soulxtc
August 23rd, 2006, 08:07 AM
Fish Protect Drinking Water From Terrorists in Major U.S. Cities; Intelligent Automation Corporation's Aquatic Biomonitoring Technology was Developed in Cooperation with the U.S. Army
POWAY, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug. 22, 2006--Intelligent Automation Corporation (IAC) (www.iac-online.com) announced today that two large metropolitan cities are using a groundbreaking system to protect public drinking water from contamination and potential terrorism incidents involving the intentional release of chemicals into drinking water supplies. New York and San Francisco have purchased the IAC 1090 Intelligent Aquatic BioMonitoring System (iABS), an automated, intelligent system that uses fish (bluegills) as biosensors to continuously monitor the water supply and rapidly identify toxic conditions caused by a wide range of chemicals or chemical mixtures. IAC's 1090 iABS is also being used by the U.S. Army at Fort Detrick, Maryland.
The IAC 1090 monitors fish behavior and water quality parameters to determine toxic conditions. As the fish swim, breath and cough (yes, fish cough!) their movements are detected by non-contact sensors mounted in the IAC 1090 aquarium. These movements or ventilatory parameters (ventilation rate, average depth, cough rate, and percentage of motion) along with water quality parameters are classified to provide an immediate assessment of water toxicity. Should the fish detect toxic conditions, an alarm is triggered and the IAC 1090 is prompted to immediately take a series of water samples. In addition, the system automatically notifies appropriate staff by phone or email, allowing authorities to conduct a detailed investigation, if desired. In some cases, the system is configured to shut off the water pending a determination of whether further action is needed. The system can operate in a networked or standalone configuration and is designed for remote monitoring (e.g., modem, internet).
Unlike man-made sensors, fish respond to a wide range of chemicals and provide rapid, reliable detection of developing toxic water conditions for several groups of toxic materials such as metals, cyanide, organic solvents, and pesticides. No instrument has yet been devised that can measure toxicity. Chemical concentrations can be measured with an instrument, but only "biosensors" (fish) can be used to measure toxicity that is potentially harmful to humans.
http://home.businesswire.com/portal/site/google/index.jsp?ndmViewId=news_view&newsId=20060822005253&newsLang=en
http://files.turbosquid.com/Preview/Content_on_7_11_2005_19_48_35/fish_large.jpg1a9ebec7-1137-4f10-957d-3b37e9fe0d43Large.jpg
POWAY, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug. 22, 2006--Intelligent Automation Corporation (IAC) (www.iac-online.com) announced today that two large metropolitan cities are using a groundbreaking system to protect public drinking water from contamination and potential terrorism incidents involving the intentional release of chemicals into drinking water supplies. New York and San Francisco have purchased the IAC 1090 Intelligent Aquatic BioMonitoring System (iABS), an automated, intelligent system that uses fish (bluegills) as biosensors to continuously monitor the water supply and rapidly identify toxic conditions caused by a wide range of chemicals or chemical mixtures. IAC's 1090 iABS is also being used by the U.S. Army at Fort Detrick, Maryland.
The IAC 1090 monitors fish behavior and water quality parameters to determine toxic conditions. As the fish swim, breath and cough (yes, fish cough!) their movements are detected by non-contact sensors mounted in the IAC 1090 aquarium. These movements or ventilatory parameters (ventilation rate, average depth, cough rate, and percentage of motion) along with water quality parameters are classified to provide an immediate assessment of water toxicity. Should the fish detect toxic conditions, an alarm is triggered and the IAC 1090 is prompted to immediately take a series of water samples. In addition, the system automatically notifies appropriate staff by phone or email, allowing authorities to conduct a detailed investigation, if desired. In some cases, the system is configured to shut off the water pending a determination of whether further action is needed. The system can operate in a networked or standalone configuration and is designed for remote monitoring (e.g., modem, internet).
Unlike man-made sensors, fish respond to a wide range of chemicals and provide rapid, reliable detection of developing toxic water conditions for several groups of toxic materials such as metals, cyanide, organic solvents, and pesticides. No instrument has yet been devised that can measure toxicity. Chemical concentrations can be measured with an instrument, but only "biosensors" (fish) can be used to measure toxicity that is potentially harmful to humans.
http://home.businesswire.com/portal/site/google/index.jsp?ndmViewId=news_view&newsId=20060822005253&newsLang=en
http://files.turbosquid.com/Preview/Content_on_7_11_2005_19_48_35/fish_large.jpg1a9ebec7-1137-4f10-957d-3b37e9fe0d43Large.jpg