DEVELOPMENT OF FISH POND MONITORING AND CONTROL SYSTEM (WITH SOURCE CODE)

ABSTRACT

Automated  system  of  fish  farming  has  become  inevitable  due  to  the  immense importance of fisheries aquaculture. The efficiency of any fish rearing system depends on monitoring and control of pond water quality parameters as well as adequate feeding and a reliable power source. This work presents a fish pond monitoring and control system that improves on the efficiency of fish rearing. A sensor network consisting of temperature, pH, turbidity and water level sensors was used to measure water quality parameters and then relay the readings to the pond manager through a Global System for Mobile communication (GSM) module. Automatic feeding system controlled by servo motor and a real time clock (RTC) for adequate feeding of the fishes was also developed. The turbidity sensor was used to prevent feed wastage (and hence water pollution). Readings obtained from the sensors were displayed on liquid crystal display (LCD). An automatic water circulation system controlled by pumping machine and filters for pond water purification was also developed. The water level sensor ensured that the fish pond is filled with water only to the optimum level. Microcontrollers (Arduino Uno and Arduino mega) programmed using C++ language were used to effect the monitoring and control of the system. Each sensor was interfaced with the microcontrollers through analog to digital converters (ADC). A prototype fish pond was constructed to demonstrate the workability of this system and several tests were carried out on this prototype to verify the efficiency of the designed system. A total number of ten (10) catfish fingerlings were reared for a period of six (6) weeks within which water quality parameters, weight gain, and feed consumed were measured. Readings obtained were analyzed using Feed Conversion Ratio (FCR), which is measured as a ratio of the ratio of the total amount of feeds given to the total gain in weight by the fishes, and Feeding Efficiency (FE), measured as the inverse of the FCR expressed as a percentage. Similar amount of fishes were reared using a manually operated fish pond and the readings obtained were analyzed using the same parameters and then compared with the results from the designed automated system.  The test results showed that the FCR for the fishes reared using the developed prototype was 1.18, which is smaller than that of the manually operated system which was 1.82. This indicated that fewer amounts of feeds were used in the developed system to achieve a higher productivity as compared to the manual system. Also, the FE of the fishes reared using the developed system was 84.7% which indicated a higher feeding efficiency as compared  to  54.9%  obtained  in  the  manually  operated  system.  Furthermore,  the average gain in weight per fish for fishes in the automated system for the six weeks experimental period  was  28.95g  as  compared  to  18.45g  of those  in  the  manually operated system. These results also indicated a higher level of efficiency as compared to many existing automated fish ponds especially in the area of feeding efficiency. These results further showed the robustness and efficiency of the developed system over the conventional manual system of fish rearing.

CHAPTER ONE

1.0      INTRODUCTION

1.1      Background of study

The need for an automated and monitoring system in fish farming in our world of today has become inevitable due to the ever growing importance of fisheries aquaculture (Jui-Ho et al., 2015). This importance is being reflected in terms of human consumption of fish and as a source of income for individuals and nations. Aquaculture, which is the cultivation of aquatic organisms (fish, aquatic plants and other organisms) in a controlled aquatic environment either for commercial, recreational, or consumption purposes, (John et al., 2018), is one of the fastest growing industries in the world due to the rapid increase in the demand for fish and other seafood as major sources of protein. Aquaculture production accounts for about 40.1% of the total world fish production and 88.5% of the world aquaculture production is contributed by Asia (Muhammad et al., 2018). The tremendous growth in human population globally has also led to a proportional growth in the demand and supply of fish. Fisheries aquaculture provided about 52.5 million tonnes of fish in 2008 with this statistics increasing to about 55.1 million tonnes in the year 2009. If the growth continues at this rate, the production will reach about 132 million tonnes of fish in the year 2020 (Trygve and Morten, 2012).

In Nigeria, aquaculture production is one of the productive and profitable sectors, contributing about 4.4% of the Gross Domestic Product (Thompson and Mafimisebi, 2014). Nigeria is one of the major inland fish producing countries in the world, having a total production ranging from 182.264 and 304.413 tonnes between 2004 and 2008 (Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of  the  United  Nations,  2010).  Despite  this  production  level,  the  current  demand  for  fish massively surpasses the available supply, such that in 2014, it was estimated that the demand for fish was about four times the quantity produced locally (Ozigbo et al., 2014).

