Spatiotemporal analysis using deep learning and fuzzy inference for evaluating broiler activities

Observing poultry activity is crucial for assessing their health status; however, the inspection process is often time-consuming and labor-intensive, particularly in cases involving large numbers of chickens. Inexperienced breeders may also misjudge their activity levels, potentially missing opportunities for prevention and treatment. This study integrates traditional video surveillance with an advanced monitoring system to identify various broiler behaviors in a breeding environment. A two-stage deep learning approach is employed: in the first stage, the broilers are detected, and in the second stage, five key body points (head, abdomen, two legs, and tail) are identified. A skeleton-based model is then developed centered around the abdomen, with six angles calculated using trigonometric methods. These angles are analyzed by a long short-term memory network to estimate behaviors such as “Standing”, “Walking”, “Resting”, “Eating”, “Preening”, and “Flapping”, selecting the behavior with the highest probability. Dual-layer fuzzy logic inference systems were used to evaluate the proportion of time broilers spent in static versus dynamic states, providing a robust determination of their activity levels. Validated in a mixed-sex breeding environment, the proposed system achieved accuracies of at least 85.2% for identifying broiler type, 79.2% for identifying body parts, and 50.8% for identifying behaviors. The activity level evaluation results were consistent with those conducted by experienced poultry experts.