REU Site: Academic-year Robotics Research for Urban Public College Students

Cuny Brooklyn College, Brooklyn NY

Investigators

Abstract

The MetroBotics REU Site project provides funded academic year research opportunities for students from public urban institutions within the New York City area. The project engages undergraduates in robotics research in the Agents Lab at the City University of New York (CUNY). The Agents Lab focuses on effective coordination of robust human/multi-robot teams. A rough-and-ready, multi-agent approach is taken, in which small, low-cost robots collectively perform exploration tasks. This team-based strategy differs from state-of-the-art systems in which a single expensive, high-end robot is fielded---but if that robot fails, then the entire operation halts. The multi-agent alternative provides redundancy and requires a system that can coordinate in dynamic, uncertain environments, that can adapt to changing team composition, and can interact with an untrained human operator. The MetroBotics project provides opportunities for undergraduates to participate in this research and to experience the investigative process within a vibrant group setting over an extended timeframe. The target population for the MetroBotics project consists of students underserved by traditional REU Sites, frequently underrepresented in computing, who work while taking classes, who are first in their families to pursue higher education, and who take care of parents or who are parents themselves. These aspects present particular difficulties for students interested in research. MetroBotics strives to get motivated students out of mundane jobs and into the lab during the academic year, giving them a context to deepen technical skills acquired in the classroom and direct access to mentors who can support a dialogue concerning research career options.