WO2020055383A1

WO2020055383A1 - Microdispenser treatment for honeybees

Info

Publication number: WO2020055383A1
Application number: PCT/US2018/050374
Authority: WO
Inventors: Mateusz Bryning
Original assignee: Xinova, LLC
Priority date: 2018-09-11
Filing date: 2018-09-11
Publication date: 2020-03-19

Abstract

Technologies are generally described for treatment of honeybees against mites or other threats through a microdispenser-based treatment system. In some examples, microdispensers may be positioned in targeted areas in or around a bee hive, such as at an entrance. The microdispensers may be coupled to or integrated with sensors that may detect presence of individual honeybees as they pass within range of a microdispenser. A treatment system may further include a component capable of determining whether a honeybee requires treatment or not, such as an imaging device that may automatically identify mites on a bee or an intruder (e.g., a wasp). Treatment may be applied to individual honeybees as they pass within range of a microdispenser. Treatment may be chemical (e.g., anti-mite medication) or physical (e.g., directed water droplets to dislodge individual mites).

Description

MICRODISPENSER TREATMENT FOR HONEYBEES

BACKGROUND

[0001] Unless otherwise indicated herein, the materials described in this section are not prior art to the claims in this application and are not admitted to be prior art by inclusion in this section.

[0002] Honeybees are critical to agriculture as pollinators and as producers of honey, beeswax, and other products. Their contribution to global trade in both roles is estimated to exceed hundreds of billions of dollars each year. In recent years, honeybee populations across the world have been decimated by the so-called Colony Collapse Disorder. While the exact cause of the disorder remains elusive, it appears to be a syndrome caused by multiple factors including pesticide use and diseases. One of the major causes of distress to honeybee colonies is a lethal mite parasite, Varroa Destructor, which is known to have infected a vast majority of hives in the U.S. and worldwide. Varroa mites are recognized as the biggest pest to honeybees worldwide due to their ability to transmit diseases such as deformed wing virus to larval or pupating bees, resulting in death or severe deformity of the pupae.

SUMMARY

[0003] The present disclosure generally describes techniques to treat honeybees for disease inflicted by parasites such as mites through a microdispenser based system.

[0004] According to some examples, a method for treatment of honeybees through a microdispenser-based system is described. An example method may include detecting a presence of a bee through a sensor and delivering a treatment material onto the bee through a dispensing sub-system to treat a parasite infliction on the bee. The treatment material may include one or more of a fluid, a vapor, and a powder delivered through one or more microdispensers.

[0005] According to other examples, a method to prevent entry of an intruder to a honeybee hive through a microdispenser-based system is described. An example method may include detecting a presence of the intruder at an entrance to the hive through a sensor and delivering a treatment material onto the intruder through a dispensing sub-system to disable or push-back the intruder. The treatment material may include one or more of a fluid, a vapor, and a powder delivered through one or more microdispensers.

[0006] According to further examples, a micro-dispenser based treatment system is described. An example system may include a detection module, a delivery module, and a controller coupled to the detection module and the delivery module. The detection module may be configured to detect a presence of a bee through a sensor. The delivery module may include a supply sub-system and a dispensing sub-system. The delivery module may be configured to deliver a treatment material onto the bee through the dispensing sub-system to treat a parasite infliction on the bee. The treatment material may include one or more of a fluid, a vapor, and a powder delivered through one or more microdispensers. The controller may be configured to manage operations of the detection module and the delivery module.

[0007] According to yet other examples, a honey bee treatment system is described. The system may include a detection module and a delivery module. The detection module may be configured to detect a presence of a bee through a sensor and provide information associated with the detected presence of the bee to a controller. The delivery module may include a supply sub-system and a dispensing sub-system, and may be configured to receive an instruction from the controller and deliver a treatment material onto the bee based on the received instruction through the dispensing sub-system to treat a parasite infliction on the bee. The treatment material may include one or more of a fluid, a vapor, and a powder delivered through one or more microdispensers.

[0008] The foregoing summary is illustrative only and is not intended to be in any way limiting. In addition to the illustrative aspects, embodiments, and features described above, further aspects, embodiments, and features will become apparent by reference to the drawings and the following detailed description.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0009] The foregoing and other features of this disclosure will become more fully apparent from the following description and appended claims, taken in conjunction with the

accompanying drawings. Understanding that these drawings depict only several embodiments in accordance with the disclosure and are, therefore, not to be considered limiting of its scope, the disclosure will be described with additional specificity and detail through use of the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIGS. 1 A-1D illustrate example microdispenser-based treatment systems for honeybees in a hive environment;

FIGS. 2A-2C illustrate major components of example microdispenser-based treatment systems for honeybees in various configurations;

FIG. 3 illustrates a block diagram of an example system with a remote controller for treatment of honeybees;

FIG. 4 illustrates a computing device, which may be used to control a microdispenser- based treatment system for honeybees;

FIG. 5 is a flow diagram illustrating an example method to treat honeybees against mites or other threats through a microdispenser-based treatment system that may be performed by a computing device such as the computing device in FIG. 4; and

FIG. 6 illustrates a block diagram of an example computer program product,

all arranged in accordance with at least some embodiments described herein.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0010] In the following detailed description, reference is made to the accompanying drawings, which form a part hereof. In the drawings, similar symbols typically identify similar components, unless context dictates otherwise. The illustrative embodiments described in the detailed description, drawings, and claims are not meant to be limiting. Other embodiments may be utilized, and other changes may be made, without departing from the spirit or scope of the subject matter presented herein. It will be readily understood that the aspects of the present disclosure, as generally described herein, and illustrated in the Figures, can be arranged, substituted, combined, separated, and designed in a wide variety of different configurations, all of which are explicitly contemplated herein.

[0011] This disclosure is generally drawn, inter alia , to methods, apparatus, systems, devices, and/or computer program products related to treatment of honeybees for disease inflicted by parasites such as mites through a microdispenser based system.

[0012] Briefly stated, technologies are generally described for treatment of honeybees against mites or other threats through a microdispenser-based treatment system. In some examples, microdispensers may be positioned in targeted areas in or around a bee hive, such as at an entrance. The microdispensers may be coupled to or integrated with sensors that may detect presence of individual honeybees as they pass within range of a microdispenser. A treatment system may further include a component capable of determining whether a honeybee requires treatment or not, such as an imaging device that may automatically identify mites on a bee or an intruder (e.g., a wasp). Treatment may be applied to individual honeybees as they pass within range of a microdispenser. Treatment may be chemical (e.g., anti-mite medication) or physical (e.g., directed water droplets to dislodge individual mites).

[0013] Honeybees, because of their dual role as pollinators and as producers of honey, beeswax, and other products, are an important part of agricultural economy. Embodiments provide various systems and devices to protect honeybee populations from mites, intruders, and protect hive health by preventing sick individuals from entering a hive. Microdispenser based systems may provide an advantageous delivery mechanism for the treatment of honeybees due to precise dosing and targeting, fast response speeds, suitable physical dimensions, ability to provide treatment without obstructing bee traffic, and the ability to minimize unnecessary treatment.

[0014] In addition to the example embodiments discussed herein to treat honey bees against disease, a system or device according to embodiments may also be used to apply an efficacy enhancement fluid on the bees, for example. A bee attractant that allows bees to give off behavioral pheromones to forage and attract surrounding bees to perform the same task may increase pollination efficacy. Furthermore, epigenetic changes are known to enable genomes to respond to changes in the environment, such as altered nutrition, activity, or social behavior, thereby, providing a source of phenotypic plasticity in many species including honey bees. Thus, bee epigenetic mechanisms including cytosine methylation, hydroxymethylated cytosines, etc. together with the enzymatic machinery responsible for these cytosine modifications may be modified or directed to desired efficacy enhancements by application of suitable enzymes, proteins, or similar agents. Individual bees may also be tagged in other examples, to monitor progress of individual bees or an entire colony.

