An ecologist and an engineer at Michigan State University are working together to create robot fish that can better monitor various factors in aquatic environments.
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Combining the brilliance of nature with some top-notch engineering, these two scientists are on to something and getting the funding for it.
The researchers are breaking ground with this and looking to raise water monitoring to another level.
Fish are Perfect for Monitoring Water Quality, Aquatic Environments
Xiaobo Tan, an assistant professor of electrical and computer engineering, says: “Fish are very efficient. They can perform very efficient locomotion and maneuvering in the water.” Elena Litchman, an assistant professor of zoology based at MSU’s Kellogg Biological Station on Gull Lake in Kalamazoo County, says: “With these patrolling fish we will be able to obtain information at an unprecedentedly high spatial and temporal resolution. Such data are essential for researchers to have a more complete picture of what is happening under the surface as climate change and other outside forces disrupt the freshwater ecosystems. It will bring environmental monitoring to a whole new level.”
The fish will also provide more consistent data, according to the researchers. The types of things the fish will monitor are temperature, dissolved oxygen, pollutants and harmful algae.
Communication with Docking Station and Other Fish
Tan is also developing the fish so they will be able to navigate and communicate with each other. However, despite this, he says the fish won’t be very expensive. “The project is very practical and we are designing the fish to be inexpensive so they can be used in various applications like sampling lakes, monitoring aquafarms and safeguarding water reservoirs.”
The fish will be programmed to surface at regular intervals and will then transmit the data they collected to a docking station wirelessly.
The fish are expected to be able to work on their own for months once they are in the water.
What Technology Will Be Used?
The fins will be built of “electro-active polymers that use electricity to change shape” — they will act in a similar way to real muscles with ion movements twisting and bending the fins when voltage is applied.
GPS technology will be used with inertial measurement units allowing very precise navigation.
Additionally, infrared sensors may be used to help the fish avoid obstacles. Essentially, they would be the fish’s eyes.
Tan and Litchman recently won funding for this project from the National Science Foundation.
This looks like a big step forward in environmental science monitoring!
via EurekAlert!
Image Credit 1: doug.deep via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 2: N Gomes via flickr under a Creative Commons license
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