About This Project
My Robotics For the Streets project has a mission to use open-source robotics to increase diversity in STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) by increasing access, sharing knowledge, and lowering costs. The flexibility and modularity of the Flower∞Bots platform means that it can meet the needs of a wide range of users from novice to expert. My hypothesis is that this robot can meet the needs of academics from teaching to service to research due to the modularity of the platform.
Ask the Scientists
Join The DiscussionWhat is the context of this research?
The context of this project is to use building, wiring, and programming an open-source modular mobile robot to meet the needs of a diverse community of users. It is to normalize seeing more people using math, science, technology and engineering to reduce the barriers to access. It will allow more people to see themselves actually involved in STEM and to remove some of the stigma surrounding what people in STEM do, look like, or act like. It will build excitement about this work and what it has potential to be. It also fosters research, service, and education for academics, see links here:
Robotics Leads Social Innovation Without Border for the Future of Humanity
The Impact of Hardware and Open-Source Initiatives on Robotics
Low-Cost Open-Source Robotics for Education
What is the significance of this project?
The significance of this project is that it uses the multidisciplinary nature of robotics to get more people of all ages interested in STEM. Robotics is ideal for showing the intersections between science, technology, engineering, math, social science, human-robot interaction, sociology, the humanities and the arts. It meets the user at their interest level. It also allows teachers and academics to have access to a platform for service, teaching and research in order to create the thought leaders of tomorrow. This would not be possible without sharing knowledge in a community, lowering costs, increase access and availability to a platform that meets the user at their need and use level. By using an open-source plattorm, it can be modified to be suitable to a broad audience.
What are the goals of the project?
The goal for this research is to enable academics to meet their professional development goals with a low-cost, modular, flexible and accessible educational platform to engage in service, teaching, and research. There is also a secondary goal to democratize access to robotics technology for diverse populations. This project was started in July 2022 through a one-year open-source hardware trailblazer fellowship. The prototype robot was built and shipped out to a diverse community to evaluate. Based upon their feedback the platform is being redesigned and improved. The specific goals include
- design service, teaching, and research activities for redesigned robot
- ship redesigned robot platform to users
- users complete survey on how well it meets their individual goals
Budget
Since this project is completed open-source, the funds are used to create more robots to share with the community, support the repositories to share the knowledge such as websites, YouTube, Github, HacksterIO, and Instructables and to continue to market the platform to a broad audience through social media, listserves, and emails.
Endorsed by
Project Timeline
By December 2023 we hope to finish the final redesign of the Flower∞Bots platform including Lily∞Bot, Daisy∞Bot and Rosie∞Bot and share it with the community including teachers, academics, researchers, students, and makers.
Jun 30, 2023
Complete redesign and production of Lily∞Bot
Aug 31, 2023
Complete redesign and production of Daisy∞Bot
Oct 31, 2023
Complete redesignand production of Rosie∞Bot
Dec 31, 2023
Produce use cases, learning materials and code for all robots on YouTube, GitHub, HacksterIo and Instructables.
Meet the Team
Team Bio
My team includes my undergraduate research students. This includes sophomore to senior in mechanical, electrical, computer, software engineering and computer science majors.
Carlotta A. Berry
Carlotta A. Berry has two bachelor’s degrees in mathematics from Spelman College in Atlanta, GA, USA in 1992 and electrical engineering from Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta, GA, USA in 1993. She has a master’s degree from Wayne State University in Detroit, MI, USA in 1996 and PhD from Vanderbilt University in Nashville, TN in 2003.
She is professor and Dr. Lawrence J. Giacoletto Endowed Chair for Electrical and Computer Engineering at Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology (RHIT) in Terre, Haute, IN. Previously, she was an assistant professor at Tennessee State University, controls engineer at Detroit Edison, and controls engineer at Ford Motor Company. She is author of the Mobile Robotics for Multidisciplinary Study (Morgan & Claypool, 2012) and “Robotics for All Ages: A Standard Robotics Curriculum for K-16” (IEEE Robotics & Automation Magazine ( Volume: 23, Issue: 2, June 2016)). Her research interests include robotics education, human-robot interaction, and increasing marginalized and minoritized populations in STEM fields.
Dr. Berry is a member of the American Society of Engineering Education, National Society of Black Engineers and Society of Women Engineers. She was recipient of the 2023 IEEE Undergraduate Teaching Award, Society of Women Engineers 2022 Distinguished Engineering Educator Award, 2022 Distinguished Educator Award from the American Society of Engineering Education Electrical and Computer Engineering Division, 2022 Open Source Hardware Trailblazer Fellow, 2021 TechPoint Foundation for Youth Bridge Builder award, one of 30 Women in Robotics You Need to Know About 2020 by robohub.org, Reinvented Magazine Interview of the Year Award on Purpose and Passion, FIRST Indiana Robotics Gamechanger Award 2020, Women and Hi Tech Leading Light You Inspire Me Award 2018 and Insight Into Diversity Inspiring Women in STEM.
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