RAISE Project (Stanford Robotics Center Summer Research Program (SRC SRP))

Stanford Robotics Center Summer Research Program (SRC SRP) was a 6 week paid research internship for high school students aged 16 or older interested in Robotics/Engineering. The internship targets first generation, low income, and racially minoritized students with the goal of providing real-world experiences in science and engineering research. Students were assigned research projects in labs associated with the Stanford Robotics Center, paired with a lab mentor to help guide them, and given demos on different projects in the lab. They were also given the opportunity to present their work/learnings at a poster session at the end of the program. I handled every aspect of the program: Fundraising ($26,000), Partnerships with schools and nonprofit organizations, Educational content, Mentor recruitment and training, Student wellness, Program administration and communications.

During the program, students:

• Performed engineering research at a university
• Gained college readiness skills
• Learned design thinking processes
• Learned technical skills associated with the lab research and how to use special equipment and tools in the lab
• Interacted and learned from world-class researchers

Projects Students Worked on in their assigned labs (Final presentations can be viewed here):

• Design and Fabrication of Vine Robots and Novel Mechanisms for Distal Fixture Attachment
• Characterizing Kirigami Stretchable Sensors
• Modifying Fused Deposition Modeling 3D printers for improved performance
• Assessing the Image Processing Effectiveness of Different Machine Learning Models
• Designing Tactile Attachments for a Wearable Haptics Device
• Implementation of a PID Controller on a Dublin’s 2D Car Model
• Setting Up Protective Zones for Robot Arm
• Investigating Applications of Magnetorheological Fluids to Robotic Manipulator Design
• Comparing Different Methods of Teleoperation for Robotic Arms

Program Workshops:

• Research 101
  • A review of what research looks like at academic institutions
    • Administered by: Godson Osele, Mechanical Engineering PhD Candidate at Stanford University

• Undergraduate Student Panel
  • Panel consisted of First-Generation and/or Low-Income students attending(studying)
    • Howard University, (Chemical Engineering)
    • San Francisco State University, (Mechanical Engineering)
    • University of California-Los Angeles, (Mechanical Engineering)
    • University of Colorado-Denver, (Mechanical Engineering)
    • Stanford University, (Mechanical Engineering)
• Industry Panel
  • Panel consisted of First-Generation and/or Low-Income individuals with current or previous positions at the following companies
    • Intuitive Surgical
    • Auris, a J&J Company
    • GoogleX
    • Jet Propulsion Laboratories
    • GE Healthcare
• Research Flash Talks
  • Current Stanford Graduate Students presented 10 minute talks on their research. Topics are listed below
    • Bi-Manual Manipulation
    • Path planning for robots on Mars
    • Combining LiDAR, vision and GNSS sensors for Global Positioning

• Design Thinking Fundamentals
  • Stanford Mechanical Engineering Professor, Mark Cutkosky, delivered a workshop going over the basics of Design Thinking as taught by the Design School at Stanford University
• Graduate Student Panel
  • Panel consisted of First-Generation and/or Low-Income Stanford PhD students attending(studying)
    • Chemical Engineering
    • Mechanical Engineering
    • Environmental Engineering
    • Management Sciences and Engineering

Aggregate of Skills Learned Across All The Students:

• CAD Modeling (Fusion 360, SolidWorks, OnShape)
• Utilizing 3D Printers
• Utilizing Laser Cutter
• Reading through research papers effectively
• How Soft robotic structures function
• How Magnetorheological fluids function
• Motion Capture
• Dynamic Modeling
• Application of Origami to Robotics
• Designing Soft Robots
• Soldering
• Ultrasonic welding
• Machine Learning
• Creating Graphical User Interfaces
• Experiment Design
• Strategies for Navigating Academia