops and instantly receive notifications on their smartphones when and where eggs are laid.

Moreover, Egg Alert enhances operational efficiency. By providing real-time notifications, farmers can swiftly collect the eggs, preventing wild animal theft. This not only ensures the quality of the eggs but also mitigates losses caused by missed opportunities for timely collection.

Furthermore, Egg Alert promotes data-driven decision-making. The accompanying mobile app features a comprehensive dashboard that allows farmers to analyze historical laying patterns, identify trends, and gain valuable insights. By understanding the egg production patterns of their hens, farmers can optimize feed schedules, adjust lighting conditions, and fine-tune other environmental factors. This data-driven approach empowers farmers to make informed decisions, implement targeted improvements, and ultimately enhance overall productivity and profitability.

Egg Alert fosters peace of mind for farmers. With the ability to monitor their chicken coops remotely, farmers can stay connected to their operations from anywhere, at any time. Whether they are attending to more important farm work or taking a well-deserved break, they can trust that Egg Alert has their coops under constant watch.

Join the movement, embrace innovation, and let Egg Alert transform your chicken coop management. Together, we can build a brighter future for small-scale farmers worldwide.

Machine Learning: How we used a Cloud Based Platform to train a very robust model

We chose to utilize the Edge Impulse platform for our project's machine learning model training due to its impressive capabilities and very user-friendly interface.

Using Edge Impulse was a breeze. We started by collecting a large dataset of images containing eggs, leveraging a makeshift hen house set up at one of our project developer's residences. To capture images in our custom-made hen house, we utilized the Tiny Machine Learning Kit (TinyML Kit) which comes with a camera module (OV7675) and an Arduino Nano 33 BLE Sense. This powerful combination allowed us to seamlessly integrate image capturing capabilities into our setup. The Arduino Nano BLE 33's compact size and wireless connectivity provides us with convenience and flexibility, enabling us to deploy the device in the hen house without impeding the hens' natural behavior. When capturing data, we paid close attention to several factors. We ensured proper lighting conditions to obtain clear and consistent images, minimizing shadows and glare. Thus we obtained a high-quality dataset that laid the foundation for our machine learning model training.

We then uploaded the dataset to Edge Impulse, which allowed us to easily preprocess and augment the data, ensuring optimal training conditions.

The outcomes were remarkable. Our machine learning model trained on Edge Impulse achieved an impressive accuracy of 94.44%. This high level of accuracy instilled confidence in our technology and validated the effectiveness of Edge Impulse's training capabilities.

Seamless Connectivity: Pairing the Hardware with the Egg Alert Smart Phone App using Bluetooth Low Energy

The workflow of the Egg Alert app's Bluetooth connection is as follows:

• Launch the Egg Alert app on your Android device and ensure that Bluetooth is enabled.

• To register a hatchery click on the Hatcheries tab and select Add Hatchery.

• The app scans for available Bluetooth devices in the vicinity. It specifically looks for devices that advertise with the correct local name, indicating an Egg Alert device.
• If the app finds a device, establish a connection with it.

• The app starts monitoring the Egg Alert device for any new egg detections.
• Whenever a new egg is detected by the Egg Alert device, it sends a notification to the app via Bluetooth.
• The app receives the notification and promptly alerts the user about the newly laid egg.
• The app keeps a record of the egg detections, allowing the user to review the history of laid eggs.

Harnessing Statistical Analysis for Optimal Chicken Coop Management with the Egg Alert App

The Egg Alert app revolutionizes the way users monitor and manage their chicken coops by offering real-time notifications and also comprehensive statistical analysis. With a focus on empowering users with valuable insights, the app provides detailed information about when and where the eggs were laid and the quantity of eggs laid. Through its intuitive interface, users can easily access statistical data that highlights patterns, trends, and fluctuations in egg production. This comprehensive analysis enables users to make data-driven decisions in optimizing their chicken coop operations. They can identify peak laying periods, evaluate the impact of environmental factors, and adjust feed schedules or lighting conditions accordingly. Additionally, the app allows users to track and compare egg production data over different time periods, enabling them to assess long-term performance and make informed projections.

Egg Alert Hardware Onboarding

• Begin by carefully observing the layout and structure of your henhouse.
• Identify areas where hens typically lay their eggs and consider factors such as nesting boxes or preferred laying locations by the chickens.
• Look for a position that offers a clear and unobstructed view of the nesting areas or places where eggs are likely to be laid.
• Consider mounting the TinyML Kit at an elevated position to avoid accidental disturbances by hens or other elements in the henhouse.
• Ensure that the TinyML Kit is securely attached to a stable surface or mounted using appropriate brackets or stands.
• Position the camera module of the TinyML Kit to face the nesting areas directly for optimal egg detection.
• Adjust the angle and orientation of the TinyML Kit's camera module to capture a wide field of view covering the nesting areas.
• Aim to position the camera module in a way that minimizes shadows, glare, or obstructions that may affect the image quality.
• Activate the Egg Alert app on your smartphone and establish a Bluetooth connection with the TinyML Kit.
• Place an egg in the nesting area and finetune the camera placement untill the detected egg notification is delivered to your smart phone device.

Video tutorial can be found here.