Coral reefs, which house a quarter of the ocean’s biodiversity, are under threat due to plastic waste. Underwater remotely operated vehicles (ROVs) equipped with a gripper can be used to collect macroplastics caught in the reefs. Due to the frail nature of coral, these expeditions require sensitive manipulation; grippers made from soft rubbers and plastics allow for manipulation with minimal risk to the surrounding environment. However, fabrication of these grippers is often complex, time-consuming, and necessitates manual labor. We present a novel fabrication technique - progressive molding - to streamline the process of creating soft gripper components. By using this method, we can create complex shapes that cannot be made in a single cycle of replica molding. Additionally, the process uses materials that are too soft to be FDM 3D printed with standard machines. We designed a soft gripper with actuators that could be fabricated via progressive molding. Finally, we attached the gripper to a four degree-of-freedom robotic arm on a commercially available ROV to remotely clean coral reef systems.

• This report represents the work of one or more WPI undergraduate students submitted to the faculty as evidence of completion of a degree requirement. WPI routinely publishes these reports on its website without editorial or peer review.

Creator

• Rouse, Owen
• Oliveira, Dilce
• Frunzi, Sara

Subject

• Sustainability
• Innovation
• Environment

Publisher

• Worcester Polytechnic Institute

Identifier

• 119443
• E-project-032624-102136

Stichwort

• coral reef
• soft robots
• underwater robots
• fabrication

Advisor

• Nemitz, Markus

Year

• 2024

UN Sustainable Development Goals

• 13 - Climate Action
• 14 - Life Below Water

Date created

• 2024-03-26

Resource type

• Major Qualifying Project

Major

• Mechanical Engineering
• Robotics Engineering
• Electrical & Computer Engineering

Source

• E-project-032624-102136

Rights statement

• In Copyright