DESCRIPTION (Description shall start from next page
i. Field of the invention
The field of the invention is Live Fish Handling and Transportation. The invented device or system
along with the process of carrying live fish helps the fishers and fish vendors to keep fish alive for
longer duration of time while transporting and thus earning more income as live fish fetches more
prices than their dead counterparts. Besides, the system ensures less use of water, hygienic fish
handling, environment friendly process and animal welfare. It also reduces accident proneness (as
compared to traditional method), drudgery and final fish mortality. It is woman friendly and operable
by only 1-2 manpower which is otherwise 4-5 in traditional method.
ii. Background Prior Art
The fishers carry their live fish from pond to market by traditional method putting fish in the truckback
pool and manually aerating the water with feet which requires about 4-5 labours per trip. This
makes the process very cumbersome with high risk of accidents and fish mortality. Fish mortality
occurs about 50-60% due to inefficient aeration, poor water quality and high disturbances. The present
invention found solutions of those problems, providing 1. Low risk of accidents, 2. Automatic aeration
and water filtration and 3. Reduces fish mortality to less than 5%.
A live table fish fetches almost double the price to that of its dead counterpart in the most of the retail
markets of North India. In fact, except air-breathing fish many fish die if they are kept out of water for
few minutes and their post-mortem spoilage process starts once the rigor-mortis is elapsed. As a matter
of fact they start spoiling very fast provided certain measures of preservation are not taken immediately
after their death. Such measures including icing add extra costs to the unit price of fish. Nonetheless
such preservation methods cannot retain the quality of fresh live fish. When a consumer sees a jumping
fish, it becomes most convincing guarantee of the fish being fresh and they prefer it with no hesitation
to pay more price. Fish is transported alive from time immemorial for many purposes. In the current
age also fish are transported live for following purposes
• For food, table fish (200 g to several kg in weight)
• For breeding, brood fishes (1-5 kg or more individual weight)
• For rearing, fingerlings (10-20 cm in length)
• For amusement to rear in aquariums, ornamental fish (5.0 cm to 30.0 or more in length)
Since the grow-out sites (cages, ponds, lakes, river etc.) are normally located at a distant from the
nursery location that supplies juvenile fish, live fish transportation becomes essential (Stieglitz et al.
2012). In fact, in last few decades, live transportation of fish for human consumption is gaining
popularity (Erikson et al. 2006). Live fish is a guarantee of untreated fresh flesh with assured taste and
safety and so people prefer live table freshwater fish for consumption. In order to get maximum market
price, the fishers and vendors first try to sell their fish in live condition by applying their own
traditional knowledge and other preservations techniques such as icing are applied once the fish is dead
V
(Muzaddadi, 2011). Live fish transportation from the water bodies to the laboratories has always been a
difficult task for scientists to carry out scientific studies (Gopalkrishna et al., 2000). A wide range of
techniques are being employed for fish seed (spawn, fry and fingerlings) transportation in India (Das et
al. 2015). Two methods of live fish transportation are in use viz. Open system of seed transport that is
r'used for short distance transport and the other system is closed system with oxygen packaging in
polyethylene bags which is normally adopted for long distance transport (Jhingran and Pullin, 1985).
Live fish are transported in crowded conditions in both the systems which frequently leads to mass
mortality offish during transportation due to stress arising out of handling, packing, crowding, physical
injury (Kutty, 1987; Singh et al., 2004; Basavaraja, 2007). Many researchers described methods for
reducing such stresses and thus reducing the mortality of fish such as pre-conditioning at high density
prior to packaging (Kumar, 1992), oxygen packaging (Jhingran and Pullin, 1985; Milwain et al. 2002),
use fof tranquilizer or anaesthetics to reduce metabolic activity and transportation stress (Woynarovich
and Horvath, 1980; Mishra et al. 1983; Mohamed and Devaraj, 1997; Hasan and Bart, 2007).
Prior Arts
S.No.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Prior art (Patent/publication)
Stephen C. Badelll and Tigard O.R. 2004, Artificial
environment for transportation of live fish
US Publication No. 2004/0118359A
Takasugi M. and Kanagawa. 1992. Method and
apparatus for transporting and preserving living
fishes.
US Patent No. 5117777
Manome H. and Chiba (Japan). 1994. Method for
transporting live fish. US Patent No. 5310427
Ball T. and Bumpass VA 2013. Live sport fish
protection system. US Patent No,US 8393110 B2
Comandante, Bonifacio F. 2005. Process for transport
of live fish without water. World Intellectual Property
Organization, International Publication No. WO
2005/039280 A1
Yoshida K., Hiro Y., Kokubo j . , Nishizawa C. and
Watanabe S. (2002). Oxygen generating materials,
carbon dioxide absorbing materials and transport
system and transport method of live fishery products
US Publication No. 2002/0001548 Al
Difference from the given prior
art
Heat exchanger, refrigeration unit
and bigger tanks are used which
are absent in the new method.
