ONEIL Welcomes STEM Students to Their Augmented Reality Lab
Summer is typically a time most high school students sit by the pool or hit the beach to enjoy some R&R. But Eugene Lee, Jack Crespo, and Anna Yang made other plans this summer. These three go-getters made the most of their summer months by working on an ONEIL project for the Gaming Research Integration for Learning Laboratory (GRILL®) Virtual Summer Program, a partnership with the Air Force Research Lab and the Dayton Regional STEM School in Kettering, Ohio.
The GRILL program brings together Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) educators and student interns who spend their summers at the GRILL developing content to utilize in local classrooms, businesses and Air Force research. Students work hands-on with game engines and related technology and are given opportunities to exercise their critical thinking and problem-solving skills. Outcomes of these efforts include high school courses, open-ended challenge problems and instructional guides capstone project templates, and evaluations of modeling and simulation technologies.
When ONEIL was asked to participate in this program by submitting a problem or challenge for a team of students to complete, our team eagerly said yes. Dwight Oakey, application engineer III for ONEIL, served as the GRILL project advisor and asked the student team to help with an Augmented Reality (AR) project. Their goal was to create an application utilizing augmented reality and mobile devices to aid maintenance personnel by developing technical user instructions. Specifically, they were to create mobile device support, generate 3D objects and develop step-by-step instructions.
“I am honored to have worked alongside these intelligent, hard-working students in an advisory capacity to develop practical, functional solutions while also helping to further their education,” said Oakey. “Their interest in exploring new challenges and navigating uncharted territory is inspiring, and I’m certain the future is bright for each of them.”
On July 27, the three students, one local and the other two from out-of-state, participated in an open house event to demo their final project. As part of their presentation, they showcased the research required to complete the project and used computer-based tools and software to demonstrate how the concept would come to life – and they did a wonderful job! Their project outcome will be used to enhance AR offerings developed by ONEIL.
Thank you to the GRILL program for allowing ONEIL to be involved in the exciting advancement of STEM education. We wish Eugene, Jack, and Anna luck as they move on with their education, and we’re grateful for the opportunity to work with them this summer.