[0015] Example methods, systems, and devices may also be implemented in environments involving insects other than honey bees. For example, bumble bees and monarch butterflies are also important pollinators. While these species do not form colonies in hives like the honey bees, configurations of portable or stationary treatment systems may be used to treat bumble bees or monarch butterflies in the wild. While much larger in size, humming birds (pollinators) may also be treated similarly. Example methods, systems, and devices may further be implemented for insect control using the principles discussed herein. For example, treatment devices may be placed on ant / termite trails or near ant / termite colonies to reduce ant infestation. Agricultural pests such as beetles, caterpillars, aphids, etc. on crops may be treated. For example, an autonomous mobile robot equipped with a camera and microdispenser(s) may sweep a field of crops or an orchard, and target individual pests. The robot may examine individual

plants/leaves/stems and spray on any pests that it observes. Lice and flea treatments for humans or animals may be applied through a microdispenser based system as discussed herein.

Moreover, mosquito control may also be achieved. For example, a CO2 or heat based attractant may be used to attract mosquitos to an opening set up with microdispenser(s), and the passing mosquitos may be sprayed with insecticide.

[0016] FIGS. 1 A-1D illustrate example microdispenser-based treatment systems for honeybees in a hive environment, arranged in accordance with at least some embodiments described herein.

[0017] In some examples, presence of a bee, for example at an entrance of a hive, may be detected through a sensor, and treatment material may be delivered onto the bee through a dispensing sub-system to treat a parasite infliction on the bee. The presence of the bee may be detected as the bee passes within a predefined distance of the one or more microdispensers of the dispensing sub-system. The bee may be detected as the bee enters or exits a hive or within the hive. The presence of the bee may be detected through one or more of temperature sensing, chemical sensing, biological sensing, audio sensing, motion sensing, optical sensing, and electromagnetic sensing. Furthermore, the bee may be detected through an imaging detector, which may further detect a parasite on the bee.

[0018] The treatment material may be in form of a fluid, a vapor, or a powder delivered through one or more microdispensers and may include one or more of a miticide, a fungicide, or an antibiotic. The treatment material may include an organic or an inorganic chemical. An entire body of the bee may be targeted through the one or more microdispensers. Alternatively, a detected parasite on the bee may be attempted to be dislodged by delivering water or vapor through one or more microdispensers. A deflection of charged droplets may be employed with an electric field or a mechanical steering of a dispenser nozzle to target a specific location to deliver the treatment material. Furthermore, a velocity of droplets of the treatment material may be selected based on a type of treatment. The treatment material may be provided from a single reservoir to a plurality of microdispensers or from a single reservoir coupled to a single microdispenser.

[0019] In other examples, a presence of an intruder such as a wasp, a killer bee, a hive beetle, or a sick honeybee may be detected at an entrance to the hive through a sensor. Treatment material may be delivered onto the intruder through a dispensing sub-system to disable or push- back the intruder. The presence of the intruder may be detected as the intruder enters or exits a hive or within the hive. The presence of the intruder may be detected through one or more of temperature sensing, chemical sensing, biological sensing, audio sensing, motion sensing, optical sensing, and electromagnetic sensing. The treatment material may be an organic or inorganic insecticide. Delivery of the treatment material may target an entire body of the intruder through the one or more microdispensers. Alternatively, a deflection of charged droplets may be employed with an electric field or a mechanical steering of a dispenser nozzle to target a specific location to deliver the treatment material.

[0020] Diagram 100 A of FIG. 1A shows an example system implemented at a hive entrance 102. The system may include a delivery module 106 with an integrated reservoir 110, a sensor 116 to detect the presence of the bee with mites 114 on its body, a controller 120, and power source 118. The treatment material may be provided (108) from the reservoir 110 to a nozzle 112 of the delivery module 106 for delivery to the bee 104. In the example configuration of diagram 100A, the delivery module 106 includes a single microdispenser.

[0021] Diagram 100B of FIG. 1B shows another example system with similar components and placement as the configuration of diagram 100 A. Differently, from the configuration of diagram 100A, in the system in diagram 100B, the reservoir 110 is external to delivery module 106. In such a configuration, reservoir 110 may be a consumable, that is, it may be replaced when treatment material runs out. In some examples, the nozzle 112 of the delivery module 106 may also be replaceable or configurable to allow for different spray patterns, spray speed or distance.

[0022] Diagram 100C of FIG. 1C shows a further example configuration. In the example configuration of diagram 100C, the system placed at the entrance of the hive 102 includes a delivery module 146 with multiple microdispensers that include integrated reservoirs. The multiple microdispensers may be used to form a particular spray pattern, target specific locations, or to deliver different treatment materials simultaneously or separately. Also, in the example configuration multiple bees 144 are shown to indicate that treatment may be applied to one insect at a time or to multiple insects at one time. Furthermore, the configuration of diagram 100C shows a detection module 156 with multiple sensors. The sensors may be of the same type or of different types.

[0023] Diagram 100D of FIG. 1D shows yet another example system with similar components and placement as the configuration of diagram 100C. Differently, from the configuration of diagram 100C, in the system in diagram 100D, a single, external reservoir 148 is used to supply the microdispensers of the delivery module 146 with treatment material. The reservoir 148 may be a consumable, that is, it may be replaced when treatment material runs out.

[0024] The configurations of FIG. 1 A through 1D are examples for illustration purposes. A system according to embodiments may be implemented in any other configuration with fewer or additional components and combinations using the principles described herein.

[0025] FIGS. 2A-2C illustrate major components of example microdispenser-based treatment systems for honeybees in various configurations, arranged in accordance with at least some embodiments described herein.

[0026] A micro-dispenser based treatment system according to embodiments may include a detection module, a delivery module, and a controller coupled to the detection module and the delivery module. The detection module may be configured to detect a presence of a bee through a sensor. The delivery module may include a supply sub-system and a dispensing sub-system.

The delivery module may be configured to deliver a treatment material onto the bee through the dispensing sub-system to treat a parasite infliction on the bee. The controller may be configured to manage operations of the detection module and the delivery module.

[0027] The delivery module may include one or more microdispensers. The microdispenser may be an inkjet dispenser or an array of dispensers that delivers precise volumes of fluid to a targeted area, for example. The microdispenser may be triggered by the control electronics as needed. When triggered, the microdispenser may deliver a dose of a treatment fluid from a reservoir directly onto the bee or an intruder. A mechanism according to embodiments may target the bee as a whole, or a precise location on the bee. When the whole bee is targeted, the microdispenser may include a single nozzle. Multiple nozzles may also be used to achieve uniform“blanket” coverage, or to attain larger dispensing volumes. When the targeting mechanism focuses on a specific part on the bee, such as an individual mite, an array of nozzles may be employed to achieve targeting precision. In addition, precise targeting may be achieved through droplet steering mechanisms including, but not limited to, deflection of charged droplets with electric fields and physical movement of the nozzle. Droplet steering mechanisms in consumer-grade inkjets may achieve spatial resolutions of thousands of dots per square inch (DPI), which may be more than sufficient to target individual mites.

