REU Site: Robotics and Autonomous Systems

本科生研究体验(REU)的目标是让本科生参与横跨机器人和自主系统的多个领域的研究项目，包括社交辅助机器人、机器人学习、联网机器人和机器人数据处理。参与的教师导师涵盖了机器人学的尖端研究主题，并在各自领域建立了良好的基础。学生将获得解决一些最具挑战性的现代机器人和自主性问题的研究经验，并通过南加州大学其他教员的研讨会和外部实地访问，接触到REU网站范围以外的机器人研究，以帮助规划他们下一步的职业生涯。最终，目标是向一群来自传统上代表不足的群体的本科生灌输一种对研究社区的归属感。该网站将每年培训9名本科生，为期10周，具体目标是吸引来自三个关键人群的参与者：1)来自传统服务不足的学院和大学的有学术天赋的学生；2)女性；以及3)代表不足的少数族裔。REU项目的学生将与博士生和REU现场教师导师合作进行真正的研究项目。这些项目将经过精心设计，以确保学生能够随着项目的进展以及他们对机器人研究过程和领域的了解而获得相对独立的地位。REU网站将采用一项以综合利用为重点的评价计划，其中包括对方案进程和结果的持续评估。REU现场评估计划将及时向PIs提供形成性反馈，以便通过部署对学生参与者的项目前和项目中期评估调查，做出针对项目改进的数据知情决策。该网站由国防部与NSF REU项目合作支持。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

The goal of this Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) is for undergraduate students to participate in research projects that cross-cut multiple areas of robotics and autonomous systems, including socially assistive robotics, robot learning, networked robotics, and robotics data processing. The participating faculty mentors span the spectrum of cutting-edge research topics in robotics and are well established in their fields. Students will gain research experience in solving some of the most challenging modern robotics and autonomy problems and get exposure to robotics research beyond the scope of the REU site, through seminars by other USC faculty and external site visits, to aid in planning their next career steps. Ultimately, the goal is to instill a sense of belonging to the research community into a cohort of undergraduate students from traditionally underrepresented groups.The proposed site will train nine undergraduates for 10 weeks each year, with the specific goal of attracting participants from three key populations: 1) academically talented students from traditionally underserved colleges and universities; 2) women; and, 3) underrepresented minorities. The students in the REU program will pursue authentic research projects in collaboration with PhD students and REU Site faculty mentors. The projects will be carefully designed to ensure that students can achieve relatively independent status as the program progresses and as they learn about the research process and their area of robotics. The REU site will employ a comprehensive utilization-focused evaluation plan that includes ongoing assessment of programmatic processes and outcomes. The REU site evaluation plan will provide formative feedback to the PIs in a timely fashion so that data-informed decisions can be made toward program improvement through the deployment of pre- and mid-program evaluation surveys of student participants.This site is supported by the Department of Defense in partnership with the NSF REU program.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.