SEAPerch

Sea Perch Attracts Kids to Fleet Week

2008-06-03T15:58:00Z

The Office of Naval Research partnered with the Naval Surface Warfare Center, to introduce underwater robotics to children at Staten Island's Stapleton Pier during Fleet Week New York 2008, May 21-28. Before and after touring three ships moored at Stapleton Pier – USS Monterey (CG 61), USS Nitze (DDG 94) and USS The Sullivans (DDG 68) – children and adults alike flocked to the booth of the Sea Perch project for a chance to play with miniature remote-controlled submersibles. A collaborative effort...(read more)

Local Students Rival Underwater Robotics in U.S. Navy Competition Hosted by Drexel University’s College of Engineering

2008-05-01T19:38:00Z

Contact:

Elizabeth Brachelli, Public Relations Coordinator
Drexel University, College of Engineering

Phone: (215) 895-6454

Cell Phone: (215) 357-2527
FAX: (215) 895-4929

E-Mail: ebrachelli@coe.drexel.edu

Local Students Rival Underwater Robotics in U.S. Navy Competition Hosted by Drexel University’s College of Engineering

Students learn the process of engineering an underwater robot from professional mentors that were trained by the U.S. Navy and will face their robots off in a competition at Drexel University, May 10

Drexel University, Philadelphia, PA – Middle school, high school and community college students from 3 states and 43 area schools will battle it out in an underwater robotics competition May 10, 2008 in the Greater Philadelphia Sea Perch Challenge. The underwater robot combat will be hosted by Drexel University’s College of Engineering at the Daskalakis Athletic Center at 33rd & Market from 9:00 a.m.-3:00 p.m. 43 teams will contend in the U.S. Navy funded competition to win recognition for design excellence, presentation, and teamwork while fulfilling the U.S. Navy’s goal of increasing interest in robotics, science, mathematics, engineering and technology.

The MIT founded Sea Perch program is part of the Office of Naval Research's initiative, “Recruiting the Next Generation of Naval Architects.” The program teaches students how to build an underwater robot (called a Sea Perch), a propulsion system, a controller and how to investigate weight and buoyancy in 14 weeks through professional mentors trained by the U.S. Navy. More than 600 students will compete to see who will win first place for their Remote Operated Underwater Vehicles (ROV) in the following categories: (1) Vehicle performance (2) Team presentation (3) Teamwork summaries and (4) Spirit & sportsmanship. Panels of external judges from industry, government agencies and higher education will evaluate the competition. Each category will have its own separate panel of judges. In addition, each team will be given a score for each event and each category and one middle school and one high school will win the honor of being the 2008 Greater Philadelphia Sea Perch Champions.

The Greater Philadelphia Sea Perch Challenge sponsors and volunteers come from some of the most highly regarded organizations in the area, including Drexel University, the American Society of Naval Engineers (ASNE), the School District of Philadelphia and MIT’s Sea Grant Office. Sponsors provide resources including time and talent from professional mentors, services, equipment, financial contributions, and volunteers. For more information on Sea Perch, please visit http://www.coe.drexel.edu/seaperch/index.php.

ABOUT Greater Philadelphia Sea Perch Challenge

MIT founded the Sea Perch Challenge program to inspire pre-college students to explore the wonders of underwater robotics. This program is funded by the Office of Naval Research as part of its National Naval Responsibility Initiative. The initiative focuses on bringing academia, government and industry to work together to ensure that the talent needed to design the Navy's next generation of ships and submarines will be there when needed. For more information on Sea Perch, please visit http://www.coe.drexel.edu/seaperch/index.php.