[0028] The delivery module may target an entire body of the bee through the one or more microdispensers or attempt to dislodge a detected parasite on the bee through delivery of water or vapor by a plurality of microdispensers. The delivery module may also employ a deflection of charged droplets with an electric field or a mechanical steering of a dispenser nozzle to target a specific location to deliver the treatment material. The controller may select a velocity of droplets of the treatment material based on a type of treatment.

[0029] Diagram 200A of FIG. 2A shows an example system implemented at a hive 202. A portion of the system implemented at a hive entrance / exit or within the hive may include one or more dispensers 206, reservoirs 204, and sensors 216. A power source 218 outside the hive may provide power for operation of various components. A controller 220 may be configured to manage operations of the various configurations. Controller 220 may be communicatively coupled to a remote controller 208. The remote controller 208 may receive data such as number and timing of treatments, treatment material levels, and other collected data. The remote controller 208 may also provide instructions to controller 220 associated with the operations such as adjustments to treatment times and amounts, selection of treatment materials, etc.

[0030] Diagram 200B of FIG. 2B shows a multi-hive configuration, where in-hive components 210 and 238 (e.g., dispensers, sensors, reservoirs) are placed in individual hives 202 and 232, respectively. Each hive is also associated with its own power source (218, 234) and controller (220, 236), which may be placed outside the hives. Remote controller 208 may be communicatively coupled to the controllers 220, 236 and receive data from and send instructions to the individual controllers managing the systems in respective hives. The communicative coupling may include wired or wireless communications. [0031] Diagram 200C of FIG. 2C shows a further configuration, where hives 202, 232, and 242 are equipped with in-hive components (e.g., dispensers, sensors, reservoirs) 210, 238, and 258, respectively. A single controller 250 may manage the operations of the in-hive components 210, 238, 258. Similarly, a single power source 252 may provide power to the individual components.

[0032] The system may further include a power module, which may include a solar power source, a wind-based power source, a thermal power source, a battery, a direct current power source, and/or an alternative current power source.

[0033] In some examples, the system may include a self-contained, long-lasting power supply. Example power supplies may include fuel cells or battery storage, especially when combined with an energy harvester to maintain charge. Possible energy harvesters may include solar cells and thermoelectric generators. Solar cells are used, for example, to supply power to bee hives for improved ventilation during hot days. A thermoelectric generator may be a solid state device that exploits a temperature gradient to generate electricity. Bees maintain a near constant hive temperature of 32-35 °C, creating a temperature gradient to the ambient air outside. A thermoelectric generator may potentially use this gradient to generate power to drive the device.

[0034] In a basic implementation, a system according to embodiments may contain simple logic-level dispensing with relatively small power requirements determined mainly by the microdispenser, which may be occasionally actuated and may be on standby a majority of the time. For example, for a constant average power consumption of -lOrnW, 4 alkaline D batteries may be sufficient to power the system for about a year. For systems with additional complexity such as those incorporating computer imaging, the power requirements may be considerably higher.

[0035] FIG. 3 illustrates a block diagram of an example system with a remote controller for treatment of honeybees, arranged in accordance with at least some embodiments described herein.

[0036] The example system 322 in diagram 300 includes a dispensing unit 324 comprising microdispensers 326, one or more sensors 332, and a reservoir 334 to store and supply treatment material to the microdispensers 326. A system controller 320 may manage the operations of the components of the system 322. The system controller 320 may be communicatively coupled to remote controller 340 via network(s) 310 to provide collected data, component status, and receive instructions associated with the operations of the components. Collected data may be stored in data store(s) 360.

[0037] The microdispensers 326 may dispense droplets/jets at low, intermediate, or high velocities. Low velocity dispensing may be useful for applications where treatment does not depend on physical force, such as chemical or biological treatments. Intermediate and high velocity droplets/jets may be employed for treatments that depend on physical force as part of the treatment, such as physically dislodging a mite from a bee or preventing an intruder from entering a hive. Physical and chemical means of treatment may be used independently of each other, or in conjunction with each other. Low-velocity droplets minimize physical impact on the bees while administering treatment and simplify targeting, while high force treatments may be desirable to reduce or eliminate potentially harmful chemicals from the treatment.

[0038] One or more sensors 332 may form a detection module configured to detect the presence of the bee as the bee passes within a predefined distance of the one or more

microdispensers, as the bee enters or exits a hive, or when the bee is within a hive. The detection module may include a temperature sensor, a chemical sensor, a biological sensor, an audio sensor, a motion sensor, an optical sensor, and/or an electromagnetic sensor. Furthermore, moisture, vibration, humidity, and similar sensors may also be used.

[0039] Optical sensors may include a complimentary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) sensor, a charge-coupled device (CCD) sensor a photodiode, an active-pixel sensor (APS), a cadmium zinc telluride radiation detector, a mercury cadmium telluride detector, a reverse- biased light emitting diode (LED), a photoresistor, a phototransistor, a quantum dot

photoconductor, fluorescence detectors, lidars, or the like. An optical time-of-flight sensor may be used to sense distance to a reflective surface, which may be disrupted by a passing bee.

Chemical sensors may perform recognition and transduction. In the recognition step, analyte molecules (chemical entity whose presence is being detected) may interact selectively with receptor molecules or sites included in the structure of the recognition element of the sensor. Consequently, a characteristic physical parameter may vary and the variation may be reported by means of an integrated transducer that generates an output signal. In some examples, a carbon dioxide sensor may be used to detect insect/animal proximity. Moreover, a pesticide sensor may be used to detect and prevent pesticide-contaminated bees (or intruders) from entering and contaminating the whole hive. Ion mobility spectrometers may be used in practical implementation due to their compact size and processing speed, which may allow monitoring in real-time. Biological sensors may be similar in form or function to chemical sensors, but detect material of biological nature. Some biological sensors may use synthetic biomimetic materials which may be molecularly imprinted polymers or aptamers. Biosensors may provide the advantage that they can be custom-designed to be specific to a particular biological signature, for example, specific pathogens may be identified by looking at their biological signatures.

Reagentless biosensors can monitor a target analyte in a complex biological mixture without an additional reagent. Therefore, they can function continuously if immobilized on a solid support. A fluorescent biosensor may react to the interaction with its target analyte by a change of its fluorescence properties.

[0040] Acoustic or audio sensors may include microphones, microphone arrays to identify a location / movement of an insect, ultrasonic sensors, and sonars. Motion sensors may be optical (e.g., visual light cameras, passive infrared detectors), microwave, or acoustic sensors and include according components. For example, an optical (or acoustic) sensor may simply include a detector that senses a change of light or sound in the environment and a transducer that converts the detected change into an electrical signal. Such a sensor may also include a transmitter and a detector, where the detector detects the light (or sound) transmitted by the transmitter as the normal signal and senses change in the normal signal. Temperature sensors may include non-contact IR thermometer, forward looking infrared (FLIR) camera, or contact thermometers such as thermocouples or thremoresistors. Furthermore, tomographic motion detectors may sense disturbances to radio waves as they pass through nodes of a mesh network.

