Robotics in Fish Farming: Automation of Feeding, Harvesting, and Maintenance

Capture fisheries are increasingly constrained by ecological and production factors, making aquaculture an increasingly important source of animal protein. But feeding, management of water quality, observing fish stocks, maintaining the cage and harvesting often involve a lot of work and careful timing, and can be a time-consuming process in intensive fish farming. These challenges are being met with the use of practical tools such as robotics and automation. In today's aquaculture technology, automated feeders, underwater sensors, machine vision, remotely operated vehicles, autonomous platforms and artificial intelligence are integrated to do repetitive tasks and provide management information. Automated feeding can help enhance feed distribution and minimize wastage; and robotic and semi-automated harvesting technologies can aid in more efficient collection of fish, as less manual labor may be needed. Underwater robots can be used to check the cages, nets, tanks, and the behavior of the fish and alert farmers to maintenance needs while the problem is still in infancy. These technologies could enhance the efficiency of resource use, occupational health and safety, production uniformity, and environment. However, there are significant limitations in terms of investment costs, corrosion, biofouling, species-specific behaviour and the requirement for technical support that is skilled. Therefore, robotics should not replace human expertise, but be regarded as a part of an integrated aquaculture management system. Future advances in sensing, AI, energy-efficient technologies and automated navigation are poised to further increase the role of robotics in sustainable fish production.