NL2036939A

NL2036939A - A field survey device and method for assessing the habitat conditions of invertebrates

Info

Publication number: NL2036939A
Application number: NL2036939A
Authority: NL
Inventors: Wang Chenbin; Ma Fangzhou; Chen Jing; Zhang Yanjing; Xie Rui
Original assignee: Nanjing Institute Of Environmental Science Mini Of Ecology And Environment Of The Peoples Republic O
Priority date: 2023-07-28
Filing date: 2024-01-31
Publication date: 2024-03-25
Also published as: CN117214395A; NL2036939B1

Abstract

The invention discloses a field surveying apparatus and method for assessing the habitat conditions of invertebrates. It comprises a floating board, a support structure on the floating board, a winding device on the support structure, a towing rope on the winding device, and an underwater survey component at one end of the towing rope. This technical solution involves placing the floating board in the aquatic environment of the targeted invertebrate habitat. This action allows the underwater survey component to enter the water. Data on the habitat's water quality collected by water quality sensors and images of the invertebrate habitat captured by imaging devices are transmitted via a wireless module to an external monitoring terminal for processing. This enables personnel to assess the condition of the invertebrate habitat, replacing real-time manual habitat assessments and reducing the difficulty of surveys and the intensity of manual labor.

Description

A field survey device and method for assessing the habitat conditions of invertebrates

TECHNICAL FIELD

The invention relates to the field of biological survey equipment, specifically addressing afield survey device and method for assessing the habitat conditions of invertebrates.

BACKGROUND

Invertebrates are animals without a vertebral column, representing primitive forms of animal life. Among them, large benthic invertebrates are a category of invertebrates mainly inhabiting underwater or attaching to aquatic plants and rocks, visible to the naked eye. Investigating the habitat conditions of these large benthic invertebrates contributes to understanding and managing the health of aquatic ecosystems.

Currently, surveying the habitat conditions of these large benthic invertebrates is generally done manually by collecting data using equipment. However, due to their habitat underwater, the manual collection of habitat data poses challenges. Additionally, the harsh environments where some of these invertebrates reside further increase the difficulty of conducting surveys. Therefore, we propose a field survey device and method for assessing the habitat conditions of invertebrates.

SUMMARY

The purpose of this invention is to provide a field survey device and method for assessing the habitat conditions of invertebrates, aiming to address the issues highlighted in the aforementioned background technology.

To achieve the aforementioned objective, the invention proposes the following technical solution: An outdoor surveying device for assessing the habitat conditions of invertebrates comprises a floating board one, a support structure mounted on the floating board one, a winding device on the support structure, and a towing rope on the winding device. It also includes an underwater survey component located at one end of the towing rope. The underwater survey component comprises an electrical component, which includes a housing connected to one end of the towing rope. Inside the housing, there are two sets of partitions that divide the internal cavity of the housing from top to bottom, forming compartments one, two, and three respectively. The outer wall of the partitions corresponding to compartment one is fitted with curved transparent covers.

Compartment one contains an image capturing device corresponding to the curved transparent covers. Compartment two houses a water quality detection sensor, a power supply module, a wireless module, and a controller. The detection end of the water quality detection sensor extends into compartment three. The inner wall of the housing corresponding to compartment three is equipped with multiple groups of inlet ports arranged in a circular array. The wireless module is used to transmit the water quality data collected by the water quality detection sensor and the invertebrate habitat image data collected by the image capturing device to an external monitoring terminal for processing.

Further improvements include multiple sets of heat dissipation fins arranged in a circular array inserted into the outer wall of the housing corresponding to compartments one and two.

Another enhancement is the presence of floating airbags on the side walls of floating board one.

Further improvement includes an anti-loss component within the underwater surveying unit. This component includes a hollow seat mounted on the housing, a movable board connected to the other end of the towing rope and placed inside the hollow seat, a spring connecting the movable board and the bottom inner wall of the hollow seat, and a pressure sensor positioned on the top inner wall of the hollow seat to make contact with the movable board.

