DOC AI Cam: thermal camera and audio bird monitor

The DOC AI Cam is a thermal camera and audio bird monitor. The thermal videos and audio recordings are uploaded to the cloud where they are analysed using machine recognition algorithms to identify predators and birds automatically. This provides an easy way to do outcome monitoring for your project: be it predator or bird numbers. It is also the most sensitive way to detect pests at low densities.

The videos and statistics on the animals recorded can be viewed on the cacophony portal. You can set up real-time alerts, daily or weekly summaries, review the recordings and correct any mistakes made by the machine recognition algorithms. You can also export the data to a spreadsheet.

This page describes the operation of the thermal camera functionality, read about the audio bird monitoring functionality here.

Thermal camera

This provides the easiest, most effective and most cost effective way of monitoring predator. These claims are backed up by the results from a Lincoln University study into the effectiveness of these thermal cameras. This study showed that these cameras are

• 3.5x more sensitive than infrared trail cameras for possum detection
• 200x faster to analyse
• 8x cheaper per detection (this was calculated when the cameras were over twice the price)

Another study showed that the cameras are 5-20 times more sensitive for detecting rats.

The Department of Conservation have published a paper comparing thermal and trail cameras. This looks at the total cost of ownership and recommends situations where one type of camera should be used over the other. This study was done using the higher priced camera. This lower priced camera will broaden the situations where it is economic to use the thermal camera.

At the moment the model can automatically identify:

The accuracy of the identification varies with distance of the animal from the camera.  Generally there is very high accuracy from 3-8m. This article describes the accuracy of the thermal camera machine vision in more detail.

This DOC AI CAM can work online or offline.  If it is within cell phone coverage and has a SIM then the recordings will be uploaded to the cloud. If the camera is not within cell phone range, or the there is no SIM then the recordings are stored on the DOC AI Cam and will be uploaded, either when it is bought back into cell phone reception or WIFI, or they can be wirelessly transferred to a phone using app called sidekick (read more about sidekick).

The camera includes a year's worth of cloud storage. Additional storage and connectivity can be bought separately.

This video shows what it's like to use the Cacophony Portal.

Email alerts and daily summaries

If the camera is connected then you can set up alerts for when certain animals are detected.  In high power mode these are in near real time. In low power mode you will get these alerts in the morning.

You can also receive daily or weekly updates of what the camera has seen. This is a really easy way to see what is happening on your cameras. The email contains a summary and if there is anything of interest you can click through and see the detail.

DOC AI Cam power modes

The DOC AI Cam can be powered by a battery, mains power supply, or solar. The power supply, batteries and charger are each sold separately. The camera can operate in two power modes:

1. High power mode, where videos are uploaded to the cloud immediately. This is useful if you need a real-time alert of a predator. The camera can be configured to send you alerts when certain predators are detected. On average a battery will last 11-13 nights on High power mode and 6-7 nights if the camera is configured to record all day.
2. Low power mode, where videos are uploaded only once/night. This provides approximately 5x the battery life: up to two months when recording at night and one month when recording all day.

If you want to use solar to power the camera this can be set up using off the shelf components. This document describes a solar set up for the thermal camera. 

The camera can be mounted by strapping it to a tree (strap is included), attaching it to a screw spike (spike sold separately), or mounting it to a tripod.  The camera can easily be secured with a lock (not included).

There are regular software updates for the DOC AI Cam, providing software fixes and new functionality. The camera also contains an auxiliary port that has the capacity to drive a speaker, or connect to a communications network (the functionality for this has not been developed yet). 

"I really appreciate the ongoing tech support and modifications you’re providing to our team. It is hugely valued and a great comfort when spending up large (for conservation budgets) on new tech tools." Matt Maitland, Senior Ranger Open Sanctuaries

Try before you buy

We have an option to rent the DOC AI Cams. If you elect to buy rather than return then we will credit the rental cost towards the purchase of the camera. This is a great, low risk way of working out if the camera meets your needs.

Upgrade

To those of you who have bought the first version of our cameras, we offer a low cost upgrade. Check out the packages to upgrade your camera.

Specifications

View the thermal camera accessories.

Download the thermal camera manual.

Check out blog posts about the thermal camera and videos about and from the thermal camera

Here is a a draft protocol for how to use the thermal cameras to monitor predators over an area. We recommend about one camera every 4 hectares for monitoring. 

The DOC AI Cam hardware and software, along with the machine recognition algorithms and cloud storage portal have all been developed by The Cacophony Project, a not for profit organisation. A proportion of the proceeds will be donated to The Cacophony Project so they can continue to develop technology to help New Zealand become predator free. 

The Cacophony Project