• News
  • Lake Facts
  • About

Lake Scientist

Michigan State’s Robotic Glider To Study Great Lakes Fish

1
  • by Daniel Kelly
  • — October 7, 2014

A robotic fish project at Michigan State University is expanding thanks to funding from the National Science Foundation, according to a release from the university. The increased support will allow researchers there to build more of the devices, sometimes known as robofish.

With a fleet of robofish, researchers say they can expand studies into the water quality of inland lakes, as well as learn more about fish behaviors and life patterns.

glider to study great lakes fish

Grace, Michigan State University’s robofish. (Credit: Xiaobo Tan)

The existing prototype, called Grace, has its shortcomings. It “only communicates with a laptop when the robot is on the surface of the water,” said Xiaobo Tan, associate professor of electrical and computer engineering at Michigan State, to FishSens Magazine. “We’d like to exchange information more quickly and it’s sometimes not feasible for robots to surface.”

To fix those issues and add more functional capability, Tan and others in his lab will add acoustic receivers and possibly integrate smartphones so that robofish can have access to extra computational power and data storage. They plan to build around 10 more of the devices.

glider to study great lakes fish

Michigan State’s robofish glider. (Credit: G.L. Kohuth)

Multiple devices will allow for tracking fish with increased accuracy. As each robofish hears pings from different fish tags around it, the locations of fish schools can be triangulated. This will help wildlife officials realize what sorts of fish are living in certain areas and target habitat improvement efforts better. The robofish could also be used to combat invasive species by identifying the right locations to set traps to catch them.

“We want to learn how fish move through water for days or weeks. We hope to understand their spawning behavior and daily routines,” said Tan to FishSens Magazine. “Then managers can adjust accordingly.”

Share

You may also like...

  • Lake George’s Jefferson Project Looks To The Future
  • Lake Erie walleye will benefit from dam removal
  • Grand Calumet River Conditions in Grand Calumet River AOC improving, researcher says
  • Invasive Species: Can’t live with them…or can’t live without them?

1 Comment

  1. JASPREET says:
    October 14, 2014 at 3:48 AM

    Sir , I don’t know the problem you are facing is of directing grace or receive info , but why don’t you use Sonar wave . allot different set of intruction on each set band of frequency and try to communicate with grace.

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Time limit is exhausted. Please reload CAPTCHA.

FishSens SondeCAM HD
  • Recent Posts

    • Sampling on Lake St. Clair, July 29, 2013.Research Brief: Contaminants in a Great Lakes Urban-Dominant WatershedJune 2, 2023
    • Sea LampreyResearch Brief: Incorporating the Two-Eyed Seeing Approach into Sea Lamprey ManagementMay 26, 2023
    • USCGC Mackinaw Entering Duluth HarborResearch Brief: Full-Year Zooplankton Dynamics Along a Nearshore Depth GradientMay 19, 2023
    • Image of Lake 239 at IISD Experimental Lakes Area from aboveResearch Brief: Using Sediment DNA to Determine Long-Term Cyanobacterial DynamicsMay 12, 2023
    • Crystal Clear Problems: Impacts of Water Transparency in Aquatic EcosystemsMay 1, 2023
  • Popular Tags

    Great Lakes research pollution Lake Erie research summary Product Spotlight invasive species Algae international runoff Lake Michigan Ohio dissolved oxygen nutrient-loading EPA temperature eutrophication toxic waters climate change USGS ice phosphorus Asian Carp Michigan restoration

©2023 Fondriest Environmental Inc. | Questions? Call 888.426.2151 or email customercare@fondriest.com