Company At A Glance
Business Type
Marine Technology Company
SR&ED Category
Experimental Development
Team Size
17
Scope
Marine Sensors, Data Reliability, Harsh Environment Testing
Province
Nova Scotia
The Challenge
The company was developing a marine monitoring system intended to collect reliable data from equipment operating in harsh ocean conditions. Early versions worked in controlled environments, but performance became inconsistent when exposed to saltwater, vibration, temperature changes, vessel movement, and intermittent connectivity.
The challenge was that the system could not simply use standard sensor hardware and software settings. The team had to determine whether the hardware enclosure, sensor placement, calibration method, data filtering, and communication process could be adapted to produce reliable readings in a real marine environment. Improving durability sometimes reduced sensor sensitivity, while improving data capture created problems with power consumption, connectivity, or false readings.
What We Documented
01
Uncertainty
Uncertainty
The uncertainty was whether the monitoring system could produce reliable data in harsh marine conditions while maintaining durability, connectivity, and usable battery or power performance.
02
Iterations
Iterations
The company tested different sensor placements, enclosure materials, sealing methods, calibration settings, data filtering rules, communication intervals, and power-management approaches. Some versions improved durability but reduced reading accuracy. Others improved data capture but created connectivity or power issues.
03
Knowledge Gained
Knowledge Gained
The company gained new knowledge about how saltwater exposure, vibration, sensor placement, enclosure design, and data-processing methods affected measurement reliability in marine operating conditions.
Results
Why This Qualified
- Required experimentation beyond standard sensor installation
- Ocean conditions created unpredictable data reliability and durability issues
- Saltwater, vibration, movement, and connectivity affected system performance
- Multiple hardware, calibration, and data-processing configurations were tested
- New knowledge was gained about collecting reliable data in marine environments
