Francis Tuluri, Ph.D. Associate Professor Department of Technology
“Integrating Smart Devices and Passive Devices into the Informatics Intensive Cybersystem for Education and Research (ISPICER)”
The U.S. isn’t producing a sufficient number of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) students. Dr. Francis Tuluri’s goal is to help reignite interest in those fields through his project, “Integrating Smart Devices and Passive Devices into the Informatics Intensive Cybersystem for Education and Research (ISPICER).” Researchers will design a simple cybersystem by integrating smart devices, such as cell phones or iPads, and passive devices that are capable of collecting data and controlling a mechanical process remotely. Such applications are required in many research areas, including environmental science, health science and informatics technology. A plant in the woods is the project’s subject. Researchers will monitor the impact that temperature and the environment have on the growth of the plant. A remote temperature data logger and surveillance camera will be built. The cybersystem integration will be carried out in stages: interfacing smartphones or wireless radio adaptors to the computer; interfacing input/output data acquisition sensors to the computer; and using microcontroller platforms or robotics educational modules and communicating the information for remote analysis and visualization. The ISPICER project will create a state-of-the-art research technique and student learning platform to foster quality education in STEM disciplines. “Researchers and students will be inspired by designing and constructing their own systems,” Tuluri said. “They’ll gain a deeper understanding of the underlying scientific pipelines as they experience the important relationships between science and technology.”
JSU creative awards 2013 | 17