Right after you confirm a batch, you are asked to draw a shape on one of your photos. This is the most valuable minute in the whole process, and it takes about that long.
What you are being asked
Mark the four corners of the feed bunk on the far side from the camera — the strip where feed gets dropped. That’s what we measure in every report, so a tight outline means better data.
Your camera looks down the alley. There is a bunk on the near side, right below the camera, and a bunk on the far side. You want the far one — that is the one the camera can actually see into.
Drawing it
Tap the four corners in the order the app asks for them:
- Top left
- Top right
- Bottom right
- Bottom left
A counter tracks your progress — Tap the top left corner of the feed area (0/4).
Once all four dots are down you can drag any numbered dot to fine-tune, and pinch or scroll to zoom in for a closer look. Start over clears them if you want another go.
Check the straightened preview
As soon as you have four corners, a panel on the right shows your outlined area flattened out, as if you were looking straight down at it:
Looks like your bunk, straight-on? Great — that means we’ll measure the right spot. If not, drag the dots to adjust.
This is your proof. If that preview looks like a length of feed bunk, you have it right. If it looks like the alley floor, a wall, or a slice of roof, drag the dots until it does not.
Before you start drawing, the same panel shows an example photo captioned Like this: the outline follows the feed bunk on the far side from the camera — the strip where feed gets dropped.
Two messages you might see
“That outline is too small to measure. Spread the four dots out to the corners of the feed area.” Your four dots are too close together. Push them out to the actual corners of the bunk — you want the whole visible length of it, not a small square in the middle.
“We can’t show a straightened preview at this angle, but your outline is saved — just make sure the dots sit on the corners of the feed area.” Your camera is at an angle we cannot flatten out neatly. This is not a failure and your outline still works. Just double-check by eye that the dots are on the bunk corners.
If the photo is hard to read
Under the picture there is a thumbnail strip: Hard to see the bunk? Pick a clearer photo:
Take it. A photo shot at night, or one with a tractor parked across the bunk, is a poor one to draw on. Pick a clean daytime frame with the bunk visible end to end.
Check it on other photos
When you are happy, the button reads Check it on other photos. This walks you through a few more frames taken across your whole upload, asking:
Same outline on a different photo — still lined up? (1 of 3)
Your camera does not move, so the outline should hug the bunk in all of them. Answer Yes, still lined up, or use Fix it on this photo to nudge the corners on that particular frame.
This catches the thing that quietly ruins reports: a camera that got knocked or shifted partway through the run.
Do it later instead
Nothing forces you to do it now. Skip for now carries on without it, and the project will show a Finish setup button in your Projects list whenever you want to come back.
If you skip it because your photos have not finished uploading yet, you will see:
No photos yet — As soon as your first photos finish uploading, you can outline your bunk here. Feel free to skip for now.
Do I have to do this for every upload?
No. Once it is saved for a barn, it stays saved. Leave the camera where it is and future uploads use the same outline.
If you move or re-aim the camera, tell us — the old outline will not fit the new view. Email [email protected] and we will reset it.