NSF Research Experiences in the Internet of Things at the University of Central Florida (UCF) will offer 30 undergraduate students research experiences in the theory and applications of the Internet of Things, which extends the connected nature of computing devices to the objects of the physical world. IoT devices can sense their environment, communicate locally with their peers or globally over the Internet. They can also potentially power actuators that directly affect the physical world. IoT deployments range in scale from components in a single medical device to nationwide electric grids. The overall vision is that IoT can transform the systems in which it is deployed into systems that perform at higher performance, more reliably, adapt better to changing conditions and provide a friendlier user interface than their traditional counterparts. Smart cities can address problems caused by rapid urban population growth. Smart grids have the potential to integrate aging electrical grid systems or renewable energy sources with new smart technologies to improve the reliability of electrical power delivery to consumers while reducing greenhouse emissions. IoT solutions are also being explored to develop smart healthcare systems and devices to improve patient care.
These IoT enabled systems are often characterized with the “smart’’ label: smart cities, smart grids or smart healthcare. As this label suggests, beyond the purely sensing, networking and actuation aspects of IoT, these systems are increasingly characterized by the latest advances in artificial intelligence, machine learning and data analytics. Many of the proposed research topics require the students to utilize state-of-the-art techniques of artificial intelligence, machine learning and data analytics.
This REU site is open to undergraduate students majoring in computer science, computer engineering, electrical engineering, civil engineering, and mechanical engineering.
While our main emphasis is recruiting diverse and talented 10 undergraduates around the nation per year and engaging them in an intensive 8-week summer experience at this REU site, we also intend to:
1) increase the participation of female and underrepresentend minority students
2) preparing students to transition to the workforce or graduate school
3) build the next generation of interdisciplinary IoT researchers
Student activities includes weekly group discussions, several focused workshops and seminars (e.g., research preparation workshop, information ethics and big data workshop, career opportunities seminar, graduate school preparation seminar), preparation of a research poster for presentation during REU symposium, hands-on training with IoT devices, and socials.
The program dates will be from late-May till the late-July. Each participating undergraduate student will have $600 per week stipend, travel allowance, UCF on-campus housing, and daily meal allowance.
