Wearable tech might be the next big thing right now but why restrict it to humans? Farmers in Ireland have begun trialling a new wearable GPS device that can help them to track the movements of cows and ultimately boost milk production.

The bell-shaped tracking collar, which has been created by Cambridge Industrial Design on behalf of the Shannon-based start-up True North Mapping, is a device which contains sensors that monitor dairy cattle as they go about their day. The collar sends the resulting data to a central hub where it can be analysed in conjunction with other data, such as milk yields and grass length to help farmers manage grazing patterns. "Wearables such as the Apple Watch may be stealing the headlines but tracking the behaviour of cows is equally vital to farmers to want to best manage their grazing," said Tim Evans, design director at Cambridge Industrial Design.

“In creating this sensor we took our inspiration from the traditional alpine cow bell, using a rounded shape to minimise the size and maximise strength. This ensures it is rugged enough to cope with being bashed against fences and feeding troughs and simple enough for farmers to remove for cleaning and recharging. The result mooves wearable technology forward and the cows think it is udderly brilliant,” he added.

According to Patrick Halton, managing and technology director at True North, which has developed a number of technologies for the dairy sector in conjunction with Teagasc, we may be tempted to think of the agriculture sector as being behind the times, but it is anything but.

“Contrary to popular belief, agriculture is increasingly reliant on technology to maximise yields and ensure the highest standards of animal welfare, “he said.

True North is one of the organisations taking part in the €1 million Teagasc-led Precisiondairy project which is focused on the development, interpretation and integration of precision technologies in pasture base systems. The big data project is seeking to develop a prototype platform that combines the disciplines of sensor and biosensor development, communication standards and database design with modellers, existing databases and mathematicians. The objective is to increase the environmental and economic sustainability of Irish pasture based dairy farms.