The pressure sensor is responsible for receiving pressure signals from the movable board. When the movable board separates from the pressure sensor, the sensor sends a signal to the controller. The controller, through a wireless module, triggers an external alarm system to activate.

Furthermore, the anti-loss component also comprises a placement shell situated at the end of the hollow seat, with a hollow top, a secondary floating board placed to seal the top of the placement shell, an illuminator mounted on the secondary floating board, a horizontally rotating shaft within the placement shell, and a rope wound around the shaft's exterior.

The internal end of the shaft moves through the interior of the placement shell and extends into the cavity of the hollow seat. The exterior of the shaft features a driving mechanism. This mechanism rotates the shaft to release the rope when the movable board separates from the pressure sensor, causing the secondary floating board to detach from the placement shell.

Further enhancement involves the driving mechanism, which comprises a movable plate situated within the hollow seat, capable of moving along the length of the hollow seat, connected by spring two to the inner side of the hollow seat, a wedge block positioned on the side of the movable plate facing the active plate, a contact rod located at one end of the active plate that interacts with the wedge block to drive the movable plate, and an elastic telescopic rod placed on the side of the movable plate opposite the active plate.

The inner end of the shaft contains a blind hole for the elastic telescopic rod to extend into, with compatible friction blocks one and two positioned at the bottom inner wall of the blind hole and at the end of the telescopic rod opposite the movable plate. The shaft's exterior features a wheel within the hollow seat, set within the opening for vertical movement, and a further eccentric wheel for uplifting the secondary floating board located within the cavity of the placement shell.

When the active plate contacts the pressure sensor, the contact rod activates the wedge block, moving the movable plate towards the outer side of the hollow seat. This movement, via the elastic telescopic rod, compresses friction block two against friction block one, securing the shaft. Conversely, when the active plate separates from the pressure sensor, spring two moves the movable plate towards the inner side of the hollow seat. This movement disengages friction block two from friction block one, allowing the shaft to be in an active state.

Additionally, a loop for connecting ropes is situated on one side of the support frame, while the bottom of the housing is equipped with a semi-circular base containing a semi- circular weighted block. The diameter of the semi-circular weighted block is smaller than that of the semi-circular base.

A method for evaluating the habitat conditions of invertebrate animals using specific equipment. It includes the following steps:

S1: Place float board one in the water area of the invertebrate animal habitat under investigation. Send a signal from an external monitoring terminal to the controller, which activates the winding device to release the rope, allowing the underwater survey component to descend by gravity until it reaches a specified location, at which point the winding device stops.

S2: The water quality detection sensor collects data from the water flowing into the inlet, obtaining habitat water quality data for invertebrate animals, while the image capture device records images of the invertebrate animal habitat in the water area.

S3: The wireless module transmits the collected invertebrate habitat water quality data from the water quality detection sensor and images from the image capture device to an external monitoring terminal for processing.

Comparatively, the advantageous effects of this invention are:

This method involves placing the float board in the target invertebrate animal habitat water area, allowing the underwater survey component to enter. Through the wireless module, the collected water quality data from the sensor and images from the image capture device are sent to an external monitoring terminal, facilitating assessment of the invertebrate animal habitat conditions by users. This approach replaces real-time manual habitat condition collection, reducing survey difficulty and manual labor intensity.

With a setup featuring an anti-loss section, if the rope connecting the underwater survey component breaks, the drive unit will detach float board two from the housing while rotating the axis to unwind the rope. This action allows float board two to rise to the water surface alongside a luminous device, aiding external users in locating the submerged survey component for retrieval.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

Figure 1 is a schematic structural diagram of the present invention;

Figure 2 is a schematic structural diagram of the water entry investigation component of the present invention; 5 Figure 3 is a cross-sectional view of the structure in Figure 2 of the present invention;

Figure 4 is a schematic structural diagram of the anti-loss part in the present invention;

Figure 5 is an enlarged schematic diagram of structure A in Figure 4 of the present invention. wherein, 1. Float board one; 2. Buoyant airbags; 3. Bracket; 4. Rope; 5. Shell; 6.

