Expedition: MANTA
Donation protected
Project Overview
Hi! We are Team MANTA, and we are a group of five mechanical engineering students in our final year at Drexel University. MANTA stands for Multipurpose Aquatic Navigator and Trash Annihilator.
Our group is passionate about improving environmental health. We’ve realized that one way to address the world’s growing pollution problem is to start right at the top—we want to tackle water debris. As residents of Philadelphia, we use the Schuylkill River nearly every day. We believe that Philadelphia would be even more amazing if the Schuylkill was a little bit cleaner, and we are sure that we aren't the only people in the world who have felt this way. And we’ve always had an inkling that there must be some way to clean the water that is both faster and cheaper than the current methods. With the skills we’ve picked up at Drexel, we want to make this happen.
Our idea is to create an autonomous vehicle, termed the MANTA (Multipurpose Aquatic Navigator and Trash Annihilator), that travels along the surface of the water, picking up any debris in its path. Of course, this device will also be environmentally friendly: the MANTA won’t use any harmful chemicals, and a built-in object detection algorithm will make sure that it doesn’t disturb the peace of the river. We’ve spoken to several stakeholders of this project and are confident that the MANTA will make a difference.
Our goals for this project and the device are the following:
1. Design the vessel to be used by cities and municipalities worldwide for continuous operation in harbors, ports, rivers, and lakes.
2. Collect, compact, and dispose of floating surface debris through the use of a “V” shaped wingspan, conveyor, shredder, and receptacle that are intelligently designed and sustainable.
3. Operate autonomously using a GPS receiver and geofencing, with a mapped route path that is defined by the end user in on a computer or mobile interface over a communication protocol such as Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, or 3G.
4. Exceed parameters of existing operator driven vessels with improved efficiency through greater debris intake capacity, increased vessel runtime, and reduced operational manpower.
5. Compile data on conditions at the time of debris collection through use of sensors and cameras to generate trends and understanding regarding the state of the body of water when large accumulations of debris occur.
6. Serve as a modular platform for environmental monitoring, video surveillance, search-and-rescue operations, and other applications that could be created from the core device functionality as needed by the end user when traversing water environments.
Below is a 3-D concept design sketch showing the structure and primary components of the MANTA.
How You Can Help
With your help, we can build a viable prototype that is ready to test by February 2017. Donations of any size are welcome and greatly appreciated! Your generous contributions will cover costs of sensors, motors, and other electrical and mechanical parts. We will be utilizing all funds appropriately to ensure that nothing goes to waste.
If you can’t donate, that’s okay! You can still make an impact by spreading the word about our project. The more people we reach, the more successful this will be. We would love if you could share this page or our website in any way possible.
Your support is a contribution to environmental health and environmental awareness in our communities. Help us make the world a cleaner place!
Yours truly,
Alexander Ly
Daniel Diazdelcastillo
Elisabeth Wagner
Aryaman Sinha
Nicholas Philips
www.expeditionmanta.com
**Please send all inquiries to Alex via the email button provided above or at [email redacted].
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About the Team
(Left to right) Alex, Dan, Elisabeth, Aryaman, and Nick
Alex is a senior at Drexel University pursuing accelerated B.S. and M.S. degrees in Mechanical Engineering. He has experience working at Boeing, Eaton Aerospace, and Exelon doing structural analysis and design engineering. Alex can’t swim, but would love to if plastic weren’t in the way.
Dan is senior at Drexel University pursuing a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering. He has experience working at Hyperloop One, Naval Research Laboratory, and NASA doing design engineering and R&D. Dan is passionate about creating devices to make the world a better place.
Elisabeth is a senior at Drexel University pursuing a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering and a minor in Engineering Policy Analysis. She has experience working at DSM Biomedical, PECO, and Sunoco Logistics doing project management. She spent four years on Drexel’s rowing team and has a personal connection to the health of the Schuylkill River.
Aryaman is a senior at Drexel University pursuing accelerated B.S. and M.S. degrees in Mechanical Engineering. He has experience working at Optofluidics, Kulicke & Soffa, and Drexel’s Microprocessor and Microcomputer Laboratory doing controls implementation and simulation. Aryaman intends to pursue a Ph. D. in Electrical Engineering upon graduation.
Nick is a senior at Drexel University pursuing a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering. He has experience working at Oceaneering Entertainment Systems, Disney World, and Disneyland doing stress and design engineering. Nick loves engineering because he can make people happier through his work, like designing rollercoasters!
