EP3625753A1

EP3625753A1 - Method, control unit and system for herd analysis

Info

Publication number: EP3625753A1
Application number: EP18730140.3A
Authority: EP
Inventors: John M. Christensen; Paul FELBO; Mikael HØJER HANSEN; Kristina Nielsen
Original assignee: DeLaval Holding AB
Current assignee: DeLaval Holding AB
Priority date: 2017-05-18
Filing date: 2018-05-16
Publication date: 2020-03-25
Also published as: WO2018212707A1

Abstract

System (400) and computer program for determining a performance parameter (200a, 200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 200h), associated with reproduction of animals (110a, 110b, 110c) in a herd, at a herd level. The system (400) comprises: a first biomarker measurement unit (120a, 120b, 120c), configured to measure a first biomarker value; a database (140), configured to store the first biomarker measurement values; an output unit (160), configured to output information; and a control unit (150). The control unit (150) is configured to: obtain the first biomarker value, of each of the animals (110a, 110b, 110c); determine outcomes of the performance parameter (200a, 200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 200h); compile the outcomes of the performance parameter (200a, 200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 200h) into a single herd representative value (220); compare the single herd representative value (220) with a reference value (210); and generate an instruction to the output unit (160), to output information to the operator.

Description

METHOD, CONTROL UNIT AND SYSTEM FOR HERD ANALYSIS

TECHNICAL FIELD

This document discloses a system and a computer program. More particularly, a system and a computer program are described, for determining outcomes of at least one performance parameter associated with reproduction of animals in a herd, at a herd level.

BACKGROUND

On an animal farm, it is important to keep the animals healthy in order to enhance milk/ meat production. On a dairy farm, for example, it is very important to inseminate animals at an optimal moment in order to successfully fertilise the cow. It is important to find the right moment to inseminate each individual animal in the farm, for efficiency reasons. In case the animal is not successfully inseminated, milk production is affected. Several measurements may be made on the animal, such as e.g. measuring levels of progesterone, LDH (Lactate Dehydrogenase), BHB (Beta-Hydroxybutyrat) and urea. Thereby important information concerning e.g. heat detection and/ or pregnancy of the individual animal may be made (based on measured progesterone level), as well as mastitis (based on LDH) and ketosis (based on BHB). Also, the energy balance may be estimated (based on urea).

Thereby, the farmer is provided with important information concerning each individual animal. However, it is difficult for the farmer to get an overview of the animal status on a herd level, instead of just on individual level. It would be desirable to detect a systematic deviation of a performance parameter at herd level, preferably at an early stage, in order to find a systematic cause, such as over/ under feeding, and enable the operator to apply an appropriate remedy to improve performance of the herd.

Further, it is a problem for the farmer to know what to do when an anomaly is detected; i.e. which measures to make to enhance milk yield and/ or reproduction.

It would be desired to find a way to assist the farmer in analysing his/ her animals and enhance production at the farm. SUMMARY

It is therefore an object of this invention to solve at least some of the above problems and facilitate for an operator to determine outcomes of a performance parameter, associated with reproduction, of animals in a herd, at a herd level.

According to a first aspect of the invention, this objective is achieved by a system for determining outcomes of at least one performance parameter, associated with reproduction of animals in a herd, at a herd level. The system comprises at least one first biomarker measurement unit, configured to measure at least one value of at least one first biomarker, associated with reproduction, of the animals of the herd. Further, the system also comprises a database, configured to store the first biomarker measurement values of the animals. The system in addition also comprises an output unit, configured to output information to an op- erator. Additionally, the system furthermore comprises a control unit. The control unit is configured to obtain at least one value of the at least one first biomarker, of each of the animals from the database. Further, the control unit is configured to determine an outcome of the performance parameter of each of the animals, based on the obtained first biomarker measurement value. Additionally, the control unit is furthermore configured to compile the deter- mined outcomes of the performance parameter, for the animals into a single herd representative value. The control unit is configured to compare the single herd representative value of the performance parameter of the animals with a corresponding reference value for the performance parameter. Also, the control unit is furthermore configured to generate an instruction to the output unit, to output information to the operator, based on the made com- parison.

A biomarker, or biological marker, generally refers to a measurable indicator of some biological state or condition. The first biomarker value measurement is associated with pregnancy/ reproduction of the animal. The measurement may be made on milk, urine or blood of the respective animals.

According to a second aspect of the invention, this objective is achieved by a computer program comprising program code for determining outcomes, associated with reproduction of at least one performance parameter of animals in a herd, at a herd level. The computer program comprises obtaining at least one measurement value of at least one first biomarker, associated with reproduction, of the animals of the herd. Further, the computer program also comprises determining an outcome of the performance parameter of each of the animals, based on the obtained first biomarker measurement value. The computer program additionally comprises compiling the determined outcomes of the performance parameter, for the animals into a single herd representative value. In addition, the computer program comprises comparing the single herd representative value of the performance parameter of the animals with a corresponding reference value for the performance parameter. Furthermore, the computer program comprises generating an instruction to an output unit, to output information to an operator, based on the made comparison; when the computer program is executed in a control unit.

Thanks to the described aspects, by compiling biomarker measurement made repeatedly on the animals into a single herd representative value, a pattern is established and the outcomes of the performance parameter, associated with reproduction, on a herd level is estimated. By comparing the single herd representative value of the performance parameter with the reference value, a deviating herd level outcome could be detected at an early stage. The operator is thereby provided with an early warning and could initiate an appropriate remedy to rectify a disadvantageous development in the herd. The outcomes of the performance parameter of the herd could thereby be improved, having an economic impact on profitability of the breeding program and net income of the farm. Thereby, a user-friendly and intuitive on-farm tool is provided, to help farmers improve outcomes of the performance parameter, associated with reproduction of the herd.

Other advantages and additional novel features will become apparent from the subsequent detailed description.

FIGURES

Embodiments of the invention will now be described in further detail with reference to the accompanying figures, in which:

Figure 1A illustrates an example of a system for determining outcomes of a performance parameter, associated with reproduction of animals in a herd, at a herd level.

Figure 1 B illustrates an example of a system for determining outcomes of a performance parameter, associated with reproduction of animals in a herd, at a herd level.

Figure 2A illustrates an advisory information overview, according to an embodiment.

Figure 2B illustrates an example of progesterone variations in milk of an animal during an oestrous cycle.

Figure 3 illustrates the system according to an embodiment, wherein information is pre- sented to an operator.

