Efficient processing of particulate products across various manufacturing steps requires that particles possess desired attributes such as size and shape. Controlling the particle production process to obtain required attributes will be greatly facilitated using robust algorithms providing the size and shape information of the particles from in situ measurements. However, obtaining particle size and shape information in situ during manufacturing has been a big challenge. This is because the problem of estimating particle size and shape (aspect ratio) from signals provided by in-line measuring tools is often ill posed, and therefore it calls for appropriate constraints to be imposed on the problem. One way to constrain uncertainty in estimation of particle size and shape from in-line measurements is to combine data from different measurements such as chord length distribution (CLD) and imaging. This paper presents two different methods for combining imaging and CLD data obtained with in-line tools in order to get reliable estimates of particle size distribution and aspect ratio, where the imaging data is used to constrain the search space for an aspect ratio from the CLD data

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Using automatic sensor data, this is the first study to characterize individual cow feeding and rumination behavior simultaneously as affected by lameness. A group of mixed-parity, lactating Holstein cows were loose-housed with free access to 24 cubicles and 12 automatic feed stations. Cows were milked three times/day. Fresh feed was delivered once daily. During 24 days with effectively 22 days of data, 13,908 feed station visits and 7,697 rumination events obtained from neck-mounted accelerometers on 16 cows were analyzed. During the same period, cows were locomotion scored on four occasions and categorized as lame (n = 9) or not lame (n = 7) throughout the study. Rumination time, number of rumination events, feeding time, feeding frequency, feeding rate, feed intake, and milk yield were calculated per day, and coefficients of variation were used to estimate variation between and within cows. Based on daily sums, using each characteristic as response, the effects of lameness and stage of lactation were tested in a mixed model. With rumination time as response, each of the four feeding characteristics, milk yield, and lameness were tested in a second mixed model. On a visit basis, effects of feeding duration, lameness, and milk yield on feed intake were tested in a third mixed model. Overall, intra-individual variation was <15% and inter-individual variation was up to 50%. Lameness introduced more inter-individual variation in feeding characteristics (26–50%) compared to non-lame cows (17–29%). Lameness decreased daily feeding time and daily feeding frequency, but increased daily feeding rate. Interestingly, lameness did not affect daily rumination behaviors, fresh matter intake, or milk yield. On a visit basis, a high feeding rate was associated with a higher feed intake, a relationship that was exacerbated in the lame cows. In conclusion, cows can be characterized in particular by their feeding behavior, and lame cows differ from their non-lame pen-mates in terms of fewer feed station visits, faster eating, less time spent feeding, and more variable feeding behavior. Further, daily rumination time was slightly negatively associated with feeding rate, a relationship which calls for more research to quantify rumination efficiency relative to feeding rate.

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The reticuloruminal function is central to the digestive efficiency in ruminants. For cattle, collar- and ear tag-based accelerometer monitors have been developed to assess the time spent ruminating on an individual animal. Cattle that are ill feed less and so ruminate less, thus, the estimation of the time spent ruminating provides insights into the health of individual animals. pH boluses directly provide information on the reticuloruminal function within the rumen and extended (three hours or more) periods during which the ruminal pH value remains below 5.6 is an indicator that dysfunction and poor welfare are likely. Accelerometers, incorporated into the pH boluses, have been used to indicate changes in behaviour patterns (high/low activity), utilised to detect the onset of oestrus. The paper demonstrates for the first time that by processing the reticuloruminal motion, it is possible to recover rumination periods. Reticuloruminal motion energy and the time between reticuloruminal contractions are used as inputs to a Support Vector Machine (SVM) to identify rumination periods with an overall accuracy of 86.1%, corroborated by neck mounted rumination collars.