Using STEM to Educate Engineers about Sustainability: A Case Study in Mechatronics Teaching and Building a Mobile Robot Using Upcycled and Recycled Materials

Avraam Chatzopoulos (), Anastasios Tzerachoglou, Georgios Priniotakis (), Michail Papoutsidakis, Christos Drosos and Eleni Symeonaki
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Avraam Chatzopoulos: Department of Industrial Design & Production Engineering, University of West Attica, 12241 Egaleo, Greece
Anastasios Tzerachoglou: Department of Industrial Design & Production Engineering, University of West Attica, 12241 Egaleo, Greece
Georgios Priniotakis: Department of Industrial Design & Production Engineering, University of West Attica, 12241 Egaleo, Greece
Michail Papoutsidakis: Department of Industrial Design & Production Engineering, University of West Attica, 12241 Egaleo, Greece
Christos Drosos: Department of Industrial Design & Production Engineering, University of West Attica, 12241 Egaleo, Greece
Eleni Symeonaki: Department of Industrial Design & Production Engineering, University of West Attica, 12241 Egaleo, Greece

Sustainability, 2023, vol. 15, issue 21, 1-26

Abstract: Background: Sustainable design means to base design on any systems and methods that can fulfill any of the sustainability goals: reducing waste, recycling plastics, upcycle materials, etc., and having less of an impact on the environment. Therefore, a challenge arises: how to design products based on sustainable design. This research presents a case study, about how students in a university’s design department, used sustainability practices in their projects, to adopt sustainability as a major aspect during the design process of a product. Methods: The researchers used STEM methodologies to educate and guide the students to adopt recycling and upcycling practices to design and develop an educational mobile robot for Educational Robotics and Mechatronics applications. Results: Students were encouraged to develop their problem-solving approaches when developing their designed robots, for a mechatronics project given to them. In this way, the researchers fostered the active and motivated participation of students; an increased interest was found related to several factors, including challenge, competition, group participation, and more. Conclusions: This research aimed to evidence the use of upcycled and recycled materials in product development to fulfill some of the sustainability goals. The research’s results were very promising and has sparked an ongoing research.

Keywords: sustainability; sustainable design; Design for Sustainability; STEM; Educational Robotics; Mechatronics; educational robot; education for sustainable development; recycle; upcycle (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
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