A Framework for Autonomous Marine Microplastic Detection: Integrating SWIR-Equipped Drones and Intelligent Buoys

The pervasive issue of microplastic pollution in marine environments presents a critical global threat, necessitating advanced and scalable monitoring solutions [1]. This paper introduces a novel design framework for an autonomous system dedicated to the efficient detection and mapping of microplastics on sea surfaces [26]. The proposed system integrates a stationary sea buoy and a mobile drone. The buoy functions as an autonomous base station [30], equipped with environmental sensors [34], a Sony Short-Wave Infrared (SWIR) sensor, and an NVIDIA Jetson AGX Orin 64GB for onboard data processing [3]. The drone serves as the primary data acquisition platform [41], carrying a Sony SWIR IMX993 sensor [5] and an NVIDIA Jetson Orin NX 16GB [8]. This integrated approach [27] aims to maximize the scanned sea surface area within defined operational constraints [28], specifically a 45-minute drone flight time and a 25-meter maximum scan height [50], [6]. We detail a methodology encompassing the technological components, their functional interplay [27], and an intelligent data processing pipeline centered on the Adaptive SWIR Sensor Readout and Edge Processing (ASREP) algorithm [7]. The ASREP algorithm leverages the advanced processing capabilities of the NVIDIA Jetson Orin NX 16GB for real-time data processing and intelligent data acquisition [46]. A mathematical model for optimizing the scanned sea surface area is also presented, considering sensor characteristics and flight dynamics [97]. This framework emphasizes dynamic flight planning, informed by real-time environmental data [82], to maximize detection efficiency. This system is intended as a crucial tool for understanding and addressing marine microplastic pollution globally.