Dream BIG Eads Event
UAS AND ROBOTICS: OUR FUTURE
BY RICHARD MCCASKILL | PHOTOS BY THE AUTHOR AND CONSTANTIN DIEHL
Dream BIG is the inspiration of educators in rural Colorado, along with members of the AMA and Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) communities in Colorado. The purpose of this activity is to inspire young people through Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM)-based learning programs to “dream big” about the infinite opportunities for careers that could help them improve our world.
Another goal is to provide students a way to learn about exciting new technology and inspire those who don’t have access to it in rural communities in the US.
This year’s event, held April 27, brought together students from approximately 10 schools in the southeastern section of Colorado near Eads, to Eads High School. These schools are all K-12 schools with a typical population of 100 to 125 total students. The activity was set up to educate them about the new fields of UAS, robotics, cybersecurity, aerospace, and 3-D printing.
Some of the participating high schools transported students for more than an hour to the venue. Students came from primarily agricultural and cattle farming areas. The towns they live in typically have populations of less than 1,000 residents. They are real rural communities!
In the Beginning
In another area of the state, the first of these STEM-centered activities, Dream Big Revere, took place at Revere High School in northeast Colorado in October 2015. After this affair, organizers, students, and I agreed that the gathering was a great success and should be expanded to other rural areas in the state.
Discussions about Dream BIG 2017 began in 2016 after the superintendent of one of these small school districts attended an event held by the Colorado governor’s task force for education and technology. The superintendent met with me (I’m an AMA District IX associate vice president) and other leaders in the state to discuss UAS development. Colorado is a national leader in UAS and aerospace development in the county.
We discussed the lack of scientific opportunities for students in small rural communities and came up with some ideas for possibly holding an event where high school students from surrounding schools could come to a central location, experience some of the advances in technology, and learn about careers that could be available to them. I began discussions with Colorado UAS companies and key people in Colorado government to explore putting on such an activity.
It was easy to get Jay Lindell, Aerospace and Defense Industry Champion of the Colorado Office of Economic Development and International Trade, the UAS Colorado organization, and many people managing and working for UAS, robotics, aerospace, and 3-D printing sectors in the state, to sign on to help put on a technology event for these rural schools.
This Year’s Event
With Jay taking the lead, other UAS leaders in the industry, the local school superintendent, school principals, and I worked to set a date. We decided that the theme would be Dream BIG.
Because weather is questionable in October in Colorado, we decided to hold the event in April and see if we could get more participation from companies, the U.S. Army, and various Colorado universities.
Organizers decided to include robotics with UAS because many of the scientific studies and technologies are similar. Companies and organizations, including AMA, the U.S. Army UAS team, Colorado National Guard, Colorado School of Mines, Metro State University, Trinidad State Junior College, Colorado Aerial Imaging, Apex Unmanned, UAS Colorado, Center of Excellence, Reference Technologies, Faustson Tool, The 3D Printing Store, SecureSet Academy, United Airlines, Wings Over the Rockies Air & Space Museum, and others joined the team.
Approximately 250 students, in grades seven to 12, from schools located in the Eads/Kiowa County, Colorado, area, convened in the Eads High School gymnasium to hear Jay’s motivational Dream BIG talk, followed by a presentation by Colorado Lt. Governor Donna Lynne about the many opportunities available to those interested in education and careers within the state.
The students were preassigned to one of five groups of approximately 50 each. The groups rotated through five inspiring technology learning themes throughout the day and experienced applied learning led by the Dream BIG team.
The five major learning areas were Space: Blast off to Mars; Unmanned Air Systems (UAS) and Robotics: Our New Future; Cybersecurity: The New Threat; Aviation: You Can Fly; and Advanced Manufacturing (3-D printing and design): Forging Ahead in Colorado. All of the displays for viewing focused on career opportunities.
During the 2015 event, students went from a presentation to its corresponding demonstration. This year, presentations and outside activities were combined into each segment. Each of the 40-minute sessions contained two segments: gymnasium discussions and demonstrations (some outside) with 20
minutes for each station.
