This project will focus on developing a health monitoring device that will observe the bio-potentials of animals. For the early stages, the primary subjects will be chickens. The device’s purpose with chickens is to observe their environment and behaviors and understand their contribution to keel bone breakage. This project will be a continuation of the same project by a previous team, picking up where they left off. The device must have a small form factor, similar to a smartwatch. Its weight will be significant as the device must have a minimal impact on the chicken’s ability to function day to day. The power efficiency and the device’s optimization will also be important, as the goal is to enable the device to function for 24-hour intervals at a time without sacrificing its performance and functionality. As there will be multiple sensors in the device, the power draw potential could be high and must be monitored to optimize energy usage. The individual sensors will converge with a microcontroller, which will have on-board data processing. Thus, memory management will be necessary to ensure no data loss or corruption. One of the components the previous team was not able to complete was the strain gauge - the resistors were too large and fluctuations in voltage were too small to be read. Improvements to their drop test will also be needed for accurate data extraction, and a total of three units will be required: one for our project team to actively work on, one for the client’s grad students to further calibrate, and one to be sent to the College of Agriculture for testing. Due to this, the device’s user-friendliness will be essential as its user may not be experienced with technology. Minimal input and a simple UI will contribute greatly to the reliability of the prototype(s).
The current bio-potential monitoring system for animals, developed by the previous semester’s team, requires more improvements before usage. Our teams' primary goals are to focus on power optimization alongside miniaturization, improve the strain gauge, and make sure the device is user-friendly and the data is readable. The main problem is a 24-hour operational battery to ensure continuous sensor tracking. The strain gauge’s resistor values will need to be adjusted and a Wheatstone Bridge will be implemented for more accurate readings. The final system must be user-friendly for individuals who may not have a technical background. The data gathered with the system should be easily readable and interpretable.