Design and Experiments of a Manta-Ray Robot for STEM Education

The declining number of students enrolling in the field of STEM is alarming. Therefore, educational robotics have been used as an effective tool in STEM education to increase students’ interest. In this paper, the design and development of a manta-ray underwater robot are presented with the aim of promoting STEM education in secondary schools in Malaysia. The basic structure of the robot is 3D printed with two waterproof servomotors that are used for pectoral fins movements. To simplify the control mechanism, the underwater robot is connected to a remote controller using Bluetooth wireless communication. School students can control the horizontal movement of the underwater robot using the joystick on the remote controller. This paper describes the hardware and software designs of a simple manta-ray robot. Furthermore, experiments to show the functionality of the robot for STEM education are demonstrated.