Girls in robot class_smart textiles interactive tool-kits to enhance the participatory of women in technology

Abstract

“Girls in Robot Class” focuses on provide teaching aids and instructions to include girls in the learning of STEAM education contents, so that they could experience the so-called intelligent world, which are created by the output behavior and controlled by the input data sensing. Textiles are easy to obtain in our daily life and often used as expressions of cultural response characteristics. In the meantime, Smart Textiles are soft, intimate which you can weave, splice, fold, stretch, but are also related the concept of science and technology simultaneously. Besides, interactive kits of the Smart Textiles require different characteristics of sensing and feedback devices other than the plastic products. The teaching case of sensor (input) and feedback (output) components must be consistent with the experience in life in order to make the teaching content actively and enhance the interest of participation. Soft robot, in terms of technology, can be simplified easily for the purpose of studying how to control the light, motor, heat and sound. On the other hands, it can also be developed into clouds data technology and the Internet of Things items. In this paper, we describe our experience in designing and organizing a robot course but with smart textiles. We will show that (1) a set of soft robot prototype by digital printing. (2) Three interactive modules of difficult levels were developed by the use of smart textiles. (3) The study of the outcome of teaching implementations and the learning tools of Interactive components inside the toolkits and digital printing soft robot template, a robot workshop course plan were designed and held with 30 participants (15 girls and 15 boys, design background). Product designers and electronic engineers were team up to plan teaching content and plan. Participants of different genders developed their own soft robot sketches through 3D printing and digital embroidery creation sewing machine. (4) The syllabus evaluation about STEAM interest and the applicability.