Ocellus Solution

Sound Check (one of many)!

Thu, 14 Aug 2025 02:14:21 GMT

Testing, Learning, Adjusting ...and Testing Again

Our first microphone tests started simply: place the microphones side-by-side, generate controlled sounds, and compare the recordings.

It didn't work.

Mounting the microphones together on a hardwood surface introduced variables we hadn't adequately considered. It was a useful reminder that acoustic testing requires more than simply generating a sound and recording it.

So we changed the approach.

The next tests moved the microphones into an empty Langstroth hive, placing them at different locations—from the bottom board and side wall to the top center. We then introduced controlled sounds as well as external sounds, including bird calls and human conversation, to see how microphone location affected what was captured inside the hive.

The goal wasn't yet to reproduce a living colony. It was to understand the acoustic environment of the hive itself and improve our testing methods before adding thousands of very noisy research participants.

Sometimes a failed experiment tells us exactly what to test next.

Hive Accoustics

Sun, 10 Aug 2025 02:10:02 GMT

Testing How Sound Travels Inside a Hive

Before testing microphones in a colony full of bees, we needed to better understand how sound behaves inside the hive itself.

Using an empty Langstroth hive, microphones were positioned in four locations: opposite sides of a frame, at the top center of the hive, and low near the hive entrance. Controlled sounds were then introduced from different locations within the hive.

Test sounds included white noise, ambient environmental sounds, and recordings of queen piping, both alone and combined with background noise. The closed hive allowed us to compare how microphone location and distance from the sound source affected what was actually recorded.

This wasn't intended to recreate the complex acoustic environment of thousands of bees. It answered a simpler engineering question first: Does where we put the microphone change what we hear?

The Groovey Language of Honey Bees

Mon, 28 Jul 2025 13:00:40 GMT

A hive communicates in more ways than dance

The waggle dance may be the most famous example of honey bee communication, but a colony also communicates through sound and vibration.

Workers produce several distinctive mechano-acoustic signals. The “stop signal,” for example, is a brief vibration that can inhibit another bee’s waggle dance. Worker piping is longer and acoustically different, and has been associated with activities including swarm preparation.

These signals can differ in duration, frequency, modulation, and behavioral context. That means a hive contains information that may be detectable not just by watching the bees—but by listening to them.

For Ocellus, that is the fascinating possibility: if meaningful behaviors produce recognizable acoustic signatures, continuous listening may tell us something about colony activity without repeatedly opening the hive.

It's All About the BUZZzzzZZzzzZzzzZZZzzz

Fri, 25 Jul 2025 02:39:56 GMT

First, Understand the Bee. Then Choose the Mic

Before selecting a microphone, we first needed to understand the acoustic “specifications” of the Western honey bee (Apis mellifera).

A colony is a remarkably complex acoustic environment. Worker activity produces the familiar hive hum, while specific signals—including worker piping and stop signals—occupy identifiable frequency ranges and patterns. Queens add another acoustic layer through piping and tooting, with fundamental frequencies and harmonics extending across a broader range. Research has documented A. mellifera stop signals around a few hundred hertz, for example, with other piping signals occupying overlapping ranges.

For Ocellus, this meant the microphone needed to reliably capture low-frequency bee sounds, roughly 150–1,200 Hz, while also providing enough bandwidth to preserve the harmonics and other acoustic information useful for machine listening. It also needed low noise, low power consumption, digital output, and—critically—a package small enough to fit inside the hive.

After reviewing the literature, consulting specialists in bee behavior and acoustics, and speaking with several microphone manufacturers, we selected the Knowles SPH0645LM4H I²S digital MEMS microphone for our prototype.

At only about 3.5 × 2.65 × 1 mm, it provided an omnidirectional response, 65 dB signal-to-noise ratio, low power consumption, and a frequency range comfortably encompassing the honey bee signals we wanted to study. Its digital I²S output also allowed the microphone to communicate directly with the processor without requiring a separate audio codec.

