A Sustainable ATE Coordination Network for Enhancing Personalized Learning Using Virtual and Augmented Reality-based Technology Innovations in Technician Education

This Coordination Network (CN) enhances the technician workforce pipeline required for US manufacturing competitiveness across a range of advanced automotive and aviation manufacturing industries, via the use of virtual reality (VR)-based and augmented reality (AR)-based technologies. It creates new virtual teaching spaces to provide highly accessible and personalized learning environments. The project yields a collective end-to-end innovation ecosystem, which lowers barriers for two-year colleges to embrace virtual and augmented reality-based, technology innovations to enhance personalized learning. It establishes a network for the national ATE community and advances state-of-the-art applications of VR- and AR-based learning technologies for use in a two-year college setting.

Composed of a national network of members from industry, academia, government and other ATE centers, this CN provides access to state-of-the-art VR and AR modules, designed to meet the needs of industry and educational and workforce development programs for two-year college students and entry and mid-level technicians. Specifically the CN has the following objectives: i) nurture new collaborations, ii) strengthen partnerships, iii) create new knowledge, and iv) disseminate existing knowledge to enhance current two-year technician education programs. This coordination network, based at Clemson University, convenes best-in-class innovators from two-year and four-year colleges, research universities, Manufacturing Extension Partnerships, National Network of Manufacturing Institutes, Workforce Investment Boards, professional societies, government, and industry.