MCU-BASED OIL SPILL COLLECTOR

with MOBILE APPLICATION SYSTEM

A Design Project Proposal

Presented to the Faculty of the
Information and Communications Technology Program
STI College Cubao

In Partial Fulfilment
of the Requirements for the Degree
Bachelor of Science in Computer Engineering Program

Gio Mike G. Belga

Von Gilbert E. Domingo
Laurie F. Eliab
Alebelle Jane E. Paguican

March 2019

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ENDORSEMENT FORM FOR PROPOSAL DEFENSE

TITLE OF RESEARCH: MCU-Based Oil Spill Collector with Mobile Application

System

NAME OF PROPONENTS: Gio Mike Belga

Von Gilbert E. Domingo
Laurie F. Eliab
Alebelle Jane E. Paguican

In Partial Fulfilment of the Requirements

for the degree Bachelor of Science in Computer Engineering
has been examined and is recommended for Proposal Defense.

ENDORSED BY:

Engr. Ramil N. Madriaga

Thesis Adviser

APPROVED FOR PROPOSAL DEFENSE:

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Engr. Jayrold H. Baliwagan
Thesis Coordinator

NOTED BY:

Ms. Annabelle Hernandez

Program Head

March 2019
APPROVAL SHEET

This thesis proposal titled: MCU-Based Oil Spill Collector with Mobile Application System
prepared and submitted by Gio Mike Belga; Von Gilbert E. Domingo; Laurie F. Eliab; and
Alebelle Jane E. Paguican, in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Bachelor of
Science in Computer Engineering, has been examined and is recommended for acceptance an
approval.

Engr. Ramil N. Madriaga

Thesis Adviser

Accepted and approved by the Thesis Review Panel

in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of
Bachelor of Science in Computer Engineering

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 Engr. Philips Adams Engr. John Jericho Arquines
Panel Member Panel Member

Engr. Jayrold H. Baliwagan

Lead Panelist

Noted:

Engr. Jayrold H. Baliwagan Ms. Annabelle Hernandez

Thesis Coordinator Program Head

March 2019

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Page
Title Page i
Endorsement Form for Proposal Defense ii
Approval Sheet iii

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 Table of Contents iv
Introduction v-vi
Background of the problem 1
Overview of the current state of technology
Objectives of the study
Scope and limitations of the study
Literature Review
Review of related literature, studies or systems
Synthesis
Methodology
Methodology
Hardware/Software
Calendar of Activities
Budgetary Estimate
Human Resources
References

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 INTRODUCTION

Innovation keeps on growing in this era, a non-stop learning and change happens with the use of
micro-technology this contributes with the fast growth and change of the technologies in the
present. There are different field in the society that implement these changes. In the present society
micro-controlled products are present, there’s the CCTV camera, the drones, and the different
tracking equipment being used. In medicine, most of the technologies being used by the medical
staffs were also part of the products of innovation. Innovation copes up with the drastic growth of
population in the society, that helps to abide humanity, and how about in the ecological system?

According to an internet article of 71% of water and 96.5 percent of it is the ocean [USGS, 2016].
In this overwhelming majority of marine biodiversity invertebrates represented these, including
sea stars, crabs, corals, and many thousands of other multicellular and unicellular animals. Marine
invertebrates create and sustain invertebrate and vertebrate fisheries with huge commercial and
recreational economic importance, they form extensive structures such as coral reefs and the
formation of land helps in minimizing the wave action and protect shorelines from erosion and
storm damage, and without a doubt they are at the center of marine food webs.

