There ’s something peculiar about the new swans floating around reservoirs in Singapore . They vagabond across the water like normal bird , but upon closer inspection , onlookers will ascertain they ’re not birds at all : They ’re cleverly disguised robots designed to test the tone of the city ’s water system .
AsDezeenreports , the high-pitched - tech waterfowl , nickname NUSwan ( New Smart Water Assessment internet ) , are the work of researcher at the National University of Singapore [ PDF ] . The team invent the machine as a way to tackle the challenge of maintaining an urban water source . " Water body are exposed to varying sources of pollutant from urban run - offs and industry , " they pen in astatement . " Several methods and protocol in monitoring pollutants are already in place . However , the boundaries of extensive judgement for the water body are limited by labor intensive and resource exhaustive method . "
By building water assessment technology into a plastic swan , they ’re able to analyze the timber of the man-made lake cheaply and discreetly . Sensors on the robots ' undersides criterion factor like dissolved oxygen and chlorophyll spirit level . The swans wirelessly transmit whatever data they collect to the instruction shopping centre on res publica , and based on what they ship , human original can remotely tweak the robots ' operation in real time . The hope is that the simple , adaptable technology will allow researchers to take smart samples and considerably realise the impact of the reservoir ’s micro - ecosystem on water quality .
This is n’t the first time world have used automaton disguise as animals as tools for canvas nature . Check outthis clipfrom the BBC seriesSpy in the Wildfor an idea of just how realistic these robots can get .
[ h / tDezeen ]
