2040 October Newsletter
2040 October Newsletter
Manufacturing partner for The Cacophony Project
Kia ora and welcome our October newsletter.
This month we have an option for faster Wi-Fi on the DOC AI Cam, improved recognition accuracy, and the capability to re-process old audio files for long term bird monitoring.
We've made some progress with the trap, improving its reliability and we are about to restart field trials.
As part of our ongoing practice of highlighting other innovation in the space, I'd like to bring your attention to the Critter Solutions range of products. CritterPic looks to be a great way to monitor small species. The next availability of their self resetting AI trap is early next year.
From our customers:
- Here's Guardian story about how Orkney Islands are using our cameras. They also captured a video of an otter and so we have added an otter tag.
- Rotoehu Ecological Trust shared how they're using the DOC AI Cam to track pests and birds to measure the health of their forest.
A quick reminder we have a rental option for the DOC AI Cam if you'd like to try before you buy.
On Sunday (2 Nov) I'll be attending the Predator Free Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland Regional Hui. On November 22nd I'll be in Wellington, for the second day of the Predator Free Wellington Regional Hui, attending workshops on monitoring. If you're attending these events, please come and say hi. I'd be happy to answer any questions you have about our products.
Kā mihi nui,
Shaun Ryan
2040 Limited, manufacturing partner for The Cacophony Project.
Thermal video of an otter taken on the Orkney Islands.
DOC AI Cam
Faster WiFi
A software update added support for faster Wi-Fi on the DOC AI Cam (3-4x faster). This is useful if you have a lot of recordings to download to your phone. To do this we need to add a Wi-Fi dongle to your camera.
This update includes a number of bug fixes.
Improved thermal image processing
We've significantly improved the accuracy of the processing of thermal videos. On the camera we've made the processing faster and added new features. Full details here. Thanks to everyone who is tagging their videos and helping to improve the algorithm.
Reprocessing of old audio recordings
We've added the capability to reprocess old audio recordings for a small fee. This allows you to see the full range of birds now identified over your historic recordings. We have reprocessed recordings from a bird monitor that has been in Akaroa since 2019 and done an analysis on how bird biodiversity has changed.
Examples of bird recordings
As we find them we are sharing examples of some of the birds that have been automatically identified. Here are examples of
Manufacturing update
We currently have one camera in stock and should have more soon, once some parts arrive (expected in the next week or so).
Upcoming improvements
Next month we are working on the Cacophony Portal, adding some new features and working to make the new version the default. We also plan to add some more birds to our recognition algorithm. This includes bitterns, dotterals, and maybe kōkako
Our solar solution
We expect to start field testing our solar battery pack as soon as next week.
We’re still not sure when this will be ready to sell.
An example of kererū flapping being identified by the DOC AI Cam
This is an analysis of how birdlife is changing in Akaroa. It was created by re-processing historic bird recordings now that many more birds can be automatically recognised. Tūī and bellbirds have increased significantly, while blackbirds and morepork have decreased.
High Interaction Rate Trap
The engineers at The Cacophony Project have been continuing to develop the High Interaction Rate Trap. They've made some design tweaks that include current sensors that allow it to stop if it detects something wrong, making it more likely that it can be repaired in the field.
They expect to resume field testing next week.