With the launch of the new UniStreamer™ incubator range, Petersime introduces another major breakthrough in incubation technology. HatchSound™ enables hatcheries to achieve a 40% shorter and fully monitorable hatch window. It is the world’s first technology that listens to embryo produced hatch-related sounds inside the hatcher to monitor and control the process with unmatched precision.
The hatching cycle: crucial phase in the incubation process
The hatching cycle is the most demanding period in the entire incubation process. In a complex sequence of events, the developing chicks transition from relying on vascular respiration to breathing air through their lungs – a shift that requires extremely precise environmental conditions. A cycle consists of four distinct phases, each with its own optimal levels of temperature, humidity and CO₂/O₂:
- Phase 1: Period up to internal pipping
- Phase 2: Transition from vascular to lung respiration
- Phase 3: External pipping and hatching
- Phase 4: Finishing
Because hatching chicks are highly responsive to environmental changes at specific, critical moments, applying the right stimuli at the right time can significantly improve the hatch outcome. During the process, embryos produce a range of subtle, hatch‑related sounds – signals that reveal exactly where they are in the hatching cycle and what they need. Until now, these sounds remained unmonitored in commercial hatcheries. HatchSound™ changes that.
Reproducing the natural interplay between chick and hen
Using highly sensitive microphones and an advanced detection algorithm, HatchSound™ continuously captures and analyses hatch-related sounds produced by the embryos. By detecting and analysing these sounds, the system accurately determines the start and end of the hatching cycle. Thanks to its built-in Synchro-Hatch™ technology, it reduces the hatch window by mimicking natural stimuli through targeted temperature and CO₂ triggers applied at the right time, aligning the embryos’ hatching responses as they would occur in nature. At the end of the cycle, the system visualizes the hatch window spread, so hatch synchronization can be monitored with precision. Roger Banwell, Senior Hatchery Expert at Petersime explains:
Embryos communicate through sound long before they hatch. Inside the egg, they produce soft peeps once they reach the air cell, followed by faint tapping or scratching as they begin to externally pip and progress through the final stages. These signals tell us exactly where they are in the process. With HatchSound™, we can finally capture and use this biological information to guide the hatching cycle. In doing so, HatchSound™ reproduces the natural interplay between a hatching chick and a mother hen. In nature, a chick calls for a response as it prepares to hatch; the hen reacts by adjusting the conditions around the egg. If no response comes, the chick will eventually ‘time out’ and hatch on its own, but only after using a significant part of its energy reserves while waiting. By responding as the mother hen would, HatchSound™ guides the hatching cycle in a way that mimics nature more closely than ever before.
A new milestone in Embryo‑Response Incubation™
HatchSound™ is part of Petersime’s Embryo‑Response Incubation™ series, a proven concept that automatically adapts the incubation environment to the needs of each specific batch of eggs. This natural, real-time interaction delivers measurable benefits:
- 40% shorter hatch window
- Accurate hatch window monitoring
- Higher hatchability
- Better chick quality and uniformity
- Improved post-hatch performance
HatchSound™ is a patent-pending technology, unique to Petersime and exclusively available as an option on UniStreamer™ hatchers.
Interested in learning more about HatchSound™ and UniStreamer™? Feel free to explore the interactive tool below and do not hesitate to contact our sales team. They are ready to answer all your questions.
