SeaPerch
Tara Hicks Johnson (UNH) and Holly Morin (URI)
Overview
SeaPerch is an innovative underwater robotics program that equips teachers and students (middle/high-school) with the resources they need to build an ROV in an in-school or out-of-school setting. Students build an ROV from low-cost, easily accessible materials, following a curriculum that teaches basic engineering and science concepts with a marine engineering theme. At the national level, SeaPerch is run by Robonation, an independent non-profit; locally, chapters manage their own programs. Each spring, Robonation hosts an international competition, with teams coming from a host of regional competitions in the US, and around the world. Each competition has a theme; this project will sponsor the 2022-23 competition, and theme the tasks around OECI research activities, providing OECI-relevant research background and technology “needs” to the thousands of competitors around the globe. This sponsorship would also include two higher Robonation level competitions, RoboBoat and RoboSub, whose participants include students from the high school, undergraduate and graduate levels.
