Streamkeepers Fish Count

We’ve made progress this week towards finishing the prototype fish counter. There was a delay last week due to electronic difficulties that could not be remedied until this week due to UBC’s reading break, which precluded our access to the civil shop. These problems included adjusting the sensors to ensure that they will work around water at the hatchery. Though the counting device will not be fully submersed in water, the presence of electrical components mean that it must be sufficiently water resistant, which it now is.

With the fish counter finished, we are working on our final touch ups, in the hopes of testing it in the Capilano Trough this weekend.

counter components

We are also currently working on composing our report, which will include a scope of the long term project to create a fish counter that works for various fish sizes in a culvert or other stream settings. There will also be a manual for using the prototype, a list of parts, and all necessary details for future groups to expand on the project. It is also to ensure the prototype is both easy to use and safe for the members of PSKF.

pipe attachment & counter display

With the project nearing completion, we’re excited to see the implementation of our prototype, and gauge what sort of results our work has for PSKF and the stream ecosystem.

For this week, construction is well underway. Our team has been working in parallel to finalize the electrical system and the mounting system. With Scott Jackson’s assistance, we have completed the counter mechanism and are ready to implement it in the Capilano Trough. We’ve also constructed a mounting system to hold the counter and pipe in place during use.

Mounting system for counter & tubing

For next week, our final piece of construction is putting together the box that will house the counter. This casing will protect the fish fry from the electrical system and ensure the electrical system lasts longer as it will not be exposed to water.

Once these components are finalized, we will be able to go to the hatchery next week to implement our prototype. We hope to work with Streamkeepers to make sure we safely install the counter in a way that is least disturbing to the fry. Our group believes that this is good practice for us as future engineers to develop a habit for considering the societal and environmental issues in an engineering project. As engineers, we concern ourselves with providing services to society that extend beyond basic structures or goods. A sustainable, easy-to-use fish counter is just our first milestone.

Looking forward, we will be providing Streamkeepers with a manual that describes how to use the counter and where our group acquired the materials for it, as part of our way of making maintenance and handling simple and user-friendly.

This week, our group continued with the design of the electrical system. Under Scott Jackson’s supervision, we were able to construct a prototype counting system consisting of a photosensor epoxied to a clear pipe and attached to an electrical circuit constructed on a breadboard. This circuit was nearly identical to the one in the original schematics.

Confident that this design is effective, we have placed orders for the materials required to construct a full scale sensor system. These purchases are being made through Scott Jackson as he has the contacts to get the necessary equipment such as the counter, mounting platform, and various circuit components.

With the electrical system nearing completion, our focus turns to the housing system, and how we will attach the fish counter to the Capilano Trough. For this, Justin will be visiting the hatchery on Friday to make more observations of the site. Key things that we are looking for are whether the trough is magnetic (allowing a mounting system that employs magnets), and its overall dimensions so we can design the funneling system and if necessary, design for clamps to hold the counter in place. The funneling system is the method by which we will divert fish towards the pipe with the attached sensor system.

We’ve also learnt that the time the fish want to move is between 1.5 to 2 weeks, so we have decided to design for an operating period of 3 weeks, allowing plenty of time between recharging.

Once the order comes in, we will move forward with constructing the hatchery fish counter, while under Scott Jackson’s supervision. This is in accordance with the instructions of Mark Rigolo, PEng, Director of Laboratories in the Civil Department, who has approved our safety plan and procedure.

This week, the focus of our group project was on crafting a design for the electrical system. The push for this direction came from our meeting with Joel Atwater, our group mentor, last Friday.

Under his guidance, as a group we were able to set the design parameters for the electrical system, the housing system, the piping system, and the filtration system. We split these design parameters under minimal function requirements (MFR) and evaluation criteria/goals (EC/G). An MFR is a pass-fail test to see if a design does what it is supposed to do, for example, does the fish counter count the fish? An EC/G is more of an evaluation of the functionality of the design, such as: how accurate is the fish counter?

This detailed look into the project focused our group and got us working and dividing labor for the four subsystems mentioned above. The top priority was the electrical system, because its size and functionality defines the parameters of the housing system and of the piping.

That left us the weekend to research possible designs. A good suggestion by our mentor was an elegant modification to the circuit design in the original schematics. He proposed we use an Arduino microcontroller. This would allow us to write a program for the circuit to make it do exactly what we want.

We also managed to contact an electrical engineer graduate who made a YouTube video about his own counter. He was helpful and gave us some information on possible circuit requirements. This, along with preliminary designs for the housing and piping systems, put us in a good position to talk to Scott Jackson, an engineering technician for the civil department.

We met with Scott on Wednesday and he gave us his input on the circuit. Although he thought Joel’s idea of using an Arduino microcontroller was a good one, he felt that with the time constraint of the project and our group’s inexperience with        program writing, that a more simple solution would be appropriate. His suggested circuit is very similar to the design in the original schematics.

The major change he proposed is keeping the circuitry and power separate from the sensor. Essentially, by having only the photo sensor and receiver in the housing system and running a cable to an external box with the counter and power cell, it would allow for easier access to the fish counter and battery replacement. This would also protect valuable electrical components from potential water damage.

conept design demonstrating the piping, housing, and external power source

He also suggested we use an infrared light source instead of a bright light which might unnerve the fish fry passing by it. He offered to help us build the circuit as soon as we had more information on the project environment, such as the required pipe diameter

With Scott’s help, we managed to create a list of required materials, most of which should be available on campus, and also figure out what information we need about the fish fry to continue towards the completion of this project. Our group is very excited to be nearing the construction phase for the electrical system.

This week, our CSL group has taken several steps forward in defining the project criteria, including both negotiable and non-negotiable constraints, as well as the initial work schedule.