Figure 4 is an illustration depicting a system according to an embodiment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Embodiments of the invention described herein are defined as a system, and a computer program, which may be put into practice in the embodiments described below. These embodiments may, however, be exemplified and realised in many different forms and are not to be limited to the examples set forth herein; rather, these illustrative examples of embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete.

Still other objects and features may become apparent from the following detailed description, considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. It is to be understood, however, that the drawings are designed solely for purposes of illustration and not as a definition of the limits of the herein disclosed embodiments, for which reference is to be made to the appended claims. Further, the drawings are not necessarily drawn to scale and, unless otherwise indicated, they are merely intended to conceptually illustrate the structures and procedures described herein.

Figure 1A illustrates a scenario with animals 110a, 110b, 110c which may be comprised in a herd of dairy animals at a dairy farm.

"Animal" may be any arbitrary type of domesticated female milk producing and/ or meat producing mammal such as cow, goat, sheep, horse, camel, dromedary, primate, dairy buffalo, donkey, reindeer, yak, lama, elk etc., which are kept in a herd.

Milk of the animals 110a, 1 10b, 1 10c may pass a first biomarker measurement unit 120a, 120b, 120c e.g., during regular milking of the animals 110a, 110b, 110c. The first biomarker measurement unit 120a, 120b, 120c may be placed in a milk line in some embodiments, so called inline measurement; or alternatively, milk may be diverted during milking to the bi- omarker measurement unit 120a, 120b, 120c, so called online measurement.

The first biomarker measurement unit 120a, 120b, 120c may check the milk continuously along the milk line (inline measurement) in some embodiments as illustrated in Figure 1A; for example, comprised in a milking robot. In some other embodiments, a milk sample may be diverted from the milk line (online measurement), as illustrated in Figure 1 B. Hereby, automatic measurements are provided, effortless for the operator/ farmer.

The first biomarker may be e.g. progesterone, glycoprotein, oestrogen and/ or Gonadatropin- Releasing Hormones, or any other similar biomarker associated with reproduction of the an- imal 1 10a, 110b, 110c, in different embodiments. The first biomarker may indicate pregnancy of the animal 110a, 1 10b, 110c. Progesterone is a hormone that regulates several physiological functions of the animal 1 10a, 1 10b, 110c. Progesterone may prepare the uterus for pregnancy, maintain the pregnancy if fertilisation occurs, and inhibit the animal 110a, 110b, 1 10c from showing signs of standing oestrus and ovulating when pregnant.

Progesterone levels, for example, may rise at the beginning of the pregnancy, and be kept at a high level throughout the pregnancy of the animal 110a, 110b, 1 10c.

Milk of the animals 1 10a, 10b, 1 0c may also pass a second biomarker measurement unit 130a, 130b, 130c, inline or online, in different embodiments. The second biomarker is one or more of: LDH (Lactate Dehydrogenase), BHB (Beta-HydroxyButyrat), urea, somatic cell count, and/ or milk yield; another biomarker related to status of the animal 110a, 1 10b, 110c; conductivity, or a stress hormone like e.g. adrenaline, Cortisol, epinephrine, norepinephrine, etc.

The milk yield of each respective animal 110a, 1 10b, 1 10c may be measured by a milk flow meter 135a, 135b, 135c, sometimes also referred to as milk meters or transfer recording jars, on udder level or quarter udder level. The milk yield of each respective animal 0a, 1 10b, 110c may thus be continuously monitored and measured, e.g. per time unit such as litres per day, litres per hour, litres delivered during each milking event, etc.

The first biomarker measurement unit 120a, 120b, 120c and/ or the second biomarker meas- urement unit 130a, 130b, 130c may provide the respective measurement values via wired or wireless signals to a database 140, where the measurement values may be stored, associated with an identity (i.e. a unique identification reference) of the respective animal 10a, 10b, 110c; and possibly also with other data or measurements of the individual animal 1 10a, 1 0b, 1 10c such as e.g. a time stamp of the measurement, milk yield, e.g. measured by the milk flow meter 135a, 135b, 135c, activity, breed, parity, rumination, lactation, resting, feed intake, energy balance, Days In Milk, milk production, age and possibly other similar animal status related parameters.

Milk sample, urine sample or blood sample of any animal 1 10a, 1 10b, 110c may in some embodiments be provided, or diverted, to the first biomarker measurement unit 120a, 120b, 120c and/ or the second biomarker measurement unit 130a, 130b, 130c, at predetermined or configurable time intervals, or according to a schedule, for example in herds comprising meat producing animals 1 10a, 110b, 1 10c. A control unit 150 may repeatedly obtain information from the database 140, over a wired or wireless communication interface. Based on the individual first biomarker values and/ or second biomarker values of the individual animals 110a, 110b, 110c, the control unit 150 may aggregate the data to herd level performance parameters, by compiling biomarker measurement values of the individual animals 10a, 110b, 110c. The control unit 150 may operate as a rolling real-time presenter of the herds performance.

Further, the control unit 150 may provide information to an output unit 160 of an operator by transmitting wired or wireless signals. The operator is thereby able to analyse and root cause potential reasons for lack of performance. The application gives early warnings in order to avoid later negative implication on the reproduction performance of animals 110a, 110b, 110c in the herd.

Further, the control unit 150 may be connected to a transceiver 155 in some embodiments, configured to transmit and receive signals to/ from the output unit 160 of the operator. The operator may be e.g. a farmer or other person working at a farm; or a veterinarian, agronomist, dietician, biologist, zoologist, ecologist, mammologist, domestic animal researcher, zookeeper or other similar human, temporarily, accidently or permanently visiting the farm. The "farm" as the term herein is used may be a barn, a ranch, a stable or other similar agricultural structure for keeping animals.

The communication of the transceiver 55 may be made over a wired or wireless communication interface. Such wireless communication interface may comprise, or at least be inspired by wireless communication technology such as Wi-Fi, Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN), Ultra Mobile Broadband (UMB), Bluetooth (BT) to name but a few possible examples of wireless communications in some embodiments. The communication may alternatively be made over a wireless interface comprising, or at least being inspired by radio access technologies such as e.g. 3GPP LTE, LTE-Advanced, E-UTRAN, UMTS, GSM, GSM/ EDGE, WCDMA, Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA) networks, Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA) networks, Orthogonal FDMA (OFDMA) networks, Single-Carrier FDMA (SC-FDMA) networks, Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMax), or Ultra Mobile Broadband (UMB), High Speed Packet Access (HSPA) Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access (E- UTRA), Universal Terrestrial Radio Access (UTRA), GSM EDGE Radio Access Network (GERAN), 3GPP2 CDMA technologies, e.g., CDMA2000 1x RTT and High Rate Packet Data (HRPD), or similar, just to mention some few options, via a wireless communication network. The output unit 160 may be e.g. a cellular mobile telephone, a stationary or portable computing device, a computer tablet, a display, a pair of intelligent glasses, a smart contact lens, an augmented reality device, a smart watch or similar device having a user interface and wireless communication ability.