Refrigeration unit for water
cooling is used which is not used
in the present method. Boxes with
transverse partitions are also not
used in the present method.
In this method the live fish is
chilled to near 1°C to make it
dormant. This is not done in the
present method.
A storage bag that is made up of
meshed fabric is used which is not
used in the new method.
Water is not used in this method.
But the use of water is minimized
in the present method.
Oxygen generating materials and
carbon dioxide absorbing materials
are used which are absent in the
new method.
Page 3 of 29
BELK-3: 2S - S:S'- 2-&S.6 1 ? : 5.3
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
Ward G.A. 2006. Container for live fish... US Patent
No. US 7017297 Bl
AAVISLAND and Dag 0. 1999. Live fish
transportation container, International application
published under Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT).
International Publication No. WO 99/16306
Morishita T. and Minamatashi 1990. Method for
transporting live fish. US Patent No. 4919079
Clark D.W., McDonald Ann K., Seiler J.S. 1999. Live
bait transporter. US Patent No. 5921017
Robohm D., Springs M.S. (US). 2003. System for
transportation and storing live fish, components
thereof and methods based thereon. US Patent No. US
6527492 Bl
A cylindrical container with
flexible flaps and float element are
used which are not used in the
present method.
The cylindrical container uses
water inlets at the bottom and
outlet on the top to keep fish on the
top. This system is absent in the
new method.
It is a method where no device is
developed, wherein humus was
used as absorbent. In the present
system a complete device for fish
transportation has been developed.
Double jacketed baskets and
oxygen cylinders are used. These
are not used in the new method.
It is modular live fish transport tote
with oxygen delivery system,
automatic water treatment and
delivery apparatus. In the present
system no oxygen delivery system
is used and water is not chemically
treated.
The closest prior art is Artificial environment for transportation of live fish invented by Stephen C.
Badelll and Tigard O.R. (US 2004/0118359A) as given in S. No.l in the above table. Many of such
works emphasized on the transportation offish alive rather than preserving them after death.
The development of simple innovations and technologies for keeping the table fish alive up to the
retail point spontaneously adds value to the fish ensuring the best quality assurance (live fresh fish
quality). These fish when transported reducing stress by keeping good quality water results in
better animal welfare and less mortality offish during transportation.
iii. Objectives of the invention
One object of the invention is to develop a eco-friendly and low-cost Live-fish Carrier System for
any live fish (more specifically the carps such as rohu, catla, mrigal, common carp, silver carp etc.
in particular) in order to reduce mortality while transportation providing good quality water
through effective aeration, filtration and cooling. More precisely this object aims at to mechanize
the prevailing traditional method of live fish transportation which is carried out in common carrier
Page 4 of 29
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trucks wherein the loader space of the truck is converted into a small pool of water by laying
polythene sheets and then the aeration is carried out by agitating or splashing the water surface
manually with feet. This being a crude and cumbersome method cannot ensure better water quality,
animal welfare, ease of work, safety against accidents and finally better efficiency to give a high
fish survivality on arrival in the markets. Thus this object focuses on giving a comprehensive
method finding the solutions of the traditional method. Another object is to reduce the drudgery of
the fishers as required in traditional method of live fish transportation for carrying out aeration
manually and handling offish. In the traditional method one or two persons continually splash the
water surface with their feet sitting inside the water pool made in the loader space of a truck while
the vehicle is on move. This is extremely difficult, cumbersome and expensive job for the fishers
as the worker for this job charges more than Rs. 1000/- per trip. Hence, this object aims at to
mechanize this process of aeration. Another object is to reduce water requirement while live fish
transportation by recirculating water. Since the fish continually release excreta and metabolites
into the transporting water, water turns dirty very fast and water needs to be renewed periodically
in the traditional method leading to the requirement of a huge quantity of water. Therefore this
object focuses on recirculating water by filtering and removing ammonia (the toxic material in fish
excreta) by using absorbents. Another object is to reduce accident proneness of the live fish
carriers and increase stability of the vehicle. As in case of traditional method, the live fish carrying
trucks frequently meet with accidents due to the disturbance of balance of the vehicle by mass
movement or splash of water. For addressing this problem, this object aims at making containers
by compartmentalization of water and by the use of splash breakers or protectors. More precisely it
is aimed at to develop containers of limited capacity and stack them in the vehicle; in other method
to use some splash breakers in bigger containers for providing stability to the vehicle.
