Computer-Vision-Based Sensing Technologies for Livestock Body Dimension Measurement: A Survey

Livestock's live body dimensions are a pivotal indicator of economic output. Manual measurement is labor-intensive and time-consuming, often eliciting stress responses in the livestock. With the advancement of computer technology, the techniques for livestock live body dimension measurement have progressed rapidly, yielding significant research achievements. This paper presents a comprehensive review of the recent advancements in livestock live body dimension measurement, emphasizing the crucial role of computer-vision-based sensors. The discussion covers three main aspects: sensing data acquisition, sensing data processing, and sensing data analysis. The common techniques and measurement procedures in, and the current research status of, live body dimension measurement are introduced, along with a comparative analysis of their respective merits and drawbacks. Livestock data acquisition is the initial phase of live body dimension measurement, where sensors are employed as data collection equipment to obtain information conducive to precise measurements. Subsequently, the acquired data undergo processing, leveraging techniques such as 3D vision technology, computer graphics, image processing, and deep learning to calculate the measurements accurately. Lastly, this paper addresses the existing challenges within the domain of livestock live body dimension measurement in the livestock industry, highlighting the potential contributions of computer-vision-based sensors. Moreover, it predicts the potential development trends in the realm of high-throughput live body dimension measurement techniques for livestock.