Robotic Fish

Abstract

This paper discusses implementation and use of robotic fish in science education. Biologically inspired robotic fish have been found to be particularly engaging, likely due to the additional connections to the natural world they can offer. Thus, a few robotic fish exhibits have been deployed to engage and educate visitors in public aquariums and expositions. However, such exhibits are often limited in the level of interactivity they afford, which is known to be a key factor in informal science education. A novel interactive robotic fish exhibit has been developed at the Dynamical Systems Laboratory of New York University Polytechnic School of Engineering. The platform has been well received by visitors and has contributed to increasing their interest in robotics. Integrating natural user interfaces and autonomous charging into the exhibit are expected to further enhance the visitor experience and strengthen the feasibility of robotics-based informal science education {AQ: An edit has been made in this sentence “Integrating natural… science education.”, for the verb to match with its subjects. Please check and correct if necessary.}.