iv. Summary of the invention
Live fish carrier system (LFCS) is a electric tri-cycle based live fish transportation system for short
and medium distance (about 80 km) transportation of fish including the table carps (rohu, catla,
mrigal, common carp, grass carp, silver carp, bighead carp) in live condition from one place to
another for marketing, rearing, ornamental displaying and breeding purposes. It is devised with
water filtration, aeration and cooling system providing good quality water to reduce fish mortality
while transportation. The carrier is constituted mainly with two components i.e., the Battery
Operated Self-contained Aerating Vehicle (BOSCAV) and Stackable Aerating Containers (SAC)
or Non-stackable aerating container (NSAC). The fish mortality in traditional system is 50-60% for
carps mainly the Indian Major Carps (IMCs) which include rohu (Labeo rohita), catla (Catla catla)
and mrigal (Cirrihinus mrigala) and other exotic carps including common carp (Cyprinus carpio),
silver carp (Hypophthalmicthys molitrix), bighead carp (Hypophthalmicthys nobilis) etc. of 0.5 kg
to 2.0 kg weight. But the invented new system reduces mortality to less than 5% for a journey
period of about 4-5 hours. The system is convenient to handle fish by 1 person whereas 4-5
labours/trip are required in traditional method. The design and dimensions are given in Figure 1-14
and the detailed method is given in Fig 15. The table fish (carps of individual weight 0.5 kg to 2.0
Page 5 of 29
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kg are kept) are harvested and kept in hapa (net enclosures inside the pond) or conditioning-cumstorage
tanks for 4-6 hours. This step ensures emptying the stomach of fish which is necessary to
minimize excretion during transportation in the vehicle. Simultaneously, the BOSCAV is charged
by electricity and the containers (either SAC or NSAC) are filled with clean and fresh pond water
or ground water from pumps with 1% NaCl (common salt). The aerator pump and aerationfiltration-
cooling assembly is switched on and the conditioned live fish are released into the SAC
or SNAC loaded on BOSCAV at prescribed rate or density and covered. LFCS is then driven to the
destination and on reaching the destination the water is drained partially and fish are then shifted
into the conditioning-cum-storage tank or display tubs in the retail market. LFCS reduces drudgery
of fishers and handling stresses on fish. It increases survival of fish during transportation and
ensures less use of water with increased vehicle stability and less running costs.
v. Brief description of drawings
Figure. 1 Top view of Live Fish Carrier System (LFCS) with different components
Figure 2. Side view of Live Fish Carrier System (LFCS) with different components
Figure 3. Front view of Live Fish Carrier System (LFCS) with different components
These figures (Figl-3) show the components of LFCS, these components are 1. Rear folding lid
2. Wheel 3. Chassis 4. Motor 5. LED Acid Batteries 6. Standby aerator pump 7. Driver circuit 8,
18. AC outlet 9. Hand brake 10. Inverter circuit 11. Accelerator and rear brake assembly 12.
Driver's shed 13, 14. Transformer assembly 15. Charging socket 16. Indicator twitter 17. Control
assembly, 19. Foot brake
Figure 4. Side view of Live Fish Carrier System (LFCS) with different dimensions, all dimensions
are in centimeters
Figure 5. Top view of Live Fish Carrier System (LFCS) with different dimensions, all dimensions
are in centimeters
These figures (Fig 4-5) describes different dimensions and measurements of LFCS.
Figure 6. View of Live Fish Carrier System with stacked Stackable Aerating Containers (SAC)
Figure 7. Complete Live Fish Carrier System with Non-Stackable Aerating Container (NSAC)
Figure 8. Different components of Stackable Aerating Containers (SAC)
A- MS angle frame, B- Foamed polystyrene (thermocol container), C- LDPE liner D- Air diffusion
pipe, E-Aerator holder, F- Aerator, G- Fish Unloading outlet.
Figure 9. Stackable Aerating Containers (SAC) with dimensions and measurements in centimeters
Figure 10. Stackable Aerating Containers (SAC), two containers stacked
Figure 11. Two Stackable Aerating Containers (SAC) stacked with frame and aerator unit
Figure 12. The components of Non-stackable aerating container (NSAC)
Figure 13. Non-stackable aerating container with water splash protector and aeration-filtrationcooling
assembly
Figure 14. Non-stackable Aerating Container with different measurements (in cm)
Figure 15. Method of live fish transportation in Live Fish Carrier System (LFCS)
Page 6 of 29
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vi. Detailed description of the Invention Including Best Method(s) for Carrying out the
Invention
The carrier is constituted mainly with two components i.e., the Battery Operated Selfcontained
Aerating Vehicle (BOSCAV) and Stackable Aerating Containers (SAC) or Nonstackable
aerating container (NSAC). BOSCAV is eco-friendly tri-cycle carrier that is
operated by lead acid batteries and thus economic for the fishers with very less running cost.
