eng Science and Education Publishing Journal of Computer Sciences and Applications 2328-725X 2018-06-04 6 1 38 42 10.12691/jcsa-6-1-5 JCSA2018615 article Robert L. Williams II 1 Jesus Pagan 2 Mechanical Engineering Department, Ohio University, Athens, Ohio, USA Engineering Technology and Management Department, Ohio University, Athens, Ohio, USA This paper presents a novel method for effective, economical, energy-efficient algae harvesting from large (1-4 acre) outdoor circulating raceway pond systems: a portable 4-cable-suspended robot. Algae, used as an alternative energy crop to produce biofuels (and other consumer products), still remains too expensive. One of the greatest expenses in processing algae is the harvesting process. To replace the typical energy-intensive pumping of the entire pond water through algae filters, we propose using a cable-suspended robot to collect algae, which largely then drains of water while the robot translates the product to a collection point. An additional benefit of our concept, in additional to lower harvesting cost, is that the algae still growing in the pond is not shocked as in the current pumping process, leading to better, healthier yields. Further, the proposed robot system is portable, capable of harvesting multiple ponds while algae continues to grow. http://pubs.sciepub.com/jcsa/6/1/5/jcsa-6-1-5.pdf cable-suspended robot algae biofuels algae harvesting four-cable pseudostatics positive cable tensions kinematics singularities stiffness