Hi! We are Team MANTA, and we are a group of five mechanical engineering students in our final year at Drexel University. MANTA stands for Multipurpose Aquatic Navigator and Trash Annihilator.
Our group is passionate about improving environmental health. We’ve realized that one way to address the world’s growing pollution problem is to start right at the top—we want to tackle water debris. As residents of Philadelphia, we use the Schuylkill River nearly every day. We believe that Philadelphia would be even more amazing if the Schuylkill was a little bit cleaner, and we are sure that we aren't the only people in the world who have felt this way. And we’ve always had an inkling that there must be some way to clean the water that is both faster and cheaper than the current methods. With the skills we’ve picked up at Drexel, we want to make this happen.
Our idea is to create an autonomous vehicle, termed the MANTA (Multipurpose Aquatic Navigator and Trash Annihilator), that travels along the surface of the water, picking up any debris in its path. Of course, this device will also be environmentally friendly: the MANTA won’t use any harmful chemicals, and a built-in object detection algorithm will make sure that it doesn’t disturb the peace of the river. We’ve spoken to several stakeholders of this project and are confident that the MANTA will make a difference.
Our goals for this project and the device are the following:
1. Design the vessel to be used by cities and municipalities worldwide for continuous operation in harbors, ports, rivers, and lakes.
2. Collect, compact, and dispose of floating surface debris through the use of a “V” shaped wingspan, conveyor, shredder, and receptacle that are intelligently designed and sustainable.
3. Operate autonomously using a GPS receiver and geofencing, with a mapped route path that is defined by the end user in on a computer or mobile interface over a communication protocol such as Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, or 3G.
4. Exceed parameters of existing operator driven vessels with improved efficiency through greater debris intake capacity, increased vessel runtime, and reduced operational manpower.
5. Compile data on conditions at the time of debris collection through use of sensors and cameras to generate trends and understanding regarding the state of the body of water when large accumulations of debris occur.
6. Serve as a modular platform for environmental monitoring, video surveillance, search-and-rescue operations, and other applications that could be created from the core device functionality as needed by the end user when traversing water environments.
Below is a 3-D concept design sketch showing the structure and primary components of the MANTA.
How You Can Help
With your help, we can build a viable prototype that is ready to test by February 2017. Donations of any size are welcome and greatly appreciated! Your generous contributions will cover costs of sensors, motors, and other electrical and mechanical parts. We will be utilizing all funds appropriately to ensure that nothing goes to waste.
If you can’t donate, that’s okay! You can still make an impact by spreading the word about our project. The more people we reach, the more successful this will be. We would love if you could share this page or our website in any way possible.
Your support is a contribution to environmental health and environmental awareness in our communities. Help us make the world a cleaner place!
Yours truly,
Alexander Ly
Daniel Diazdelcastillo
Elisabeth Wagner
Aryaman Sinha
Nicholas Philips
www.expeditionmanta.com
**Please send all inquiries to Alex via the email button provided above or at [email redacted].
---
About the Team
(Left to right) Alex, Dan, Elisabeth, Aryaman, and NickAlex is a senior at Drexel University pursuing accelerated B.S. and M.S. degrees in Mechanical Engineering. He has experience working at Boeing, Eaton Aerospace, and Exelon doing structural analysis and design engineering. Alex can’t swim, but would love to if plastic weren’t in the way.
Dan is senior at Drexel University pursuing a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering. He has experience working at Hyperloop One, Naval Research Laboratory, and NASA doing design engineering and R&D. Dan is passionate about creating devices to make the world a better place.
Elisabeth is a senior at Drexel University pursuing a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering and a minor in Engineering Policy Analysis. She has experience working at DSM Biomedical, PECO, and Sunoco Logistics doing project management. She spent four years on Drexel’s rowing team and has a personal connection to the health of the Schuylkill River.
Aryaman is a senior at Drexel University pursuing accelerated B.S. and M.S. degrees in Mechanical Engineering. He has experience working at Optofluidics, Kulicke & Soffa, and Drexel’s Microprocessor and Microcomputer Laboratory doing controls implementation and simulation. Aryaman intends to pursue a Ph. D. in Electrical Engineering upon graduation.
Nick is a senior at Drexel University pursuing a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering. He has experience working at Oceaneering Entertainment Systems, Disney World, and Disneyland doing stress and design engineering. Nick loves engineering because he can make people happier through his work, like designing rollercoasters!
Organizer
Alex Ly
Organizer
Philadelphia, PA