The batteries need to be charged by electricity and once charged full, BOSCAV can travel a
distance about 60-80 km with maximum speed of 25 kmph and total carrying capacity 500
kg. BOSCAV is about 137 cm long, 112cm wide and 160 cm high having rear drum brakes
and hand brake. The rear carrier space has length 176 cm, width 112 cm and height 43.8 cm
with 3 openable side walls. This carrier space can hold at least 4 SAC or 1 NSAC to carry
200 kg live fish in 200 liter of water for a journey period 4-5 hours. This carrier space can be
lifted from front side to drain out water and for regular maintenance of batteries, pumps and
motors. The driver seat box contains the control unit, the inverter, charging socket and AC
sockets. It is equipped with 600 VA inverter to run air pumps and aquarium filters. With no
gears and clutch, the carrier is driven using the accelerator placed in the right handle like a
gearless scooter and can easily be driven by women. It has reverse driving provision just by
operating a switch mounted over right handle. It is also devised with additional 30 W aerator
pump and air diffusion system for emergency aeration.
The carrier may also be used for transportation of ornamental fish and fish for research and "
conservation purposes. The aerating, water filtering and evaporative water-cooling assembly
are integrated to the vehicle control system that is run by DC current.
Stackable Aerating Containers (SAC) are ms iron framed polystyrene fish boxes with
dimension, Length x Breadth X Height, 60 cm X 40 cm X 35 cm (inner) having aerator unit.
This box is lined with LDPE (300 gsm) with proper sealing to protect leakage of water. This
light weight boxes are secured in MS angle frame to make it stackable so that the frame
receives the stack pressure and the container no pressure. It has a bottom opening through
which the LDPE lining sheets comes out. Fish is unloaded through this opening. The bottom
of plastic liner is fitted with a removable stopcock for controlled release of water or tied with
ropes. The bottom opening of LDPE liner is kept in such a way that the fish can be taken out
through bottom opening with minimum stress to fish. An AC/DC aerator mounted on the
frame aerates water through air diffusion rods. Opening the stopcock slightly water renewal
(about 25%) is done during transportation. About 1% table salt was used for reducing
osmotic pressure imbalance in fish physiology. No anaesthetics are used because people
have many apprehensions about the use of chemicals. The treatments with different fish
density (0.2-0.5 kg/L) with 25% water renewal were tested for best fish survivality. It can
contain 10-0 kg fish/ container with fish to water ratio 1:2. The efficiency is more than 95%
i.e., fish mortality is <5% with live fish (carps) of individual weight 0.5 kg to 1.0 kg in
journey time 4-5 hrs. Being eco-friendly LFCS reduces drudgery of fishers and handling
Page 18 of 29
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stresses on fish, increases survival of fish during transportation and ensures less use of
water, increases vehicle stability with very low running costs.
Noh-Stackable Aerating Containers (NSAC) are cuboid shaped fibre reinforced plastic
(FRP) containers with components such as metabolite separator, aerating-cum-filtrationcooling
assembly, splash breaker, cover & ammonia absorbent. Being bigger in size (149 cm
x 101 cm x 73 cm) it can contain 200 kg fish with 200 liter water. A water splash breaker is
fitted at the midway of the container over which the aerating-filtration-cooling assembly is
fitted. The splash breaker divides the water into two parts and it facilitates to create smaller
splashes thus giving stability to the carrier while running. The aerating-filtration-cooling
assembly is a box with holes on its bottom and layers of filtering materials inside. It spans
side to side and fitted on the top of the splash breaker, A pipe with multiple pinholes
throughout its length is connected with the box which is further connected with a water
lifting submersible pump that is fixed at the bottom of the container. The bottom is laid with
a thin layer of ammonia absorbing stones and then overlaid with a perforated PVC mat. The
PVC mat acts as the separator of metabolites to the fish. The metabolites are continually
excreted by fish and gradually get deposited at the bottom of the container and the mat
becomes a barrier for the fish as they cannot swim below this mat and disturb the
metabolites to make water dirty. The water in the container is continuously lifted by the
pump over the box through a pipe and it gets filtered when it passes through the filtering
materials in the box by gravitational force. The filtered water falls from the box onto the
surface of water in the container, thus getting aerated and cooled by evaporation. The
container has a water outlet at the bottom for draining out water from the lower most bottom.
This container has a perforated cover that facilitates air circulation and prevents fish from
jumping and escaping. It has an efficiency about 99% i.e., fish mortality is less than 1%
with live fish (carps) of individual weight 0.5 kg to 1.0 kg in journey time 4-5 hrs. The
design and dimensions are given in Figure 1-14.