[0041] Sensors generally provide information about detected entity qualitatively or quantitatively in the form of a measurable physical signal that may be correlated with detection of the entity (e.g., motion, chemical material presence, etc.) or a quantity associated with the entity (e.g., strength of electric field, concentration of a certain chemical species, etc.). The detection module may be implemented in a wide spectrum of complexity. In simpler

configurations, a basic sensor position at an entrance of a hive may detect“something” entering the hive and the system may assume it is a bee. In more complex configurations, the bee may be detected specifically (and distinguished from other insects) based on wing beat frequency, dimension(s), optical recognition, etc. For example, the detection module may include one or more imaging sensors to detect the presence of the bee through image processing. In even more complex configurations such as advanced image recognition systems, the imaging sensors may be configured to detect a parasite on the bee or a type of an intruder. Based on a number and/or location of the parasite(s) on the bee’s body, type of treatment material, spray pattern, strength of spray, etc. may be adjusted. If the system is configured to detect and prevent intruders from entering the hive, the intruder type may be determined based on size, wing beat pattern or frequency, or other attributes. The treatment material and delivery characteristics may then be adjusted or selected based on the detected intruder type. For example, pressurized water may be used to knock larger intruders such as wasps out of the hive, while insecticides may be used to eliminate smaller intruders or undesirable insects (e.g., sick honey bees).

[0042] In an example embodiment, the detection module may include an optical or mechanical switch. The presence of a bee may trigger the switch, thereby automatically triggering the microdispenser(s). The control electronics in this example embodiment may include an inkjet driver module that is actuated by the switch. While such an embodiment may provide simplicity, low-power operation, and low cost of implementation, it may result in every bee that passes within range of the device receiving treatment, which may translate to

unnecessary treatments.

[0043] In another example embodiment, the detection module may incorporate imaging capability. Such an embodiment may take advantage of the advances in computing power and reduction in component cost. For example, a camera may take an image of the bee. The image may be processed by a standalone processor or a computer to recognize features on the image. Depending on observed features, a determination may be made to trigger the microdispenser(s) or not. The processor may also devise a targeting solution to precisely apply the treatment onto a target area on the bee. Features that may be observed by the imaging device include individual mites or other parasites or diseases. The imaging device may further be used to identify intruding insects, or even possibly individual bees.

[0044] In some examples, symptoms of parasite infection may be detected as opposed to (or in addition to) actual parasites on the bees. Some symptoms may include change in color or other appearance aspect, irregular color (e.g., patches), size, flight path stability, bee speed, wing speed, speed of hindquarter waggles, change in electrical properties, changes in antenna movements, etc. In other examples, machine learning (“AT’) methods may be used in conjunction with a video capture device to relate bee behaviors and/or movement patterns to problematic conditions. Approaches such as gait recognition, used in human systems, may be adapted to bee environments. A library of bee behaviors may be created and associated with problem symptoms. For example, the sub-lethal effects of neonicotinoid pesticides include impaired learning behavior, short- and long-term memory loss, reduced fecundity (fertility and reproduction), and altered motor activity of the bees. Thus, monitoring bee movements for tell tale abnormal motor activity may be used to recognize pesticide contamination of returning foraging bees and prevent the contaminated bees from re-entering and contaminating the hive.

[0045] In further embodiments, the detection module may also obtain other information about the bee. For example, the detection module may include a thermal imager, a chemical sensor, a biological sensor, or a microphone. The detection module may detect a distressed bee, for example, based on a chemical, thermal, or acoustic signature released by the bee. The detection module may also identify different bee types, ages, and health characteristics based on the sound signature of their beating wings, for example. Different detection schemes may be used individually, or in conjunction with each other. Thus, the system may be used as an instrument to observe the bee colony in unprecedented detail. This ability may enable early identification of developing hive problems, and may provide further benefits based on collected data. For example, a detailed picture of how colony collapse disorder progresses may be obtained.

[0046] The reservoir 334 may be part of a supply sub-system configured to provide the treatment material to a dedicated microdispenser of the dispensing unit 324 or provide the treatment material to a plurality of microdispensers of the dispensing unit 324. For example, a number of reservoir/microdispenser pairs may be used to deliver treatment material from different angles, at different locations, or different treatment materials. On the other hand, a single reservoir may be used to supply multiple microdispensers at different locations or positions. Furthermore, multiple reservoirs containing a supply of the same or different treatment material may be connected to a single microdispenser too. The reservoir may be connected to the microdispenser(s) and contain the treatment material. The reservoir may be consumable, to be replaced periodically or on demand, similarly to inkjet ink. The treatment material may be in form of a fluid, a vapor, or a powder delivered through one or more microdispensers and include a miticide, a fungicide, or an antibiotic. The treatment material may be an organic or an inorganic chemical.

[0047] In the case of purely physical treatment, the treatment material may include water (in form of fluid or vapor), saline solution, or antiseptics such as ethanol, chlorine bleach, peroxide, iodine solutions, etc. Pesticidal treatment materials may include, but are not limited to, pyrethroid insecticide, organophosphate insecticide, thymol crystal and surgical spirit, formic acid, essential oils, lemon essence, mint oil, thyme oil, powdered sugar or sugar esters, oxalic acid, mineral oils, or natural hops compounds.

[0048] The system may also include a structure configured to house at least the supply module and the delivery module. The structure may mountable outside an entrance of the hive, inside an entrance of the hive, or a location within the hive. At least a portion of the structure may be movable. In some embodiments, parts of or the entire system may be mounted permanently to a hive. The microdispenser(s) and detection module may be mounted anywhere in or around the hive that may optimize treatment efficiency. In other embodiments, the system may be portable and either left at a hive for an amount of time needed to effect treatment or used for immediate treatment and not left at the hive. In further embodiments, the system may be implemented away from the hive, after bringing certain hive components to the device. Power sources and any other components except for the microdispenser(s), reservoir(s), and detection module may be integrated into a single enclosure that also contains the microdispenser(s), reservoir(s), and detection module, or mounted remotely (e.g., outside the hive) as suitable.

[0049] The bee treatment approaches described herein may be implemented in conjunction with an artificial tube, chamber, or similar structure. Such structures connecting the hive to an outdoor entrance or exit may be used to support and facilitate bee detection and treatment. For example, a narrow tube or parallel narrow tubes may be used to allow single file bee

entrance/exit. The bees may also be counted to determine hive population, detect population loss (as a possible diagnostic), and determine when the bees have all returned, etc. Moreover, treatment may be adjusted or provided at different levels based on information about the colony. For example, single bee treatment may be selected for low levels of infection, but if the colony infection is high (based on counting of the bees, for example), the entire hive may be treated or a type of treatment material may be changed. Furthermore, a treatment system may also be implemented outside (independent) of a hive. A bee attractant (food, sound, light, other chemicals) may be provided near a standalone treatment system to attract the bees and treatment applied to the attracted insects.

[0050] In some examples, multiple microdispensers may be mounted at the same location to facilitate good area coverage for targeting. For example, microdispensers may be mounted both above and below a hive entrance opening to enable treatment from both above and from below. In other examples, the microdispenser(s) may be stationary. In further examples, the microdispenser(s) and sensor(s) may be positioned on a moveable gantry. For example, in applications where an entire honeycomb may require treatment, an x-y gantry mounted detection and dispensing module may scan a honeycomb and apply treatment to precise areas where problems are detected. For such applications, treatment may be conducted inside of the hive or externally, after removing the honeycomb from the hive.

[0051] The examples provided in FIGs. 1 A through 3 are illustrated with specific systems, devices, applications, and scenarios. Embodiments are not limited to environments according to these examples. Treatment of honeybees may be implemented in environments employing fewer or additional systems, devices, applications, and scenarios. Furthermore, the example systems, devices, applications, and scenarios shown in FIGs. 1 A through 3 may be implemented in a similar manner with other configurations using the principles described herein.

[0052] FIG. 4 illustrates a computing device, which may be used to control a

microdispenser-based treatment system for honeybees, arranged in accordance with at least some embodiments described herein.

