# Low-Cost IoT and LoRaWAN-Based System for Laying Hen Identification in Family Poultry Farms
## 1 Introduction
According to European regulations [22], poultry farms must comply with specific animal welfare standards, particularly affecting large-scale operations. The Farm to Fork Strategy [23] promotes sustainable agricultural practices that enhance animal welfare and environmental responsibility. As part of this sustainability-driven approach, large-scale farms that confine hens in cages with limited mobility face increasing restrictions, whereas farms that provide hens with ground access and space for movement receive incentives. These new regulatory demands, combined with the variability in egg-laying locations and the limitations of traditional selection methods, highlight the growing need for automated solutions to identify laying hens. In order to validate the novel function of automated laying hen identification within our system, a proof of concept (PoC) has been developed based on real-world requirements in small-scale chicken farming. The objective of the PoC is to demonstrate the feasibility of the concept, rather than to develop a final commercial product. The system is designed with a multi-layer architecture, incorporating low-cost electronic components that collect data from the nesting boxes to determine whether a hen has laid. Additionally, it gathers environmental data from the chicken coop, such as temperature and humidity. The system also integrates a low-power communication network (LPWAN) that transmits these data over the Internet and uses open-source software to process and present the information to users in a meaningful way. The specific objectives of this study are as follows:* The development of a sensorized node prototype to detect laying hens--specifically, to determine whether a hen has laid an egg based on the duration of its stay in the nesting box--with laboratory and field testing to verify its functionality. * The development of a sensorized node prototype for capturing temperature and humidity data from the chicken coop, with laboratory and field validation. * The deployment of an LPWAN communication network will be undertaken, with laboratory and field verification of its performance. * The implementation of a web, mobile, and messaging application will allow users to interact with the system remotely, enabling real-time monitoring of chicken coop conditions from any location. This will significantly enhance system usability and accessibility. * Storage of collected data on a server, enabling subsequent analysis of behavioral patterns in hens, particularly those related to egg laying, such as estimating the number of eggs laid per hen or assessing the influence of temperature and humidity on egg production, among others. Our work also aims to serve as a foundation for integrating technological solutions into family poultry farms. On the one hand, it introduces functionalities that, to the best of our knowledge, have not yet been implemented, such as the automatic identification of laying hens. On the other hand, it incorporates technologies suited to the specific conditions of these farms, primarily rural environments, including LPWAN communication infrastructure, which could be a shared and valuable resource for all poultry operations in these settings.