Experiential Learning in Mechatronics Through an Internship on an Autonomous Exploratory Boat Project

An autonomous exploratory boat (AEB) was developed as a part of an internship. The design of the boat was oriented towards a pedagogical gadget for multi-purpose teaching. AEB can be used for learning programing through its navigation in a pond as well as aspects of environment science. It can also be presented as an example of a mechatronic product to undergraduate students. The design emphasized simplicity and affordability, making it accessible for a wide range of academic applications. Field trials were carried out and feedback was obtained from a variety of students. Field trials conducted on local water bodies showcased the boat’s capability to perform scientific measurements. These were used to create visual plots and analyze environmental data. It provided a hands-on platform to learn environmental science concepts such as measuring bathymetry, water flow velocity, temperature, and total dissolved solids distribution. On one hand, the development of AEB provided a lot of learning experience for the development team. On the other hand, it is being actively used for teaching of mechatronics to a variety of students. Overall, the AEB served as an opportunity to explore aspects of mechanical design, electronics integration, control systems and contributed to science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education. Such type of internship project also helps to develop entrepreneur skills.