Sowter
Shipment：115 kg
Real-time individual pig weight estimation is performed based on camera footage from within the pig housing.
Sowter®: Smart glasses that visualize a pig’s weight.
“Sowter” is a registered trademark of the National University Corporation, University of Miyazaki.
Contactless
AI+Image Analysis
Hand-free
Benefits and Performance of Using Sowter
Replacing traditional pig weighing machines with Sowter® reduces workload, improves consistency, and enables more efficient and accurate weight measurement.
Switching from conventional pig weighing scales to Sowter®
- Number of workers required for weight measurement: 2–3 people → 1 person
- Performance and accuracy are equal to or better than conventional pig scales.
- Since pigs drink and urinate about 15 liters and eat/excrete around 5 kg per day, traditional scales typically show ±5% variation within a single day.
Instead of relying on momentary weight measurements, Sowter…
Because the system estimates weight from three-dimensional body shape, it provides measurements that are less affected by drinking or feeding timing.
Video
Please watch out the video.
System Flow
By combining a 3D camera with AI technology, the system performs high-precision, non-contact weight estimation.
1
Image acquisition with a 3D camera
A 3D camera captures images of the pig in a way that is not affected by its movements.
2
Posture and position correction
The 3D images are processed to correct variations in the pig’s posture and position.
3
Reconstruction of the full body shape
Even from angled images, the entire body shape is reconstructed.
4
Body shape analysis
From the reconstructed 3D data, body shape features such as body length, width, and volume are analyzed.
5
AI-based weight estimation
Using the analyzed body shape information, an AI model estimates the pig’s weight.
6
Display on smart glasses
The estimated results are displayed in real time on smart glasses.
The estimated results are displayed in real time on smart glasses.
Patents have been registered in:
Japan、
America、
China、
Germany、
France、
Denmark、
Spain、
Netherlands
Japan、
America、
China、
Germany、
France、
Denmark、
Spain、
Netherlands
The system also supports black pig breeds (e.g., Berkshire, Duroc, etc.).
Achievements
Our achievements are as below:（Link）
- Featured on the official website of the Ig Nobel Prize (Improbable Research).
- Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Research Council: Featured as TOPIC 10 in the 2021 “Top 10 Agricultural Technologies.” (in Japanese)
- Featured in the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries publication “Agricultural Technologies Revealed Through Our Daily Meals.” (in Japanese)
- Introduced in the high school textbook *Livestock Production*. (in Japanese)
Media
Featured in various media (Link)
- Featured on the official Dragon Ball website.
- Featured by MINAPIM MAGAZINE.
- Featured in the Japan Agri News.
- Featured by Miyazaki University: “Scubuter® – Smart Glasses That Visualize Pig Weight.” (in Japanese)
- Featured in the Asahi Shimbun newspaper. (in Japanese)
- Featured in Mynavi Agriculture. (in Japanese)
- Featured in Chizai Zukan (Intellectual Property Illustrated Encyclopedia). (in Japanese)