ModWall - a Morphological Boundary Concept for Pig Stable Design Based on Modular Robotics

This paper describes the preliminary deployment of ModWall, a morphological boundary concept for pig stable layout based on novel actuated modular wall elements. Each module contains simple wall pieces hinged to a central infrastructural column, which is turn-able round a single axis by means of actuation. This infra-structural column provides electricity and actuation of wall elements and integrates each modular element into an overall ambient interface with integrated sensor systems to act fluently with the changing behaviour of the users. Several problems in pig production today relate directly to the logistics and the life-cycle of pigs: 1) the time consuming and frequent relocation and separation of pigs according to stall cleaning, production flow, driving out of slaughtering pigs and animal welfare, and 2) the need for fixed stalls of varying sizes for easier maintenance and simple accommodation of pig growth. Based on a background in intelligent buildings systems and robotics, we show how ModWall as a system concept can be applied in future stable designs to resolve some of these problems in an intelligent and presumable cost effective way.