Real-time Internet of Things architecture for wireless livestock tracking

Abstract

Automatic livestock tracking is necessary for countries facing stock theft problems, like South Africa and Kenya. This paper presents a conceptual design of architecture for real-time wireless livestock tracking based on Internet of Things paradigm. It is a hierarchical model consisting of three building blocks, where the first block is represented with wireless sensor network. Additionally, we have developed a low-power device for livestock tracking in an outdoor environment. The animal tracking device (AnTrack) is self-sustainable with a watertight solar panel(s), designed as a collar to be worn by the animals. A detailed analysis of the AnTrack power consumption proves that the device is capable to generate enough supply power, even when there is no sunshine for a week. This device can be used as a robust building block of future real-time Internet of Things livestock tracking solutions.