Abstract
Bats find their way in the dark by listening to the echoes of their own calls, and following their flight helps researchers understand how they sense the world. Today, this usually means expensive equipment and hours of analysis after the recording. This thesis presents RealBat, a low-cost, portable system that tracks flying bats in real time by listening to their ultrasonic calls with a small array of microphones. It is built only from components available on the market, so anyone can replicate it. RealBat shows the bats’ flight paths live in 3D and saves every recording for later study. It is meant for field researchers and for education.
About the speaker
Giovanni Baldini studied Acoustic Engineering at Politecnico di Milano. The master’s programme covers digital signal processing, electronics, and vibration mechanics for audio and acoustic applications. He carried out his master’s thesis in Konstanz as a member of the Active Sensing Collective Lab, under the supervision of Dr. Thejasvi Beleyur. The lab works on acoustics and bioacoustics, with a main focus on echolocating bats. This involves working with ultrasound, its properties, and the many technical challenges of recording and analysing it in the field.