Patent ID: 7522059

Claim:
A system for reading and writing animal husbandry data comprising: a) a database containing data peculiar to the identity and condition of a plurality of animals; b) a plurality of wireless transponders each mounted to an animal and containing identification data identifying a unique animal; c) a duplex wireless communications link; d) a system controller coupled to said database and said communications link for directing animal management activities and maintaining the data of said database; e) a handheld wireless reader having i) transmitter and receiver means coupled to said communications link for receiving data from each of said transponders and said system controller and transmitting collected reader data to said system controller and database, ii) an alphanumeric display, iii) an enunciator; iv) a memory containing data received from said system controller including a) identification data defining a list of animals, b) a plurality of predefined operator tasking instructions peculiar to each of the listed animals, and v) means responsive to the reading of a transponder of a listed animal for enunciating an alert to the operator and displaying the tasking instructions for the located animal on said alphanumeric display, and vi) means for writing operator entered task completion data to said memory.