5

In some embodiments, the outputted information may comprise a top-level view with a spin diagram, providing a quick overview over at least some performance parameter/-s and relate it/ them to a target performance indicatorAs. The performance parameters, associated with reproduction of the animals 110a, 110b, 110c of a herd may be normalised by use of a double 10 logistic equation which takes in to account mean value and deviation, in some embodiments.

The equation may produce a number between 0 - 100. The spin diagram may continuously present the actual performance at a herd level, as illustrated in Figure 2A.

Each of the performance parameters, associated with reproduction of the animals 1 0a, 15 110b, 110c of a herd, may be connected to an advisory page that provides information about what can cause under-performing and which interventions can be taken to push the actual current performance of the herd, to a target performance, as illustrated in Figure 3.

When a deviation, exceeding a first threshold limit, is detected between the outcomes of any 20 performance parameter, associated with reproduction of the animals;110a, 110b, 110c of the herd, and the corresponding reference value, an alert may be outputted to the operator. The alert may comprise e.g. visual information, an audio message, a tactile signal or a combination thereof, encouraging the operator to further investigate the reasons for the detected deviation in result. In case a plurality of people is working with the herd, a broadcast may be 25 made to the plurality of operators and their respective associated output units 160, in some embodiments.

Figure 1B illustrates a scenario, similar to the system depicted in Figure 1 A, but where milk of the animals 1 0a, 110b, 110c is examined online. Also, milk yield of the animals 110a,

30 110b, 110c may be measured by a milk flow meter 135a, 135b, 135c. A milk sample is examined by the first biomarker measurement unit 120a, 120b, 120c and in some embodiments also the second biomarker measurement unit 130a, 130b, 130c, e.g. by putting the milk sample in contact with some dry stick technology sticks 170a, 170b, 170c, 170d, or other similar prepared substance. The respective sticks 170a, 170b, 170c, 170d are prepared to

35 measure amount of, or determine presence of different biomarkers such as e.g. progesterone, LDH, BHB and/ or urea, in a non-limiting exemplary embodiment. In other embodiments, other measurement methods than dry stick technology may be used, such as e.g. biosensor inline measurements. The values of the measurement made on the sticks 170a, 170b, 170c, 170d may be analysed by the first biomarker measurement unit 120a and the second biomarker measurement unit 130a, respectively, in some embodiments. However, the first biomarker measurement unit 5 120a and the second biomarker measurement unit 130a may be comprised in the same physical unit in some embodiments. The first biomarker may comprise one or more of e.g.: progesterone, glycoprotein or Gonadatropin-Releasing Hormones, in some embodiments. The second biomarker may comprise one or more of: LDH (Lactate Dehydrogenase), BHB (Beta-HydroxyButyrat), urea, somatic cell count, milk yield, conductivity, or a stress hormone 10 like e.g. adrenaline, Cortisol, epinephrine, norepinephrine, etc.

As already described, the values from the biomarker measurement units 120a, 130a may be provided to a database 140, where it may be accessed by a control unit 150 for further analyse.

15

Figure 2A illustrates a spin diagram wherein actual current single herd representative value 220 of at least one performance parameter 200a, 200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 200h of the herd is outputted, together with a respective reference value 210, each associated with a corresponding performance parameter 200a, 200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 20 200h. The invention is limited to performance parameters 200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 200h associated with reproduction of the animals 110a, 110b, 110c in the herd, such as performance parameters 200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 200h.

In the illustrated arbitrary example in Figure 2A, eight performance parameters 200a, 200b, 25 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 200h are outputted; as a non-limiting example; in this case: milk production 200a, commencement of luteal activity 200b, duration of oestrous 200c, timing of insemination 200d, early embryo death 200e, open days 200f, number of insemination per pregnancy 200g, return pregnant 200h. The performance parameters associated with reproduction is in this illustration: commencement of luteal activity 200b, duration of oestrous 30 200c, timing of insemination 200d, early embryo death 200e, open days 200f, number of insemination per pregnancy 200g, return pregnant 200h.

At least some of the enumerated performance parameters 200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 200h may be aggregated into one parameter, in some embodiments related to the 35 herd's ovarian activity before a decided mating time. An example of such parameter may e.g. be number of heats before X days in milk, where X is an arbitrary number such as e.g. 70 days, 60 days, 80 days, etc. This is possible due to a repeated measurement of progesterone. Thereby, a synchronisation of heat of at least a subset of the animals 100 in the herd may be made, leading to a rational insemination process. Further, the timing of the calving may be controlled and directed e.g. to a period in time which is as advantageous for the new born calf as possible, e.g. spring/ summer time. This may in particular be the case for grass land animals, which have ample access to nutrient-rich plants during spring/ summer. 5 Milk production 200a may be measured by a milk flow meter 135a, 135b, 135c, of each animal 110a, 110b, 110c of the herd.

Commencement of luteal activity 200b may be defined as the time where the animal 110a, 110b, 110c starts to have ovarian activity after calving. The animal 110a, 110b, 110c is in 10 theory ready to be inseminated when she starts to have cyclic activity and shows heats.

Commencement of luteal activity may be measured as a first elevation in progesterone after calving.

Duration of oestrous 200c may indicate the length of the oestrous of animal 110a, 110b, 15 110c. The duration of the oestrous 200c may be indicated by the progesterone level of each respective animal 110a, 110b, 110c being lower than a threshold limit.

The timing of insemination 200d may be defined as successfulness in delivering sperms so that viable sperms are at the fertilisation site as the unfertilised egg arrives. Ovulation of the 0 animal 110a, 110b, 110c may occur e.g. 25 to 32 hours after the onset of standing heat. Sperms have to be in the female reproductive tract for approximately six hours before they are capable of fertilising the egg. This process may be termed capacitation. Sperm viability may be estimated to approximately 18 to 24 hours while the fertile life of the egg is shorter, e.g. 10-20 hours. When breeding is made either too early or too late, it allows an aged sperm 5 and/ or an aged egg to interact at the site of fertilisation, which will result in poor conception.

Early embryo death 200e may be defined as embryonic death of a fertilised oocyte before a certain time period after conception, i.e. the immature ovum, or egg cell is never implanted in the uterus of the animal 110a, 110b, 110c.

30

Open days 200f may be defined as the number of days between calving and until the animal 110a, 110b, 110c is pregnant again.

