Development of human-powered fish feeding machine for freshwater aquaculture farms of developing countries

•A simple and unique fish feeding machine for small farmers.•The power source used is human muscle power.•Feeding fishes made cheaper and easier for small and marginal farmers. Feeding the fishes rightly has been a problem for the fish farmers and developing suitable feeding devices is one of the most challenging problems faced by aquaculture engineers. Fish farmers of developing nations find manual feeding economical rather than opting for expensive mechanized feeding. In this study, a simple human-powered fish feeding machine which can economically solve the feeding issue in freshwater aquaculture, has been developed. The major parts of the feeder are cylindrical feed drums mounted on a pedal powered shaft, a catamaran barge, propeller and steering arrangements. When the operator pedals, the feed shaft rotates and the feed in the feed drums is metered through the metering holes provided in the feed drums. Human muscle power is used to power feeding operation as well as to propel the feeder. Since the device has been designed to utilize optimum human power for its entire operation, it is energy-efficient, environmental friendly and most importantly affordable. The developed device has been tested in laboratory and has been observed to be successfully operating in field condition while achieving the desired feed rate.