Abstract Summary
With the rapid decline of coral reefs across the globe, the pressure is on to make reef restoration scalable. Current outplanting methods confront three main bottlenecks: 1) a turbulent working environment, 2) inefficient multi-step protocols, and 3) time-consuming and physically demanding steps. Improvements in outplanting throughput and reliability can be achieved through reduction and streamlining of diver-coral interaction time. The “Rock Lobster Out-planting System” is a concept that was originally prototyped at the 5th International Marine Conservation Congress. It was developed to provide an end-to-end coral outplanting system that allows for quick attachment and removal of coral fragments: from the nursery to the target reef. Early usability and workflow estimates indicate that the Rock Lobster System could reduce task time from 2 minutes to 15 seconds in the nursery “frag mounting” stage (reducing 5 steps to 3 steps). It could also reduce the “outplanting” stage from 3 minutes to 45 seconds (reducing 9 steps to 4 steps). By minimizing tool switching and incorporating “one-hand-only” operations, the needs for the greater dexterity of experienced divers is reduced. Manufacturing and implementation considerations will be discussed, followed by updates on development and ongoing efforts to improve the size, usability, and scalability. The presented work was conducted with the support of the Conservation X Labs and the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).
