RiteAqua

Cost-Effective Rapid Water Testing for Aquaculture

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Problem and Significance

Vietnam proudly stands as the leading global producer of giant tiger prawns (Penaeus monodon), commanding a remarkable 37% share of the world's total production, with many of them being smallholder farmers in rural areas (Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch, 2023). One regular task each farmer must perform daily is to test the water quality parameters. This task is laborious and time intensive, taking upwards of 30 minutes for each pond.

Therefore, how might we revolutionize water quality testing for smallholder prawn farmers in Vietnam, making it both accessible, affordable, while also significantly reducing the burden of manual labor? The aspiration is to develop an automated technology that transcends the limitations of manual testing, allowing these farmers to swiftly and accurately monitor their water quality. By addressing this technological gap and alleviating the labor-intensive nature of water testing, we aim to empower smallholder farmers to unlock their full potential, overcome the barriers to optimal prawn production, and contribute to the broader landscape of prosperous agricultural practices.

Our Solution

In line with the theme of Inclusive and Accessible Technologies, our approach to the problem was to consider how a minimal amount of hardware could still streamline the farmer’s existing processes. Fewer moving parts generally translates to a lower cost product that is less likely to fail and require maintenance from specialized personnel. This fits the needs of our target market perfectly.

RiteAqua automates the time-consuming colorimetric tests that farmers conduct daily, cutting down time spent by performing seven necessary tests in parallel. The product captures and puts all the data in the hands of the farmers, giving them the ability to track historic trends and make better decisions when managing water quality.

How to Use our Product

Farmers will have to load the reagents into the machine which would be good for ~130 tests. Farmers then load a tray of seven water samples and view the results shortly on RiteAqua's intuitive touchscreen dashboard.

Technologies and Techniques Used

Making the solution accessible to rural farmers meant that simple mechanisms should be used since they are less likely to fail and do not require as much specialized training to operate. Moreover, the components should be relatively cheap, to keep the cost of the product low.

Rather than implementing a complex sensor array that could require elaborate calibration processes, AquaRite maintains the colorimetric tests that are typically used by prawn farmers in Vietnam. Reagents are fed into the loaded water samples by means of peristaltic pumps while the color changes are detected using OpenCV. Samples are also tracked by NFC equipped trays that tag the results to particular ponds. This allows all tests to be conducted in parallel and for data to be logged efficiently and for historic data to be tracked.

Key Challenges

The key challenge is finding the balance between a more complex device with more features and one that is simple but no longer adds much value to the farmers. This is a task that requires more time for comprehensive testing and exploration of design such that the device is reliable and has a low cost to manufacture.

RiteAqua as a Business

Customer Segments:

  • Smallholder farmers worldwide
  • Aquaculture researchers

Customer Relationships

  • Personalized Customer Support
  • Training and Onboarding
  • Feedback Collection and Continuous Improvement

Channels

  • Agricultural Shows and Exhibitions
  • Local Distributors and Retailers

Value Proposition

  • Quick and Easy Water Quality Testing
  • Time and Labor Savings for Smallholder Farmers
  • Intuitive Dashboard for Data Visualization

Revenue Streams

  • Sale of RiteAqua
  • Subscription Plans for Premium Dashboard Features and Support
  • Reagent Refills for Testing Kits

Cost Structure

  • Research and Development Costs
  • Manufacturing and Production Costs
  • Marketing and Promotion Expenses
  • Customer Support Costs
  • Technology Maintenance and Upgrades

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