Aside from the food and crops being consumed, more than 4.4 billion metric tons of petroleum
production from the year 1998 to 2017 [STIPP, 2017]. This includes the human induced sources
of oil in marine habitats include spills, discharges of treated and untreated ballast water from oil
tankers, emission from oil refineries, oil/water separators on production platforms, and terrestrial
sources such as pollutants from sewage treatment plants and runoff from roads and parking lots.
In an article in the internet, oil spill damages are frequently presented only in terms of impacts on
the so-called “charismatic megafauna” such as ducks, seals and seabirds and not in terms of
impacts on invertebrate communities, which are often unknown or poorly assessed [HARTIG,
2104]. The marine invertebrates are fundamentally important in sustaining marine biodiversity and
towards the balance of the ecosystem, it is important to understand what the impact of oil spills on
both marine invertebrates and the animals that depend on them.

The negative impacts of oil spills vary with the spill’s location and the magnitude as well as living
thing life stage, habitat, sensitivity, feeding mode, and ability to save themselves; to avoid from

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being contaminated. A huge damage and effects of oil on marine invertebrates in includes habitat
degradation; smothering; fouling of gill structures; impaired reproduction, growth, development,
feeding, immune response, and respiration; and disturbance of the food web [NOAA, 2018].

Nowadays, smartphones are among the restricted group of technologies provoking a true
revolution to our society. They allow us to always be connected, something that regular mobile
phones already did but clearly adding more types of connection, such as Wi-Fi, mobile data, and
all the services and apps available to smartphone users, such as social networks and
communication platforms [Costa, 2016].

Consequently, the proponent is focused on developing a machine, with the application of the
advancement of technology, specifically in the field of robotics that is conveniently advance. To
assist the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) on their response towards their oil spill collection work.
In addition, smartphone as one of the latest and commonly used technology will be used in this
project as the controller and enable to give a live data transmission.

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Background of the Problem

Unmanaged oil spills can lead a negative economic impact, pose significant threats to the
environment and the health community is at risk in either it has a direct or indirect contact. Many
countries have made standard safety norms for wastewater disposal that contain oils and those
technically came from petrochemical industries. Those type of industries and the government are
equipped with oil skimmers, or collector that is used to separate the oil spilled from disposed water.

There is this one of the largest and well-known oil spill that impose a huge threat, the Gulf or also
known as the Deepwater Horizon oil spill over the course of 87 days, the damaged Macondo well-
head, located around 5,000 feet beneath the ocean's surface, leaked an estimated 3.19 million
barrels (over 130 million gallons) of oil into the Gulf of Mexico—making the spill the largest
accidental ocean spill in history [Smithsonian Ocean, 2018].

In the Philippine history, the largest oil spill that has been recorded and happened in the year 2006.
This occurrence was caused by an oil tanker that sank and is leaking tons of fuel, affecting the
local marine and coastal ecosystems. The M/V Solar I, chartered by Petron, the Philippines’ largest
oil refiner, was carrying 2.4 million liters of oil to the southern island of Mindanao when it went
down in unusually rough waters off Guimaras Island, several hundred kilometers south of the
capital, Manila. 200,000 liters of oil have leaked from the tanker, contaminating a 24km2 area
[WFF, 2016].

The negative economic impact is a major effect of oil spill pollution. The ceasing of activities such
as fishing in the polluted waters that affects fishermen and fisheries if a very large amount of oil
is spilled. The property value is reduced, the reduction depends on the magnitude of the oil spill
and affects all the properties in a certain area exposed to oil spill pollution and to all the properties
that at risk of becoming polluted at some point in time.

Oil spills have direct impact on the environment. The consumption of polluted food is evitable
specially the animals. The damage in the habitats and nesting or breeding grounds of the wildlife
species is one of the most aggravate effect of an oil spill. The severity of environmental damage
depends on the amount of oil spilled, type and weight of oil, the seasonal migration of species of
wildlife and even the weather at the sea during and after the oil spill. The immediate oil sp`ill

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cleanup drastically increases the chance of survival of many species. When large populations are
affected, secondary impacts are seen in disruption of delicate food chains. [Environmental
Pollution Center, 2017]

Oil spills can also affect human health. These effects can depend on what kind of oil was spilled
and where (on land, in a river, or in the ocean). Other factors include what kind of exposure and
how much exposure there was. People who clean up the spill are more at risk. Problems could
include skin and eye irritation, neurologic and breathing problems, and stress. Not much is known
about the long-term effects of oil spills.