The method of carrying live fish in LFCS is a simplified traditional method with more
scientific inputs and reduced drudgery (detailed method is given in Fig 15). The table fish
(the fish that are used for human consumption) are harvested in the evening hours from the
culture ponds. These harvested fish (carps) of individual weight 0.5 kg to 1.0 kg are kept
overnight in hapa (net enclosures inside the pond) or conditioning-cum-storage tanks. This
step ensures emptying the stomach of fish which is necessary to minimize excretion during
transportation in the LFCS. Simultaneously, the BOSCAV is connected to electricity and the
batteries are charged fully which may take 5-6 hours. Now the containers (either SAC or
NSAC) are filled with clean and fresh water from the pond wherefrom the fish were caught
or wherein conditioned. If pond water is not clean enough, ground water from pumps with
1% NaCl (common salt) is used for counterbalancing osmotic pressure to the physiological
system of fish. Side by side, the aerator pump and aeration-filtration-codling assembly are
connected to the power supply sockets which are provided in the LFCS and thereafter the
assembly is switched on. Now the conditioned live fish are released into the SAC or SNAC
Page 19 of 29
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at the rate or fish density prescribed i.e., 10-20 kg/SAC and 100-200 kg/NSAC when the fish
are carps of individual weight 6.5 kg to 2.0 kg. The LFCS is now"covered with a perforated
lid for better air circulation which facilitates water cooling and better aeration. The LFCS is
now ready for driving to the destination. The speed of LFCS should not be more than 20
kmph, though the empty BOSCAV has maximum speed of 25 kmph, because such speed
gives LFCS better stability and control while maneuvering and braking. On reaching the
destination, the water is drained partially by opening the outlet valve in SNAC or loosely
opening the outlet of SAC. The live fish are then shifted into the conditioning-cum-storage
tank or display tubs in the retail market with a scoop net from SNAC or directly through the
unloading vent from SAC.
The Live Fish Carrier System, as described under 4 and 5, is an invention of complete
supply chain for transporting fish in live condition from culture pond to retail market for
trade. This system can also serve to transport live fingerlings from nursery to rearing and
stocking ponds for culture; brood fish for breeding purposes; ornamental fish for aquariums;
to transport any live fish for research and also to transport and hold live fish for conservation
purposes.
Novelty
(a) An eco-friendly battery operated tricycle based live fish carrier devised with facilities for
aerating, filtering, evaporative cooling assembly for water recirculation and purification,
named as battery operated self contained aerating vehicle (BOSCAV) equipped with
stackable aerating container (SAC) and/or non-stackable aerating container (NSAC)
constituting the Live Fish Carrier System (LFCS) for transportation of live fish is a novel
invention which reduces drudgery of fishers and handling stresses on fish, increases
survival offish during transportation and ensures use of less water with increased vehicle
"stability and also lowers labour cost.
(b) Another novelty is the Battery operated self contained aerating vehicle (BOSCAV) is
eco-friendly carrier powered by 48 volt DC (4 lead acid batteries) which is equipped with
aeration and filtration facilities with a capacity to transport 200 kg live table fish using
only 200 litres of water.
(c) The stackable aerating containers (SAC) is also a novelty which are used thermocol fish
containers framed in ms angle structure equipped with easy stacking facility that exerts
stacking pressure to the frame and it is also equipped with battery operated aeration
system, ammonia absorbent, metabolite separators.
(d) The design of SAC for easy unloading fish with minimal handling stress to the live fish is
a novel invention wherein the fish unloading outlet at the bottom of the SAC can be
opened loosely to drain out water and the fish can be shifted with whole LDPE linings to
another container.
Page 20 of 29
(e) Compartmentalization of wat^r in the loader space of the carrier vehicle (BOSCAV) or
even trucks by using multiple SACs instead of converting whole loader space into a
single pool, is also another novelty to reduce the risk of accidents. Such
compartmentalization does not allow forming big water splashes on journey due to
sudden braking or turning and it also distributes water masses in equal quantities
throughout the vehicle while ascending or descending, thus providing greater stability to
the vehicle and minimizing the risk of accidents.
(f) The non-stackable aerating container (NSAC) designed to contain more fish per
container, is devised with aeration, water filtration, water cooling and metabolite
segregating units as well as splash breaker in the mid of the container to reduce the force
of water splashes in the container during transportation. The same container can also be
used as conditioning-cum-storage tank at farm side or at the market premises.
(g) The integrated approach of combining systems of aeration, continuous removal of
ammonia from the water using ammonia absorbents, providing metabolite separator to
partition the bottom-deposited-fish-metabolites from being disturbed by the fish while
swimming and providing evaporative cooling system to keep the water cool and thus
providing a congenial environment to fish ensuring animal welfare is another novelty.
(h) Another novelty is the continuous filtration and metabolites absorbing/ separation system
which minimizes the water requirement during transportation to about 200 liter compared
to 400-1000 liter for carrying 200 kg fish in traditional system.
