Spring UAF Makerspace Mini-Grants

Date: December 12, 2022

Time: 6:09

Do you have a student project you want to do, but don’t have the funds to start? A UAF Makerspace Mini-Grant might be perfect for you!

A Makerspace Mini-Grant is a $300 grant to purchase materials for a project of your choice.

Applications will open to all UA students on Monday, Jan. 23, 2023 and proposals are due by midnight Friday, Feb. 17, 2023. To apply, visit UAF Makerspace website and go to the Mini Grants tab, where you will find a step-by-step guide to build your grant application.

Mini Grants have deliverables that must be met at the end of the grant period. Deliverables include a written report and an informational video about your project.

Using a 2022 mini-grant, Gavi Ximenez, Forrest Rogers and William Payne designed an autonomous snow plow to help clear the sidewalks and pathways of the UAF campus. The goal of the project was to create an autonomous self-driving robot. The prototype that they built was based around a Raspberry Pi that used ultrasonic sensors to detect objects around it. The input for the sensors controlled the steering of the autonomous plow as it traversed obstacles. The team went through many design iterations as they overcame drivetrain, suspension, and programming challenges. At the end of their project they succeeded in having a self-driving robot that could avoid obstacles and make its way along a path.

What innovation will you design? To find out more about the Mini Grant process and to apply go to UAF Makerspace website.