Based on the conducted interview with the Philippine Coast Guard, the problem that they
encounter is the heavy oil spill skimmer. Currently, the beneficiaries existing technology is purely
mechanical, for them to be able to use it they need to assemble it first before they can response to
the oil spill that occur. To add the immobilization of the mechanism is also difficult because of the
size and the type of materials being used.

With the current mechanism of the oil spill skimmer or collector, risk in the is evitable. Therefore,
the proponent sees these problems as rightful opportunities to develop a system that would promote
the environmental and people safety. Also, to provide the Philippine Coast Guard with increased
assistance for their clean up and monitoring component to monitor the path of the system.

Problem Statement:

Oil Spill has been a serious problem especially to small countries surrounded by water like the
Philippines. This project is designed for small and portable device to easily collect oil spill without
human interaction.

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Major Statement

How to design and develop an MCU-Based Oil Spill Collector with Mobile Application
System?

Based on the interview conducted held last March 26, 2019 on Admiral in Philippine Coast Guard
(PCG), their machine that collect oil spill is immobilized need a heavy transportation, also it can
only be used in “off-shore” areas and would take time to dispatch the machine in water. They also
said that they make contact directly from affected water and only use shovel and body equipment
when collecting the oil that carried downstream to the shoreline. They also confirmed that making
contact directly to affected water is very toxic and hazardous.

Minor Statement

How to create a system that will collect an oil spill with the use of belt conveyor type
skimmer?

Based on the study and articles, the proponent needs to integrate and connect the
mechanical devices to the needs to develop a mobile application that will be responsible to control
an oil spill collector for filtration or cleaning process and can navigate in the sea.

How to create and develop a micro controller unit based that will avoid human contact in
collecting oil spilled?

The proponents will develop a MCU based that allow the people to observe and collect the
oil even they are away from affected water. In this case people will not be expose to a hazardous
toxic fume. The proponents need to modify and create a device that can simply and effortlessly
dispatch and collect oil spill even in shallow sea. The proponents need to make sure that the device
will be more convenient to use compared to big and heavy oil spill collector machine.

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How to design a system boat monitoring camera for the device navigation system?

The proponent used two USB camera for surveillance and navigate that have a night vision
side by side of the boat skimmer for known where it is.

How to develop a mobile application system that will control and help the user to monitor
the current status of the device?

The proponent used two USB camera for surveillance and navigate that have a night vision
side by side of the boat skimmer for known where it is.

Overview of the Current Technology

Over the years, the transition of the technology improves. The innovation constantly changes
depending on the product that has been produced. Moreover, the changes that happen were the
technologically inclined change which gets smaller from time to time. With innovation in the field
of oil spill collector there are many types oil spill collector that exists based on the foreign research
conducted by the proponents - “Booms”- that are made out of plastic, metal or other materials,
which slow the spread of oil and keep it contained. It is commonly used to deflect oil away from
sensitive locations, such as shellfish beds or beaches. Another example of oil spill collector
technology is the “Skimmer” technology. It is a mechanical device that remove oil from the surface
of the water without addition of chemicals. This is commonly used in sorbent surface, weir,
suction, elevating and submersion. Depending on the physical mechanism employs.

Based on the proponents’ library research, a group of computer engineering students from STI
College - Fairview implemented a machine in the year 2016 which is also an Oil Spill Collector.
It has the capability to be able to operate in a specific area and it can be controlled through smart
phone, with the functionality of a micro-controller that is Arduino Uno. In addition, the existing
system uses a water pump to sip oil affected water from the sea and for its filtration module it uses
Polymer powder (chemical substance) to absorb oil from the water and ensures that there will be
no more oil left.