(i) Another novelty is the simplified method for handling and transporting live table fish
from the pond to retailers' point, from nursery to stocking ponds, from natural habitats to
research ponds, and from aquaculturists to home aquarium retailers' point with minimum
drudgery, reduced requirement of water and man days and higher fish survival.
Inventive Steps
A low-cost system for live fish transportation for limited distance coverage (about 80 km) that is
aimed at to empower fish farmers to sell their produce to nearby market without involvement of
middleman has been invented. In order to explain the present invention more explicably,
following examples are set forth for the purpose of illustration with reference to the drawings
and figures, but in no way to be construed to narrow the scope of the invention:
Example 1
The complete system of Live Fish Carrying System is the assemblage of the carrier
(specifications are given in Example 2, Table 1), the container (Example 2 & 3, Table 2 & 3) and
the method described in Fig 15 has been designed, fabricated, tested, refined and finalized in
different step by step research and development which is explained as follows:
(a) Development of carrier vehicle
An eco-friendly and easy to drive e-rickshaw was selected to develop the carrier. The carrier is
named as the Battery Operated Self-contained Aerating Vehicle (BOSCAV) as the vehicle was
designed to accommodate and operate water aerating, filtration and cooling units. BOSCAV is
Page 21 of 29
operated by rechargeable lead acid batteries which are housed below the loader space of it.
BOSCAV is about 137 cm long, 112cm wide and 160 cm high having rear drum brakes and hand
brake. The rear loader space has length 176 cm, width 112 cm and height 43.8 cm with 3
opehable side walls (Fig 1-5). This carrier or loader space can be lifted from front side to drain
out water and for regular maintenance of batteries, pumps and motors. The driver seat box
contains the control unit, the inverter, charging socket and AC sockets. It is equipped with 600
VA inverter to run air pumps and aquarium filters. With no gears and clutch, the carrier is driven
using the accelerator placed in the right handle like a gearless scooter and can easily be driven by
women. It has reverse driving provision just by operating a switch mounted over right handle. It
is also devised with additional 30 W aerator pump and air diffusion system for emergency
aeration.
(b) Development of Stackable Aerating Containers (SAC)
Stackable Aerating Containers (SAC) are designed and fabricated with ms iron frame and
polystyrene (thermocol) fish boxes with dimension, Length x Breadth x Height:: 60 cm x 40 cm
x 35 cm (inner) having aerator unit. This box is lined with LDPE (300 gsm) with proper sealing
to protect leakage of water. This light weight boxes which are dilapidated and about to be
discarded in fish markets are used. It is secured in MS angle frame to make it stackable so that it
can withstand the stack pressure. It has a bottom opening for unloading fish through which the
LDPE lining sheets comes out. The bottom of plastic liner is fitted with a removable stopcock for
controlled release of water. The bottom opening of LDPE liner is kept in such a way that the fish
can be taken out through bottom opening with minimum stress to fish along with the lining
material. An AC/DC aerator mounted on the frame aerates water through air diffusion rods (Fig
6-11). Water renewal (about 25%) is done during transportation by opening the stopcock loosely.
About 1% table salt is used for reducing osmotic pressure imbalance in fish physiology.
(c) Development of Non-Stackable Aerating Containers (NSAC)
Non-Stackable Aerating Containers (NSAC) has been designed and developed with higher
capacity per container. This cuboid shaped container made up of fibre reinforced plastic (FRP)
which has been modified with components such as metabolite separator, aerating-cum-filtrationcooling
assembly, splash protector, cover & ammonia absorbent. Being bigger in size (149 cm x
101 cm x 73 cm) it can contain 200 kg fish with 200 liter water which may lead to irregular
movement of water and cause accidents. In order to encounter this, a water splash protector is
fitted at the midway of the container. It also harbours the aerating-filtration-cooling assembly.
The splash protector divides the water into two parts and it facilitates to create smaller splashes
thus giving stability to the carrier while running. The aerating-filtration-cooling assembly is a
box with holes on its bottom and layers of filtering materials on it. It spans side to side and fitted
on the top of the splash protector. A pipe with multiple pinholes throughout its length is
connected with the box which is connected with a water lifting submersible pump that is fixed at
the bottom of the container. The bottom is laid with a thin layer of ammonia absorbing stones
and then overlaid with a perforated PVC mat. The PVC mat acts as the separator of metabolites
to the fish. The metabolites are continually excreted by fish and gradually get deposited at the
bottom of the container and the mat becomes a barrier for the fish as they cannot swim below
Page 22 of 29
v
1
this mat and disturb the metabolites to make water dirty. The water in the container is
continuously lifted by the pump over the box through a pipe and it gets filtered when it passes
through the filtering materials in the box by gravitational force. The filtered water falls from the
v box onto the surface of water in the container, thus getting aerated and cooled by evaporation.
