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The best way to measure the mating song of fruit flies is with modular measurement technology from NI.
Oxford University had such a big task that required thinking in very small terms. But thanks to NI's modular measurement technology that is available in Germany from dataTec, something quite impressive was achieved: the inaudible was made audible.
With the kind support of NI. Based on the results report by Birgit Brüggemeier Brüggemeier (as of May 2022).
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Why versatility leads to success.
The task: to record quiet sounds.
Fruit flies are just a nuisance to many people. Yet they are very interesting for science from a biological perspective and are regularly used for experiments on genetic analysis. This is due to, among other things, their comparatively short reproductive time, high fertility (females lay up to 100 eggs a day) and complex behavioural patterns such as flight or courtship behaviour. And this is exactly where the researchers' interest began: They wanted to record the mating song of fruit flies.
The challenges: disruptive factors, standards and costs.
Apart from the low volume of the mating song, there were other factors that had to be considered during the recording. On the one hand, there were classic environmental factors that could influence the flies' behaviour, for example temperature, light or humidity. On the other hand, scientific standards such as the reproducibility of the results also had to be considered. To ensure the success of the measurement task, an environment had to be created that met these high standards and was nevertheless simple and economically efficient to implement.
The solution: modular measurement technology from NI.
Thanks to NI's comprehensive portfolio, it was possible to develop a sensory device called the "Song Box", a box that minimised all interference factors and used a particle velocity microphone to record the mating song. But what exactly was the technology in the Song Box?
The LabVIEW front panel of the Song Box showing the courting flies sitting on an extremely sensitive microphone that records their songs. In addition, the user can control light, humidity, and temperature via the front panel.
The setup for recording of the mating song.
For Oxford University, the right combination of software and hardware was the key to the success of the measurements. With LabVIEW, a graphical programming environment was chosen that impresses with its intuitive operability with maximum flexibility and configurability. It formed the central tool to joined, processed, and evaluated data with.
Even young students were able to familiarise themselves with the test environment within a very short time and to carry out the experiments at the highest standards. The hardware component was NI's CompactDAQ system consisting of a cDAQ-9174 chassis equipped with appropriate I/O modules. It allowed all the components belonging to the experimental set-up to be controlled and coordinated with each other.
For example, the noise of a fan that again cooled a cooling element had to be reduced during the sound recording. Precise signals and fast processing were needed here in order to keep an overview. You want to get to know the components in detail? The following NI products that are available from dataTec were used for the measurement task.
cDAQ-9174
The system used as a backplane performed up to five separate tasks simultaneously when communicating with the Song Box.
NI 9401
The NI 9401 module sent binary TTL signals to the LEDs and Peltier elements, thus allowing the light and temperature to be controlled.
NI 9205
This module was used to capture and process the humidity signal.
NI 9217
The NI 9217 module monitored the resistance temperature sensors and simplified the integration process of the sensors.
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