Application of a self-propelled autonomous aquatic robot for environmental education

Abstract

Environmental protection in education poses challenges for both teachers and students due to its multidisciplinary nature, involving data acquisition, transfer, data structuring, virtual environment deployment, database access, and data protection. These complexities hinder the preparation of course assignments, and using simulations and modeling as a substitute for technical performance is not recommended for pedagogical reasons. Employing a mobile robot as a data source offers several advantages. Firstly, the data acquisition process becomes transparent, as sensor readings align with intuitively predictable values based on the robot’s trajectory. Secondly, a coherent data structure is formed, connecting diverse data types such as time stamps, coordinates, and sensor readings (e.g., temperature, air and water quality, lighting, distance). Thirdly, the solution’s applicability for environmental monitoring purposes can be easily demonstrated. This study proposes the development of an environmental monitoring solution that employs a self-propelled robot (driving, floating, flying) to obtain readings of environmental parameters. The proposed project solution in education provides many opportunities in data acquisition, processing, transfer, visualization and opens the field for interpretations.