Soft Robotics STEM Education Curriculum and Platform

The Navy of the future will require engineers and scientists trained in the technologies of the future. Soft robotics, inspired by the creatures of the sea, is regarded by many as the future of undersea vehicles. This is with good reason, as marine animals are more efficient and nimbler than our state-of-the-art rigid hulled vessels. The jellyfish, for instance, has the lowest energetic cost of transport of any known undersea animal or vessel. Realizing the potential of soft robotics requires a workforce with skills in soft robotics. Luckily, soft robotics, and bioinspired engineering in general, is very approachable for schoolchildren. There is an opportunity to harness this approachability to inspire and educate the next generation of Naval engineers and scientists. Creare, teaming with the Montshire Museum of Science– a nationally recognized, hands-on science museum – proposes to develop, demonstrate, and transition the “JellyBot”. The JellyBot is a jellyfish-inspired soft-robotic platform designed to support a multitude of educational strategies teaching STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) curricula. In Phase I we will develop, execute, and evaluate example educational activities around JellyBot-inspired engineering topics. In Phase II we will develop, demonstrate, and transition the full JellyBot curriculum.