Clark School Press Release Story

They fly, swim, jump, race!

Robotic technology goes on display at the University of Maryland

MEDIA ADVISORY  September 9, 2010

CONTACT:
Melissa Corley
301 405 6501
mcorley@umd.edu

WHAT: Sixteen laboratories involved in robotics research at the University of Maryland will be open for tours and demonstrations on Friday, Sept. 10.

Live demonstrations of particular visual interest:

• Flying micro air vehicles; using brainwaves to control a rotor vehicle’s flight

• Bio-inspired robots that mimic the movements of birds, ants, caterpillars, alligators, crabs, fleas, inchworms, and bees

• Autonomous underwater robotic vehicles that move in formations

• Robots for space exploration

• An award-winning student autonomous underwater vehicle

• Medical robots compatible with MRI technology that can be used for biopsies and neurosurgery

A complete list of participating labs and their demonstrations is available here: http://robotics.umd.edu/Md_robo_day/research_original.php

Information on the research in Maryland Robotics Center laboratories is available here: http://robotics.umd.edu/research/labs.php

WHO: Faculty, students and research scientists from the A. James Clark School of Engineering and the College of Computer, Mathematical and Physical Sciences will be explaining and demonstrating their work. Fields represented include aerospace engineering, bioengineering, civil and environmental engineering, computer science, electrical and computer engineering, and mechanical engineering.

WHEN: Reporters and photographers are welcome to attend any portion of the event, which will run from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Laboratory tours will be held *only* between 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. The hour of 10 a.m. to 11 a.m. will be devoted to presentations, including a keynote talk on "Robotics: Successes and Challenges" by Dr. Tom Wagner, Vice President and Technical Director of iRobot.

WHERE: University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742

Directions to Parking (CALL AHEAD for a parking code and specific directions to the CSIC Building)

WHY: The University of Maryland is a leader in multiple areas of robotics research and has recently formed the Maryland Robotics Center as a home for researchers, students and their projects. Maryland Robotics Day is a showcase of the university’s robotics research in medical robotics; unmanned vehicles; miniature robotics; robotics for extreme environments; and collaborative, cooperative, networked robotics.

MORE INFO: Maryland Robotics Day website

Maryland Robotics Center website

About the A. James Clark School of Engineering

The Clark School of Engineering, situated on the rolling, 1,500-acre University of Maryland campus in College Park, Md., is one of the premier engineering schools in the U.S., with graduate and undergraduate education programs ranked in or near the Top 20. In 2012, the Clark School was ranked 14th in the world by the Institute of Higher Education and Center for World-Class Universities in its Academic Ranking of World Universities. Three faculty members affiliated with the Clark School were inducted into the National Academy of Engineering in 2010.

The school, which offers 13 graduate programs and 12 undergraduate programs, including degree and certification programs tailored for working professionals, is home to one of the most vibrant research programs in the country. The Clark School garnered research awards of $171 million last year. With emphasis in key areas such as energy, nanotechnology and materials, bioengineering, robotics, communications and networking, life cycle and reliability engineering, project management, intelligent transportation systems and aerospace, the Clark School is leading the way toward the next generations of engineering advances.