Disuffo: Design, prototyping and development of an open-source educational robot

• Published in: Form@re Vol. 19; no. 1; p. 106
• Main Authors: Stefano Di Tore, Michele Domenico Todino, Sibilio, Maurizio
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: Italian
• Published: Firenze Firenze University Press Università degli Studi di Firenze 01.01.2019
• Subjects: 3-D printers; Coding; Computer Software; Educational technology; Elementary School Students; Elementary Schools; Prototypes; Robots; Secondary school students; Secondary Schools
• ISSN: 1825-7321
• DOI: 10.13128/formare-24446

The paper presents the results of the design, development, implementation and beta-testing of a customizable educational robot, aimed at fostering the development of digital skills in upper secondary school students and encouraging the development of coding in students attending primary school. Specifically, the robot named "Disuffo" is entirely 3D-printed and is composed almost exclusively by interlocking pieces and mounted by screws. Secondary school students are to be involved in the assembly, mounting and modification of the hardware and software of the robot (the robot already owns a software park) while the primary school children will be engaged in coding tasks using the robot. The aim of this paper is to describe the implementation experiences already carried out, and to promote the dissemination of the project, encouraging the involvement of potentially readers that may be interested in the future development of the project.