IMV Technologies has launched BovIntel, billed by the company as a worldwide first in bovine ultrasound imaging which will boost dairy farm productivity and profitability through improved access to fertility information.

BovIntel is software which, alongside the company's Easi-Scan:Go bovine ultrasound scanner, automatically identifies and measures important features on ultrasound images in real time as a vet carries out a scan.

The software uses colour to highlight and label structures such as follicles and corpus luteums, displaying the measurements of these to the nearest millimetre.

The technology has been designed to make the fertility scanning process easier and more accurate, helping vets give more informed breeding advice.

The developers behind BovIntel say the information that it provides will improve pregnancy rates and therefore overall productivity of dairy herds.

Alan Picken, Imaging Innovation Director said: “Pregnancy rates are notoriously low in the US and across Europe with as few as one in three inseminations producing a pregnancy.

"This is costing the industry time and money.

“Diagnostics on ovarian health is only possible through ultrasound and veterinary assessment, but not all vets are offering this service to their clients.

"BovIntel makes this ultrasound information more accessible to vets, and vastly increases the value and efficacy of the advice they provide to clients.

“Essentially, it enables a vet to quickly and accurately assess the ovarian health of a cow, so they can advise on how to achieve conception at the earliest opportunity.

"Equally, it allows them to quickly establish if a cow is unlikely to get pregnant and prevent a wasted insemination.”

IMV Technologies says new technology also promises to reduce the fertility scanning training time of newly qualified vets, by helping them to quickly find the ovaries during a scan and giving them confidence in interpreting ultrasound images.

Aland added “New vets will be able to practice independently faster and need the support of senior vets for less time, both of which brings huge benefits to their confidence and professional development and to the productivity of the business.”

IMV says the technology will also be useful for universities and research organisations investigating dairy cow reproductive health.

BovIntel is a software addition to IMV’s Go:Scan app.

It can be used via the viewing app, but also with BUG headsets, augmenting in colour for VGA and colour OLED. For users with mono BUG:Go headsets it will appear as grayscale on the headset screen, but in colour on the viewing app.

There's a 30-day free trial of the software for vets using the Go:Scan app, after which there is a choice of a subscription or pay-as-you-scan.

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