ReelSonar Finds The Fishes Using A Fancy Bobber

I've never made a secret of the fact that I lack the patience to fish. I've gone fishing more times than I can count during my life and if the fish aren't biting within a few minutes I'm ready to go. If you're fishing in a boat, you can use technology to help you find where the fish are hiding, such as the fish finder systems you have probably seen mounted near the steering wheel of many boats that are cruising the lake.

If you're fishing from the shore, you don't have access to that sort of technology. A new project on Indiegogo right now called ReelSonar is a fish finding device that works in conjunction with your iPhone to help you find the fish from the shore or from a boat. The device is a fancy smart bobber that has sonar technology inside.

When you cast your line out into the water, the smart bobber emits ultrasound waves in the water to gather data on whatever is in the surrounding water up to 150 feet deep. Special circuitry inside the bobber receives, filters, and transmits RF signals to your smartphone using Bluetooth 4.0. Power for the smart bobber comes from a rechargeable battery. The smart bobber can also map the entire waterbed using synthetic aperture to form a composite of multiple images that can be used for boat navigation in unknown areas.

The bobber also has the ability to check water temperature and salinity. One of the more interesting features of the smart bobber is a bite alarm. When a fish nibbles your line the bobber lights up and the app signals when fish are near the bobber. You can see the relative size of the fish and estimate how many are nearby. The ReelSonar will also give suggestions on the bait and lures to use based on the data and location of the fish. Once you find your favorite fishing spot you keep track of it using GPS tags and contribute your fishing hole location if you want to the ReelSonar bobber data community. If the project meets its $70,000 funding goal the ReelSonar will retail for under $100.