Floating Buoy Technology for Research Purposes

Abstract

A buoy is a structure that is float on the sea surface used for the navigational, marine science, monitoring the meteorology and oceanography changes of the marine environment. This article presents a literature review on research and development of floating buoy technology for research purposes. The article starts with the historical background of various buoy technologies. Then, floating buoy working principles used for research are discussed. The reviewed according to the type of buoy technology for research purposes (tsunami buoy type, wave buoy type, weather buoy type, and profiling buoy type). This is followed by an overview of the buoy applications that have been undertaken by Malaysian research communities. The proposed concept design of buoy will be shown with the initial stability parameters analysis. To conclude, based on the research work undertaken thus far, what the researchers should expect as future work are suggested.

Design Proposal and Feasibility Analysis for a Near-Surface Wave-Powered Profiling Float

“…Autonomous floats play an important role throughout the ocean sciences [2][3][4]. To extend deployments beyond battery life limitations, some floats employ environmental energy harvesting such as solar [3], wind [5], and wave [6] energy. Data buoys represent a small-scale application for WECs [7].…”

Improving the efficiency of photovoltaic cells embedded in floating buoys

“…These vessels collect the necessary information from the seas and their surroundings using sensors embedded in them, and send it to the control center via a communication antenna after processing the data [2]- [4]. This data can be used for ocean monitoring, climate change research, and marine science [3]. The buoys' equipment requires a power source to function, and because they are located far from the coast and on the water surface, renewable energy is the best option for them.…”