Partition; 7. Compartment one; 8. Compartment two; 9. Compartment three; 10. Arc- shaped transparent cover; 11. Image capturing device; 12. Water quality detection sensor; 13. Heat dissipation fins; 14. Inlet; 15. Semi-circular base; 16. Semi-circular weighted block; 17. Movable plate; 18. Pressure sensor; 19. Hollow seat; 20. Moving port; 21. Axle; 22. Impeller; 23. Placement shell; 24. Float board two; 25. Rope body; 26. Luminescent device; 27. Eccentric wheel; 28. Friction block one; 29. Elastic telescopic rod; 30. Moving plate; 31. Wedge block

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings in the embodiments of the present invention. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some of the embodiments of the present invention, rather than all the embodiments.

Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by those of ordinary skill in the art without creative efforts fall within the scope of protection of the present invention.

Embodiment 1

Refer to Figures 1 through 3, an outdoor investigation device for assessing the habitat conditions of invertebrate animals, including float board 1, bracket 3 mounted on float board 1, and a winding device with rope 4 attached to it. It also includes an underwater investigation component attached to one end of rope 4. Float board 1 has side walls with floating airbags 2 to stabilize it on the water surface. The winding device, like a hoist, winds up rope 4, allowing the underwater investigation component to move relative to float board 1. The bracket 3 has a loop for connecting ropes on one side, and the other end of the rope can be secured by inserting it into a cone on the shore to limit the position of the field investigation equipment.

It should be noted that this application is used to investigate large benthic invertebrates, which primarily reside underwater, attached to aquatic plants and rocks and are visible to the naked eye. During use, float board 1 is controlled to reach the habitat of these large benthic invertebrates in the water, and then the rope 4 is released by unwinding it using the winding device to investigate the condition of the habitat.

The underwater investigation component includes an electrical section, comprising a sealed hollow cylindrical shell 5 connected to one end of rope 4. Shell 5's interior is divided into compartments by two sets of partitions 6, forming compartments one 7, two 8, and three 9 from top to bottom. The outer wall of partitions 6 at the position corresponding to compartment one 7 is fitted with curved transparent cover 10, and compartment one 7 contains an image capture device 11 corresponding to curved transparent cover 10. For instance, image capture device 11 could be a camera that collects external image data through curved transparent cover 10. Compartment two 8 contains a water quality sensor 12, a power supply module, wireless module, and a controller. The water quality sensor 12 is used to detect the water quality of the invertebrate habitat and can be chosen according to specific needs, details of which are not provided here. The power supply module consists of batteries that power the electrical components of this application. The wireless module, for instance, comprises a wireless transmitter and receiver, while the controller is a PLC controller.

The detection end of water quality sensor 12 extends into compartment three 9, and the inner wall of shell 5 corresponding to compartment three 9 is equipped with multiple sets of inlet ports 14 arranged in a circular pattern. In practical use, a circular filter could be placed inside compartment three 9, with its outer wall fitting the inner wall of compartment three 9 to filter the liquid entering from inlet ports 14.

The wireless module is used to transmit the water quality data from the water quality sensor 12 and the image data from the image capture device 11, which are collected from the invertebrate habitat, to an external monitoring terminal for analysis. This allows the personnel to assess the condition of the invertebrate habitat.

As an optimization, in this embodiment, the outer wall of the shell 5 corresponds to compartments one 7 and two 8 and is fitted with multiple sets of heat dissipation fins 13 arranged in a circular pattern. One end of the heat dissipation fins 13 is located within compartment one 7/compartment two 8, while the other end is positioned on the exterior of shell 5. The heat dissipation fins 13 help dissipate the heat generated by the electrical components within compartment one 7/compartment two 8, preventing any internal component damage caused by heat accumulation due to the sealed structure of shell 5.

Refer to Figures 4 through 5. As an optimization, the underwater investigation component of this embodiment also includes an anti-loss unit, which connects the other end of rope 4 to the shell 5. Considering that the rope 4 might break due to external factors or human actions when the underwater investigation component is in use, such a breakage could lead to the loss of the investigation component. Since this component contains numerous electrical elements, losing it would undoubtedly increase costs.

Hence, this application incorporates an anti-loss unit.

