It seems everyday a new invention worthy of further investigation pops up somewhere in the world. A pretty neat gadget that came across recently is the ‘smart robot’ fish. It sounds like it could be some kind of toy to entertain kids for hours on end, but this is not that kind of gadget. This robotic fish was built with a purpose and to serve the greater good.

Why was it created?

The development team at Lanzhou Petrochemical Polytechnic in China created this Robot Fish to explore underwater realms for pipeline detection, hydrology, water quality monitoring, underwater rescue, archaeology, and more. The use for a gadget like this is endless – in the water of course.

Hong Zirong, the supervisor of the team that developed the robot fish has stated that the majority of water pollution and logging problems are caused by pipeline ruptures or leakage and are often hard to isolate due to the poor accuracy in its current technology.

This problem inspired Professor Hong and his students to be able to examine pipelines and other underwater disasters that may otherwise go undetected. What makes this technology different than anything in the past is that it has the ability to examine pipelines from the inside. Perhaps this is a step toward a more proactive approach and getting in front of potential underwater issues before they happen?

This Smart Fish is Really Smart

This robotic fish utilizes many advanced technologies, including mechanical electronics, sensors and artificial intelligence and has already won a number of prizes for its sophisticated craftsmanship and advanced technology. It can also be controlled both by a computer and mobile phone. It has high detection accuracy and sensitivity, and currently cost just under the equivalent to $15,000 USD.

Although this gadget is probably not created for the regular consumer, we sure hope that oil and rigging companies hop on board to get in front of potential pipeline issues before they actually happen.