Project

# Title Team Members TA Documents Sponsor
14 Bird-Watching Telescope with Real-Time Bird Identification
 Haoxuan Du
Junhao Zhu
Tiancheng Lyu
Yuhao Wang
 design_document1.pdf
design_document2.pdf
proposal1.pdf
 Huan Hu
# **FEATURED PROJECT**

## **Bird-Watching Telescope with Real-Time Bird Identification**

### **PROBLEM:**

When observing wild birds at a distance with a handheld telescope, due to the agility of the birds, before one can carefully identify or record the characteristics of the birds (appearance and call), they often fly away, making it difficult to determine the species. A smart telescope is needed to greatly assist bird watchers, especially beginners, and provide real-time identification of birds.



### **SOLUTION OVERVIEW:**

The Bird-Watching Telescope is designed to help birdwatchers record the characteristics and identify the species of the bird immediately. The Bird-Watching Telescope integrates a camera, telescope, laser ranger, bird identification software on mobile phones developed by our team, and other functional circuits. Users can deploy the telescope wherever they want, and wait until a bird appears. After manual aiming and autofocus, the bird identification software will automatically identify the species of the bird.



### **SOLUTION COMPONENTS:**

#### **Telescope Modules :**

- The primary telescope able to tune the focus by hand, with space assigned for later electrical components beforehand.

#### **Recording, Transmission & Annotation Modules:**

- Real-time video recording through ocular lens, simple preprocessing to make it easier to transmit to mobile phone with Bluetooth.
- LCD part to play the result sent from mobile phone in the oscular lens.

#### **Identification Modules:**

- Bird identification program, including video preprocessing, visual classification, identification result annotation signals.

#### **Red-dot Focus Modules:**

- The mechanical structure that can adjust the lens spacing, and the red-dot device.
- Simple program to adjust the lens spacing with distance of the red-dot, which is put on the telescope.



### **CRITERION FOR SUCCESS:**

- Functionality: This smart telescope can record through ocular lens, transmit recordings to mobile phone to process the identification. Identification results will be displayed via LCD screen on viewfinder and saved on mobile phone for users' convenience. An automated red-dot focus system can fine-tune the focus itself.
- User experience: The user can obtain real-time information of bird species information while keep their eye on the telescope, regardless of their previous knowledge. They may also have the telescope self-finetune the focus onto birds using red-dot.
- Environmental parameter detection: The smart telescope can get the recording of the birds from the ocular lens. For the red-dot finetune function, it can also get the distance between the red-dot and itself.
- Processing stability: The identification processing part will be done on mobile phone offline to ensure speed, while the red-dot finetune will be just process and done on the telescope.
- Program Package Update: The update can be simply done on mobile phone, which is very flexible and convenient, ready for future update when there are better programs or more bird species.



### **DISTRIBUTION OF WORK:**

- ME STUDENT WANG YUHAO:

​ Model the machine housing for the telescope with lens. Design the mechanical structure that can adjust the lens spacing.

​ Manage the cooperation between software and hardware parts through the whole project from view of mechanical engineering.

- ME STUDENT LV TIANCHENG:

​ Model the machine housing for the telescope with lens, and assign the location for electrical components. Design the mechanical structure that can adjust the lens spacing.

​ Assist the parameter adjustment of hardware parts with software parts.

- ECE STUDENT ZHU JUNHAO:

​ Responsible for software part. Struct and code the programs, later adjust parameter in tests for bird identification program & Red-dot focus fine tuning program.

​ Solder the electrical circuits and assemble the physical product.

- ECE STUDENT DU HAOXUAN:

​ Mainly responsible for software part. Struct and code the bird identification program & Red-dot focus fine tuning program.

​ Manage the cooperation between software and hardware part through the whole project from view of computer engineering.

RFI Detector

Featured Project

Problem Statement:

Radio frequency interference from cell phones disrupts measurements at the radio observatory in Arecibo, Puerto Rico. Many visitors do not comply when asked to turn their phones off or put them in airplane mode.

Description:

We are planning to design a handheld device that will be able to detect radio frequency interference from cell phones from approximately one meter away. This will allow someone to determine if a phone has been turned off or is in airplane mode.

The device will feature an RF front end consisting of antennas, filters, and matching networks. Multiple receiver chains may be used for different bands if necessary. They will feed into a detection circuit that will determine if the power within a given band is above a certain threshold. This information will be sent to a microcontroller that will provide visual/audible user feedback.