The anti-loss unit consists of a hollow seat 19 mounted on the shell 5, a movable active plate 17 connected to the other end of the rope 4 and positioned within the hollow seat 19, a spring 1 linking the active plate 17 to the bottom inner wall of the hollow seat 19, and a pressure sensor 18 positioned on the top inner wall of the hollow seat 19, making contact with the active plate 17. During normal operation, the gravity of the underwater investigation component causes the rope 4 to pull the active plate 17 into contact with the pressure sensor 18. In case of rope breakage, the spring 1 drives the active plate 17 to reset, separating it from the pressure sensor 18. An example of the pressure sensor 18 could be CYYZ11, but it's not limited to this specific model.

The pressure sensor 18 is utilized to receive the pressure signal from the active plate 17.

When the active plate 17 separates from the pressure sensor 18 due to the rope 4 breakage, the pressure sensor 18 sends a signal to the controller. The controller, via the wireless module, triggers an external alarm system to alert personnel for locating the underwater investigation component.

As an additional feature, this embodiment’s anti-loss unit also includes a placement shell 23 positioned at the end of the hollow seat 19, having a hollow top. It contains a secured placement for the top of the placement shell 23, which encloses the top of the placement shell 23, where a second floating board 24 is attached. There is a luminescent component 26 on the second floating board 24, designed as a fluorescent illuminator to aid personnel in locating the underwater investigation component during nighttime. The axle 21 within the placement shell 23 rotates horizontally and is wound with the rope 25 on its outer surface. The inner end of the axle 21 extends through the inner side of the placement shell 23 and the outer end of the hollow seat 19 into the hollow cavity. The driving part on the outer surface of the axle 21 rotates the axle and unwinds the rope 25 when the active plate 17 separates from the pressure sensor 18.

Additionally, the anti-loss unit in this embodiment’s driving part comprises a movable plate 30 within the hollow seat 19, capable of longitudinal movement along the hollow seat 19, linked to the side inner wall of the hollow seat 19 by spring 2. There's a wedge block 31 on one side of the movable plate 30, facing the active plate 17, along with a contact rod and an elastic telescopic rod 29, which drives the movable plate 30 when engaged with the wedge block 31. As an enhancement, the end of the contact rod that interacts with the wedge block 31 1s embedded with a ball bearing.

The inner end of the axle 21 is perforated to accommodate the insertion of the elastic telescopic rod 29. The diameter of the elastic telescopic rod 29 is smaller than the diameter of the perforation, ensuring it doesn't hinder the rotation of the axle 21. The inner wall at the bottom of the perforation and the end of the elastic telescopic rod 29, away from the movable plate 30, contain corresponding friction blocks, friction block one 28, and friction block two. These blocks, made of rubber, allow the axle 21 to rotate freely while maintaining proper contact.

The outer surface of the axle 21 has a wheel (impeller) 22, located within the active opening 20 on the exterior side of the hollow seat 19. The axle 21 also houses an eccentric wheel 27, positioned on its outer surface within the internal cavity of the placement shell 23, allowing for the upward movement of the second floating board 24.

When the active plate 17 is in contact with the pressure sensor 18, the contact rod pushes the wedge block 31, causing the movable plate 30 to shift towards the outer side of the hollow seat 19. This movement squeezes the friction block two against the friction block one 28 via the elastic telescopic rod 29, fixing the axle 21 in place. This prevents the axle from rotating while the investigation component descends in the water, avoiding the unwinding or winding of the rope 25 due to water flow or impetus on the wheel 22.

However, when the active plate 17 separates from the pressure sensor 18, the spring 2 drives the movable plate 30 inward, moving the friction block two away from the friction block one 28. This action allows the axle 21 to rotate freely. If the rope 4 breaks and the investigation component descends, the water flow activates the wheel 22, which in turn rotates the axle 21, unwinding the rope 25 and causing the eccentric wheel 27 to push the second floating board 24 upwards, detaching it from the placement shell 23.