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Based on the interview, the Philippine Coast Guard uses heavy machinery as their equipment.
Currently they have different types of oil spill collector; drum type skimmer, booms, disk type
skimmers, and lastly a fire-proof skimmer.

Therefore, proponents seek to harness these technologies in order to come up and create an
automated machine for the Philippine Coast Guard. The device which be controlled automatically
with the use of mobile phone and can be configured manually. This automated mobile controlled
oil spill collector will collect oil easily using apps in mobile phones.

Objectives of the study

General Objective

To design and develop an MCU-Based Oil Spill Collector with Mobile Application System.

The proponent primary goal is to develop an Oil Spill Collector using a mobile controller that will
enable the user to control a mini boat to collect an oil spill in the water that have a camera attached for
monitoring, one of primary objective of this project is to give one of the solutions of the polluted water
specially on the Philippines.

Specific Objective

To create a system that will collect an oil spill with the use of belt conveyor type skimmer.

The Proponents will create an automated conveyor type skimmer for the Philippine Coast
guard to help in their oil spill operations. And to add to their aging inventory of heavy equipment
and oil skimmers.

To create and develop a micro controller unit based that will avoid human contact in
collecting oil spilled.

It is the proponents aim to help the coast guard from having a direct contact to the oil,
which would lessen the risk of acquiring eye and skin irritations and other known problems.

To design a system boat monitoring camera for the device navigation system.

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 An outdoor type camera capable of night vision will be used to navigate the prototype at
any time of the day and would continuously provide real time surveillance.

To develop a mobile application system that will control and help the user to monitor the
current status of the device.

The Mobile Application System will be used to the navigate the craft to the area affected
by the oil spill and to operate and monitor the current status of the oil skimmer.

Scope and Limitations of the Study

Scope

1. Microcontroller Module
This module features the use of a micro-controller; the Raspberry pi 3. It will serve as the main
brain and as all the input will always go through this module. This will be in charge to operate the
propulsion system, the camera to monitor the area of operation and to navigate through obstacles
and the oil collector for the collection of the oil.

2. Raspberry Pi Accessories Module

This module features the accessories of Raspberry Pi that includes the optical mouse, keyboard,
monitor that works as a display for the Raspberry Pi, an 32GB micro-SD card that is connected to
the Raspberry Pi USB ports, HDMI port and micro-SD slot.

3. Live Monitoring System Module

This module features a live monitoring system that has live video display to monitor the current
track of the device. The proponents will use USB Camera with Night Vision functionalities.

4. Relay module

This module allows the trainer to control some hardware components beyond the power capacity
of the Raspberry. In the trainer, there will be space for the NC and NO connection with other
components. The relay will serve as a switch to support and control some components up to 12V

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with the Raspberry Pi.

5. Power Source Module

This module features the power source needed in this prototype. This prototype is powered with a
battery.

6. Case Module

This module featured the protection of the Raspberry pi. As an open circuit microcontroller, the
proponent will use a shield for the raspberry pi and a raspberry pi case in order to protect the
sockets, GPIO ports and the whole microcontroller.

7. Propulsion Module

This module features the MFA 919D 440 motor that will drive the whole project. This component
is also known as a propeller to create the propulsion for the prototype’s movement. It will also be
used as the main component of the oil skimmer.

8. Container Module

This module features the container of the collected spilled oil. The proponent will use a small tank
as the container of this prototype. A PCV for the lesser density added to the prototype and easier
to carry, especially when it is almost full.

9. Application Module

This module features the prototypes’ application that allows user to control the device. The
application also allows the viewing of the live feed, the status of the container, battery level, et al.
This module allows the user to configure and check the device time to time. The connection and
transferring of data are done over a WI-FI connection.

