Signals Cross the Tianshan Mountains Digital Infrastructure Builds a “Golden Bridge” China Mobile’s Smart Collars Enable Xinjiang Herders to “Data-Driven Grazing”
(Xinhua News Agency reporter Li You, Source: China Economic Net) Riding a motorcycle for hours on the Gobi Desert in search of camels was once the daily routine of Mulati Bimula, a herdsman in Altay Prefecture, Xinjiang. “Losing a camel incurs a loss of at least 20,000 to 30,000 yuan. We can’t sleep all night looking for it.” ” His troubles have now been completely solved by a smart collar – by opening the mobile phone mini-program, the positions of over 80 camels are clearly visible, the activity trajectories of the head camels and those prone to getting lost are updated in real time, and precise positioning can be achieved with just one click of navigation.
This change originated from the “5G+AI + Internet of Things” livestock Internet solution launched by China Mobile. As a central designated assistance unit, this enterprise has developed terminal devices such as smart collars and ear tags in response to the pain points of traditional livestock breeding in Altay Prefecture, including “difficult management, difficult information update, and difficult bulk purchase and sales”, and has built a digital system covering livestock identification, vital sign monitoring, and farm upgrading. At present, its smart collar business has covered over 8,000 local households and served more than 13,000 livestock, becoming the core support for the digital and intelligent transformation of the border area’s animal husbandry.
Each collar costs 150 yuan a year. It not only prevents loss and theft but also monitors one’s health status. Mulati was showing the monitoring data on his mobile phone. The information such as body temperature and activity level collected by the collar was uploaded to the cloud in real time through 5G signals, and abnormal data automatically triggered early warnings. According to the China Mobile assistance team, this solution, through low-power sensing and intermittent transmission technology, enables the equipment to last for over 12 months and operate stably in extreme environments as low as minus 30 degrees Celsius. It helps farmers increase their daily management efficiency by 40% and save 30% of the cost of manual inspection.
In Wucha County, Kizilsu Kirgiz Autonomous Prefecture, known as the “West Pole of China”, a similar digital transformation is taking place simultaneously. Relying on a stable 5G network, herdsmen can remotely manage their livestock through smart terminals, while tourists can live-stream the plateau scenery with their mobile phones. Digital technology is enabling border pastures to both ensure production and increase income. A relevant official from China Mobile stated that they will continue to deepen the application of “Internet of Things + big data” technology, promote intelligent livestock solutions in more prefectures and cities such as Hotan, and make digital signals the “golden bridge” connecting rural revitalization and industrial upgrading.