Hi all,

Let me please introduce our project named Smart Drone to Tag Whales, awarded in WILDLABS AWARDS 2024.

Our research team (@machadoams, @anakfleck, @felipeccalegari, @gabriel.macedo, @GeorgiyT, @iagosilvestre, @LBecker, @leandro.medeiros, @leowilliamh, @maiquelb, @matheus.pinto,   @jomihubner, @fernandorods ) is located in Brazil. Our laboratory is in the country's south (Santa Catarina state) and the field work will be conducted in the northeast (Bahia state).

Our general aim is to build an AI-powered drone with open-source cutting-edge technology to deploy biologging tags to assess how whales respond to anthropogenic noise. 

More specifically, we target creating an drone's control software capable of autonomously performing the tag-deployment mission and returning to the supporting vessel. Therefore we'll make use of an IA-based development technique named Believe-Desire-Intentio (BDI) Agents. It will execute in a so-called companion-computer and will interact with an open-source flight controller to control the drone towards making the required manoeuvres. 

Besides, the project includes adapting a commercial drone frame with a launching system for the biological-tags that will be deployed into the whales. 

Looking forward to share the first preliminary results of the project with you all in the near future.

Kind regards,

Leandro & team