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10. Hull Module

This module features the mainframe of the device. The main hull of the prototype is made from
buoy material. It is shaped like an arc carrying in the middle the container of the oil spill and the
romper in front aligned with the container. like arc shaped body capable of withstanding waves
and would safely carry all the components.

11. Skimming Module

The Oil skimmer will be composed of an electric type motor which will produce the needed
spinning action which is connected to a metallic disk or a conveyor belt that will slowly lift the oil
upon contact.

12. Microcontroller Module

This module features the use of a micro-controller; the Raspberry pi 3. It will serve as the main
brain and as all the input will always go through this module. This will be in charge to operate the
propulsion system, the camera to monitor the area of operation and to navigate through obstacles
and the oil collector for the collection of the oil.

13. Raspberry Pi Accessories Module

This module features the accessories of Raspberry Pi that includes the optical mouse, keyboard,
monitor that works as a display for the Raspberry Pi, an 32GB micro-SD card that is connected to
the Raspberry Pi USB ports, HDMI port and micro-SD slot.

14. Live Monitoring System Module

This module features a live monitoring system that has live video display to monitor the current
track of the device. The proponents will use Swann Pro Series PRO-T891 5MP Outdoor Dome
Camera with Night Vision functionalities.

15. Relay module

This module allows the trainer to control some hardware components beyond the power capacity
of the Raspberry. In the trainer, there will be space for the NC and NO connection with other

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components. The relay will serve as a switch to support and control some components up to 12V
with the Raspberry Pi.

16. Power Source Module

This module features the power source needed in this prototype. This prototype is powered with a
battery.

17. Case Module

This module featured the protection of the Raspberry pi. As an open circuit microcontroller, the
proponent will use a shield for the raspberry pi and a raspberry pi case in order to protect the
sockets, GPIO ports and the whole microcontroller.

18. Propulsion Module

This module features the MFA 919D 440 motor that will drive the whole project. This component
is also known as a propeller to create the propulsion for the prototype’s movement. It will also be
used as the main component of the oil skimmer.

19. Container Module

This module features the container of the collected spilled oil. The proponent will use a small tank
as the container of this prototype. A polyvinyl chloride for the lesser density added to the prototype
and easier to carry, especially when it is almost full.

20. Application Module

This module features the prototypes’ application that allows user to control the device. The
application also allows the viewing of the live feed, the status of the container, battery level, et al.
This module allows the user to configure and check the device time to time. The connection and
transferring of data are done over a WI-FI connection.

21. Hull Module

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This module features the mainframe of the device. The main hull of the prototype is made from
buoy material. It is shaped like an arc carrying in the middle the container of the oil spill and the
romper in front aligned with the container. like arc shaped body capable of withstanding waves
and would safely carry all the components.

22. Skimming Module

The Oil skimmer will be composed of an electric type motor which will produce the needed
spinning action which is connected to a metallic disk or a conveyor belt that will slowly lift the oil
upon contact.

Limitations

1. Oil Density

Buoyancy of a material in the water is important to be measured. Basing on the size of the
prototype the oil density being carried is lessen for a better functionality. Therefore, the type of oil
became a great factor because of its intended capacity.

2. Limited range

This prototype is a micro-controlled device with the use of raspberry pi. Raspberry pi will be
connected to a WI-FI a wireless internet connection. That will allow the user to sync the data
rendered by the raspberry to the user, through the application in the mobile device and track its
location. The WI-FI has a has limited range itself, therefore this prototype is controlled in a near
range or is dependent on the internet connection. When it comes in the open seas, the network
availability of the user is needed to be checked first.

3. Small compartment for the collected oil

The prototype size of the prototype is the dependable factor for the compartment of the oil. Due to
the small-scale size the system is currently capable of storing a small amount of oil.

4. Manual cleaning and maintenance

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This prototype is incapable of cleaning and disposing the collected oil manually. Maintenance is
needed to be done manually to clean all the oil collected will be remove and replaced manually.
The manual method must be rigorously to be done to maintain its best performance and
functionality.