The microphone wasn't selected because it was designed for honey bees. It was selected because we first learned what honey bees required from a microphone.

I would put your Worker/Queen Honey Bee Acoustics infographic directly after the second paragraph. It becomes the centerpiece of this post—the visual representation of the bee's “specifications.”

Then you don't need another complicated graphic. The post naturally leads into Safe and Sound, where you show how that microphone was actually incorporated into the PCB.

One small correction to the infographic itself: “Queen — Tooting (mated queen)” is not right. Tooting is generally associated with an emerged/virgin queen, while “quacking” is associated with queens still confined within their cells. I would fix that before putting this infographic on the website.

Safe and Sound

Sat, 12 Jul 2025 01:56:05 GMT

Building a Microphone for the Inside of a Beehive

Capturing useful honey bee sounds required more than simply selecting a good microphone. After researching available options and consulting with several microphone manufacturers, we selected the Knowles SPH0645LM4H, an I²S digital MEMS microphone , for our early prototype.

Space inside a hive is extremely limited, so we designed a small 16 × 16 mm printed circuit board (PCB) specifically for the microphone and its supporting electronics. As shown in the schematic, the board incorporates the microphone, connector, decoupling capacitors, resistor, and channel-selection jumper needed to interface the microphone with the monitoring system.

The microphone board also had to survive an environment electronics aren't normally designed for— inside a living honey bee colony . Bees, wax, propolis, humidity, and physical contact all presented challenges. The electronics were therefore protected with a food-grade epoxy coating while keeping the microphone's acoustic opening unobstructed.

The result was a tiny but important component: a purpose-built microphone assembly designed to listen from inside the colony while protecting both the electronics and the bees.

More Than Honey

Wed, 02 Jul 2025 12:52:05 GMT

The real value of honey bees happens in flowers

Honey may be the product most associated with honey bees, but agriculture depends on them for something even more important: pollination.

Managed honey bee colonies can be moved to farms and orchards when crops bloom. Foragers visit flowers for nectar and pollen, carrying pollen between blossoms as they work. That service helps produce crops ranging from almonds and berries to melons and tree fruits.

Honey bees are not the only pollinators, and many crops also benefit from native bees and other insects. But managed colonies can be deployed in large numbers exactly when growers need them.

So the value inside a hive is not measured only in pounds of hon ey. Sometimes its greatest contribution is growing somewhere else—in an orchard, field, or garden.

Mic Placements within Langstroth Hive Box

Tue, 01 Jul 2025 01:43:15 GMT

Where should a microphone be placed to best “hear” a honey bee colony?

There is no simple answer. Commercial monitoring systems and research studies have placed microphones in different locations, including (primarily) above the frames, along the sides of the hive, and within the colony itself. But microphone location affects what portion of the colony is being heard.

As the illustrations show, a microphone positioned along the side wall will primarily capture activity from the nearby frames. A microphone placed above the frames has a broader listening area, but is weighted toward activity in the upper and central portion of the colony.

Our approach has been different. We elected to place the microphone between two frames, low and toward the center of the hive. From this position, the microphone can receive sound from bees on both adjacent frame surfaces rather than predominantly from one side or from above.

There is also a biological rationale for choosing this location. Brood is generally concentrated toward the center of the colony, and queen activity is closely associated with this central brood area. In addition, queen cells are often found along the lower portions or bottom edge of brood frames. Because virgin queens may produce piping and related acoustic signals, placing the microphone low in the brood area could improve our chances of detecting those sounds close to their source.

What's an MCU?

Mon, 30 Jun 2025 01:10:35 GMT

When the Ocellus project began, its Project Head came from healthcare and behavioral science—not electrical engineering. So when the engineers started talking about selecting an “MCU,” the first question was pretty basic:

What's an MCU?

A microcontroller unit, or MCU, is essentially the small computer at the heart of an embedded electronic device. It combines a processor, memory, and interfaces for communicating with sensors and other electronics on a single chip.