[0053] In an example basic configuration 402, the computing device 400 may include one or more processors 404 and a system memory 406. A memory bus 408 may be used to communicate between the processor 404 and the system memory 406. The basic configuration 402 is illustrated in FIG. 4 by those components within the inner dashed line.

[0054] Depending on the desired configuration, the processor 404 may be of any type, including but not limited to a microprocessor (mR), a microcontroller (pC), a digital signal processor (DSP), or any combination thereof. The processor 404 may include one or more levels of caching, such as a cache memory 412, a processor core 414, and registers 416. The example processor core 414 may include an arithmetic logic unit (ALU), a floating point unit (FPU), a digital signal processing core (DSP Core), or any combination thereof. An example memory controller 418 may also be used with the processor 404, or in some implementations, the memory controller 418 may be an internal part of the processor 404.

[0055] Depending on the desired configuration, the system memory 406 may be of any type including but not limited to volatile memory (such as RAM), non-volatile memory (such as ROM, flash memory, etc.) or any combination thereof. The system memory 406 may include an operating system 420, a controller 422, and program data 424. The controller 422 may include a sensing unit 425 and a dispensing unit 426. The controller 422 may be configured to manage operations of a detection module and a delivery module of a treatment system for honeybees. For example, presence of a bee or an intruder in or near a hive may be detected by the sensing unit 425 through one or more sensors of the detection module and treatment material in form of vapor, fluid, or powder may be delivered to the detected bee or intruder through one or more

microdispensers of the delivery module under the control of the dispensing unit 426. The program data 424 may include, among other data, sense data 428 or the like, as described herein.

[0056] The computing device 400 may have additional features or functionality, and additional interfaces to facilitate communications between the basic configuration 402 and any desired devices and interfaces. For example, a bus/interface controller 430 may be used to facilitate communications between the basic configuration 402 and one or more data storage devices 432 via a storage interface bus 434. The data storage devices 432 may be one or more removable storage devices 436, one or more non-removable storage devices 438, or a

combination thereof. Examples of the removable storage and the non-removable storage devices include magnetic disk devices such as flexible disk drives and hard-disk drives (HDDs), optical disk drives such as compact disc (CD) drives or digital versatile disk (DVD) drives, solid state drives (SSDs), and tape drives to name a few. Example computer storage media may include volatile and nonvolatile, removable and non-removable media implemented in any method or technology for storage of information, such as computer readable instructions, data structures, program modules, or other data.

[0057] The system memory 406, the removable storage devices 436 and the non-removable storage devices 438 are examples of computer storage media. Computer storage media includes, but is not limited to, RAM, ROM, EEPROM, flash memory or other memory technology, CD- ROM, digital versatile disks (DVDs), solid state drives (SSDs), or other optical storage, magnetic cassettes, magnetic tape, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devices, or any other medium which may be used to store the desired information and which may be accessed by the computing device 400. Any such computer storage media may be part of the computing device 400.

[0058] The computing device 400 may also include an interface bus 440 for facilitating communication from various interface devices (e.g., one or more output devices 442, one or more peripheral interfaces 450, and one or more communication devices 460) to the basic configuration 402 via the bus/interface controller 430. Some of the example output devices 442 include a graphics processing unit 444 and an audio processing unit 446, which may be configured to communicate to various external devices such as a display or speakers via one or more A/V ports 448. One or more example peripheral interfaces 450 may include a serial interface controller 454 or a parallel interface controller 456, which may be configured to communicate with external devices such as input devices (e.g., keyboard, mouse, pen, voice input device, touch input device, etc.) or other peripheral devices (e.g., printer, scanner, etc.) via one or more I/O ports 458. An example communication device 460 includes a network controller 462, which may be arranged to facilitate communications with one or more other computing devices 466 over a network communication link via one or more communication ports 464. The one or more other computing devices 466 may include servers at a datacenter, customer equipment, and comparable devices.

[0059] The network communication link may be one example of a communication media. Communication media may be embodied by computer readable instructions, data structures, program modules, or other data in a modulated data signal, such as a carrier wave or other transport mechanism, and may include any information delivery media. A“modulated data signal” may be a signal that has one or more of its characteristics set or changed in such a manner as to encode information in the signal. By way of example, and not limitation, communication media may include wired media such as a wired network or direct-wired connection, and wireless media such as acoustic, radio frequency (RF), microwave, infrared (IR) and other wireless media. The term computer readable media as used herein may include both storage media and communication media.

[0060] The computing device 400 may be implemented as a part of a general purpose or specialized server, mainframe, or similar computer that includes any of the above functions. The computing device 400 may also be implemented as a personal computer including both laptop computer and non-laptop computer configurations. [0061] FIG. 5 is a flow diagram illustrating an example method to treat honeybees against mites or other threats through a microdispenser-based treatment system that may be performed by a computing device such as the computing device in FIG. 4, arranged in accordance with at least some embodiments described herein.

[0062] Example methods may include one or more operations, functions or actions as illustrated by one or more of blocks 522, 524, and/or 526, and may in some embodiments be performed or controlled by a computing device such as the computing device 510 in FIG. 5. The operations described in the blocks 522-526 may also be stored as computer-executable instructions in a computer-readable medium such as a computer-readable medium 520 of a computing device 510.

[0063] An example process to treat honeybees against mites or other threats through a microdispenser-based treatment system may begin with block 522,“DETECT PRESENCE OF BEE AT HIVE ENTRANCE OR WITHIN HIVE THROUGH ONE OR MORE SENSORS”, where a temperature sensor, a chemical sensor, a biological sensor, an audio sensor, a motion sensor, an optical sensor, and/or an electromagnetic sensor may detect the bee (or an intruder). A detection module may also include one or more imaging sensors to detect the presence of the bee through image processing. The imaging sensors may be configured to detect a parasite on the bee or a type of an intruder.

[0064] Block 522 may be followed by optional block 524,“DETERMINE DELIVERY METHOD, PATTERN, MATERIAL”, where delivery details of the treatment material may be determined. A speed of spray, a form of delivery (e.g., fluid, vapor, powder), a pattern of delivery, and even a type of treatment material (if multiple materials are available) may be selected based on the detection, severity of infliction, hive conditions, etc.

[0065] Optional block 524 may be followed by block 526,“DELIVER TREATMENT MATERIAL ONTO THE BEE THROUGH ONE OR MORE MICRODISPENSERS”, where a treatment material may be delivered onto the bee (or the intruder) based on the determined (or preset) methods. The treatment material may be in form of a fluid, a vapor, or a powder delivered through one or more microdispensers and include a miticide, a fungicide, or an antibiotic. The treatment material may be an organic or an inorganic chemical and range from water to complex chemicals. [0066] The operations included in process 500 are for illustration purposes. Treatment of honeybees through a microdispenser based system may be implemented by similar processes with fewer or additional steps, as well as in different order of operations using the principles described herein. The operations described herein may be executed by one or more processors operated on one or more computing devices, one or more processor cores, specialized processing devices, and/or general purpose processors, among other examples.

[0067] FIG. 6 illustrates a block diagram of an example computer program product, arranged in accordance with at least some embodiments described herein.

[0068] In some examples, as shown in FIG. 6, a computer program product 600 may include a signal bearing medium 602 that may also include one or more machine readable instructions 604 that, when executed by, for example, a processor may provide the functionality described herein. Thus, for example, referring to the processor 404 in FIG. 4, the controller 422 may undertake one or more of the tasks shown in FIG. 6 in response to the instructions 604 conveyed to the processor 404 by the signal bearing medium 602 to perform actions associated with detecting presence of bee at hive entrance or within hive through one or more sensors, determining delivery method, pattern, material, delivering treatment material onto the bee through one or more microdispensers according to some embodiments described herein.

