Session: MR-07-02

Paper Number: 142269

142269 - Applications With Autonomous Mobile Platforms and Robotic Arms for Experiential Learning and Research in Indoor and Outdoor Settings 

Automation and robotics have been a dominant theme in the funded project efforts with acronyms ECPA (Environmentally Conscious Precision Agriculture), AIRSPACES (Autonomous Instrumented Robotic Sensory Platforms to Advance Creativity and Engage Students), and more recently DREAM (Developing Robotic Explorations with Agrobots and Moonbots). National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA/USDA), Maryland Space Grant Consortium, and NASA MUREP Science and Technology Artemis Research (NASA MSTAR) have funded the projects. These projects have engaged undergraduate and graduate students from Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) disciplines and has helped diffuse compartmentalization of knowledge providing project participants an enriching and relevant university experience. Robotic applications within and outside the laboratory have played a pivotal role in engaging the students and driving the educational and research objectives of the proposed projects. The projects have embraced the historically black land grant mission of the campus located in the lower eastern where the agricultural needs and environmental concerns are paramount. The campus is also within close proximity of the NASA Wallops Flight Facility of the Goddard Space Flight Center. The projects serve the synergistic goals USDA that promote advanced technology driven environmentally friendly agricultural practices, and NASA's earth and space science mission objectives while championing diverse workforce development needs of the region, state, and the nation as a whole. This paper will highlight some of the efforts undertaken by the project team for developing and utilizing mobile robots and fixed-base robotic arms under the auspices of the extramurally funded proposals mentioned above.

Presenting Author: Abhijit Nagchaudhuri University of Maryland Eastern Shore

Presenting Author Biography: Dr. Abhijit Nagchaudhuri is currently a tenured professor in the Department of Engineering and Aviation Sciences at the University of Maryland Eastern Shore(UMES). Dr. Nagchaudhuri received his baccalaureate degree from Jadavpur University (India) with honors in mechanical engineering in 1983. Thereafter, he worked in a multinational industry for a little over three years before joining Tulane University as a graduate student in the fall of 1987. He received a master’s degree from Tulane University in 1989 and a doctoral degree from Duke University in 1992. He is a member of the American Society for Mechanical Engineers (ASME), the American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE), and, has also been involved with the American Society for Agricultural and Biological Engineers (ASABE). He is actively involved in teaching and research in the fields of (i) robotics and mechatronics, (ii) remote sensing and precision agriculture, and,(iii) biofuels and renewable energy. He has been involved with several extramurally funded projects as PI or Co-PI to support outreach, education, and research activities from various state, federal, and private agencies; served in leadership roles in professional societies; and has received several awards and certificates from his home institution as well as professional societies. He has published more than 90 refereed articles in journals, book chapters, and conference proceedings. He has been involved with several divisions of ASEE including the Minorities in Engineering Division (MIND), and served as the division chair of the Energy Conversion, Conservation, and Nuclear Engineering Division (ECCNED) in 2016. He is a member of the technical committee of IEEE/ASME Mechatronics and Embedded Systems Application(MESA) and has served as the division chair in 2022. He serves as a program committee member of the Maryland Space Grant Consortium.

Authors:

Abhijit Nagchaudhuri University of Maryland Eastern Shore
Jesuraj Pandya University of Maryland Eastern Shore
Lance Ward University of Maryland Eastern Shore
Brian Butler University of Maryland Eastern Shore
Jackson Cuppett University of Maryland Eastern Shore
Parker Wilson University of Maryland Eastern Shore