Attempt to bridge this gap between the demand and supply of fish and fish products has led to various research works in the area of automation and  monitoring of the aquaculture system (Wen-Tsai et al., 2014). This research work therefore developed a fish pond monitoring and control system which provides an efficient fish rearing system. The rapidly growing demand for fisheries has necessitated the use of various technological approaches in fish pond management. This is in an attempt to improve fish production through automated system of fisheries aquaculture.

In this research work, an automatic feeder (hopper) is developed and then controlled by the application of a servo motor which controls the opening and closing at preset intervals. A unique aspect of this feeding system is such that additional feeds are only dropped after the fishes had consumed the already dropped feeds. This is being done in order to avoid feed wastage and water pollution as being presently experienced. This was achieved using the turbidity sensor.

This research work also develops an automatic water circulation system such that at any point in time the pond water is found to be polluted, this polluted water will be drained through plastic pipes to a water reservoir. Filters are incorporated to remove any waste particles in the water so that purified water is sent to another reservoir before being pumped back to the fish pond. Also, sensors that measure water quality parameters to update the fish pond manager through a Short Message Service (SMS) using a Global System for Mobile communication (GSM) module are incorporated.

The control aspect of the system is coordinated using the Arduino microcontroller. Two of these microcontrollers were used; the first one was interfaced with the servo motor that controls the opening and closing of the hopper (feeder) and also the pumping machine. The second was interfaced with the various sensors used in the system which are the sensors for measuring water quality parameters, water level sensor, and turbidity sensor.

1.2      Statement of Research Problem

Due to the ever growing population in the world, the demands for fish and fish products are increasing tremendously by the day to the extent that dependence on wild-caught fish can no longer meet up the demands. Attempt to meet up with this demand has led to various research work in the area of monitoring and automation of the fish rearing system which are aimed at improving on the efficiency of the system (Muhammad et al., 2018). However, from literatures and  investigation of some of the existing  fish pond especially those within the New Bussa locality in Niger State, not much has been done in the area of automatic feeding system that reduces feed wastage and water pollution. Most of the existing fish ponds are usually faced with problems like water pollution, absence of sensor networks to monitor the status of water quality parameters (like pH, dissolved oxygen and temperature), and absence of a reliable power source to effectively manage the fish pond. Hence, an effective monitoring and automation system for fish ponds will put all these factors into consideration.

1.3      Aim and Objectives

The aim of this research work is to develop a fish pond monitoring and control system. The objectives of this work are:

i.       To develop a sensor network to monitor pond water quality parameters and then relay the readings to the pond manager through Global System for Mobile communication (GSM) module.

ii.      To develop an automatic feeding system that reduces feed wastage.

iii.      To develop an automatic water circulation system.

iv.      To develop a solar based power source to continuously power the system.

v.         To test and evaluate the performance of the developed fish pond.

1.4      Justification

In order to improve the productivity and efficiency of the fish rearing system, there is need to operate the system in such a way that all or most of its operations are monitored and automated. Extensive research work has been carried out on the ways of monitoring and automating the various activities involved in fish pond management as the advantages of this automated system over the historical human monitoring system cannot be overemphasized. This automation and monitoring system has become necessary as a result of the frequent shortcomings associated with human controlled system such as time delay in feeding, water pollution, and inadequate knowledge of the status of water quality parameters. However, not much has been seen of a system which  incorporates all the  aspects  of an  efficient  fish  rearing  system  into  a single automated unit. Hence, the possibility of developing a monitoring and automated system where all or most of the activities involved in an efficient fish pond management are being catered for is the motivation for this research work.

1.5      Scope and Limitation

The scope of this research work is limited to designing an automation and monitoring system for a prototype fish pond, which consists of a single hopper (feeder), a plastic bowl (used as the fish pond), and another plastic bowl used as the water reservoir. 30cm2 plastic bowls were used for this purpose. This prototype developed was powered by an independent energy source (solar power system) whose major components are the solar panel, a deep cycle battery, and charge controller which were sized based on the energy requirements of each of the components of the system.

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