BTE 371 · University of Miami · Fall 2026

Miami Coastal Cleanup Network

A manatee-shaped robot that picks floating trash out of Biscayne Bay, watched by camera drones and run from a hub on shore. These are the videos and the 3D model behind our poster.

Concept design only. Nothing here has been built or tested, and the data in the models is for illustration.

Watch the design work

Stomach swap at the dock, 12 seconds. The manatee parks in calm water, its belly doors open, and two lift cradles take the full stomach pod out and put a spare in. The swap costs a few minutes of collecting.

All the way around, then apart. The robot with its manatee skin on, then every assembly pulled out and put back.

Future work, unproven
Swap in open water. Pods that swim themselves to the dock, so the manatee never stops. We found no test data for a swap at sea, so it is not in the current design.

Try the 3D model

3D model of the manatee bot

Turn it with one finger, pinch to zoom, pull it apart, switch the manatee skin on and off, and tap any part to see its name.

Open the 3D model Opens full screen · about 10 MB

What is in the system

Manatee bot. Its claw passes trash into its mouth and down to a stomach pod inside its body, where a compactor presses it into bales.
Sand robot. A small rover with a claw that clears the beach and empties at a collection post.
Hub. It charges the robots and assigns all the work. The robots only talk to the hub.
Watch drones. Two take turns in the air and alert the hub to boats, jet skis and swimmers. The hub confirms before a manatee moves.
Wash station. A freshwater rinse keeps salt off the robots, and the runoff is caught and filtered.
The AI's rule. When it is unsure, the robot leaves the object alone and sends a photo to a person. Nets and ropes are never grabbed.