College students create robot for sheriff's office

CELINA - The Mercer County Sheriff's Office has a new set of eyes, thanks to local university students.

Four Wright State University-Lake Campus engineering students worked hundreds of hours this past year on a robot the sheriff's office can use instead of endangering an officer's life.

The robot can be controlled by sending data and voice messages, is equipped with a camera that sees up to 2 miles on a clear day and has the capacity to use pepper spray, climb obstacles and transmit video.

Sheriff Jeff Grey obtained a $2,500 Federal Office of Justice grant to cover the cost of the robot. A similar robot on the commercial market would cost at least $30,000, according to Dennis Hance, the assistant director of the local university's engineering program.

The students, Alex Bensman, 22, of St. Henry, Brad Prenger, 22, of Maria Stein, Shawn Eilerman, 23, of Osgood and Adam Rinderle, 23, of St. Henry, used the grant money, scrap metal and other parts to complete the project.

Hance said the robot project was started by students last year but needed improvements.

"We'll be tweaking the robot every year," he said. "This is a 10-year project where students will continue to adjust it in some way. We can put other things law enforcement might want like an apparatus that can pick up items or deliver items. We can put just about anything the sheriff's office would want. The only thing we are not allowed to put on it is a weapon."

Grey said the robot will be used mainly for incidents in the jail such as when an inmate becomes unruly. The camera can view and record what is going on. If a person becomes hostile toward the robot, it can protect itself with pepper spray, he said.

"We can also use it in a hostage situation or a situation where we have someone barricaded in a home," Grey said. "There could be a lot of uses for it."

The students, who graduated with engineering degrees May 1, were excited Thursday to show Grey and sheriff's office technicians Cory Hoffhines and James Houts how it worked.

Standing and using the computer controls, the students demonstrated how the robot could scoot down a hallway with its camera swinging side-to-side and up and down. The robot weighs 60 pounds and can travel up to 5 mph.

"Now that's neat," Grey said as he watched the demonstration.

The students were thrilled with the end product but said the real lessons came from working together and learning time management.

Bensman said he is "a perfectionist" and helping with the robot taught him how to be more efficient with his time.

"I learned to make a decision and be confident with that decision," he said.

Eilerman said he also learned how to be a team player.

"Most of us in engineering are used to working on projects on our own," he explained. "We're what you'd call a 'solo' person. But we learned to work with each other, learned how to handle any disagreements and made our decisions based on what the entire group felt was the best."

Rinderle said it was difficult to balance a job, taking classes and then working on the robot 35 hours per week.

"But we did it," he said, smiling. "We're really proud of how it all worked out. It's neat to have worked on something that is going to give back to the community."

Prenger said one thing he discovered about himself during the project was "to take advantage of opportunities that are presented."

"I think that's what we all wanted, to be able to create and develop a great project for the sheriff's office that could someday be used to save someone's life," he said. "It's really about giving back."