Water Proofing Unit - April 2020

The trial unit deployed has currenlty be left exposed in a an accessible location.   As shown in the March 2020 Rainfall Graphic (Credit: Sourced from TRC Website) was just under 50% of expected, as the nearest weather station is the one at Manaia.   April has already seen a considerable increase in rainfall. 

Based on data provided by a local weather station close to our deployment location to this point in April we have had 39.9mm in rainfall.   For this time period we have a unit deployed in an exposed location to direct rainfall, protected by just the box, without the unit having any additional protection or screening.

We have been closely checking for evidence of any mositure in the box or container and after three weeks there is no evidence what-so-ever.   The unit also has been acting as expected despite the adverse weather conditions with the exception of one evening, when the unit ceased activiation at 10pm due to battery power and moved to silent mode.   The unit then returned to operation the next morning and has operated as expected since.

Left:
Deployment as it currently stands with a live capture trap.  The yellow box and wood block are in place so that the solar panel is placed on an angle.    The wood is there to prevent the panel from blowing away in the wind.    The box that is visible (green) is a 3D Printed speaker container designed by a student. 

As stated previously the unit is combined with a live capture trap because of the close proximity to a house with domestic animals.    The cage itself has the addition of a small amount of peanut butter in the cage.

Left:
As the solar panel and speaker are directly exposed to the elements, some additional protection for the unit was required.   As part of the previous projects and design this 3D Printed speaker box was created.   It is able to provide some basic protection for the speaker and some basic drainage.   This speaker (4w) was purchased online from Ali Express in August 2019 with the first lot of equipment for the project.

Left: The unit with lid removed after three weeks deployment in direct weather conditions including significant rainfall (nearly 40mm in three weeks).   There is no evidence of any moisture that has entered the unit and is either on the lid or the base of the unit.

While this is not a study over an extended period of time, it does indicate that the unit will continue to operate in adverse weather conditions and there is minimal interaction with moisture.    With regards to the unit powering down one evening, we have had the code refined several times and are continuing to do so.   It is anticipated that this will continue to be improved on so that we reach a situation where the powering of the unit will run without interuption.

Water Proofing Unit Deployment

Currently we are deploying a unit exposed to the elements, with the regular set up, and a single solar panel charging the unit.

This has been placed in a location adjacent to housing so that it can be checked regularly by a person to ensure that the unit is responding/acting as expected. 

This has included running checks throughout the night (including at two hour intervals) to ensure that the unit is emitting the sound (which it is).   The unit would be deployed in what can be identified as full sunlight, and while this unit is not being electronically monitored as we have been doing, it is clearly charging on a regular basis and is not requiring any boosting or mains charging.   The trap is being deployed in conjunction with a live capture cage trap, baited with fruit.  There are pets that are present in the area hence the reason for the trap.   There is evidence of possums that are in the area as well as hedgehogs.   These animals have not been trapped at this time of writing.

The second part of this was to expose the unit to adverse weather conditions including direct rain and moisture from morning dew (its in now April in New Zealand where the trial is based).   The unit in this regard is proving to be meeting all expectations.   There appears to be a very small amount of moisture (if any) being able to penerate the box.

We have significant annoucements for the project that we are making in the next few days, we have considerable work going on behind the scenes, we will be rebuilding this blog and making considerable updates and information.

Sound Lure 3.0 Version Update

Over the last month there has been considerable work going on behind the scenes.   The Sound Lure Project is going towards significant funding for the 2020 Calendar Year with the intention of using the funding to be able to push out to a number of groups for field testing.

This funding has taken considerable time and it also needs to be reminded that the person that is running this blog is a full time classroom teacher.   It is hoped that if these applications for funding are successful it will allow significant work to be concentrated on this project.    We have also been identifying potential deployment opportunities locally and at other locations for the lures.

The final issue being dealt with at the moment is the water proofing of the units.   This can be seen in the previous post on this blog.     Water proofing is a considerable issue for the project to be successful.    There have been attempts at having sound units deployed locally these have been blighted by problems from moisture damaging the units and the electronics.   Once this issue is suitably addressed the units will be deployed.    The two photographs on this post are showing an example of the basic electronics with one of the units that is being monitored.   The idea here is to ensure that the unit is staying charged and operating consistently without a pause (as was happening in version 2.0 of the sound lure).    The graphing information and data is showing the units are remaining consistent above the threshold required to maintain a charge with the unit operating.   The next batch of testing is to confirm the success of the water proofing and the success of the battery levels/solar panel combination.