The container has a water outlet at the bottom for draining out water from the lower most
bottoms (Fig 12-14). It has an efficiency about 99% i.e., fish mortality is less than 1% with live
fish (carps) of individual weight 0.5 kg to 2.0 kg in journey time 4-5 hrs.
(d) The Method of Carrying Live Fish in LFCS
The method of carrying in LFCS is a simplified traditional method with more scientific inputs
and reduced drudgery (the detailed method is given in Fig 15). The table fish (the fish that are
used for human consumption) are harvested in the evening or in the early morning hours from
the culture ponds. These harvested fish (carps) of individual weight 0.5 kg up to 2.0 kg are kept
in hapa (net enclosures inside the pond) or conditioning-cum-storage tanks for 4-6 hours which
is called conditioning of fish. This step ensures emptying the stomach of fish which is essential
to minimize excretion during transportation in the LFCS which otherwise results in fast
deterioration of water quality due to excessive discharge of ammonia via fish metabolites.
During this step fish with physical injuries or with disease are distinguished and eliminated from
the lot. Simultaneously, the BOSCAV is connected to electricity and the batteries are charged
fully which may take 5-6 hours. Now the containers (either SAC or NSAC) are filled with clean
and fresh water from the pond wherefrom the fish were caught or wherein conditioned. If pond
water is not clean enough, ground water from pumps with 1% NaCl (common salt) is used for
a counterbalancing osmotic pressure to the physiological system offish. Side by side, the aerator
pump and aeration-filtration-cooling assembly are connected to the power supply sockets which
are provided in the LFCS and thereafter the assembly is switched on. Now the conditioned live
fish are released into the SAC or SNAC at the rate or fish density prescribed i.e., 10-20 kg/SAC
and 100-200 kg/NSAC when the fish are carps of individual weight 0.5 kg to 2.0 kg. The LFCS
is now covered with a perforated lid for better air circulation facilitating cooling of water and
better aeration. The LFCS is now ready for driving to the destination. The speed of LFCS should
not be more than 20 kmph, though the empty BOSCAV has maximum speed of 25 kmph,
because such speed gives LFCS better stability and control while maneuvering and braking. On
reaching the destination, the water is drained partially by opening the outlet valve in SNAC or
loosely opening the outlet of SAC. The live fish are then shifted into the conditioning-cumstorage
tank or display tubs in the retail market with a scoop net from SNAC or directly through
the unloading vent from SAC.
vii. Industrial Applicability
(a) LFCS has diversified utility, to transport table fish in live condition from culture pond to
retail market for trade; to transport live fingerlings from nursery to rearing and stocking
ponds for culture; to transport brood fish for breeding purposes; to transport ornamental
Page 23 of 29
•4*
fish for aquariums; to transport any live fish for research and also to transport and hold
live fish for conservation purposes.
(b) The LFCS can be used as mobile fish selling shop.
(c) The system is woman-friendly and can be operated by one or two women for
development of small scale fish selling entrepreneurship.
(d) BOSCAV can also be used for other purposes of farm work including carrying farm
produces like vegetables,
(e) The Live Fish Carrier System having automatic aeration, filtration and evaporative
cooling system ensures continuous availability of good quality water to the live fish
transported in the system proving healthy environment to fish and ensures animal welfare
.and thus it can be used for transportation of aquatic animals for aquarium purpose.
(f) It is useful for the fish vendors and fish farmers for low cost transportation of live fish for
sale in the markets wherein they can get better price for their produce.
(g) LFCS requires only 1 (one) worker which is otherwise 4-5 workers in case of traditional
system, thus reducing less number of labour, it is useful for small family business.
(h) LFCS is highly useful for industrial use for live fish transportation, because it has good
braking system of LFCS for the rear wheels and compartmentalization of water masses
and/or the provision of water splash breaker in the vehicle which reduce the chances of
overturn; the facility of easy stackability of Self-Aerating Containers (SAC); hassle free
handling and unloading offish; the facility of carrying individual species andsizes of fish
separately in the same vehicle in SAC; environment friendly and zero polluting engine
powered by lead acid batteries.
Page 24 of 29
viii. List of Citations (in separate page)
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resources for sustainable aquaculture. FAO Fisheries Technical paper No. 501', edited by
MG Bondad-Reantaso, (Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, FAO
Fisheries and Aquaculture Department, Rome, Italy), 2007, 267-327.
Das PC, Mishra B, Pati BK & Mishra SS, Critical water quality parameters affecting survival of
Labeo rohita (Hamilton) fry during closed system transportation, Indian J. Fish.,
62(2)(2015) 39-42.