For Ocellus, choosing one meant learning enough to ask the right questions: How much processing power do we need? How much memory? How will it communicate with our sensors? How much energy will it consume? How difficult will it be to program—and how physically large is it?

 Lesson learned: leading an R&D project doesn't require knowing everything. It does require learning enough to know what questions to ask.

Surround Sound in Hive

Sun, 22 Jun 2025 00:07:10 GMT

To effectively monitor and analyze the acoustic environment inside the hive, we realized that the microphone needed to be on its own dedicated board. This design decision provides for maximum flexibility, letting us place each microphone precisely where it's needed within the hive. With four microphones, each on its own board and connected to the main PCB, we can simultaneously record sound from multiple locations within the hive. This setup is essential for capturing a comprehensive sound profile, which will be invaluable for understanding hive health and behavior through acoustic analysis.

By isolating the microphones on separate boards, we ensured that the sound data collected is as accurate as possible, free from interference or noise that might arise from other components on the main PCB. This design also allows for easy repositioning and testing during the prototype phase, allowing me to experiment with different configurations to find the most effective setup for capturing the subtle sounds bees make. The result is a versatile and powerful tool for non-invasively monitoring the hive, providing critical insights without disturbing the bees.

Main PCB Design

Sat, 21 Jun 2025 00:55:12 GMT

Once we selected the appropriate processor and sensors, it was onto the PCB design

Designing the printed circuit board (PCB) for my smart hive project was an intricate and rewarding process, and it wasn’t something I tackled alone. Recognizing the complexity involved, I decided to collaborate with a talented university student who brought fresh insights and technical skills to the table. Together, we worked on laying out and designing the PCB, ensuring it would meet all the specific needs of my IoT beekeeping system.

The PCB serves as the central hub where all the electronic components connect, making it essential to get the design just right. We had to carefully consider the physical constraints of "bee space" and ensure that the board was compact yet efficient, fitting seamlessly into the hive without disrupting the bees. Additionally, the layout needed to optimize power efficiency and signal integrity while minimizing noise, crucial factors for maintaining accurate data transmission from the various sensors.

The collaborative effort allowed us to combine practical engineering with innovative design, resulting in a PCB that not only functions perfectly but is also easy to assemble and integrate into the hive. This experience underscored the value of merging academic knowledge with hands-on experience, leading to a design that will serve as the foundation for the ongoing development of my smart hive prototype.

Measure Twice, Fit Once

Thu, 12 Jun 2025 00:30:32 GMT

Little did I know I needed such an instrument

Designing electronics for a beehive taught me very quickly that a ruler—and certainly my eyeball—wasn't going to cut it. Enter my first digital caliper.

Every millimeter matters. Components have to fit the circuit board, the board has to fit its enclosure, and the finished device has to fit into a working colony without interfering with the bees. That means measuring accurately, checking the specifications, and then measuring again. And again.

One particularly important constraint is “bee space” —the roughly 6–9 mm (¼–⅜ inch) gap bees naturally maintain for movement. Make a space too large and bees may fill it with comb; make it too small and they may seal it with propolis.

I've learned a basic engineering lesson: use the right tool, measure accurately, and never be embarrassed to measure one more time.

What i Pollinators Disappeared?

Wed, 30 Apr 2025 12:48:02 GMT

A quieter world, and a very different grocery store.

Imagine walking into a grocery store where many familiar foods are scarce, expensive, or missing altogether. That is closer to the real consequence of losing pollinators than the often-repeated idea that humans would simply “have no food.”

Bees and other animal pollinators help produce many of the fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, spices, and other foods that make our diets varied and nutritious. USDA sources estimate that about 35% of the world’s food crops depend on animal pollinators to reproduce.

Grains such as wheat, rice, and corn would not suddenly disappear. But apples, berries, melons, almonds, squash, and many other foods could become much harder and more expensive to produce.

Pollinators do far more than make honey. They help make the modern produce aisle possible.

Resolving the Mic Issue

Thu, 24 Apr 2025 05:23:33 GMT

Isolating the sound and vibrations solved our mic problems.