Number of insemination per pregnancy 200g may be defined as number of insemination 5 attempts per successful pregnancy outcome of the animal 10a, 110b, 110c, resulting in pregnancy.

Return pregnant 200h may be defined as successfulness of an insemination; i.e. positive outcome of an insemination, resulting in pregnancy of the animal 110a, 1 10b, 110c.

Some other examples of possible performance parameters may be e.g. luteal phase length, follicular phase length, anoestrous incidence, follicular cyst incidence, and/ or luteal cyst in- 5 cidence.

The outcomes of the performance parameter 200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 200h, associated with reproduction of the animals 1 10a, 1 10b, 110c of the herd, may be outputted in another form than using a spin diagram, such as e.g. another graph or form of diagram or 10 chart; as numbers; etc.

The reference value 210 may be predetermined or configurable. The reference value may refer to e.g. an outcome of a configurable percentage of the herd on the farm; an outcome of an ideal other farm of animals of the same breed; own defined respective target values; 15 the best producing 10% of the herd, etc. The reference value 210, or target value may e.g. be determined by the operator. In a non-limiting example, the performance parameters open days 200f may be set to 90-100 days.

In some embodiments, each performance parameter 200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 20 200h, associated with reproduction of the animals 110a, 110b, 110c of the herd, may be associated with information, e.g. an advisory page that provides information about what can cause under-performing and which interventions can be taken to push the actual herd representative value 220 to the corresponding target performance 210 associated with the respective performance parameter 200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 200h.

25

When a deviation 230 between the herd representative value 220 of any performance parameter 200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 200h associated with reproduction of the animals 110a, 110b, 110c of the herd, and the reference value 210, exceeds a predetermined or configurable first threshold limit, an alert may be triggered and information concerning the 30 deviation may be outputted to the operator, e.g. via the output unit 160.

In some embodiments, the outputted herd representative value 220 of the performance parameter 200a, 200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 200h of the herd in the graph may be normalised in some embodiments.

35

At any point of time, i.e. assessment time, the control unit 150 may calculate a mean value and a standard deviation for each of the performance parameters 200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 200h associated with reproduction of the animals 110a, 1 10b, 1 10c of the herd, in the (spin) diagram in some embodiments. In order to state the degree of fulfilment (actual performance) and have the same scale for all performance parameters 200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 200h, the herd representative value 220 of the herd may be transformed to relative values between 0 - 100 %, e.g. with use of a logistic function: f(x) = L / (1 + c * e-k(x-xo)) ^* p [Equation 1] where: L = the curves maximum value (in this case 1 ); k = the steepness of the curve (- = Growth; + = Decline) (in this case +); c = constant (differential quotient; in this case 1); xo = the x - value of the sigmoid's midpoint; e = exponential function; x = |actual value - target value| (absolute/ numeric value); p = percent (in this case 1).

The closer the actual mean value and actual standard deviation is respectively to the target value and target standard deviation, the closer may the degree of fulfilment be to 100. The degree of fulfilment may be calculated with following equation:

Degree of fulfilment = degree of mean fulfilment ^* degree of homogeneity ^* 100; where both factors in the equation is using equation 1 with each set of constants. The two factors may be either neutral to each other or has a reducing influence on each other.

In some embodiments, the operator may access the underlying data for a selected performance parameter 200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 200h, associated with reproduction of the animals 110a, 110b, 110c of the herd e.g. in the form of box plots per month. Thereby, the operator is given a view how the specific indicator has developed over time.

In some further embodiments, milk yield 200a may be measured on each animal 110a, 110b, 110c of the herd, compiled and compared with a corresponding reference value 210.

Figure 2B illustrates an example of how a progesterone level of an animal 110a, 110b, 110c may vary over an oestrous cycle, which typically may be around 21 days.

During each oestrous cycle, follicles may develop in wave-like patterns, which are controlled by changes in hormone concentrations. In addition, corpus luteum develops following ovulation of a follicle. While it is present, this corpus luteum inhibits other follicles from ovulating. The length of each oestrous cycle is measured by the number of days between each standing oestrous, or standing heat as it also may be referred to as, in the illustrated example 21 days, but it may vary e.g. between 17 and 24 days. Standing oestrous is the period of time when the animal 110a, 110b, 110c is sexually receptive. In the illustration, the duration of the oestrous 200c may be regarded as a period in time where the progesterone level of the animal 110a, 110b, 110c is lower than a threshold limit. This time period may be e.g. 15-18 hours (vary between individuals).

5 Following standing oestrous, the ovulatory follicle that is present will ovulate, releasing the. egg it contains. Rupture of the dominant follicle is referred to as ovulation and occurs between e.g. 24 and 32 hours after the onset of standing oestrous (vary between individuals). Following the release of an egg from an ovulatory follicle, the egg will enter the female reproductive tract and be fertilised if the female has been inseminated with appropriate timing.

10

In general, progesterone production increases during the beginning of the oestrous cycle. Elevated concentrations of progesterone may be detected about 5 days after standing oestrus. If an animal 110a, 110b, 110c does not become pregnant, concentrations of progesterone will begin to decrease around day 17 of the oestrous cycle. This allows the animal 110a, 15 110b, 110c to show standing oestrus again, around day 21 (vary between individuals).

Figure 3 illustrates a system, wherein information in form of an advisory page is provided to an operator, concerning an estimated or possible root cause to a detected under performance on herd level. The information may comprise various interventions or measures to be 20 taken in order to improve the current outcome on herd level.

The advisory page may be accessed upon selection by the operator, for each of the illustrated performance parameters 200a, 200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 200h in some embodiments. Alternatively, the advisory page may be displayed as a pop up window, e.g. 25 when a deviation 230 has been detected.

In some embodiments, a selection or ranking may be made on which causes to output, concerning the most likely advise to be successful.

30 Figure 4 illustrates a system 400 for determining outcomes of at least one performance parameter 200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 200h, associated with reproduction of animals 110a, 110b, 110c in a herd, at a herd level.

The performance parameter 200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 200h, associated with re- 35 production of animals 110a, 110b, 110c in the herd, at the herd level may comprise any of: commencement of luteal activity 200b, duration of oestrous 200c, timing of insemination 200d, early embryo death 200e, open days 200f, number of insemination per pregnancy 200g, and/ or return pregnant 200h. The respective performance parameters 200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200Ϊ, 200g, 200h may be repeatedly determined at a predetermined or configurable time interval.

