System design of a litter collecting robot

Litter in public places is a serious problem. Not only because of the obvious dirtiness, but also because litter attracts more litter and can cause the winding down of an area leading to large negative financial and social consequences. To avoid this, public areas have been kept clean by humans. In this paper, we apply systems architecting and engineering techniques and among others a tool from TRIZ in a multidisciplinary student project. Goal is to develop a Litter Collecting Robot for operation in public places. Through an investigation of the litter problem and subsequent development of a product vision, we plan four scenarios for robotic cleaning. The paper treats the litter problem, the architecting phase, and will show innovative technical details, including a working integrated result: a proof of principle of the robot. The project was executed by students from various disciplines, supervised by two University staff members. On a meta-level –regarding systems design and engineering– the combination of systems architecting and engineering principles, TRIZ tools, FunKey architecting and multidisciplinary communication will be treated. © 2012 Published by Elsevier Ltd. Selection Design; Architecture; Robotics; Application; Student work