Our initial microphone test didn’t go as expected. Despite placing the four mics only centimeters apart, the frequency and spectrogram fingerprints from two of them were identical, while the other two mics also matched but differed from the first pair. This raised concerns, as we anticipated all four mics would produce nearly similar results.

We uncovered multiple issues after brainstorming and discussing with our newest team member—an electronics and acoustic engineer from the University of Pittsburgh. First, mounting the microphones on a wooden platform created unforeseen complications. The wood vibrated during sound tests, transmitting signals between the mics, which resulted in cross-interference. Additionally, the sound source itself, also positioned on the wood, introduced both sound and mechanical vibrations that further distorted the data. The proximity of the microphones compounded the interference, leading to unclear results.

The solution came after some experimentation. We used small foam pieces under each mic to eliminate vibrations, spaced the mics further apart, and increased the dB level of the sound source, ensuring it was equidistant from each mic. This resolved the issues and set us up for Phase II studies.

Hive Tech - Using IoT to Save the Bees

Wed, 23 Apr 2025 22:56:22 GMT

In modern beekeeping, maintaining the health of multiple hives across an apiary is a challenging task, often requiring frequent, intrusive inspections that can stress the bees and disrupt colony activities. By leveraging IoT technology, beekeepers can monitor hive health remotely, reducing the need for these disruptive checks. The concept involves placing sensors in each hive to measure critical parameters like temperature, humidity, CO2 levels, and sound. These sensors transmit data to a central unit—aptly named the "queen unit"—which collects and processes the information for real-time insights into each hive's condition. This setup allows beekeepers to identify issues early, such as the onset of swarming or the presence of pests like Varroa mites, without opening the hives. The centralized data collection not only simplifies hive management but also supports scalable monitoring across large apiaries, enabling proactive and less invasive care of the colonies.

It's called 'Destructor' for a reason

Wed, 23 Apr 2025 22:52:26 GMT

Controlling the parasitic mite Varroa destructor is critical to saving our honey bees and our livelihood.

Varroa destructor ("Varroa") is a parasitic mite that poses severe risks to honey bees. The mites initially attach themselves to the bee larvae and live off their hemolymph (bee 'blood'). They also attach themselves to adult bees. While their parasitation doesn't often kill the bee directly, these mites cause the bees to become weakened and more subject to disease. Diseases that can be transmitted by the mites themselves. The difficulty controlling Varroa is complicated by challenges in early detection. Our IoT device will help beekeepers by notifying them early in infestation so they can take action. This should help the colony maintain its health.

Buzzing into IoT - my first prototype

Wed, 23 Apr 2025 22:49:23 GMT

Not knowing anything about IoT, I applied concepts from my public health background to organize the process.

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It's All ελληνικά To Me

paxpaxtibi@gmail.com (Kevin Jablonski) — Tue, 22 Apr 2025 06:03:57 GMT

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What happens without bees

paxpaxtibi@gmail.com (Kevin Jablonski) — Tue, 22 Apr 2025 06:00:04 GMT

Chinese man manually pollinating fruit trees in China

Pollution, pesticide use and environmental destruction have resulted in the catastrophic loss of honey bees in areas of China. The situation has become so dire that farmers often have to pollinate fruits and vegetables manually—a costly, poorly efficient process. Does the solution lie in the application of AI and IoT?

Curious (or brave enough) for more ... check out this brief PBS documentary .

How'd this journey begin

paxpaxtibi@gmail.com (Kevin Jablonski) — Tue, 22 Apr 2025 05:51:27 GMT

August 2024, my first day working at DesignLab as a Resident. Happily sharing details of my project and plan .... and even after a year of thought ... 10 minutes into a consult and we're already radically improving the product.

Thanks to the team at DesignLab for supporting my project!

While my relationship with DesignLab is new, this project is not. It's already one year since I first got the honey bee "bug" and started looking into how AI, ML-ML (machine listening-machine learning) could be used to help save THE most important animal in the world - the HONEY BEE.