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Sol Sweeper Project: Self-cleaning, Solar-powered Data-collecting Buoy Platform
This was a part of Design Studio V(Human-Computer Interface Studio) class at Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology. The goal of the Sol Sweeper project was to design a data-collecting buoy platform for marine biologists and other scientists that is capable of sustaining itself by solar power and a system that maintained the performance of the solar cell.
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Skills Learned:
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Manufacturing with foam
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Manufacturing with acrylic
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Coding with Arduino
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Use of relays & limit switches
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Use of 3D-printer and Laser cutter
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Team management
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Production of video
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Working with solar panel
Click on the video for the overview of the project
Sol Sweeper
Play Video
Details:
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Aesthetic of Target Community
The target audience of our Sol Sweeper project was scientists in general who is looking to collect data out in the waters. Especially marine biologists, who might have great interest in collecting data in the middle of the ocean. The project was designed to be a platform for these scientists to put their own sensors to continuously collect valuable data without the worry of running out of power.
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Major Objective of the Project
The Sol Sweeper project was tackling one of the topics listed in the Grand Challenge put on by NAE (National Academy of Engineering). The specific topic we were trying to solve was the cleaning aspect. Solar panels requires cleaning off of dust and debris to maintain its performance, however there are no readily available automatic cleaning system set in place for many solar panels.
Our Solution:
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We designed a data-collecting buoy platform where scientists can attach the sensors of their choice to collect the data they need to further their research. A special feature of the Sol Sweeper is the timed-automatic cleaning system. We used a windshield wiper for cars to create self-cleaning system to maintain the buoy's power source, the solar panel.
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We put most of our electronics inn a waterproof box inside the acrylic housing where the user can access it in less than a minute. This way the user can upload their files on micro-controller and add their sensors onto the data-collecting buoy platform
Engineering Detail
Lifestyle Board
SolidWorks Images & Design Description
Stakeholder Model
Constructing Process
Empathy Map
Testing
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