The system 400 comprises at least one first biomarker measurement unit 120a, 120b, 120c, 5 configured to measure at least one value of at least one first biomarker, of the animals 10a, 110b, 110c of the herd. The measurement may be made repeatedly e.g. several times a day, once a day, every second day, etc., at a predetermined or configurable time interval; or continuously. The measurement may be made on milk, on blood and/ or on urine of the respective animal 110a, 110b, 110c in different embodiments. However, frequent samplings may 10 lead to earlier pregnancy detection and/ or a more confident measurement. The measurements may be made repeatedly, e.g. during a predefined or configurable time period such as about 50 days, 60 days, 70 days, 80 days, etc. The time period may be between 40-90 days, preferably between 50-80 days in some embodiments.

15 The measurements may be made continuously in some embodiments. By making repeated measurements over the time period, a pattern may be detected based on the measurements of progesterone, revealing number of heats within the time interval. The ovarian activity of the herd may thereby be determined before deciding mating time.

The system 400 also comprises a database 140, configured to store the first biomarker 20 measurement values of the animals 110a, 110b, 1 0c.

Further, the system 400 comprises an output unit 160, configured to output information to an operator.

25 The system 400 comprises a control unit 150. The control unit 150 is configured to obtain at least one value of the at least one first biomarker, of each of the animals 110a, 110b, 110c from the database 40. Further, the control unit 150 is also configured to determine outcomes of at least one performance parameter 200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 200h of each of the animals 110a, 110b, 110c, based on the obtained first biomarker measurement value.

30 The control unit 150 is furthermore configured to compile, i.e. aggregate, the determined outcomes of the performance parameter 200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 200h, associated with reproduction of animals 110a, 1 0b, 10c in the herd, for the animals 110a, 110b, 110c. In addition, the control unit 150 is also configured to compare the compiled outcomes 220 of the performance parameter 200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 200h of the animals

35 110a, 110b, 110c with a reference value 210 associated with the performance parameter 200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 200h. The control unit 150 is configured to generate an instruction to the output unit 60, to output information to the operator, based on the made comparison. The outputted information comprising the herd representative value 220 of the performance parameter 200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 200, associated with reproduction of animals 110a, 110b, 110c in the herd, at herd level and the corresponding reference value 210 may be outputted for alerting the operator of the state of the herd. For example, in case the deviation 230 between the herd representative value 220 of the performance parameter 200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 200h and the corresponding reference value 210 is smaller than a first deviation threshold level, the herd representative value 220 of the performance parameter 200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 200h may be outputted in green colour. In case the deviation 230 between the herd representative value 220 of the performance parameter 200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 200h and the corresponding reference value 210 exceeds the first deviation threshold level but not a second deviation threshold level, the herd representative value 220 of the performance parameter 200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 200h may be outputted in yellow colour. In case the deviation 230 between the herd representative value 220 of the performance parameter 200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 200h and the corresponding reference value 210 exceeds the second deviation threshold level, the herd representative value 220 of the performance parameter 200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 200h may be outputted in red colour, in a non-limiting example. The operator is thereby provided with an intuitive instrument for instant understanding of the current state of the herd. Thanks to the intuitive user interface, the cognitive recognition of the operator is enhanced, leading to less time being spent on interpretation of measurements. Thereby, the operator is given an early warning that some anomaly has affected the outcomes of the performance parameter 200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 200h, associated with reproduction of animals 110a, 110b, 110c in the herd, at herd level. The attention of the operator concerning the detected anomaly is caught, and the operator is enabled to take appropriate measures, such as making a more detailed investigation and analysis for dis- covering the root cause.

The at least one first biomarker measurement unit 120a, 120b, 120c, comprised in the system 400, may in some embodiments be connected to a milking equipment for milking the animals 110a, 110b, 110c. Also, the first biomarker measurement unit 20a, 120b, 120c may be configured to measure the value of the at least one first biomarker on milk.

By connecting the first biomarker measurement unit 120a, 120b, 120c with the milking equipment, measurements may be made automatically when the animals 10a, 0b, 1 0c are milked, e.g. in a milking robot. Thereby, the operator does not have to make the measurement manually, in some embodiments, which saves time.

The control unit 150 may furthermore be configured to detect a deviation 230, exceeding a 5 first threshold limit, between the compiled herd representative value 220 of the performance parameter 200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 200h of the animals 110a, 110b, 110c and the reference value 210. In addition, the control unit 150 may also be configured to generate the instruction to output information to the operator, via the output unit 160, based on the detected deviation 230.

10

By setting a first threshold limit and only alert the operator when the deviation 230 exceeds the first threshold limit, it is avoided that alerts are sent to the operator for any minor, irrelevant deviation 230 between the compiled herd representative value 220 of the performance parameter 200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 200h, associated with reproduction of ani- 15 mals 110a, 110b, 110c in the herd and the corresponding reference value 210, leading to providing the operator a higher confidence of the system 400.

The first biomarker may comprise one or more of: progesterone, glycoprotein or Gonadatro- pin-Releasing Hormones, in some embodiments, or any other reproduction related bi- 20 omarker.

By measuring and determine one or several values of any, or several, of the enumerated first biomarkers, a reliable determination of the performance parameter 200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 200h, associated with reproduction of animals 110a, 110b, 110c in herd 25 of the animals 110a, 110b, 110c is made. By measuring several values of the same or different first biomarkers, a more confident pregnancy detection may be made, according to some embodiments.

The system 400 may furthermore comprise a second biomarker measurement unit 130a, 30 130b, 130c, configured to measure at least one value of at least one second biomarker, of the animals 110a, 110b, 110c. The second biomarker may comprise one or more of: LDH (Lactate Dehydrogenase), BHB (Beta-HydroxyButyrat), urea, somatic cell count, milk yield, conductivity, or a stress hormone like e.g. adrenaline, Cortisol, epinephrine, norepinephrine, etc.

35

LDH may indicate mastitis of the animal 110a, 110b, 110c; BHB may indicate ketosis; urea may indicate energy balance, i.e. over/ under feeding of the animal 110a, 110b, 110c; somatic cell count may indicate that the animal 110a, 110b, 110c is ill. High levels of adrenaline, Cortisol, epinephrine, norepinephrine, or any other stress hormone may indicate an increased temporal or permanent psychosomatic stress level of the animal 100.

Thereby, an automated disease monitoring concerning health stat of the animals 110a, 110b, 5 110c in the herd may be made, assisting the operator in early identification of disease risks and dysfunctional animals.

The control unit 150 may in some embodiments be configured to filter out a subset of the animals 110a, 110b, 110c from the compilation and output of the determined herd repre- 10 sentative value 220 of the performance parameter 200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 200h, associated with reproduction of animals 110a, 110b, 110c in the herd of the animals 110a, 110b, 110c, based on the measured second biomarker value.

