麻豆村

罢丑别听聽has joined forces with a cross-campus team of faculty and subject matter experts to release research on the collection, preservation and presentation of robot artifacts and history.聽鈥檚听, one of the first in the field, and聽聽kickstart the conversation about stewarding this complex, growing discipline for generations of researchers, historians and enthusiasts to come.

Made possible by聽a gift from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation(opens in new window), The Robotics Project is an interdisciplinary approach to preserving the legacy of robotics through a partnership between the 麻豆村 Libraries and the聽. It aims to create the world鈥檚 preeminent resource for robotics history and make that resource available to researchers, enthusiasts, scientists and the general public. The project preserves Carnegie Mellon鈥檚 robotics legacy and contributes to a broader understanding of the people and technology that created the field.

鈥淭his toolkit, and the overarching aims of The Robotics Project, revolve around this enduring ambition to better understand scientific processes and creative impulses 鈥� and to document those activities. We are trying to uncover and map innovation in practice,鈥� said聽, associate dean of research and innovation in the Libraries. 鈥淲e are grappling with machines, data and code 鈥� and vast quantities of it 鈥� and considering pragmatic ways to comprehensively organize, share, preserve and provide access to it. It is a daunting challenge, but one that has generated a lot of creativity and collaboration.鈥�

For the first phase of the project, which culminated in the toolkit and digital archive, the team investigated the research ecosystem of robotics: the kinds of materials roboticists produce, the scientific and historical context for the work, and the artifacts鈥� current state. They worked directly with robotics faculty, staff and students on campus to learn more about their daily work and what artifacts might be valuable to collect in the future. The team also worked with conservation experts to develop best practices to preserve the wealth of digital materials coming out of the field, and brought in a consultant to ensure they were considering diversity and inclusivity in all aspects of their work.

鈥淲e鈥檙e aiming to cultivate a community of practice among archivists and information professionals preserving robotics history,鈥� said聽, lead archivist for The Robotics Project. 鈥淭hanks to Carnegie Mellon鈥檚 prominent role in the history of robotics, we鈥檙e able to raise awareness of the need for this work and take this essential first step toward a model and collecting strategy.鈥�

The accompanying Digital Robotics Archive brings the ideas of the toolkit to life, showcasing what can be accomplished in the effort to make digital robotics materials accessible. The website, which is hosted on the open-source digital repository system Islandora, allows users to click through historic robotics artifacts in the collection, read about their history, learn about key researchers and watch videos of technology in action.

The University Libraries was among the聽聽and, at the time of the platform launch last year, had the largest Islandora 8 repository in production. Using Islandora allowed the team to employ rapid prototyping to efficiently examine what the robotics materials might look like assembled into a digital collection. It also allowed them to experiment with linked data, generating the constellation of interrelated information that makes the Robot Archive an immersive, comprehensive experience for users at all levels of expertise.

鈥淭hanks to the Libraries鈥� investment in this technology, we鈥檙e able to do things we weren鈥檛 able to do before, like create narratives for these artifacts that really allow for a browsable experience,鈥� Barbera said. 鈥淚t paints such a visual picture of the complex community we鈥檝e been studying and documenting.鈥�

Right now, the Digital Robotics Archive features images and video of more than 60 items from the different collections held by The Robotics Project, including early models of a聽聽and the autonomous聽, with a wealth of metadata attached to each item. For each entry, users can select from an array of related options 鈥� researchers who contributed, related publications, similar objects, photos and videos, and more. This is just the beginning, and the team will expand the digital robotics archive as they continue their investigation and collecting.

鈥淭he digital archive is about providing users with as much information as possible, and letting them explore and draw their own conclusions 鈥� users have the opportunity to find fascinating connections between records,鈥� said Robot Archive Processing Archivist聽, who recorded much of the metadata that brought the digital archive to life.

With the conclusion of this first phase, The Robotics Project is poised to continue leading the conversation for libraries, archives and museums that are preserving robotics and scientific history around the world. The team plans to develop an educational component, looking at how the information can be implemented in the classroom at a graduate, undergraduate and even K-12 level. All the while, they鈥檒l continue to collect and preserve material that illuminates new details about robotics advancements, and how Carnegie Mellon played a significant role in them.

鈥淭hese are artifacts 鈥� relevant, timely technologies like early autonomous vehicles and materials related to artificial intelligence innovations 鈥� that have been in labs and offices on campus for years where the general public hasn鈥檛 been able to interact with them,鈥� Donahoe said. 鈥淲e鈥檝e taken a significant first step toward opening these materials up to the public and spotlighting the last four decades of robotics work at Carnegie Mellon. This will help ensure that people know the university has been at the forefront of these technologies.鈥�

View the聽聽to trace the history of important robotics artifacts from 麻豆村鈥檚 past.