Erikson U, Hultmann L & Steen JE, Live chilling of Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) combined
with mild carbon dioxide anaesthesia I. Establishing a method for large-scale processing of
farmed fish, Aquaculture, 252 (2006) 183-198.
Gopalkrishnana A, Ponniah AG, Basheer KG, Padmakumar, Anuradha K, & Lai KK, Successful
transportation of wild stock of endangered "Thooli" {Labeo dussumieri) spawners without
anaesthetics, Indian J. Fish, 47(3) (2000) 261-264.
Hasan M & Bart A N, Improved survival of rohu, Labeo rohita (Hamilton- Buchanan) and silver
carp, Hypophthalmichthys molitrix (Valenciennes) fingerlings using low-dose quinaldine
and benzocaine during transport, Aquacult. Res., 38(1) (2007) 50-58.
Jhingran VG & Pullin RSV, A hatchery manual for the common Chinese and Indian major
carps, (ICLARM Studies and Reviews 11, Asian Development Bank, Manila, Philippines),
1985,191.
Kumar D, Fish culture in undrainable ponds, In: A manual for extension, FAO Fisheries
Technical Paper No. 325, (Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, FAO
Fisheries and Aquaculture Department, Rome, Italy), 1992, 239.
Kutty MN, Transport offish seed and brood fish, In: Seed production-working paper for senior
Aquaculturist Course at African Regional Aquaculture Centre, edited by GA Delince, D
Campbell, JAI Janssen & MN Kutty, (Port Harcourt, Nigeria), 1987,118.
Milwain GK., Little DC, Kundu N & Immink AJ, Overview of fish seed production and
distribution in West Bengal, India, (Working Paper, Institute of Aquaculture, University of
Stirling and Institute of Wetland Management and Ecological Design Kolkata, India) 2002.
Mishra B K, Kumar D & Mishra R, Observations on the use of carbonic acid anesthesia in fish
fry transport, Aquaculture, 32 (3-4) (1983) 405-408.
Mohamed MP & Devaraj M, Transportation of live finfishes and shellfishes, CMFRI Special
Publication No 66, (Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute, Kochi, India), 1997, 43.
Muzaddadi AU, A comparative study of live table fish transportation in Assam- using bamboo
barrels and iron tanks, Fishing Chimes, 31 (2) (2011) 45-48.
Singh RK, Vartak RV, Balange AK. & Ghughuskar MM, Water quality management during
transportation of fry of Indian major carps, Catla catla (Hamilton), Labeo rohita
(Hamilton) and Cirrhinus mrigala (Hamilton), Aquaculture, 235 (1-4) (2004) 297-302.
Stieglitz JD, Benetti DD & Serafy JE, Optimizing transport of live juvenile cobia (Rachycentron
canadum): Effects of salinity and shipping biomass, Aquaculture, 364-365 (2012) 293-297.
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183.

CLAIMS
We claim:
1. A novel eco-friendly Live Fish Carrier System (LFCS) comprising of a battery operated
self contained aerating vehicle (BOSCAV), stackable aerating containers (S»AC) or nonstackable
aerating container (NSAC) for transportation of live fish so as to reduce
mortality of live fish, water requirement and drudgery of fishers during transportation,
wherein LFCS is an integrated approach of combining facilities of aeration with resultant
evaporative cooling of water, continuous removal of ammonia from the water using
ammonia absorbents and a metabolite separator to partition the bottom-deposited-fishmetabolites
from being disturbed by the live fish contained therein.
2. A novel stackable aerating container (SAC), made of thermocol and LDPE,( supported in
metallic (ms) structure frame and equipped with battery operated aeration system,
ammonia absorbent, metabolite separators as well as easy fish and water unloading outlet
system provided at the bottom of each box that reduces injuries to fish due to less
handling stress. This also eliminates the drudgery involved in continual manual aeration.
3. A novel non-stackable aerating container (NSAC) designed to contain more fish per
container (compared to SAC), which has been devised with facilities for aeration, water
filtration, water cooling, metabolite segregating units as well as an internal splash breaker
to reduce the force of water splashes in the container (and thereby prevent the chances of
overturning of the carrier vehicle) during transportation. The NSAC fits into the backcarrier
space of the BOSCAV.
4. A method developed for handling and transporting live table fish from the pond to
retailers' point comprising of the steps described in the Flow Chart (Fig. 15) wherein the
fishes are freshwater carps (Cyprinids) namely rohu (Labeo rohita), catla (Carta carta),
mrigal (Cirrhinus mrigala), common carp (Cyprinus carpio), silver carp
(Hypophthalmichthys molitrix), bighead carp (Hypophthalmichthys nobilis)] and other
similar freshwater fish and the individual weight offish is 0.5 - 1.0 kg each for SAC and
0.5 - 2.0 kg each for NSAC with the journey time 4-5 hrs without changing water.