Expanding the Engineering Technician Pipeline for Industry 4.0

使用智能技术的制造自动化被称为第四次工业革命或工业4.0。随着制造商部署大量互联设备来支持智能制造，这种自动化正在给工作场所带来重大变化。因此，需要新的教育计划来培养能够实施和维护这些新技术的熟练技术人员。在俄亥俄州中部，雇主们表示需要高技能的工程技术人员来支持他们的Industry 4.0努力。其中一项努力是实施协作机器人或Cobot，它们的开发目的是在共享工作空间中与工人和其他数字设备互动。工业中对Cobots的需求增加，需要提高学生对技术职业的认识，并开发新的技能培训机会。该项目将建立在现有外展模式的基础上，通过基于项目的学习方法帮助高中生和高中教师了解工业4.0技术。此外，它还将开发协作机器人课程，实施新的协作机器人实验室设施，并创建行业4.0证书。总体而言，该项目的努力预计将增加工业4.0准备就绪的技术人员的数量。该项目的目标是增加能够实施和维护工业4.0技术的熟练工程技术人员的数量。这个项目将建立在现有的工业4.0学习资源的基础上，并为协作机器人开发新的课程。为了支持工程技术课程的这些变化，将建立一个新的协作机器人实验室进行动手培训。在行业合作伙伴的投入下，该项目将通过开发行业4.0证书计划来扩大现有工人的机会。招聘工作将每年将该地区四所学校的高中生和教师吸引到三所制造业暑期学院，在那里，学生和教师将在两个不同的轨道上学习工业4.0技术。这些机构将帮助中学生为技术教育项目做好准备，并帮助教师设计包括工业4.0技术的课程。将通过混合方法对项目进行评估，使用内容分析和描述性统计来评估项目交付成果和成果。该项目由高级技术教育计划资助，该计划专注于为推动国家经济的先进技术领域培养技术人员。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。

Automation of manufacturing using smart technology has been called the fourth industrial revolution or Industry 4.0. This automation is making major changes to the workplace as manufacturers deploy a host of connected devices to support smart manufacturing. As a result, new educational programs are needed to prepare the skilled technicians who can implement and maintain these new technologies. In central Ohio, employers have expressed a need for highly skilled engineering technicians to support their Industry 4.0 efforts. One such effort is implementation of collaborative robots or cobots, which were developed to interact with workers and other digital devices in a shared workspace. The increased demand for cobots in industry creates a need for raising students’ awareness of technical careers and for developing new skills training opportunities. This project will build on an existing outreach model to help high school students and high school teachers learn about Industry 4.0 technologies through a project-based learning approach. In addition, it will develop collaborative robotics courses, implement a new collaborative robotics lab facility, and create an Industry 4.0 certificate. Overall, the project efforts are expected to increase the number of Industry 4.0-ready technicians.The goal of this project is to increase the number of skilled engineering technicians who can implement and maintain Industry 4.0 technologies. This project will build on existing learning resources for Industry 4.0 and develop new courses for collaborative robotics. To support these changes in the engineering technology course offerings, a new collaborative robotics lab will be established for hands-on training. With input from industry partners, the project will expand opportunities for incumbent workers by developing an Industry 4.0 certificate program. Recruitment efforts will bring high school students and teachers from four schools in the region to the College for three Manufacturing Summer Institutes each year, where students and teachers will learn about Industry 4.0 technologies in two separate tracks. The institutes will help prepare secondary students for technical education programs and help teachers design curricula that include Industry 4.0 technologies. The project will be evaluated through a mixed methods approach, using content analysis and descriptive statistics to assess project deliverables and outcomes. This project is funded by the Advanced Technological Education program that focuses on the education of technicians for the advanced-technology fields that drive the nation’s economy.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.