Robot boats to clean Indian waterways

Hong Kong-based marine tech startup Clearbot has launched a cutting-edge fleet of larger solar-powered autonomous boats to address escalating river and ocean pollution issues in India, according to a report by Outlook Planet. These advanced vessels aim to boost Clearbot’s ongoing efforts to cleanse polluted waters significantly.

Over the past year, Clearbot has deployed 13 boats capable of collecting up to 250 kg of plastic waste daily, addressing projects in Hong Kong and India. These autonomous electric vessels navigate waters independently, retrieving surface debris and depositing it for subsequent recycling. India, which contributes approximately 13% of global ocean plastic, remains a focal point for Clearbot’s expansion. The start-up piloted its services for the Clean the Ganga project. It has also cleaned the dirty water of a lake in Meghalaya, India. Recent projects in cities like Shillong and Bengaluru have showcased the effectiveness of Clearbot’s technology in significantly reducing waterborne waste.

According to a media note on the start-up’s website, a few years ago, Sidhant Gupta, an ocean lover, and Utkarsh Goel, a techie, visited Bali, Indonesia, as part of their course at the University of Hong Kong. Seeing the growing ocean plastic pollution in the archipelago, a top contributor to global plastic pollution, the duo decided to leverage their technical expertise to tackle it. Over 300 million tons of plastic are produced yearly, of which about 14 million tons end up in the ocean yearly. Plastic makes up 80 per cent of all marine debris. While many solutions are available to address this problem, they are grossly inadequate. This led the duo to start Clearbot in 2019.

As their website states, an autonomous platform, Clearbot maps and cleans the ocean using autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) powered by artificial intelligence (AI). The AI system allows operators to tackle multiple tasks remotely. The simplicity is a major factor as it can be easily deployed in any water body without complex installation requirements. This makes the technology accessible to governments as well as individuals. Clearbot is a remotely operated vehicle designed to perform various tasks in the marine sector, including data collection, site monitoring, marine pollution cleaning, and goods delivery. Powered by an electric motor, it can complete these tasks without human intervention.

Another report by CNN draws attention to Clearbot’s autonomous, solar-powered boats in Hong Kong which can gobble up 80 kilograms (176 pounds) of waste an hour and carry 200 kilograms (441 pounds) on board. The report further states that Clearbot has developed algorithms that allow the boat to navigate around obstacles, and to analyse what’s being collected – providing data so that officials can act to stem the flow of waste into waterways. The first of its Class 3 vessels, the bigger four-meter (13 feet) boat can collect 200 kilograms (441 pounds) of garbage an hour and carry a load of 1.5 metric tons (3300 pounds), collecting the waste in a barge towed behind it. It moves at about three knots (3.5 miles per hour) and can be guided remotely through an online dashboard or set to run autonomously. That includes the one collecting waste from the Ganga River. Another operates in the Umiam Lake in northeast India, where waste runs downstream from mountainous villages, the CNN report adds.

Clearbot’s mission, as per its website, is to imagine and create efficient, autonomous and electric boats that augment different marine services around the world. These self-driving electric boats can collect around 500 kg of plastic waste and other debris from rivers and oceans. This represents a doubling of the capability compared to the company’s existing robotic cleaners operating across Indian seas and lakes.

Clearbot has since expanded into a global endeavour and broadened its focus due to the significant demand for sustainable marine infrastructure, according to its website. Clearbot’s latest endeavours come at a critical juncture as global awareness of the detrimental effects of ocean pollution continues to grow. With at least 11 million tonnes of plastic entering oceans annually, initiatives like Clearbot’s represent vital steps towards mitigating environmental degradation. Moreover, Clearbot’s commitment to sustainability extends beyond waste collection. The company eliminates carbon emissions associated with conventional diesel-powered vessels by harnessing solar power for its fleet.