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 LITERATURE REVIEW

Local Studies

Automated Oil Spill Collector (2016)

A group of Computer Engineering students from STI College Fairview developed an Oil Spill
Collector that has the capability to be able to operate in a specific area and it can be control through
smart phone. The system has used a water pump to sip oil water in the sea. In addition, for the
filtration it uses Polymer powder (chemical substance) to absorb oil from water that ensures that
there will be no more oil to be drain back in the sea. (Tabas, Alamis, Lega, & Espaiden, 2016)

The proponent will include; the controlled by a smart phone and the use of Polymer powder for
the filtration. The advantage of the developed system from this project is that the proponent will
make an automated oil spill collector easier and more advanced by making this a no man-controlled
oil spill collector.

Firefighter Drone (2017)

A group of computer engineering students from STI College Fairview successfully developed a
fire-fighter unnamed aerial vehicle (UAV). It is multi-copter with a camera built for the pilots’
vision and a pressure pump system for spraying liquid that can help quell the flames. (Castellano,
Castillo, Cajigas, & Hill, 2017)

The similarities of the proposed system to the said project is it will automatically feed a video
through the camera build in. It also has the capability to send an SMS to notify if the container is
already full.

Micro-Controller Based Solar Powered Electric Pedicab (2012)

In STI College Cubao, there are some student-made a micro-controller based solar powered
electric pedicab. The primary purpose of this project is to make an easier navigation experience
and to lessen energy consumption concerning fuel and electricity. To eliminate the unpleasant
experience and the effect of it in our environment. (De Vera, Maranan , & Uy, 2012)

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The students of STI College Cubao compose this past thesis project. Their project is focused to
help the conserve energy and utilizing the fast growth development of technology. This may not
related to the proposed system of the proponent, but the proponent would like to adopt the
mechanism of having a solar-powered vehicle. The proponents are using a power supply and an
inverter for the system

Foreign Studies

A Swimming-Bot to Sniff Out Water Pollution (2017)

In another county, a team developed a new bio-inspired robot. The Swiss research team develops
it; this development can be outfit with different chemical and biological sensors that allow it to
zero in on sources of aquatic contaminants. (Lauterbacher, 2017)

The proposed system also involves and allow the user to check the condition of the water. That is
why the proponent will include this feature in the proposed system to monitor and have a data
acquisition to be directly save in the email of the registered user.

FishPi Proof-Of-Concept Vehicle (POCV) (2015)

FishPi Proof-Of-Concept Vehicle (POCV) is a project with the goal of doing just that crossing the
Atlantic, using the Raspberry Pi to pilot the craft.

The proponent will imply the functionality of having the Raspberry Pi microcontroller to pilot the
intended design system. The proponent added a GPS Module that will provide the location where
the device can be located, and this is helpful for the proponent proposed system. The proposed
system will use a GPS Module that will provide the location where it can provide the location.

Synthesis

As the fast change and improvement with technology, the constant development of the
microcontroller to bide the humanity in such difficult situation that can put health at risk. In this
chapter, it has foreseen that there are related designs to the proposed system, the MCU-Based
Automated Oil Spill Collector using Raspberry Pi 3 has some advantages over the related

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literatures mentioned above and some give us other ideas. This project will include the controlled
by a smart phone as per the prominent use of the course pilot of the designed project. The use of
Polymer powder for the filtration will be also implied to separate the oil from water and to avoid
the spoilage of the collected oil. The features of the proposed system can monitor the condition of
the water, before and after the oil spill collection. Live viewing as the user can monitor the course
and the track using a mobile phone and a GPS module. Therefore, the proposed system would be
helpful to provide an aid and assistance to the human resource that risks their health for this kind
of job.

METHODOLOGY

This chapter will discuss the system methodology, the design specifications which are the
hardware and software components and the diagrams used for the system. The proponents will be
using the Prototyping Model, Block Diagram and State Transition Diagram for the development
of the system.

