Automated Collection Of Honey Bee Hive Data Using The Raspberry Pi

In recent years beekeepers have faced significant losses to their populations of managed honey bees, a phenomenon known as Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD). Many researchers are studying CCD, attempting to determine its cause and how its effects can be mitigated. Some research efforts have focused on the analysis of bee hive audio and video recordings to better understand the behavior of bees and the health of the hive. To provide data for this research, it is important to have a means of capturing audio, video, and other sensor data, using a system that is reliable, inexpensive, and causes minimal disruption to the bees’ behavior. This thesis details the design and implementation of a data collection system, known as BeeMon, which is based around the Raspberry Pi. This system automatically captures sensor data and sends it to a remote server for analysis. With the ability to operate continuously in an outdoor apiary environment, it allows for constant, near real-time data collection. The results of several years of real world operation are discussed, as well as some research that has used the data collected.