Board 97: Robots at Your Service: An Entrepreneurial and Socio-Technical ACL Course Module

Abstract

Abstract The advancement of robotics technology in recent years, coupled with AI and big data, helped ushering in the era of service robotics, where robots are no longer used in factory automation only but in close proximity and interaction with humans as assistants. The significant interests in humanoid robots and driverless cars exemplify this development trend. While courses on robotics have found their way into Mechanical Engineering curriculum, they are typically offered as electives and tend to be technically centric, not much time being afforded to address the social and ethical implications inherent in its applications. A course module, named ‘Robots at Your Service’, was developed to engage students to critically think about the social and ethical implications while performing technical research assignments and identifying new opportunities in robotic applications. Active collaborative learning (ACL), such as jigsaw and gallery walk, are used for effectively engaging students and promoting self-learning. Initial assessments of its first deployment in Spring 2018 showed positive outcomes for its feasibility. This module was developed for an undergraduate junior/senior elective course; however, its generic format makes it suitable for graduate level adoption as well.