Remote-Controlled Monitoring of Flying Pests with an Electrostatic Insect Capturing Apparatus Carried by an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle

Agriculture

Yoshinori Matsuda¹  Teruo Nonomura¹  Koji Kakutani²  Yoshihiro Takikawa³  Hideyoshi Toyoda⁴  Kazumi Osamura⁵ 

[1] Department of Agricultural Science, Faculty of Agriculture, Kindai University, Nara 631-8505, Japan;Pharmaceutical Research and Technology Institute and Anti-Aging Centers, Kindai University, Osaka 577-8502, Japan;Plant Center, Institute of Advanced Technology, Kindai University, Wakayama 642-0017, Japan;Research Association of Electric Field Screen Supporters, Nara 631-8505, Japan;Technical Development Unit, Panasonic Environmental Systems and Engineering Co., Ltd., Osaka 564-0062, Japan;

关键词: electric field;    attractive force;    double-charged dipolar electric field screen (DD-screen);    quadcopter;    unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV);    slipstream;   

DOI  :  10.3390/agriculture11020176

来源: DOAJ

【 摘 要 】

The purpose of the study was to construct an electrostatic insect-capturing apparatus that could be applied to a drone (quadcopter). For this purpose, a double-charged dipolar electric field screen (DD-screen) was constructed using oppositely charged insulator tubes that was then attached to a drone. For charging, the inner surface of the tubes was coated with a conductive paste and then linked to a negative or positive voltage generator. The opposite charges of the tubes formed an electric field between them and created an attractive force to capture insects that entered the field. The DD-screen constructed here was sufficiently light to enable its attachment to a drone. The screen was hung from the drone perpendicular to the direction of drone movement, so as to receive the longitudinal airflow produced by the movement of the drone. It was positioned 1.8 m below the drone body to avoid the influence of the downward slipstream generated by the rotating propellers. Eventually, the drone was able to conduct a stable flight, with sufficient endurance, and captured airborne insects carried by an airflow of 8 m/s during the flight. This study, therefore, provides an experimental basis for establishing a new method for conducting trap-based monitoring of airborne insects during remote-controlled flight through operation of a DD-screen attached to a drone.

【 授权许可】

Unknown