2025 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

BOARD #130: AI-Driven Mussel Behavior Monitoring Using An Accessible 3D Imaging System

Presented at Poster Session-Electrical and Computer Engineering Division (ECE)

Mussels play a crucial role in monitoring and reducing water pollution. As natural bio-indicators, they filter pollutants such as heavy metals, providing a sustainable method for water decontamination. This project leverages AI to monitor mussel behavior, particularly their gaping activity, to enhance the water purification process. We aim to employ advanced 3D reconstruction techniques to create detailed models of mussels, improving the accuracy of AI-based analysis. Specifically, we use a state-of-the-art 3D reconstruction tool, Neural Radiance Fields (NeRF), to create 3D models for analyzing mussel configurations and behavioral patterns. NeRF enables 3D reconstruction of scenes and objects from a sparse set of 2D images. To capture these images, we develop a data collection system capable of photographing mussels from multiple viewpoints. The system featured a turntable made of foam board, marker around the edges, with a designated space in the center for the mussels. The turntable was attached to a servo motor controlled by an ESP32 microcontroller. It rotated in 10-degree increments, with the ESP32 camera capturing an image at each step. The images, along with degree information and timestamps, are stored on an SD card. Several components, such as the camera holder and turntable base, are 3D printed. These images are used to train a NeRF model using the Python-based NerfStudio framework, and the resulting 3D models are viewed via the NerfStudio API. The setup is designed to be user-friendly, making it easy for students, including K-12-aged students, to create 3D reconstructions of their chosen objects. Both the embedded hardware and software are simple to build and implement. In the summer of 2024, a team of high school students from the Juntos Academy at NC State worked on this platform, gaining hands-on experience in embedded hardware development, basic machine learning principles, and 3D reconstruction from 2D images.

Authors

Mr. Mayur Sanap North Carolina State University at Raleigh [biography]

Mayur Sanap is a Ph.D. student in Electrical Engineering at North Carolina State University. His research interests include edge AI, AI for healthcare, and embedded systems. He has authored three publications in the fields of robotics and embedded systems. In this paper, he investigates the application of AI-driven techniques for monitoring mussel behavior using an accessible 3D imaging system.
Arman Badalamenti North Carolina State University at Raleigh [biography]

Arman Badalamenti is a senior undergraduate student in Electrical Engineering at North Carolina State University. His areas of interest include signal processing, embedded systems, and control systems. He assisted in setting up and running the experiments and activities described in this paper.
Devadharshini Ayyappan North Carolina State University at Raleigh [biography]

Devadharshini Ayyappan is a Ph.D. candidate in Electrical Engineering at North Carolina State University. Her research focuses on computer vision, artificial intelligence, and machine learning. In this paper, she contributes to the development of 3D reconstruction models of mussels using AI techniques for mussel monitoring.
Sanjana Banerjee North Carolina State University at Raleigh [biography]

Sanjana Banerjee is a PhD student in the Electrical and Computer Engineering department at NC State. Her research focuses on applications of AI in the field of biological imaging and remote sensing. Specific topics of research include remote monitoring of crop health as well as studying growth and morphology of microscopic fossils using automated low cost imaging systems and computer vision techniques.
Mrs. Diana Milena Urieta North Carolina State University at Raleigh [biography]

Diana Milena Urieta is the Senior Director and Extension Specialist for the Juntos Program, which she co-developed. With over 18 years of experience in public health, early childhood through post-secondary education, and parenting, Urieta has made significant contributions to advancing family engagement and youth development initiatives. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology and a Master of Social Work from North Carolina State University.
Dr. Caren Cooper North Carolina State University at Raleigh [biography]

Dr. Caren Cooper is a Professor in the Department of Forestry & Environmental Resources. Dr. Cooper co-leads the Citizen Science Campus program at NC State University. For more than two decades, she has helped advance participatory approaches to research, like citizen science and crowdsourcing.
Prof. Michael Daniele North Carolina State University at Raleigh [biography]

Dr. Daniele is a Professor of Electrical & Computer Engineering and Biomedical Engineering. Dr. Daniele’s primary area of interest is the engineering of microsystems which monitor, mimic or augment biological function. Specific topics of research include wearable and implantable biosensors, microphysiological systems, microfluidics, and process analytical technologies.
Dr. James Reynolds North Carolina State University at Raleigh [biography]

Dr. Reynolds is an Assistant Research Professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at NC State University, where he is heavily involved with advanced research at the National Science Foundation’s Nanosystems Engineering Research Center for Advanced Self-Powered Systems of Integrated Sensors and Technologies (ASSIST) and the Institute of Connected Sensor Systems (IConS) at NC State. His areas of research, in addition to digital circuit design, include systems integration for biological applications, electrical techniques for studying plant behavior and physiology, and the development of smart e-textiles.
Jay F Levine North Carolina State University at Raleigh [biography]

Dr. Levine is a professor in the Department of Marine, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences at North Carolina State University. For more than two decades Dr. Levine's laboratory has focused research efforts on understanding the basic biology of imperiled freshwater mussels, developing assays for assessing their health and developing techniques for their propagation in support of conservation efforts. Dr. Levine is also co-director of the NC State University Climate Change and Society Program.
Prof. Alper Bozkurt North Carolina State University [biography]

Dr. Bozkurt currently holds the McPherson Family Distinguished Professorship in Engineering Entrepreneurship within the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at NC State University. He earned his doctorate in electrical engineering from Cornell University and his master’s degree in biomedical engineering from Drexel University. Dr. Bozkurt is the founder and Director of the Integrated Bionic MicroSystems Laboratory, as well as the Co-Director of the National Science Foundation’s Nanosystems Engineering Research Center for Advanced Self-Powered Systems of Integrated Sensors and Technologies (ASSIST) and the Co-Director of the Institute of Connected Sensor Systems (IConS) at NC State. Among his many achievements, Dr. Bozkurt received the Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Award from the National Science Foundation and the IEEE Sensors Council Young Professional Award. In 2015, he was named to Popular Science Magazine's "Brilliant 10" list. His team has also earned best paper and presentation awards from prestigious conferences, including the U.S. Government Microcircuit Applications & Critical Technology Conference, IEEE Sensors Conference, IEEE Body Sensor Network Conference, FLEX Conference, and the ACM Animal-Computer Interaction Conference.
Dr. Edgar Lobaton http://orcid.org/0000-0002-4056-8309 North Carolina State University [biography]

Edgar J. Lobaton is a Professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE) at North Carolina State University (NCSU). He joined the department in 2011. Lobaton earned his B.S. in Mathematics and Electrical engineering from Seattle University in 2004. He completed his Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences from the University of California, Berkeley in 2009. Lobaton was engaged in research at Alcatel-Lucent Bell Labs in 2005 and 2009. He was awarded the NSF CAREER Award in 2016. He was also awarded the 2009 Computer Innovation Fellows post-doctoral fellowship and conducted research in the Department of Computer Science at the University of North Carolina (UNC) at Chapel Hill from 2009 until 2011. In 2024, he received the University Faculty Scholars and the Outstanding Teacher Awards from NC State. His research focuses on the integration of AI, and physical and probabilistic modeling applied to cyber-physical systems in areas such as wearable health monitoring, rehabilitation robotics, agriculture and biological imaging.

Note

The full paper will be available to logged in and registered conference attendees once the conference starts on June 22, 2025, and to all visitors after the conference ends on June 25, 2025

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