Overview of the Project

Oil spill collector is an enclosure of a micro-controlled components with different module. The
design should be user-friendly and serves as an aid for the human to lessen its direct contact to the
contaminated oil spill part of the ocean. Marines or the coast guard assign for this task must also
keep track of their health. The design project is specifically designed for the "Philippine Coast
Guard" to help and replace their current system of cleaning the ocean. The system is manipulated
by a microcontroller to automatically collect the oil spill as being controlled by the user. The
proponent also includes a camera module to have access and see through the way; to become the
vision of the design project. A proximity module is attached to the container to send warning to
the user whenever it is almost full to be aware and prevent the spillage.

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Data Gathering

Library Research

The proponent gathered and analyzed the necessary data from the different libraries of the
following school libraries; STI College - Cubao, STI College - Fairview, Technological Institute
of the Philippines - Quezon City, Technological Institute of the Philippines - Manila. From the
conducted library research, the proponents were able to come up with useful ideas and possibilities
for the thesis project. For further information the proponent would like to conduct another research
in the future, for the documentation and the design making of the thesis project.

Internet Research

The proponent conducted a massive internet research from different websites which provided
helpful information in the development of the design project. Those gathered information
contributed well to the future of the Oil Spill Collector. Most of the information for the designed
thesis project and the Raspberry Pi microcontroller came from the Internet, especially when it
comes to the functionalities.

Planning

As an aspiring engineer, planning is essentially stage in the development of any project. The
proponents ensure that every aspect of the design project is fully considered, focused, evaluated
and examined.

Interview

The proponent interviewed the Philippine Coast Guard Officer and the NOSCOP.

Hardware and Software Components

Hardware Components

Hardware components are the materials needed for the development and integration of the
architecture system of the prototype.

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Microcontroller

Microcontroller is a small device that has peripherals, processor and memory, that can be used to
function the different modules or sensor. The raspberry pi microcontroller is a credit card sized
computer which can be plugged into a monitor or tv and uses a USB keyboard and mouse, to
configure or navigate it. This serves as the main control unit of the system.

Camera

An eye beyond the distance. This component will help the user to keep an eye to the system
rearview. Onboard camera is attached to this system and this will visualize the current status of
the situation.

Motor

This component is important to this system. This serves as the drive the system to the user desired
area.

Bladed nozzle propeller

The material used to create the propulsion.

Skimmer

The main component in the proponent prototype will be a blanket belt or a belt type skimmer. This
type of skimmer will continuously spin to separate the oil from the water.

Raspberry Pi Accessories

All the accessories needed to use the raspberry pi (Monitor, keyboard, mouse and 8gb micro SD
card).

Software Components

The system composed of different programs and series of instructions to manage a process.

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Raspbian

Raspbian is a free operating system based on Debian optimized for the Raspberry Pi hardware. An
operating system is the set of basic programs and utilities that make your Raspberry Pi run.
However, Raspbian provides more than a pure OS: it comes with over 35,000 packages, pre-
compiled software bundled in a nice format for easy installation on your Raspberry Pi.

Android Studio

Android studio is the official IDE (Integrated Development Environment) or tool for developing
application exclusively for Android platform. It has an editor tool for developing creative UI and
emulators for different versions to test and simulate sensors without having actual Android device.

Development Methodology

Figure 1: Prototyping Model

Requirement Gathering and Analysis

This part of the diagram shows the general plan of the project, the basic and critical requirements
should be analyzed to develop the project in order.

Interview

An interview is a conversation that seeks to gather information between

researcher/proponents and specific person involved. In an interview, a series questions are

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 asked, and answers are given related to the study. To support the need to create the oil spill
collector, the proponents conducted an interview to the different government agencies
personnel. The information gathered was used to develop the prototype and help the
proponents in this documentation of the study.