Thereby, animals 110a, 110b, 110c suffering from mastitis may be filtered out from the out- 15 putted outcomes, based on LDH measurements. Other examples may be filtering out animals suffering from high long term stress, based on increased Cortisol, and/ or adrenaline.

By filtering out the subset of the animals 110a, 110b, 110c according to the operator selected criterion, a more representative result on a herd level is achieved, as animals 110a, 1 0b, 20 110c which are sick for example may not become pregnant for that reason. For example, animals 110a, 110b, 110c suffering from ketosis, which is known to affect pregnancy outcome, may be excluded from the compiled outcome on herd level, in order to get a result which is more representative for the herd.

25 The at least one second biomarker measurement unit 130a, 130b, 130c may be connected to a milking equipment for milking the animals 110a, 110b, 110c. Also, the second biomarker measurement unit 130a, 130b, 130c may be configured to measure the value of the at least one second biomarker on milk. However, in other embodiments, the second biomarker may be measured on blood and/ or on urine of the animal 110a, 110b, 110c.

30

By connecting the second biomarker measurement unit 130a, 130b, 130c with the milking equipment, measurements may be made automatically when the animals 110a, 110b, 110c are milked, e.g. in a milking robot. Thereby, the operator does not have to make the measurement manually, in some embodiments, which saves working time and enables the oper- 35 ator to focus on other more urgent needs on the farm, such as e.g. capturing fugitive animals or assist in a delivery.

The database 140 may be configured to store lactation number of each animal 110a, 110b, 1 0c. The control unit 150 may in some embodiments be configured to filter out a subset of animals 110a, 1 0b, 110c from the compilation and output of the determined herd representative value 220 of the performance parameter 200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 200h, associated with reproduction of animals 110a, 110b, 10c in the herd, based on the lactation 5 number.

By focusing on animals 110a, 110b, 10c having certain lactation number, anomalies among the group of animals 110a, 110b, 110c with that lactation number may be spotted.

10 In some embodiments, the control unit 150 may be configured to detect an individual animal 110a, 110b, 110c having an outcome, over a predetermined number of insemination events, such as e.g. 2, 3 ∞; which is below a second threshold limit. The second threshold limit may in a non-limiting example be 2 successful pregnancies out of 3 inseminations; or 5 successful pregnancies out of 7 inseminations, for example. The control unit 150 may further-

15 more be configured to generate the instruction to output information to the operator, via the output unit 160, concerning the detected individual animal 110a, 110b, 110c.

Thereby, dysfunctional animals 110a, 110b, 110c in the herd may be spotted and the operator may take appropriate action.

20

The control unit 150 may in some embodiments be configured to estimate a cause why the individual animal 110a, 110b, 110c has an outcome, over the predetermined number of insemination events during one lactation phase of the individual animal 110a, 110b, 110c, below the second threshold limit. Further, the control unit 150 may also be configured to 25 generate the instruction to output information to the operator, via the output unit 160, concerning the estimated cause, based on the measured second biomarkers.

The reason for the dysfunctionality may be of permanent or temporal nature. By determining the course and the permanency thereof, the operator obtains a basis for determining future 30 handling of the particular animal 110a, 110b, 110c.

The control unit 150 may also be configured to evaluate a potential economic earning, in case the herd level outcomes are increased from current herd representative value 220 up to the reference value 210, for a certain performance parameter 200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 35 200f, 200g, 200h, associated with reproduction of animals 110a, 110b, 110c in the herd.

Unsuccessful inseminations result in decreased milk yield. By estimating the loss due to unsuccessful inseminations, in relation to the reference value 210, the operator achieves an incentive to improve the outcome of inseminations, and/ or may balance the cost for the potential improvement against the potential earning. Thereby, a user-friendly and intuitive decision tool is provided, simplifying the decision process of the ambivalent operator. In some embodiments, the animals 1 10a, 1 10b, 110c may be inseminated and wherein outcomes resulting in pregnancy of the animal 110a, 110b, 110c may be determined, based on any of: early embryo death 200e, open days 200f, and/ or return pregnant 200h.

The control unit 150 may comprise a receiver 410 configured to receive information from the database 140, such as stored biomarker measurement values of animals 1 10a, 1 10b, 110c of the herd, and possibly also other individual animal status related parameters.

The control unit 150 also comprises a processing circuitry 420 configured for performing various calculations for conducting a computer program.

Such processing circuitry 420 may comprise one or more instances of a processing circuit, i.e. a Central Processing Unit (CPU), a processing unit, a processing circuit, a processor, an Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC), a microprocessor, or other processing logic that may interpret and execute instructions. The herein utilised expression "processor" may thus represent a processing circuitry comprising a plurality of processing circuits, such as, e.g., any, some or all of the ones enumerated above.

Furthermore, the control unit 50 may comprise a memory 425 in some embodiments. The optional memory 425 may comprise a physical device utilised to store data or programs, i.e., sequences of instructions, on a temporary or permanent basis. According to some embodiments, the memory 425 may comprise integrated circuits comprising silicon-based transistors. The memory 425 may comprise e.g. a memory card, a flash memory, a USB memory, a hard disc, or another similar volatile or non-volatile storage unit for storing data such as e.g. ROM (Read-Only Memory), PROM (Programmable Read-Only Memory), EPROM (Erasable PROM), EEPROM (Electrically Erasable PROM), etc. in different embodiments.

Further, the control unit 150 may comprise a signal transmitter 430. The signal transmitter 430 may be configured for transmitting signals via a wired or wireless communication interface to the output unit 160 of the operator, possibly via a transceiver 155.

A computer program comprising program code for determining outcomes of the performance parameter 200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 200h, associated with reproduction of each of the animals 1 0a, 110b, 110c in a herd, at a herd level may be executed by the control unit 50. The computer program comprises obtaining at least one measurement value of at least one first biomarker, of each of the animals 110a, 110b, 110c of the herd. Further, the computer program also comprises determining outcomes of the performance parameter 200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 200h of each of the animals 110a, 110b, 110c, based 5 on the obtained first biomarker measurement value. The computer program furthermore comprises compiling, i.e. aggregating, the determined outcomes of the performance parameter 200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 200h, for the animals 110a, 110b, 110c. In addition, the computer program also comprises comparing the compiled herd representative value 220 of the performance parameter 200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 200h of the animals 10 110a, 110b, 110c with a corresponding reference value 210 for the performance parameter 200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 200h. The computer program also comprises generating an instruction to an output unit 160, to output information to an operator, based on the made comparison; when the computer program is executed in the control unit 310.

