That’s Not the ‘Bui’ for Tying Anchor Lines... The Birth of a Smart ‘Badamokdong’ to Wisely Protect Fish Farms

UNIST·KIOST and K-Labs Co., Ltd. to Launch Marine Specialized Battery Prototype 'Smart Buoy'

Next-Generation Industry Growth Expected through 2020 Regional Vitality Project

Prototype of a smart buoy produced by K-Labs.

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters, Reporter Kim Yong-woo] Soon, ‘smart’ buoys will be floating in marine aquaculture farms. These buoys do not serve to anchor the site but instead drift in the sea, acting as smart ‘sea shepherds’ that reliably protect the aquaculture farms.

A ‘smart buoy’ equipped with a marine-specialized battery (seawater battery) has been developed, enabling real-time monitoring of 15 types of marine data such as farm location, water temperature, salinity, and pH anytime and anywhere. Safe power supply underwater allows for diverse applications in marine environments.

The ‘2020 Regional Vitality Project’ led by Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology (UNIST, President Yong-Hoon Lee) and the Korea Institute of Ocean Science and Technology (KIOST, Director Woong-Seo Kim) is bearing fruit.

K-Labs Co., Ltd. (CEO Won-Hyo Kim), which led the project, is preparing to launch a smart buoy product applying the marine-specialized battery (seawater battery).

The ‘marine-specialized battery-based multipurpose aquaculture buoy’ produced by K-Labs is a device capable of collecting various marine data.

Development Process of a Multipurpose Buoy Platform for Smart Fish Farms.

This device incorporates a seawater battery that charges and discharges electricity using sodium ions in seawater. Additionally, it boasts competitiveness by offering customized products at low cost through 3D printing technology.

The development of this demonstration product involved collaboration between research institutes and private companies from the early stages. Customized support for technologies needed on-site enabled prototype production with practical applicability and is expected to accelerate commercialization.

CEO Won-Hyo Kim of K-Labs proudly stated, “We have developed an affordable and environmentally friendly product that can replace the existing expensive marine observation buoys.”

He added, “In the future, we plan to expand into new industries such as developing IoT-based automatic aquaculture farm control systems, revitalizing fishing activities by attaching fish school detectors, and predicting marine environments based on accumulated marine big data.”

This prototype development is part of the ‘Regional Vitality Project’ promoted by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. Since May 2020, UNIST and KIOST have been selected for the ‘Marine Specialized Power Supply Device Infrastructure and Marine Equipment Demonstration Project,’ supporting local Ulsan companies in producing and demonstrating products applying marine-specialized batteries.

Professor Young-Sik Kim, director of the UNIST Seawater Resource Technology Research Center (Department of Energy and Chemical Engineering), introduced, “The smart buoy is an example showing that fundamental technology developed in university laboratories can contribute to creating new industries in local communities.”

Professor Kim also said, “The data collected through the buoy can be linked to the recently established marine and fisheries big data platform, leading to the creation of various new industries.”

Expected Benefits of Smart Form Technology Development.

An official from Ulsan City stated, “By establishing a seawater battery base, we will secure battery reliability and productivity, and through demonstration applying this technology, we will lead next-generation energy new industries, create new jobs and sales in the region, and help overcome the crisis of key industries.”

The secondary seawater battery is a technology field that has been continuously researched for commercialization since the UNIST Seawater Resource Technology Research Center (Director Young-Sik Kim) first succeeded in technology development in 2014, supported by Korea Electric Power Corporation, Korea East-West Power, KIOST, and others.

In November 2020, UNIST completed the construction of the Seawater Resource Technology Research Center, a five-story above-ground and one-story underground facility, leading the advancement of related research.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.