Get Involved

There is a great deal of interesting work that we're doing in the Robotics Research Lab. If you want to get involved, here's how: There are a number of different roles that an undergraduate can fill in my lab. Some positions are programming intensive, and would require someone who is majoring in CSE or very experienced with computer programming. However, there are other research assistant positions which do not require any programming knowledge and are just as valuable to the research going on at the RRL. For any students, taking my CS491x class is a good idea. CS491x: Robotics For Humanity is taught each Spring and gives an overview of HRI in general and Socially Assistive Robotics in particular.

I recommend that if you are interseted in working with my group as an undergraduate, that you read below and then schedule an appointment with me by email (include your resume/cv).

Programmers

Most of the programming involved at the RRL requires a thorough knowledge of the Robot Operating System (ROS). If you are unfamiliar with ROS, you can learn at home. Following these steps to become proficient in ROS is a great way to show your commitment to the lab. You will need to have Ubuntu (or some other supported Linux distribution) installed on your computer:

• Install ROS click here (I would recommend, if you have the space to install ros-hydro-desktop or ros-hydro-desktop-full
• Continue on to the ROS tutorials:
  1. do all of the beginner level tutorials
  2. do 1, 2, and 3 from the intermediate level
  3. complete the actionlib tutorials
  4. complete the tf tutorials (this is very important!!)
  5. visualization/RViz
  6. (optional) PCL with ROS
  ... yeah, it's a lot. However, these tutorials represent almost all of the required knowledge in order for you to be a productive coder in the lab.
• (optional, but recommended) Do something on your own in ROS. One excersize that you could demo in order to show that you really know your stuff is to draw a cube on a camera image about 1m in front of the camera frame using RVIZ, tf, and visualization messages.
• Of course, come to me or someone in the lab if you're trying, but cannot complete some of the tutorials. This is to provide direction for your curiousity, not to act as an entrance exam.

Non-Programmers

The Human-Robot Interaction work going on in the RRL involves many experiments involving human participants. Some of these will be conducted on campus, others will occur at the UNR building on Sinclair St. We need non-programmers to help proctor the studies, code the data, and analyze the results. These jobs could result in your name going on a publication. If you are interested, read on.

In general, the requirements for a non-programming job in the lab are much looser. However, the availability of non-programming spots is heavily dependent on what studies are currently being conducted. Get in contact with me via email and I can let you know if we have spots available.

There are things that I am looking for in non-programmers, but do not require. If you are a student in psychology, sociology, or other social science, taking experimental methods and statistics courses is a huge plus. Since you will be dealing with human participants, I recommend taking the UNR Research Integrity Office training course. Again, these requirements are not an entrance exam, but things that make you a better candidate for a non-programmer job. I am recruiting PhD students for Fall and Spring terms. Prospective PhD students should apply to UNR and then get in contact with me if you are interested in working in my lab. I prefer to be contacted by email, and please include a copy of your CV. I currently do not have funding available for a postdoc. If you are a postdoc who has already secured funding, I would be happy to consider hosting you in my lab.