The gymnasium presentations were made by different volunteers for each session, and outside demonstrators, such as UAS and robotics, were given time to set up. The gymnasium also contained tabletop displays from AMA, UAS
Colorado, Reference Technologies, and the Colorado School of Mines.
For the 3-D printing, mechanical engineering, and cybersecurity talks and presentations, the students spent time in a classroom for both the presentations and hands-on demonstrations.
We wanted students to become more involved in the activities that took place outside. They were able to see, and in some cases fly, a UAS or ride in an airplane. We wanted all of the sessions to be unique and include multiple simulations and demonstrations. The
outside events were held on the football field and at the track area.
The display and demonstration area was broken into unique zones: UAS flight demonstrations, a military display area, and robotics demonstrations. In the UAS flight demonstrations, we had four areas. At two of them, students could fly a DJI Mavic Pro, which I coordinated and guided with AMA and Allen
Bishop of Reference Technologies. The third area showed photographic drone operations using a DJI Inspire. Scott Fredericksen of Colorado Aerial Imaging flew the aircraft and students were able to control the camera and view the images on a large monitor.
A fourth area was where Constantin Diehl, president and CEO of UAS Colorado, showed how autonomous, professional-level mapping software can be used to fly an aircraft over a predetermined path and autonomously land. Students watched the flight programming and video from a DJI Phantom 4 on a big-screen TV.
The U.S. Army National Guard flew in Black Hawk and Chinook helicopters for the event, and the U.S. Army UAS team brought a 14-foot Shadow drone.
The students could tour the aircraft and talk with the flight crews about them. The Colorado National Guard had an information and display area and several robots that are used by law enforcement were also located outside.
One of the big activities was flight orientation. Students were required to write essays about why they would like to fly in an airplane. Those with the top essays got to ride in a Cessna 182, flown by Mitch Bowers from the Wings Over the Rockies Air & Space Museum.
Mitch provided seven flights of three students each in the Cessna. The flights took off from a local airport through the Wings Over the Rockies Teacher Flight Program. Each flight lasted approximately 20 minutes. The groups rotated from the school to the airport between flights so they could participate in the other activities.
Space: Blast off to Mars was presented by Rob Fredell, CEO of the Challenger Learning Center of Colorado. Rob conducted two simulations with 20 to 25 students selected for each mission. Each was a problem-solving and engaging 2-hour session with required homework that had to be completed before the event. Rob included a simulation of a Mars mission.
Finally, the students were able to tour the NXP Smarter World Tour vehicle that was on campus. Helene Hughes, tour coordinator for NXP Smarter World Tour, took the students through an impressive tour of the Internet of Things, with more than 180 demonstrations that allowed them to interact with advanced driver-assistance systems, radio-frequency cooking devices, smart home automation, wearables, and more.
The Wrap-Up
It was exciting to be a part of Dream BIG again this year. It is a great day when you can spend time with students who are excited to learn about technology and are fun to be around.
Glenn Smith, Kiowa County School District RE-1 superintendent, shared the following comment: “I had a superintendent advisory committee meeting at BOCES [Board of Cooperative Educational Services] yesterday. Several of the superintendents reported that their kids were so excited and inspired by the event. Many of the high school students reported it was the best field trip and school day of their lives. All were very grateful and appreciative of the experience.
I will amend my statement [that] I made at the event. It was grand slam home run! Thanks to all!”
Interest from other rural school districts for activities such as this is pouring into the governor’s office. The next scheduled Dream BIG will be held in late April 2018, in Eagle, Colorado. AMA plans to be there again to help promote model aviation education.
—Richard McCaskill
rickm1947@aol.com
SOURCES:
Dream BIG Eads
www.facebook.com/events/1668650989817627
NXP Smarter World Tour
iot.nxp.com
UAS Colorado
www.uascolorado.com