[0069] In some implementations, the signal bearing medium 602 depicted in FIG. 6 may encompass computer-readable medium 606, such as, but not limited to, a hard disk drive (HDD), a solid state drive (SSD), a compact disc (CD), a digital versatile disk (DVD), a digital tape, memory, etc. In some implementations, the signal bearing medium 602 may encompass recordable medium 608, such as, but not limited to, memory, read/write (R/W) CDs, R/W DVDs, etc. In some implementations, the signal bearing medium 602 may encompass communications medium 610, such as, but not limited to, a digital and/or an analog communication medium (e.g., a fiber optic cable, a waveguide, a wired communication link, a wireless communication link, etc.). Thus, for example, the computer program product 600 may be conveyed to one or more modules of the processor 604 by an RF signal bearing medium, where the signal bearing medium 602 is conveyed by the communications medium 610 (e.g., a wireless communications medium conforming with the IEEE 802.11 standard).

[0070] According to some examples, a method for treatment of honeybees through a microdispenser-based system is described. An example method may include detecting a presence of a bee through a sensor and delivering a treatment material onto the bee through a dispensing sub-system to treat a parasite infliction on the bee. The treatment material may include one or more of a fluid, a vapor, and a powder delivered through one or more microdispensers.

[0071] According other examples, detecting the presence of the bee may include detecting the presence of the bee as the bee passes within a predefined distance of the one or more microdispensers, detecting the presence of the bee as the bee enters or exits a hive, or detecting the presence of the bee within a hive. Detecting the presence of the bee may also include detecting the presence of the bee through one or more of temperature sensing, chemical sensing, biological sensing, audio sensing, motion sensing, optical sensing, and electromagnetic sensing. Detecting the presence of the bee may further include detecting the presence of the bee through an imaging detector. The method may also include detecting a parasite on the bee.

[0072] According to further examples, delivering the treatment material onto the bee may include delivering one or more of a miticide, a fungicide, or an antibiotic onto the bee. The treatment material may include an organic or an inorganic chemical. Delivering the treatment material onto the bee may include targeting an entire body of the bee through the one or more microdispensers or attempting to dislodge a detected parasite on the bee by delivering water or vapor through a plurality of microdispensers. Delivering the treatment material onto the bee may further include employing a deflection of charged droplets with an electric field or a mechanical steering of a dispenser nozzle to target a specific location to deliver the treatment material.

Delivering the treatment material onto the bee may also include selecting a velocity of droplets of the treatment material based on a type of treatment. The method may further include providing the treatment material from a single reservoir to a plurality of microdispensers. The method may also include providing the treatment material from a reservoir coupled to a single microdispenser.

[0073] According to other examples, a method to prevent entry of an intruder to a honeybee hive through a microdispenser-based system is described. An example method may include detecting a presence of the intruder at an entrance to the hive through a sensor and delivering a treatment material onto the intruder through a dispensing sub-system to disable or push-back the intruder. The treatment material may include one or more of a fluid, a vapor, and a powder delivered through one or more microdispensers.

[0074] According to some examples, detecting the presence of the intruder may include detecting the presence of the intruder as the intruder passes within a predefined distance of the one or more microdispensers, detecting the presence of the intruder as the intruder enters or exits a hive, or detecting the presence of the intruder within a hive. Detecting the presence of the intruder may also include detecting the presence of the intruder through one or more of temperature sensing, chemical sensing, biological sensing, audio sensing, motion sensing, optical sensing, and electromagnetic sensing. Detecting the presence of the intruder may further include detecting the presence of one of a wasp, a killer bee, a beetle, and a sick honey bee.

[0075] According to other examples, delivering the treatment material onto the intruder may include delivering an insecticide onto the intruder. The treatment material may include an organic or an inorganic chemical. Delivering the treatment material onto the intruder may include targeting an entire body of the intruder through the one or more microdispensers or employing a deflection of charged droplets with an electric field or a mechanical steering of a dispenser nozzle to target a specific location to deliver the treatment material. Delivering the treatment material onto the intruder may also include selecting a velocity of droplets of the treatment material based on a type of treatment.

[0076] According to further examples, a micro-dispenser based treatment system is described. An example system may include a detection module, a delivery module, and a controller coupled to the detection module and the delivery module. The detection module may be configured to detect a presence of a bee through a sensor. The delivery module may include a supply sub-system and a dispensing sub-system. The delivery module may be configured to deliver a treatment material onto the bee through the dispensing sub-system to treat a parasite infliction on the bee. The treatment material may include one or more of a fluid, a vapor, and a powder delivered through one or more microdispensers. The controller may be configured to manage operations of the detection module and the delivery module.

[0077] According to some examples, the detection module may include one or more sensors configured to detect the presence of the bee as the bee passes within a predefined distance of the one or more microdispensers. The detection module may also include one or more sensors configured to detect the presence of the bee as the bee enters or exits a hive. The detection module may further include one or more sensors configured to detect the presence of the bee within a hive. The detection module may include one or more of a temperature sensor, a chemical sensor, a biological sensor, an audio sensor, a motion sensor, an optical sensor, and an electromagnetic sensor. The detection module may also include one or more imaging sensors configured to detect the presence of the bee through image processing. The one or more imaging sensors may be configured to detect a parasite on the bee.

[0078] According to further examples, the supply sub-system may include a single reservoir configured to provide the treatment material to a dedicated microdispenser of the dispensing sub-system. The supply sub-system may also include a single reservoir configured to provide the treatment material to a plurality of microdispensers of the dispensing sub-system.

The delivery module may be configured to deliver one or more of a miticide, a fungicide, or an antibiotic onto the bee. The treatment material may include an organic or an inorganic chemical. The delivery module may be configured to target an entire body of the bee through the one or more microdispensers or attempt to dislodge a detected parasite on the bee through delivery of water or vapor by a plurality of microdispensers. The delivery module may also be configured to employ a deflection of charged droplets with an electric field or a mechanical steering of a dispenser nozzle to target a specific location to deliver the treatment material. The controller may be configured to select a velocity of droplets of the treatment material based on a type of treatment. The system may further include a power module comprising one or more of a solar power source, a wind-based power source, a thermal power source, a battery, a direct current power source, and an alternative current power source. The system may also include a structure configured to house at least the supply module and the delivery module, wherein the structure is mountable at one of outside an entrance of the hive, inside an entrance of the hive, and a location within the hive. At least a portion of the structure may be movable.

[0079] According to yet other examples, a honey bee treatment system is described. The system may include a detection module and a delivery module. The detection module may be configured to detect a presence of a bee through a sensor and provide information associated with the detected presence of the bee to a controller. The delivery module may include a supply sub-system and a dispensing sub-system, and may be configured to receive an instruction from the controller and deliver a treatment material onto the bee based on the received instruction through the dispensing sub-system to treat a parasite infliction on the bee. The treatment material may include one or more of a fluid, a vapor, and a powder delivered through one or more microdispensers.

[0080] There is little distinction left between hardware and software implementations of aspects of systems; the use of hardware or software is generally (but not always, in that in certain contexts the choice between hardware and software may become significant) a design choice representing cost vs. efficiency tradeoffs. There are various vehicles by which processes and/or systems and/or other technologies described herein may be affected (e.g., hardware, software, and/or firmware), and that the preferred vehicle will vary with the context in which the processes and/or systems and/or other technologies are deployed. For example, if an implementer determines that speed and accuracy are paramount, the implementer may opt for mainly hardware and/or firmware vehicle; if flexibility is paramount, the implementer may opt for mainly software implementation; or, yet again alternatively, the implementer may opt for some combination of hardware, software, and/or firmware.