15 The performance parameter 200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 200h, associated with reproduction of each of the animals 110a, 110b, 110c in the herd, according to an embodiment of the invention may comprise any of: commencement of luteal activity 200b, duration of oestrous 200c, timing of insemination 200d, early embryo death 200e, open days 200f, number of insemination per pregnancy 200g, and/ or return pregnant 200h.

20

In some embodiments, the computer program furthermore also comprises obtaining at least one measurement value of at least one second biomarker, of each of the animals 110a, 110b, 110c of the herd. The computer program may also comprise filtering out a subset of the animals 110a, 110b, 110c from the compilation and output of the determined herd rep- 25 resentative value 220 of the performance parameter 200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 200h of the animals 110a, 110b, 110c, based on an obtained second biomarker value.

The computer program may further comprise detecting an individual animal 110a, 110b, 110c having an outcome of the performance parameter 200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 30 200h, below a second threshold limit. Also, the computer program may comprise generating the instruction to output information to the operator, concerning the detected individual animal 110a, 110b, 110c.

In addition, the computer program may comprise estimating a cause why the individual ani- 35 mal 110a, 110b, 110c has an outcome of the performance parameter 200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 200h, below the second threshold limit. The computer program may furthermore comprise generating the instruction to output information to the operator, concerning the estimated cause, based on the measured second biomarkers. 50505

In some embodiments, the computer program also further may comprise evaluating a potential economic earning, in case the herd level outcomes are increased from current herd representative value 220 up to the reference value 210.

In some embodiments, the animals 110a, 110b, 110c may be inseminated and wherein the outcome resulting in pregnancy of the animal 110a, 110b, 110c may be determined, based on any of: early embryo death 200e, open days 200f, and/ or return pregnant 200h. The computer program mentioned above may be provided for instance in the form of a computer-readable medium, i.e. a data carrier carrying computer program code for performing at least some of the computer program steps, according to some embodiments when being loaded into the one or more processing circuits 420 of the control unit 150. The data carrier may be, e.g., a hard disk, a CD ROM disc, a memory stick, an optical storage device, a magnetic storage device or any other appropriate medium such as a disk or tape that may hold machine readable data in a non-transitory manner. The computer program may furthermore be provided as computer program code on a server and downloaded to the control unit 150 remotely, e.g. over an Internet or an intranet connection. The embodiments, or parts thereof, illustrated in Figure 1 A, Figure 1 B, Figure 2A, Figure 2B, Figure 3 and/ or Figure 4 may with advantage be combined with each other for achieving further benefits.

The terminology used in the description of the embodiments as illustrated in the accompa- nying drawings is not intended to be limiting of the described system 400, control unit 150, and/ or computer program. Various changes, substitutions and/ or alterations may be made, without departing from invention embodiments as defined by the appended claims.

As used herein, the term "and/ or" comprises any and all combinations of one or more of the associated listed items. The term "or" as used herein, is to be interpreted as a mathematical OR, i.e., as an inclusive disjunction; not as a mathematical exclusive OR (XOR), unless expressly stated otherwise. In addition, the singular forms "a", "an" and "the" are to be interpreted as "at least one", thus also possibly comprising a plurality of entities of the same kind, unless expressly stated otherwise. It will be further understood that the terms "includes", "comprises", "including" and/ or "comprising", specifies the presence of stated features, actions, integers, steps, operations, elements, and/ or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, actions, integers, steps, operations, elements, components, and/ or groups thereof. A single unit such as e.g. a processor may fulfil the functions of several items recited in the claims. The mere fact that certain measures or features are recited in mutually different dependent claims, illustrated in different figures or discussed in conjunction with different embodiments does not indicate that a combination of these measures or features cannot be used to advantage. A computer program may be stored/ distributed on a suitable medium, such as an optical storage medium or a solid-state medium supplied together with or as part of other hardware, but may also be distributed in other forms such as via Internet or other wired or wireless communication system.

Claims

PATENT CLAIMS

1. A system (400) for determining outcomes of at least one performance parameter (200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 200h), associated with reproduction of animals (110a, 110b, 110c) in a herd, at a herd level; wherein the system (400) comprises:

5 at least one first biomarker measurement unit (120a, 120b, 120c), configured to measure at least one value of at least one first biomarker, associated with reproduction, of the animals (110a, 110b, 110c) of the herd;

a database (140), configured to store the first biomarker measurement values of the animals (1 0a, 110b, 110c);

10 an output unit (160), configured to output information to an operator; and

a control unit (150), configured to:

obtain at least one value of the at least one first biomarker, of each of the animals (110a, 110b, 110c), from the database (140);

determine an outcome of the performance parameter (200b, 200c, 200d, 15 200e, 200f, 200g, 200h) of each of the animals (110a, 110b, 110c), based on the obtained first biomarker measurement value;

compile the determined outcomes of the performance parameter (200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 200h), for the animals (110a, 110b, 110c) into a single herd representative value (220);

20 compare the single herd representative value (220) of the performance parameter (200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 200h) of the animals (110a, 110b, 110c) with a corresponding reference value (210) for the performance parameter (200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 200h); and

generate an instruction to the output unit (160), to output information to the 25 operator, based on the made comparison.

2. The system (400) according to claim 1 , wherein the at least one first biomarker measurement unit (120a, 120b, 120c) is connected to a milking equipment for milking the animals (110a, 110b, 110c); and wherein the first biomarker measurement unit (120a, 120b,

30 120c) is configured to measure the value of the at least one first biomarker on milk.

3. The system (400) according to any one of claim 1 or claim 2, wherein:

the first biomarker measurement unit (120a, 120b, 120c) is configured to measure the value of the first biomarker of the animals (110a, 110b, 110c) of the herd repeatedly 35 during a time period; and

the control unit (150) is configured to determine the outcome of the performance parameter (200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 200h) of each of the animals (110a, 110b, 110c), based on the repeatedly measured first biomarker measurement values.

4. The system (400) according to claim 3, wherein the performance parameter comprises ovarian activity, and wherein the control unit (150) is configured to estimate ovarian activity based on repeatedly measured values of the first biomarker of the animals (110a,

5 1 0b, 110c) of the herd, during the time period.

5. The system (400) according to any one of claim 3 or claim 4, wherein the time period is between 40-90 days, preferably between 50-80 days.

10 6. The system (400) according to any one of claims 1-5, wherein the control unit (150) is configured to detect a deviation (230), exceeding a first threshold limit, between the single herd representative value (220) of the performance parameter (200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 200h) of the animals (110a, 110b, 110c) and the corresponding respective reference value (210) of the performance parameter (200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g,

15 200h); and configured to generate the instruction to output information to the operator, based on the detected deviation (230).

