How Robots Are Helping Clean Up the Environment GA S REGULAR Menu Lifewire Tech for Humans Newsletter! Search Close GO News > Smart & Connected Life
How Robots Are Helping Clean Up the Environment
They’re not just for carpets anymore
By Sascha Brodsky Sascha Brodsky Senior Tech Reporter Macalester College Columbia University Sascha Brodsky is a freelance journalist based in New York City. His writing has appeared in The Atlantic, the Guardian, the Los Angeles Times and many other publications. lifewire's editorial guidelines Updated on July 30, 2021 11:14AM EDT Fact checked by Rich Scherr Fact checked by Rich Scherr University of Maryland Baltimore County Rich Scherr is a seasoned technology and financial journalist who spent nearly two decades as the editor of Potomac and Bay Area Tech Wire. lifewire's fact checking process Tweet Share Email Tweet Share Email Smart & Connected Life Mobile Phones Internet & Security Computers & Tablets Smart Life Home Theater & Entertainment Software & Apps Social Media Streaming Gaming Key Takeaways
A wide variety of robots are being designed to remove debris from beaches and in the ocean. A new beach-cleaning robot called BeachBot can autonomously pick up cigarette butts. The four-wheeled robot being developed by BC-Robop in Japan follows volunteers as they comb the beach for trash. Techtics Robots cleaners are making people’s houses tidier and could even play a part in helping to improve the environment. A new beach-cleaning robot called BeachBot rolls along the sand, picking up cigarette butts. It’s one of a growing number of autonomous robots that could help save the planet from trash and other contaminants. "Robots capable of moving along the shoreline, identifying trash, and collecting it could make a big impact on coastal environments by routinely performing this job," Jeffrey Laut, the CEO of Manifold Robotics, which makes autonomous boats that collect environmental data, told Lifewire in an email interview. "Think of something like a Roomba cleaning your floor, but on a much larger scale. Coupling that with solar energy could even allow them to do it for fairly long periods of time." Roomba for Beaches
Edwin Bos and fellow entrepreneur Martijn Lukaart have built a robot that roams beaches and can spot cigarette butts, pluck them out of the sand, and dispose of them in a safe bin. The BeachBot uses artificial intelligence (AI) to learn how to better find the strewn filters, even if they’re partially buried in the sand. The BeachBot makers have a partnership with the North Sea Foundation and will do a demonstration of their robots on August 5, 11, and 15, during an upcoming BeachCleanUp Tour. "We foresee a future where humans and machines will work together in a symbiotic way," Bos told Lifewire in an email interview. "This could become a trend for outdoor cleaning challenges and perhaps also for other global issues where human-robot interaction could disrupt the current standard." The BeachBot isn’t the only beach cleaning robot roaming the sands. There’s also the four-wheeled robot being developed by BC-Robop in Japan that follows volunteers as they comb the beach. The humans gather trash in a basket on runners pulled by the robot. The robot can recognize people and automatically follow them as they move around looking for trash. Researchers plan to equip the robot with a mechanical arm so it can pick up trash on its own. Bots to the Rescue
The BeachBot is one of several projects using robots to clean the environment; many of them focused on the water. A popular application for small-scale boats is to gather floating debris in waterways, Laut said. Other robotic devices are geared towards cleaning up oil spills. Cleaning beaches is more complicated than it seems. A robot needs to identify something as garbage and collect it, while leaving things like seaweed alone, Laut pointed out. "Although this has always been easy for a person to do, it's only recently becoming a possibility for a robot," Laut said. "So by equipping a robot with a camera, computer, and the appropriate software, it could make intelligent decisions on its own as to what should be collected as garbage, and what should be left on the beach." kmatija / Getty Images New technology could make environmental cleaning robots even more effective. "Advances in computer vision and deep learning are allowing robots to intelligently identify objects that they see," Laut said. "The cost of the hardware to do this has been coming down, allowing it to potentially be deployed on a larger scale than previously possible." Some interior cleaning robots also are designed with the environment in mind. For example, Avidbots’ autonomous floor scrubber, Neo, offers a water flow rate system designed to help minimize water use. The robot also can provide data about water consumption through web software. "We believe technology will continue to be an essential component to transition societies into a greener, cleaner, and pollution-free environment for all of us," Faizan Sheikh, the CEO Avidbots, told Lifewire in an email interview. "Another clear illustration of robots helping the planet is the ability to ensure air at facilities is free of dust, dirt, debris, and biological contaminants. Neo does this by autonomously removing contaminants from the ground which would otherwise end up on other surfaces or in the air." Was this page helpful? Thanks for letting us know! Get the Latest Tech News Delivered Every Day Subscribe Tell us why! Other Not enough details Hard to understand Submit More from Lifewire Tesla Robot: News, Rumors, and Estimated Price, Release Date, and Specs The 9 Best Metal Detectors of 2022 10 Best Free Beach Wallpapers of 2022 Rise of the Home Robot What Is a Robot? The 10 Best Robot Vacuums of 2022 How to Get Sand Out of Your Camera Lens Is the Galaxy Z Flip 3 Waterproof? Garrett AT Pro Metal Detector Review: A Top of the Line All-Terrain Metal Detector How to Dispose of Old Keyboards The 9 Best Robotics for Kids, Tested by Lifewire How to Properly Dispose of Batteries The 9 Best Waterproof Bluetooth Speakers of 2022 What Is a Roomba and How Does It Work? The 7 Best Sleep Apps of 2022 Fisher F22 Metal Detector Review: Enjoy All-terrain Detecting with this Submersible Search Coil Newsletter Sign Up Newsletter Sign Up Newsletter Sign Up Newsletter Sign Up Newsletter Sign Up By clicking “Accept All Cookies”, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device to enhance site navigation, analyze site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts. Cookies Settings Accept All Cookies