Supporting SEAPerch

2008-01-24T21:30:00Z

Coming Soon

Competitions

2008-01-24T21:29:00Z

When: April 22, 2008
What: MESA Day and Sea Perch Showcase, NAVSEA Carderock
Where: Montgomery County
Contact Information:

Toby Ratcliffe
Research Hydrodynamicist
NAVSEA
Carderock Division
301-227-7016
toby.ratcliffe@navy.mil

When: April 26, 2008
What: Sea Perch Challenge
Where: George Mason University, Fairfax Campus, VA

When: May 10, 2008
What: Sea Perch Challenge
Where: Drexel University, Philadelphia, PA

http://www.coe.drexel.edu/seaperch/index.php

When: May 10, 2008 - 9:30am–3:30pm
What: 1st South Florida “SEAPerch” Remotely Operated Vehicle Competition
Where: Florida Atlantic University SeaTech Campus, Dania Beach, FL
Resources:

Download Information Flyer

When: May 13, 2008
What: Anne Arundel County Sea Perch Challenge
Where: US Naval Academy - Annapolis, MD
Contact Information:

Angela Leimkuhler Moran, PhD
Professor, Mechanical Engineering
United State Naval Academy
Rickover Hall Room 367
590 Holloway Drive
Annapolis MD 21402
410-293-6534
amoran@usna.edu

Curriculum Knowledge Base

2008-01-24T21:03:00Z

Coming Soon.

Engineering School Directory

2008-01-24T09:19:00Z

An alphabetical listing of Colleges and Universities nationwide that offer Engineering Programs....(read more)

Contact Us

2008-01-24T08:59:00Z

For more information about MIT Sea Grant's K-12 educational offerings and the Sea Perch Program, please contact:

Susan Giver, CMP, CAE
Director of Outreach and Strategic Development
The Society of Naval Architects and Marine Engineers (SNAME)
sgiver@sname.org
412 400 2582 or 717 944 0497

Sea Perch Sponsors and Collaborators:

The SeaPerch K-12 Classroom Initiative is made possible by the generous support of the following sponsors:

CISD (Center for Innovation in Ship Design), a subdivision of the Navy
ATI (Advanced Technology through Collaboration), a subdivision of the Navy
DOE (Discover Ocean Engineering), a division of MIT's Ocean Engineering Department

About SEAPerch

2008-01-23T22:50:00Z

What is SEAPerch?

Sea Perch provides students with the opportunity to learn about robotics, engineering, science, and mathematics while building the underwater ROV as part of a science and engineering curriculum. Throughout the project, students will learn engineering concepts, problem solving, teamwork, and technical applications, as well as having the opportunity to participate in an end-of-the-term design competition.

In addition, the curriculum includes discussion of potential careers in technical and engineering fields, as well as related fields of study. The program will be used to inform and educate students through a hands-on activity in the classroom, with the objective of generating interest and enthusiasm for continued science, technology and engineering studies. The long-term goal will be to create the next generation of naval architects, marine and ocean engineers, and scientists.

The Sea Perch program introduces pre-college students to the wonders of underwater robotics. Part of the Office of Naval Research's initiative, "Recruiting the Next Generation of Naval Architects," this program teaches students how to build an underwater robot (called a Sea Perch), how to build a propulsion system, how to develop a controller, and how to investigate weight and buoyancy.

The Sea Perch program trains teachers, mentors and potential trainers how to build the remotely operated vehicles (ROVs), which are made with PVC pipe and other small parts, all housed in a plastic Rubbermaid bin. With a marine engineering theme, this project teaches basic skills in ship and submarine design and encourages students to explore naval architecture and marine and ocean engineering concepts independently.

The Goal

To build and sustain a long-term effort to address the problem of decreasing college enrollments in engineering and technical programs by introducing middle and high school students to science through hands-on activities.

The Participants:
The Office of Naval Research
http://www.onr.navy.mil

The Society of Naval Architects and Marine Engineers (SNAME)
http://www.sname.org

Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)
http://www.mit.edu

Sea Grant Program
http://www.seagrant.noaa.gov

Why SEAPerch?

The U.S. has fallen from 3rd to 17th in the world in the number of college graduates in Engineering programs.

The future lack of skilled workers in the U.S. will decrease global competitiveness. 400,000 engineers will be needed by 2010.

This program addresses the recruitment vulnerability in specific areas targeted by the U.S. government such as Naval Architecture, Marine and Naval Engineering. This vulnerability will result in a lack of expertise in mission-critical areas if not addressed.