7. The system (400) according to any one of claims 1-6, wherein the first biomarker is one or more of: progesterone, glycoprotein or Gonadatropin-Releasing Hormones.

20

8. The system (400) according to any one of claims 1-7, comprising a second biomarker measurement unit (130a, 130b, 130c), configured to measure at least one value of at least one second biomarker, of the animals (110a, 110b, 110c); wherein the second biomarker is one or more of: LDH "Lactate Dehydrogenase", BHB "Beta-HydroxyButyrat",

25 urea, somatic cell count, milk yield, conductivity, or stress hormone.

9. The system (400) according to claim 8, wherein the control unit (150) is configured to filter out a subset of the animals (110a, 110b, 110c) from the compilation and output of the single herd representative value (220) of the performance parameter (200b, 200c, 200d,

30 200e, 200f, 200g, 200h) of the animals (110a, 110b, 110c), based on the measured second biomarker value.

10. The system (400) according to any one of claim 8 or claim 9, wherein the at least one second biomarker measurement unit (130a, 130b, 130c) is connected to a milking equip-

35 ment for milking the animals (110a, 110b, 110c); and is configured to measure the value of the at least one second biomarker on milk.

1 1. The system (400) according to any one of claims 1-10, wherein the database (140) is configured to store lactation number of each animal (110a, 110b, 110c); and wherein the control unit (150) is configured to filter out a subset of animals (110a, 110b, 110c) from the compilation and output of the single herd representative value (220) of the performance pa-

5 rameter (200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 200h) of the animals (110a, 110b, 110c), based on the lactation number.

12. The system (400) according to any one of claims 1-11 , wherein the control unit (150) is configured to detect an individual animal ( 0a, 10b, 110c) having an outcome of the

10 performance parameter (200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 200h), below a second threshold limit; and configured to generate the instruction to output information to the operator, concerning the detected animal (110a, 110b, 110c).

13. The system (400) according to claim 12, wherein the control unit (150) is configured 15 to estimate a cause why the individual animal (110a, 110b, 110c) has an outcome of the performance parameter (200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 200h), below the second threshold limit; and is configured to generate the instruction to output information to the operator, concerning the estimated cause, based on the measured second biomarkers.

20 14. The system (400) according to any one of claims 1 -13, wherein the control unit (150) is configured to evaluate a potential economic earning, in case the herd level outcomes of the performance parameter (200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 200h) is increased from current single herd representative value (220) of the performance parameter (200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 200h), up to the reference value (210).

25

15. The system (400) according to any one of claims 1-14, wherein the performance parameter (200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 200h) comprises any of: commencement of luteal activity (200b), duration of oestrous (200c), timing of insemination (200d), early embryo death (200e), open days (200f), number of insemination per pregnancy (200g), and/ or return

30 pregnant (200h).

16. The system (400) according to any one of claims 1 - 5, wherein the animals (110a, 110b, 110c) are inseminated and wherein insemination outcome resulting in pregnancy of the animal (110a, 110b, 110c) is determined, based on any of: early embryo death (200e),

35 open days (200f), and/ or return pregnant (200h).

17. A computer program comprising program code for determining outcomes of at least one performance parameter (200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 200h), associated with reproduction of animals (110a, 110b, 110c) in a herd, at a herd level; which computer program comprises:

obtaining at least one measurement value of at least one first biomarker, of the animals (110a, 110b, 110c) of the herd;

determining outcome of the performance parameter (200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f,

200g, 200h) of each of the animals (110a, 110b, 110c), based on the obtained first biomarker measurement value;

compiling the determined respective outcomes of the performance parameter (200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 200h), for the animals (110a, 110b, 110c) into a single herd representative value (220);

comparing the single herd representative value (220) of the performance parameter (200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 200h) of the animals (110a, 110b, 110c) with a corresponding reference value (210) for the performance parameter (200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 200h); and

generating an instruction to an output unit (160), to output information to an operator, based on the made comparison; when the computer program is executed in a control unit (310).

18. The computer program according to claim 17, comprising:

obtaining at least one measurement value of at least one second biomarker, of the animals (110a, 110b, 110c) of the herd; and

filtering out a subset of the animals (110a, 110b, 110c) from the compilation and output of the single herd representative value (220) of the performance parameter (200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 200h) of the animals (110a, 110b, 110c), based on an ob- tained second biomarker value.

19. The computer program according to any one of claim 17 or claim 18, comprising: measuring the value of the first biomarker of the animals (110a, 110b, 110c) of the herd repeatedly during a time period; and

determining outcome of the performance parameter (200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f,

200g, 200h) of each of the animals (110a, 110b, 110c), based on the repeatedly measured first biomarker measurement values.

20. The computer program according to claim 19, wherein the performance parameter comprises ovarian activity, further comprising:

estimating ovarian activity based on repeatedly measured values of the first biomarker of the animals (110a, 110b, 10c) of the herd, during the time period.

21. The computer program according to any one of claim 19 or claim 20, wherein the time period is between 40-90 days, preferably between 50-80 days.

22. The computer program according to any one of claims 17-21 , comprising:

detecting an individual animal (110a, 110b, 110c) having an outcome of the performance parameter (200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 200h), below a second threshold limit; and

generating the instruction to output information to the operator, concerning the detected individual animal (110a, 110b, 110c).

23. The computer program according to any one of claims 17-22, comprising:

estimating a cause why the individual animal (110a, 110b, 110c) has an outcome of the performance parameter (200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 200h), below the second threshold limit; and

generating the instruction to output information to the operator, concerning the estimated cause, based on the measured second biomarkers.

24. The computer program according to any one of claims 17-23, comprising:

evaluating a potential economic earning, in case the herd level outcomes are in- creased from current single herd representative value (220) of the performance parameter (200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 200h), up to the reference value (210).

25. The computer program according to any one of claims 17-24, wherein the performance parameter (200b, 200c, 200d, 200e, 200f, 200g, 200h) comprises any of: commence- ment of luteal activity (200b), duration of oestrous (200c), timing of insemination (200d), early embryo death (200e), open days (200f), number of insemination per pregnancy (200g), and/ or return pregnant (200h).

26. The computer program according to any one of claims 17-25, wherein the animals (110a, 110b, 110c) are inseminated and wherein insemination outcome resulting in pregnancy of the animal (110a, 110b, 110c) is determined, based on any of: early embryo death (200e), open days (200f), and/ or return pregnant (200h).