Scotland's coral reefs, which are currently healthy but threatened, may soon get some help from groups of swarming underwater robots being developed by a Scottish university research team.
Swarming robots are a growing area of research we've previously reported on. They're often in the form of flying machines, such as the ScanEagle autonomous unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) Boeing is developing with the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory.
The Scottish "coralbots" are being developed by a team of researchers at Heriot-Watt University's Edinburgh campus, led by Dr. Lea-Anne Henry from the school of life sciences. Henry is collaborating with professor David Corne from the university's school of mathematical and computer science, as well as Dr. Neil Robertson and professor David Lane from the school of engineering and physical sciences.
Coralbots will be trained to distinguish coral fragments from other objects, such as sponges and other sea creatures, as well as rocks and trash. (Source: Murray Roberts/Heriot Watt University, Edinburgh)
The swarming intelligent underwater robots may prove to be a solution for helping to rebuild coral reefs around Scotland and elsewhere on the planet that have been damaged by growing ocean acidity. Coral reefs in the deep waters west of Scotland, which are similar to coral reefs in the tropics, are also being threatened by bottom-fishing, or trawling. Although the reefs can sometimes survive damage and regrow, the process can take decades, or even centuries.
Like all coral reefs, the Scottish ones are home to fish, sharks, and thousands of other sea creatures. The researchers say that swarms of many small, autonomous robots, operating according to a set of simple rules, could be deployed in areas affected by trawling, or immediately after a hurricane. They could potentially rebuild an area of damaged reef in a few days instead of many years.
Although no details were available about the robots' mechanics or other characteristics, the researchers did say that they will be trained, presumably using object recognition software, to distinguish coral fragments from other objects, such as sponges and other sea creatures, as well as rocks and trash. The coralbot research is supported by Heriot-Watt Crucible Funding.
Earlier this year, the university's Murray Roberts, professor of marine biology, led the international Changing Oceans expedition to study deep-water and shallow-water coral reefs around Scotland, the UK, and other areas. The team used remote-controlled underwater vehicles to film ecosystems in the reefs, and collected samples and other data.
I really wish that would solve the problem. Remember the story about Humpty Dumpty, you can put the pieces back together, but you may just end up with a pretty shell and no life. I guess putting the subtrate back together again to allow new growth, but what will prevent it from happening again, and again? To date, they haven't made a trawl that will roll over a ship very well. Maybe this technology should be modified to fix things like damage to deep sea oil wells.
Akwa, outlawing the equipment that is designed to go over reefs makes sense. Yet, like you say, it's a large world to police. In the meantime it's good to see alternatives such as the swarming robots are getting developed to help correct the problem. I'd love to see those robots in action.
Legislation only begins to curb the issue, Rob, especially when there is little way to control other countries, and the ocean is very big. We can control our end by outlawing the equipment designed to be effective over reefs. They would then stop doing it because their equipment will be ruined and/or lost. Legislation has been proven to make a serious impact, although there will always be cheaters, and we can't police the world.
Good question, Rob, and a loaded one. Unfortunately, the best way is by intervention by governments, to create legislation that does not allow special trawling equipment designed to 'roll' over coral reefs. Fishermen, just like most businesses and corporations, have no desire to protect the environment, they are there to make money. We must have legislation in place that will force them to be concious of what they are doing. "Historically, industrial fishers avoided coral areas because their nets would get caught on the reefs. In the 1980s, rock-hopper trawls were invented; the large tires and rollers that were attached to the bottom of nets allow the nets to roll over any rough surface. Fifty-five percent of cold-water coral in Alaska that was damaged by one pass from a bottom trawl had not recovered a year later. In the Northeast Atlantic, there are scars up to 4 km long on the reefs from bottom trawlers." Encyclopedia of Earth.
We need to identify the regions where damage occurs and prevent the fishing over and around them, and outlaw the use of equipment that destroys the coral and reefs. Coral typically grows very slowly, the fastest soft corals grow ~6 inches/yr. Most corals grow considerably slower, typically only 1/8 inch to 3/4 inch/yr. Once destroyed or even damaged, the replacement of these corals can not keep up with the repeated destruction. The other problem with corals, is that they usually grow on top of the skeletons of dead and dying coral, that is why the reefs continue to grow. This process takes a very long time, and once gone, will not recover in a lifetime, or ever.
Yes, Rob, we did learn this through accidents. I live in Florida and there are many accidental sinkings that have created great dive spots and attract marine life of all kinds. It turns out that two very important limiting factors in improving numbers of marine life are shelter and substrate. Theses sunken ships provide both substrate for marine life that needs something hard to grow on (unlike sand) and offers great shelter and protection for juvenile and adult fish. With substrate in mind, the swarming robots could possibly help rebuild a reef that is destroyed by things like trawlers, but they will continue to wreck the reefs if not somehow diverted. Large sunken ships are avoided like the plague by trawlers, because they destroy the nets and are hazardous to the vessels themselves if snagged. They are also easy to see with fish-finders and other sounding devices. They are also documented on maps so that they can be easily avoided. Rebuilding coral reefs is not an easy task, but anything they do to help it along should be examined. I will be watching to see how this new technology works in the real world.
By experimenting with the photovoltaic reaction in solar cells, researchers at MIT have made a breakthrough in energy efficiency that significantly pushes the boundaries of current commercial cells on the market.
We looked at a number of sources to determine this year's greenest cars, from KBB to automotive trade magazines to environmental organizations. These 14 cars emerged as being great at either stretching fuel or reducing carbon footprint.
From Dell / Intel® New Paradigms in Design Work Scott Hamilton, vertical market strategist for Dell Precision workstations, 5/2/2013 3
Early in my career, I worked as a draftsman and remember the days of drawing on vellum with numbered pencils and Mylar with plastic lead. This was a fun experience in the sense that I ...
I've been using workstations for more than 10 years and love finding ways to get more performance from my system. With demanding professional applications that require more power each ...
A lasting memory from my first job as an engineer in an auto assembly plant is standing on hard concrete at six in the morning, vending-machine coffee clutched in hand, listening to ...
A quick look into the merger of two powerhouse 3D printing OEMs and the new leader in rapid prototyping solutions, Stratasys. The industrial revolution is now led by 3D printing and engineers are given the opportunity to fully maximize their design capabilities, reduce their time-to-market and functionally test prototypes cheaper, faster and easier. Bruce Bradshaw, Director of Marketing in North America, will explore the large product offering and variety of materials that will help CAD designers articulate their product design with actual, physical prototypes. This broadcast will dive deep into technical information including application specific stories from real world customers and their experiences with 3D printing. 3D Printing is
To save this item to your list of favorite Design News content so you can find it later in your Profile page, click the "Save It" button next to the item.
If you found this interesting or useful, please use the links to the services below to share it with other readers. You will need a free account with each service to share an item via that service.
Tweet This
3 
