RFID has been used extensively to detect and classify fish. In fact, in some species so many of the fish have been tagged that long term studies of the movement of entire population groups have been performed. While the tag itself is quite small, the antenna and detection system can be quite complex and typically requires power for many applications.
The system being developed will be used in a dam in Maine which does not currently have AC power. Therefore an alternative energy system must be developed which will reliably power the tag detection system. Typically this is done with solar panels, which may be the correct choice, however, in this project we are opening ourselves up to a wide range of power sources, water, wind and of course solar. Price is somewhat of an issue, but the biggest issue is reliability of the overall system. That is the type of design space which is well suited for novel energy designs, where cost may be less of a factor and total lifecycle costing may be most critical. The system will be designed, tested and then mounted on the dam. By the end of the academic year data from the RFID tags will be obtained.
The
team will work closely with Dr. Joe
Zydlewski in UMaine wildlife
ecology and the
USGS.
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