OTO – A DIY platform for mobile social robots in education

Abstract

This paper describes the design of OTO, a do-it-yourself expansion kit for OPSORO (Open Platform for Social Robots), that enables and facilitates the creation of mobile social robots. The expansion kit consists of modular, adaptable building blocks combined with a software toolkit, and is aimed at applications within the maker community, STEM education, and the market for creative inventor kits. Keeping reproducibility and adaptability in mind, the expansion kit can be produced entirely using digital manufacturing technology and low-cost, off-the-shelf components. Using the building blocks offered by this system, users can easily design, build and customize mobile social robots. The software is designed to address a wide range of users by offering different programming options depending on the user’s skill and experience. Inexperienced users are offered a graphical programming environment based on Blockly, whereas more advanced users can program their robot using Lua or Python. The OTO toolkit offers a fun and playful context in which a wide range of STEM-related skills are addressed.