Ramya Ramalingam

Home Institution
Harvey Mudd College

Year Participated
2020

Year in School
Undergraduate

REU Faculty Mentor
Kris Hauser

Research Area Interest
Artificial Intelligence

Project Title

Biography & Research Abstract

Abstract:

My project this summer is part of an overall proposal to build a disinfection robot. Facilities that require regular and proper sanitization, such as hospitals, would benefit from an automated system capable of taking over from humans who are susceptible to infection. One method of sanitization that seems suitable is ultraviolet light, as the radiation is effective at killing microbes. This project focuses on designing an autonomous robot that uses UV light and is capable of moving around its environment to disinfect touch surfaces. There’s many different moving parts involved in building a fully functional robot, and specifically, I am working on the aspect of motion-planning, aiming to determine a path for the UV source which provides every relevant surface with the appropriate dose of radiation for disinfection.

Bio:

My name is Ramya, and I’m majoring in mathematics and computer science at Harvey Mudd College. I’ve just completed my junior year. My current research interests are theoretical machine learning and AI, but I also love exploring other topics in math and CS. This summer, the research I’m doing is in the area of robotics. Other interests of mine include reading fiction, writing and playing badminton. I also learn Indian classical music and western classical piano, and spend a lot of my free time doing those. A couple of my favorite books are “The Rook” by Daniel O’Malley and “The Likeness” by Tana French.