As an additional feature, both ends of the bottom of the second floating board 24 have integrated protrusions. These protrusions engage with corresponding elastic locking protrusions on the inner walls of the placement shell 23, ensuring secure placement. The inner walls of the placement shell 23 have elastic locking protrusions that fit into slots on the engaging protrusions. These features allow for the detachment of the elastic locking protrusions from the slots when the eccentric wheel 27 rotates to push the second floating board 24 upward.

Certainly, it's worth noting that an alternative connection method for Float Board 24 and

Placement Shell 23 can be employed. For instance, opposite-polarity magnetic components can be embedded separately into the protruding inner walls of Float Board 24 and Placement Shell 23, facilitating their connection through magnetic adhesion.

As a preferred design in this embodiment, the bottom of Housing 5 is equipped with a semi-circular base 15, with a semi-circular weighted block 16 positioned at the bottom of the internal cavity of the semi-circular base 15. The diameter of the semi-circular weighted block 16 is smaller than that of the semi-circular base 15. This method, in the event of Rope 4 breaking, causes the Investigative Device to rapidly descend vertically due to gravity. This setup not only accelerates the rotation speed of Impeller 22 by the force of the water flow but also ensures the Housing 5 behaves like a buoy that is less prone to collapse upon contact with the water bed, thereby ensuring the stable emergence of Float Board 24.

A method for field investigation to assess the habitat conditions of invertebrate animals includes the following steps using the aforementioned field investigation equipment:

S1: Place Float Board 241 in the water area of the targeted invertebrate animal habitat.

Send a signal from an external monitoring terminal to the controller, allowing the wireless module to receive the signal and control the winding device to unwind Rope 4.

This action enables the Investigative Device to swiftly descend into the water due to gravity until it reaches the designated position in the water area, followed by shutting off the winding device.

S2: The detection end of Water Quality Detection Sensor 12 collects data from the inflow through Inlet 14, obtaining data on the habitat's water quality, while Image

Capture Device 11 collects images of the invertebrate animal habitat in the water area.

S3: The wireless module transmits the invertebrate animal habitat's water quality data collected by Water Quality Detection Sensor 12 and the image data collected by Image

Capture Device 11 to an external monitoring terminal for processing.

Although the embodiments of the present invention have been shown and described, those of ordinary skill in the art will understand that various changes, modifications, and substitutions can be made to these embodiments without departing from the principles and spirit of the invention. and modifications, the scope of the invention is defined by the appended claims and their equivalents.

Claims

Conclusions

1. Outdoor survey apparatus for assessing the habitat conditions of invertebrates includes a floating board (1), a support structure (3) mounted on the floating board (1), a winding device on the support structure (3), and a tow rope (4) on the winding device; characterized by incorporating an underwater survey component at one end of the towing cable (4); the underwater survey component includes an electrical component, which includes a housing (5) connected to one end of the towing cable (4); the enclosure (5) has two sets of partitions (6) in the inner cavity, which divide the inner cavity of the enclosure (5) from top to bottom into three compartments: compartment one (7), compartment two (8) and compartment three (9 ); the outer wall of the partition walls (6) corresponding to compartment one (7) is provided with curved transparent covers (10), within which compartment one (7) houses imaging equipment (11) corresponding to the curved transparent covers (10); compartment two (8) houses water quality sensors (12), a power module, a wireless module and a controller, the sensing end of the water quality sensors (12) extends into compartment three (9), and the interior wall of the enclosure (5) corresponding to compartment three (9) has multiple sets of inlet ports (14) arranged in a circular array; the wireless module is used to transmit water quality data collected by the water quality sensors (12) and image data of invertebrate habitat collected by the imaging equipment (11) to an external monitoring terminal for processing.

An outdoor examination device according to claim 1, wherein the outer wall of the housing (5) corresponding to the positions of compartments one (7) and two (8) has a plurality of sets of heat dissipation fins (13) arranged in a circular shape.

An outdoor examination device according to claim 1, wherein the side wall of the floating board (1) is equipped with floating airbags (2).

