SBIR Phase I: Cloud Based Laboratory for Remote Experiential Learning in Robotics

这个小企业创新研究（SBIR）第一阶段项目的更广泛的影响/商业潜力是使学生和学员能够从世界任何地方学习最先进的机器人实验室课程。拟议中的学习系统旨在整合为在线课程，有可能吸引超过一百万名学生参加。考虑到在线课程、中学和行业培训，潜在的市场规模达数亿美元。大学和高中的实验课程要求学生亲自坐在设备旁边。有了这个拟议中的远程机器人实验室，学生和学员只需打开他们的移动设备或电脑就可以上实验课。最重要的是，学生可以在全球任何地方、任何时间进行实验辅导。这项技术可以改变许多机构或公司无法获得的昂贵实验室设备。我们提供的系统包括一个机器人设备，目前正在美国宇航局的机器人中使用。因此，使用远程实验室的学生将学习使用现实世界中最先进的设备，这些设备对他们在STEM领域的职业生涯非常有价值。提出的项目将解决在线学习中的两个关键问题。首先，没有已知的商业实验室在线课程为学生提供远程动手实验。第二，无论学生目前的理解水平如何，向他们提供相同的内容。分布式通信、机器人软件和网络框架技术将集成在一起，提供对最先进的实验室设备的访问。第二个关键创新是根据个人需求量身定制内容的交付。创新，包括三个关键组成部分。一个将设备连接到服务器和个人移动设备的web框架，一个智能内容辅导系统，安排使用时间和关于技能获取和评估的学生评估。该团队预计，远程定位的效果略低于靠近设备的效果，但比只学习理论要好。

The broader impact/commercial potential of this Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project is to enable students and trainees to take state-of-the-art robotics laboratory classes from anywhere in the world. The proposed learning system is aimed to be incorporated as online courses, with the potential of being attended by more than a million students. The addressable market represents hundreds of millions of dollars considering online courses, secondary schools and industrial training. Laboratory courses in colleges and high schools require students to be physically present next to the equipment. With the proposed remote robotics laboratory, students and trainees can take laboratory classes just turning on their mobile devices or computers. Most importantly, the students can conduct the laboratory tutorials anywhere across the globe and at any time. This technology can be transformative for accessing expensive laboratory equipment not present in many institutions or companies. The system we provide consists of a robotic device currently being used inside NASA robots. Therefore, students using the remote laboratory will learn the use of real-world, state-of-the-art equipment that can be highly valuable for their job careers in STEM fields.The proposed project will solve two key problems in online learning. First, no known commercially available laboratory online course exists that provides students remote hands-on experimentation. The second is that the same content is delivered to all students regardless of their current understanding level. Distributed communications, robotic software and web framework technologies will be integrated to provide access to state-of-the-art laboratory equipment. The second key innovation is the delivery of content adaptively tailored to individual needs. The innovation, consists of three key components. A web framework that connects equipment to servers and personal mobile devices, an intelligent content tutoring system, scheduling usage times and student evaluation regarding skill acquisition and assessments. The team anticipates that being remotely located will be slightly less effective than being next to the equipment but superior than learning theory only.