Internet and Library Research

Books being the most formidable, accessible, common and reliable source of information
especially on research paper. Contains the most valuable information that are not usually
found or unclearly citated on the internet. Having the internet as one of the easiest access
it contains most of the information however these are inconsistent since everyone alter this
data. Though, internet serves time and is cost effective because information is just a click
away. Since the thesis documentation requires facts, the proponents performed a research
using internet and libraries to gather reliable information. This information are facts and
explanation of actual components and other things related to the study.

Quick Design

In this phase, when requirements are known, a preliminary design or quick design for the system
is created, it only includes the important aspects of the system, which gives an idea of the system
to the user.

Block Diagram

The proponents created a block diagram to indicate the flow or the process of the whole
system including the materials and components of the system, it helps to understand better
the process on how it was connected and the function of every mechanical components.

State Transition Diagram

The proponents used a State Transition Diagram (STD), to give explicit details in every
component that was connected to the system on how to transit and stated to one another.

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 Architectural Design

The proponents used the architectural design that the components of the system and unifies
them into a coherent and functional system.

Building Prototype

In this phase, the proponents will start building or assembling the prototype of the project using
the block diagrams, state transition diagram (STD) and architectural design to achieve the desired
output. After building the prototype, a preliminary test was done to check if the project is working
properly. This technique is used to determine wherein user needs are extracted, presented, and
defined by building a working model.

Customers Evaluation

In this phase, a pre- trial of the devices was presented in order to gather suggestions, comments,
as well as recommendations. To come up with the perfect engineering product, some features were
added to the system and some modifications were done to the system after the evaluation of the
user which will be used in the next phase. After the construction of the electronic parts of the
project, prototype evaluation is a step-by-step process of collecting, recording and organizing
information about the projects results, in getting recommendations, feedbacks and reaction as its
purpose. This includes short-term outputs or immediate results of activities and a longer-term
project outcome by correcting errors encountered.

Refining Prototype

In this phase, all the comments, suggestion, and recommendations gathered from beneficiary,
adviser and the feedback of the evaluators were taken into consideration in order to meet the
requirements of the project. They served as basis in changing some parts of the project to get the
desired output and satisfy the user/s before the product will be delivered or introduced. In every

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stage on the usability engineering process, different sorts of feedback and evaluation are used to
improve the designs. At this stage, some of the students chose to go beyond paper prototyping;
one or two persons programmed a partial operational new interface for the library catalogue, and
other used illustration or presentation software to demonstrate their ideas in a more polished way
than the paper prototype.

Engineering Product

After improving, modifying, and refining the project, it will be introduced to the market and should
satisfy the expectations of evaluators or those who gave their comments and suggestions.
Maintenance will be carried out on a continuing basis to prevent large scale problems that may
arise in the future. In this stage, the product is made and perfected.

Maintenance

The maintenance includes the checking of the possible problems and a ready- made
solutions. It can also apply an upgrade to maintain the functionality of Oil Spill Collector.

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 Figure 2: State Transition Diagram

MCU-Based Oil Spill Collector with Mobile Application State Transition Diagram

The user connects to the prototype through wifi with the use of mobile phone to navigate
the boat and to turn on/off the oil skimmer. The pH sensor attached to the oil skimmer will test the
pH level of the water and would then send data to the mobile to notify the user whether the oil
skimming still needs to be continued. The camera provides real time surveillance and continuously
sends it to the mobile.

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 Figure 3: Flowchart

MCU-Based Oil Spill Collector with Mobile Application System Flowchart

This diagram shows the process of operating the oil skimmer. The user will have to navigate the
craft to the area of where the oil skimming operation will take place, the user will then operate the
oil skimmer with the use of On and Off switch. The oil skimming will continue until the oil has
been successfully lifted and strained out of the water. The water will be tested after and if the water
hasn’t cleared yet then the oil skimming process will be repeated to take out the remaining oil in
the water.

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