We began the week with a group meeting to discuss questions we had for our client as well as for Dr. Nesbit, the CSL coordinator. Our initial concerns were how to acquire the necessary materials for the fish counter, whether the construction of the counter would be on campus, and how budget money was going to be allocated.

After this meeting, we had an opportunity to talk to Dr. Nesbit and were informed that any purchases required would be subsidized so long as we kept our receipts. The budget was tentatively set at two hundred dollars.

Later on in the day, we had had the chance to meet with Zo Ann Morten, our client from the Pacific Streamkeeper’s Federation (PSKF). It was at this meeting we discussed project deliverables and received a more in-depth background on PSKF. The organization is comprised of passionate volunteers who work with streams because they like them. With  years of working with the CSL program, they are a valued client.

We had the opportunity to meet some of these volunteers on Thursday morning and see firsthand where our project would be implemented. Mike Gosnell, Doug Hayman, and Jan Lander are all with Morten Creek salmon enhancement and North Shore Streamkeepers and we will be working with them closely while Zo Ann Morten is away.

Although the projected outcome is a working fish counter at a culvert in Morten creek, we discussed making a smaller scale counter to be used in the capilano trough located in the PSKF hatchery on Morten creek.

In a more controlled environment, the possibility to develop the counting system seems more favorable. This is an excellent step forward to creating a sustainable fish counter to be used by streamkeepers throughout BC.

Key criteria and constraints:

• The schematic is almost two decades old and conceptual. Moving forward requires technical expertise in electronics, which can be provided by Scott Jackson, a civil shop engineering technician.

• The culvert is made of concrete; it is possible to divert stream using the fish ladder in place.

Culvert at Morten creek, with fish ladder

• Waterproof camera desired for later stage, to count adults coming back. This, with the electrical system, requires testing how waterproof the housing system is.

• Power must be available to the system, which can be provided by generator if a prototype is first designed in the hatchery.

• Water flow in the trough, which is 30 liters per 20 seconds, must be maintained. Regardless, this method of counting is much less intrusive than hand-counting the fry.

Capilano trough

Moving into next week, we plan to have several design concepts sketched up. We will decide on the best one and hopefully have a chance to meet with Scott Jackson to work out a schedule for using the shop, as well as getting assistance from him on designing the electrical components. Our group will meet again soon to draft a proposed work schedule for the entire project.

The Community Service Learning (CSL) program for Civil 202 is designed to meet a community organization’s needs while providing UBC Civil Engineering students with valuable hands-on skills in team-building, professional communication, and project management.

Our CSL group is pleased to be working with the Pacific Streamkeeper’s Federation in creating and implementing a counting station which will log the number of fish fry that pass through selected culverts. The design, supplied by NSSK, will be implemented at the Morten Creek Salmon Enhancement Facility in North Vancouver. The proposed implementation date is February 20th to the 24th, with a final presentation to Zo Ann Morten, the project coordinator, after March 17th.

The Pacific Streamkeeper’s Federation was initiated in May 1995 and is a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting community streamkeeper groups throughout British Columbia and the Yukon. The organization’s objectives are to help coordinate and provide support for streamkeeper activities and training, promote streamkeeper and enhancement issues as well as local management of aquatic resources.

Assisting in the cause of good watershed practices and environment protection is an exciting prospect for our CSL group. At this early stage in the project, we look forward to meeting with Zo Ann Morten and key players such as DFO, North Shore engineers and volunteers. It is our hope that through this orientation on the project design, as well as on fish and culverts, our team will be able to take away a practical approach to completing the project.

From top left to right, bottom left to right: Matt Stevens, Dale Healey, Fraser Peterson, Michael Levin, Justin Brown, Lucia Pei, Diane Currie

BIOS:

Dale Healey, team leader:

I am Dale Healey a Civil Engineering student at the University of British Columbia. For the past 3 years I have been working within the construction industry on large scale heavy civil projects where I have taken on technical and supervisor roles. As team organizer / leader I plan on ensuring that our client is provided with a final product of the upmost quality in an efficient and timely manner.

Diane Currie, secretary:

Hi! My name is Diane and I am a second year Civil Engineering student at UBC. I am involved in extra-curricular activities at UBC within the EUS and UBC Peer Programs, as well as other student groups. My interests include listening to and playing music, reading books and doing sports.

Fraser Peterson, mentor liaison:

Hi, I’m Fraser Peterson. I’m a second year civil engineering student from Surrey BC. I enjoy playing basketball and ball hockey, as well as following my favorite pro teams the Blue Jays and Canucks. This project looks very interesting and I am looking forward to working on it.

Justin Brown, client liaison:

Hi, my name is Justin Brown.  I’m from the Kootenays, love the outdoors, and enjoy challenges.  I’m an active person, involved in all sports, and have a new passion for the sport of triathlon.

Lucia Pei, team organizer:

Hi, my name is Lucia. I am a second year engineering student. Sometimes, I am a very active person, and sometimes I am quiet. I enjoy painting, reading and also working with people because their ideas always inspire me. I hope I can do well on this project.

Matt Stevens, document control:

Hi everyone. My name is Matt Stevens and I am a second year Civil Engineering student from Coquitlam. I enjoy listening to and playing music; I have been playing the drums for the past eight years now. I look forward to meeting you and am pleased to be working with the Streamkeepers Federation on this project.

Michael Levin, blog coordinator:

Hi, my name is Michael and I am a second year Civil Engineering student at UBC. I am involved in numerous student groups associated with Vancouver Hillel and am excited to learn about streamkeeper practices through this project.

 
You can chronicle your CSL team’s weekly accomplishments as you move toward the successful completion of your project.