Team 'MusselMen': Autonomous Bio-Robotic Ocean Cleanup System

🏆 1st Place Winner - Solidworks Design; 🏆 2nd Place - Hackathon winner

🏆 Most Creative Project award by Texas Instruments

About The Hackathon

RoboTech is a premier annual engineering hackathon that challenges teams to develop innovative, sustainable solutions to pressing global problems. The competition emphasizes original design and entrepreneurial thinking, requiring all solutions to be developed from scratch within 36-hours.

Time Limit 36hrs

Date April 2022

My Role Team Lead

Team Size 3 Engineers

Key Technologies

Design:

Solidworks

Strategy:

Business Pitch Strategic Communication Market Analysis Stakeholder Engagement

Business:

Cost analysis Product lifecycle Partnership Development

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1The Challenge & Solution

Developing innovative bio-robotics for large-scale ocean remediation

The Challenge

Oceanic microplastics have reached alarming concentrations, contaminating marine ecosystems and entering the human food chain through bioaccumulation
Existing cleanup technologies are prohibitively expensive and geographically limited in their operational scope
The scale and urgency of microplastic pollution demands a cost-effective, scalable solution with broad coverage capabilities

Projected microplastic concentration trends. Source: Kyushu University

Our Solution

Leveraged mussels' natural biofiltering capabilities to extract microplastics from seawater through biological processes
Engineered an autonomous solar-powered robotic buoy system that transports mussel colonies across oceanic regions for continuous water purification
Developed a comprehensive 3D prototype model with detailed engineering specifications to demonstrate technical feasibility
Conducted extensive research on mussel biofiltration mechanics, operational scalability, and deployment logistics
Designed swarm robotics protocols enabling coordinated fleet operations and inter-robot communication systems
Created a comprehensive business strategy targeting Pacific Ocean deployment within three years, including identified funding sources and strategic partnerships

View Official Competition Submission →

Pitch delivery on stage — Final presentation to competition judges and industry experts

2Key Achievements & Impact

Demonstrating scalable environmental solutions through innovative bio-robotics

10,000$

Cost to build for each robot

297,000

Gallons of water filtered daily per robot

BioInspired

Sustainable and ethical design leveraging natural filtration processes

Technical Deliverables

3D Engineering Design: Complete SolidWorks assembly with technical drawings, material specifications, and structural analysis
Business Strategy: Comprehensive go-to-market plan with three-year ocean deployment roadmap and operational framework
Strategic Partnerships: Identified key sponsors including NOAA and developed funding acquisition strategy
Team Leadership: Successfully coordinated cross-functional engineering team to deliver integrated solution under extreme time constraints through effective task delegation and project management

360deg spinning view of full assembly — Full Assembly 3D view

eDrawings of 3D design — Engineering Drawing of Design

Project Lifecycle plan — Project lifcycle

3Technology & Tools

Advanced technologies employed in this project

Design & Engineering

SolidWorks CAD

3D Modeling

Technical Drawing

Material Analysis

Structural Engineering

Systems Engineering

Robotics Design

Solar Power Systems

Marine Engineering

Bio-Integration

Autonomous Navigation

Communication Protocols

Business Development

Strategic Planning

Financial Modeling

Market Research

Stakeholder Management

Partnership Development

Technical Presentation