The project, led by Professor Fiona Regan, Joyce O’Grady, a PhD student at DCU, and Dr. Nigel Kent, then the director of the centre of research and enterprise in engineering (engCORE) at the Institute of Technology Carlow. The project was sponsored by the Irish Marine Institute and involves studying freshwater sites where the quality is good and monitoring any changes that could impact the ecosystem.

“I assumed pricing would be a barrier, but the YEP made it a no-brainer as maxon products would have always been on my wish list. The level of customisation available, especially at such low volumes, was impressive, and Martin’s advice has been invaluable to the project,” added Kent. “I had previously only considered maxon products in final applications but not for prototyping.”

The sensor is now fully validated, and studies are continuing in other areas with the full device. One study has been completed on the River Liffey, and another is due in a lower catchment area. The system will be replicated for four more studies to complete the project in its fifth year.

“Industry 4.0 is finding its way into many different industries. The kind of system that Joyce is developing will be prevalent; autonomous sensors that you can leave out and get real-time feedback on the state of rivers or lakes will play a huge role in areas like Agriculture 4.0. For example, the interconnected nature of technology, using drones for smarter spraying, reduces water runoff, which helps prevent water pollution and protects our drinking water resources. This will be the industry focus over the next decade,” concluded Kent, currently assistant professor in the school of mechanical and manufacturing engineering in DCU.

Dublin City University (DCU) is part of Beyond 2020, a research cluster consisting of six Irish and UK institutes examining new technologies for monitoring environmental waters to understand the role of aquatic ecosystems in a changing global environment.