The outdoor survey device of claim 1, further comprising a loss prevention component for connecting the other end of the towing cable

(4) with the housing (5); the loss prevention part includes a hollow seat (19) mounted on the housing (5), a movable plate (17) connected to the other end of the towing cable (4) and movable within the hollow seat (19), a spring between the movable plate (17) and the lower inner wall of the hollow seat (19), and a pressure sensor (18) located on the upper inner wall of the hollow seat (19) to contact the movable plate (17) ; the pressure sensor (18) receives pressure signals from the movable plate (17); when the movable plate (17) comes loose from the pressure sensor (18), the pressure sensor (18) sends a signal to the controller, which activates an external alarm device via the wireless module.

The outdoor survey device of claim 4, further comprising a loss prevention component comprising a placement tray (23) positioned at the end of the hollow seat (19) and having a hollow top, and a floating shelf two ( 24) inserted into the top of the locating shell (23) to enclose it, a luminescent device (26) mounted on floating shelf two (24), a horizontally rotating shaft (21) positioned in the locating shell (23), and a rope body (25) wrapped around the outer wall of the shaft (21); the inner end of the shaft (21) passes through the inside of the locating shell (23) and extends into the hollow seat cavity (19), with a drive unit on its outer wall; the drive unit rotates the shaft (21) to unwind the rope body (25) when the movable plate (17) disengages from the pressure sensor (18), causing floating plank two (24) to disengage from the locating shell (23).

An outdoor survey device according to claim 5, wherein the drive unit comprises a movable plate (30) placed in the cavity of the hollow seat (19) and movable along the length of the hollow seat (19), to which a second spring is connected between the movable plate (30) and the side inner wall of the hollow seat (19), a wedge block (31) located on the side of the movable plate (30) opposite the movable plate (17), a contact rod at one end of the movable plate (30) facing the wedge block (31) to cooperate with it and move the movable plate (30), and an elastic telescopic rod (29) located on the side of the movable plate (30), away from the movable plate (30) plate (17); the inner end of the shaft (21) has a blind hole for the elastic telescopic rod (29) to insert into, with the inner wall of the blind hole and the end of the elastic telescopic rod (29) facing away from the movable plate ( 21, 30) with matching friction blocks one (28) and two, respectively; the outer wall of the shaft (21) has an impeller (22) located in an opening in the hollow seat (19), and another eccentric wheel (27) located in the hollow locating shell (23) at a position to floating board two (24), when the contact rod pushes the wedge block (31) upward while the movable plate (17) contacts the pressure sensor (18), the movable plate (30) moves outward within the hollow seat (19) as due to the action of the second spring, and this movement compresses friction block two against friction block one via the elastic telescopic rod (29), immobilizing the shaft (21); conversely, when the movable plate (17) releases from the pressure sensor (18), the second spring drives the movable plate (30) inwards within the hollow seat (19), causing the elastic telescopic rod (29) to release the friction block two of friction block one via the elastic telescopic rod (29), making the shaft (21) movable.

The outdoor survey apparatus according to claim 1 is characterized by a ring body on one side of the support structure (3) for connecting ropes.

The outdoor examination device according to claim 1 is characterized by a semi-circular base (15) at the bottom of the housing (5); the inside of the semi-circular base (15) contains a semi-circular weighted block (16), the diameter of the semi-circular weighted block (16) being smaller than the diameter of the semi-circular base (15).

9. Method for assessing invertebrate habitat conditions in the field using the outdoor survey apparatus of claim 1, which specifically includes the following steps: S1: Place the floating board one (1) in the target aquatic environment of the invertebrate habitat, send a signal from the remote monitoring terminal to the controller; upon receiving the signal, the wireless module controls the retractor to release the towing cable (4); this causes the underwater research component to descend into the water under the influence of gravity until it reaches the designated position in the water;

then the winder is closed, S2: collect water flowing into the water quality sensor (12) from the inlet ports (14) to obtain water quality data of the invertebrate habitat; collect image data of invertebrate habitat in the aquatic environment using the imaging equipment (11); S3: Transmit the water quality data of the invertebrate habitat collected by the water quality sensor (12) and the image data of the invertebrate habitat collected by the imaging equipment (11) to an external monitoring terminal for processing via the wireless module.