[0081] The foregoing detailed description has set forth various embodiments of the devices and/or processes via the use of block diagrams, flowcharts, and/or examples. Insofar as such block diagrams, flowcharts, and/or examples contain one or more functions and/or operations, it will be understood by those within the art that each function and/or operation within such block diagrams, flowcharts, or examples may be implemented, individually and/or collectively, by a wide range of hardware, software, firmware, or virtually any combination thereof. In one embodiment, several portions of the subject matter described herein may be implemented via application specific integrated circuits (ASICs), field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), digital signal processors (DSPs), or other integrated formats. However, those skilled in the art will recognize that some aspects of the embodiments disclosed herein, in whole or in part, may be equivalently implemented in integrated circuits, as one or more computer programs executing on one or more computers (e.g., as one or more programs executing on one or more computer systems), as one or more programs executing on one or more processors (e.g., as one or more programs executing on one or more microprocessors), as firmware, or as virtually any

combination thereof, and that designing the circuitry and/or writing the code for the software and/or firmware would be well within the skill of one of skill in the art in light of this disclosure.

[0082] The present disclosure is not to be limited in terms of the particular embodiments described in this application, which are intended as illustrations of various aspects. Many modifications and variations can be made without departing from its spirit and scope, as will be apparent to those skilled in the art. Functionally equivalent methods and apparatuses within the scope of the disclosure, in addition to those enumerated herein, will be apparent to those skilled in the art from the foregoing descriptions. Such modifications and variations are intended to fall within the scope of the appended claims. The present disclosure is to be limited only by the terms of the appended claims, along with the full scope of equivalents to which such claims are entitled. It is also to be understood that the terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only, and is not intended to be limiting.

[0083] In addition, those skilled in the art will appreciate that the mechanisms of the subject matter described herein are capable of being distributed as a program product in a variety of forms, and that an illustrative embodiment of the subject matter described herein applies regardless of the particular type of signal bearing medium used to actually carry out the distribution. Examples of a signal bearing medium include, but are not limited to, the following: a recordable type medium such as a floppy disk, a hard disk drive (HDD), a compact disc (CD), a digital versatile disk (DVD), a digital tape, a computer memory, a solid state drive (SSD), etc.; and a transmission type medium such as a digital and/or an analog communication medium (e.g., a fiber optic cable, a waveguide, a wired communication link, a wireless communication link, etc.).

[0084] Those skilled in the art will recognize that it is common within the art to describe devices and/or processes in the fashion set forth herein, and thereafter use engineering practices to integrate such described devices and/or processes into data processing systems. That is, at least a portion of the devices and/or processes described herein may be integrated into a data processing system via a reasonable amount of experimentation. Those having skill in the art will recognize that a data processing system may include one or more of a system unit housing, a video display device, a memory such as volatile and non-volatile memory, processors such as microprocessors and digital signal processors, computational entities such as operating systems, drivers, graphical user interfaces, and applications programs, one or more interaction devices, such as a touch pad or screen, and/or control systems including feedback loops and control motors.

[0085] A data processing system may be implemented utilizing any suitable commercially available components, such as those found in data computing/communication and/or network computing/communication systems. The herein described subject matter sometimes illustrates different components contained within, or connected with, different other components. It is to be understood that such depicted architectures are merely exemplary, and that in fact many other architectures may be implemented which achieve the same functionality. In a conceptual sense, any arrangement of components to achieve the same functionality is effectively "associated" such that the desired functionality is achieved. Hence, any two components herein combined to achieve a particular functionality may be seen as "associated with" each other such that the desired functionality is achieved, irrespective of architectures or intermediate components. Likewise, any two components so associated may also be viewed as being "operably connected", or "operably coupled", to each other to achieve the desired functionality, and any two components capable of being so associated may also be viewed as being "operably couplable", to each other to achieve the desired functionality. Specific examples of operably couplable include but are not limited to physically connectable and/or physically interacting components and/or wirelessly interactable and/or wirelessly interacting components and/or logically interacting and/or logically interactable components.

[0086] With respect to the use of substantially any plural and/or singular terms herein, those having skill in the art can translate from the plural to the singular and/or from the singular to the plural as is appropriate to the context and/or application. The various singular/plural permutations may be expressly set forth herein for sake of clarity.

[0087] It will be understood by those within the art that, in general, terms used herein, and especially in the appended claims ( e.g ., bodies of the appended claims) are generally intended as “open” terms (e.g., the term“including” should be interpreted as“including but not limited to,” the term“having” should be interpreted as“having at least,” the term“includes” should be interpreted as“includes but is not limited to,” etc.). It will be further understood by those within the art that if a specific number of an introduced claim recitation is intended, such an intent will be explicitly recited in the claim, and in the absence of such recitation, no such intent is present. For example, as an aid to understanding, the following appended claims may contain usage of the introductory phrases "at least one" and "one or more" to introduce claim recitations. However, the use of such phrases should not be construed to imply that the introduction of a claim recitation by the indefinite articles "a" or "an" limits any particular claim containing such introduced claim recitation to embodiments containing only one such recitation, even when the same claim includes the introductory phrases "one or more" or "at least one" and indefinite articles such as "a" or "an" (e.g,“a” and/or“an” should be interpreted to mean“at least one” or“one or more”); the same holds true for the use of definite articles used to introduce claim recitations. In addition, even if a specific number of an introduced claim recitation is explicitly recited, those skilled in the art will recognize that such recitation should be interpreted to mean at least the recited number (e.g., the bare recitation of "two recitations," without other modifiers, means at least two recitations, or two or more recitations).

[0088] Furthermore, in those instances where a convention analogous to“at least one of A, B, and C, etc.” is used, in general, such a construction is intended in the sense one having skill in the art would understand the convention (e.g,“a system having at least one of A, B, and C” would include but not be limited to systems that have A alone, B alone, C alone, A and B together, A and C together, B and C together, and/or A, B, and C together, etc.). It will be further understood by those within the art that virtually any disjunctive word and/or phrase presenting two or more alternative terms, whether in the description, claims, or drawings, should be understood to contemplate the possibilities of including one of the terms, either of the terms, or both terms. For example, the phrase“A or B” will be understood to include the possibilities of “A” or“B” or“A and B.”

[0089] As will be understood by one skilled in the art, for any and all purposes, such as in terms of providing a written description, all ranges disclosed herein also encompass any and all possible subranges and combinations of subranges thereof. Any listed range can be easily recognized as sufficiently describing and enabling the same range being broken down into at least equal halves, thirds, quarters, fifths, tenths, etc. As a non-limiting example, each range discussed herein can be readily broken down into a lower third, middle third and upper third, etc. As will also be understood by one skilled in the art all language such as“up to,”“at least,”“greater than,” “less than,” and the like include the number recited and refer to ranges which can be subsequently broken down into subranges as discussed above. Finally, as will be understood by one skilled in the art, a range includes each individual member. Thus, for example, a group having 1-3 cells refers to groups having 1, 2, or 3 cells. Similarly, a group having 1-5 cells refers to groups having 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5 cells, and so forth.

[0090] While various aspects and embodiments have been disclosed herein, other aspects and embodiments will be apparent to those skilled in the art. The various aspects and

embodiments disclosed herein are for purposes of illustration and are not intended to be limiting, with the true scope and spirit being indicated by the following claims.

