The tradition dates back to the Old West: A cowboy gently soothes his cattle with a simple song.
"Come on girls, let's go," the cowboy croons as he gathers his bovines from across the desert range. One day, this cowboy may not have to ride the range to corral his herd.
The "cowboy" is U.S. Department of Agriculture researcher Dean M. Anderson, who is working to corral cattle remotely through a high-tech device that funnels sounds directly to the animals.
It's Old West cattle herding with a 21st century twist -- part of a project involving the USDA and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology on the government's Jornada Experimental Range in southern New Mexico.
The wireless headset, called the "Ear-A-Round," has stereo earphones that transmit sounds directly into the cow's ears to guide its movement. Powered by a small solar energy panel, the unit contains a GPS device to monitor a cow's location and movement.
Researchers hope the device will give ranchers and farmers the ability to herd cattle from afar, said Daniela Rus, an MIT professor of electrical engineering and computer science who teamed with Anderson.
"It has the potential to give farmers a much finer control of pastures, finer management of where animals are and a better use of the land," said Rus, a robotics expert. "With this technology we can also find out what the animals do all day."
In essence, a rancher could stay in his air-conditioned office and check on the location of his animals by logging on to a computer. Another potential benefit would be eye-friendly vistas that have no fences.
The device works by using sound to keep an animal within a "virtual paddock" through GPS technology, Anderson said.
The first field test is scheduled for later this month at the Jornada range, using cows trained by Anderson.
The animal scientist has been...

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