Artistic Non-Inertial Tracer (ANT): an Educational Kit for a 3-Link Origami Slithering Robot
- Conference
- Location
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Montreal, Quebec, Canada
- Publication Date
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June 22, 2025
- Start Date
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June 22, 2025
- End Date
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August 15, 2025
- Conference Session
- Tagged Division
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Mechanical Engineering Division (MECH)
- Page Count
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23
- Permanent URL
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https://peer.asee.org/55460
Paper Authors
Daniel Adam Feshbach
University of Pennsylvania
orcid.org/0000-0001-5185-7395
Daniel Feshbach is a Computer and Information Science PhD student in the Sung Robotics Lab, part of the General Robotics, Automation, Sensing & Perception (GRASP) lab at the University of Pennsylvania. He holds an MSE in Computer and Information Science from the University of Pennsylvania and a BS in Computer Science from Haverford College.
Alex McNeill Chi Germantown Friends School
Alex Chi is a student at Germantown Friends School in the class of 2025 and will be attending Worcester Polytechnic Institute as a part of the class of 2029 to study robotics engineering. In the summer of 2024, she interned at the Sung Robotics Lab at the University of Pennsylvania.
Eric Huang Peddie School
Eric Huang is a student at the Peddie School in Hightstown, NJ in the class of 2025 and will be attending Johns Hopkins University as a part of the class of 2029. In the summer of 2024, he interned at the Sung Robotics Lab at the University of Pennsylvania.
Diedra Lynn Krieger University of Pennsylvania
Diedra Krieger (Philadelphia, PA) is the Program Manager for the Robotics Art Residency at the Sung Robotics Lab at the University of Pennsylvania. Krieger is an interdisciplinary artist and curator exploring the convergence of art and technology, with international acclaim for her projects showcased at esteemed venues like the National Folk Festival. Holding an MFA from Vermont College of Fine Art and an MA from Monash University, Krieger's practice spans robotics art residencies and workshops at prestigious events like ICRA 2024. Her work has been reviewed in prominent publications including The Art Blog, The Philadelphia Inquirer and Hyperallergic.
Cynthia Sung University of Pennsylvania
Cynthia Sung is an Associate Professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering and Applied Mechanics (MEAM) and a member of the General Robotics, Automation, Sensing & Perception (GRASP) lab at the University of Pennsylvania. She completed a Ph.D. (2016) in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at MIT, advised by Prof. Daniela Rus, and a B.S. (2011) in Mechanical Engineering from Rice University. Her research interest is computational design and fabrication for robotic systems, with a particular focus on origami-inspired and compliant robots. She is the recipient of a 2023 ONR Young Investigator award, 2019 NSF CAREER award, 2020 Johnson & Johnson Women in STEM2D Scholars Award, and a 2017 Popular Mechanics Breakthrough Award.
Abstract
The abundance of connections between art and engineering are opportunities to engage artistically inclined students who may not think of themselves as interested in robotics, and to inspire engineering-inclined students to express themselves artistically. This work presents a tool kit and lesson plan for a hands-on introductory robotics activity centering how art and engineering influence each other. The Artistic Non-Inertial Tracer (ANT) is a three-link robot made of origami, which contacts the ground through markers which trace patterns as it slithers around. The design is inspired by Purcell’s swimmer and is capable of forward, steering, backward, and diagonal motion. Using origami for the body highlights the influence of art on engineering, and the gait traces are a visually interesting output of the engineering. The kit uses inexpensive components totaling <$30/robot (servos, origami, and an Arduino) common in hobbyist communities so that learning how to use these components can empower further exploration of actuated art. Our associated lesson plan engages students in the assembly and control of ANT and contextualizes it within a broader overview of robot system components and the use of origami in engineering. We successfully ran the lesson as a 3-hour outreach workshop at a local arts organization.
Feshbach, D. A., & Chi, A. M., & Huang, E., & Krieger, D. L., & Sung, C. (2025, June), Artistic Non-Inertial Tracer (ANT): an Educational Kit for a 3-Link Origami Slithering Robot Paper presented at 2025 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition , Montreal, Quebec, Canada . https://peer.asee.org/55460
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