Claims

CLAIMS WHAT IS CLAIMED IS:

1. A method to provide treatment to honeybees through a microdispenser-based system, the method comprising:

detecting a presence of a bee through a sensor; and

delivering a treatment material onto the bee through a dispensing sub-system to treat a parasite infliction on the bee, wherein the treatment material comprises one or more of a fluid, a vapor, and a powder delivered through one or more microdispensers.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein detecting the presence of the bee comprises:

detecting the presence of the bee as the bee passes within a predefined distance of the one or more microdispensers.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein detecting the presence of the bee comprises:

detecting the presence of the bee as the bee enters or exits a hive.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein detecting the presence of the bee comprises:

detecting the presence of the bee within a hive.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein detecting the presence of the bee comprises:

detecting the presence of the bee through one or more of temperature sensing, chemical sensing, biological sensing, audio sensing, motion sensing, optical sensing, and electromagnetic sensing.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein detecting the presence of the bee comprises:

detecting the presence of the bee through an imaging detector.

7. The method of claim 6, further comprising:

detecting a parasite on the bee.

8 The method of claim 1, wherein delivering the treatment material onto the bee comprises: delivering one or more of a miticide, a fungicide, or an antibiotic onto the bee.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the treatment material comprises an organic or an inorganic chemical.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein delivering the treatment material onto the bee comprises: targeting an entire body of the bee through the one or more microdispensers.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein delivering the treatment material onto the bee comprises: attempting to dislodge a detected parasite on the bee by delivering water or vapor through a plurality of microdispensers.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein delivering the treatment material onto the bee comprises: employing a deflection of charged droplets with an electric field or a mechanical steering of a dispenser nozzle to target a specific location to deliver the treatment material.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein delivering the treatment material onto the bee comprises: selecting a velocity of droplets of the treatment material based on a type of treatment.

14. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

providing the treatment material from a single reservoir to a plurality of microdispensers.

15. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

providing the treatment material from a reservoir coupled to a single microdispenser.

16. A method to prevent entry of an intruder to a honeybee hive through a microdispenser- based system, the method comprising:

detecting a presence of the intruder at an entrance to the hive through a sensor; and delivering a treatment material onto the intruder through a dispensing sub-system to disable or push-back the intruder, wherein the treatment material comprises one or more of a fluid, a vapor, and a powder delivered through one or more microdispensers.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein detecting the presence of the intruder comprises: detecting the presence of the intruder as the intruder passes within a predefined distance of the one or more microdispensers.

18. The method of claim 16, wherein detecting the presence of the intruder comprises: detecting the presence of the intruder as the intruder enters or exits a hive.

19. The method of claim 16, wherein detecting the presence of the intruder comprises: detecting the presence of the intruder within a hive.

20. The method of claim 16, wherein detecting the presence of the intruder comprises: detecting the presence of the intruder through one or more of temperature sensing, chemical sensing, biological sensing, audio sensing, motion sensing, optical sensing, and electromagnetic sensing.

21. The method of claim 16, wherein detecting the presence of the intruder comprises: detecting the presence of one of a wasp, a killer bee, a beetle, and a sick honey bee.

22. The method of claim 16, wherein delivering the treatment material onto the intruder comprises:

delivering an insecticide onto the intruder.

23. The method of claim 16, wherein the treatment material comprises an organic or an inorganic chemical.

24. The method of claim 16, wherein delivering the treatment material onto the intruder comprises: targeting an entire body of the intruder through the one or more microdispensers.

25. The method of claim 16, wherein delivering the treatment material onto the intruder comprises:

employing a deflection of charged droplets with an electric field or a mechanical steering of a dispenser nozzle to target a specific location to deliver the treatment material.

26. The method of claim 16, wherein delivering the treatment material onto the intruder comprises:

selecting a velocity of droplets of the treatment material based on a type of treatment.

27. A micro-dispenser based treatment system, comprising:

a detection module configured to detect a presence of a bee through a sensor;

a delivery module comprising a supply sub-system and a dispensing sub-system, the delivery module configured to deliver a treatment material onto the bee through the dispensing sub-system to treat a parasite infliction on the bee, wherein the treatment material comprises one or more of a fluid, a vapor, and a powder delivered through one or more microdispensers; and a controller coupled to the detection module and the delivery module, the controller configured to manage operations of the detection module and the delivery module.

28. The micro-dispenser based treatment system of claim 27, wherein the detection module comprises one or more sensors configured to detect the presence of the bee as the bee passes within a predefined distance of the one or more microdispensers.

29. The micro-dispenser based treatment system of claim 27, wherein the detection module comprises one or more sensors configured to detect the presence of the bee as the bee enters or exits a hive.

30. The micro-dispenser based treatment system of claim 27, wherein the detection module comprises one or more sensors configured to detect the presence of the bee within a hive.

31. The micro-dispenser based treatment system of claim 27, wherein the detection module comprises one or more of a temperature sensor, a chemical sensor, a biological sensor, an audio sensor, a motion sensor, an optical sensor, and an electromagnetic sensor.

32. The micro-dispenser based treatment system of claim 27, wherein the detection module comprises one or more imaging sensors configured to detect the presence of the bee through image processing.

33. The micro-dispenser based treatment system of claim 32, wherein the one or more imaging sensors are configured to detect a parasite on the bee.

34. The micro-dispenser based treatment system of claim 27, wherein the supply sub-system includes a single reservoir configured to provide the treatment material to a dedicated microdispenser of the dispensing sub-system.

35. The micro-dispenser based treatment system of claim 27, wherein the supply sub-system includes a single reservoir configured to provide the treatment material to a plurality of microdispensers of the dispensing sub-system.

36. The micro-dispenser based treatment system of claim 27, wherein the delivery module is configured to:

deliver one or more of a miticide, a fungicide, or an antibiotic onto the bee.

37. The micro-dispenser based treatment system of claim 27, wherein the treatment material comprises an organic or an inorganic chemical.

38. The micro-dispenser based treatment system of claim 27, wherein the delivery module is configured to:

target an entire body of the bee through the one or more microdispensers.

39. The micro-dispenser based treatment system of claim 27, wherein the delivery module is configured to:

attempt to dislodge a detected parasite on the bee through delivery of water or vapor by a plurality of microdispensers.

40. The micro-dispenser based treatment system of claim 27, wherein the delivery module is configured to:

employ a deflection of charged droplets with an electric field or a mechanical steering of a dispenser nozzle to target a specific location to deliver the treatment material.

41. The micro-dispenser based treatment system of claim 27, wherein the controller is configured to:

select a velocity of droplets of the treatment material based on a type of treatment.

42. The micro-dispenser based treatment system of claim 27, further comprising:

a power module comprising one or more of a solar power source, a wind-based power source, a thermal power source, a battery, a direct current power source, and an alternative current power source.

43. The micro-dispenser based treatment system of claim 27, further comprising:

a structure configured to house at least the supply module and the delivery module, wherein the structure is mountable at one of outside an entrance of the hive, inside an entrance of the hive, and a location within the hive.

44. The micro-dispenser based treatment system of claim 43, wherein at least a portion of the structure is movable.

45. A honey bee treatment system, comprising:

a detection module configured to:

detect a presence of a bee through a sensor; and provide information associated with the detected presence of the bee to a controller; and

a delivery module comprising a supply sub-system and a dispensing sub-system, the delivery module configured to:

receive an instruction from the controller; and

deliver a treatment material onto the bee based on the received instruction through the dispensing sub-system to treat a parasite infliction on the bee, wherein the treatment material comprises one or more of a fluid, a vapor, and a powder delivered through one or more microdispensers.