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SeaTrekker: a dual-mode USV for autonomous floating debris collection using YOLO and UWB localisation
Summary
Researchers built a robotic boat called SeaTrekker that uses smart cameras to spot and scoop up floating trash like bottles and cans from the water. In tests, it successfully collected debris both by remote control and on its own, offering a safer, low-risk way to clean up plastic pollution before it breaks down into microplastics that can contaminate seafood and drinking water. While still a prototype tested in a pool rather than the open ocean, this technology points toward more efficient ways to protect marine ecosystems and, by extension, the food and water humans depend on.
Growing plastic bottle consumption and insufficient waste management are accelerating the accumulation of floating plastic debris in the UAE seas, which causes degradation of marine ecosystems and threatens sustainability, livelihoods, and essential coastal resources. Eliminating the floating debris from the water surface will clear the waterways, improve marine life, upgrade water quality, reduce the burden of manual cleaning and improve environmental, ecological and public health. The objective of this work is to design an Unmanned Surface Vehicle (USV) to collect the floating waste from the water surface to offer efficient, low-risk alternatives to manned operations in the challenging aquatic environments. SeaTrekker operates in both tele-operated and autonomous modes, with a curved catamaran-style dual-hull design inspired by Bernoulli’s principle, to optimises hydrodynamic flow while guiding debris into a passive net-based intake system. It is integrated with YOLO-based object detection, Intel RealSense depth sensing, and UWB localisation to identify and retrieve floating objects such as soda cans, water bottles, wood piece, plastic bags and rubber items. Its modular aluminium structure and 3D-printed ABS hulls support sustainability and ease of assembly. Initially challenges such as water leakage and localisation drift were addressed with targeted improvements. During controlled testing in a 20 m × 10 m swimming pool environment, SeaTrekker collected 22 floating cans per 15-minute trial in tele-operated mode (average 1.47 cans/min; peak 10 cans/min). In autonomous mode, it retrieved 9 floating cans per 15-minute trial (average 0.60 cans/min; peak 2 cans/min). These capabilities will help remove floating debris effectively. Future enhancements will focus on improving autonomy, durability, and adaptability through measures such as waterproofing, GPS integration, safer battery systems, and expanding its dataset. These improvements will position SeaTrekker for real-world marine clean-up missions.