Development of a Digital Video/Data Recorder for Monitoring Behavior and Multi-Dimensional Movements of Marine Mammals at Sea

开发用于监测海洋哺乳动物在海上的行为和多维运动的数字视频/数据记录仪

• 批准号: 0216525
• 负责人: Randall Davis
• 金额: $ 21.97万
• 依托单位: Texas A&M Research Foundation
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2002
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2002-08-01 至 2004-07-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=0216525&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Development; Digital; Video; Data; Recorder

Research on the behavioral and energetic adaptations of Weddell seals (Leptonychotes weddellii ) to the cold dark Antarctic fast-ice environment have been facilitated by recent developments in animal-borne video systems. The PI has developed a small, analog video/data recorder that can be attached to free-ranging marine mammals to observe their underwater behavior, track their three-dimensional movements, and simultaneously record data on their environment. The current effort will build on this success and advance the technology to the next level. The video/data recorders will be redesigned include the following new features: digital video recording for up to 30 h, a Global Positioning System (GPS) for geolocation at the surface, extended data recording for up to 14 days, and a 50% reduction in size. Development includes specifications for an advanced digital video/data recorder and operating software. The new video/data recorder will be jointly designed and fabricated by Texas A&M University at Galveston and Pisces Design (San Diego, CA). The system will consist of two parts. The first will be a small aluminum housing for the microcontroller and sensors for pressure, swim speed, compass bearing, ambient temperature, ambient dissolved oxygen, ambient light level, tilt, pitch and roll. The use of a 31 gigabyte or larger mini-hard drive for storing compressed, digital video and audio will allow a considerable size reduction from previous designs while retaining full programmability and increasing the recording duration to ca. 30 h. The microcontroller will have at least 8 analog-to-digital converters at 12-bit resolution or greater. This housing will also contain lithium ion batteries that will power the micro-controller, compass, sensors and GPS. The second housing will contain the miniature video camera with near-infrared light emitting diodes (LED) as a light source. The camera will be a low light sensitive, black and white camera. This high-resolution camera is sensitive to visible and near-infrared wavelengths of light. The near-infrared LED light source is designed for imaging in total darkness without disturbing the animal's behavior (near-infrared light is invisible to marine mammals and fishes). This new generation of video/data recorder will be used initially as part of current studies of the foraging behavior of free-ranging Weddell seals in Antarctica and will yield new insights into the activities of animals at sea. This includes the study of general foraging strategies, searching behavior, searching mechanics, modes of swimming, and foraging efficiency for different environmental conditions and prey type. The new instruments will advance the ability to conduct these investigations byproviding high quality digital video recordings, enhancing our ability to track the movements of animals at the surface (with GPS) and while submerged (with three- dimensional tracking), and reducing the size to decrease hydrodynamic drag. In addition to the study of marine mammals, the video/data recorder has broad applicability to a variety of submersible platforms and human divers. The video/data recorder will contribute to the development of new undersea technology and instrumentation that can be used to better understand and protect marine organisms and their habitats.

最近在动物传播视频系统中的发展，对Weddell密封（LeptonyChotes Weddellii）的行为和充满活力的适应性进行了研究。 PI开发了一个小型的模拟视频/数据记录器，可以将其附加到自由放置的海洋哺乳动物上，以观察其水下行为，跟踪其三维运动，并同时记录数据在其环境中。当前的努力将以这一成功为基础，并将技术提升到一个新的水平。将重新设计视频/数据记录器包括以下新功能：数字视频记录长达30小时，一个全球定位系统（GPS）用于地表的地理位置，扩展数据记录长达14天，尺寸降低了50％。开发包括高级数字视频/数据记录器和操作软件的规格。新的视频/数据录音机将由德克萨斯A＆M大学在加尔维斯顿和双鱼座设计（加利福尼亚州圣地亚哥）共同设计和制造。该系统将由两个部分组成。第一个将是微控制器的小铝制外壳，以及用于压力，游泳速度，指南针，环境温度，环境溶解氧，环境光水平，倾斜，俯仰和滚动的传感器。使用31千兆字节或更大的迷你驱动器来存储压缩，数字视频和音频将允许以前的设计大大降低，同时保留完整的可编程性并将录制持续时间增加到CA。 30 h。微控制器将在12位分辨率或更高的情况下至少具有8个模数转换器。该外壳还将包含锂离子电池，该电池将为微控制器，指南针，传感器和GP提供动力。第二个外壳将包含带有近红外光发射二极管（LED）的微型摄像机作为光源。相机将是低光敏的黑色和白色相机。这款高分辨率摄像头对可见和近红外波长的光敏感。近红外LED光源设计用于在完全黑暗中成像，而不会扰乱动物的行为（海洋哺乳动物和鱼是看不见的）。这一新一代的视频/数据记录器最初将用作当前对南极自由放映韦德尔海豹的觅食行为的研究的一部分，并将为海上动物活动提供新的见解。这包括研究一般觅食策略，搜索行为，搜索力学，游泳模式以及针对不同环境条件和猎物类型的觅食效率。新工具将通过提供高质量的数字视频记录，增强我们跟踪表面动物运动（带有GPS）和淹没时（具有三维跟踪）的能力来提高进行这些研究的能力，并减少水力动力阻力。除了研究海洋哺乳动物外，视频/数据记录器还对各种潜水平台和人类潜水员都有广泛的适用性。视频/数据录音机将有助于开发新的海底技术和仪器，这些技术和仪器可用于更好地理解和保护海洋生物及其栖息地。